Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
On Jing Ge’s spear was Qin Heng’s bloody and dripping body. Jing Ge’s chest was flooded with the joy of revenge. He gave a shout while surrounded by tens of thousands of soldiers. He had finally avenged his family. After hiding in the darkness for so many years, he had finally avenged them.
Outside Jiaozhou, he had, for the first time, told Fan Xian about his past. Half a year later, Fan Xian had gently promised that he would give him a chance for revenge. Jing Ge didn’t know what power Sir Fan junior had to help him achieve his desire, but his wish had finally become reality.
Boundless joy and murderous intent made Jing Ge laugh. The wretched wound between his ears split open like a clown’s mouth. It opened larger than usual and looked unusually horrifying. It was also unusually mournful as tears slid down his face like rain.
The people who saw this sight felt a chill rise from the depths of their hearts. On the horse, the old Qin Master’s heart felt like it was being torn apart. His eyes darkened, but he valiantly sat up straight on his horse. He didn’t let anyone discover that he was close to being unable to endure the mental anguish.
The old Qin Master’s face was pale. is white hair flew wildly. Looking at his only son stabbed by the spear of that strange Black Knight, he didn’t say a single word.
At this time, a second event slowly changed the picture below the Palace walls like a hidden current. It was as if a master painter had recklessly scattered tens of thousands of red spots on an ink painting of mountains and autumn scenes. Immediately, countless wildflowers sprouted up in the mountains. The somber scene suddenly became a beautiful and bountiful harvest.
The main gate had been crashed open by the rebel army’s heavy carriages. The rebel soldiers were cheering loudly as they charged in. However, a large knife dropped down from the gate. It brought with it an icy light and a streak of blood. A number of heads fell to the ground.
The large knife moved again. In the icy light, the Great Prince rode out in full armor with an unstoppable aura like a god. Bounding out of the gate, he cut open a blood path.
Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack! The rebel soldiers in the vanguard had their limbs broken and heads sliced off. The Great Prince gave a great roar and, with the long knife in his hand, he led the 200 imperial soldiers behind him out in a sudden attack. Unexpected by everyone, the moment the gates were broken through, they stole the initiative and charged out to attack first. Thus began the true first attack by the people in the Royal Palace.
The thunder of hooves rang out. Although only a small path was cleared from the rocks and mud inside the Palace, it did not obstruct the speed of the Great Prince’s counterattack. The 200 soldiers rode out quickly, relying on the speed of their attack and first-rate riding skills. They were like a knife through tofu, opening up a large gap in the rebel army’s vanguard. No one could stand in the direction of the icy light. Those who dared all became bodies on the ground and dismembered limbs.
In just a moment, the imperial soldiers had charged forward almost 60 meters from the wide open gates. Like a stream of mercury, they could not be stopped.
The rebel soldiers increased their speed as they charged toward the broken gate. Dense, like a flock of locusts, they made one shiver in fear.
Although the 200 imperial soldiers were powerful, in front of such a powerful rebel army, they looked as slender as a silver thread.
The Great Prince was not afraid. Since he had put his trust in Fan Xian, he gave no thought to his life and death. He charged quickly and flipped his wrist. The large knife drew an arc through the air and chopped straight down to his right and forward. With a crisp crack, the short spear in a rebel officers hand split open.
The large knife chopped into the officer’s shoulder. The Great Prince furrowed his brows with a muffled huff. Generating strength from his core, he dragged his arm. With a thud, the blade of the knife broke through the body and exited, immediately slicing the officer’s body into two.
The Great Prince bent his body forward and dodged a sharp spear that passed by his face. The large knife in his hand dragged behind him and spun around his waist. Using the powerful strength of his arms, he hacked in a slant. The large knife whistled desolately through the air and forcefully sent the head of the rebel soldier to his left flying away.
With a gentle slapping sound, countless drops of blood splattered onto the Great Prince’s silver armor. The long knife in his hand was stained with thick blood. Following the imperial soldiers desperate surprise attack, there was a line of blood that looked unusually startling and beautiful.
The helmet pressed down on the Great Prince’s sword-like brows as a wildfire burned in his eyes. Brave and unstoppable, he led his troops forward, charging toward the rebel camp in the distance. Along the way, no one knew how many obstacles and killings there would be. Perhaps he would never arrive in front of Li Chengqian, but he still had to charge.
He was the Commander of Qing Kingdom’s Western Expedition Army. The only person among the royal family who had battlefield experience. Even though he didn’t understand Fan Xian’s intentions, since he had accepted this order, he would see it through to the end.
He was not a martial ace, but he was a brave general in an army. The attack and defense in the Jingdou battle did not demonstrate his skill in command on the wild battlegrounds. The Great Prince had never feared charging forward and breaking through enemy lines. The cavalry battles on the battlefield were completely different to a duel between aces. Courage was the most important thing. His he courage was without question. The heart he had already pledged was raised with a peak condition.
As the mixed child of Dongyi and the Southern Kingdom, in some ways he was not liked by the Emperor. However, he had great depths of emotion for this land.
A silent arrow flew toward him. He swatted it aside with the tip of his sword, but it forced his body to pause. A few wounds opened up on his body from the countless spears rebel soldiers stabbed in his direction from below his horse. Fortunately, the horse was moving quickly, so he didn’t fall into a trap. Instead, he slaughtered open a path and continued charging toward the rebel camp.
They were still very far away, but these 200 imperial soldiers gave one the feeling that they would arrive in front of the Crown Prince in the next instant.
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Fan Xian stood on the black coffins and nervously watched everything that happened below. When the Great Prince charged out of the gates and into his field of vision, he immediately gave the order.
“Clear the road for His Highness!”
There were not many imperial soldiers or Overwatch Council officials left on the walls. Most of them were doing their best to defend against the rebel soldiers attempting to scale the walls with ladders. Relying on two hours of preparation early in the morning, there had yet to be one rebel soldier that managed to climb over the wall.
However, they had long been given military orders. Although they were secretly afraid in their hearts, they followed Fan Xian’s orders without hesitation. Leaving the area of the walls they were guarding, they quickly gathered in the middle to fire the few arrows left in their hands without any reluctance.
The arrows gathered together and fell like rain. They all landed on the path ahead of the Great Prince and group of imperial soldiers and on the head of rebel soldiers. They immediately did a great deal of damage. It also slightly reduced the obstacles in the path of the Great Prince’s attack.
However, the defenses in the other areas of the Royal Palace became weak. Without the defense of arrows, the rebel soldiers on the scaling ladders seemed like they had taken stimulants and were bravely climbing upward. It looked like they were about to surmount the Palace.
The imperial soldiers desperately pulled at their bowstrings, completely unable to feel the pain in their arms. Blood splattered out from the bowstrings. By order of Duke Fan, they were to use the bows and arrows in their hands to open a path for the prince, but what about the rebel soldiers scaling the walls? But, the prince was leading 200 of their brothers toward the rebel soldiers. If their firing slowed down slightly and the prince was injured, what then? Fear, unease, courage, and various other emotions rolled around in the hearts of the soldiers on the walls.
The rebel soldiers had already mounted the walls via the scaling ladders. Although not many people made it, the Qin family’s soldiers were all brave. After stabilizing their position with great difficulty, they began to expand their territory and open up the way for the rebel soldiers behind. However, 200 imperial soldiers had already charged out of the palace gate below. The rebel soldiers were unable to restrain them, so they entered through the broken gates and fought with the remaining defensive power left in the Palace.
It looked like the Royal Palace was about to fall at any moment, but the Great Prince was still charging and killing the rebels below the walls.
Two sets of buzzing sounds rang out. The two giant city guarding crossbows, which had been paused for a while, finally began to fire again. This time, the firing was not targeted at the heavy carriages used to break down the gate or the three-story carriage being transported over to surmount the walls. Under Fan Xian’s powerful request, the arrows landed among the rebel soldiers in front of the path the Great Prince was charging along.
The giant arrows landed and pierced through the bodies of countless rebel soldiers, sending up mists of blood. They pierced repeatedly through the stone pavements, while some bounced up again. The heavy weight and powerful striking force were enough to crush a few people to death.
The abrupt and powerful rain of arrows, and the mighty and terrifying crossbow, greatly aided the Great Prince’s attack. It opened a blood path right through the rebel soldiers. The Great Prince moved like a silver thread along this blood path, bravely charging toward the rebel camp.
The rebel army clearly had the advantage of numbers. Looking at the Great Prince’s handsome and heroic posture on his horse, one felt fear in their hearts without reason. The Qing army valued battle merit above all else. Everyone knew that during these years, it was the Great Prince who led the army to fight in the West with the Hu people without having tasted defeat even once. He had achieved great military merit and was a famous general in the army.
With a famous general leading the attack, the pressure it formed and the power of the attack were not something normal people who oppose.
Fan Xian looked at this impressive sight and took a deep breath. The two slow cycles moving through his body picked up speed. Slowly shedding the layer of Tianyi Dao zhenqi on the meridians in his body, it allowed the ruthless Tyrannical zhenqi to circulate powerfully through his body.
His eyes grew more and more bloodshot as the effect of the medicine reached its peak. He held tightly to the hook and chain in his hand, waiting for the sound of the last arrow.
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Jing Ge was surrounded by the rebel soldiers who first arrived. The old Qin Master withdrew his gaze coldly and turned it toward the disturbance far away. He knew the Great Prince had led soldiers in a counterattack. He knew how wild and heroic the Great Prince’s battle style was. If the opposition had 3,000 riders at his command, perhaps the old Qin Master would temporarily avoid their blades. At this time, the rebel soldiers’ victory was already decided. The gates in the wall had caved in. At such a key moment, it was clear the old Qin master would not retreat a single step.
This was a natural instinct formed from spending decades on a battlefield. However, seeing the Great Prince’s blood covered heroic pose, he thought of his only son’s tragic death. The old Qin Master suddenly felt that he was already old. He was so old that he was about to smell the scent of death. The pain he had long hidden deeply in his heart made him make a wrong decision after a moment a hesitation.
“This is the enemy’s last desperate counterattack, do not underestimate it,” the old Qin Master coughed and said to his trusted general. “Take the Crown Prince to the rear of the camp.”
The Crown Prince glanced at the old Qin Master. He didn’t want to retreat. As the Crown Prince did not know anything about the military or wish to disturb the old Qin Master’s arrangement of the soldiers, he could only leave silently.
With the Great Prince’s last counterattack, he chose to be as immovable as a mountain. This was the best decision. However, personally witnessing his only son’s tragic end still made him a bit more on conservative. He had the family general lead the Crown Prince away from the Great Prince’s counterattack. Thus, he would have eight Qin family generals at his side.
Perhaps as a ninth-level ace, the old Qin Master didn’t care about much.
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But, Fan Xian cared.
The massive city guarding crossbow finally exhausted all of its arrows while the Imperial Army’s rain of arrows also became more sparse. The imperial soldiers the Great Prince led were still unable to break into the rebel army’s camp after paying a terrible price.
Perhaps miracles could happen on the battlefield, but wanting to use 200 cavalry to carry out a successful counterattack was not called a miracle. It was called delusional. The Great Prince’s blood-soaked battle had already cleared out a long and bloody path. His valiant battlefield capabilities had scared countless rebel soldiers witless.
At this time, the Royal Palace was about to be taken, the Great Prince was surrounded, and the remaining Black Knights and Jing Ge were surrounded. The big picture was set. Even the sound of the last city guarding crossbow firing sounded different than the dozen arrows earlier. It shot out, making a tragic whimper.
After this final arrow was fired, the two city guarding crossbows fell silent. Everyone seemed to be able to clearly hear the sorrowful sound the arrow made. No one noticed this arrow’s path of flight was completely different from the trajectory of the arrows earlier, which had helped the Great Prince clear the road.
This arrow shot out slanted and swept over the heads of all the rebel soldiers and didn’t cause any harm. It only slowly burned through its energy in the air. After flying a very long distance, it finally landed heavily right in front of the rebel army camp.
Although the arrow had traveled far, such firing was not a threat. In the end, it fell like a piece of copper or useless metal onto the ground. It didn’t touch any rebel soldiers. It only gave them a fright.
With a thud, the arrow was like a knife a child played with. The lucky tip of the arrow pointed down and pierced through the mud between stone pavements to stand straight.
The people on and below the Palace walls all saw a sight that frightened them.
A person wearing black seemed to have appeared from the depths of the ground like a spirit. He was floating down from the walls along the trajectory the arrow had traveled in. The person flew quickly through the resistance-free air toward the foot of the palace.
From the top of the walls, they only used a moment of time before flying above the rebel troops.
The last arrow had a rope tied to its end. The black-clothed man used a hook and chain to slide down the rope, directly into the rebel army’s camp.
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This sight shocked countless people into a daze. They were intimidated by the powerful killing intent and vigor in the air. Finally, someone came to their senses and saw the rope tied to the end of the arrow that had fallen heavily to the ground. In a loud and wild roar, he said, “Chop down the rope!”
A number of bright knives chopped down on the tightly stretched rope at the tail of the arrow.
The old Qin Master’s eyes were slightly cold as he looked at the black shadow charging toward him at a remarkable speed. The pain and anger at the bottom of his heart burst forth again, making his body shake. The Great Prince’s courageous attack and black-clothed man descending from the heavens couldn’t help but make him lose his focus. The tragic death of his only son earlier had made this powerful figure finally reveal a flaw.
Just as the old Qin Master’s heart trembled slightly, the corner of his eyes also lit up with a knife light. This knife light was not chopping down on the rope at the tail of the arrow. Rather, it was headed toward the old Qin Master’s body.
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A crack exploded out of the rebel’s camp. Gong Dian, in full armor, jingled randomly because of the zhenqi coursing through his body. The powerful zhenqi made his facial hair grow. His hands gripped the straight knife in his hand tightly as it chopped toward the old Qin Master’s neck.
This one strike contained all of the power in Gong Dian’s entire body. The peak strength of an eighth-level exploded outward in one strike that had waited for years.
A glimmer of rage and disbelief flashed through the old Qin Master’s eyes. His face was flushed red as his hands firmly blocked Gong Dian’s rude and unreasonable strike.
Fresh blood dripped down between the old Qin Master’s finger and thumb. Faced with this sinister assassination, the first elder of the Qing military, a superior ninth-level ace, still shook like when he saw Fan Xian descending from the sky.
It was only a slight shake. The flush on the old Qin Master’s face immediately became a pale white. He could no longer hold onto Gong Dian’s long knife.
Another person had struck at the same time as Gong Dian, a very important and powerful person.
Ye Zhong struck out heavily. It seemed to carry some of the wind and sand from Dingzhou’s desolate deserts, and the order of something in the spirit world. Determinedly and mercilessly, he tore through the body of a rebel general between him and the old Qin Master so that he could land his strike on the old Qin Master’s waist.
Ye Zhong and Gong Dian attacked the old Qin Master sneakily at the same time.
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This scene happened too abruptly and craftily. It was too unbelievable. Even the old Qin Master did not understand what this meant. His close family generals had already escorted the Crown Prince to the side palace. The eight generals at his side did not react in time.
After this giant muffled sound, dust rose up in the rebel camp. When the dust had settled slightly, the three warhorses below the three people were shaken by a powerful gust of zhenqi. Without even time for a mournful cry, they exploded and died.
The old Qin Master sprayed out a mouthful of fresh blood. A horrifying wound appeared at his waist. His withered hand, which had quickly stretched down, was already tightly closed around Ye Zhong’s wrist that held the sword.
Ye Zhong lowered his head. His brows were as steady as mountains. Without any reluctance, the zhenqi in his body surged out in powerful waves. Steadying his waist with a huff, he took one step forward and then another.
The old Qin Master’s body shook again. A gust of powerful strength exploded out from his old body. His left arm flicked out and held onto Gong Dian’s knife. The tip of his elbow had already crashed heavily into Gong Dian’s chest.
With a splutter, Gong Dian sprayed out a blood fog from his mouth. Ge used this spray of blood to roar and, disregarding his life, pushed forward with his entire body. Pressing down on the blade of the knife forced the old Qin Master’s left hand to go to his neck. He made a horrifying squeaking sound.
All of this happened in a short amount of time. Ye Zhong knew that he only had this one chance. Given his personality, which was as steady as a mountain, this was not an opportunity he would miss. He took a deep breath, expanded his chest, shook his left hand, and immediately became like a sheet of metal, leaving behind the old Qin Master’s unusually powerful control.
His left hand turned into a metal plate. With the power of a coffin-breaker technique, he struck heavily onto the old Qin Master’s chest, where there was already a wound flowing with blood.
Ye Zhong’s hand technique was the best in the world.
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The powerful attack carried with it three top aces of the Qing military. On the stone pavements, footsteps retreated. The shattered ground, sending up puffs of dirt.
The rope behind the arrow had already chopped apart. Fan Xian, in black, fell down from mid-air, but he didn’t fall into the group of rebels. He tapped the tip of his foot against the helmet of a rebel soldier and charged straight into the rebel camp like a streak of smoke.
At the same time, Ye Zhong’s coffin-breaker technique landed viciously on the wound on the old Qin Master’s waist.
Fan Xian shrunk into a ball of black shadow and immediately opened up. With two metallic zings, his left hand drew the Wei Emperor’s sword bound to his back. His right hand pulled out the dagger he took back from Lady Ning from his boot. A sword in one hand and a dagger in the other, he became a streak of black smoke and swept over the heads of the eight Qin family generals in the rebel camp.
With a number of thuds, five generals died with their throats slit while three of the generals retreated with wounds on their chest.
Although it was only one meeting, Fan Xian had already demonstrated his greatest power since his rebirth.
Like a giant bird returning to the forest, he headed toward the three people killing each other like wild beasts.
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Injured, the old Qin Master gave a wild howl and clenched his fingers inward until only an inch remained before landing it heavily on Ye Zhong’s left arm, shattering it. Ye Zhong did not care about this life and had completely disregarded his defenses. The foot below his body landed heavily on the ground and left behind a footprint. Moving his own body, he swiftly flew backward.
Ye Zhong gave a muffled huff. His hands formed the coffin-closing form of the coffin breaker technique to lock down the old Qin Master’s right hand, which was overflowing with zhenqi and endlessly trembling.
Covered in blood, Gong Dian used one hand to hold onto the old man’s left arm and stuck his body to him. He used his body to put pressure on the two knives between the two people. Separated by the old man’s valiant palm, he pressed it down toward his neck.
The three of them twisted together and quickly retreated over 30 meters. With a boom, they crashed into the wall of a wooden building behind the square, shaking loose countless pieces of dust.
However, someone was even faster than them. Like a black bird, Fan Xian flashed through and appeared in front of the old Qin Master. The long sword in his hand flipped and pierced into the old Qin Master’s abdomen.
Blood sprayed out as the sword slid into his body. Fan Xian held his sword with his head down. He gave a muffled huff and continued to press forward. The powerful forward momentum caused the body of the four warriors to break through the building’s second wall and third wall. It shook up countless pieces of dust, hiding this sinister, shameless, and bloody murder where it couldn’t be seen by tens of thousands of people.
The figures around the building flowed in a counter-clockwise direction. Fan Xian, Ye Zhong, and Gong Dian did not let go.
Although the three sinister assassins knew the old Qin Master had received life-threatening injuries from the combined attacks of two ninth-level aces and one eighth level ace. No one could determine what kind of brilliance this elder of the Qing military would let out in the last moments of his life.
With a muffled boom, this savage assassination was finally stopped in front of the last wall. Ye Zhong continued to use the coffin-breaker technique to hang tightly onto the old Qin Master’s most powerful right hand, while Gong Dian continued to put pressure on the old man’s left arm.
Fan Xian maintained his half-crouched position with his sword out. Trembling, his hands held onto the blood-covered sword. There was only the hilt of the sword left outside the old Qin Master’s abdomen.
The old Qin Master’s white hair was disheveled. A terrifying light continued to flash in his eyes. Like an old lion about to die, he suddenly gave a rage-filled roar. His entire body began to tremble violently. A ninth-level warrior’s final counter-attack before death was foreshadowed by this kind of violent shaking.
However, a sword tip silently and suddenly extended out from the wooden wall behind him.
The tip of the sword only extended out 10 centimeters, but it just happened to pierce into the old Qin Master’s lower back, the third section of his tailbone. This mysterious strike was withdrawn immediately and disappeared with a trace. It was the most fatal blow.
With a gurgling sound, the heavily injured old Qin Master’s face was flushed a bright red. He sprayed out a mouthful of blood as his body weakly slid down along the wooden wall.