Upon hearing Lanling’s words, Ninian was about to explode with anger. She had never suffered such humiliation before.
Instantly, her beautiful eyes turned cold. She looked at Lanling and said, “You should know that between you and Du Yan, we can only choose one. And since you have given up this opportunity, then we can only choose Du Yan.”
Lanling’s expression turned serious, and he said, “Very well, I agree.”
Ninian was startled.
Then, she fell into conflict.
So what if Lanling agreed? It was completely just a verbal agreement. What use was that?
“What proof do you have?” Ninian said.
Lanling said, “I will help you get rid of your brother, guaranteed without anyone knowing.”
Instantly Ninian was frightened, and she shook her head and said, “You know full well that is impossible. My father still has several decades left. What I need now is to cultivate forces loyal to me.”
Lanling smiled and said, “Then what proof do you use to prove others’ loyalty to you?”
Ninian said, “When loyalty arrives, I will naturally be able to sense it.”
Lanling gazed at her with burning eyes and said, “Then do you sense my loyalty now?”
Ninian’s expression did not change. On the contrary, she smiled and said, “There is already a little bit. If the tone were a bit more loyal, it would be even better.”
After speaking, she rose to leave.
The moment she left Lanling’s tent, Ninian’s face instantly turned cold. She felt her intelligence had been insulted.
She had two weapons. One was beauty, and the other was scheming. She relied on these two weapons to capture men.
For example, Du Yan, Yang Gu, and Qiu Ju. The military forces in their hands accounted for nearly half of the entire tribe. And these three men all obeyed her every command.
She was best at observing expressions and reading people. By looking at a person’s eyes and expression, she knew what they were thinking.
She easily saw that her weapons were ineffective against Lanling!
……
Returning to Constantine’s tent.
“How did it go?” Constantine asked.
“This person cannot be used. He must be eliminated.” Ninian said.
“Why?” Constantine said.
Ninian said, “I told him that I wanted to assist Father in conquering the surrounding dozen or so tribes, to become the master of this thousand-li land. Then replace my brother and become the tribe’s female chief. As long as he fully assists me in ascending to power, I will marry him. In this thousand-li land, he would be second only to one person and above ten thousand. But I see no sign of him being moved at all.”
Instantly Constantine’s gaze narrowed.
Ninian continued, “Faced with such temptation, anyone would be moved. There are two possibilities for not being moved. First, he has no ambition. Second, his ambition is too great.”
Constantine nodded. His daughter’s summary was very accurate.
And Lanling absolutely could not be without ambition. So that left the latter answer. His ambition was too great!
Ninian said, “So he cannot be kept. We must find a way to kill him.”
Constantine nodded, then said, “Then what do you think he wants?”
Ninian fell silent. She truly did not know what Lanling wanted.
Constantine said, “The offer you made would move anyone. Why is he not moved?”
Ninian said, “He once sneered and said, how many men do you plan to betroth me to?”
Constantine said, “So, he does not believe our conditions at all. That is why he is not moved.”
Ninian said, “Although it is impossible for me to marry him, letting him become the great chief of the Foreign Army is real. Why is he not moved?”
Constantine said, “Because he feels the position of great chief of the Foreign Army is already his. Suo Mo has personally promised it.”
Ninian said, “In short, this person’s scheming is too deep, too unruly. He cannot be used by us.”
Constantine’s eyes narrowed and he said, “Nini, why are you so repulsed by him?”
Ninian said, “Everything he did to me today, have you not seen it?”
Constantine said, “You are repulsed by him because he was not infatuated with you, making you feel defeated, so you want to eliminate him.”
Ninian’s expression immediately stiffened. Then she smiled sweetly at Constantine and said, “Father, even if that is the reason, what of it?”
Constantine nodded and said, “Indeed, it is nothing. A monstrous genius who cannot be used by us must be eliminated!”
“I will return then.” Ninian said.
As she walked out of the tent, Constantine said, “Nini, if Father truly let you inherit the position of chief?”
Ninian said expressionlessly, “Impossible. In the barbaric world, martial might is supreme. My martial arts are far inferior to my brother’s.”
Then, she left directly.
Constantine sighed. He truly was very conflicted.
His son, Constantine the Second, was his only heir. He had inherited his ruthlessness, and his martial arts were also very high. But his scheming was not deep enough. He only knew how to act vicious.
And his daughter Ninian had completely inherited her intelligence and scheming. Unfortunately, she was a girl, and her martial arts were not as high as her brother’s.
If only the strengths of the two could be combined. But then, would that not make him exactly like himself?
……
On the Wild Horse Tribe’s side, the tribe’s shaman priest arrived. This was a person so old that one could not tell his age.
The chief told the old shaman priest about Lanling’s miracle today.
“Then will the warriors of our tribe feel fear upon hearing his roar?” the old shaman priest asked.
The chief shook his head and said, “No. Only the war horses were startled and fled frantically.”
The old shaman priest said, “This is a special demon bloodline. It has a powerful deterrent effect on beasts, capable of arousing many beasts’ ancient memories.”
The chief said, “Is it very powerful?”
The old shaman said, “It is very special.”
The chief said, “Is there a solution?”
The old shaman said, “Actually, with his ability, he can only intimidate a dozen or so war horses at a time. It does not have much impact on large-scale battles.”
The chief said, “Then is there any way to make our cavalry unafraid of him?”
The old shaman priest nodded and said, “Yes. When do you think a person feels no fear at all?”
The chief said, “When drunk.”
The old shaman priest said, “Correct. But when drunk, one loses consciousness and staggers about. There is another situation. When one’s spirit is excited, one also does not know fear, or even pain.”
The chief said, “Old man, just tell me directly. Is there any way to make our war horses no longer fear that brat? Otherwise, this battle cannot be fought.”
The old shaman priest said, “Yes. Prepare a dose of Boiling Powder and mix it into the war horses’ fodder. After eating it, the war horses will feel alert and excited, and brave to the point of not fearing death. But the consequence is that two days later, the war horses will be very tired and low in spirits.”
The chief said, “Fine, then prepare it!”
……
Early the next morning!
Constantine received a message delivered by a black crow. Then he ordered the army to retreat several more li, and set up camp on a hilltop.
The Wild Horse Tribe chief instantly laughed heartily, leading many of his people to mock Constantine, laughing at him for being as timid as a mouse, retreating before the true battle had even begun.
Thus, the gloom that Lanling’s two great duel victories had brought to the Wild Horse Tribe yesterday was swept away.
In any case, this great battle had been initiated by Constantine. The Wild Horse Tribe was not anxious.
Just drag it out like this. If ultimately no result was achieved, it would count as the Chimera Tribe’s defeat, because they were the ones who had provoked the war.
But by the evening two days later, the Wild Horse Tribe chief received terrible news.
“The Ankara Tribe’s eleven thousand strong army has left their own tribe, and the direction of their advance seems to be the Wild Horse Tribe.”
All signs indicated that the Ankara Tribe’s eleven thousand strong army was going to attack the Wild Horse Tribe’s old nest.
Instantly, the Wild Horse Tribe chief’s back turned cold with fear, and then he cursed furiously.
“Shameless Constantine, rotten goods born from a backside hole, how dare you be so despicable!”
“No wonder this old bastard dared to wage war against the Wild Horse Tribe’s ten thousand with only eight thousand.”
“No wonder after the war began, the old thief Constantine never fought, but kept dragging out time.”
The Wild Horse Tribe chief cursed heaven and earth, and finally cursed Constantine’s parents frantically.
This man had a violent temper and was straightforward. When Constantine challenged him to battle, he came without a word to fight. He had never expected Constantine to be so sinister, having long ago secretly conspired with the Ankara Tribe to divide the Wild Horse Tribe between them.
“Damned Ankara Tribe, are they not afraid that after their army leaves their tribe, others will lead troops to raid their old nest?” the Wild Horse Tribe chief raged, “And right now, the Chimera Tribe’s old nest is also empty. Why not attack them, but come attack me instead? Do you think I am easy to bully?”
After cursing the Ankara Tribe for a while longer, the Wild Horse Tribe chief calmed down.
What had happened had happened. The danger had already arrived. Cursing more was useless.
“How far is the Ankara Tribe’s army from our old nest?” the Wild Horse Tribe chief asked.
“Should be less than three hundred li.” the scout said.
The Wild Horse Tribe had to make a choice. Should they lead their army back to defend their old nest, or fight a quick decisive battle with the Chimera Tribe?
“Chief, if we lead the army back to the old nest at this time, the Chimera Tribe will definitely follow closely and attack us from behind.” a tribe elder said, “And what is most terrifying is, if we are caught in a pincer attack by the armies of both the Chimera and Ankara Tribes, then it will truly be over. Our ten thousand men might be completely annihilated.”
“Yes, the only way now is to fight a quick decisive battle, defeat Constantine as soon as possible, and then return to the tribe.” another tribe general said, “Once we defeat the Chimera Tribe, the Ankara Tribe will also voluntarily withdraw. Otherwise, while they are attacking our tribe, we will directly attack from behind, and they will be caught between two enemies.”
It seemed that fighting a quick decisive battle was indeed the only way.
The Wild Horse Tribe chief gritted his teeth for a while, then made a prompt decision and said, “Tomorrow morning, the entire army will move out and attack the Chimera Tribe’s army!”
……
Thus, under Constantine’s conspiratorial manipulation, his eight thousand army changed from the attacking side to the defending side!
Moreover, his great camp was set up on the mountain, giving them the high ground.
Thus, the originally insufficient eight thousand troops were now more than enough. In the war situation, the Chimera Tribe changed from disadvantage to advantage, from passive to active.
Moreover, the Wild Horse Tribe’s four thousand cavalry could originally have served as the trump card on the battlefield. Now, most of this combat strength was essentially wasted.
Because Constantine’s great camp was set up on the mountain, and the slope was steep. Charging uphill on cavalry was very strenuous. Their combat strength was weakened by far more than half.
At night, Chief Constantine held the final pre-battle discussion.
Actually, there was not much to discuss. It was simply to hold the camp and not let the Wild Horse Tribe’s army break through.
Finally, Constantine looked at Du Yan, Yang Gu, and Qiu Ju and said, “I will remember my promise. This battle will decide the fate of our tribe. Whoever achieves the greatest military merit, I will betroth Ninian to.”
The moment these words came out, the three men once again burned with hot blood, rubbing their fists and palms.
However, this was impossible, because in the end, two people’s head counts and military merits would definitely be identical. No matter what, they would be identical.
……
Early the next morning!
The entire battlefield swept away its previous leisureliness, becoming incomparably tense and fierce, filled with the oppressive feeling of a storm about to come.
Before dawn, all the soldiers were already stationed at their positions.
The Chimera Tribe’s great camp was very simple, just two layers of stockade walls.
These two layers of stockade walls were made of wood, only three to four metres high. The defending soldiers stood on the platform behind the stockade walls.
Lanling’s Foreign Army, as cannon fodder, was of course placed on the outer stockade wall. Eight hundred Foreign Army soldiers had to defend five hundred metres of stockade wall.
The Chimera Tribe’s other armies and reserves could be rotated, but the Foreign Army had no reserves. If they all died, they all died.
The moment the first ray of sunlight shone out, the entire battlefield resounded with earth-shaking war drums.
Then, the Wild Horse Tribe’s ten thousand strong army began to gather, preparing to attack the Chimera Tribe’s military stockade.
Both sides were throwing everything they had into this. This would be an extremely bloody and brutal decisive battle, and it would basically end within a day, with victory and defeat decided.
Lanling inspected his war blade, as well as his bow and arrows, and his spare great bow.
He carefully wiped his arrows with cloth strips. Previously, in the human kingdoms, the arrows he used all had black gold arrowheads. But now, he did not even have steel arrows. Only a small portion had iron arrowheads, and a considerable portion were bone arrowheads.
The Foreign Army was too poor, and Lanling’s demand for arrows was too great. He could not afford that many iron arrows.
“Lanling, come out.” Du Yan’s voice suddenly rang out. He appeared before Lanling in bright armour, riding a tall horse.
“What is it?” Lanling said.
Du Yan said, “The true decisive battle has come. There is no longer any space for your clever tricks. Did you not want to compete with me in head counts and military merit?”
Lanling nodded and said, “Yes. If I win, you must kowtow and apologise to Uncle. If I lose, then I will not approach Dina anymore.”
Du Yan said, “Add one more condition. If you lose, you must kowtow and apologise to Miss Ninian!”
Lanling was instantly speechless. This Du Yan, in order to curry favour with the chief’s daughter, would stop at nothing.
You propose such conditions. Are you not afraid the Foreign Army brothers will have an opinion of you?
Lanling laughed loudly and said, “Very well, since you have added a condition, I will add one too. If I win, not only must you kneel and apologise to Uncle, but in the future, the Foreign Army’s daily food and meat supplies must be increased by thirty percent.”
Du Yan’s face immediately twitched. This scoundrel Lanling, he never forgot to buy people’s hearts at any moment. Moreover, this condition was not something he could agree to at all.
Lanling had originally wanted to propose that if Du Yan lost, he would get out of the Foreign Army. But this condition he could not propose. It would damage the Foreign Army’s unity. On the contrary, raising the Foreign Army’s treatment would win more people’s hearts.
“Very well.” Constantine said, “I agree. If Lanling’s military merit and head count surpass Du Yan’s, then in the future, the Foreign Army’s supplies will be increased by thirty percent.”
Then, Constantine said to Du Yan, “Lanling already has a military merit of twenty-three heads. Do you feel the pressure?”
“Him, and my strength are worlds apart. If not for seeking justice for Miss Ninian, he would not even qualify to compete with me.” Du Yan sneered.
Just at this moment, the Wild Horse Tribe chief roared loudly, “Begin battle! Kill all of Constantine’s running dogs!”
Then, the Wild Horse Tribe’s ten thousand strong army charged frantically.
The decisive battle began!
Lanling held his bow and arrows. The true opportunity to harvest heads had come. The time to create another miracle had come.