Ten minutes before Adam raised the flag to signal his position, he had just killed a Bulgar axeman.
It was truly difficult for this person to break through layers of blockade and reach here by sheer coincidence, but he still fell at the last step.
The axeman attempted to hack Adam's warhorse to death, hoping to make Adam fall off, but Adam noticed his intention earlier, swung his sword, and struck the man's shoulder, making him let out a painful wail, after which Adam's retainers rushed forward and finished him off.
When this person died, Adam saw that his face was full of the marks of time, and he wore ill-fitting but well-maintained armor, which must have been his ancestor's legacy, but unfortunately, most of this armor was now covered in mud.
This must have been a lumberjack from the vast forests of Bulgar, as wide as those of Rostov, and now he had been dragged to the battlefield to die. He probably thought taking Adam's head would make him rich, but it only led him to his death.
Adam couldn't help but wonder what this person was fighting for, but after much thought, he could only conclude that it was for wealth, as only wealth could attract commoners to war.
Turning his gaze away from the dead man, Adam surveyed the battlefield, watching the slaughter between people, and couldn't help but feel a bit of annoyance and sadness.
This was his first time on the battlefield, and even though he was under heavy protection, he was still affected by the chaos and infected by the sight of the slaughter.
There were bodies everywhere, death everywhere; people were rolling in water, rolling in mud, rolling in blood. This was completely different from the war he had heard about in poems.
In poems, enemies always appeared incredibly cowardly, quickly collapsing, and then their own warriors would proudly butcher the fleeing soldiers.
But now, he saw that everyone, whether noble or commoner, was ungracefully rolling in the mud, desperately trying to thrust their daggers into the cracks of their opponents' armor.
Although he had long known that poems were not like reality, seeing this scene still filled him with disgust. It was too dirty, too irrational, too undignified.
Adam preferred civilized courts, etiquette, and scriptures, not these undignified killings.
However, fortunately, although he was very disgusted by it, he did not feel any fear of the battlefield, nor did he tremble or anything else from killing people or seeing them die in front of him. He seemed completely natural, as if he was born to be on such a battlefield.
In Aleff's words, he was a natural warrior, but Adam only felt that it was just disappointment diluting his emotions, and he didn't think it was any special talent.
Aleff was actually the commander of this unit. The seasoned Bulgar commander calmly directed the army, moving soldiers back and forth like using an arm, repelling attacks from all sides, and maintaining their battle line.
The Bulgars were also very obedient to Aleff, as it had always been Aleff who actually commanded them. As for that little boy with a pretty face?
Well, he was fine to look at normally, but in real battle, that face still didn't inspire confidence. It had to be Aleff's old face that was reliable. Look, that kid doesn't even have a beard, how can he be reliable?
The strategy Aleff set was simple: they did not launch a fierce attack, but merely completed their mission, which was to hold this landing bridgehead and buy time for the subsequent troops to enter.
In this regard, they performed excellently. Neither the surprise attack of Selim's fleet upstream nor the heavy pressure of the Bulgar Army managed to shake their battle line in any way.
These Bulgars firmly held their battle line, unyielding like mountains, and their armor also provided great protection. The first Bulgars to cross the river were Adam's elite; they had received a good deal of armor from the Blacksmiths Guild.
And with iron armor on their bodies and comrades by their side, courage also emerged.
However, this was also because their battle line was at the edge of the battlefield, so it was not affected by too much fighting. The Khan did not commit too many troops to this area.
It was also for this reason that when Rostislav sent Vasily to ask him to return to the west bank, he chose to refuse. The battle had not yet reached its low point, so how could they retreat directly?
Vasily saw that the warships had been dealt with, and the Bulgar line remained incredibly solid, so he chose to compromise. However, just in case, he still stayed by Adam's side as his bodyguard, to which Adam said nothing.
It could have continued like this, but when Sasha was beheaded, the situation changed.
The Bulgar pontoon bridge was the last one counting from upstream, and the Rostov people's was the second to last. Adam, who had not participated in the melee, saw the situation clearly, realizing their precarious position, and understood the threat that the collapse of the Rostov people would pose to the battlefield. If not handled well, the entire battle line would completely collapse.
So Adam made a decision, a simple decision: to raise his flag.
The danger of raising the flag was self-evident. It meant revealing his position and location. The moment the flag was raised, Bulgars across the entire battlefield would rush towards that flag. This was truly too dangerous.
But all these warnings were blocked by a single sentence from Adam.
"If the entire army collapses, we won't be able to escape either."
Yes, as Adam said, if the entire army collapsed, even if the pontoon bridge was still there, their chances of survival would be slim.
After all, they would have to crowd onto the pontoon bridge then, and if they weren't careful, they would fall directly into the water, and then those wearing iron armor would only be able to flounder before drowning.
Aleff's opposition was the most vehement. He had taken care of Adam for so many years and had, to some extent, come to view Adam as his own child in his heart, so he naturally didn't want anything to happen to the child.
But faced with Adam's determination, if he insisted on giving orders, Aleff, as a subject, could only choose to obey, unconditionally.
Bishop Tiberius was the only one who supported Adam in doing this. This Bishop also wore armor and followed Adam, with new converts and church warriors behind him.
Bishop Tiberius was not one of those pampered individuals from the imperial capital's palace. As someone whose ambition had been set on distant lands from an early age, he had never neglected his martial training.
As Adam controlled the land west of the Kama River, the Bishop's status as a Bulgar Bishop was finally realized.
For the sake of future rule, a brave Khan was naturally more popular than a puppet of the Rostov. In the hearts of ordinary Bulgars, Adam was ultimately just a puppet, but now he had to find a way to break this damned preconceived notion.
Moreover, through this event, the power of Christ over Allah could also be demonstrated.
Look, the army under the protection of Christ is so powerful and resilient, no matter how many enemies they face, they cannot break their solid defenses.
As for Adam's safety, the Bishop stated that he and his followers would fight for the legitimate Bulgar Khan to the last man.
Now the opportunity was before them; they had to seize it.
At this point, everyone had no further objections, so making that decision was only natural.
As for why Adam made such a choice, it was simply that he felt in his heart that he had to do something to change this dirty battlefield. It was an emotion he himself couldn't quite put into words, but it was this emotion that drove him to take this dangerous action.
And so, the Bulgar Flaming Dragon Flag was raised. When they first saw this flag, the attacking Bulgars couldn't help but be stunned. Wasn't that the Khan's flag? How could it appear here?
But then they realized that only one person in the enemy army could raise that flag, and everyone was incredibly clear about the importance of that person.
Then they saw Adam remove his mail veil before many eyes, revealing that beautiful face, displaying it to everyone.
This drove everyone crazy. If they could twist off that beautiful little head, Lord Akad would give them countless riches and honors!
The Bulgars became fanatical. They all abandoned their current targets and rushed towards the Bulgar Dragon Flag.
Especially the mid to lower-level commanders, they knew very well that if they wanted to be promoted, they had to show merit, and killing Adam was the greatest merit!
Those behind didn't know what was going on, only that following along would make them rich, and since the commanders also followed, they subconsciously moved in that direction.
Thus, the direction of the Bulgar Army's attack directly changed. A vast multitude of people shifted their attack direction, and the pressure on the Rostov people immediately dissipated. The Rostov people also seized this opportunity, working to stabilize their battle line with the continuous support of soldiers arriving from behind the pontoon bridge.
And Adam's Bulgars naturally felt immense pressure, whether it was Aleff who had opposed earlier or Tiberius who had supported, both felt it, after all, so many enemies had been drawn in, and it was truly too difficult for their shield wall to deal with so many people.
Both were ready for battle, for they knew the fight awaited.
Some of the attendants around the Bulgar Prince had grim expressions, some had resolute expressions, but a look of happiness appeared on Adam's face.
Looking at the approaching enemies, his heart felt immense satisfaction. At this moment, he felt as if he was the center of the entire battlefield, the King of the World!
As for the danger, he had now cast it aside. He was now focused on enjoying everything before him; as for danger, it had been thrown to the back of his mind.
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