Faced with the menacing herd of horses, the refugees were terrified. Finally waking from their sweet dreams, they screamed and fled in all directions.
But it was too late. The herd moved at lightning speed, crashing into the frontline of refugees in an instant. Hooves reared up and trampled down...
For a time, agonizing screams filled the air, and blood flowed like a river.
Confronted by the mass of people, the horses were also somewhat spooked. They sped up, their formation falling into disarray, on the verge of losing control.
Jiang Jin slowed down, letting Chen Xi lead the herd to follow her, while directing Dong Si and the others positioned around the herd to keep things under control.
Under her lead and the group's concerted efforts to soothe the animals, the herd's pace gradually slowed.
Having finished hacking their way through one round, Zhou Sui and Xie Nanxiao turned their horses around, galloping back to the convoy to finish the job.
Everyone knew clearly that a single stampede couldn't wipe out all the refugees; there were bound to be survivors.
Over by the carriages, about ten lucky refugees had miraculously escaped serious injury. They had just recovered from their immense terror.
Looking at the corpses and bloodstains littering the ground, and hearing the shrill cries of their companions whose stomachs had been trampled open or limbs broken, their first instinct was to flee.
However, upon seeing the carriages and the women ahead, hunger and greed conquered their fear.
"Let's rob their carriages before we leave! Otherwise, with their horses, they'll catch up to us in no time. Charge, brothers!"
Yao Ji stood at the front, swinging his blade at the refugees.
With a squelch, blood sprayed as a wooden club swung toward his head.
Yao Ji tilted his head to dodge, pulling his blade back to thrust it at his attacker...
A refugee rushed at Feng Qingzhu.
Screaming at the top of her lungs, Feng Qingzhu swung her blade wildly. Miraculously, she actually struck the refugee's arm, making him howl in pain.
Seeing that she had actually hit her target, Feng Qingzhu felt a mix of terror and excitement. Still screaming, she continued to hack away frantically: "Ahhh! Don't come any closer!"
The refugee took another slash to the shoulder and finally collapsed to the ground, unable to hold on.
Feng Qingzhu was startled and jumped back a step, but her falling blade struck the man's abdomen. Meanwhile, she was politely apologizing.
"Ahhh! I... I didn't mean to! Ahhh, I told you not to come over, but you came over yourself! If you die, please don't come haunting me!"
"Ahhh! Just... just one last strike, and it definitely won't hurt anymore, ahhh..."
Thwack! A club swung toward the blindly hacking Feng Qingzhu. Standing by the carriage, Chen Zi shouted, "Look out!"
As she spoke, she thrust her blade forward to block.
With a loud clang, the force of the wooden club knocked the blade several meters away.
Feng Qingzhu snapped back to reality and moved swiftly. Taking advantage of the moment the refugee was recovering from the clash with Chen Zi and couldn't defend himself, she thrust her blade into him.
Chen Zi's heart was pounding, but she wasn't slow either. Seeing the refugee writhing in pain from the stab, she snatched the club from his hands and began battering him relentlessly.
After a few days of rest, her injuries had mostly healed.
Feng Qingzhu was about to deliver a finishing blow, only to realize it was no longer necessary.
Chen Zi was fighting like a madwoman, swinging the club in a blur...
Sun Acao and her two daughters were paralyzed by the scene before them. Truthfully, ever since Zhou Sui made his move and heads started flying, their minds had been entirely blank.
Imagining it was one thing, but facing it in reality was completely different. They were just ordinary peasants; when had they ever witnessed such a brutal and bloody spectacle?
Although they had been fleeing with their fellow villagers for nearly half a month, they had been quite lucky. They had only encountered a small group of refugees once, and the other party had left upon seeing their numbers, so there had been no bloody incidents of murder.
It wasn't until a refugee swung a club at Liqiu that Sun Acao's hand moved as if out of her control, instinctively swinging her blade to strike.
However, she was a step too slow. The club smashed into Liqiu's shoulder, causing her to cry out in agony and collapse to the ground.
Seeing her younger sister struck down, Lichun finally snapped to her senses. With a loud shout, she squeezed her eyes shut and brought her blade down, scoring a direct hit on the refugee's side.
Sun Acao's second strike followed immediately. This time, she used every ounce of her strength. Accustomed to grueling farm work, she possessed considerable power, and she severed one of the refugee's hands entirely.
Watching his severed hand fly through the air, the refugee shrieked in terror, overwhelmed by pain and fear.
Sun Acao raised her blade once more and thrust it into the refugee's abdomen.
Smack.
Shuangjiang caught a club swinging toward her with one hand. With a forceful yank, she sent the club flying over ten meters away, and the immense pull caused the refugee to stumble several steps before regaining his balance.
Nearby, two other refugees lunged at Liu Mi. Their clubs were just about to strike her.
Frantic, Shuangjiang raised her blade and brought it down fiercely. With a loud crack, one of the refugees' clubs was cleaved in two.
The refugee froze for a second, but he reacted quickly, using the broken half of the club to jab at Shuangjiang.
Shuangjiang hurriedly dodged, struggling slightly to fend him off.
The other refugee swung his club at Liu Mi. This time, Liu Mi was prepared; she dodged the club and slashed at him with her blade.
Unfortunately, the refugee's club was rather long, and lacking in combat skills, she failed to land a hit. Instead, she took several hard blows, screaming loudly in pain.
Seeing Liu Mi being battered, a fierce glint flashed in Shuangjiang's eyes. Ignoring the refugee she was fighting, she charged straight toward Liu Mi and slashed the man who was beating her.
Blood splattered across her face, making her instinctively close her eyes. The sound of wind rushed from behind, and a club smashed into her shoulder.
Her body swayed. Looking back, she saw the refugee she had been fighting earlier raising his club to strike her again.
The refugee grinned, revealing blackened teeth. His eyes were filled with bloodthirsty excitement, his face twisted in malice as he brought the club crashing down toward the top of her head.
Shuangjiang's eyes widened. If that blow landed, she would be dead or crippled. She had only enjoyed a few days of a good life, and she hadn't even repaid the Lady's kindness yet. Was she going to die?
She refused to accept it!
How could she die?!
If she died, the Lady's medicine, the Lady's grain, the Lady's meat, and the clothes the Lady had given her would all be wasted!
These myriad thoughts flashed by in a mere instant. Extreme indignation triggered an explosive burst of strength and speed within her. With a loud cry, completely forgetting the blade in her hand, she headbutted the refugee squarely in the stomach.
Thud.
Before the grin could even fade from his face, a sharp pain shot through his abdomen. The impact sent him flying several meters before he crashed to the ground.
But Shuangjiang didn't let him off. Brandishing her blade, she chased after him and brought it down. Blood sprayed, and his agonized scream came to an abrupt halt.
A hint of a smile flashed in Zhou Sui's eyes. The arrow he had aimed at that refugee immediately shifted direction, shooting toward another target instead.
Everyone in the convoy knew about Shuangjiang's immense strength. Jiang Jin had even spoken to him, asking him to train her once her injuries had healed a bit.
Such strength couldn't be wasted. Whether she became a soldier or merely needed it for her own protection, teaching her some martial arts was a good idea.
At the time, he couldn't help but remind Jiang Jin, "My Lady, there are no female soldiers. But I can teach her fist techniques so she can protect you in the future."
Jiang Jin had simply smiled. "There will be in the future. Just teach her for now and see how her talent and temperament fare."
Just now, he had actually been watching Shuangjiang's fight from afar. She had several opportunities to kill the refugee, but she hadn't made the move.
He understood. For a twelve-year-old peasant girl, despite living a bitter life, she had never truly experienced life-or-death combat. It was perfectly normal for her to hesitate at first.
The vagrant whose stick had been knocked away by Shuangjiang earlier had already jumped onto the carriage and was about to drive off.
Whoosh! Xie Nanxiao released the arrow from his grasp.
The smile froze on the vagrant's face. Clutching the arrow protruding from his neck with both hands, he let out a harsh, gurgling gasp.
Thud! The vagrant tumbled from the carriage and crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
