Chapter 152: Seizing the City (Part 1)

Duguli set off first, followed by a selected group of mountain men who were adept at navigating rugged terrain and climbing. Their target was to scale that towering mountain, and naturally, their numbers were not large.

Watching them depart into the distance, Liu Ji pressed Zhuoma’s little head and handed her over to Maliji. The old man made no secret of his fondness for the girl, constantly offering words of comfort to set her mind at ease.

"Your father is only providing support; there is little danger, and he will surely return."

"Mm." The little girl was very sensible. She neither cried nor made a fuss, acting just as if she were seeing her father off on a routine hunt.

Having settled her, Liu Ji returned to his own tent, where another frightened girl awaited him.

"Elceira, I am about to march into battle. Don't you intend to see your master off?"

The young girl, who had been sitting in a daze with her head bowed, instantly sprang to her feet and reached for the armor pieces hanging on the rack, eager to help him dress. Liu Ji pressed down on her hands, turned her around so her back was to him, and pinned her gently against himself.

"I am going to fight against my dear mother, and I need some encouragement," Liu Ji whispered close to her ear, his hands already wandering over her skin.

Embraced from behind, the girl felt a wave of warm breath fluttering against her ear, sending shivers through her body and soul. Several sensitive spots grew increasingly weak under his movements, forcing her to brace herself tightly against the rack, biting her lips to stifle any shameful sounds.

After a long while, the thoroughly limp girl was lifted onto the couch. The man's sudden and demanding possession left her body burning hot and her face flushed crimson—a thrilling yet novel experience, especially knowing that just beyond a single curtain lay the boisterous, clamorous camp of shouting men and neighing horses.

"Get a good sleep, and don't think about anything. Two hours from now, I will be back."

Liu Ji dressed himself properly, flipped a crystal hourglass upside down by the edge of the couch, turned around, and walked out.

Elceira opened her eyes in a daze, her amber pupils filled with a misty haze. She stared unblinkingly at the transparent funnel, watching the fine sand continuously pour down, well aware that the exact moment the upper half emptied would be the moment the outcome was revealed.

Either her family or her man was destined never to return.

Crystal-clear tears streamed from her beautiful, large eyes, falling drop by drop onto the bedding.

The hour of dawn is when a person's biological clock resets to zero and begins counting anew, waking from deep slumber to start a new day.

The garrison troops on the walls of the city of Kapiya had finally endured until the relief of the guard, eager to return and get a proper sleep. As they descended the ladders, their eyes were full of fatigue, and their steps were utterly unsteady.

The city walls here were neither as tall nor as wide as those in the Central Plains; they consisted merely of a single layer of rammed earth backed by rough wooden scaffolding for support, which also served as a platform for the defenders to stand on and attack incoming enemies from an elevated position.

Sarasvati had to steady herself by holding onto the wooden railing just to stand upright. Unlike the soldiers who had spent the entire night on guard, she had also stayed up all night, yet there was no one to relieve her.

Meanwhile, the garrison troops coming to replace them stumbled forward with sleep-laden eyes and wide yawns. Some hadn't even finished dressing, their tunics draped loosely over their shoulders. The slow ones lagged far behind; while the front of the line had already reached the base of the wall, the rear had yet to even exit the barracks.

Sarasvati watched this scene with cold eyes, suppressing her rising anger. Outbursts at this moment would only achieve the opposite effect; even without a military background, she could read the morale of the men.

Fortunately, the relief would be completed shortly. Once these adequately rested troops took their places on the city walls, a modicum of psychological stability would be restored. Yet, for some reason, she felt deeply unsettled, her eyelids twitching violently.

The order of relief required the old garrison to descend completely before the new arrivals could take their positions. Just as the city wall stood momentarily empty, the sharp blast of a horn suddenly rang out.

Sarasvati turned instinctively, and at that very moment, a tremendous force slammed heavily into her shoulder, sending the unprepared woman flying and rolling down the wooden steps.

"Watch out!" a loud cry immediately followed.

Before her astonished gaze, numerous bright trails of fire plummeted from the sky. The guard who had pushed her out of the way collapsed near her feet, a blazing arrow jutting straight from his chest.

The sudden strike left her mind blank and paralyzed the defenders' judgment, for these fiery projectiles were clearly being shot down from the far side of the mountain.

The Tang soldiers had actually scaled the sheer cliffs!

Even more alarming to her than this discovery was the realization that this was the exact moment when the city wall's defense was at its absolute slackest.

The glowing trails of fire served as the best markers within the camp. According to the prior arrangement, thousands of mountain men surged forward first, moving in groups of three to four. Each man carried a freshly chopped tree on his shoulder, complete with all its branches and leaves.

The dark, dense formation rapidly closed in on the city wall from several directions. Liu Ji stood in the rear, keeping a close eye on the movement atop the ramparts. Seeing that the mountain men had already crossed half the distance without a single figure appearing on the battlements, he had to admit that Duguli’s chosen timing for the attack was ideal.

Soon, the first tree was bridged against the city wall. The process went even more smoothly than Liu Ji had anticipated prior to the battle. Often, the heaviest casualties occurred during the approach across the open, unobstructed expanse of ground before the walls—the prime killing zone for defenders. Now, that worry was no longer an issue.

Clambering up the propped-up trees, several mountain men held knives between their teeth, rapidly scaling the trunks just as they would in a deep forest, though this climb was far less difficult.

Turning a siege into a woodland scramble allowed these strapping men to give full play to their strengths in a familiar environment. Watching them draw closer and closer to the parapet, Liu Ji felt his heart rise involuntarily. If a band of mountain men could capture the city wall just like that, nothing could be better.

Under his watchful gaze, the first man to climb up crested the rampart. Before Liu Ji could even let out a sigh of relief, the man’s body wobbled and he suddenly plunged headfirst. Immediately afterward, the figures of garrison soldiers materialized on the wall, shouting as they loosed arrows, striking down the mountain men who failed to duck in time.

It appeared the defenders had recovered from their initial shock. Close-quarters combat erupted along several sections of the wall, with both sides exchanging blows at close range using bows and arrows, shifting the situation toward a stalemate.

"Our turn."

After observing for a moment, Liu Ji mounted his horse and led his men, bypassing the front and galloping toward the designated breakthrough point.