Several drops of blood stained Jiang Jin’s face as she walked through the night, through this grandly decorated estate that was steeped in death.
The sounds of fighting and screams echoed without end, yet her expression remained calm and her steps resolute.
Beside her, Yun Chengxuan and Chu Qing were slaughtering their way through the enemy with abandon.
Chu Qing in particular had endured more than two years of suffering. Now that he had finally broken free, he was like a ferocious tiger released from its cage, a god of death incarnate.
He had spent so long eating well and recovering. After the chains had been sawed through, he would occasionally have Uncle Liu take his place at night while he went out to stretch his limbs and get some exercise.
Thus, although his physical condition had not yet returned to its peak, it was still fairly good.
More importantly, his spirit was exceptionally exhilarated.
With that boost, his combat strength had reached its peak. Along the way, he killed anything in his path, be it god or Buddha.
In the bedchamber.
Ji Duoyan had already put on his armor. Although he did not know what was happening outside, the fact that several groups of men had been sent out without a single one returning had already given him a foreboding sense that something was wrong.
Even more alarming was that, despite the chaos throughout the city, none of the civil or military officials from outside the estate had come to him.
Clearly, the situation outside was dire. Those men had either been captured or killed, or they had been unable to enter his estate.
Wu Ke had originally wanted to go out and investigate personally, but he was worried about Ji Duoyan’s safety. He could only personally lead several hundred elite soldiers in surrounding the bedchamber as tightly as an iron barrel.
“Report!”
An urgent voice came from outside.
“Come in!” Ji Duoyan roared.
A soldier hurried in and dropped to his knees. “Grand Chanyu, the entire city is full of the Jinyang Army. The lamps on the city walls have all been extinguished, and the city gates—the city gates should be under their control.”
Wu Ke was horrified. “How is that possible? Aside from the soldiers guarding and patrolling the city, we still have several thousand men in the barracks. Are they all dead?”
The soldier hurriedly replied, “The barracks are ablaze. They should… they should be unable to send anyone out.”
The Grand Chanyu gritted his teeth. “How many enemies are there?”
The soldier was thoroughly ashamed. “I didn’t dare approach them, so I don’t know their exact numbers. But they’re fighting our men to a standstill. There must be tens of thousands of them.”
It was precisely because he was extremely cautious that he had fled the moment he heard the sounds of fighting, allowing him to return safely.
The entire city had descended into a melee. Walking outside gave him the illusion that he had returned to the time when they had massacred cities—but now, it was Ji Duoyan’s army that was being slaughtered.
Ji Duoyan frowned. “Send word at once. Have the nearby garrisons and the guards from the surrounding commanderies and counties come to rescue us.”
“Yes, sir!”
Someone immediately acknowledged the order.
With the city gates under enemy control, messages could only be sent by carrier pigeon. Although it was night, the distances were short, so that should not be a problem.
Wu Ke was just about to speak when the sounds of fighting and screams erupted outside. He was startled. “Has the Jinyang Army broken in?”
More than a thousand soldiers patrolled outside the Grand Chanyu’s estate, while another two or three thousand guards had been stationed inside. Had they really been defeated so quickly?
Just as he was thinking this, a blood-soaked military officer rushed in.
“This is bad, Grand Chanyu! The Jinyang Army has broken in!”
He was one of Wu Ke’s deputy commanders and had been trying to stop the Jinyang Army from advancing through the estate. Unfortunately, they had been forced back step by step until they had retreated to the Grand Chanyu’s bedchamber.
Wu Ke shouted furiously, “What about the others?”
The deputy commander wiped the blood and grime from his face. “They’ve all been wiped out.”
Remembering the power of the Jinyang Army’s repeating crossbows, the deputy commander’s face filled with terror. He looked up at Ji Duoyan.
“Grand Chanyu, leave through the secret passage.”
Ji Duoyan valued his life, so he had had passages dug beneath his bedchamber, leading to several locations throughout the city. He had even prepared large supplies of food and water.
Although the passages could not take him out of the city, they could get him away from the bedchamber and into the streets. Once he hid somewhere in the city, finding him would be no easy task.
Ji Duoyan was first stunned by the suggestion. Then he flew into a rage.
“This is Wenxia City, and this is my bedchamber! How could I retreat before some Jinyang Army whose origins we don’t even know?”
Although the sounds of battle were drawing closer and closer, as the Grand Chanyu, he did not want to flee for his life and appear weak and incompetent.
Bang!
An arrow pierced through the lattice window and embedded itself in a pillar in the hall.
Wu Ke swiftly drew his saber and stepped in front of Ji Duoyan. “Grand Chanyu, leave first. The situation is unclear. We should avoid the danger for now.”
Ji Duoyan’s expression changed as he listened to the battle raging outside, where the doors to the bedchamber seemed moments away from being breached. His face darkened.
Wu Ke turned to the silent man who had always remained at Ji Duoyan’s side. “Xia Bao, hurry. Take the Grand Chanyu and leave first.”
Xia Bao nodded and escorted Ji Duoyan farther inside.
He was Ji Duoyan’s personal guard and possessed formidable strength.
Ji Duoyan had still wanted to hold out a little longer, but hearing the fighting rapidly approaching, he finally gave in.
Dozens of elite personal guards immediately followed them as they hurried deeper into the bedchamber.
Wu Ke looked at the deputy commander. “You go with them as well. Protect the Grand Chanyu at all costs.”
A trace of reluctance and concern flashed through the deputy commander’s eyes. “General, what about you? Aren’t you coming with us?”
Wu Ke shook his head. “No. Someone needs to hold this place. Go, quickly.”
He intended to buy the Grand Chanyu more time to escape.
The deputy commander clenched his teeth. “Take care, General.”
At the barracks, Yao Ji sent a Ji Army soldier flying with a sweep of his spear.
He had gone berserk tonight, and every soldier in the Jinyang Army had gone berserk with him!
After entering the barracks, they had first taken advantage of the Ji Army’s unpreparedness while they were still resting, firing several volleys and cutting down their ranks. As the Ji soldiers charged and fled in all directions, the Jinyang Army gradually shifted from shooting them to engaging in close combat.
They had to annihilate as many of the Ji Army’s soldiers as possible and ease the burden on Xia Chanyi, Shuangjiang, and the others in the city.
Ji Dian felt as though he was going mad.
As one of the Ji Army’s Ten Great Generals, he had recently been training troops and spent most of his time stationed at the barracks.
When the Jinyang Army stormed into the camp, nearly everyone had been resting apart from the soldiers on night watch. They were caught completely off guard and slaughtered in an instant.
Ji Dian had no idea where the Jinyang Army had come from, how many soldiers they had, or how they had suddenly appeared at the barracks. He had not even had time to put on his armor before being forced into the battle.
It was not that he lacked a sense of urgency. Who could have imagined that Wenxia City, with its formidable defenses, would somehow be ambushed without warning?
The enemy had clearly been plotting this for a long time, while they had known nothing at all!
By the firelight, he glared at the Jinyang Army’s formidable general wielding a horse spear. His eyes burned with fury and a strange fighting spirit. He was determined to cut down this Jinyang general and crush the Jinyang Army’s momentum.
Before he could charge over, Yao Ji sensed Ji Dian’s “fiery” gaze and raised his head to look back.
Through the soldiers clashing between them, he saw Ji Dian’s wolf-like bearing in the dim light.
Yao Ji slowly raised his bloodstained horse spear, Mo Lin, and pointed it at Ji Dian. The provocation was unmistakable.
At last, a heavyweight Ji Army commander had appeared. Otherwise, Yao Ji felt that tonight’s battle would have been incomplete.
That provocative gesture completely enraged Ji Dian. Clutching his fifty-pound saber, he charged forward.
With weapons, an extra inch meant an extra advantage—especially when the weapon was in the hands of a seasoned and ferocious veteran like Yao Ji.
Before Ji Dian’s saber could reach him, Yao Ji’s Mo Lin shot toward his throat.
Ji Dian had no choice but to avoid its edge, retreating at high speed.
Yao Ji pressed close behind him, and Mo Lin struck out again like a venomous snake, stabbing toward Ji Dian’s throat.
Ji Dian had no choice but to retreat once more…
But after no more than five exchanges, Yao Ji pierced through Ji Dian’s chest and pinned him to a large tree.
Ji Dian spat out a mouthful of blood and stared at Yao Ji in disbelief.
“You… soldier of the Jinyang Army… which way did you enter the city?” Unable to let it go, he finally voiced the question that had haunted him as he lay dying.
