being that the rebels and their horses often wore iron armor while Ma Long's men wore armor made of rhinoceros hides. The rebels were taken by surprise and thought of the stones as divine. For a while, the imperial court did not receive any news from the west, and there were speculations that Ma Long was dead. However, on one night, Ma Long's messenger arrived at the court, dispelling the rumours of his death. The next morning, Emperor Wu summoned his ministers and said to them, "If I had listen to your words, we would have lost Liang". Emperor Wu then granted Ma Long a staff of authority and appointed him General Who Exhibits Might. Ma Long and his men travelled a long distance, killing and wounding many rebels as they marched. When they reached Wuwei Commandery, the chieftains, he received the surrender of Cubahan (猝跋韓) and Zuwanneng (且萬能) along with 10,000 soldiers under them. In December 279, Ma Long, with the help of Meiguneng (沒骨能) and other friendly tribal leaders, ended the rebellion after a great victory over Shujineng. Shujineng was killed in battle, although another account states that after Shujineng was defeated, he was assassinated by his subordinates, who then submitted to Ma Long. Later career In 280, the court appointed Ma Long as Protector of the Army Who Pacifies the Barbarians and Prefect of Xiping Commandery. He was given his own General of the Standard and elite troops to stabilize and rebuild Xiping, which had been abandoned during the rebellion. At the time, a foreign barbarian, Chengxi (成奚), had a stronghold south of Xiping and would constantly attack Jin's border. Ma Long led his troops to attack him, and Chengxi held to his defences. In response, Ma Long ordered his soldiers to carry farming tools and plough the fields. Chengxi thought that Ma Long had no intention to subjugate him, so he relaxed his guard. Ma Long capitalized on Chengxi's mistake by quickly attacking and defeating him. For the rest of Ma Long's tenure in Xiping, the foreign barbarians did not threaten the border. In 290, Ma Long was awarded the title of Marquis of Fenggao County and appointed Colonel of the Eastern Qiang for his services. Ma Long was stationed in Longyou region (隴右, modern southern Gansu) for more than ten years, and during that time, he established a highly respected reputation in the area. The