Chapter 596: Just in Time

Chapter 596: Chapter 596: Just in Time

Wu Kai firmly believed in his own judgment; he absolutely did not believe that the Barbarian Race could play any surrounding-rescue tricks at the Fish Stone military station by Jianchuan’s front. The current frontal assault, together with the rear encirclement, were all just decoys, simply meant to intimidate. Otherwise, why would the right flank be left so exposed? Isn’t it just a window deliberately left open for people to escape?

These little tricks seemed rather childish in Wu Kai’s eyes.

Besides, the Rhombus Array had already withstood the initial impact, its structure stable. The soldiers only needed to follow their training; barring major upheaval, Wu Kai was absolutely confident they could hold fast, even grind down and slaughter a large number of enemies.

At the moment, the battlefield was extremely advantageous for Wu Kai. Right in front was the Fish Stone Military Station—though flames soared skyward, it was far from being captured. Otherwise, the Barbarians encircling them wouldn’t only be these before him.

Furthermore, the Central Army Main Array in the rear, though still at some distance, was already close by with Assistant General Li’s division, and had already begun to react in advance.

Coming up from the rear in a pincer array? Wu Kai couldn’t help but sneer inwardly; it appeared Assistant General Li had no intention of leaving a path for those Barbarians stuck behind to survive.

"Command flag! Rotate the front-line lancers; let them begin resting in shifts ahead of schedule!"

After weathering the initial shock, and with their own cultivators targeting the opponent’s cultivators, the battle array was already stabilizing from a tactical perspective. Wu Kai rotated out those soldiers who had been holding the hardest lines to conserve strength, spreading the fatigue among as many soldiers as possible. Who knew if there would still be more fighting later?

After half a stick of incense’s time had passed, Wu Kai, mounted, furrowed his brow slightly. He noticed the Barbarians hadn’t seized the opportunity to launch a fierce assault while they switched out the lancers. On the contrary, their attacks were far less ferocious than before.

This is... trying to disengage?

"Now this is rather interesting; seems they’ve got a bit of cunning after all." Wu Kai instantly grasped the enemy’s other reason for pincering him back and forth.

"Command flag, all units hear this: the front army becomes the rear army! Assist Assistant General Li’s division in focusing to annihilate any enemies caught in the pincer!"

Once the rhombus formation tightened, it wasn’t suitable for mid-battle array transformations—the risk of loosening was high. Unless absolutely necessary, breaking the rhombus once formed was never done lightly. However, swapping front and rear forces was simple, having no impact on the battle array’s core structure, signifying only a shift in the direction of attack.

In other words, compared to before, Wu Kai had simply reversed the main assault direction of the battle array.

Now that the enemy wanted to flee and they held the initiative, the natural aim was to latch on and prevent an easy withdrawal. Yet the rhombus array compelled Wu Kai to choose only one side—front or rear—as the next main assault direction.

Compared to the front, he chose the rear, where Assistant General Li’s pincer would join and form a complete encirclement.

"Wuu wuu, wuu..."

Horn blasts sounded from the rear—Assistant General Li’s division had arrived. The previously ferocious Barbarians immediately began to retreat; the original front had now become the rear force and didn’t engage, but the Barbarians who’d been maneuvering from the left to attempt an encirclement were now pinned tightly in place, unable to move.

Compared to the Barbarians who had already begun retreating, these trapped Barbarians were now struggling desperately. Their counterattacks were fierce—some Barbarian cultivators even revealed themselves, ignoring the Jingying Prefecture cultivators as they struck at the soldiers inside the rhombus formation, knowing they could no longer escape and hoping to give their comrades a chance to flee in exchange for their own lives.

Yet when a pincer battle array rapidly closed from behind to clamp down on this Barbarian force, the situation became calm again. Wild fury on the hard spears did not frighten the men grasping the weapons; on the contrary, it only sped up the slaughter.

And Assistant General Li’s intent was clearly broader than Wu Kai’s. After encircling the trapped Barbarians with the pincer battle array, he sent a mounted squad from the right wing to sweep around and intercept the Barbarians already retreating on the right, hoping to pin them down a second time.

This no longer had much to do with Wu Kai. Once Li’s division came up, he received orders to work in tandem with the pincer battle array to utterly wipe out the enemies surrounded. Pursuits and similar matters behind were beyond his strength to participate in further.

After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, Wu Kai ordered the array to dissolve by half, forming a skirmisher screen at the perimeter, with only a small inner rhombus remaining for insurance.

Wu Kai went to report the battle situation to Assistant General Li. The remaining soldiers rested on the spot; a portion of prisoners were kept for interrogation, while the rest were finished off—exterminated without mercy.

In the soldiers’ eyes, now was not the time to round up Barbarian slaves. At the moment, only dead Barbarians were good Barbarians. Prisoners? What’s that?

By now, the Central Army Main Array was emerging in the distance. Upon seeing their signal, the three army routes were directed in a rush toward the Fish Stone Military Station to reinforce at full speed.

Assistant General Li took time to meet Wu Kai, his words generous with praise.

"The right-wing Vanguard Battalion did not meet obstacles like you did and has already charged ahead to join the relief at Fish Stone Station. My division will also follow, seizing the chance to strike a bit more. Your performance this time was outstanding; the Military Marshal has commended you for taking first honors in this initial battle—it will be truthfully recorded. As for your soldiers’ merits, you may report them yourself; I’ll also register them as soon as possible."

"That’s enough, no need for further formalities. Rest for now, then catch up and join me again."

Before leaving, Assistant General Li gave Wu Kai’s arm a firm pat, his expression genial, obviously very satisfied with Wu Kai’s excellent performance in this encounter.

First, he hadn’t feared the enemy; upon contact, his primary reaction was to form up and counterattack, never weakening the initial momentum of the Mixed Army’s first battle. It also set an excellent example, uplifting the morale of those who followed.

Second, Wu Kai maintained initiative throughout the subsequent fight. He did not recklessly opt for aggressive assault, but used the rhombus array for both offense and defense; with accurate judgments of the battlefield’s flow, he switched front and rear forces, successfully pinning the Barbarians, and worked with reinforcements to wipe out large numbers.

Victory in a first battle generally meant considerable merit—and Wu Kai was deeply satisfied. Yet he understood not to become greedy. With so many in the military, every head was risking their life for honor and reward. His own good luck brought him first honors, so he had to know when to stop. Otherwise, who would like him?

But in the end, battle is never a good thing—it means death. It’s a contest: the side with fewer deaths wins, or the side that can afford losses wins.

But who dies? That’s never a pleasant question. So the smile on Wu Kai’s face lasted only a very short while before the casualty report from his deputy turned his mood grave again.

"Sir, seventy-eight killed in action, sixteen seriously wounded, and currently three hundred and nineteen lightly wounded."

This was no small loss. All in just about an hour. Among the dead were several cultivators who’d served as the blade within the formation, which would affect many future deployments.

"Gather the bodies, treat the wounded, and have the rest rest in place."