Ranks were formed.
Dozens of tribes raised their banners, vast cavalry formations unfurling across the grassland like a living wall. Warhorses stamped and snorted, armor clinked, and the plain itself seemed to tense.
Opposite them stood Bo'erzhijin Elinchen, commanding nearly ten thousand cavalry. His lines were dense, orderly, and oppressive—an overwhelming display of force.
By contrast, the Wushen tribe's side looked painfully thin. Barely four thousand riders waited there, their formation sparse and fragile by comparison.
The Wushen tribe leader glanced back over his shoulder, his gaze settling on the Han Chinese cavalry behind him.
That was his trump card.
That was where his confidence came from.
His eyes then caught sight of Experimental Car No. 4 rumbling toward the rear of the formation. Suddenly, the front half of the vehicle disengaged from the cannon it had been towing.
The cannon swivelled in place, its black muzzle slowly turning until it pointed straight at Bo'erzhijin Elinchen's cavalry. Meanwhile, freed from its burden, the front section continued forward, drawing level with Zao Ying's unit.
"One cannon?" the Wushen tribe leader thought, frowning. "What use is that?"
He had seen Han Chinese cannons before. They fired solid iron balls—terrifying in noise, but against a charging cavalry, little more than an annoyance. One cannon alone? Practically meaningless.
And yet…
As his eyes lingered on that massive iron monstrosity—the forward section of the machine—an inexplicable unease crept into his chest.
Anyone with even the most basic understanding of warfare could tell at a glance:
This thing was terrifying.
From Bo'erzhijin Elinchen's ranks, dozens of warriors shouted in unison, voices rolling across the plain.
"You dogs across the field! How dare you oppose Bo'erzhijin Elinchen? Today we'll teach you a lesson in blood and steel! You'll learn who truly rules these grasslands!"
The Wushen tribe answered immediately, their own shouts rising to meet them.
"The blood of Genghis Khan has thinned! Bo'erzhijin Elinchen is nothing but an empty shell! From this day on, everyone on these plains will bow to me!"
Bo'erzhijin Elinchen's face twisted with fury.
"Charge!"
"To the charge!"
The Ordos cavalry surged forward as one, howling like wolves unleashed.
These were the elite heavy cavalry of the Old Northern Yuan nobility—heirs to the fearsome Mongol horsemen of legend. Both rider and mount were clad in heavy armor. Once they began their charge, their momentum was like a collapsing mountain, impossible to stop.
The Wushen side, by comparison, looked pitiful—almost entirely light cavalry.
A stab of panic went through the Wushen tribe leader. He instinctively turned his head toward Zao Ying.
And in that instant, he saw the lone Han Chinese cannon.
A thin trail of smoke curled from its fuse.
"BOOM!"
The roar echoed across the grassland. Horses unaccustomed to gunfire screamed and reared, hooves tearing at the earth.
A dark cannonball ripped through the air.
It traced a smooth arc… and plunged straight into the heart of Bo'erzhijin Elinchen's heavy cavalry.
Cavalry formations were nothing like infantry blocks—their spacing was wide. Hitting a rider directly with a solid iron shot was about as likely as winning the grand prize in a lottery.
As expected, the shot struck no one.
It slammed into open ground.
And then—
"BOOM!"
It exploded.
Shrapnel and steel pellets burst outward in a violent storm. Heavy armor, thick as it was, proved utterly useless. Plates were pierced with dull, nauseating thuds.
A warhorse screamed and collapsed sideways.
Its rider was flung screaming from the saddle.
With a single blast, a gaping hole was torn straight through the spearhead of the charge.
Bo'erzhijin Elinchen sucked in a sharp breath.
"What in the blazes was that cannonball?!"
The Wushen tribe leader burst into laughter.
"Hahahaha! Incredible—absolutely incredible!"
Moments ago, Bo'erzhijin Elinchen's cavalry had charged with arrogant confidence. Now, one cannon blast had shattered their momentum entirely.
"Charge!" the Wushen leader roared.
"Charge!" Zao Ying echoed.
Zao Ying's arquebus cavalry surged forward, a fast-moving line charging directly toward the heavy cavalry.
Bo'erzhijin Elinchen roared in disbelief, "Han Chinese cavalry? Charging our Mongol heavy horsemen head-on? Are you mad?! Tell me—shout it! Who commands the greatest cavalry in the world?!"
His officers shouted in unison:
"Mongols!
Genghis Khan!
Mongols!
Genghis Khan!"
The ancient nobility of the Northern Yuan screamed themselves hoarse, still clinging to the fading afterglow of past glory.
They failed to realize that the Northern Yuan had already reached the dusk of its age.
"Fire!"
At Zao Ying's command, gunfire erupted.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The front ranks of the Mongol heavy cavalry collapsed instantly, men and horses tumbling together in chaos.
No matter how thick their armor, it was meaningless against breech-loading rifled guns.
But after firing, Zao Ying's riders had to peel away—reloading took time.
The cavalry wheeled sideways, desperately buying seconds to reload.
But then—
The front section of Experimental Car No. 4, which had advanced alongside Zao Ying, did not veer away.
Freed from its towed cannon, it was far more agile than before.
Black smoke billowed as it rumbled forward, charging straight into the cavalry.
A musket extended from its front.
Bang!
A cavalryman fell.
Just as Zao Ying expected a pause for reloading, the soldier seated beside the driver moved with astonishing speed. He shoved the gunstock forward—the breech snapped open. Burnt powder and paper spilled out, and a fresh round slid smoothly from the magazine into the chamber.
Another push. The breech sealed shut.
Bang!
Another cavalryman dropped.
One shot per breath.
Zao Ying and Zheng Daniu stared in stunned silence.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
Experimental Car No. 4 unleashed continuous fire, every breath producing another shot. Mongol riders fell one after another, thrown from their saddles like broken dolls.
Across the field, Bo'erzhijin Elinchen stood dumbstruck.
"What… what in the heavens is that thing?"
After several shots, the vehicle was slow to turn and couldn't disengage in time. Mongol cavalry pressed closer. A young rider drew his bow and loosed an arrow.
Clang!
The arrow bounced harmlessly off the armor.
Experimental Car No. 4 was built for war. After having its "head" nearly crushed once before, its armor had been heavily reinforced. Even its viewing port—a narrow slit of thickened glass—was designed to withstand punishment.
An arrow stood no chance.
With ranged attacks useless, the two sides collided.
In the blink of an eye, the monstrous machine was upon them.
The Mongol heavy cavalry panicked. Riders at the front yanked hard on their reins, swerving desperately to either side.
Those with clear sight managed to escape.
Those behind them couldn't see.
When the front ranks scattered, the riders behind suddenly saw the iron beast bearing down on them—far too late to react.
"CRUNCH!"
The sound was sickening. Screams of men mixed with the shrieks of dying horses as Experimental Car No. 4 plowed straight through the formation, overturning riders and crushing them beneath its treads.
This spectacle didn't just terrify the enemy.
Even their allies were shaken to the core.
The Wushen tribe leader muttered under his breath, awestruck:
"I always knew the Han Chinese were formidable… but I never imagined they were this formidable."