A biting wind howled, casting a chilling pall over Yanjiang City, yet within the hearts of Teng Qingshan and Yan Motian atop the battlements, the chill was even more profound.
Teng Qingshan’s icy gaze swept through his helmet's visor down towards the Silver Flood Dragon Army below. He spoke in a low voice, "Elder Yan, calculating the time, it takes roughly three hours for this intelligence to reach the Sect, and another one or two hours for the response to travel back to us. This means... the Great Lake Island army has likely been marching for four to five hours already!"
Yan Motian responded gravely, "If Great Lake Island spares no effort and marches at full tilt, they could reach the walls of Yanjiang City before nightfall today!"
They possessed too little intelligence, allowing for only rough temporal estimations.
Teng Qingshan gave a cold sneer, "The Lord of Great Lake Island, 'Gu Yong,' is leading the army personally! And they struck Iron Clothing Sect first, then us, the Origin Returning Sect. Now that various forces have converged, the contingent they dispatch will certainly be larger than the force sent against Iron Clothing Sect. They truly think highly of our Origin Returning Sect!"
This 'high regard' was far from welcome; the people of the Origin Returning Sect would much prefer Great Lake Island to look down upon them and send fewer troops.
"Once 'Gu Yong' arrives with the main army, escaping will be impossible. We must retreat," Yan Motian murmured in helpless resignation. "I had hoped to use this opportunity to slay many more from Great Lake Island. However... Qingshan, since you killed Tie Wanmao, this major expedition will at least be considered worthwhile."
Teng Qingshan turned and smiled lightly, "Tie Wanmao? Too arrogant; he only knew how to bully Houtian masters."
"Commander Pang," Teng Qingshan called out.
Pang Shan, standing in the distance, immediately walked over.
"Even if unwilling, we must leave," Teng Qingshan sighed internally. He then conferred with Pang Shan and Yan Motian regarding the withdrawal procedures.
...
At the base of Yanjiang City, charred remains of corpses lay scattered across the ground. Some Silver Flood Dragon Army soldiers were tasked with collecting the remains of Enforcement Elder 'Tie Wanmao,' while the other assembled troops murmured amongst themselves, occasionally glancing up towards the silhouette clad in black heavy armor, holding a silver Reincarnation Spear atop the city wall.
"Elder, General!" Two Silver Flood Dragon Army soldiers approached. One carried a bundle containing the remains, while the other held the Wind and Thunder Blade along with the inner and arm armor.
"Set them down," the middle-aged man in the grey robe instructed impassively.
"Yes, sir."
The two soldiers placed the bundle, the Wind and Thunder Blade, and the armor on the ground.
"Elder Hu!" The heavily armored giant standing beside the grey-robed man roared with grim fury. "Ancestor Zhao and the others led the main force to annihilate the Iron Clothing Sect. Not a single one of their ten Xiantian powerhouses died, yet here, beneath Yanjiang City, we lost Elder Tie! Are we just going to swallow this monumental humiliation?"
The grey-robed man glanced at him. "General Lan, what do you propose? Challenge them to battle? The enemy won't fight—what can you do? Launch a full frontal assault?"
"But this is the first Xiantian expert Great Lake Island has lost in years! And he was slain right before the formation! This is an absolute disgrace!" This General Lan’s eyes were wide with rage, his indignation unquenched. "If we assault with full force, I refuse to believe we cannot breach the walls!"
A trace of mockery flickered in Elder Hu's eyes. He spoke indifferently, "If we assault, the city gates are thick and certainly heavily guarded. We won't be able to break them. And scaling the walls? The enemy has the advantage of fortifications. Although Great Lake Island has over ten thousand Silver Flood Dragon soldiers, only a fraction can actually scale the walls and engage in close combat. They would be slowly devoured by that Black Armored Army! Besides, don't forget... the enemy also has hidden hidden weapon masters."
"Hidden weapon masters?" General Lan choked on his words.
The five hundred Gold Scale Guards had lost nearly one hundred and fifty men in an instant; General Lan clearly recalled the scene of each Gold Scale Guard falling.
"The death of one Tie Wanmao is a minor matter," the grey-robed man stated flatly. Tie Wanmao was over a hundred years old yet still only at the 'Xiantian False Core' realm. At his age, it was unlikely he would ever reach 'Xiantian Solid Core.' Great Lake Island did not place excessive importance on such individuals.
What Great Lake Island truly valued were Elder Hu, Zhao Danchen, and the few other Xiantian Golden Core figures!
"Teng Qingshan's strength is the major issue!" The grey-robed man lowered his gaze to the scattered remains on the ground.
"Teng Qingshan," the burly giant, 'General Lan,' stared at the large hole in the center of the inner armor and couldn't help but say, "A seventeen-year-old Xiantian powerhouse! And that final spear strike... its power was immense, instantly scorching Elder Tie's body. A Xiantian False Core master would struggle to resist it. Across the entire Kyushu continent, in a thousand years, only the demonic monk of the Mani Temple rivals Teng Qingshan."
Elder Hu, however, looked up, gazing toward the ghostly, black heavy-armored figure on the distant walls of Yanjiang City.
"No, he is even more terrifying than the demonic monk!" Elder Hu said softly.
"Hmm?" General Lan was surprised. "The demonic monk Xiang Fanchen reached Xiantian at sixteen, over six hundred years ago."
Elder Hu fixed his sight on Teng Qingshan in the distance and spoke slowly, "The demonic monk received focused tutelage from the Mani Temple from childhood, cultivating one of the Four Great Divine Canons, the Golden Body Buddha. Whereas Teng Qingshan grew up in the wilderness, without a master, relying solely on himself. His spear techniques, I have never seen before; they must be his own creation! Reaching Xiantian and immediately slaying Elder Tie, who had cultivated for decades as a Xiantian expert... Just thinking about the future Teng Qingshan, I feel a chill."
General Lan was momentarily silenced.
"If the Origin Returning Sect is given a few more decades, I fear Great Lake Island might struggle to extinguish them," Elder Hu said slowly. "The death of Elder Tie is perhaps a good thing—it lets Great Lake Island realize the terrifying genius that is Teng Qingshan. This time, when eliminating the Origin Returning Sect, we must capture Teng Qingshan alive if at all possible; if not, kill him!"
Hearing Elder Hu’s words, General Lan nodded in agreement.
A terrifying genius comparable to the demonic monk 'Xiang Fanchen,' and an enemy at that—if he is not eliminated, sleep and appetite would be impossible to maintain!
It was a pity...
They did not know that Teng Qingshan was no mere inexperienced young genius. In terms of pursuit, tracking, and evasion, it could be said that few on the entire Kyushu continent could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with him. Armed with his past life’s assassin experience, coupled with his perfect control over his body, who could possibly track him?
...
Time flowed by. The Great Lake Island forces sat resting below the walls, waiting for the main army to arrive and link up.
"General, General!"
A Silver Flood Dragon Army soldier rushed into the main tent where General Lan and Elder Hu were quietly waiting over tea.
"What is it?" General Lan frowned.
"General!" The soldier said urgently, "The Origin Returning Sect's Black Armored Army has fled from beneath the city walls."
Whoosh! Whoosh!
General Lan and Elder Hu bolted out of the tent instantly and looked toward the distant battlements of Yanjiang City. Indeed... only a few hundred Black Armored Army soldiers remained on the walls. These soldiers were rapidly retreating down through various passages, and within two breaths, they vanished from the ramparts.
"Gold Scale Guards!" Elder Hu roared fiercely.
Clang!
Over three hundred Gold Scale Guards rushed out.
"Follow me and charge!" Elder Hu took the lead, soaring forward like an arrow toward the wall. Behind him, the three hundred-plus Gold Scale Guards sprinted toward the fortifications.
"Boom!" "Boom!"...
The resounding beat of mobilization drums echoed across the sky, and the ten thousand Silver Flood Dragon soldiers quickly assembled.
...
Elder Hu lightly touched the wall and effortlessly vaulted onto the battlement. With Elder Hu’s heightened senses, he could not detect even the slightest sound of breathing on the wall.
"They all escaped?" Elder Hu was greatly shocked.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Behind him, the Gold Scale Guards ascended the ramparts like agile leopards.
"Follow me down," Elder Hu commanded. They jumped directly from the parapet into the city, only to find... no guards at the city gate—only massive logs bracing the entrance. The thick, black metal bars had also firmly locked the gates shut.
"Open the city gate," Elder Hu commanded, though his eyes were already fixed northward.
The shops on the street had their doors tightly shut. Far in the distance, a faint blur of black could be discerned. The dense sound of hoofbeats caused the ground to tremble, a vibration Elder Hu could clearly feel.
The Gold Scale Guards swiftly moved the logs and pulled open the heavy metal bars of the city gate. With a 'Boom!' as the gate swung open, a large number of Silver Flood Dragon soldiers mounted on warhorses charged into the city. A roar went up: "Charge! Kill one Black Armored soldier, a reward of one hundred taels of silver. Kill one Centurion, a reward of one thousand taels of silver..." The Silver Flood Dragon soldiers howled as they spurred their horses in pursuit.
Since the enemy was focused only on fleeing, the chase should be easy.
...
The sheer number of Black Armored soldiers meant that even with an orderly retreat, the soldiers at the rear were only about two li from the pursuing Silver Flood Dragon troops. Furthermore, due to their position at the tail end, the varied maximum speeds of the warhorses meant that while the soldiers in front could run freely, those behind could not maintain the pace.
"Hahahaha... Brothers, kill!"
The Silver Flood Dragon soldiers screamed, their horses galloping, making the entirety of Yanjiang City tremble.
The distance was closing!
"Faster, faster!" Teng Qingshan roared; he and Yan Motian were at the very rear of the Black Armored Army. The Silver Flood Dragon cavalry was drawing nearer.
One li, half a li, eighty zhang, fifty zhang, thirty zhang...
"Whizz!" "Whizz!" Arrows shot from behind landed on the soldiers at the rear of the Black Armored contingent. A metallic 'clang' was heard, with only one or two arrows luckily finding a gap in the armor plating.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Like a gust of wind, the entire Black Armored Army finally rushed out of Yanjiang City's north gate. Outside the north gate, several hundred Black Armored soldiers were positioned on both flanks. Twenty soldiers gripped tether ropes, ten on each side... Once all the Black Armored soldiers were through, just as the Silver Flood Dragon Army rushed out!
"Rise!" A loud shout echoed.
Ropes tethering horses were pulled up from the earth. The ropes were not set high, about one to two chi above the ground. Five thick tether ropes were spaced four zhang apart. Besides the hundred soldiers holding these ropes, the remaining Black Armored soldiers held battle blades.
"Rumble~~~~"
The horses charging at full speed crashed down in a heap, shaking the ground. The Silver Flood Dragon soldiers were thrown off; the speed of the galloping horses was not slower than some of the cars from Teng Qingshan’s previous life, and no matter how robust the soldiers were, they were thrown down until they were dizzy.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The Black Armored soldiers, who had been prepared, rushed forward. Their battle blades immediately lunged toward the slits beneath the enemy helmets! Because humans must breathe and eyes must see, there were gaps.
The blades pierced down mercilessly!
Splat! Splat!
Blood sprayed.
"Ah~~" Screams echoed across the heavens. Many Silver Flood Dragon soldiers, still reeling from the fall, were killed before they could regain consciousness!
"Ambush!" Urgent shouts rang out.
"Neigh~~"
The sound of neighing horses and angry roars mingled; the entire gate area descended into chaos. Soldiers too late to stop fell off their horses. The gate was instantly choked with fallen warhorses, the corpses of dead Silver Flood Dragon soldiers, and the tether ropes.
"Go!" Teng Qingshan shouted loudly.
The Black Armored soldiers remounted one by one and swiftly galloped away, leaving behind only the snow-covered ground marked with hoof prints.