Chapter 1828: Khatabah Arrives! Challenge!

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

"Senior, it will take a bit too long to explain this. Please permit me to explain it to you later. But Senior, you must remember that no one except you and I can know about this. Not even the Great Generals can know.

"Whether we can defeat Arabia and protect the Central Plains will all depend on Senior!" Wang Chong solemnly said.

He had spent countless days and nights on the contents of the diagram. There was nothing wrong with it theoretically, but not even he was sure of how effective or practical it would actually be. However, he could only try.

"I understand!"

The Formation Elder solemnly put the diagram away.

"Leave this matter to me! I will do my utmost!"

"Mm!"

Wang Chong nodded. He had no doubts about the Formation Elder's strength.

"I've prepared three thousand men for you. These men are yours to command, and I've also readied all the resources. I'll entrust this task to you, Senior!"

The Formation Elder quickly left with the diagram.

Rumble!

Not long after the Formation Elder left, the earth suddenly began to sway, and then a massive energy accompanied by the roaring of massive beasts came from the northwest.

Fierce vibrations traveled through the earth.

The entire City of Steel began to shudder like a plank on the ocean.

The city instantly went deathly silent, and countless eyes turned toward the Arab base in the northwest.

Standing in the hall, Wang Chong also turned to the northwest. Even though his vision was blocked by the walls, Wang Chong could distinctly sense guards radiating cruel and brutal energy, and in the middle of these guards was a vast destructive power like a massive volcano.

All the Governors and Deputy Governors, Abu Muslim included, paled in comparison to this power.

"Khatabah!"

As this name came to mind, Wang Chong's face turned grim.

The supreme commander of the Arab forces, the instigator of this war, had finally arrived on the battlefield!

This also meant that all of the Arab soldiers had finally arrived.

The battle was on the verge of breaking out!

……

Several hundred li away, the Arab base was shaking as a steel flood made of countless soldiers rushed toward it.

The massive Behemoths stood out amidst this army like looming mountains.

And amongst all the Behemoths, the golden elephant Behemoth stood out the most.

"The eastern world… I've finally arrived!"

In front of the golden tent on the back of the Behemoth, Hierophant Khatabah stood with his arms spread open. As he stared at the scene before him, his eyes burned with ambition.

To conquer the world and make it bask in the glory of Arabia was his lifelong desire. But a certain accident several decades ago had put a stop to his ambitions.

But as time passed, he was finally able to appear in the lands he had dreamed about and fulfill his last unrealized dream.

"Hierophant!"

"Hierophant!"

"Hierophant!"

The millions of Arab soldiers got down from their mounts and kneeled to the Hierophant, their expressions brimming with respect and reverence.

Roooar!

The Behemoths roared, and in front of the golden tent, Khatabah slightly nodded and then ordered the Behemoth to slowly come forward.

The entire world trembled at its approach.

Khatabah did not pause, and his mount soon made its way through more than half the base to arrive in front of the domed fortress at the very front. From there, his eyes looked toward the southeast, where the gleaming silver of the enemy base was.

The steel defensive line that extended for several hundred li and the disciplined army behind it exuded strength and power, even in Khatabah's eyes.

"…But the stronger the foe, the more worthy they are to conquer!"

Khatabah smiled, his chest bursting with endless ambition.

Neigh!

At this moment, the neighing of warhorses came from the other side, and Khatabah instinctively turned to look at the source of the turmoil.

Far in the distance, a young figure atop a white-hoofed steed had emerged from the army of infidels, moving toward him with incredible speed.

This sudden development immediately caught the attention of Khatabah and all the Governors and Deputy Governors in the army.

"Khatabah?"

A massive mental wave rippled over, carrying with it a booming voice that erupted over the Arab base.

Hwooo! The massive energy contained in the voice created a whirlwind.

Interesting.

Khatabah faintly smiled from atop his Behemoth.

There was no language impediment when communicating through mental waves, but his foe had deliberately chosen to convert his mental wave into a voice so that everyone could hear. He clearly had ulterior motives.

Most interesting of all was that this man did not use the Tang language, but Arabic.

"Wang Chong?"

Khatabah's lips slightly opened, and a moment later, a massive Psychic Energy that could make any Great General pale swept through the air and exploded over the Great Tang defense line.

Even though this was his first time seeing his foe, Khatabah was already certain that this youthful figure was his most powerful foe, the Wang Chong spoken of by Abu Muslim and the Caliph!

Upon hearing Khatabah's voice, Wang Chong smiled and pulled on the reins of his horse.

But a moment later, his face went ice-cold.

"Hierophant, with this full mobilization, have you already prepared for the destruction of your country?"

Wang Chong's voice was carried across space and rumbled over the Arab base.

Buzz!

All the Arabs immediately exploded in rage, and even Abu Muslim and the other Governors reddened.

"This bastard!"

"He dares to speak such arrogant words in front of the Hierophant!"

"This time, all of Arabia has moved out, nearly four million soldiers in all. This is enough to flatten the eastern world! Does he really think he's that lucky!?"

But on the back of his Behemoth, the silver-robed Khatabah was unperturbed.

"In the east, there is a saying: a mantis trying to block a carriage does not know its own strength. You infidels enjoy wagging your tongues in an attempt to win some small verbal victory, but this will not change your fate of destruction. Now, before this war begins and all the east is turned into a sea of fire, I will ask as was asked in the past: fight? Or surrender?"

Khatabah's cold and majestic voice resounded over the City of Steel with a threatening menace.

The world went still. Not only did the Arab soldiers fall silent, so did the Tang camp. Wang Zhongsi, Gao Xianzhi, Zhangchou Jianqiong, An Sishun, Abusi… all of them looked toward the northwest.

A hint of anger flashed across their faces, but none of them spoke. Wang Chong was the Nine Provinces Protector-General appointed by the Sage Emperor, and he was the supreme commander ranked above all the others. Since he had already begun to speak, there was no need for the rest of them to say anything.

"Hahaha, I was about to ask the same thing! At the Battle of Talas, I told you Arabs before that Talas would not be the end between the Tang and Arabia, that since you dared to step into the east, you needed to be ready to pay the price. Alas, you did not listen to me, so you lost Samarkand, Khorasan, and the lives of one million soldiers!

"This time, I will ask you once more. Khatabah, since you dare to step into the east, have you prepared to pay the price? This time, the Great Tang will not stop at Samarkand and Khorasan. The armies of the east will march all the way to Baghdad and conquer all of the western world. All of your people will become slaves of the Great Tang, all your wealth will become the Great Tang's, and all of Arabia will become Great Tang territory. All of this… Khatabah, Abu Muslim, are you ready for that?"

Wang Chong's eyes erupted with dazzling light.

Whoooah!

Wang Chong's words elicited another uproar from the Arab base, and Abu Muslim in particular went ghastly white.

He recalled that Wang Chong really had said these words before the Battle of Talas, but Abu Muslim had not taken them seriously at the time. Now that he looked back, Wang Chong had been true to his word, pushing his army all the way to Khorasan and threatening the heartland of Arabia.

If not for the Great Tang's Confucian Sect calling him back, the Tang army might have still been garrisoned in Khorasan.

In front of the golden tent, Khatabah's robes ruffled. Although he was calm and unmoved on the surface, his eyes flashed with rage.

"It seems that we cannot negotiate!"

Khatabah's icy voice boomed above the City of Steel.

"Since that is the case, we fight! As a price for your refusal, Tang, there will be no hostages in this battle. All of you will die here. In addition, as a price for your arrogance and disrespect, once I conquer the east, I will choose several cities to offer as blood sacrifices until I have executed two million people! Such is the price for resisting us and refusing my kindness!