Steel, Explosives, and Spellcasters

At this moment, the Red River Tribe reinforcements were less than "one sheep" away from Bianli City in a straight line, with every arrow tower on the reddish-brown rammed earth walls clearly visible.

[Note: "One sheep" refers to the distance within which a flock of sheep is pastured, approximately 1.2—2.5 kilometers. Similarly, there are measurements like "one cow" and "one horse," which are Herders' units of measure.]
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Yet this short distance of one sheep seemed like an insurmountable chasm.

Because standing in their way were four phalanxes of a thousand men each, one camp, and a river over a dozen meters wide filled with icy cold water.

Chiliarch "Owl Hawk" galloped into their own formation, rushing straight to the red-tasseled banner symbolizing the commander-in-chief before pulling the reins hard.

The warhorse neighed, rearing up on its hind legs.

Owl Hawk dismounted and, seething with anger, strode toward the banner, and demanded loudly, "[Herde Language] Little Lion! Why aren't we moving?"

[Note: The following speech by the Herders is all in Herde Language; it will not be marked separately.]

Beneath the banner, the Little Lion referred to by Owl Hawk remained silent. His eyebrows were tightly knitted, his lips pressed into a thin line as he stared unwaveringly at Bianli.

Across the river, the earthen city was now shrouded in thick smoke, and the sounds of shouting, gunfire, and explosions were clearly audible.

The Herders revered the color green, prizing green horses, green feathers, and green stones. Red, yellow, and blue were secondary, while white was considered the least.

Several Herders standing next to the banner all had green plumes, indicating they were at least Chiliarchs.

Little Lion, just like Owl Hawk, had only one green plumed feather on his helmet. However, compared to the other green plumes, he seemed far too young.

Next to Little Lion stood another leader, whose helmet adorned three green plumed feathers that were longer than anyone else's.

This older leader wore a full suit of armor, his face crisscrossed with deep lines, indicating an advanced age.

Pointing with his riding crop at the ready Paratu People, the old leader said to Owl Hawk, "The two-legged are in hedgehog formation, clearly waiting for us to attack. Knowing there's a cliff ahead, only a mad, stupid cow would jump off."

Owl Hawk, enraged, pointed at the old man's nose and cursed, "Tie Duo, you're greedier than a wolf, more cunning than a fox—you just don't want to put in the effort! From the very start, it's been us fighting! Has your tribe ever shed blood? You'd love for White Lion to die so you could swallow us whole!"

A Chiliarch from behind the old leader flashed with anger, stepping out to grab Owl Hawk's shoulder armor.

Owl Hawk restrained the man's forearm with his left hand and landed a fierce right hook, knocking the Chiliarch to the ground.

The Chiliarch got up and was about to re-engage but was forced back by the gleaming tip of a blade.

Owl Hawk, knife in hand, pointed it at the crowd and bellowed like thunder, "White Lion made a pact with us, to lure the enemy out of their camp and then encircle and annihilate them. Now that they're here, you hesitate and fear? Is there a better opportunity than this? Or should we wait for them to enter our camp before we fight? Are you saying you don't harbor treacherous schemes?"

Owl Hawk then roared at Little Lion, "Little Lion, the sound of cannons in the city is like thunder, your blood kin brother is under attack—are you also going to betray him?"

Underneath the red-tasseled banner, everyone fell as silent as cicadas in winter.

Little Lion ignored Owl Hawk completely, looking instead toward the old leader, "Uncle, there is some truth to what Owl Hawk says. Bianli might not hold out much longer, we have to take the bait, poison or not. Besides, with the Paratu People divided, it is indeed a good opportunity. Defeating the enemy in front of us will cause the besiegers at Bianli to collapse without a fight."

The old leader of the Red River Tribe, "Tie Duo [Tie Duo the Tooth Beggar]," stayed silent for a long while before finally nodding.

He said coldly to Owl Hawk, "If I wanted to engulf White Lion's people, I wouldn't have followed you here in the first place."

Owl Hawk grunted, sheathing his knife.

"Your anger is like a wildfire." Little Lion looked back at Owl Hawk, "Don't burn your own people, set the Paratu People alight. I have a task for you."

...

The Herders made no significant movements, and the Paratu People weren't about to take the offensive, so the standoff continued.

Lieutenant Colonel Robert looked like a circus performer straddling the backs of two horses, observing the enemy's moves.

His battalion, along with another, formed a thousand-man square on the far eastern end of the overall formation. The most dangerous positions at the ends were naturally entrusted to the most reliable troops.

In Robert's view, any commander of sound mind would not mount a frontal assault on a large square formation.

But Sekler gave the enemy general a reason he couldn't ignore — Bianli.

He clearly informed the enemy commander: I've split my forces into two—one marching on Bianli, the other on you. If you defeat this force, the siege of Bianli will be broken; if you do not, you will breach the city today.

Moreover, including the northern fort's garrison, Sekler only had about five thousand men at his disposal. In front of him, the vast army of the Red River Tribe looked like at least ten thousand cavalry.

Five thousand versus ten thousand, foot soldiers against cavalry.

Although Robert maintained his calm demeanor, he was still sweating bullets on the inside.

The internal debates and decision-making process within the Herder army were, of course, beyond the Paratu People's knowledge.

All Robert saw was the enemy beginning to stir, horses' hooves kicking up clouds of dust, cavalry flanking from both sides.

Orders also came from the Paratu central army. The squares began to slowly move, one square advancing while the others closed in.

The formation spread out in a line transformed into a character "品" arrangement.

The Herder cavalry howled strangely, charging closer and closer, the momentum was indeed astonishing.

"Musketeers, ready!" Lieutenant Colonel Robert ordered.

Musketeer Pinter, obeying orders, firmly planted the iron fork and steadied his musket.

He knew he only had one chance for such a stable shot, so he aimed carefully.

The flanking Herder cavalry charged to about a hundred meters, then suddenly turned their horses, revealing it to be a feint.

Pinter's hand was steady. Such tricks could only scare recruits and clearly wouldn't fool Pinter or anyone else.