People in the Middle Ages, draw cards to get promoted

Chapter 946 The city falls, advance!

Chapter 946 The city falls, advance!

The fierce battle of attack and defense lasted for two whole days and nights.

On the third day, the city gates were finally breached, and the Tatars drove their conscripted soldiers into the city like a tidal wave.

boom--

Subutai threw a shriveled corpse in front of the shaman priest who was leaning on an eagle-headed scepter, wearing a nine-feathered hat, and with a sheepskin drum around his neck: "Wusun Shaman, I have brought back what you asked for."

The shaman Wusun complained somewhat discontentedly, "Be careful! This is a precious material that can be used as the main material for rituals to communicate with the power of the Eternal Heaven. Aren't you afraid of breaking it?"

Subutai asked with some doubt, "This old geezer is almost at the state of oneness with heaven and man, how could his body be damaged by a fall?"

"The paths taken by cultivators in this world are incredibly diverse. The monks of the Zoroastrianism seek the path of spiritual transcendence, similar to high-ranking monks in esoteric Buddhism, and do not cultivate their physical bodies."

Wusun Shaman was halfway through his explanation when he noticed Subutai's confused expression. He said impatiently, "You wouldn't understand even if I told you, why do you still have to ask?"

The owner of this corpse was a spellcaster who was just one step away from becoming a legendary spellcaster.

He is also the most respected elder in charge of Islamic teachings in the Isfahan region. Every year, countless monks and imams come to Isfahan to listen to this elder preach and debate.

During the siege, the elder also intervened several times, repelling the Tatar attacks.

Fortunately, the opponent was outnumbered and, under the alternating attacks of the two great shamans, was forced to retreat and die, leaving behind only an old, withered corpse that looked like a dead tree.

Many Zoroastrian monks know a few spells, but none of them have ever passed down a systematic tradition.

This high-ranking spellcaster in Isfahan is considered one of the strongest spellcasters among the Zoroastrian clergy. Even Bahram, the Sassanid king of kings, would make pilgrimage to him every year when he came to Isfahan.

Faced with the shaman Wusun, even Subutai, a Tatar general who was never one to mince words, could only manage a forced smile: "I am a rough man who only knows how to fight on the battlefield. I am no match for a master like you who can communicate with the Eternal Heaven. Please convey my gratitude to the shaman Tumen for me."

"Humph."

The high shaman snorted and ordered the junior shamans behind him to carefully collect the corpses on the ground before leaving.

“Subutai, don’t mind him, that’s just how Wusun Shaman is.”

As Jochi approached with a frown, Subutai grinned and said, "Why would I care about such a trivial matter? If it weren't for the timely support of the shaman Wusun during the first day of the siege, my men and I would have been burned to ashes by the Sassanids."

"I knew your heart was as vast as the ocean."

Jochi chuckled, then said seriously, "Next, we need to hurry. A Sassanid nobleman who surrendered in Isfahan told me that the Fulin have already marched into the western Sassanid territories. And they are moving very fast; in just a few days, they are said to have already approached the Sassanid capital."

Subutai couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "The Fulin people moved so quickly? Could it be that we tied down all of the Sassanid main force, leaving their rear vulnerable and allowing the Fulin people to reap the rewards?"

He hadn't previously thought the Sassanids were particularly capable of fighting.

In the Battle of Khwarazm, even the Sassanids' proud Immortal Army was far inferior to the Jin Dynasty's Iron Pagoda in Subutai's eyes. However, the Sassanids' desperate resistance in the siege of Isfahan still left a deep impression on Subutai.

If it weren't for the help of the shaman Wusun, he and his followers would probably have been trapped on the city walls.

"Maybe so, but whatever it is, we need to speed things up."

"Jochi Nayan, the more impatient the wolf is, the less likely it is to catch a sheep."

Subutai said in a deep voice, "The Fulin people are advancing quickly, but the Sassanid cities are also strong enough. Isfahan is only the third largest city in the Sassanid Empire, and it is so difficult to break through. Ctesiphon and Baghdad will only be more difficult to conquer."

"I see."

Jochi nodded slightly: "I was a bit too hasty. But Subutai, rest assured, just because I said I was determined to take Mesopotamia doesn't mean I would do anything for it. To me, you and these men are my greatest treasures."

By this time, the Tatar soldiers who had stormed Isfahan had cleared out the resistance in the city. They pushed and shoved the officials and soldiers they had captured in Isfahan, driving them out of the city into the open ground with arrows and swords.

Thousands of Sasanian soldiers and noble officials were surrounded by Tatar cavalry.

Seemingly anticipating their fate, a dense chanting of sutras rose from the crowd.

As the center of Zoroastrianism on the Persian Plateau, Isfahan has a strong religious atmosphere, and believers can often recite one or two major passages from the scriptures. When they recite these passages, the sound is quite sacred and grand.

"Don't kill me! I'm the one who advocates surrender! Please spare me! I can lead the way for your Khan!"

"It's all your fault for going against the Tatars. Now look what's happened, everyone has to die!"

Some people were crying incessantly, their bodies limp as mud.

One of them, with a calm and serene expression like an enlightened monk, said: "Brothers, there is no need to be afraid or hesitant. When we die, the sacred fire will send us to heaven. These barbarians who do not believe in the scriptures will be condemned to eternal hellfire after death and will never be freed!"

Someone raised their head and glared angrily at the enemy: "You Tatar bastards, you will all die a horrible death!"

Some people shouted for their wives and daughters, who were watching the execution, to stop watching.

The myriad aspects of human nature—cowardice, courage, piety, and despair—are laid bare at the final moments of life.

The Tatar soldiers began to replace their spears and bows with knives and axes, and marched toward the driven and surrounded crowd. Bows and arrows were too expensive, and the Tatars had always followed the principle of efficiency and low cost in matters of massacre.

The Tatars showed no mercy; in other words, they were very principled. Since they had declared that those who resisted would be massacred, there was no reason for them to escape.

After these thousands of soldiers who resisted were executed, the Tatars did not stop there.

The key to the massacre was that "all men below the rank of cartwheel were killed, except for artisans who were spared and incorporated into the artisan households to serve the Tatar army." Women were abducted and distributed to the army, while children were distributed to nobles as their private property, like cattle and sheep.

Isfahan was soon engulfed in flames, and the Tatar soldiers carried out a massacre without restraint.

They divided Isfahan into dozens of districts, with each district having its own population screening process, based on a unit of 100 households.

The most resistant soldiers and the most organized officials were killed, and the remaining civilians, even if armed, no longer posed any threat to the Tatar soldiers.

The piercing cries pierced through the fire and reached Jochi's ears.

He and Subutai watched silently as the city burned in flames, their eyes completely unmoved.

"Ow!"

The Tatar cavalry, howling like wolves, set fire to the villages and towers they had plundered, filled wells with the corpses of the dead, and burned the soon-to-be-harvested wheat fields.

The Tatars had limited military strength and could not station troops in various places, so they simply turned these places into wasteland.

In a few years, these former farmlands and cities will be transformed into pastures suitable for grazing.

Jochi addressed the Zoroastrian monks who were being escorted to the side, saying, “Look, this is the price of resistance. Those who are willing to accept my rule, like Atakba of Shiraz, I will retain his power and grant him a high status. Now, it is your turn to choose.”

After the interpreter finished relaying Jochi's words, the trembling monks immediately responded, "We are willing to submit and educate those ungrateful resisters, so that they may recognize the might of Your Majesty, Great Khan."

Jochi smiled smugly and said to Subutai beside him, "Look, this is a cowardly agricultural people. No wonder some people call them sheep people."

At the same time, the Sassanid army of tens of thousands, gathered in Ctesiphon, was already marching in a mighty force towards Haditha under the command of General Ali.

The main force of this army consisted of the private armies of various local Iqta nobles in the Sasanian Mesopotamian territory, as well as militia recruited from the local areas. In addition, General Ali also received a 2,000-strong Undead Army as his personal guard from Bahram.

Bahram's little scheme to preserve his strength was obvious to anyone with eyes to see.

This inevitably led to some instability in the morale of the army.

These soldiers, mostly farmers who had been conscripted, had not yet undergone proper training. Although their weapons and equipment had been replenished, only the core private army of the Ikta nobles truly possessed combat capability.

Upon receiving the news, Jeanne couldn't help but show a hint of excitement on her face: "I was planning to go find them, but I didn't expect them to come to me on their own initiative."

Lothar's face also showed a hint of relief: "It seems that they want to cut off one of our arms before our main force arrives."

"See, I told you there would be an opportunity."

Jeanne said with a hint of smugness, "There aren't that many smart people in this world. The majority are fools who can't see themselves clearly and are self-righteous. After swallowing up the main force of this Sassanid army, I want to see how much will of resistance they will have left."