The Zhao army was unaware of the situation at the gate of Yanmen City.
When they saw Yanmen City’s gate right before their eyes, the Zhao generals and soldiers were all greatly shocked.
They could already sense that victory was within reach.
“Yanmen is just ahead, charge, my soldiers!”
“Attack! Break through Yanmen’s city gate!”
“Slay our way in, retake Yanmen, and kill Lin Tian of Qin!”
Although they had encountered minor setbacks earlier, causing casualties and slightly impacting morale, now, with Yanmen City’s gate in sight and victory imminent, they felt their previous sacrifices were worthwhile.
The generals in the rear, witnessing this scene, were also filled with elation.
Many were ready to charge into Yanmen alongside the main army.
Only Li Mu, standing at the very back, felt a sense of unease.
Despite their losses, was taking Yanmen this easily plausible?
Did the Qin Sword God, Lin Tian, truly possess no more skill than this?
This question currently had no answer for him.
However, Yanmen City’s gate was now before their army, leaving him no time for hesitation.
“Charge!!”
This was Li Mu’s command, the order for their entire ten-thousand-strong army to charge.
The retaking of Yanmen would happen now.
The Zhao soldiers clearly felt Li Mu’s resolve and charged forward with all their might.
After a few dozen breaths, under the fierce assault of the Zhao army, Yanmen City’s gate creaked open.
The Zhao soldiers saw light entering their eyes, which brought them immense joy.
“It’s open, Yanmen City’s gate is open!”
“Charge! Slay our way into Yanmen!”
With Yanmen City’s gate wide open, their time to slay the enemy had arrived.
Without any hesitation, the Zhao soldiers surged forward, a throng of them pushing their way in.
Having finally opened the city gate, they couldn’t let Lin Tian’s army close it again.
However, as they pushed the gates open, they realized something was amiss.
What greeted their eyes was not the Qin army, but herds of cattle.
Moreover, sharp blades were tied to the horns of these cattle.
This sight immediately alerted the Zhao soldiers to the danger.
“Bad! An ambush!”
“Something’s wrong, quick…!”
The Zhao soldiers at the forefront knew the situation was dire, but they had no idea where the danger lay.
They also didn't understand the purpose of these cattle.
It wasn’t until the burning materials attached to the cows' tails were ignited.
“Moo!!”
The burning materials set fire to the cows’ tails, causing many of them to panic.
Flames erupted, further terrifying the cattle.
They tried to escape, stampeding in all directions.
However, their sides and rear were blocked by numerous chevaux de frise.
Their only path forward was straight ahead.
The next moment, this herd of cattle charged forward like mad.
Their speed was no less than that of any warhorse.
More importantly, they possessed immense strength, and with blades tied to their horns, their charge was a devastating disaster for the Zhao army.
Many Zhao soldiers didn’t even have time to react before being sent flying by the stampeding cattle.
Even those not thrown off their feet were directly gored by the sharp blades on the horns.
Anyone gored suffered severe injuries, with many losing limbs or having their abdomens ripped open.
Some were even cut in half.
This was undoubtedly terrifying for the Zhao soldiers.
However, what was even more terrifying was their inability to control these rampaging cattle.
If Qin soldiers were charging at them, they could fight back and stop the assault.
But now, a herd of cattle was charging at them. Not only were they thick-skinned, but they were also immensely strong and massive.
The Zhao soldiers could do nothing to stop their charge.
Their only hope was to retreat.
Therefore, as these mad cows charged out, shouts of terror filled the air.
“No! Don’t come closer, don’t come near me!!”
“Retreat, retreat quickly! The mad cows are coming!”
“Scatter, everyone scatter quickly!”
Only those who had been hit by the mad cows understood their terror.
Not to mention the sharp blades tied to their horns.
So, as they charged out, a large number of Zhao soldiers fell.
Worse still, a massive number of their soldiers had gathered together to attack Yanmen’s city gate.
Even if they wanted to retreat, there was no way out.
Facing the mad cows, many instinctively raised their weapons to defend themselves.
Many of the mad cows were injured by their resistance, which only made them more frenzied.
They began to charge in all directions, directly into the Zhao army.
This charge was utterly chaotic; even Zhao soldiers mounted on warhorses were knocked over by the mad cows.
In just a few dozen breaths, thousands of Zhao soldiers had died beneath the mad cows.
Fires ignited by the mad cows raged everywhere, and the screams of Zhao soldiers echoed throughout the battlefield. The Zhao generals were at a loss.
However, this charge was merely the beginning.
The mad cows were still within the Zhao army, and Zhao soldiers continued to die.
Moreover, these mad cows’ tails still burned, and the flames showed no sign of stopping them.
When Li Mu witnessed this scene, his face turned ashen.
“This, this is… the Fire Ox Formation!!”
Throughout history, the Fire Ox Formation had been used before; legend had it that General Tian Dan of Qi had used it to decisively defeat the Yan army.
However, this legend was from a long time ago, with few records and no definitive proof.
Therefore, the Fire Ox Formation was not recorded in military texts, and many were unaware of it.
Li Mu only remembered the existence of the Fire Ox Formation when over a thousand fire oxen charged out.
But it was clearly too late now.
“Scatter, scatter quickly! Let these fire oxen pass!”
Li Mu and the others tried to order their soldiers to scatter and let the fire oxen pass, thus minimizing their losses.
But now, not only were the fire oxen stampeding wildly, but their soldiers were in a similar state of panic, their formations completely broken.
The order to scatter was given, but very few could comply.
They could only watch helplessly as their soldiers perished under the charge of the fire oxen.
And this was not the most terrifying part. What truly struck dread into the hearts of the Zhao generals was that after all the fire oxen from within Yanmen had charged out, Lin Tian’s soldiers followed closely behind, also charging out.