Chapter 340: Sword of Vengeance
Chapter 340: Chapter 340: Sword of Vengeance
"Shui Wuheng is worth cultivating. Besides, with the current situation in Moonlight City, sending the entire army is not an option. The four of us will suffice," nodded Zhongshan.
Watching Zhongshan, Princess Qianyou gave him a meaningful glance and nodded.
On the southern tower of Moonlight City, three long wooden poles stood erect, each with a rope dangling from one end.
The ropes looped around the necks of three corpses.
Xiaowang, Xiaoyuanfeng, Xiaoyuandeng—these three bodies hung from the city tower, exposed to wind and sun. Even in death, they found no peace.
Clad in armor, their bodies bore countless wounds, casting a solemn silence over the surrounding scouts.
Xiaowang, the former Grand Marshal of the Daguang Empire, met such a tragic end!
With the fall of Daguang, the Grand Yu Dynasty had just collapsed, leaving the Daguang Empire isolated and vulnerable. This made Xiaowang\'s demise a severe blow to the garrisons defending numerous cities under Daguang\'s banner.
Standing atop the tower, a confident and proud figure in military attire, with a square face and robust stature, was Xiang Bu, Commander of the Sixth Legion of the Daluo Heavenly Dynasty.
Xiang Bu had been the top scholar in the Daluo Heavenly Dynasty\'s imperial examinations, excelling in both literary and martial arts. His rise in status culminated in his appointment as Commander of the Sixth Legion.
Previously, in conflicts with the Grand Yu Dynasty, Xiang Bu had only suffered minor setbacks at the hands of Yi Yan. However, in the Daguang campaign, Xiaowang had repeatedly outmaneuvered Xiang Bu, leading to ambush after ambush and considerable setbacks. Though not outright defeated by Xiaowang, Xiang Bu found himself in a precarious position.
Now, however, his longtime adversary Xiaowang\'s corpse hung before him!
Displaying Xiaowang\'s body served two purposes: to demoralize Daguang\'s soldiers and to lure Xiaowang\'s loyalists into seeking revenge. Within Moonlight City lay an ambush of two million troops, all awaiting the arrival of these avengers.
In just one month, nearly half a million of these vengeful soldiers had been wiped out.
Xiang Bu felt a deep satisfaction. If things continued like this, eliminating another million of them would be no challenge. More importantly, the emergence of these vengeful forces weakened the defenses of other cities, making it easier for other army units to capture cities and earn their own share of glory!
Gazing at Xiaowang\'s body, Xiang Bu couldn\'t help but smirk.
As Xiang Bu anticipated, there were indeed numerous scouts from various factions around, but none dared to approach.
Amidst the scorching sun, at that moment—
From the south gate, a figure in crimson suddenly appeared in the distance. The woman in red had an eerie aura around her, with traces of drifting snowflakes.
Her eyes were bloodshot, tears of blood streaming down her face, giving her a terrifying and frenzied appearance. Her gaze fixed obsessively on the city tower ahead, where three corpses hung.
Step by step, she approached the base of the city tower.
Standing atop the tower, Xiang Bu furrowed his brow. No one had dared to approach the southern gate until now—how had this woman suddenly appeared?
With a casual wave of his hand, a squad of about three hundred soldiers swiftly emerged from the city, charging towards the woman in the distance. With their crossbows loaded and ready, they awaited the command to unleash a barrage of arrows.
Sensing the approaching threat, the woman\'s eyes remained fixed on the tower, but her hand gripped the longsword at her side.
"Zi~~~~~~"
A sudden flash of intense light passed through, freezing the three hundred soldiers in place. Step by step, the woman advanced, walking through the midst of the three hundred motionless men.
"What\'s going on?" Xiang Bu furrowed his brow with a hint of anger on the city tower.
The next moment, Xiang Bu understood. As the woman in red passed through the three hundred soldiers, one man\'s longsword abruptly snapped in half. Then, all of them were suddenly cleaved in two, blood spraying from their waists as they were all bisected in an instant!
Witnessing this scene, the soldiers on the city tower shuddered in fear.
"Reform the ranks and prepare to meet the enemy!" Xiang Bu roared.
"Dong, dong, dong..."
The sound of heavy footsteps echoed as the city gates swung open, and a large army poured out, while on the city tower—
"Shoot~~~~~~~~"
With a command, a deluge of crossbow arrows rained down like a storm towards the woman in red.
Countless arrows filled the sky like locusts, raining down relentlessly towards the woman. Yet, she calmly swung her longsword towards the sky.
"Peng~~~~~~"
Tens of thousands of Thundercrack Arrows were cut apart by this one sword in a bizarre manner. Even tens of thousands of arrows not on the same plane were cut in two with a single stroke by the woman in red!
Witnessing this monstrous display of swordsmanship, almost everyone was momentarily stunned. What kind of monster was she?
"Kill~~~~~~~~" Xiang Bu gave the order.
Just as a hundred thousand troops rushed out of the city towards the woman in red, the Thundercrack Arrows continued to rain down, attempting to wear her down.
However, there was a force known as absolute strength!
Once again, the woman swung her longsword. This time, instead of severing them in half like before, endless sword energy surged forth.
Not from the sword itself, but suddenly, an endless sword energy erupted from the ground. Terrifying sword energy numbered in the millions, directly shooting up from under the feet of the army.
"Ahhhhhh~~~~~~~~"
"Ahhhhhh~~~~~~~~"
... The screams were endless. The million swords seemed to possess infinite strength; weaker soldiers were instantly cut down, their protective shields cleaved in half. Those who were stronger, at the Yuanying stage of cultivation, managed to escape some, but after the million swords killed countless soldiers, they turned and attacked the generals.
"Boom~~~~~~~~"
In an instant, countless generals were also killed by the swords!
Over fifty thousand sword energies suddenly shot up towards the defenders on the city walls.
"Ahhhhhh~~~~~~~~"
"Ahhhhhh~~~~~~~~"
... The defending soldiers on the walls were also suddenly killed, with nearly thirty thousand dead. Only then did the sword energy disappear!
One sword, one sword slashing a hundred and thirty thousand people?
Everyone was dumbfounded! Even Xiang Bu, who had been proud and confident just moments ago, lost all his arrogance in an instant.
From beginning to end, the woman in red never took her eyes off Xiaowang\'s corpse, tears of blood still streaming down her face. On the city tower, a lowly soldier happened to be standing at the base of Xiaowang\'s wooden pole. Seeing the woman below, he panicked and accidentally knocked the pole over, no, knocked it down into the city below.
"Peng~~~~~~"
The soldier suddenly erupted with countless sword energies from within his body and exploded.
Just one glance?
No one else dared to move!
As Xiaowang\'s body fell, the woman\'s gaze shifted fiercely towards the soldier.
"Peng~~~~~~"
Sword energies burst forth from the soldier\'s body, causing him to explode.
Just one look, and the others didn\'t dare to move!
As Xiaowang\'s body fell, the woman approached and embraced him, while the wooden pole fell to the side, with the rope still around Xiaowang\'s neck.
At this moment, tears streamed down the woman\'s face even more profusely! She gently loosened the rope around Xiaowang\'s neck and continuously caressed his face.
"Wake up! Please wake up!" the woman cried bitterly. "Don\'t leave me alone. You promised to be wholeheartedly devoted to me. You said after this war, we would retire together in the mountains. Wake up! Wake up! You liar, are you going to deceive me again?"
The woman pressed her face against Xiaowang\'s lifeless body, shaking him incessantly, but Xiaowang\'s body remained motionless.
On the city tower, Xiang Bu\'s eyes widened as he watched the woman speak to Xiaowang\'s corpse. Without hesitation, he waved his hand, reorganized the troops, and swiftly led the army to flee through the eastern gate.
Fight? How could they fight? They needed to run!
The woman continued to cry as she held Xiaowang\'s body. Suddenly, she paused and looked at him. With trembling hands, she retrieved a small jade pendant from Xiaowang\'s mouth.
With a gentle pinch, the jade pendant emitted a voice recording—a message left behind by Xiaowang.
"Jian Hong, I\'m sorry. I\'m about to die, and this is my last recorded moment. Puff (coughing sound) Haha, I never expected that I, Xiaowang, would die like this. In my final moments, I suddenly thought of so many things, reflecting on my life, my past.
"My name is Xiaobingyi. This name was given for Yanyan\'s sake. After she died, my heart died with her. It wasn\'t until I met you that I started living again.
"I loved Yanyan deeply. Even though you often got angry with me and said hurtful things out of jealousy, I still loved her steadfastly. Until death do us part, as witnessed by heaven and earth.
"When she died for me, and I saw her spirit that day, I knew I would die for her too. Everyone thought I was ambitious, striving for longevity, but they didn\'t know that all I truly wanted was to grow old with my beloved, to hold her hand even when our hair turned white and teeth fell out.
"At that moment, I truly wanted to leave with Yanyan. Truly. The Great Guang Empire, immortality, it\'s all false, all fleeting. But in the end, I couldn\'t leave, because at that moment, I remembered you. Even though you often treated me like a servant, I never minded. On the contrary, I found joy in it, because I loved you too.
"For Yanyan\'s sake, I could give up my life. For you, I could live another life.
"Jian Hong, I truly love you. Regarding Yanyan\'s matter, your jealousy consumed you. I promised to give you time to forget, but I have to admit, I couldn\'t forget her. I could never erase that feeling from my heart, even if my memories were sealed away by some secret method, that love could never be sealed.
"I am going to meet Yanyan now, fulfilling my wish. But at this moment, a desperate desire to live surges within me. I want to live. I really want to live, because I know in the Sword God Palace, there is another woman who loves me and whom I love.
"At this moment, regret floods my heart. How I wish I hadn\'t agreed to the Great Guang Empire\'s demands, how I wish I had spent my days only with you! How much I wish for that!
"I\'m sorry. I can\'t keep my promise from back then. I won\'t wait for the Great Guang Empire\'s victory, or even see you one more time. Why is it that only when we\'re about to lose something do we realize how precious it was? Seeing you practice swordsmanship every day, touching your hair, was such a beautiful thing.
"I really want... really want...
"Why are you, Yanyan, and I separated by the realms of Yin and Yang?
"I\'m going to the Underworld. I\'m going to die. I\'m going to see Yanyan. She\'s waited for me for a thousand years. Now, entering the Underworld, she\'ll surely be lonely and miserable, while in the Yang world, at least our son will keep you company.
"Jian Hong! At this moment, I really want to touch your face again! I really want to! The thousand-year-old tree we planted together, when you were angry, you cut it down. Hehe, I revived it! It\'s still there. Remember to water it often!
"You\'re a strong girl. You said you would become an immortal. Promise me, live well for me, and live out my share too, because you\'re Jian Hong, the stubborn and lovely little Jian Hong in my heart!"
The voice abruptly stopped. Jian Hong\'s face, covered in tears of blood, had dried up. Her expression was incredibly pale as she looked up at the sky, her gaze blank. A breeze blew past, and Jian Hong seemed to forget everything, only remembering Xiaowang\'s words, "I really want to touch your face again!"
Gently, she took Xiaowang\'s hand and placed it on her face, repeatedly stroking her own face with it. Jian Hong\'s face showed no emotion, no expression. It seemed as if she had lost all feelings.
Raising her head, she formed an ice coffin with her hands and carefully placed Xiaowang\'s body inside, even meticulously arranging his hair.
Turning her hand, she put Xiaowang\'s body away. Jian Hong\'s face showed no hatred, no discernible emotion, only numbness—a numb face, numb eyes.
Numbly, she looked at the bodies of Xiaoyuanfeng and Xiaoyuandeng, reached out, and stored them in her storage bracelet.
After everything was done, Jian Hong looked towards the city tower, flew up to the top of the tower, and coldly glanced around before heading east!
No unnecessary words, no unnecessary emotions. At this moment, Jian Hong seemed to have forgotten what emotions were, what emotions were like. Xiaowang\'s death left only hatred behind, but Xiaowang\'s last words made Jian Hong forget what emotions were. When emotions reach their peak, that\'s indifference!
Next, all Jian Hong had to do was seek revenge!