Martial Arts: I Have a Wilderness World-Chapter 88 - 87: The Refugees’ Full-Scale Riot
"Yaaawn..."
A city guard yawned and stretched. He twisted his sore, stiff body and held his breath as he glanced down from the wall.
In the hazy dawn light, he could see the refugees were still restless, a chaotic mess, but he couldn’t be bothered to look any closer.
The soldiers on the wall simply assumed the refugees were fighting over pitiful scraps of trash—garbage none of them would even look twice at. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺
Scenes like this had been a constant occurrence ever since the refugees gathered outside the city walls. The soldiers had long grown accustomed to it. What they couldn’t get used to was the overwhelming stench.
"Old Wang, I heard your son is sick. How is he doing?" the drowsy soldier called out to his colleague a few meters away, trying to liven himself up with some conversation.
The Soldier called Old Wang, his face a bit flushed, turned his head away uncomfortably and responded weakly:
"He’s alright. After the shift change, I’ll take him to see a Doctor. Younger Brother Li, I need to ask for a day off tonight. I wonder if the chief will allow it."
"Probably not. The chief said many of the brothers have heatstroke or have caught a cold and had to take time off. We’re already short-staffed."
Hearing this, Old Wang’s heart sank. ’Did I catch a cold too? Why do I feel so hot and uncomfortable?’ But if he collapsed, he feared his family would go hungry.
At this thought, Old Wang gave up on the idea of taking a day off. He continued to push through it.
As the sky brightened, the next shift arrived. They exchanged reports and prepared to head down.
At the West City Gate, a squad of ten Soldiers with long sabers arrived at the entrance. Four of them stepped forward, and when the time came, they pulled open the heavy city gates together.
Behind them were more than twenty people and a few horse-drawn carts, all waiting to exit the County Town.
As the gates were pushed open, a thick stench assaulted their nostrils, making all ten Soldiers hold their breath.
This was not the first time they had experienced this.
The ten men readied themselves, drew their long sabers, and formed up, five on each side, as they walked out.
This wasn’t the first time they’d had to do this, either.
Every time, there were always reckless fools who would try to rush into the County Town the moment the gates opened. The only way to maintain order was to cut down a few as a warning.
After a few such incidents, things had begun to operate normally.
Yet this time, despite their experience, the scene outside terrified them.
Outside the gates, the moment they began to open, a large number of refugees started to close in.
Their eyes were all bloodshot as they stared intently at the ten long saber-wielding Soldiers.
Amidst the clamoring crowd of refugees, a woman rushed to the gate. She was sallow-skinned and emaciated, her hair was disheveled, and she reeked of a foul stench. In her arms, she carried a child, just as skeletal as her, but with a face flushed crimson. She dropped to her knees before the guarding Soldiers.
Ignoring the Soldiers who had drawn their long sabers in alarm, the woman’s chapped lips parted. She wailed, her voice hoarse and dry:
"O-Officers! I beg you, Officers, save my child! He... he has a fever! Please, I beg you, let us into the city to see a Doctor!"
As she spoke, she began to kowtow.
When the Soldiers heard it was someone with a high fever, their expressions changed instantly, and they hastily retreated a few steps.
Outside, the refugees, who looked like walking corpses, pressed in a little closer.
In the crowd, some people holding rocks had gathered in the middle. They watched the Soldiers, a crazed look in their eyes, as if they were waiting for something.
Seeing this, the Soldiers immediately drew their long sabers, pointed them at the crowd, and shouted:
"Everyone, back off! Back off!"
The crowd immediately took a step back.
But then one Soldier kicked the woman away, also drew his long saber, and roared, "There’s nothing wrong with your son! If you don’t leave now, don’t blame us for striking first and reporting later!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out from the crowd:
"Don’t listen to their lies! It’s a plague!! There’s a plague out here, and the County Magistrate doesn’t care if we live or die!!"
Hearing that word, everyone trembled, instantly consumed by terror. They had heard rumors the previous night and had already been worried. Now that it was spoken aloud, even those who were skeptical instantly believed it.
"Everyone, didn’t you see? The Soldiers don’t dare come near us! It’s because we’ve all caught the plague! We’re going to die!!"
Outside, more and more refugees were swarming in.
The same situation was also unfolding at the other three city gates!
At each gate, it was almost always one or two sick refugees kneeling and crying for help.
"That’s right! They know we have the plague and are still ignoring us! They want us all to die out here!"
"We don’t want to die! We want to live!"
"The County Town has medicine! It has food and water!! Those things can save our lives! Let us in!!"
Behind the Soldiers, the people waiting to leave the city heard the crowd’s rising furor and grew worried.
Some, fearing trouble, immediately turned and headed back.
"Yang’er, now is not a good time to go out."
Among them, Cheng Zongyang and Mrs. Chen of the Cheng Family, both dressed in the tattered clothes of farmers, watched the scene outside with vigilance.
Cheng Zongyang said with a grave expression, "It seems someone found out about the plague. The news has spread outside the city, which is why these refugees can no longer be held back."
He thought for a moment, then stood on his toes to look at the layer upon layer of refugees blocking the way, and a chill went down his spine.
Against a charge of this magnitude, even he, an Entry Grade Martial Artist, couldn’t stop these people.
If he were pushed down, he would likely be trampled and severely injured.
Cheng Zongyang immediately pulled his second aunt away from the gate and beat a hasty retreat.
However, just as he was retreating, a roar erupted from outside the city, followed by a barrage of fist-sized stones flying wildly inside!
"Kill them! The city has medicine, food, and water!"
"If they want us to die, then we’ll all die together!!"
"I don’t want to die! I want to live! I want to survive!!"
...
In an instant, chaos erupted at the city gate! A riot broke out without any warning!
Cheng Zongyang’s expression changed, and Mrs. Chen of the Cheng Family’s face went pale as her nephew pulled her away.
The refugees were in a full-blown riot!
The ten long saber-wielding Soldiers were completely unable to stop the rioting refugees. Even cutting some of them down was useless!
Countless fist-sized stones flew at them, smashing into them, causing excruciating pain and leaving them with bloody head wounds.
This forced them to retreat while roaring:
"Close the gates!"
"Inform the County Magistrate!"
"Send backup!!"
As the commands were roared out, a few of them, ignoring the pain and the blood streaming down their faces, quickly rushed back inside to try and close the gates.
The others swung their long sabers, continuing to desperately fight back against the charging refugees!
At the same time, the soldiers on the wall who had just changed shifts and hadn’t left yet also grabbed their sabers and spears and rushed down.
However, the refugees’ fury had already been completely stoked. The appearance of the plague had snapped the final thread of their restraint.
As long as they could eke out a miserable existence, they would never have risked their lives. But the plague’s arrival was tantamount to cutting off their last retreat! It destroyed any thought of just getting by, of enduring, of living one day at a time.
All the long saber-wielding Soldiers were battered and bleeding from the head. One was even hit in the head by a dozen or so consecutive stones and collapsed, unconscious.
The sight of the Soldiers’ fear, their retreat, and their calls for help only stirred another instinct within the refugees’ hearts—the instinct to kill!
From a biological standpoint, humans and animals are no different. Animals kill to survive, kill for food! Humans will also kill for survival and for food.
The surrounding roars, shouts, and the tragic, bloody scene thoroughly awakened this instinct in the hearts of all the refugees.
