Chapter 473
Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW
You can buy coins here to unlock advanced chapters: https://gravitytales.com/coins-purchase-page/
Chapter 473: A Baptism of Blood
After one matter was settled, Luo Ji, who had just narrowly escaped disaster, clearly needed a few days to rest and recuperate.
There were also various accumulated matters in Luo Ji’s Civilization over the past few days that required his attention.
Looking at the report compiled by Lu Yang, Luo Ji’s previously excellent mood, boosted by the recent profit, suddenly soured.
The living environment on the grasslands was already harsh.
Now, with the blizzard sweeping through, it has become even worse.
The combined numbers of lost cattle, sheep, and horses made Luo Ji’s heart ache.
Those three cities were too far from their central plains.
Sometimes, if an emergency occurred, it was simply too late to send aid.
The main reason for this, of course, was the lack of developed roads, making travel difficult.
This time, with the three cities facing food shortages, the crude method Lu Yang employed was evidently the best he could think of at the time.
As an ancient person, it was commendable that Lu Yang could achieve this much.
However, Luo Ji, a modern man, quickly thought of a way to accelerate grain transportation after some thought.
However, before implementing it, he would first need to spend some time preparing.
Meanwhile, on the other side.
The grain transport team, led by Luo Cheng, finally entered the grassland region.
The thick snow cover along the way somewhat impacted their mobility.
Furthermore, directions in the grassland region were inherently difficult to discern.
Now, covered in heavy snow, everywhere they looked was a vast expanse of white, making it even harder to distinguish their direction.
Luo Cheng, constantly checking the map against the terrain, had his eyebrows practically knitted into a knot.
He wasn’t unfamiliar with the grasslands. Yet, even now, he felt somewhat lost.
After finally pinpointing their location and preparing to continue forward, they suddenly heard faint sounds of hoofbeats in the distance.
“Everyone, stay alert!”
Luo Cheng quickly warned in a loud voice, unsure if the newcomers were a friend or foe.
At the same time, he mentally prepared for battle at any moment.
Hill, Harold, and others following behind also tensed up.
In just a short while, snow waves churning up in the distance clearly indicated to Luo Cheng and his men that a cavalry unit was approaching their position.
Luo Cheng quickly drew the binoculars from his waist to first identify the approaching figures from afar.
The moment he clearly saw their attire, Luo Cheng let out a low shout.
“It’s horse bandits! Everyone, prepare for battle!”
The winter clothing of Myriad World Civilization’s soldiers was of a uniform style. And the group of people currently charging on horseback were clearly not soldiers of their civilization!
At this moment, facing this sudden situation, the speed of Luo Cheng’s cavalry unit simply couldn’t pick up.
However, before setting out, Lu Yang had clearly considered this situation.
He had specifically borrowed hand crossbows from the crossbowmen unit and equipped them to the cavalry.
A single volley of arrows, he thought, would be enough to deter those reckless horse bandits!
As he spoke, the cavalrymen led by Luo Cheng had already swiftly unhooked the hand crossbows hanging from their saddles.
The crossbow strings had been prepared.
After quickly loading the specialized crossbow bolts, Luo Cheng aimed and resolutely pulled the trigger the moment the horse bandits entered the hand crossbow’s firing range.
“Fire!!”
The hand crossbows, designed to be somewhat effective against cavalry units, mercilessly delivered lethal strikes against the charging horse bandits!
Those horse bandits leading the charge had never encountered such an attack.
Volleys of crossbow bolts caught them completely off guard.
In this icy and snowy landscape, the slippery ground already significantly reduced their control over their warhorses.
Moreover, the horse bandits didn’t have specialized horseshoes to increase grip.
The moment the first row of horse bandits was riddled by the hand crossbows, the bandits closely following behind couldn’t control their warhorses in time.
For a moment, the neighing of warhorses and the screams of the horse bandits mixed together, echoing across the entire snowy plain.
A tragedy, akin to a chain-reaction car crash, unfolded directly before Luo Cheng and his men!
Luo Cheng and his men undoubtedly harbored deep hatred for these horse bandits who had previously plundered their grain convoys and harassed their three grassland cities.
Naturally, there was no room for mercy.
Taking advantage of the enemy’s disarray, Luo Cheng and his men quickly reattached their hand crossbows on their saddles after one volley.
The cavalrymen, having switched back to their long spears, spurred their horses and charged!
“Leave no one alive. Kill!!”
The merciless command to kill had been given. The 500 charging cavalry brought a baptism of blood to this pure white snowy plain.
The horse bandits, having suffered a head-on blow, had no power to resist.
The moment Luo Cheng led his cavalry unit to rampage through them, they were utterly transformed into a field of corpses!
The devastating lethality of the cavalry unit made Hill and Harold, watching from the rear, twitch their eyelids.
In their previous battles against the barbarian army, Luo Cheng and his men hadn’t used such strange weapons.
Hill’s gaze immediately focused on those hand crossbows.
Their terrifying harvesting ability had left a deep impression on her in that instant.
“Just how many things in Myriad World Civilization are there that I don’t know about?”
Luo Cheng, at this moment, clearly had no time to worry about what Hill and the others behind him were thinking.
He simply ordered loudly.
“Everyone dismount, and reload your hand crossbows.”
“Recoverable crossbow bolts, along with weapons, equipment, and horses, take them all! As for the bodies, pile them up and burn them with fire!”
The cavalrymen moved quickly.
Looking at the piled-up bodies of the horse bandits, Luo Cheng unhurriedly untied a leather pouch from his saddle.
It contained lamp oil.
When carrying out missions in this icy and snowy weather, lamp oil was practically a necessity.
After pouring the lamp oil over the piles of bodies, Luo Cheng took out a tinderbox from his inner pocket.
With a few sparks, the high-concentration lamp oil practically ignited instantly.
Although it was a bit gruesome, his soldiers, mindful not to waste resources, calmly gathered around the fire for warmth while the bodies burned.
And while warming themselves, they naturally didn’t forget to inform Hill and the others waiting behind.
“Hey! Take a break, everyone, come over and warm yourselves by the fire!”
The weather was simply too cold, and it got colder the closer they got to the grasslands.
Even with animal-hide gloves for warmth, Luo Cheng felt his hands were almost freezing.
Upon hearing a translation from a barbarian soldier accompanying them, both Hill and Harold’s expressions turned subtle.
Burning corpses to warm themselves… How could these Myriad World Civilization soldiers sometimes seem even more brutal than them?
