Chapter 248: The Final Battle at Dicheng (Part 1)

That night, the wind was strong and the moon was dark. The vast expanse of land appeared eerily pale. Suddenly, a rumbling sound came from several miles away from the Tang army’s camp, as if the very ground was trembling. The intense vibrations woke the Tang soldiers from their sleep.

Li Qing’an put on an outer robe and rushed out, asking anxiously, “What have you discovered?”
“There are countless small black dots moving toward us under the moonlight. It’s hard to see clearly, but the ground is shaking violently.”

After a brief moment of thought, Li Qing’an ordered, “Pass my orders: prepare two hundred crossbows. Send five hundred scout cavalry out of the camp. Also, tell the soldiers to leave their tents immediately and retreat to the rear camp.”

The Tang army’s camp became bustling as soldiers rushed out of their tents and moved to the rear camp. Some tents were dismantled to create a barrier. By then, two hundred crossbows had been positioned in front of the wooden fence, which had special shooting holes. The five hundred scout cavalry sped out of the camp and headed toward the distance.

At this point, the Arab forces’ night attack became more apparent. It consisted of fifty giant trebuchets pulled by thousands of camels, along with nearly ten thousand soldiers driving them, all advancing toward the Tang army’s camp. In the distance, there were countless more Arab soldiers, their numbers unknown.

Under such circumstances, Li Qing’an didn’t want to rush out to fight. He decided that the powerful and long-range crossbows would be more than enough to deal with them.

As the trebuchets approached at a distance of seven hundred steps, the Tang army’s crossbows fired suddenly. This time, instead of shooting nine-inch iron arrows wrapped in steel, they used three-foot-long arrows. These large arrows were extremely effective against heavy targets and could even crack walls and collapse towers when used in siege warfare. Their range reached up to a thousand steps.

With two hundred crossbows firing simultaneously, two hundred large arrows were shot rapidly at the Arab trebuchets with tremendous force. From afar, one could hear cracking sounds and the screams of soldiers. Nearly twenty trebuchets were hit, their frames collapsing and rendering them useless. Yet the remaining trebuchets continued to advance.

When they were still six hundred steps away from the Tang army’s camp, flames suddenly appeared. The leading trebuchets fired violently, sending six giant fireballs soaring through the sky toward the camp. With a loud explosion, several tents were hit and collapsed. As the fireballs rolled across, several more tents caught fire. The fire spread rapidly, fueled by the wind. The huge fireballs continued to burn, emitting a strange pale blue flame. Dozens of Tang soldiers rushed forward with buckets, trying to douse the fireballs, but they showed no fear of fire and burned even brighter.

Li Qing’an suddenly remembered that the Byzantines had a highly powerful Greek fire that could burn on the sea surface. It was highly likely that the Arab army had obtained the formula for this fire. He immediately shouted, “Smother it with soil!” At that moment, the Tang army’s second round of crossbows was fired, sending another two hundred arrows. With loud booms, nearly twenty more trebuchets were hit and destroyed. By then, only five trebuchets remained with the Arab army. Five huge fireballs whizzed past the barriers once again, rolling down and crashing into the Tang army’s camp, setting dozens more tents on fire. The flames spread everywhere. Nearly a thousand Tang soldiers fought desperately to put out the fires. The first batch of fireballs had been extinguished using soil; hundreds of soldiers poured bags of soil onto them, quickly forming a mound that buried the fireballs. However, the burning tents ignited those nearby, and soon the entire southwest corner was ablaze with hundreds of tents on fire. The Tang army had demolished all the tents around the fire to prevent it from spreading. Then, Li Qing’an shouted, “Fire again!” Another two hundred arrows were shot at the last five trebuchets. There were loud crashes and screams as Arab soldiers were hit. All five trebuchets were destroyed. At that moment, a scout rushed in from the side along a safe route, delivering a message by arrow. The message revealed that the Arab army had forty thousand elite cavalry hidden behind, waiting to annihilate the Tang cavalry once they emerged. Li Qing’an’s decision to avoid battle was correct—better to suffer some damage to the camp than to risk falling into the enemy’s ambush. All fifty trebuchets were now useless, so the crossbows were quickly replaced with steel-tipped arrows. In an instant, arrows rained down like hail, killing more than three thousand Arab soldiers within six hundred paces. The remaining Arabs were terrified and fled in panic. Seeing that the night attack had failed, General Qiyad ordered his troops to retreat to camp. The fire in the Tang army’s camp burned for over an hour before gradually dying down. More than twenty people were killed or injured, and there was some loss of supplies. Li Qing’an stared at the burned-out camp, his face pale as steel. After a long silence, he sneered and said, “It’s impolite to come without returning the favor!”

At the third watch of the night, the 60,000-strong army set off in a mighty procession. By then, the Tang army’s camp was only 15 li away from the main camp of the Arab forces outside Talas. The cold wind howled, and the vast army covered the sky and earth. Cavalry, archers, crossbowmen, and heavily armored soldiers were arranged in layers. Yet in the midst of the troops was a mysterious convoy of about 500 vehicles, each about 30 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 15 feet high—resembling modern containers, covered with light armor that protected them from arrows. Each vehicle was pulled by four horses. This lightly armored convoy was the Tang army’s secret weapon, to be used only in the final battle.

That night, the Arab forces deployed their secret weapon: Greek fire. It was now time for the Tang army to counterattack.

At the fourth watch, the 60,000 Tang soldiers reached a point 5 li outside Talas. There was a small river beside Talas called the Talas River, its surface covered with a thick layer of ice. Across the river lay the Arab forces’ vast camps stretching as far as the eye could see. The small town of Talas was nestled within these camps, becoming a city within a camp.

Abu Muslim had already received reports that Qiyad’s night attack on the Tang camp had failed, and that the Tang army was counterattacking. Muslim hadn’t trimmed his beard in months; it had grown messy and slightly upward curled, giving him an almost smiling expression—as if he thought the Tang commander was a bit childish, having suffered a night attack and yet retaliating so soon.

But his furrowed brows revealed his inner tension. The arrival of 60,000 Tang soldiers was no mere retaliation—was this the onset of a decisive battle? Or was it just an attempt to deceive himself under the guise of revenge?

Abu Muslim did not underestimate his opponent because of his youth. On the contrary, he felt a sense of mutual respect and admiration. He had to admit that this Tang commander was the strongest opponent he had ever faced—no one else could compare. Even Gao Xianzhi, who had fought against the Yuechi, was not as formidable. Gao Xianzhi was merely a general, a military strategist who planned battles one by one, while this Tang commander was strategizing for the whole region—military, political, and religious aspects—all in pursuit of a final showdown.

If he lost this battle, he might lose control of the entire region. Abu Muslim sighed deeply. He felt that this Tang commander had the bearing of a king. Could he really just be a border general of the Tang army?

Unconsciously, Abu Muslim wrote the name “Li Qing’an” in Arabic on a parchment scroll. With a crack, his goose feather pen broke in two. He stood up and uttered two words, “Go to battle!”

The Arab army stepped forward to meet them. While the Tang forces were still on the march, Abu Muslim ordered his troops to cross the river. The Arab army was divided into left, center, and right wings: the central wing, consisting of 30,000 troops from Khorasan, was led personally by Abu Muslim; the left wing consisted of 30,000 Syrian troops under the command of General Khalid; and the right wing consisted of 40,000 Sogdian troops under General Ziyad. The 100,000-strong army was arranged in separate units.

The vast Arab army stretched as far as the eye could see. Torches created seas of fire that stretched for miles, forming a massive army. Huge trebuchets stood among the troops, resembling fearsome monsters. Deep horn sounds echoed throughout the army, boosting morale. Abu Muslim, the third most powerful figure in the Abbasid Empire, stood coldly, holding the royal sword bestowed upon him by the Abbasids, waiting indifferently for the main force of the Tang army to arrive.

Dawn was the darkest time—endless darkness like a demonic realm. Dark clouds covered the sky, and cold winds howled. In the distance, a long streak of light grew closer, revealing a sea of flames.

The Tang army stopped slowly three miles away after receiving intelligence from scouts. Li Qing’an quickly adjusted his tactics. He moved the heavily armed archers and halberd soldiers to the left to defend against the Khorasan and Syrian forces, while the attacking cavalry was deployed on the right to deal with the weaker Sogdian troops.

Li Qing’an had discovered this weakness of the Arab army during the first Battle of Suiye. Later, when Li Guangbi and Ziyad fought in the Battle of Dongcao, Li Qing’an confirmed this weakness once again. He deduced that it stemmed from the deep-seated discrimination among the Arab native troops toward the Sogdians—combining the arrogance of conquerors with religious prejudice. Even their lower-ranking officers were unwilling to fight alongside the Sogdians, leaving even their commander, Muslim, powerless to do anything about it.

As for the most mysterious combat unit in the Tang army, Li Qing’an kept it hidden within the ranks, deciding not to deploy it unless it was absolutely necessary.

“Infantry formations, advance!” With a swing of his sword, Abu Muslim ordered the attack. Deep drumbeats suddenly resounded over Talas—“Boom! Boom! Boom!” The sound was thunderous.

Two divisions of Macedonian infantry formations advanced, coming from the central Khorasan force led by Abu Muslim. Eight thousand heavy infantrymen armed with long spears and large shields, along with five thousand cavalrymen protecting their flanks, charged toward the center of the Tang army. They moved faster and faster, eventually rushing straight at the Tang forces.

Li Qing’an narrowed his eyes. In the darkness, he saw the tips of spears illuminated by the flames.

“Halberd soldiers, engage!”

Li Qing’an let out a loud roar, and the 5,000 halberd soldiers charged forward. They formed a line to confront the surging infantry formations. Their tall and robust figures merged into one mass, resembling the majestic Kunlun Mountains, while the gleaming halberds they wielded were like glaciers collapsing from those mountains. The two armies collided with a thunderous crash, killing intent filling the air. Abu Muslim waved his hand and ordered, “Operate the fire catapults to crush the Tang army’s heavy infantry.” Roaring catapults, pushed by thousands of soldiers, appeared—their massive, dark forms resembling demons moving in the darkness. Li Qing’an also gave an order: “Send out the war chariots!” Five hundred mysterious chariots rushed out from the Tang army’s ranks, escorted by 5,000 cavalry, and sped toward the left flank of the Abbasid infantry formations. …… “Boom!” A deep, dull sound echoed as nearly 10,000 Zoroastrian and Manichean believers from various parts of Damascus knelt in the square. In front of them, on a huge wooden platform five zhang high, the sacred object, the Eye of Light, shone with a divine glow under the flames. It stood out sharply in the darkness, even brighter than the stars in the sky. The followers of the Light worshipped their god, Ahura Mazda, with utmost devotion, reciting their sacred scriptures, the Avesta. Beside the Eye of Light stood the holy maiden Eilam Kuran. Dressed in a white long dress, she knelt beside it, her eyes pure and bright as she fixedly gazed at a star in the night sky. She raised her hands and murmured prayers to her god. The platform beneath her was piled with oil-soaked wood, with a dozen guards holding torches ready nearby. But to the left of the platform lay a golden bridge that Kuran could use at any time to leave the Tower of Fire. On a platform far away, directly opposite the tower, Abu Abbas, the caliph of the Abbasid Empire, watched Princess Kuran performing the religious ritual with cold eyes. He had long seen through her intentions. Since she was willing to sacrifice herself for her faith, let her death and the destruction of the sacred object serve as a warning to those stubborn pagans! But what Abu Abbas truly wanted to see was Kuran fearing death enough to cross that golden bridge—this would strike a greater blow to the Zoroastrians’ faith than destroying her body. He aimed to conquer all the Sogdians by winning over the heart of the holy maiden Kuran. Abu Abbas made a signal to light the fire. A soldier inserted a torch into the pile of wood, and with a “boom!” flame erupted into the sky. The 10,000 followers of the Light cried out in shock and stood up simultaneously.

Kuran faced Abbas’s icy gaze without fear. She had said that even if she died, she would never betray her faith.
“Believers of Ahura Mazda! What you see is light—the Eye of Light in the flames…”
Kuran’s firm and clear voice echoed across the square. “I, Kuran, the holy maiden of the Samarkand Temple, will return to our Lord alongside the Eye of Light. Believers, join me in blessing our suffering land!”
Ten thousand believers slowly knelt down, bowing before their holy maiden with tears in their eyes. The flames grew fiercer, engulfing the entire platform. The golden bridge melted little by little in the blazing fire before finally collapsing with a loud crash.
Abbas, filled with anger and humiliation, stomped his foot in frustration and turned away.
The Eye of Light emitted a strange glow amid the flames. As the flames were about to swallow Kuran, on the brink of death, she slowly drew the dagger from her waist and stared at the three characters on its handle: ‘Li Qing’an’.
Suddenly, she raised her head and, with her last strength, called out to the believers in the square: “The Persians may destroy our bodies, but they cannot conquer our faith. Believers of Ahura Mazda, fight for the eternal existence of our Lord, for our faith!”