Chapter 34: Night Battle (III)

More and more Bahmanian soldiers climbed onto the causeway, advancing step by step toward the walls of Talas. The nearly thirty steps wide causeway could accommodate over a dozen men running at once without slowing down the overall speed of the enemy forces.

Although it was harder to maintain balance while running on the more than ten-zhang-high causeway compared to flat ground, this made it easier to ignite the soldiers’ courage and fighting spirit. If they didn’t charge forward to defeat the Abbasid warriors, they would be thrown off the causeway and crushed to death.

Since it was a fight to the death, it was better for them to die…

Of course, the Bahmanian soldiers’ armor and weapons were their greatest weakness. Upon closer inspection, these warriors charging at the walls of Talas carried simple knives or long, blackened spears, wore dark leather armor, and didn’t even have proper helmets.

How could such equipment withstand the fierce attacks of the Abbasid warriors? These believers of Allah didn’t even need to throw boulders or stones; a single volley from their arrows could turn the Bahmanian soldiers rushing dozens of steps away into a sieve.

Though the causeway was thirty steps wide, it was still perfectly covered by the rain of arrows.

At this point, the Bahmanian soldiers fighting to save others were forced into a desperate situation—either falling off the causeway in the chaos or taking a deep breath and charging across it.

In this way, the soldiers at the front became perfect human shields, blocking the arrows. After their deaths, their comrades wouldn’t abandon their bodies but would use them as shields to keep moving forward…

The death of a few might save the lives of many. Though it wasn’t fair, it was the best option at the moment.

Whether it was because the Abbasid arrows lost their force or because the human shield wall worked, the number of Bahmanian soldiers dying gradually decreased. With each step forward, they got closer to revenge.

They silently vowed that once they reached the walls of Talas, they would avenge their fallen comrades and rid the world of the evil god Ahura Mazda.

“Get on the siege engines! Hurry up! Take Talas in one swift attack—don’t hesitate, don’t stop!”

Looking up from below the walls, the soldiers on the causeway appeared as tiny insects. Ashikanda took a deep breath and gave firm orders. Now both sides were holding their breath; whoever could hold on the longest would gain a huge advantage on the battlefield and defeat the enemy in one fell swoop!

The siege vehicle mentioned by Ashilanda was an eight-wheeled wooden cart that was even taller than the walls of Talas. When setting out from Anxi, the vehicle was disassembled into many separate wooden planks, and it was not until they reached near Talas that Gao Xianzhi ordered it to be reassembled. This type of siege vehicle had already been lost since the Kaiyuan era, and the one brought by the Anxi army was said to have been rebuilt by craftsmen brought back from Hexi by Li Kuo, the governor of Shule. Although these craftsmen had been in exile in Hexi for a long time, their skills had not diminished in the slightest. Under Li Kuo’s orders, they studied day and night, recalling the structure and mechanisms of the original siege vehicle, and finally created a blueprint. After seeing this blueprint, Gao Xianzhi praised it highly and ordered all the military craftsmen in the Anxi Protectorate to work together to build such vehicles, which were completed just before the campaign against the Arabs. These siege vehicles were placed on both sides of the Yuliang Road; being much taller than the city walls, they allowed attackers to shoot at the defenders inside. Many warriors from the Buhun tribe hid inside these vehicles and, pushed by their comrades, descended to the side of Talas, easily drawing their bows and taking lives. “Ah!” “Ugh… ugh!” Many of the city’s armored soldiers were caught off guard and killed by the Buhun arrows, falling to the ground in despair. Despite struggling to escape their fate, they could only twitch for a moment before the light in their eyes vanished. Gradually, the defenders of Talas suffered casualties and became exhausted from dealing with the arrows coming from the siege vehicles, making it difficult for them to pose an effective threat or resistance to the Buhun warriors on the Yuliang Road. “Charge forward! Don’t hesitate—charge!” A Buhun soldier in the role of a captain waved his saber and shouted loudly. Now that his comrades had created a great opportunity for him—a chance to reach the top of the city walls—he absolutely could not let it slip away! At that moment, the arrows were not dense, and it was easy to dodge them with a little caution! Fifty steps, thirty steps, twenty steps… When they were still fifteen steps away from the top of Talas, suddenly more than two hundred Arab soldiers appeared from the opposite side. They held silver spearheads and stared coldly at their enemies. “Kill them all, in the name of Allah!” Husayl said these words coldly, as if reciting the Quran without any distractions. These spearmen were clearly well-trained and quickly closed off the only possible path for the Buhun warriors to climb the walls. Stab, thrust, pierce, lure…

A few simple moves had an unexpected effect. The Gorgons didn’t need to exert much effort to throw the warriors struggling on the bridge into the abyss. They ignored the swords in the warriors’ hands and repeatedly stabbed at their lower bodies. Those who lost their balance could no longer resist effectively. They dodged and pushed, shoving their comrades over the edge to prevent themselves from falling. Gradually, the Gorgon soldiers became panicked, and what had once been a relatively wide bridge became overcrowded. “Don’t be afraid! Charge forward! Retreating means death!” The Gorgon captain’s eyes seemed about to burst out; he took a deep breath and leaped over the remaining obstacles. He slashed wildly, and within a few quick cuts, several Gorgon heads rolled down the edge. Blood gushed from their necks like a fountain, splashing his face red. Delighted by the taste of blood, the Gorgons became like beasts, engaging in frenzied slaughter. Three, five, seven… It seemed no one could stop this demon. Though the Gorgons surrounded him completely on the city wall, none dared to strike. Seeing their captain’s bravery, some of the Gorgon soldiers gradually calmed down. They imitated their captain, took a deep breath, and leaped onto the city wall. Of course, some were pierced through by spearmen mid-air and mercilessly thrown back below; others lost their footing and fell straight down. Anyway, more and more Gorgons appeared on the wall. Houssein clearly hadn’t expected such bravery from them and didn’t know what to do. Seeing that the northern city might fall, his deputy general, Muhanu, pushed aside this coward and said, “Jihadists! Draw your curved swords and fight for Allah!” Muhanu’s words awakened many stunned Gorgons. These believers in Allah seemed to gain a strange strength from deep within upon hearing His name, murmuring prayers as they charged forward.