With the Blade-Chapter 47 - 44: Since There’s Nowhere Left to Retreat
According to the survivors who escaped from Ji Town, it was a surprise attack that no one anticipated.
In the dead of night, while everyone was sleeping, the sound of thunderous hoofbeats erupted, followed by a large number of armored warriors rushing into the town. These warriors, wielding curved sabers and cudgels, had blood-red eyes and killed anyone they saw. In just a moment, the entire outskirts of Ji Town became a hell on earth.
This war was unlike any other; this time, the horsemen from the plains had no intention of leaving any survivors.
Some residents of Ji Town were lucky enough to wake up from their dreams and escape into the city, as they had always done during wars. There were tall walls, there were the garrison guards at the Ji Prefecture Commandery; those horsemen couldn’t break through so easily.
Once the smoke signals rose and reinforcements arrived, those horsemen would scatter, afraid of the reinforcements’ forces.
But this time, everything was different.
The horsemen who broke into Ji Town showed no intention of dispersing even when the smoke signals rose. Instead, an armored horseman rode his horse ahead, over the other soldiers with blood-red eyes.
"Is this all?"
The horseman, evidently more slender than the other armored warriors, raised his head to look at the sturdy city in front of him and the heavy city gate that had long been sealed shut.
"Is this all you Southerners can do?"
According to the garrison soldiers on the city walls at the time, they saw blood light.
Apparently, the armored horseman simply waved his saber toward the city gate, and the blood-red light tore apart the gate.
Against a monster that had ceased to be human, city defenses were meaningless.
The war began, and brutal urban street fighting ensued. Even though the city guards resisted desperately, the hastily organized defense was no match for those blood-red-eyed horsemen.
Inside the dim city, the eyes of the horsemen seemed like ghostly fires, leaving a trail of blood and gore wherever they went.
Just as this bloodstorm was about to become a raging wave, Ji Prefecture Commander-in-Chief Liu Yanran finally led his personal guards to march out.
But it was already too late.
"How can there be such a person? How can there be such a person..."
Inside the Dock Fortress of Yang Family Fort, the survivor who had escaped from Ji Town was trembling all over, frothing at the mouth.
The whole person, frightened to death by the horrific scenes in his mind.
Closing the eyes of this survivor, Du Chengfeng stood up.
Although the survivor ultimately did not survive, he at least revealed the most critical information at the last moment.
That man named He Xiqing only clashed once with Commander Liu.
With one slash, the sword was broken and the man perished.
"Indeed..."
Du Chengfeng clenched his fist in silence.
What plan, what method, it was only now that he realized all those plans were nonsense. His opponent was not foolish enough to follow his ideas; he was facing a true monster.
He thought that the man named He Xiqing would come seeking revenge first, but the opponent chose to launch a surprise attack at an unpredictable time on the Ji Prefecture Commandery.
The massacre outside the city had already allowed He Xiqing to begin the process of absorbing evil qi into his body... No, he was probably fully prepared even before deploying his troops.
And after dispatching his troops, He Xiqing did not choose to attack Yang Family Fort to startle them as revenge for his brother’s murder. Instead, he rationally chose to attack Ji Prefecture Commandery with all his might, aiming for a decisive victory.
If Yang Family Fort was attacked, Ji Prefecture Commandery could still send reinforcements. But if Ji Prefecture Commandery along with Ji Town fell... what could Yang Family Fort possibly do?
"We’re doomed! We’re doomed!"
Beside Du Chengfeng, the aging Yang Xuan was evidently aware of this and fell to the ground.
With Ji Town breached, the route southward from Yang Family Fort was completely cut off. At this moment, the Yang clan could not escape even if they tried.
Taking action was like thunderclap.
At this moment, Du Chengfeng and everyone in Yang Family Fort finally realized the trap they were caught in.
It was a desperate, formidable force.
"Warrior, you..."
The elderly Yang Xuan lifted his head, his words caught in his throat.
He originally wanted to place their last hope in Yang Family Fort’s strongest force, but then remembered the sort of monster they were up against.
This man named Du Chengfeng was strong, but could he really protect Yang Family Fort from such a monster?
"Warrior, why don’t you come with us."
Yang Xuan gritted his teeth and struggled to stand.
"We’ll load up the carts now, gather everyone, head west, skirt around Ji Town; as long as we escape fast enough, we can survive... Warrior, warrior? Where are you going?"
"Going back to rest."
Heading towards the courtyard, Du Chengfeng did not look back.
"I’m not leaving. Just make sure to take care of my elder brother’s family... Help them, don’t let them die."
"And you?"
Yang Xuan felt dumbfounded, as if meeting Du Chengfeng for the first time.
Even though he had already seen that this man, Du Chengfeng, wielded great power, in his kindness and lack of desires in daily life, he seemed no different from a regular person — even Yang Sanlang, who challenged him, returned unharmed, proving that Du Chengfeng was not some ruthless hero.
Yet now, this man chose to stay.
To do something incomprehensible.
"Then... take care."
Watching the departing figure, Yang Xuan bowed deeply.
With such a decision made, it was unnecessary to force him to remain as the protector on the Yang clan’s westward journey.
After all, they already owed this warrior far too much.
"You must survive!"
Yang Xuan shouted loudly.
"You must survive!"
"I will."
A voice floated back with the wind.
"If fate allows, we will meet again."
With that, Du Chengfeng pushed open the door to his courtyard.
The Broken Horse Long Saber, Ancient Great Axe, Phoenix Battle Flag, one by one, he packed weapons into saddle bags. He donned a robe with seventeen knife straps and even found the broken sword tip left by the swordsman Cui Yuan, fashioning a handle and stashing it in his sleeve.
Afraid? Perhaps he was still afraid. Fearful? Perhaps he still harbored fear. Otherwise, why would he carry so many weapons, seeking added security?
Facing such an opponent, claiming no fear would be self-deceiving.
But no matter how afraid, how fearful, one must fight.
With nowhere left to retreat, there’s no need to retreat any further.
"I won’t die here, I won’t die in such a place..."
Saying so, Du Chengfeng gently stroked the wine jar beside him.
"Moreover, isn’t this our opportunity as well?"
Bang—
In an instant, the large wine jar shattered.
Amidst the overwhelming fragrance, a heavy two-handed battle knife fell into Du Chengfeng’s grasp.
"I believe in you."
In Du Chengfeng’s hand, the heavy blade ignited three feet of bright flame.
The flickering firelight seemed to respond to Du Chengfeng’s words.
It too desired to kill.
