RNP Page 102
Page 102
But it didn't matter. The Thunder Shadow Scale Armor protecting Liu Hong suddenly transformed into a thunderous dragon shadow, and then into a thunderous chain, binding Liu Hong's left hand and Xu Ning's right hand tightly together.
Liu Hong wielded his dragon-patterned staff with his right hand and swept it horizontally, using the iron chain and the staff head to entangle Xu Ning's hook-and-sickle spear. Then, relying on his superhuman strength, he pulled hard, clamping Xu Ning down from the front and immobilizing her arms!
Xu Ning frowned slightly and struggled a few times, but found that she could not break free. Liu Hong's strength was no less than hers. But she did not understand what the point of Liu Hong's actions was—you can't break my defenses, are you going to hold me here for the rest of your life?!
"Li Jun!!!"
Liu Hong was quite cautious. Even now, he did not let Shi Qian make a move. Instead, he asked Li Jun to make one more move to see what Xu Ning's last trump card was.
Upon hearing this, the River Dragon immediately swung its fishing rod, the hook, like the head of a giant dragon, once again biting tightly into Xu Ning's goose-feather chainmail, trying to forcibly pull this precious armor out of Xu Ning's body and fish it to its side.
Xu Ning tried to stop him, but her hands were firmly restrained by Liu Hong, and she couldn't move. Helpless, she could only bow deeply. Underneath the golden spearman's back, which was covered by a bright red battle robe, was a specially made crossbow. Her 90-degree bow directly triggered the crossbow's mechanism, scattering nine steel arrows!
The attack was too sudden, and the operation of hiding the crossbow behind her back was too well concealed. In the rush, Liu Hong suddenly used his mind control to only control the crossbow bolt in the middle that was shot at him. The other eight crossbow bolts grazed past him, one of which was shot at Hunjianglong Li Jun, forcing her to release the fishing hook again and return empty-handed.
"Shi Qian!!!"
Liu Hong roared again. This time, Xu Ning really used up all his trump cards. A small black figure darted out like lightning. Shi Qian's combat power was very low, but her lightness skill was extremely good. She could even run on the water without getting her boots wet.
Moreover, her stealth and concealment skills were frighteningly high. Xu Ning didn't even notice her shadow before Shi Qian had already arrived behind her, his hands simultaneously touching the goose feather chainmail.
"Golden Gunner, your abilities are mine now."
Shi Qian's gaunt face revealed an evil smile. Her demonic ability was very special; she could steal everything, even other people's demonic messengers! It was almost the same as Li Jun's ability to use a fishhook to snatch away everything from his opponent.
However, Li Jun's ability is a mid-to-long-range skill, allowing him to ambush people from afar and catch anything, but he needs to engage in a drawn-out battle with others, and there is a risk of him failing to land a hit.
Shi Qian's theft requires physical contact, which greatly restricts his actions. However, it is extremely fast and highly concealed. Unlike Li Jun, he doesn't need to engage in a frantic struggle with someone, and there is no chance of him being caught off guard!
The chainmail armor, shrouded in shadow, instantly transformed into a magnificent golden flow, gradually flowing from Xu Ning's tall and beautiful body to Shi Qian's petite and adorable form! Xu Ning, having already deployed her crossbow, was no longer able to stop Shi Qian.
Xu Ning's invincible defense has finally been broken.
Xu Ning roared and kicked Shi Qian backward with his left foot. Shi Qian's close combat ability was indeed relatively weak. Even though she had stolen and put on the Goose Feather Chainmail, which offered 95% special protection, Xu Ning still kicked her away, sending her flying directly into the Ji River. The heavy armor prevented her from using her light-footed skills, and she was dragged along, gurgling and sinking to the bottom of the water. Zhang Heng and Zhang Shun rushed to her rescue.
Liu Hong let out a long sigh, tilted his head back sharply, and then delivered a powerful headbutt that slammed into Xu Ning's forehead! With a loud "bang!", both men's foreheads shattered and bled simultaneously, and they both felt dizzy.
Xu Ning, who hadn't been injured in decades, was suddenly struck on the forehead, blood streaming down his face, his head spinning, leaving him momentarily dazed. Liu Hong, however, was already used to being injured. He tilted his head back a second time, delivering a second headbutt that slammed into Xu Ning's nose, followed by a third, a fourth! A fifth!!!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!!!"
With both of them unable to use their hands, Liu Hong smashed Xu Ning's head thirteen times in one go, breaking his own scalp, leaving his face covered in blood, and even exposing his white bones.
However, Xu Ning's condition was even worse. He was hit so hard by Liu Hong that he bled from all seven orifices, his brain was trembling, and he was knocked unconscious by Liu Hong's most primitive and violent impact.
Chapter 273: Xu Ning's Heart Returns to Liangshan Marsh
After capturing Xu Ning, the morale of the 500 Imperial Guards collapsed, and they scattered. While their martial arts skills and equipment were undeniable, the Song Dynasty's Imperial Guards had been in a long period of peace and hadn't fought in a battle. Their lack of experience and low morale were also undeniable. Liangshan, too lazy to bother with them, quickly destroyed another tall tower, and a massive fleet of ships surged into Hulukou, swiftly completing all the ships Xu Ning had been overseeing in the past few days. The completed ships were towed back to Liangshan, while those under construction were burned.
Liu Hong even commanded a large army to attempt an attack on Dingtao City. Using the old method, he first sent a suicide squad under the cover of musket fire to rush to the base of the city wall. They used gunpowder to blast a large crater at the foot of the wall, then filled the crater with gunpowder and used it to blow up the foundation of the city wall! The gunpowder explosion made the entire city of Dingtao tremble, terrifying the local troops. If it weren't for Huyan Zhuo's rapid reinforcements, leading thousands of heavy cavalry like a torrent of steel sweeping across the land of Jizhou and arriving in Dingtao in just a few hours, forcing back the Liangshan troops, Dingtao might have fallen.
Liu Hong glanced at the endless torrent of steel and knew that without training his troops well, he would be no match for them. He could only retreat along the waterway for the time being. Huyan Zhuo's armored cavalry was invincible on land, but they couldn't go into the water and were helpless against these water bandits. He could only watch helplessly as they took Xu Ning back to Liangshan.
At this moment, Xu Ning slowly woke up and found himself tied up in the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness of Liangshan Marsh, surrounded by a group of heroes.
"You're awake."
Liu Hong stepped down from the main seat and personally untied Xu Ning. The brothers and sisters looked at Xu Ning closely. She wore a long red-gold robe, which made her figure look as proud as a red plum blossom in the snow. Her sword-like eyebrows were sharp as a drawn sword. Her star-like eyes flashed with a sharp light that broke through the darkness. She was a stunning beauty on the battlefield that captivated everyone's hearts. They all marveled at her beauty.
"Now that we are captured, you may kill or torture us as you please, there is no need for such treatment."
Xu Ning's sharp eyes gradually dimmed, his gaze lowered, and he fell silent.
Why does my sister speak like that?
Lin Chong also rushed up at this moment. The two women were both instructors of the Imperial Guards and were old friends. Lin Chong knew Xu Ning's hook-and-sickle spear technique, and Xu Ning knew Lin Chong's Lin family spear technique.
"So it turns out that Sister Lin was hiding in Liangshan Marsh."
Xu Ning glanced at Lin Chong in surprise.
"Then you should know, sister, that I, as a general of the Imperial Guard who went out to fight, suffered a defeat. Gao Qiu will not let me off the hook. If I die here in a heroic battle, the court will give me dignity, treat my family well, and give my body a proper burial. If I rebel, then my family will be exterminated."
"There's nothing more to say now. Great Sage Evil, I respect you as a man. If you also appreciate a hero's courage, then give me a quick death."
"General Xu, don't despair, look."
Liu Hong remained calm and instructed Tang Long, the Golden Leopard, to bring Xu Ning's entire family into the Hall of Loyalty and Righteousness.
"what?"
Xu Ning stared wide-eyed in astonishment, rubbing his eyes in disbelief at the scene before him. What the hell? My family has been moved to Liangshan?!
“Cousin, please don’t be angry! I know that the court is corrupt and that treacherous officials are ruining the country. If something happens to you in Dingtao, our whole family will be affected. Therefore, I quickly went to Tokyo and brought the whole family out.”
Tang Long clasped his hands in a fist salute, dispelling Xu Ning's last concerns.
At this moment, Liu Hong, as always, spouted nonsense that even he himself didn't believe, trying to persuade these generals from different factions in the imperial court with the promise of amnesty.
"We have become outlaws here because we were framed by treacherous officials of the court and forced by local officials. We have no choice but to do this! We brothers are skilled in both literature and martial arts, but we have no way to serve the emperor. We can only stir up trouble here and force the court to grant us amnesty so that we can serve the country with all our might!"
Look, we, the people of Liangshan, are not greedy or murderous, nor do we commit any unjust or immoral acts. We earnestly hope that the magistrate will take pity on this true sentiment and join us in upholding justice! Once the imperial court grants us amnesty, all of us brothers will be able to achieve true enlightenment.
Xu Ning looked at Liu Hong with a wry smile. "You've already put it this way, what else can I do? Now that my whole family has gone to Liangshan, even if I go back, I'll be punished by that scoundrel Gao Qiu for the defeat. It's really better to go to Liangshan and wait for the court to grant me amnesty again."
That's just how the Song Dynasty was. If they could win, they would fight. If they couldn't, they would sue for peace, offering amnesty, tribute, and one of those three things would suit them.
Thinking of this, Xu Ning accepted the assignment, kneeling down and clasping his hands in a fist.
"I'd rather wander half my life without finding a wise ruler! If you won't abandon me, I'm willing to serve you like a dog or a horse!"
At this moment, Liu Hong once again received the magic power of a celestial being.
[Xu Ning: Tianyou Star]: For every four levels, forge one top-grade subspace equipment.
Liu Hong is currently level 9, so he directly gave his two slots for subspace equipment to his own Jidu Reverse Scale and Panlong Staff, wanting to see what kind of good stuff the subspace demon blacksmith inside Xu Ning could forge for him.
The demon blacksmith who could forge the goose-feather chainmail and the gold-melting hook-and-sickle spear was no ordinary craftsman. The Jidu Reverse Scale was not a type of armor weapon and could not be forged, but Zhao Kuangyin's Panlong Staff was no problem at all. He directly used technology that subverted the laws and logic of the physical world to give Zhao Taizu's Panlong Staff, which had conquered the world, an epic-level boost.
【Perfect Split】: Consumes 1 point of spiritual energy to summon an identical Panlong Staff copy, which lasts for one hour. When you use 【Heavenly Slash】, all Panlong Staff copies will also use Heavenly Slash at the same time.
Liu Hong felt he had gone down a dead end. Forget all that nonsense, just tell me what to do with my Heavenly Gang Slash. If one hit isn't enough, then hit me a few more times.
Then, the demon blacksmith went on to list the other extreme he could forge: if you can find a good suit of armor, I can give you an incredible enchantment.
[Fallen Titan]: A person wearing armor who can enter a three-headed, six-armed battle stance at any time.
Liu Hong was overjoyed. "In that case, wouldn't I be able to wield three Panlong Staffs at the same time? With the perfect splitting effect of the Panlong Staffs, a single Heavenly Gang Slash would be equivalent to three times the power!"
"With the general in hand, what great things cannot be accomplished!"
Liu Hong quickly helped Xu Ning up from the ground and gave her the title of commander, instructing her to train troops with Lin Chong and teach his secret forces how to use the hook-and-sickle spear, in preparation for a decisive battle against Huyan Zhuo's armored cavalry!
Chapter 274: The Strange Tale of the Double Whips in Jeju
At this moment, Huyan Zhuo was also getting anxious and frustrated. Although he had been pressing Liangshan all the way, Liangshan's navy was indeed powerful. He could only defeat them, but not crush them. The soldiers who were battered by the armored cavalry could jump into the river and swim back to Liangshan. His advantage could not be turned into a victory.
These Liangshan soldiers were elusive in Jizhou, and their own troops could only ensure their safety within the city walls. Once they left the city, they dared not even leave without the protection of several hundred soldiers. They were essentially waging guerrilla warfare and harassment, which made the Shanxi cavalry extremely weary and exhausted.
No, we can't keep dragging this out. We have to find a way to force Liu Hong to come out and fight a decisive battle.
Huyan Zhuo racked his brains and finally came up with a brilliant plan. He spread the news in Jizhou that three days later, he would escort all eight captured leaders—Qin Ming, Li Kui, Deng Fei, Yan Shun, Wang Ying, Zheng Tianshou, Ou Peng, and Mu Chun—to Dongjing City and execute them by slow slicing! Moreover, he would have a large army escorting them on the way. He refused to believe that Liu Hong would not come to fight him.
Huyan Zhuo's plan was indeed ruthless. When the news reached Liangshan, the entire Liangshan was in an uproar. All the generals were urging for battle: "Brother, stop harassing us! We must rescue our brothers and sisters!"
Liu Hong knew this was a trap, but he couldn't abandon his brothers and sisters. Fortunately, he had Lin Chong and Xu Ning, the two instructors of the 800,000 Imperial Guards in Tokyo, training his troops. They had trained them to be almost perfect, and the time was almost up. If it was time to fight the final battle, then so be it!
Three days later, Huyan Zhuo cautiously deployed his troops, using the same old tactics: the ever-victorious general Han Tao and the thunderous Ling Zhen guarded the camp. He personally led the Heavenly Eye General Peng Qi, with one thousand armored cavalry and two thousand heavy cavalry, a total of three thousand iron cavalry, to escort the eight captured Liangshan leaders back to Tokyo to be executed by slow slicing!
This was Liu Hong's only chance. If he didn't rescue them on the way, these eight men would be imprisoned in Tokyo, and Liu Hong would never have another chance to save them. Therefore, Huyan Zhuo was certain that Liu Hong would come and made thorough preparations. He divided the last thousand heavily armored cavalry into two teams, one for Dong Ping and the other for Han Tao. He instructed them to come to their aid immediately if a battle broke out on their side and to find a way to annihilate Liu Hong's main force on the plains, just like when they defeated Song Jiang.
Huyan Zhuo left full of confidence.
The moment she left, the strategist Wu Yong excitedly offered his advice.
"Brother! Now! Forget about Huyan Zhuo, we should concentrate all our forces and attack Huyan Zhuo's main camp directly!!!"
Wu Yong excitedly explained his plan, but when he noticed that his other brothers and sisters, especially Mu Hong, were looking at him strangely, he immediately offered an explanation.
"Brothers, rest assured, Huyan Zhuo wouldn't dare leave with the other eight sisters! She must return to save her own camp! Otherwise, when she returns to Tokyo with three thousand cavalry, she will find that her hundreds of thousands of troops have been defeated in one battle! At that time, Gao Qiu will execute Huyan Zhuo himself without us even lifting a finger! She must return with her exhausted cavalry, who have traveled dozens of miles back and forth! I, Wu Yong, dare to guarantee with my head the safety of the eight captured sisters! This strategy is called 'besieging Wei to rescue Zhao,' attacking what the enemy must defend."
"At that time, we will set up another army to block Huyan Zhuo on the main road, keeping her busy. Even if we are unlucky, we can still rescue our brothers and sisters. If we are lucky, we can even drive Huyan Zhuo out of Jizhou in one fell swoop!"
"Alright! Let's do it this way. Everyone, cook right now, eat your fill, and take two days' worth of rations. At dawn tomorrow, we'll launch a surprise attack on Huyan Zhuo's camp!"
Liu Hong spoke decisively, and then immediately began to deploy his troops. He led ten cavalry and infantry leaders, including Luan Tingyu, Hu Sanniang, Xu Ning, Hua Rong, Sun Li, Mu Hong, Suo Chao, Liu Tang, Lü Fang, and Guo Sheng, totaling five thousand veteran soldiers trained by Lin Chong and Xu Ning. They marched out of Liangshan Marsh in a grand manner, crossed the marsh under the cover of night, and landed outside Huyan Zhuo's main camp.
Meanwhile, in the marshland, Li Jun, the River Dragon, also joined the battle with all his large ships. Forty small cannons from the Liao Dynasty were piled on the ships, using the eight-hundred-mile marshland as a natural barrier and twenty large and small ships as artillery positions, to bombard Huyan Zhuo's camp from a distance.
In an instant, the night raid began.
The night was as dark as ink, but suddenly a crimson roar erupted from the eight-hundred-mile-long Liangshan Marsh! The muzzles of forty light cannons suddenly spewed out flames that could burn the city, and with a shrill whistling sound that tore through the sky, tons of iron rain slammed into the outer walls of Huyan Zhuo's camp! The waves rippled and water splashed up.
In an instant, the camp walls, constructed of earth and giant timber, crumbled amidst a deafening explosion! A massive fireball, carrying rubble and broken wood, soared into the sky, flames dancing like venomous snakes. The outer camp walls were torn open by artillery fire, revealing the twisted and deformed camp and the mangled remains of sentries embedded in the ruins. The shockwave from the explosion crushed everything, and smoke and acrid gunpowder instantly filled the air!
“Charge! Charge! Charge!!!”
Liu Hong gave the order to charge three times in a row, and the five thousand elite infantrymen of Liangshan surged forward like a blood-red tidal wave bursting its banks! They charged towards the path blasted open by artillery fire, the smooth road, their heavy iron boots treading over burning scorched earth, scorching rubble, and still-twitching limbs. The cold spears reflected the colors of hell in the firelight.
Huyan Zhuo's troops were indeed a strong force. They reacted instantly to the artillery barrage. Bai Sheng, along with Han Tao, directed their troops to block the gap. They then discovered that Liangshan's formation was very strange. Han Tao was well-versed in military strategy, but he had never seen such a formation before.
The Liangshan forces no longer deployed in battalions of 500 men each. Instead, they increased their numbers, with two battalions of 500 men each cooperating in combat, raising the size of their combat units to 1,000 men.
In the middle, about six hundred people were arranged in a 25x25 square formation. Each row had twenty-five people, for a total of twenty-five rows. All of them were equipped with a two-piece suit of armor and carried spears ranging from three to five meters in length, forming a formidable and imposing forest of spears to solidify their position.
No! Those aren't spears! The organization is mixed; in each squad of five, two men carry spears, the strongest squad leader carries a giant axe, and the other two carry hook-and-sickle spears—aren't these hook-and-sickle spears with scythes mounted on the blade Xu Ning's special equipment? They've only been holding Xu Ning for a few dozen days, yet they've already learned how to use the hook-and-sickle spears, and even managed to infiltrate hook-and-sickle spearmen into the spearmen ranks?!
At the four corners of this large square formation, there are four smaller square formations, each 33x3, with all members armed with matchlock guns fitted with bayonets. These smaller formations serve as ranged attack units, ready to unleash three-stage firing at any time from the four corners of the larger formation.
This peculiar formation of a thousand men—Liangshan had five of them—and under the commands of five large banners and five suona horns, they advanced steadily forward, obeying orders without question, like a wall. This level of discipline nearly dumbfounded Han Tao—was this the level of training of bandits? Robbers? Even my thousand-strong army, which I had meticulously trained for several years, only had this level of discipline!
Chapter 275: The New Formation: Battlefield Meat Grinder (Bonus Chapter)
Han Tao composed himself. "Don't panic, I have plenty of people."
She calmly began to command, first drawing out the two thousand Imperial Guards and eight thousand Xiang Army infantry from the current main camp, a total of ten thousand men, and forming a battle line ten men deep and one hundred men wide on both sides, charging towards the five large square formations of Liangshan.
Immediately afterwards, she ordered the commander of her Imperial Guard cavalry to lead five hundred heavy cavalry to outflank Liangshan from behind, preparing to launch a thunderous attack and directly ambush them.
Finally, Han Tao swiftly ordered the other two camps to send troops out, using overwhelming numerical superiority to encircle and annihilate these forces. Only then did he dispatch soldiers to inform General Huyan Zhuo and General Dong Ping: "The main force of Liangshan is in my direction! Return immediately and wipe them out!"
After completing all this, Han Tao stood on the command platform, watching the outcome of the battle between the two armies.
On the front, the Song army slowly unfolded, with shields stretching out in front to form an immortal city wall of steel and wood, and thousands of spears densely stacked to form an impenetrable forest of spears.
Then, a large number of archers drew their powerful bows and crossbows. As soon as the enemy entered within 100 meters, they would unleash the Song army's signature move: a volley of ten thousand arrows.
Liu Hong calmly flapped his wings, soaring high in the sky, waving his flags and directing his army. The Liangshan troops, like a rock, precisely positioned themselves two hundred paces away from the Song army's ranks. Immediately, two musketeer squads positioned at the front corners of each large square formation opened fire simultaneously, unleashing a continuous barrage of dense gunfire in three volleys.
The first rank of musketeers simultaneously lowered their shoulders and braced themselves, instantly igniting the matchlocks! In an instant, hundreds of dark muzzles, like the pinholes of a bloodthirsty honeycomb, suddenly spewed out terrifying shrieks that tore through cloth, and raging flames that set the sky ablaze. Bullets rained down on the Song army formation like a storm of daggers, piercing deep into a huge brocade!
In an instant, Song soldiers fell like wheat under a sickle. Shields were shattered into pieces, and bodies were torn to dust. The first-rank soldiers who held their shields, spears, and gritted their teeth to hold on were instantly torn to pieces by countless bullets, exploding into patches of scarlet blood mist on the spot!
"Boom! Boom! Boom!!!"
Lead bullets easily pierced the thin breastplates and shattered the leather-covered wooden shields. The broken and deformed bullets tumbled and tore through the flesh and bones of the Song soldiers in the rear ranks, tearing huge gashes into the chests, necks, and faces of each soldier!
Bright red pieces of internal organs and white bone fragments mixed with scalding blood sprayed like a torrential rain onto the terrified and contorted faces of his comrades behind him. More than three hundred bullets were fired in a volley, and in that instant, more than sixty Song soldiers were torn to pieces, either dead or wounded, their bodies flying backward like tattered sacks, disrupting the rear lines!
Before the smoke had cleared, the second rank of musketeers had already taken aim from above the heads of the first rank of musketeers, and the second wave of precise deadly fire followed! The Song army was left with corpses strewn across the field and rivers of blood. Without the protection of shields, this time more than eighty Song soldiers were mercilessly torn apart by the muskets.
Then the third rank of musketeers swept across the entire Song army column like the Grim Reaper's scythe. Soldiers who tried to turn and escape were blasted with fist-sized bloody holes in their backs; soldiers who bent down to pull their comrades had their necks mercilessly pierced; and several people who huddled together trying to resist with their shields were pierced by several lead bullets at the same time, turning into a twitching, bleeding pile of minced flesh!
Three gunshots rang out, swift as thunder! The first three ranks of the Song army were torn to shreds in three breaths by the three consecutive blows! Smoke filled the entire battlefield, like the foul breath exhaled by a dying beast.
Amidst broken gun barrels and toppled flags lay layers upon layers of bodies, each with a different posture and unrecognizable features. Thick, warm blood, like a giant overturned vat of dye, instantly soaked the parched, yellowish earth, forming streams of scarlet blood that meandered among scattered intestines, broken organs, and steaming brain matter, emitting a nauseating stench of rust and entrails.
The once neat and orderly front line is now reduced to a few piles of limbs and broken arms covered in blood and mud, a few lone kite shields riddled with bullet holes and stuck in the ground, and a few blood-soaked, vacant-eyed soldiers, some laughing madly, others howling and rolling around in agony while clutching their huge wounds. A scarlet line of death, steaming with blood, flesh and despair, stretches out!
Han Tao was stunned by the three-stage burst of a thousand musket shots. What was this thing?! A musket? That bamboo contraption wasn't as powerful or as far-ranging as the crossbow. How could the enemy start firing at a distance of only two hundred meters?!
"Quickly! Charge! Charge forward 120 meters!"
Han Tao immediately gave the order.
Unfortunately, the optimal range of most of the Song army's long-range weapons was only eighty meters. This was because the Liao and Western Xia cavalry archers all operated from a range of eighty meters. Therefore, the Song army learned from their enemies and only practiced shooting techniques at eighty meters to annihilate the Western Xia and Liao cavalry archers. They never practiced shooting at longer distances.
At this moment, the problem with the matchlock musket became apparent—it was too slow to reload. The Song soldiers ran forward 120 meters in fear before being met with a second three-volley of musket fire. The thunderous roar and blood splattering everywhere would have been enough to break the morale of most of the local troops after being hit by these two volleys of musket fire.
However, these were, after all, the imperial guards of the capital, and their morale was still higher. The archers immediately launched a counterattack, and thousands of arrows surged into the sky like a tidal wave, covering the heavens, and then fell from the sky like a rain of steel, blotting out the sun! This caused considerable casualties to the Liangshan soldiers who had no shields and only breastplates. However, the Song army suffered significantly more casualties in the long-range firefight.
My Song army actually lost in the long-range shooting contest? Helpless, Han Tao could only order the entire army to continue advancing under the cover of archers and crossbowmen to engage the Liangshan troops in close combat!