Chapter 1 Sun Bo's Decision

Sun Bo agreed without any hesitation. He was even a little displeased that Ye Tao had sent someone to ask him; was there even a need to ask about such a thing? Heavy infantry was meant to undertake the most arduous tasks, to be the mainstay of the entire army in a decisive battle, to crush the enemy in attack, and to wear them down in defense. The casualty rate of heavy infantry had indeed been low, but that was because, in Sun Bo's view, since the formation of the Blood Kirin Army, the battles they had experienced were not of a sufficient scale. Since light infantry could sacrifice themselves, since the cavalry brothers could risk their lives braving arrows and falling rocks to charge into the enemy lines, since the scout cavalry were constantly on the edge of life and death conveying military intelligence to them, then their heavy infantry would naturally dare to sacrifice themselves as well, no different from their comrades.

As for what method Ye Tao would employ, Sun Bo also had a good idea. In his view, if it were an ordinary unit, they would inevitably panic under tremendous pressure and could collapse at any time, and a single misstep could result in severe casualties. But the Blood Kirin Army had never been an ordinary unit. The Blood Kirin Army was the strongest in all aspects, be it combat power, fighting will, sense of honor, and so on. And now, they had a reason why they absolutely could not retreat a single step.

Sun Bo roared out commands, and the heavy infantry formation quickly adjusted. Originally, it was a relatively loose, offense-and-defense formation that was convenient for wielding the two-handed long-handled greatsword to its full killing potential. But in less than three minutes, although the formation retreated nearly twenty paces, it was adjusted into a denser defensive formation. Tower shields were placed at the very front, with spaces left between the shields for the long-handled greatswords to conveniently strike out and kill. The Northern Liao army, which was already struggling to attack, was now even more helpless against this formation. But the officers kept pressing them, and they kept surging forward, wearing down the stamina and will of the Blood Kirin Army soldiers. Moreover, anything could happen on the battlefield. Although the heavy infantry soldiers' new heavy armor already represented the pinnacle of heavy armor technology in the age of cold weapons, it was still impossible to completely protect against all attacks, and some soldiers would always be injured. Once a soldier was injured, he would immediately inform the soldier behind him, find an opportunity to switch positions, and then retreat to the back to bandage and rest. If a soldier felt that his stamina was failing, they would do the same. The heavy infantry unit had said before going into battle that they should not risk their lives from the start. There were only so many of them, and they should try to preserve themselves as much as possible, rotating and resting in shifts… They had to fight hard; there was no choice.

As the heavy infantry formation contracted, the Northern Liao army naturally followed closely. Several officers noticed that the firepower of the Blood Kirin Army's heavy ordnance battalion had weakened, and the rate of fire had begun to become unstable. And the troop-carrying boats on the water quickly rushed onto the beach, preparing to attack. In the distance from the water's edge all the way to the Blood Kirin Army's formation, a large number of Northern Liao soldiers were jammed together. They roared and clamored, charging against the heavy infantry formation time and time again. And some officers suddenly realized that the Blood Kirin Army's longbow battalion's shooting had become sparse, as if they were now relying solely on those heavy infantry to resist.

"What's wrong with the Blood Kirin Army? The battle hasn't been going on for long. With the Blood Kirin Army's combat power, it shouldn't be a lack of stamina, right?" Zhang Lixian muttered. Immediately, he reacted: "Not good, they're deliberately attracting our troops over there…"

But it was too late for Zhang Lixian to react. Suddenly, in his binoculars, bursts of fire oil bombs appeared. This time, the heavy ordnance battalion was not firing single shots, but instead, they loaded a row of fire oil bombs onto the catapult's rails and fired them out. This did shorten the range quite a bit. Moreover, they could only ensure that the nearest range wouldn't hit their own people. As for the scattering of the shots or the furthest range, they couldn't care about any of it. However, when all the catapults fired together, they launched a barrage of fire over the densely populated area of the Northern Liao army… The bright fire of the explosions instantly enveloped the entire riverbank. When the explosive flames subsided into bright tongues of fire, the entire riverbank was filled with wails of anguish. Through the flames, one could vaguely see that before the heavy infantry unit was covered by a large number of fire oil bombs, the entire formation leaned towards the center in an instant, and two rows of thick tower shields supported a huge, seamless inclined plane, diverting the flames and shockwaves surging towards them to the sides and above… What a difficult tactical maneuver that was.

Since the Blood Kirin Army was playing it this way, they naturally wouldn't let go of the Northern Liao soldiers who were still screaming in misery. The longbow battalion, which had rested a little, spoke up, and three consecutive rounds of shooting transitioned from direct fire to curved fire to parabolic fire, densely covering the entire riverbank. Even if there were any surviving Northern Liao soldiers, there weren't many. And the Blood Kirin Army didn't even bother to clean up the battlefield. There were no decent enemies in front of them anymore. Through the binoculars, the Northern Liao generals on the opposite bank could clearly see that the Blood Kirin Army's formation had returned to what it was before, and then with a shout of "Rest in place," the soldiers sat down on the spot to rest, wearing their armor and carrying their weapons. And the baggage train troops quickly delivered food and water, allowing everyone to eat hot food during the gaps in the Northern Liao army's attacks. The accompanying doctors also rushed up at once to provide emergency treatment for the injured soldiers. Everything seemed to be in good order.

The Blood Kirin Army appeared so calm and collected, but the Northern Liao side had no way to deal with it. Such a barrage not only killed more than two thousand Northern Liao soldiers on the riverbank in one go, but also greatly demoralized the Northern Liao army. Allowing the Blood Kirin Army to recover a little stamina wasn't a problem at all.

"Heh heh… Indeed, they're powerful." Zhang Lixian laughed in anger and said, "Let the soldiers eat. Continue the attack after the meal."

In this rare lull in the fighting, Sun Bo quickly ran to the command post to report the situation to Ye Tao. This tactic of relying on the heavy infantry to withstand the majority of the enemy troops, attracting them to a narrow area, and then covering them with firepower, was not the first time they had played it, but it was indeed the first time they had put it into practice. And the fire oil bombs had landed less than a zhang (a bit over 10 feet) away from the shield wall at the closest point. Even though he was brave, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous. Fortunately, judging from the shooting results, the heavy ordnance battalion had obviously performed very well. This kind of operation not only killed a large number of enemy troops, but also gained them rest time. Sun Bo had come to ask if they should just keep playing it round after round.

"What are your casualties?" Ye Tao asked.

"Originally, it was a fully manned heavy infantry battalion. Now, forty-seven are dead, two hundred and ten are seriously injured and unable to continue fighting, and three hundred and sixty-two are lightly wounded. Combat power is maintained at more than 80%," Sun Bo replied calmly. The surrounding officers were silent. Maintaining more than 80% of combat power was actually the most tragic casualty figure for the Blood Kirin Army in a very long time. Withdrawing the light infantry and relying entirely on the heavy infantry to hold the line, this tactic was effective, and it effectively reduced the overall casualty figures of the small half of the Blood Kirin Army that Ye Tao had brought, but it required the heavy infantry battalion to bear the vast majority of the pressure. And Sun Bo's statement of maintaining more than 80% of combat power was obviously including the lightly wounded soldiers in the combat ranks.

"If there is an opportunity, I will still fight like this, but the opponent will learn. Keep a close watch on the front, and I will let the light infantry battalion take over at any time," Ye Tao said after thinking for a while. "Seize the time to rest. It was really a last resort to make you hold on for so long."

Everyone knew that heavy infantry was a very difficult type of soldier. The usual training was monotonous and boring. Apart from building strength and training endurance, it was repeating the most basic tactical movements such as wielding a blade, raising a shield, and forming a formation. There were also quite lively guys in the heavy infantry battalion. When they took off their armor, they were extremely active in the army, but as soon as they put on their armor, they immediately became firm and composed, because that was what they needed for combat.

Sun Bo nodded after hearing Ye Tao's instructions and said, "Yes, Marshal Ye."

"Are there any difficulties?" Ye Tao asked.

"Marshal Ye, don't worry. The brothers are all good men," Sun Bo saluted and then left silently. Even though Sun Bo was skilled in both tactics and technology and was already a rare expert in the army, the fierce battle just now had exhausted him a lot. When he ran up, he was still carrying the excitement of the battle just now, but when he ran down the steps, wearing his heavy armor and not taking it off, he almost staggered and fell.

Ye Tao sighed. War was so cruel. Now, they were facing an enemy that was no longer ignorant of the Blood Kirin Army like in White Stone City, an enemy that was completely unfamiliar with the Blood Kirin Army's tactics, but a Northern Liao army that had been training for many years with the Blood Kirin Army as a hypothetical enemy. Although the Blood Kirin Army was tenacious, Ye Tao was still pained by fighting a war of attrition.

Zhang Lixian originally wanted to invite Gao Senqi to continue commanding the battle in the afternoon, but after Gao Senqi heard the battle situation, he only said silently: "If I go up there, will there be any difference?" He continued to let Zhang Lixian lead the entire army. And Zhang Lixian had no choice but to bite the bullet and go up. They had been repulsed in the morning, and the casualties were not small. After lunch, Zhang Lixian completely began to implement the tactic of rotating attacks with the entire unit. First of all, twenty thousand people were pressing up. Now, the pontoon bridge had been built across the center of the river, and some soldiers who were good at swimming could even carry weapons and swim across a short section of the river. The delivery of troops was much better than relying entirely on ships in the morning. This also relieved Zhang Lixian a little.

The heavy ordnance battalion was not shooting randomly now either. It seemed unrealistic to destroy the pontoon bridge on the Northern Liao side. The Northern Liao side had actually used ropes to connect the planks of the pontoon bridge. Even if they destroyed a section, they could repair it a little and use it again. The shelling could only play a disruptive role, but it could not stop the opponent from constantly extending the pontoon bridge. The heavy ordnance battalion simply concentrated its firepower on the riverbank, waiting to gather the enemies together and strike them together. The pressure was great for Sun Bo and his soldiers, but it was the most effective method.

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Cough, although it's a bit late, I managed to maintain the weekly update, please forgive me everyone.