The remaining soldiers of the Heavenly Fire Army who had fallen to the ground and were still alive all managed to get back on their feet.
"Young Master!"
Zhu Zi, with his eyes red-rimmed, walked over to Fang Er.
"Tell me, how many brothers have died!"
Fang Er's voice was very calm, but his heart was bleeding. These were his foundation!
"Young Master, we lost over a hundred brothers, and injured five to six hundred more. Most of them have burns; it's unknown if they will survive!"
Zhu Zi's voice trembled. These brothers were all trained by him personally! From Chang'an to Pyongyang, a journey of four to five thousand li, no one complained of hardship, no one cried fatigue! They had swept through Liaodong, Shenyang, and Dandong, pushing forward unopposed! Although the fighting outside Shenyang city was not smooth, not a single man had died! Yet this time, over a hundred brothers had fallen forever! They would never rise again!
"The fallen brothers will not die in vain! Gather the brothers, and we fight again!"
Fang Er stood up, his voice icy as he spoke to Zhu Zi.
"Yes, Young Master!"
Zhu Zi turned and looked at the surrounding soldiers.
"The Earl has ordered! Fight again!"
"Fight again!"
"Fight again!"
"Fight again!"
Four thousand soldiers, with the remaining able-bodied totaling three thousand after casualties, roared in unison! When had they ever suffered such a loss? Since their formation, they had always swept all before them! This was their shame, a shame that had to be washed away with the enemy's blood!
Fang Er pushed aside the soldiers guarding him and walked to the artillery position. He looked at Yang Zhihua, who was installing fuses.
"How many more shells?"
Yang Zhihua replied, "Reporting to the Earl, there are less than two thousand rounds left!" The previous bombardment and the losses inflicted by Goguryeo had consumed more than half of their ammunition.
Fang Er grabbed Yang Zhihua.
"Fire them all for me! Push forward!"
"I want to bloody Pyongyang! To give an account to our fallen brothers!"
"Yes!"
Yang Zhihua was also filled with rage, because his closest friend, Li Da Long, was gone!
"Volley fire! Push towards the cavalry!"
Yang Zhihua shouted loudly at the artillerymen.
Cheng Yaojin and Chai Shao were stunned! Facing the cavalry charge, Fang Er still wanted to push forward!
"Brother, pushing forward might not be advisable?"
Cheng Yaojin looked worried.
"Anzhi, I know you're not feeling well, but pushing forward is too risky, isn't it?"
Chai Shao also tried to persuade him.
"Brother Cheng, Father-in-law, I know what I'm doing! Just watch."
Fang Er said calmly. The two men said no more.
The artillery and firearm troops employed the same tactics as outside Shenyang city. They fired in volleys and then advanced towards Pyongyang!
Eulji Mundeok, who was at the forefront of the mounted archers, was bewildered. The previous explosions had severely shaken them, and many archers had been thrown from their horses. Their warhorses had just been pacified, and now they saw the Tang army resuming its artillery bombardment.
Meanwhile, King Rongliu on the city wall had absolutely no idea! Due to the inferior quality of Goguryeo's gunpowder, it had not achieved the effect he had anticipated. Although the previous scene was spectacular, it was merely the gunpowder igniting rapidly! Rapid ignition and explosion were entirely different concepts! Because the areas where the gunpowder was buried had been trampled by the Tang army, there was only a thin layer of soil over the gunpowder. When ignited, the gunpowder burned quickly, releasing the pressure and breaking through the thin soil layer, allowing the gas to escape rapidly! Therefore, the Tang army's casualties were primarily burn injuries! Only in isolated areas where the soil layer was thicker did sporadic explosions occur, with the resulting shockwaves knocking Tang soldiers to the ground. He had initially thought that by igniting the gunpowder, he could annihilate the Tang army, and seeing the Tang soldiers lying on the ground indeed gave him hope. However, why had the Tang army recovered its combat strength so quickly?
Not only was he bewildered, but the Goguryeo cavalry charging from the flanks towards the Tang army was also confused! After a brief moment of confusion, the Goguryeo army descended into chaos!
They are not human! They are devils from hell! If they don't die from this, how can we win this war?
At that moment, the morale of the Goguryeo army completely collapsed! Deserters began to appear!
"No! I don't want to go and die!"
"I want to go home!"
"I'm not married yet! I don't want to die!"
From the edges of the cavalry formation, scattered soldiers cried out and fled, leaving the main force and heading into the distance. Desertion was contagious! With the first one, there was a second! And then! The entire Goguryeo army began to experience a massive rout of its cavalry!
Seeing this scene, King Rongliu on the city wall collapsed onto the ground.
"It's over! Our six-hundred-year-old dynasty will be buried by my hand!"
"I am a sinner! I am a sinner!"
Tears streamed from King Rongliu's eyes! He could already imagine the scene after his death, being questioned by past kings and ancestors with their fingers pointed at him!
Fang Er, leading the artillery corps and the Heavenly Fire Army, advanced step by step towards Pyongyang city, exerting unbearable pressure on the Goguryeo army! Eulji Mundeok could no longer control the ten thousand mounted archers behind him! Looking at his fleeing subordinates, Eulji Mundeok gritted his teeth! He plunged his sword into the hindquarters of his warhorse! The horse, startled, charged towards the Tang army with all its might!
"Hahahaha!"
"A man should die like a man!"
"Come! Kill me!"
Eulji Mundeok roared with laughter on his horse!
"Cease fire!"
Fang Er shouted. The firearms and mortars fell silent simultaneously.