Why My Domineering Prince Regretted Filing for Divorce?-Chapter 838 - 628: Breakout

"Yes!"

The Deputy General immediately went down to deliver the order. In no time, the archers within the ranks took their orders and moved to the high grounds on either side of the valley entrance, all arrows aimed at the valley entrance.

The narrow entrance could only allow at most a couple of riders to pass through at once, while there were dozens of archers ready. Anyone attempting to rush out from within would have no chance of escaping such a trap.

Having settled these men, the Deputy General then commanded several more units to guard the mouth of the valley.

These men worried most about those in the valley making a breakout under the cover of night, so every night they guarded tirelessly. Last night was no different, leaving them a bit weary by morning. They could only stomp out the campfires, clutching their swords and shaking as they trudged toward the valley entrance.

At this moment, a sudden commotion pierced the silence of the mountain ridge.

Yuan An immediately looked up, only to see the dawn already breaking, with patches of bright, orange-red sky spreading across the deep blue, from which a flock of birds suddenly rose frightfully from the other end of the valley, chirping loudly and echoing throughout the mountains.

Witnessing this, a soldier among them sighed, "Good heavens, even the birds know we’re about to strike."

Yuan An furrowed his brow at these words.

Upon taking another look at the direction from which the flock came, he seemed to understand, his eyes widening as he shouted to the Deputy General standing on the slope down below, still commanding his men, "Quick, light the fire!"

The Deputy General was taken aback, as the men weren’t yet fully arranged, and such urgency seemed unwarranted. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

He was about to inquire further when Yuan An, grimly furrowing his brow again, glanced at the birds in the sky and said, "The ones inside—they’re trying to break out!"

"Huh?"

The Deputy General was startled, quickly raising his head to look at the flock that had flown far away, instantly comprehending, he shouted to the soldiers guarding the hay and wood piles ahead, "Light the fire!"

This exclamation reverberated through the mountains, and the soldiers dared not delay, immediately tossing the torches held aloft into the wood piles. The piles had already been doused in tung oil, so when the oil met the fire, a fireball instantly burst forth with a whoosh. Black smoke rolled heavenward, forming a ring in the sky, which then twisted and scattered.

Soon, a gust of wind rushed by, sweeping all the black smoke toward the valley entrance.

Just then, another sound emerged from afar, differing from the previous clamor of birds. This time, the sound was deep and resonant, akin to peals of thunder, mixed with rumbling black smoke, and even the damp, cold ground beneath their feet began to subtly tremble.

Astonished, they hadn’t yet reacted when a mounted rider suddenly charged out from the valley!

"Watch out!"

Yuan An shouted, but his voice barely reached the valley entrance when the person on horseback had already raised a long blade, slicing apart the barricade ahead!

With a loud "boom," the barricade split in two, scattering ignited bits of hay and wood, showering the soldiers who had been preparing to block their way. Frightened, these men hurriedly retreated, inadvertently giving him a path, and with quick reflexes, he spurred his horse to gallop forward, aiming to carve out a path through the broken barricade’s center.

At that moment, a sharp sound pierced the air!

A cold gleam shot from the upper left, hitting the man’s chest just as he was about to urge his horse onward—courtesy of the archers stationed on the adjacent high ground!

Soon, more whizzing sounds followed, as over ten arrows shot forth like meteors converging on a single point.

The soldier didn’t even have time to utter a sound; his body was instantly transformed into a pincushion of arrows, rigidly perched on horseback, yet with his hand still gripped tightly around the sword. Until, as the startled horse charged onward, he could no longer hold on, collapsing headfirst into a nearby fire, while the galloping horse, stung by scattered sparks and burning wood underfoot, reared up with a long neigh. Another arrow immediately pierced its neck.

The piercing cry abruptly silenced as if sliced through.

The horse’s front hooves kicked fiercely in the air a few more times, finally succumbing to its massive body, collapsing heavily.

However, Yuan An’s soldiers had piled the stacks of wood and hay tightly, nearly one alongside another. As this horse fell, it landed directly on another freshly ignited stack.

With a resounding crash, that stack scattered, more bits of hay and wood splintered outward, forcing the surrounding soldiers to retreat in fear again. But the fireball also carried more rolling thick smoke toward the valley, allowing those outside to hear more clearly now—a mix of deep and thunderous sounds of hooves, and people coughing from the smoke inside.