Chapter 90: Decisive Battle

“Where is Toqto Bolad’s army now?”

Before the horn sounded, Xiao Sima asked in a deep voice.

“They are already twenty li away, heading towards the battlefield,” the scout reported loudly.

Xiao Sima nodded. According to the plan, they would wait until the Liao army launched an attack on the Naiman army.

Then, Buyruq Khan’s army would launch a surprise assault on Tayang Khan.

The plan was sound, but Xiao Sima did not trust Buyruq Khan absolutely.

He had also arranged a force to guard against that fellow.

“Sound the horn. Attack!.”

Xiao Sima, clad in majestic armor and sitting on his warhorse, gripped his war saber and shouted loudly.

As the low sound of the horn rang out, the Khitan vanguard began its attack, almost entirely composed of armored soldiers.

“Brats, charge with me!”

“Crush those Naimans who don’t know death when they see it!” Xiao Tuladuo drew his war saber and shouted loudly.

Xiao Tuladuo took the lead, and the Khitan soldiers behind him followed closely. The chaotic sound of hoofbeats was like dense drumbeats, causing the earth to tremble slightly.

First came volleys of random arrows, and soon after, the two sides engaged in battle.

Shouts of killing and the clashing of weapons intertwined, deafening to the ear.

The army led by Xiao Lintuo also launched an attack on the Naimans from the other side.

The decisive battle had erupted.

Xiao Sima stood amidst the army, his eyes gazing at the battlefield. Seeing the time was about right, he ordered, “Order Alida to launch an attack on the Naiman right flank.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Alida was a young Khitan general.

After Xiao Lintuo and the others went to serve as Military Governors, Xiao Sima intended for him to take over their positions.

Therefore, in this war, he definitely had to do his best to cultivate him.

Soon after, the cavalry led by Alida sortied, charging towards the weak direction of the Naiman right flank.

Although they achieved some results, when Tayang Khan’s central army arrived to support, the Naiman formation quickly stabilized.

Xiao Sima was not disappointed by this.

Because a large-scale war certainly couldn’t be decided simply; it was normal for it to last several days.

Xiao Sima and Tayang Khan were each using their own methods, attacking the other’s weak points.

Before long, a scout came to report that Buyruq Khan’s army had arrived.

“This fellow arrived quite quickly,” Xiao Sima sneered.

Looking into the distance, he could faintly see a mass of black shadows emerging on the land.

The ten thousand troops of the Northern Naimans were charging towards this place.

“Go tell him to have him attack the Naiman left flank.”

“Yes, my Lord.” The personal guard left with the order.

At this time, the battlefield had fallen into a stalemate. Although Tayang Khan’s army was gradually at a disadvantage, they were still resisting stubbornly.

Once Buyruq Khan’s ten thousand fresh troops joined the battlefield, the scales of victory would quickly tip towards Liao.

The Naiman army would soon collapse.

However, gradually, the captain of Xiao Sima’s personal guards noticed something wrong.

“My Lord, the direction of Buyruq Khan’s army is incorrect.”

Hearing this, Xiao Sima turned his gaze and saw that the Northern Naiman army had indeed deviated.

It didn’t look like they were preparing to attack the Naiman left flank; instead, it looked like they were charging towards Xiao Sima’s great army.

Seeing this, how could Xiao Sima not understand the situation?

Buyruq Khan had defected.

Or rather, this fellow had been deceiving him from the very beginning.. he and Tayang Khan were in cahoots.

Playing the counter-espionage game!

“Indeed a vicious dog, daring to bite its master back,” Xiao Sima said in a low voice, a gloomy look instantly appearing on his face.

However, he wasn’t overly angry; he seemed to have been mentally prepared for this situation.

After all, as a formidable figure akin to an ambitious hero, he didn’t even dare to fully trust his own subordinate generals, so how could he trust a Naiman?

Thus, Xiao Sima said in a deep voice, “Order Uqai Tubuli to lead the Beihai cavalry and scatter the Northern Naiman army.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

Uqai Tubuli, the Protector-General of the Beihai.

He was a veteran general who had followed Xiao Wolila on the battlefield.

Before Xiao Sima served as the Garrison Commisioner of the Eastern Capital, he had already been the Governor-General of the Beihai for many years.

Xiao Sima’s ability to gain a firm foothold in the Northern Border was also due to his full support.

Only because he was too old, Xiao Sima didn’t let him participate in the frontal main attack but instead entrusted him with the task of guarding against Buyruq Khan.

Regardless of whether Uqai Tubuli established merit in this battle or not…

After the war, Xiao Sima would provide for him, granting him glory and wealth, and hand over the position of Governor-General of the North Sea to someone else.

The Northern Border needed fresh blood.

However, not long after Xiao Sima’s order was transmitted, a personal guard ran over hurriedly.

With a look of horror on his face, he said, “My Lord, something terrible has happened.”

“Lord Uqai Tubuli is dead.”

Hearing this, Xiao Sima was instantly stunned, his face changing drastically in an instant.

“What?”

“How is that possible?”

At this moment, Xiao Sima’s voice changed. He jumped directly off his warhorse, rushed in front of the cavalryman, and asked urgently.

He even unconsciously became somewhat panicked.

Uqai Tubuli was the backup he had kept to deal with Buyruq Khan—how could he die at this time?

“It is… true.”

The personal guard said with a trembling voice, “Lord Uqai Tubuli’s personal guards just reported.”

“Just a moment ago, the warhorse Lord Uqai Tubuli was riding suddenly panicked for some unknown reason and went mad, throwing Lord Uqai Tubuli off.”

An old man who had followed Xiao Sima’s grandfather falling off a horse—the result could be imagined; he was rendered unconscious immediately.

After hearing this, Xiao Sima was so angry that his eyes turned red, and his face became hideous.

He roared in anger, “Sigele!”

How could he not be clear about what had happened?

It was that venomous snake hiding in the darkness again.

He had made his move.

And this time, he had struck directly at Xiao Sima’s fatal weakness.

With one strike, Xiao Sima’s situation instantly became incredibly passive.

With Uqai Tubuli dead, the cavalry of the various Beihai tribes would become a plate of loose sand.

Their combat power could not be utilized at all.

The situation of the Northern Border Grand Army had become precarious.

“Damn it! No matter who you are, I will definitely cut you into a thousand pieces!” Xiao Sima roared hideously in anger.

Since assuming the post of Garrison Commisioner of the Eastern Capital, this was the first time he had been so angry and lost his composure.

The development of events had clearly gone far beyond his expectations.

“Order all units to assemble towards the left flank and block the Northern Naiman rebel army!” Xiao Sima ordered loudly.

This order was mainly issued to the second-line troops like Li Xiao’s, who were temporarily not participating in the attack.

However, the troops Xiao Sima had reserved were not many; Li Xiao’s three thousand men were already the largest unit.

The other Liao troops had all already joined the battle against Tayang Khan.

So, facing Buyruq Khan’s attack, Xiao Sima could only go up with his own central army.

Moreover, with Uqai Tubuli dead, the various Beihai tribes were leaderless. Only Xiao Sima had the prestige to make them obey orders; no one else would work.

Soon, the news reached Li Xiao, directly startling Xiao Yanyan.

“Rebelled, rebelled…”

“It really is a conspiracy. Buyruq Khan did not submit to Great Liao; he was deceiving us.”

Xiao Yanyan was completely stunned. She looked at Li Xiao with a dull gaze and said in a voice of disbelief.

Li Xiao had really guessed it right.

Buyruq Khan’s surrender was fake; he had deceived everyone.

It was also because Buyruq Khan acted too well.

He actually dared to risk danger and personally come to the Liao military camp.

This frank and bold behavior made people subconsciously think that Buyruq Khan was sincerely submitting.

It seemed they had slowly lowered their guard against him, giving him an opportunity.

“This really is trouble,” Li Xiao said, shaking his head lightly, his face also turning ugly.

He hadn’t expected things to truly develop in the direction he had envisioned.

But honestly speaking, he really didn’t want the Northern Border Army to lose too miserably.

“Li Xiao…”

Xiao Yanyan looked at him with urgent eyes, panic in her beautiful gaze.

“Don’t worry, things haven’t reached the worst stage yet,” Li Xiao comforted her.

In his mind, he was thinking rapidly.

Although he had thoughts of self-preservation, it couldn’t be now.

Xiao Sima was leading the grand army in a charge. If he took his men and ran, he would be a deserter.

Don’t even think about mixing in Western Liao in the future.

So, he still had to put in some effort.

If it really reached an irrecoverable stage, it wouldn’t be too late to withdraw then.

Thus, Li Xiao led the grand army to press forward rapidly, closely following behind Xiao Sima’s central army.

But not long after, a group of scattered nomadic cavalry ran from the front in terror.

They were still shouting and screaming.

“What are they shouting?” Li Xiao asked Hutu.

Hutu said, not entirely sure, “It seems they are saying… the Liao army is defeated, and Lord Xiao is dead?”

Hearing this, Xiao Yanyan beside him instantly flared up.

She said angrily, “Bastards.”

“Bewitching the army’s heart—shoot them all dead.”

Li Xiao nodded lightly to the messenger upon hearing this.

These scattered cavalry were obviously people from the Beihai nomadic tribes.

With Uqai Tubuli dead, the various Beihai tribes instantly became a plate of loose sand. Even if Xiao Sima wanted to gather them, it would take time.

So in this process, facing the Northern Naiman army, the Beihai tribes collapsed at the first touch.

Soldiers had already begun to flee one after another. If not stopped, the situation would only become increasingly severe.

So, Xiao Yanyan was right. Making a prompt decision to shoot these deserters would awe the army’s heart.

Just like that, while advancing, the cavalry under Li Xiao’s command took on the task of a supervising team.

It did effectively curb the flight of the Beihai tribes.

However, immediately after, a new crisis emerged. A unit of Naiman cavalry detoured around, preparing to attack Xiao Sima’s central army from the rear.

And their first target of attack was precisely the troops under Li Xiao’s command.

Facing the surging Naiman cavalry, Li Xiao, clad in heavy armor, was already prepared for a counter-charge.

But before that, he still needed to give the Naimans a big surprise.

“Chen Laojiu!” Li Xiao shouted loudly.

“Take your men and engage them.”

“Yes, sir!”

In the team, a middle-aged man shouted loudly.

Not long ago, Li Xiao had gathered all the soldiers in the army who knew how to use the Divine Arm Crossbow, as well as those who could simply learn its operation.

He formed a separate hundred-man team.

And Chen Laojiu, who was most proficient in operating the Divine Arm Crossbow, became the Hundred-Man Commander of this team.

After receiving the order, he led his men to the front of the formation.

The one hundred Divine Arm Crossbowmen did not line up in a single row but, according to Li Xiao’s order, arranged themselves in three horizontal rows.

“Shoot—”

When the Naiman cavalry charged to a distance of more than four hundred meters, Chen Laojiu directly ordered the soldiers in the first row to begin shooting.