Chapter 218 Using His Hands to Avenge the Dead Villagers

The old village chief roared angrily, "Cut off your head! I want to use your head to pay homage to the villagers who died yesterday!"

Feng San was slightly taken aback, then said angrily, "Old man, you're being unreasonable! There's a cause for every wrong, and a debtor for every crime. I didn't kill those people, so what does it have to do with me?"

"Who killed him?" the old village chief asked immediately.

Without thinking, Feng San blurted out, "Of course it's the group that came to rob the village yesterday. I only joined them after they had killed people."

Where are they right now?

"Behind me, General!"

"Alright, then let's use their heads as a sacrifice!"

"Wait... what did you say, old man?"

The old village chief gave Feng San no time to think, and only then did Feng San realize that he had fallen into a trap.

"Didn't General Feng just say that every wrong has its perpetrator and every debt its debtor?" the old village chief said firmly. "Are you going to turn around and deny what you said in front of your thousands of soldiers? How will you ever be able to command respect in the future?"

Feng San's expression changed.

I was careless and fell into this old man's trap with just a few words, leaving me in a difficult situation.

Behind him, the fifty or so Zhenhuang soldiers who had participated in looting Niujia Village yesterday didn't take it seriously at all, each of them wearing a disdainful sneer.

They truly believed that Feng San would never actually chop off their heads just because of the village chief's few words.

In truth, if it weren't for them, how could Feng San have become a vanguard general overnight?

We're too grateful to even thank them!

Feng San fell silent for a moment.

Several villagers whispered among themselves beside the old village chief.

"Will the village chief's method work?"

"The Zhenhuang Army probably wouldn't care if their own people killed some civilians, right?"

"That's right, so why would Feng San need to rely on this kind of thing to win people over?"

Listening to the villagers' discussions, the village chief slowly spoke up: "The Zhenhuang Army really doesn't care that their own people killed civilians, nor does it care how Feng San handles it. Even if Feng San really turns his back and denies it, protecting the thugs in front of everyone, it has nothing to do with whether he can win over the masses. These thousands of Zhenhuang soldiers are just following their general's orders and doing things for Feng San. It doesn't matter who the leading general is. Only Feng San really takes his title seriously. Look, isn't he hesitating and struggling right now?"

The villagers suddenly realized what was going on.

"So, village chief, you were using this method to buy time for the fairy."

“We thought…you really intended to use him to avenge the brothers who sacrificed their lives in our village…”

"Sigh, if only I could get revenge."

Their words inevitably carried a hint of disappointment.

The old village chief said, "No, besides stalling for time, we must also make those thugs pay with their lives! Precisely because Feng Santai takes his current title and status seriously, he will definitely put on a good show in front of everyone. Whether those Zhenhuang soldiers care or not is not important. I just need to make him care. Besides, he is full of pride as a new official, and he is tasting the feeling of holding great power for the first time. He must show off his power. Just you wait, he will definitely chop down those who robbed Niujia Village yesterday!"

The old village chief had barely finished speaking.

Feng San suddenly shouted, "Everyone who came to Niujia Village yesterday, step forward!"

Among the crowd, about fifty soldiers from the Zhenhuang Army looked at each other with surprise in their eyes.

"Huh? What does Feng San mean by this?"

"He wouldn't actually want to kill us, would he? Who gave him the guts?!"

"I reckon he's just putting on a show; how could he possibly dare to chop off our heads?"

"Should we cooperate with him..."

"Cooperate my ass! Who does he think he is? Yesterday he was a lowly commoner, and now he's a temporarily appointed general. Who respects him? If it weren't for the pledge he made, go ask him, who would want to come out with him? Damn it, this awful weather is freezing cold..."

"..."

A group of people whispered among themselves, but no one stepped forward from the line.

Feng San, losing face, turned cold and roared again, his voice sharp: "Didn't you hear my order? Step forward!"

The fifty or so soldiers from the garrison finally started walking, lazily and reluctantly leaving the ranks.

A group of people stood sparsely and aimlessly in front of Feng San.

Some yawned, some shook their heads, and some simply squatted down or sat on the ground.

In short, he exuded an attitude of clearly not taking Feng San seriously from head to toe.

As for the other soldiers of the Zhenhuang Army, they all wore expressions of watching the spectacle with amusement.

Feng San was furious. He had originally planned to put on a show so that he could save face for himself and keep these people's lives, but they had to act like this.

It seems we have to make an example of them.

Feng San squinted and shouted, "You indiscriminately killed villagers! Do you know your crime?!"

The fifty or so soldiers from the garrison all burst out laughing.

Someone shouted, "Feng San! Oh no, General Feng, which time are you referring to?"

Some people laughed and said, "It's just killing some blind fools, is that a crime? Every one of us in this group has a few lives on our hands!"

"If we don't rob or kill, then why do we join the army? Isn't that what military officers do all this way?"

"That's right! Otherwise, who would be willing to risk their life to help the king fight a war? We should at least get some benefits!"

The others chimed in with their jokes and even openly discussed their past experiences of robbing and killing civilians in other places.

Hearing these remarks, the old village chief's eyes turned bloodshot, as if they were about to bleed.

Although Feng San agreed with these opinions, he disliked their attitude in front of him at that moment.

How dare a mere group of soldiers be so arrogant in front of him? Where is the dignity of him as a vanguard general?

Feng Sanyue grew increasingly angry and roared, "Guards! Execute these fifty men on the spot and display their heads to the public!"

Everyone was shocked by these words.

The fifty soldiers who were chatting and laughing were all stunned.

Feng San glared with eyes that looked like he wanted to devour someone, then turned to his adjutant and berated him, "What! You're not even obeying my orders?!"

The lieutenant was stunned. "General, fifty men! You just want to kill them like that?"

"Otherwise what?!" Feng San declared righteously, "They indiscriminately slaughtered civilians; beheading is not enough to atone for their crimes!"

"But General...this..."

"You dare disobey military orders? Believe me, this general will chop you up too!"

The lieutenant was cursing under his breath.

However, the rules of the army are set in stone. After all, Feng San was the commander-in-chief appointed by the General of Zhenhuang. No matter how much you look down on Feng San, you can't ignore his status.

"Yes, General, I will deal with them immediately."

The deputy general then assigned more than a hundred men to carry out the execution.

As the executioner drew his sword and stepped forward, the fifty or so Zhenhuang soldiers were incredulous and roared at Feng San:

"Are you fucking serious?"

"Feng San! If we hadn't taken you in yesterday and brought you to Zhenhuang Pass, would you be where you are today?"

"We were all soldiers trained by your godfather! You ungrateful bastard!"

The more fiercely they cursed, the stronger Feng San's murderous intent became.

“Godfather? What godfather?” Feng San said casually. “Am I that familiar with you? What do you mean you took me in? Stop trying to make yourself look good.”

"Feng San! You..."

"Enough with the nonsense, kill them for me!"

Swish—

The long sword slashed across.

A human head fell to the ground, rolling in the snow and creating a glaring red stain.

The gushing blood melted large areas of snow, a sight that sent chills down one's spine.

Once the first one is cut down, the second one will follow.

The hundred Zhenhuang soldiers, ordered to carry out the executions, showed no mercy, working in pairs to slaughter the fifty people.

Angered curses, pleas for mercy, and screams of agony rang out one after another, but these sounds soon subsided.

The once snow-covered ground was now stained with large patches of bright red, emitting a pungent, bloody heat.

About fifty headless corpses lay scattered about, a horrifying sight.

The old village chief finally released the grief and anger that had been building up in his chest. He knelt on the ground and wept uncontrollably, "Revenge... I've finally avenged those villagers who died unjustly..."

Several other villagers present were also in tears, supporting the village chief as they cried.

"You're amazing... You avenged our brothers in the village with just a few words."

"Yes, now they can rest in peace..."

The old village chief waved his hand and said, "It's not that I'm so great, it's all because of Fairy Jinli's ideas. The one who's really amazing is the fairy."

It turns out that Ning Jinli was teaching the old village chief step by step how to use Feng San's scheming to kill the villains and avenge the people.

The old village chief kept muttering, "Fairy... On behalf of the villagers, this old man thanks you."

“No need to be so polite, old man,” Ning Jinli’s gentle voice came through the earpiece. “I’m all ready here, and the other villagers have all hidden themselves. You can retreat now. Please move towards the end of the village and leave the rest to the Xuanjia Army.”

"Yes, fairy!" The old village chief wiped away his tears and quickly informed the villagers around him of the situation.

Without saying a word, the villagers helped the old village chief turn around and leave.

Feng San frowned and shouted, "This general has fulfilled his terms! Old man, are you going back on your word?!"

The old village chief ignored him completely, silently continuing on his way.

"General, it seems you've been tricked by him," the lieutenant teased from the side.

Feng San was furious. He cracked his whip and was about to chase after them himself.

But after rushing out for a short distance, he turned around and saw that the soldiers behind him were almost all looking at him with amusement.

His face darkened, and he looked at the fleeing figures of the village chief and the others. Then he thought to himself, if he chased after them alone, wouldn't the more than one hundred people in the village tear him apart?

"You, take fifty men and go after him. Bring that old bastard back to me," Feng San ordered a lieutenant. "Remember, the old bastard must be alive. If any other villagers try to stop him, kill them without mercy."

"Yes, General."

The deputy general received the order and immediately dispatched fifty men to make the arrest.

The old village chief and several villagers all relied on their own legs to get around.

The fifty soldiers of the garrison were on horseback.

The snow on the ground was very thick, making it difficult to move forward, but four legs are always much faster than two.

The pursuers were getting closer and closer, their hooves almost trampling the old village chief's heels.

Suddenly, a long rope stretched out from the snow between the old village chief and the pursuers.

The horse's legs were immediately caught on the rope, and the pursuer fell to the ground along with his horse.

A large number of people in front tripped and fell, and those behind, unable to slow down in time, crashed into them one after another.

In the blink of an eye, all fifty pursuing soldiers on horseback fell to the ground, shouting and neighing, snow flying everywhere, creating complete chaos.

The old village chief was able to stop and catch his breath, then turned to Feng San and provocatively said, "You beast! You want to catch me? Don't even dream about it!"

Feng San's face turned ashen, and he lost all patience.

He was now a vanguard general, yet he was still being made a fool of by the villagers. He was furious and immediately ordered all his troops to be mobilized, raze Niujia Village to the ground, capture the village chief alive, and kill all the other villagers.

In his view, the pursuit had just been thwarted by the villagers of Niujia Village, which was nothing more than a petty trick played by the villagers.

A mere hundred or so men, no matter how clever they try, cannot stop the crushing force of thousands of soldiers.

The sound of horses' hooves rose all around, and the ground seemed to tremble.

Thousands of Zhenhuang soldiers surged into the village like a tidal wave, with an unstoppable momentum.

Feng San and several of his deputies remained where they were, waiting quietly.

At this moment, the wind and snow intensified, and the galloping troops kicked up snow, making the sky dark and the earth gloomy. The figures of thousands of Zhenhuang soldiers quickly disappeared from Feng San's sight.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, Feng San said impatiently, "Does it really take this long for thousands of people to capture one old man?"

A lieutenant next to him said, "General, you have dispatched too many troops, which is actually not conducive to operations in a small area. If you order more than two-thirds of your troops to surround the village from both sides, and then send out several hundred men to search the village, it will be much faster."

Feng San's face darkened. "Are you questioning my command abilities?"

The lieutenant's expression was somewhat stiff.

Is there any need to question this?

Isn't it obvious that they have no command experience and are just sending troops out recklessly?

But these are thoughts that must never be spoken aloud.

"This humble general... dares not question the general," the lieutenant said with a smile. "What this humble general means is that the general should wait patiently a little longer."

Feng San thought for a moment, then pointed at him and said, "You, go and see what's going on for me."

"Huh? Me?" The lieutenant was taken aback.

Feng San squinted, "Otherwise what? Right now, I only have a few of you lieutenants by my side. If I don't let you go, do you expect me to go?"

The lieutenant was speechless, regretting that he had spoken up earlier.

"Yes, this subordinate will go and take a look."

He was seething with resentment, and under the gloating gazes of his other lieutenants, he rode his horse into the village.

The wind howled, carrying heavy snowflakes that felt like ice blades cutting into people's faces.

Feng San, breathing out hot air, rubbed his cold and sore cheeks and suddenly smelled the blood carried on the wind.

"Such a strong smell of blood," he frowned and asked his lieutenants, "Can you smell it?"

Several lieutenants flapped their nostrils.

They had smelled it long ago, but at first, they all thought it was coming from the fifty corpses that had just been beheaded.

But now the corpses and the blood on the ground have frozen into ice blocks, and the smell of blood should have decreased, but the smell of blood in the air is getting stronger and stronger.

A lieutenant, looking on with suspicion, slowly said, "General... judging from the wind direction, this increasingly strong smell of blood seems to be coming from the village."

Feng San asked in bewilderment, "Would killing over a hundred villagers really cause such a strong sense of bloodlust?"

The lieutenant said, "This... seems more like a situation that could only occur if thousands of people were slaughtered in a short period of time."

Feng San muttered casually, "Thousands of people? There aren't that many in the village."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of several lieutenants suddenly changed.

"Something's wrong! There's something wrong with this village! Our thousands of Zhenhuang soldiers may have already met with misfortune!"

"General, retreat immediately!"