20demayo Chapter 842 Xiang Yu can’t hold back any longer, and his personal guards come on the scene!
Chapter 842 Xiang Yu can’t hold back any longer, and his personal guards come on the scene!
Below the city walls, Xiang Yu appeared before the central army, his halberd raised high, a cold gleam in the morning light. His pupils were fixed on the black-armored figure atop the city walls, filled with brutality and a determination to kill.
“Attack the city——!!!”
Xiang Yu's roar was like thunder out of the blue, instantly igniting the fighting spirit of the Chu army!
"Kill--!"
The deafening shouts of killing swept over like a tsunami! At the same time, the bows and crossbows of the Chu army in Guanxia were launched!
"Om-!"
Arrows, covering the sky and sun, with piercing screams, poured down crazily on the top of Yangping Pass like locusts! A new round of bloody strangulation began again in the bleak light of the rising sun!
Deafening cries of killing erupted like a boiling cauldron, instantly erupting throughout Yangping Pass! A new round of strangulation had entered its most brutal, white-hot phase from the outset! The Chu army's offensive was even more ferocious and swifter than the previous day! Trampling the still-dry blood of their comrades, the soldiers, braving the hail of arrows and tumbling stones from the city walls, rushed recklessly towards the walls like a pack of driven wolves. Xiang Yu commanded the central army, a cold fire burning in his pupils. Without even a hint of hesitation, he immediately launched his strongest siege echelon, intending to crush the crumbling defenses with a single, overwhelming surge of force!
After yesterday's bloody battle, Xiang Yu had pieced together the truth about the bizarre meat-grinding ground on the city wall from the wounded soldiers who had retreated. He understood Gao Yao's sinister intentions—forgoing the greatest advantage of long-range suppression through the height of the city walls, and instead actively shrinking the battlefield to the narrow city walls, using a handful of his elite personal soldiers to engage in a brutal close-quarters war of attrition within the confined space!
In Xiang Yu's view, this was a foolish act of cutting off one's own arm!
Yangping Pass was known as a natural barrier precisely because it was nestled in a steep valley, requiring only a single assault. The defenders could exploit the height difference, using long-range tactics like rain of arrows, rolling logs and rocks, and kerosene to inflict heavy casualties on the attackers as they climbed. By abandoning these powerful weapons, Gao Yao had effectively dismantled his strongest shield.
Confining the battlefield to the city walls certainly prevented accidental casualties from their own arrows, but it also meant that once the city walls were lost, the defenders would no longer have a buffer zone in depth and would instantly face being driven off the walls and routed into the interior! There was no way out!
Most importantly, Xiang Yu firmly believed that even the most elite soldiers were still human! After yesterday's intense fighting, the personal guards must have been exhausted, wounded and exhausted. How long could they hold out today? An hour? Two hours? Gao Yao had dared to resort to such a desperate measure. Xiang Yu was absolutely certain that before sunset, he would completely drain this last vestige of resistance with a wave of men and hoist the flag of victory atop the Yangping Pass tower!
"Black Tiger!" Xiang Yu's roar penetrated the noise of the battlefield, like a tiger roaring in the mountains.
"Yes!" A muffled, thunderous reply boomed beside Xiang Yu. A towering figure emerged. Nearly nine feet tall, his muscles bulging like they threatened to rip the heavy armor apart. A hideous scar slashed across his dark face, running from his brow to the corner of his mouth. His eyes shone with the ferocity of a devouring beast. This was Xiang Yu's most ferocious personal guard commander—Black Tiger!
"Go! Bring your Tiger Guards and tear open the city wall! Take Yangping Pass!" Xiang Yu pointed his halberd at the top of the city wall, full of murderous intent.
"Your Majesty, please wait for good news!" Black Tiger grinned, revealing his sharp white teeth, a smile filled with pure bloodlust. With a sudden wave of his hand, over a hundred heavily armored warriors, silent as a mountain, sprang into action like killing machines upon receiving their orders! These were Xiang Yu's true ace guards—the Tiger Guards. Each one clad in finely wrought iron armor, wielding a long-handled battle axe or a heavy halberd. Their gazes were cold, their auras as condensed as the abyss. Their combat prowess was no less than that of Gao Yao's personal guards!
Like a tiger descending from the mountains, Black Tiger led this hundred-man squadron, emitting a breath of death, straight towards the section of the city wall where the fighting was most intense. His heavy iron boots thumped through the mud and blood, making a dull rumble. Wherever he passed, ordinary Chu soldiers stepped aside, clearing the way for him to charge.
Meanwhile, atop the city walls, Gao Yao had already transformed into a bloodthirsty killer! He knew full well that this was a matter of life and death, and he had to be ruthless and squeeze every ounce of his potential to buy time for that hidden "surprise" and fight for a slim chance of survival!
He threw away his lance, and the scarlet sword, which was completely red and seemed to have flames flowing inside the sword, was already unsheathed!
“Clang!”
The dragon-like roar of the sword briefly overwhelmed the roars of the battlefield! The moment Chi Xiao grasped the sword in his hand, Gao Yao's entire aura shifted! An indescribable, terrifying aura, a mixture of imperial majesty and Asura's murderous intent, spread out from him like a tangible wave!
He took a step forward, his figure as fast as lightning, and crashed directly into the group of Chu soldiers who had just climbed up the battlements!
The sword light rises!
There were no complicated moves, only the simplest, most direct chopping, stabbing, slashing, and wiping! The Scarlet Sky Sword transformed into a crimson storm of death in his hands! Wherever the sword's edge touched, whether it was sturdy leather armor, finely forged iron, or even flesh and blood, it was all torn apart like rotten wood and rotting grass!
"Puff!" A head flew up into the sky, and blood from the neck splattered over a few feet!
"Crack!" A blocking ring-handled sword was cut off along with the arm holding the sword!
"Hiss!" The heavy shield was split diagonally, along with the chest of the soldier behind the shield!
Gao Yao's figure weaved through the crowd, sending limbs flying and blood pouring down everywhere he passed! The Scarlet Sky Sword seemed to come alive, humming excitedly, its crimson glow swirling endlessly. Even a faint dragon-like shadow flashed through the bloody mist! It thirsted for the blood of its enemies, its unparalleled sharpness unleashed to its fullest potential. No weapon could withstand its blow!
Even more terrifying was the invisible imperial pressure, which caused the Chu soldiers near Gao Yao to feel an instinctive fear from the depths of their hearts, as if they were facing the might of heaven! Their movements involuntarily slowed down and they flinched, as if they were facing not a human, but an emperor who held the power over life and death!
"Anyone who stands in my way will die!" Gao Yao roared, his voice resounding throughout the surrounding area! He was covered in blood, unable to distinguish whether it was the enemy's or his own. His armor had long since been dyed a dark red, but only the Chixiao in his hand shone brighter and brighter!
Under the leadership of Gao Yao, the god of death, the already exhausted soldiers of the Royal Guards felt like they had been given a shot of adrenaline! With the king leading the charge, slaughtering the enemy with divine might, what reason was there for them to retreat? Their remaining fighting spirit was completely ignited, erupting with a ferocity far beyond their limits! They roared, trading wounds for wounds, risking their lives, clinging to their respective positions!