Chapter Twelve: Run! The barbarian has broken through!

The man standing beside the cart had no name; because he always followed Li Er around, everyone called him Li San.

Li San was still a little worried. "Second Brother, do you really think we can win by sacrificing human blood on the front lines?"

Li Er snorted through his nose, "Of course, what the Celestial Master says can't be false, right? Our current emperor was predicted by the Celestial Master to have the countenance of an emperor, and that's how he finally ascended the throne."

They hadn't originally intended to harm a living person; it was all Old Man Bai's fault for refusing to hand over General Huo's remains and even colluding with a charlatan to scare them with ghostly tricks.

As Su Zhenzhen had predicted, after Li Er and the others recovered, they went to Old Man Bai's house again. Little did they expect that they would take everything they could from the thatched hut, including his sickly son who had been unable to leave the house since childhood.

The front lines were suffering repeated defeats, and the soldiers, starving, would borrow food from the local people. They called it a loan, but everyone knew it was impossible to repay.

If this war continues, the common people will starve to death before the barbarians even break through the pass to kill and burn.

Li Er and Li San originally came to town to sell some firewood, but they only got ten copper coins for a cartload of firewood, not even enough to buy a pound of wheat. Just as they were racking their brains about what to do next, they saw Hen Sheng standing in front of the inn looking like he had lost his soul.

Hensheng's face was so outstanding that Li Er remembered it after just one glance at him at Old Man Bai's house.

Seeing the few pedestrians scattered on the street, Li Er immediately teamed up with Li San. One covered the person's mouth while the other carried him. After loading the person onto the cart, Li Er punched him on the head. Seeing that Hen Sheng could not make a sound, Li Er untied his belt, tied the person up, and quickly pulled the cart back to the village.

Hensheng was still struggling at first, but when he heard Li Er say that the celestial master had predicted that the current emperor had the appearance of an emperor, he gradually developed the idea of ​​meeting him.

He had been confined to a thatched hut for twenty years, and could only deduce from the old man's occasional sighs that he had some connection with General Huo. He never expected that he was actually an orphan of the previous dynasty.

Why did the previous dynasty fall? How did the current emperor ascend to the throne? Why are General Huo and Xu Hua's family loyal to the previous dynasty's royal family? All of these questions remain unknown.

Hensheng felt no fear, only curiosity about the unknown. He wondered if this so-called Taoist master would discover his identity upon seeing him.

However, he was going to be disappointed.

After Li Er and Li San transported him back to the village, they called people to set up a simple altar, and then they looked at each other.

"How should this blood sacrifice be performed? Should we just set it on fire?"

"Isn't setting a fire a form of fire ritual? I think we should just cut people up and bleed them out."

The villagers discussed amongst themselves, completely unsure of what to do. After much deliberation, they unanimously decided to go to the front lines to consult the Celestial Master.

But who will go?

"Li Er, you brought this person back, go find the Celestial Master."

"Why should I go? I've already brought everyone back, so why can't you go?"

With the fighting raging on the front lines, no one can be sure whether they will be accidentally wounded.

Human nature's worst side was on full display at this moment. Those who survived the famine were definitely not good people. They could desecrate the remains of the border general and not care about the lives of others. Naturally, they would not put themselves in danger.

Just as they were arguing about it, Su Zhenzhen and Old Man Bai finally arrived.

A love of gossip is absolutely human nature. Even with a large army pressing in and the situation on the front lines looking grim, as long as the knife isn't at your own throat, you'll still want to see what's going on.

This is an old saying passed down from our ancestors: "If it doesn't concern you, don't get involved."

Not all villagers believed in the blood sacrifice method, but they decided to try it as a last resort, since it didn't require them to pay anything.

This also made it easier for Su Zhenzhen and Old Man Bai to sneak in and watch the excitement.

On the way here, Su Zhenzhen had already prepared for the worst. Old Man Bai was able to flee from the south to the north, so his physical fitness was not comparable to that of ordinary people. In addition, he had been working all these years, so he had a certain level of offensive and defensive capabilities.

Su Zhenzhen considered the possibility of rushing forward to rescue Hensheng, and then running away from the villagers' encirclement with Old Man Bai.

The result was negligible.

The place is packed with people, and she can rush forward without a care in the world. But if Li Er notices something amiss, who knows if this heartless man might turn on Hen Sheng in a fit of rage?

"Who will go to the front lines to invite the Celestial Master?" Li Er asked again.

Su Zhenzhen quickly gestured for Old Man Bai to raise his hand.

"Me! Me! Me!" Old Man Bai had wrapped his head in cloth on the way here, so Li Er didn't recognize him at first.

The crowded people parted to make way, and Li Er walked towards Old Man Bai.

Su Zhenzhen took the opportunity to sneak towards the altar.

"What's your name? I never expected that you would be so righteous in this time of national crisis. Once the war is over, you will be our great hero." Li Er's words were grand and righteous.

Su Zhenzhen also reached the side of the altar and carried Hensheng on her shoulder.

While everyone's attention was still focused on Old Man Bai, Su Zhenzhen almost immediately took off running towards the least crowded area as soon as she succeeded.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye. Upon seeing this, the old man's body reacted before his brain. He took two steps back before turning around and running for his life.

Li Er realized what was happening and, disregarding Old Man Bai, quickly ordered his men to chase after Su Zhenzhen.

Although Su Zhenzhen's body has been genetically optimized, she is still carrying a person on her back.

Most of these villagers were just there to watch the spectacle. Now that they saw someone causing trouble, their fighting spirit, which had been tested by life and death, was ignited. Not to mention some of Li Er's die-hard fans, who almost regarded Su Zhenzhen, who had disrupted the blood sacrifice, as a sinner even more despicable than the barbarians.

Seeing that she was about to be surrounded, Su Zhenzhen put aside her hatred and took out a flashlight from her backpack, shining it into the eyes of each person.

Stimulated by the bright light, these people indeed slowed down their movements, and Su Zhenzhen seized the opportunity to grab Hensheng and run like mad again.

After several rounds, Li Er and the others figured out the trick: whenever a flashlight shone on them, they would immediately block it with their hands.

Hensheng was sweating profusely with anxiety, but his mouth was still gagged. Su Zhenzhen could tell that he wanted to speak, so she quickly untied the gag from his mouth.

"Are there ghosts? Quickly summon a ghost to scare them!"

A ghost? There was one in the storage compartment, but Su Zhenzhen wasn't sure if releasing it would cause her to vomit blood again.

However, there was no other way at the moment. If she got caught, she would no longer have to worry about achieving the 100 performance targets for promotion, and she would become one of those targets herself.

Oh, being burned to death doesn't seem to count as a wronged soul, since it was you who destroyed their blood sacrifice first, and the cycle of cause and effect has aligned.

However, things changed in an instant. Su Zhenzhen had just stopped and was about to open the storage compartment to release the Ghost General.

Arrows flew from behind, and several unfortunate villagers fell to the ground, unable to get up.

"Run! The barbarian has broken through!"