Chapter 568 is today! (4k 2-in-1)
Putting down the telescope, Horn wiped the sweat-stained lenses with a handkerchief and handed them to Hakuto who was standing aside.
On the highest and steepest slope, Sheng Sun Mian stood in front of the assembled fireball crossbow, silently watching the two mercenary groups crossing the ditch and river beach.
Sure enough, these infantrymen chose to attack from the flanks as expected, forcing the Salvation Army to turn.
They still formed a large phalanx of 50X50 spears, but they added longbowmen and Eagle Foot Bay shield crossbowmen to the four corners of the phalanx.
These large shield crossbowmen would use pedal crossbows, which had pedals installed on the front of the crossbow arm.
When winding the string, hold down the pedals, hang the string on your belt, or simply pull it with your arms and use your waist strength to pull the bow, so that you can fire higher-pound crossbow arrows.
Although it can shoot through plate armor to a certain extent, it cannot exert as much power as lead bullets, nor can it be loaded as quickly as a clockwork gun.
Most of these infantrymen wore lath armor or chain armor. From the lookout mirror, he could see that the first three rows of these infantrymen were all wearing solid half-body plate armor.
Different from the loose phalanx formed by the guards and sergeants, the phalanx of the two mercenary groups is much tighter. The sword and shield bearers, halberd bearers, and axe gunners have clear divisions of labor and clear responsibilities.
After all, they are veterans who have been on the battlefield for more than ten years. In terms of personal martial arts, they are indeed better than these new recruits of the Salvation Army.
It must be said that these infantrymen are indeed elite, and Prince Condai also spent a lot of money.
It is a pity that the battlefield this time is on a mound. In such a narrow battlefield, such a thick and large square formation is the most inappropriate to advance.
Looking at the large phalanx marching slowly in the distance, Horn was actually in a trance for a moment.
Ever since he came to this world, the Imperial Company and the Church have always been a big mountain weighing on his head.
Originally, he didn't want to take any responsibility, but he was forced to become a saint grandson just to survive.
In fact, he didn't want to be a saint grandson at all at first. Everyone forced him to become one. If he didn't do it right, he would die.
It was not until the night of the Battle of Long Bridge that he was determined to die and carried everyone's hopes on his back.
But are the military chaplains’ propaganda of the Holy Word really in place? Can a high salary really be converted into combat effectiveness? Can they really gain morale and support from their tireless work and dedication day and night?
Horn lowered his head and stroked the hilt of Xue Zhanyun, did you really entrust it to the right person?
The fate of millions of people in Qianhe River Valley will be decided at this moment. All his efforts will be realized and tested at this moment, today!
Today!
Holding the blood covering the cloud tightly, Horn quickly cleared away his distracting thoughts.
When he looked up, Horn had been forgotten, and the only one left here was the saintly grandson who had everything in mind.
The sun shone directly on his face. He narrowed his eyes slightly and shouted: "Send the order, Jeanne will contain the enemy cavalry on the high ground. As previously rehearsed, the Chinese army will rotate around the right wing, and the left wing will delay the enemy." Army.”
"Yes, your Majesty."
The messenger held a small flag and waved it continuously on the mound, and the harsh whistle echoed in the corridor of the depression.
The ground shook, gravel rolled down the mounds, and cloth shoes and leather boots stepped on the wet ground.
Amidst the rustling footsteps, the war monks on the right held the bottom of their spears in their hands, leaned it on their shoulders, and began to turn slowly.
“Hey, they’re scared!”
Standing in the first row of the grand square, Northenberg, a ten-year veteran, couldn't help but smile.
Although they have mastered that terrible crossbow, these soldiers are farmers after all. They are as timid as mice after leaving the car formation.
Clenching the spear in his hand, Northumberk licked his lips that were chapped and bleeding from his smile, and moved his shoulders.
The blood flowed onto his yellow and black teeth, which looked extremely bloody.
Compared with Northumberk's ferocious smile, Griffin, as the commander, frowned.
The riverbanks and mounds are wide enough. Even if the war from the east is turned to the north, these shorthairs can still maintain a horizontal formation of twelve squadrons in two rows.
Then their goal - to force the Salvation Army into chaos, shorten their horizontal formation, and weaken their wind power - would be impossible to achieve.
The slopes and tops of slopes are obviously unable to accommodate a large square formation of nearly 3,000 people. Maintaining formation on flat ground and maintaining formation on slopes are two different concepts.
At this time, the large square formation of the Eagle Regiment had reached a distance of 150 meters.
The lead swished past the top of the helmet, creating a cloud of dust on the ground.
Sparks suddenly burst out from a mercenary's helmet, and he fell to the ground with a rumble in his throat.
“Fight back, fight back!”
Seeing the devilish wind from yesterday, Griffin immediately jumped behind a specially made large shield covered with cowhide and iron nails.
The crossbowmen on all sides put down their huge door shields, bowed their bodies, and loaded the heavy crossbows.
The long archers pulled the bow string to the corners of their mouths and raised it to a forty-five-degree angle. Their arms and shoulders trembled, and dense arrows rose like black mist.
With the sound of breaking through the air, this black mist enveloped the Salvation Army on the top of the slope. There was a constant thud, and the arrows inserted into the door panels, shields and sandbags were still trembling.
Although there are temporary fortifications and bunkers, from time to time, someone's arm or thigh will burst into a ball of blood, and they will scream or fall down with a groan.
"Medic, medic!"
"Here we come! Don't move, be careful not to pull out the arrow."
The orderly in the back row is carrying a round shield. He hunched his body, grabbed the soldiers' armpits, and dragged them towards the back row with difficulty.
Arrows and lead shot at each other in the air. At this distance, the holy gun was inaccurate but powerful, and the bow and arrow was accurate but weak.
Both sides have losses, but they are not big.
Looking at the Salvation Army troops walking quickly across the top of the mound, Griffin's forehead was covered with beads of sweat. He gritted his teeth and said: "Made, it's done, the first three in column 15 on the left Keep walking, those behind you don't move, wait until those in front reach the ramp before charging."
Picking up a heavy iron-covered kite-shaped shield, Griffin put on his iron gloves while the servants behind him. He followed with a flame-shaped heavy sword.
This sword is too long. Whether it is carried on the back or inserted in the waist, it cannot be pulled out. It can only be carried by someone.
Northumborg took three steps forward with his spear raised, and Griffin's shout came to his ears.
"Those in heavy armor put up their shields and stood at the front, and those with halberds and spears stood in the back. When I shouted, you charged at full speed and broke through the enemy formation. I will reward each of you... a reward. You get fifty acres of land for one gold pound! If you are dead, you will get double the amount!" Griffin bit his lip and roared while holding back his bleeding heart.
The mercenaries widened their eyes and couldn't believe their ears. The leader was risking his life today.
"I'm having a hard time. If I win, I'll be an earl." Griffin shouted with red eyes, "Well done, I'll reward you with a knighthood, no problem!"
< br>Bounty! knight!
Many mercenaries who frowned with disdain immediately stood at attention, and questions came from the crowd: "Are you keeping your word? Captain, you can't break your promise."
"It's true! When we attacked Shacheng, I Is the land allocated one acre less?" Griffin said in the shape of a kite. The bottom of the shield hit the ground, "If you can't get the money, I'll use my mother-in-law and daughter to pay the bill!"
"I accepted your mother-in-law with a smile, but I don't want your daughter to take care of you."
A burst of laughter immediately came from the battle formation.
Griffin spat on the ground: "Don't be poor, a group of farmers, with the power of the devil, are also farmers! Charge over, we will be the masters!"
After hearing the news, the mercenaries who were originally planning to fish became energetic, and Northumborg couldn't help but smile.
Although Griffin only encouraged them, Northumberk, who had not fought against the Salvation Army yesterday, took it seriously.
A group of farmers who have obtained the power of the devil... I heard them blowing so loudly yesterday, but today I saw it, is this it?
Hiding on the mound, I only know how to hurt people with shields and crossbows, and these shots are not accurate.
Northumbock made his fortune by killing farmers. There are only 80 farmers under him, if not a hundred, how can he still be afraid?
At the sound of the order, although the mercenaries did not have strict discipline and rules, they had too much battlefield experience and quickly changed from a horizontal team to a column.
"Charge!" Looking at the Salvation Army on the top of the mound, Griffin took the lead and charged forward with his shield.
"Charge! Victory!"
"Kill him, the one raised by a witch!"
"Ula——"
"F*ck the shit picker!"
Amidst the war cries, swear words and colloquialisms from all over the place, the mercenaries hid their heads behind kite-shaped shields and kite shields, and lined up in neat formation to face the soil. Killed on the slope.
The sound of footsteps shook the entire mound, and the gravel on the ground shook, causing the expressions of many war monks to change slightly. "Stand still, let me see whoever dares to move!" Legion Commander Le Fay sprinted to the front of the formation with a feather gun. The soldiers who were slightly shaken at first straightened their bodies immediately.
As Le Fay glanced over them, there was a faint phantom pain in their thighs and buttocks, making them afraid to move.
"Look at the boys of the Black Champion next door, look at you again, you bastards!" Le Fay walked to the side of the team with a feather gun and shouted at the holy gunmen, "Fire two guns for them."
Then, he walked to the back line and faced the nearby mound. The commander of the Guards Corps on the top shouted: "Send two holy gunners from the fifty-man team to come to the mound next door and shoot on the flanks."
"You owe me a bottle of wine." The commander of the regiment next door The shouts swayed among the depressions and ditches, and they actually felt a bit hazy.
"I'll give you a booger, hurry up."
"Am I killing you!"
Although he was cursing, the commander of the rear army did not delay at all. The two division captains of the fifty-man team ran from the ridge between the two mounds to the other side of the mound.
Here Le Fay is still communicating cordially with the legion commander on the other side, and the holy cannons have already started to be fired from the front.
This group of mercenaries are all elite veterans, and their morale and training are at a level that is higher than that of the guards. Although the road is uphill, the speed has not slowed down at all.
“Praise the Holy Wind!”
The comb-like lead swept across the charging column, and a large piece of the first three rows fell instantly with a crackling sound.
The wounded soldiers lay on the roadside, curling up and twitching in pain, clutching their wounds.
But since it was a column charge, the people in the back row had nothing to do. This is why Le Fay had to shake people and shoot from the flank.
At the rear of the team, a row of feather arrows flew up neatly and landed in the battle formation of the spearmen in the front row.
Amidst a series of muffled sounds, a dozen of the spearmen in the front row also fell. Unless they were unlucky enough to be shot in the throat, it was basically difficult to kill them due to their armor protection.
These people either walked to the side to give up their positions, or they were dragged away by the orderlies, and the spearmen from the rear took their place.
Fifty steps, forty steps, thirty steps!
Northumborg silently counted the steps in his mind as he ran. His cheeks were punched in half by a lead, and the half-shattered face not only did not frighten him, but made him extremely angry.
"Slow down and prepare to push the spear!"
The veterans quickly slowed down their pace, and the entire team also changed their status and stretched out their spear array.
“Level the spear!”
Griffin's command came to his ears, and Northumberk laughed. He could already clearly see the cowardly faces of the peasant soldiers in the front row.
They actually dare to use this kind of spear, and they don’t put a shield in the front row. Want to fight with veterans like them?
That’s ridiculous!
“Charge!”
“Farmers, the guards are coming!” Northumberk, who was charging with his head covered, raised his head and shouted this sentence. He cut off the heads of countless farmers. The war cry of time.
Just one roar can scare those cowardly farmers, just like today.
It’s just that today’s farmer is so cowardly that he doesn’t even have any fear on his face.
Northern Burke, with half of his teeth exposed on one side of his cheek, looked extremely ferocious. Compared to the silent war monk, he roared like a lion: "Go to hell, unclean one!"
Northern Burke stamped his right foot on the ground and swung out the spear in his hand towards the monk in black.
Of course the blow went smoothly. The spear in the farmer's hand was loose and fell to the ground in one sweep.
The farmer took advantage of the situation and knelt on the ground. Was he preparing to beg for mercy?
When Northumborg sneered, he suddenly felt something was wrong, because the farmer kneeling in front of him suddenly jumped forward and rolled to his legs.
In an instant, a warm liquid spurted out from his ankle.
Northern Burke immediately felt as if he had lost all strength in his left leg below the ankle, and he could no longer stand still.
“Damn farmer, despicable farmer!”
Frightened and angry, he tried to kick the farmer away, but was easily dodged.
At the same time, four or five long guns were launched, aiming like snakes and scorpions at Northumberk's throat, thighs, arms and other weakly protected areas.
In the past, Northumberk would have definitely been able to avoid it.
But now, he tried his best and still let three spears pierce through his thighs and arms.
When it was pulled out, blood poured down like a waterfall.
"Damn, damn..." Northumborg said hoarsely, trying to stagger back, but he slipped on his back due to blood loss and imbalance.
When his back hit the ground, before he could even cry out in pain, the soldier who was kneeling just now came over with a short knife in his mouth.
With a light touch on Northumberk's throat, he rolled to the feet of other mercenaries.
"Farmer, farmer..." Lying on his back in a pool of blood, Northumberk twitched and stared at countless legs and feet passing by with his eyes open.
The legs and feet of countless farmers are hairy and have shit on their soles.
The spears and the wooden shafts of the spears collided intensively, blocking the sun from Northumberk, who was pale and motionless.
Under the spears pushing each other, the Salvation Army's Prancing Soldiers bit their daggers, grabbed their sabers, squatted or kneeled, and slashed the calves of the opposite Eagle Regiment mercenaries crazily under the spears, and even It's the lower abdomen.
Obviously the mercenaries were the ones charging, but they were slapped back like waves hitting the dam.
The resilience and training of these farmers are far beyond the imagination of the mercenaries.
When all the shield soldiers in the front row were cleared by the holy guns, those hateful leaping soldiers grabbed their weak points without leg armor and harassed them crazily under the spears.
The two sides cooperated with the gunmen on the side, and they actually beat these veterans back again and again.
At this time, the crunching sound of clockwork finally came from the mounds on both sides. The mercenaries who had fought with the Salvation Army in the small village yesterday immediately squatted down.
The mercenaries who were still wondering about the behavior of their companions quickly learned a lesson.
Continuous gunshots were launched from both sides, and holy winds struck both sides of the column. Under the intensive wind, corpses rolled down the hillside one after another.
"Boss Griffin, I can't stand it anymore." Holding the flame-shaped sword, the attendant shrank his head and shouted with a sad face.
The soldiers on the outside of the front row continued to break up and fled from both sides to the rear.
Of the 750 old mercenaries, 200 are about to fall. It is a miracle that they can hold on until now. If they don't run away, I'm afraid the remaining ones will collapse.
Griffin's shoulder was bleeding profusely. He looked at the follow-up troops who had climbed up, gritted his teeth and glanced at the turning holy gunmen on both sides, and slapped his thigh suddenly: "Withdraw!"< br>
After all, there were gunmen on both sides. Even if the follow-up troops arrived, they would still be shot to the ground.
The ramp is so narrow that their troops cannot deploy.
Since there is no way to break through, the frontal attack has failed, and we can only try to sneak up from the side for a surprise attack.
But in the meantime, we have to go down and let the second team go downhill first, otherwise the two teams will collide.
"Withdraw the troops, withdraw the troops. There are holy winds on both sides, so we can't rush forward." Griffin waved the flag towards the troops behind him.
They lined up in a narrower queue, with only 5 rows. Isn’t this for the gunmen to send out blows?
However, these soldiers seemed not to hear or see, and were still charging straight up.
"Didn't you hear that? Get out!" Griffin covered his shoulders and shouted angrily at the leader of the company.
"Boss, it's not that we don't want to withdraw." A company captain shouted with a sad face, "The knights of the imperial company are killing deserters in the back!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Ge Riffen felt the mound shaking like an earthquake. When he looked up, he saw a black shadow passing by like a phantom.
Under the strong wind, Griffin almost fell to the ground.
That was—hundreds of knights rushing up the mound!
Wait, Griffin blinked, why does the fat man rushing at the front seem to be Prince Condai? !
(End of this chapter)