Chapter 119: The Wind Rises (16)

In the mountain hollow, only Han Xiaoliu remained clear-headed from start to finish. From the very beginning, he had been drawing his bow and returning fire. He had no intention of bowing his head and taking a beating; even if he were to die, he would tear a piece of flesh from his enemies!

However, the manor guards surged forward, blocking Xu Gan tightly and obscuring Han Xiaoliu from view.

Han Xiaoliu was thin and small, but his arms were remarkably long, with his strength woven into his very bones; he could easily draw a bow of great tension. He was a natural-born archer.

Yet, he never grew to any height. As the manor guards crowded in to shield Xu Gan, these tall, sturdy Northern men completely blocked his line of sight. When the Mayi cavalry unleashed their rain of arrows, Han Xiaoliu could only scramble frantically through the crowd, unable to find a space to loose his own arrows.

It was not until Xu Le and Han Yue suddenly appeared and the rain of arrows paused that Han Xiaoliu finally caught a glimpse of the mountaintop through the gaps in the crowd.

At this moment, Han Xiaoliu was the first to react, raising his arms and shouting at the top of his lungs!

This cry finally roused the manor guards.

These men possessed the skills to fight and had been trained in martial arts by Xu Gan, but facing battle for the first time, they had been stunned, able only to think of using their own flesh and blood to protect the old patriarch.

When Xu Le and Han Yue appeared, and Han Xiaoliu shouted to charge, the guards finally snapped out of it.

They held blades in their hands; they knew how to fight, and they understood why they had to charge up and struggle to the death with their enemies!

In the hollow, more than a dozen corpses already lay—brothers who had labored, laughed, and played together in the same village for the past decade, now lying there, breathless.

The arrival of Xu Le and Han Yue stirred their courage. These simple village men all had eyes burning red.

A roar suddenly erupted. Dozens of guards tore at their throats, their cries heart-rending and soul-shattering, drowning out the fierce mountain winds and echoing thunderously across the mountain.

With bloodshot eyes, these simple men charged toward the peak!

Han Xiaoliu had already surged to the front, bow in hand, a short blade clamped between his teeth. Like a monkey, he began to scramble toward the summit in a few swift movements!

In the hollow, only Mother Han remained to guard Xu Gan.

She was the only one who saw the feathered arrow protruding from Xu Gan’s chest, and the bloodstain blooming across his tunic.

Yet, Xu Gan seemed completely indifferent to the fatal wound in his chest. He only watched the mountaintop, watching his grandson’s silhouette as he fought. A smile spread across his lips as he greedily tried to catch one more glimpse of Xu Le.

Mother Han threw herself before Xu Gan, tears streaming down her face, her hands fumbling as she tried to press down on his wound.

But the blood kept surging from between her fingers, impossible to stem.

Mother Han knelt on the ground and turned toward the mountaintop: "A-Yue! Kill all these beasts!"

***

On the mountaintop, Xu Le and Han Yue fought for their lives!

After a brief moment of panic, the Mayi cavalry had recovered, surrounding the two and attacking viciously.

In Yunzhong City, Xu Le had once fought dozens of Heng’an soldiers alone, with sparks flying everywhere. But that had been on horseback, relying on his mount and a long weapon to carve out a sufficient radius. Moreover, with thousands of Yunzhong citizens watching, those soldiers dared not go for the kill, which allowed Xu Le to make a name for himself.

A commander who could face a thousand—or ten thousand—is often invincible in a mounted charge, but his greatest fear is being unhorsed and dragged into the chaos of a foot melee.

Fighting on foot now, without a long weapon, the two were locked in a tangled struggle. This battle was ten times more perilous and brutal than the one in Yunzhong City!

In an instant, they had collided several times. Han Yue held his shield, shielding Xu Le with all his might, yet Xu Le still bore one or two bloody gashes on his body.

But the Mayi cavalry had lost four more men in that same instant, their wounds deep; every strike Xu Le delivered was fueled by his full strength!

In the heart of the melee, everyone was splattered with spots of blood. Both sides were silent, biting their teeth and fighting to the death. In such a nighttime foot battle, despite Han Yue’s protection, Xu Le could be wounded and fall at any moment.

Yet, Xu Le no longer thought of such things.

An inexplicable fear swirled in his heart. The usually gentle youth was now like a descending god of war. He pressed forward relentlessly, striking with his blade. He tore viciously at the vital spots of his opponents, often taking wounds himself in the process, only subconsciously avoiding fatal strikes at the last second.

At his side, Han Yue swung his Shentu iron shield, shielding Xu Le with his life. Countless blades slammed against the iron, sending sparks flying incessantly.

In a heartbeat, Xu Le looked like a man made of blood, but the straight blade in his hand remained ferocious, continuously hacking down the Mayi cavalry before him!

Shi Chaozhi had retreated to the edge of the crowd, drawing his bow and adjusting his angle, staring fixedly at Xu Le. He waited only for an opening to loose an arrow and fell this youth who had suddenly appeared.

The night's battle had turned into something beyond Shi Chaozhi’s imagination. Nearly half of his hand-picked Mayi elite core had already fallen.

These were all squad leaders and fire-chiefs; such heavy losses would be impossible to justify before Wang Rengong.

But Shi Chaozhi could no longer worry about the future; he only wanted to kill the two who had suddenly emerged!

They were far too ferocious, especially the handsome youth. He moved like the wind, his blade like lightning. Every step forward meant another Mayi cavalryman fell. Shi Chaozhi had never encountered such a formidable opponent.

To be able to take down so many elite armored warriors in a foot melee in an instant—it was truly terrifying!

This must be that "Young Master Le"! It was said he had defected to Liu Wuzhou! As for why he had suddenly appeared here, Shi Chaozhi did not care to think about it. If he didn't kill this Young Master Le, his entire contingent might well be buried on this mountaintop!

A Mayi cavalryman lowered his body and lunged, slashing a blade across Xu Le’s thigh.

As he was struck, Xu Le stepped back to deflect the force, but a long, bloody gash still opened on his leg, and his body swayed.

Xu Le leaned to the side and thrust his blade out. Before the cavalryman who had landed the blow could pursue, his throat was slit, and blood sprayed out.

But Xu Le finally dropped to one knee. Han Yue rushed up from behind, sweeping his shield horizontally to force the surrounding cavalrymen to jump back.

Although he had saved Xu Le for the moment, the space around them had cleared.

Shi Chaozhi held his breath, about to release his bowstring.

At that moment, he felt a rush of wind behind his head and twisted his body to dodge. Although his arrow was loosed, it struck Han Yue’s iron shield, sending a spark flying; the arrow vanished into the dark.

Just as Shi Chaozhi dodged, an arrow whistled past his ear, grazing his cheek and drawing blood.

Shi Chaozhi turned to see a small, thin youth, who had discarded his empty bow, rushing toward him with a short blade, his eyes burning red!

Behind this youth, more manor guards emerged, shouting and roaring as they charged!

What was happening this night?

Was this not just the raiding of a tiny village?

Was this not meant to be a simple, easily won merit?

Why was it that these elite Mayi cavalry were instead likely to be buried here?

What was going on!

Shi Chaozhi roared at the top of his lungs: "Retreat!"