Chapter 20: Beacon Fires (6)

It seemed as though heaven intended to play a joke on everyone—just moments ago, the sky was clear with a bright moon, but now it was pouring with heavy rain. Unlike the gentle spring rain or the haughty summer rain, this was a bone-chilling autumn rain. The cold rain brought a profound sense of chill, yet it also made one feel refreshed and exhilarated!

On the battlements of the Great Wall Fortress, a hundred soldiers from the Shence Army, armed with eight-foot-long halberds, waited patiently for the arrival of the Tibetan barbarians. After a night battle against bandits, they had already become familiar with how to use these halberds—raise, advance, strike, retract. Just four words could summarize the essentials of using this weapon of the Tang Dynasty’s military force, but truly mastering it required paying a heavy price in blood.

This was a battle for men, a feast for warriors. In just half an hour, hundreds of Tibetan soldiers climbed onto the walls. They wore the finest chainmail, wielded the sharpest scimitars, and possessed unwavering fighting spirit. They charged at the halberd wielders, confident in every move they made.

“Raise!”
At Pu Da Chui’s command, the hundred halberds were raised to shoulder height.

“Advance!”
With each command, the soldiers stepped forward steadily, as firm as rock.

“Strike!”
At the next order, the cold-glinting halberds swung down at the charging Tibetan soldiers. The halberds easily pierced through the chainmail, shattered shoulder bones, and sliced through flesh and blood.

One Tibetan soldier stared in horror as the massive blade cut into his right shoulder and emerged from his left side. Bones cracked with a terrifying crunch, and his intestines spilled out. His eyes widened in fear of death. He wasn’t dead yet; half of his body writhed on the ground, leaving behind a trail of blood.

“Kill him!”
Pu Da Chui roared, urging a new recruit beside him. The recruit hesitated for a moment before stepping forward. The Tibetan soldier could no longer speak, only making guttural sounds, his eyes filled with pleading. The recruit closed his eyes and swung his sword with force, ending the soldier’s life. He swiftly severed the head and placed it in his pouch, his gaze growing increasingly fierce.

“You must learn to kill. If you don’t, they’ll kill you!”
Pu Da Chui’s voice rang in the recruit’s ears. This was a duel where failure was not an option—real, cruel, yet fair.
Real cruelty, fair cruelty.

“Advance!”

Pu Da Chui ignored this minor incident and roared loudly. Rain pattered against the bluestone ground, producing a constant buzzing sound.
This was ultimately a sleepless night—only the victors would see the sun of tomorrow.
“Smash!”
Short and forceful. Pu Da Chui simply repeated these two commands; there was no need to hold back now. The entire city wall was filled with Tibetans, and all he had to do was order his men to strike, to cut them in half, to turn them into meat paste.
“Haha, haha!”
Pu Da Chui led his army of halberdiers, pushing the front line forward relentlessly.
Thunder rolled, lightning illuminated his cheeks, and blood mixed with sweat and rain streamed down his neck.
“For the Tang Dynasty!”
Pu Da Chui roared loudly, swinging his hammer with force, instantly shattering the sternum of a Tibetan centurion.
“For the Tang Dynasty!”
“For the Tang Dynasty!”
The troops were filled with fervor; as soon as over a hundred halberds were raised and swung, a hundred Tibetan soldiers were cut in two. Blood sprayed everywhere, limbs flew, and heads rolled about along with spilled intestines and internal organs. The fearless Tibetan soldiers finally grew afraid; ignoring their comrades behind them, they rushed toward the battlements. New Tibetan soldiers who climbed up didn’t understand what was happening, and many were pushed off the walls by their own peers, emitting cries of pain.
“Advance!”
Pu Da Chui simply repeated this command. With each step forward by the Tang army, dozens of Tibetan soldiers died under the halberds. Blood stained the battlements and flowed down through the cracks.
“Can we say we have no clothes? I’ll share my cloak with you. The king has raised an army—let’s sharpen our spears. We share the same hatred. Can we say we have no clothes…”
At some point, the Tang army’s song resounded across the Great Wall fortress. It was a solemn ritual, a long-awaited revenge, a night of satisfying vengeance.
Heads rolled, blood splattered everywhere, limbs were scattered, and cries of agony filled the air. At that moment, the Great Wall fortress belonged to the Tang army, to the halberdiers.
This strike was for compatriots who had been captured and abused, for women who had been humiliated and killed, for comrades who had died in hatred, for the dignity of the Tang people, for the backbone of the nation!
This strike was truly satisfying!
When those we love suffer oppression and humiliation, the weak become strong, and the brave turn into demons.
This strike knows no faith—only for the Tang Dynasty!…
Below the city gates, the attack was relentless; ten-zhang-long trees began to crash into the gates.
“Boom!”
A dull roar echoed through the valley, like thunder on a winter day, emitting a terrifying “boom!”

The city gates shook violently, and a crack several feet long appeared beneath them.
“Boom!”
Another loud explosion sent the entire fortress trembling.
Luo Dezhan was overjoyed and shouted orders, “Attack! Charge in and kill all these two-legged sheep!”
“Boom!”
With a dull thud, the gates of the Great Wall Fortress were forced open by the Tibetans, who rushed inside with war cries. The fortress had two levels; they had already breached the first level. All they needed to do was reach the second level and attack from both sides to capture the top of the fortress, allowing the Tibetan flag to fly over it!
“Charge! Kill all those two-legged sheep!”
The Tibetan warriors rushed into the fortress with fierce shouts.
The more than a hundred Tibetan soldiers at the front were full of fighting spirit, but suddenly their feet gave way, and they plunged into a huge pit!
There was a trap here—a square pit five zhang wide right behind the city gates!
Li Kuo, bare-chested and wielding a long spear, stared resolutely at the more than a hundred Tibetan soldiers trapped in the pit. A flash of lightning illuminated the four characters on his chest—“Loyalty and Devotion to the Country!”
Over the past two hours, the Tibetans had been filling the moat, but of course they wouldn’t sit idly by. He mobilized all the merchants, along with the wounded soldiers, to dig a huge pit behind the city gates. Although the Great Wall Fortress was built of bluestone, the ground beneath it was loamy soil. With the combined efforts of hundreds of people, they managed to dig such a pit in less than two hours.
After crossing the moat, the Tibetans could attack the fortress through two routes. One was to climb the city walls, seize the top, and take control of the entire fortress. The other was to use battering rams to force open the gates and charge in with their numerical advantage.
As for the first route, Li Kuo wasn’t worried at all. With Pu Da Chui around, the halberd troops could hold the top of the walls firmly, preventing a single Tibetan warrior from stepping inside. As for the second route, the young man pondered for a long time. There were simply too many Tibetan soldiers, so he had to rely on clever tactics to win. Seeing the loamy soil on the first level of the fortress, he had a sudden inspiration—and created this ingenious pit.

“Brothers, grip your long spears tightly. Do you still remember what Instructor Fei Lin said to us when we practiced with those wax-covered poles in the camp north of the city? ‘I only hope you won’t defile yourselves or these fine spears!’ Back then, we felt ashamed, even jealous. Now do you understand why we train in martial arts and why we join the army? I didn’t understand then, but now I do! It’s all to protect our families, our country, our dignity! Feel your chests—are they still hot? If you’re a man, hold your spear firmly and thrust it downward like a true man!”
“Thrust! Thrust! Thrust!”
One after another, the long spears were plunged into the Tubo soldiers in the pit, splashing blood everywhere. Cries of pain and wails filled the air, like ghosts crying at the gates and demons roaring in chaos.
“For the Great Tang!”
Li Kuo pulled out his blood-soaked spear, raised it high above his head, and shouted.
“The captain is brave!”
“The Great Tang will surely win!”
“Charge! Charge! What are you waiting for? They’ve already filled the pit—why stand around? Charge and kill them all!”
Lozang’s eyes were red with anger as he stamped his feet. After breaking through the city gates, he had thought it would be a one-sided massacre, but instead, they suffered a setback as soon as they entered the city. Now, with nothing left to lose, he believed his numerical advantage would allow him to crush the Tang invaders. Deceit and trickery could only gain temporary advantages—they could never determine the outcome of a battle!
The horrific sight before them unleashed the savage instincts of the Tubo soldiers, who charged in with howls.
But the Tang army offered no resistance; they didn’t even shoot an arrow before turning and fleeing!
“Hahaha! The Tang invaders give up! Hahaha!”
Lozang laughed wildly, waving his curved sword as he charged ahead.
“Boom! Boom! Boom!”
“Clatter, clatter!”
Hm? What’s that sound? Lozang stopped in his tracks and listened carefully. The sound was so familiar, as if he heard it every day.
It was the sound of horse hooves! The sound of thousands of horses charging! Shocked, Lozang quickly looked up.
From the depths of the darkness surrounding the fortress, glowing dots suddenly appeared. The dots grew brighter and closer. Along with cries of pain, Lozang finally saw that they were over a thousand warhorses, with long spears tied to their backs and torches made of palm straw soaked in tung oil tied to their tails. The torches were now on fire, and the herd of horses was charging at him like mad.
“Retreat! Retreat, quickly!”
Lozang completely panicked and led the others toward the city gates.
A thousand horses charging, torches ablaze in the fortress—what a magnificent and exhilarating night feast!