The Mountain's army truly lived up to its reputation as a heavy armored force; everywhere they trod became remarkably flat.
Such heavily armored soldiers, let alone four or five hundred, even four or five thrown into a 'Clash of Clans' among the Mountain Clans could change the tide of battle.
So, those clan warriors who were closer inevitably felt a bit intimidated.
Especially when The Mountain roared, asking who Jon Snow was, they all unconsciously tightened their grip on their spears, wondering if their spears could pierce such armor.
Jon could sense the soldiers' emotions, so he waved his hand, and suddenly, torches blazed across the mountains and plains around them.
The Mountain turned his head to look, and the dense, flickering lights made him feel a bit dizzy.
If one were to judge solely by the number of torches, there were at least two or three thousand people here.
However, if he could have looked closely, he would have noticed that many soldiers in the back actually had one torch strapped to their backs and held two torches in their hands, making it appear as though there were many more people.
And although Jon's soldiers knew the truth, seeing their own momentum and ample forces, their unease and fear largely dissipated.
Especially since Jon also ordered the Howling Mountain clan warriors to continuously shout meaningless commands, which further convinced The Mountain that the ambush blocking his path consisted of numerous people.
But this was not enough to make him afraid; he merely reined in his horse and roared again:
"Who is Jon Snow!"
Jon hadn't moved yet, but the people around him were already starting to worry.
"My Lord, although your martial arts are superb, this The Mountain..." Old Yorek tried to dissuade him, implying that The Mountain was not to be considered human and hoping Jon would not overexert himself.
"Jon, you must be careful," Sola also reminded him from the side.
Jon turned to her and said, "Use titles when working!" As an attendant, constantly calling him 'Jon, Jon' would surely arouse suspicion over time.
"Ah?"
Before Sola could understand what Jon meant, he spurred his horse forward: "I am Jon Snow, the one sent by the gods to claim your life."
The Mountain narrowed his eyes at Jon, seeing that the other person was not tall—of course, anyone would look like a dwarf in front of him.
He merely grinned, revealing his yellow teeth, and spoke, "By you?"
Just as others thought he was about to say more, The Mountain suddenly scraped his horse's belly with his spur; the warhorse whinnied in pain and charged towards Jon.
The distance between the two was only a short thirty to forty meters.
Jon's best outcome would be to escape with his life, but at the cost of his side's morale and The Mountain successfully breaking through.
As for the worst outcome, it would naturally be The Mountain striking successfully, impaling Jon with a spear, not only breaking through but also being able to charge back and forth to gain more military merit.
Seeing The Mountain's sudden attack, everyone gasped, not expecting such a giant to also favor surprise assaults.
"My Lord (Jon), run!"
Someone behind Jon shouted a warning, but he seemed not to hear it, standing there as if stunned with fear.
At such a short distance, in just one or two breaths, Jon clearly saw The Mountain's cruel eyes and ferocious features.
The fellow didn't even bother to wear a helmet.
When only about ten meters remained between them, Jon directly threw away his spear, bent his bow, and drew an arrow; no one noticed that it was a 'light bow' designed for rapid firing.
Everyone who saw this thought Jon was insane; he actually intended to shoot a heavily armored knight at such a short distance!
In that instant, it was as if everyone foresaw his death.
The entire battlefield seemed to fall silent; the only moving object was The Mountain, who had launched the surprise attack.
But the next second, the arrow released from the string made a tearing sound as it cut through the air.
Swoosh—
Like a sharp blade tearing through cloth, that faint sound plucked at everyone's heartstrings and nerves.
Boom—
The Mountain, charging at high speed, crashed down, falling off his horse less than ten meters from Jon.
'He hit him?'
Both Jon's soldiers and The Mountain's soldiers stood frozen, as if processing and understanding the scene before them.
The scene was as exaggerated as someone stopping a tank with a small pistol.
Upon seeing this, some clan warriors, as if seeing a wild boar fallen into a trap, rushed forward, spears in hand.
Clearly, this was a noble, and clearly, this fellow was very strong in combat.
Clearly, if they killed him, Jon would surely give even greater rewards!
It should be known that on the battlefield, heavy armored units also had a weakness: once they fell, they could no longer get up.
The soldiers behind The Mountain frantically tried to rush forward to rescue him, but the clan warriors were faster.
Some of them blocked the heavy armored soldiers, while others pounced on The Mountain, trying to pin him down with their body weight.
But the next moment, The Mountain swung the long spear in his hand, directly sweeping away all the clan warriors who tried to attack him.
He got up himself!
Especially with the arrow still stuck in his eye socket, half his face soaked in blood, the closest clan warriors who saw his ferocious appearance were so terrified they stiffened and couldn't move.
And The Mountain's heavy armored troops quickly pressed forward; in just the blink of an eye, they were engulfed and trampled.
This was the terrifying aspect of heavy armored units.
When they charged, they were completely unstoppable!
Jon was also quite surprised by The Mountain's performance; even with one eye shot out, he could still sweep down seven or eight warriors in one breath.
To be able to fight with an arrow in his eyeball, as if he didn't feel pain, he was simply a born killing machine; such a physique was indeed astonishing.
And The Mountain, after being injured, seemed to enter some kind of berserk state; the blood on his entire body seemed to be boiling.
However, Jon had prepared a lot to kill The Mountain; he suddenly waved his hand to give a command, and a group of clan warriors came before him.
Because of Jon's arrow just now, they were no longer so afraid of the charging heavy armored soldiers.
Thirty paces, twenty paces, ten paces!
They accurately judged the distance between themselves and the enemy, then suddenly threw out the fishing nets in their hands.
The Mountain's soldiers had never seen such a tactic.
These fishing nets enveloped them, and soon the first few dozen people stumbled and fell due to entanglement in the nets.
The comical scene further reduced the clan warriors' fear of the heavy armored soldiers, and also served to further enrage The Mountain's soldiers.
According to the pre-arranged plan, they laughed as they retreated, and a group of veteran soldiers in neat formation took their place.
Looking at these more than two hundred veterans, Jon felt a pang of pity; they were the old soldiers of the Mountain Clans whom he had rescued during the Battle of the Green Fork.
These veterans, who had gone with Jon to the Mountains of the Moon and then cut off their own tongues to keep the dragon eggs a secret, immediately joined this 'Vanguard Camp' upon learning of Jon's objective.
They were to use their flesh and blood to draw The Mountain's heavy armored troops into the muddy ground behind them, where it was not only muddy but also had pre-buried wildfire pots!
Whether Jon could repel or annihilate The Mountain's army depended on this one move!