Li Shimin faked his death? Then I will be powerful enough to conquer the world!

Even in autumn, the Central Asian desert is steaming with scorching heat waves, the air seems to be on fire, and fine sand floats in the twisted mirage.

Pei Xingjian sat steadily on his warhorse. The gold-plated and silver-inlaid stirrups had been scorching hot from the sun. Even through the thick cowhide soles of his boots, he could still feel the burning heat seeping into his bones.

He raised his hand to block the glaring sunlight, his pupils slightly contracted in the strong light, and looked at the flowing silver ribbon woven by countless metal reflections at the end of the horizon.

When the scout reported urgently for the seventh time that "the enemy's heavy cavalry has appeared", the old general with gray hair on his temples finally sharpened his brows into blades.

The unique prismatic scales of the Arab heavy cavalry reflected tiny thorns in the sunlight.

"The caravan tax book intercepted half a year ago is still the same as before."

He slowly stroked the fish symbol on his waist.

The neat handwriting on the document is still vivid in my memory: half of the Arab Empire's annual tribute is being continuously transported to Taicang in Chang'an.

But the heavy cavalry phalanx that appeared and disappeared in the dust before his eyes overturned all predictions.

The war horses were clad in wrought iron lamellar armor that stretched from neck to belly, and each plate of armor was densely riveted with silver wire. The knights' chain mail was even lined with soft gold-threaded armor, which cast a silky halo in the sunlight.

The most extravagant item was undoubtedly the horse harness. Red and blue sapphires were inlaid into a crescent pattern, which swayed gently as the war horses stepped, reflecting a dazzling light. The financial resources spent on this cavalry of a thousand men could probably be used to build ten pagodas in Chang'an.

The deputy general rode his horse closer, and the sound of armor clashing startled a few sand martins.

"General, according to reports, these heavy cavalry horses are fed with Egyptian wheat mixed with Persian honey."

Before he finished speaking, the sharp sound of an Arabic trombone tearing through the air suddenly rang out in the distance.

The heavy cavalry formation began to surge like a black tide. The crisp sound of horses' hooves crushing the salt crust on the ground mixed with the sound of war drums, and the clanging of metal and stone hitting each other could be heard. The earth was shaking, and even the warhorse under Pei Xingjian's crotch was paddling its hooves restlessly.

Pei Xingjian tapped the saddle bridge lightly with his whip, and the gilded dragon head flashed a cold light in the sunlight.

The 30,000 light cavalry behind him had already formed a goose-shaped formation, and the formation was as strict as a knife.

The five hundred Mo Dao warriors at the front stood like a wall, their black Mo Daos reflecting the bloody setting sun, and the cold light on the blades seemed to freeze the yellow sand in the sky.

"Instruct all armies: do not attack when you see a battle formation, but first tire them out."

The veteran's voice was mixed with wind and sand, but every word was clear.

"Tell those kids, if you want to make military achievements, you'll have enough today!"

He glanced at his officers and men, and saw that the knuckles of the young soldiers were turning white as they gripped their lances tightly, but none of them flinched, and their eyes were burning with the desire to achieve success.

Twenty miles away, the Arab Caliph Muawiyah roared loudly.

"At all costs, we must open up a new avenue for the Tang Dynasty to advance westward."

He looked up at what looked like a Tang army formation. As a monarch who had conquered Byzantium, he knew too well the power of heavy cavalry in open terrain - as long as they broke through the front line of defense, those lightly armed Tang troops would fall like reeds swept by the autumn wind.

"God is great!" Muawiyah's scimitar slashed down, and a thousand cavalrymen simultaneously removed their face guards, revealing faces tanned by the scorching sun. They chanted prayers from the Quran in unison, the sound drowning out the galloping horses' hooves, echoing over the desert, filled with an atmosphere of divine enthusiasm.

When the war horses in the front row raised the first handful of dust, Muawiyah suddenly narrowed his eyes - those Tang soldiers did not retreat, but pointed their lances at the sky, and the reflected sunlight was so bright that people could not open their eyes.

"Are you crazy?"

Muawiyah's scimitar slashed heavily in the air.

He watched as the Tang army's light cavalry dispersed at an astonishing speed, like a group of nimble peregrine falcons, turning to the wings at the moment the heavy cavalry was about to collide with them.

The spears of the Arab heavy cavalry just grazed the corner of the Tang army's clothes, but did not even hurt the opponent's hair.

What's even more bizarre is that the Tang army in the front row did not attack the knights, but instead stabbed their horses' knees with their lances.

The armored warhorse stood up in pain, exposing the knight on its back to the air. Screams mixed with the sound of metal colliding exploded instantly, and the battlefield was suddenly in chaos.

Pei Xingjian saw clearly in front of the central military tent that the short-legged horses from the Western Regions that he had specially selected were working wonders.

These small but extremely flexible war horses can always dodge and maneuver between attacks of the Arab heavy cavalry, shuttling like ghosts.

What was even more terrible was that the Tang army formed groups of five cavalrymen and adopted the tactic of "three attacks and one retreat": three cavalrymen would make a feint attack to attract attention, while one would attack from the side and rear, and after the attack was completed, they would immediately retreat into the formation to rotate.

This went on and on. The Arab heavy cavalry had a powerful impact but could not hit the agile Tang army. Instead, they consumed their physical strength in the constant pursuit.

As the battle continued, the heavy cavalrymen's breathing became heavier, their horses foamed at the mouth, and sweat seeping from the gaps in their armor produced blue smoke on the sand.

"The right army has lost 300 cavalrymen!"

The report from the personal guards made Muawiyah's temples throb.

He looked at the Tang army that was gradually forming a siege, and suddenly realized that he had made a fatal mistake - the advantage of heavy cavalry lies in the charge in one go, but the Tang army was like a cunning pack of wolves, using attrition tactics to drag them into the quagmire.

What was even more terrifying was that instead of fear, the eyes of the Tang soldiers flashed with fanaticism, as if what was in front of them was not a deadly enemy, but a golden official seal.

They were fearless and brave, and every charge was carried out with the momentum of burning their boats and crossing the river, all for the purpose of establishing merit in this battle and changing their destiny.

Muawiyah saw a young Tang soldier's face scratched by a heavy cavalryman's scimitar, but he still clung to the other's horse's leg tightly.

Pei Xingjian gently stroked the Turkic wolf-head quiver at his waist, which was a gift from General Su Dingfang during the Western Expedition. He looked at the stranglehold in the center of the battlefield.

At this moment, a unified cry suddenly broke out from the Tang army: "Long live the Tang! Long live the Tang!"

The sound resounded through the sky, startling the vultures circling above the battlefield and causing them to flap their wings and fly high.

Amidst the shouts, Pei Xingjian raised the command flag, and the Vermillion Bird totem on the flag fluttered in the wind. The elite troops of the central army rushed to the gap in the battlefield like a tide, completely blocking the breakout route of the Arab heavy cavalry.

As night fell, Muawiyah's scimitar finally slipped from his hand and fell to the ground. His chain mail was soaked with blood, and the gaps in the armor of his horse were filled with the three-edged armor-piercing arrows used by the Tang army.

The surrounding personal soldiers were all killed or wounded, but the shouts and cries of the Tang army did not diminish in the slightest.

When the last heavy cavalryman fell, Muawiyah looked at the crescent emblem hanging on the Tang army's battle flag, and a smile appeared on his face.

Defeat was inevitable, but he did not expect that the Tang army was so powerful.

But he didn't lose either. At least, today he proved that the Tang army was not unstoppable.

When Pei Xingjian stepped into Isfahan on the ground covered with broken armor, the candlelight was still flickering.

He picked up the parchment scroll on the table and deciphered the cuneiform characters on it in the moonlight, trying to find out the secrets of the Arab Empire.

The deputy general came in holding the seized gold, silver and other valuables, but saw the commander looking at the Persian Gulf trade route marked on the map for a long time without saying a word.

His victory was just the beginning, and the Tang Dynasty still had a long journey to go.

Outside the tent, the Tang army was counting the spoils of war. The groans of wounded soldiers mixed with the cheers of victory, echoing over the desert.