Chapter 724: Who are you looking for? (Part 2) [10,000 subscribers]

Huang Lie's smile froze halfway through. Looking at Kang Shi striding in, even though he was displeased, he still maintained a good-natured demeanor: "I wonder what Strategist Kang means by this? When has Huang ever had any ill intentions?"

Kang Shi pressed his fingers on the hilt of his sword, his entire being radiating undisguised and unrestrained killing intent, which even alarmed Huang Lie's personal guards who rushed forward to protect him. Huang Lie raised his hand to stop his guards, signaling Kang Shi to continue speaking; he wanted to hear what Kang Shi had to say.

Kang Shi sneered: "Does Alliance Leader Huang know that Tao Yan has defected to the enemy?"

Huang Lie suddenly opened his tiger-like eyes wide, and in a fit of emotion, he pushed aside his guards and asked Kang Shi, "Is this true?"

Kang Shi watched Huang Lie's act with a mocking expression.

He said, "Does Alliance Leader Huang not know?"

Huang Lie was stunned by Kang Shi's question, but soon his face was filled with shame and anger at being wronged. He pointed to the sky and said in a strong voice, "Heaven above, if I, Huang, know that I still sent Tao Shenyu to accompany Shen Jun to maliciously harm my ally, then I, Huang Xiguang, will die with my head separated from my body!"

This oath is undeniably vicious.

Kang Shidu was almost driven crazy by him.

However, this play must continue.

Kang Shi's expression softened slightly, and he bowed to Huang Lie in apology: "I know that Alliance Leader Huang has devoted himself to the matter of slaying the dragon, and I should not have doubted him. However, this matter involves the safety of our lord's life, and I lost my composure for a moment. Please forgive me, Alliance Leader Huang."

He took a step back, and Huang Lie also took a step back.

He reached out and helped Kang Shi up, his expression grave. "Military Advisor Kang says Tao Shenyu is a traitor. Do you have any witnesses or evidence?"

Kang Shi suppressed his anxiety.

He hesitated, saying, "We have physical evidence, but we have eyewitness testimony..."

Huang Lie's heart pounded upon hearing this. What he feared was that the evidence was incomplete—the conflict between Shen Tang and Tao Yan was common knowledge, and Zheng Qiao might use this as a pretext to completely ignite the feud between the two and dismantle the Dragon Slaying Scheme.

There is a high possibility that you have been set up and fallen into an enemy's trap!

"What's wrong with witnesses?"

Huang Lie didn't dare to breathe loudly.

Kang Shi recounted: "Does Alliance Leader Huang still remember when our lord led his army to Xingyang Road to join forces, and a few days later he dreamt of killing an unclaimed headless scholar? At first, everyone suspected that this scholar was sent by Chaoli Pass to assassinate our lord, but after Wei Yuanyuan surrendered, we asked him about this matter, and Wei Yuanyuan insisted that there was no such person in Chaoli Pass, let alone such an act!"

Huang Lie managed to dredge up the memory of the unfortunate headless corpse. It had been hanging there for a long time, exposed to wind, sun, and rain, and the body was rotting and infested with maggots. The Allied forces gradually realized that the corpse might not be an enemy, but one of their own.

It's better to avoid trouble, so everyone pretends to be deaf and dumb.

We don't know what happened to the body in the end.

Huang Lie's lips twitched uncontrollably as he silently dismissed the conspiracy theories about Zheng Qiao from his mind: "Could it be—this person is Tao Shenyu's subordinate? Was he sent out to harm Shen Jun?"

Kang Shi nodded: "That's exactly right."

Although he has no witnesses, he has "autopsy evidence"!

Kang Shi invited Huang Lie to come out of the tent to take a look, and Huang Lie agreed. As soon as the curtain was lifted, he keenly smelled a stench of decay. The closer he got to the target, the stronger the stench became. Kang Shi remained calm and ordered his soldiers to lift the white cloth covering the body, revealing a complete corpse.

Although the body was so decomposed that it was unrecognizable, it was still wearing the heavy brocade scholar's robe that symbolized victory in all directions, and the missing head was also there. Huang Lie looked closely and saw that there were stitches on the neck of the body, and the stitches were still clearly visible.

Judging from the condition of the sutures, it's impossible that the body was dug up and then thrown back in to frame someone; the sutures were already there before the body was placed in the coffin. This means that someone sewed the body and head back together with rope, carefully prepared the body, and then buried it.

Who would be willing to do this if they weren't an acquaintance of the deceased?

Huang Lie started to feel a bit awkward and asked, "Where was it found?"

This scholar is undoubtedly one of Tao Yan's men.

He sneaked into the camp of a powerful figure late at night and was killed in his sleep. Was the purpose not assassination, or was he just offering himself up? Huang Lie cursed Tao Yan, who was dishonest, a thousand times in his heart. He was truly a hindrance!

Tao Yan committed a terrible crime, yet he was expected to clean up the mess.

Kang Shi said, "Tao Yan's camp."

Huang Lie: "..."

Instead of throwing the murder weapon far away, he hid it in his house, damn it!

Huang Lie took a deep breath, intending to suppress the urge to curse, but he forgot he was quite close to the corpse. The stench that filled his nostrils nearly sent him flying: "Cough cough cough cough—"

He raised his hand to cover his nose and moved away from the corpse.

Frowning and waving his hand, Huang Lie signaled the soldiers to carry the body away. He said somewhat unsure of himself, "This 'witness' can only prove that Tao Shenyu had murderous intent towards Shen Jun, which can be considered a personal grudge, but it is not enough to prove that he betrayed the Allied Forces."

Before Kang Shi could reveal his menacing expression, Huang Lie hurriedly added, "I will immediately dispatch a messenger to catch up with Lord Shen at any cost."

Kang Shi suppressed his anger: "There is also physical evidence."

Compared to irrefutable "witness testimony," this physical evidence is slightly weaker. It's a letter of treason, and the handwriting is indeed Tao Yan's. However, handwriting is the easiest thing to forge, unless it has a tiger tally seal bearing Tao Yan's martial aura.

but--

It's understandable that there's no seal.

Colluding with the enemy is like adultery; it's even more thrilling than walking a tightrope. One wrong move and you could be caught red-handed. If you're also carrying the imperial seal and tally, what's the difference between that and kicking down the door to catch two dark, mushy buttocks in adultery? You'd be smashed to death with one blow!

If they don't have this thing, they can still make excuses.

With this thing, how big is the mind?

Huang Lie sighed again. In just a quarter of an hour, he felt quite exhausted, and in his heart, he cursed Tao Yan's ancestors for eighteen generations. However, he still had to maintain his composure, reassure Kang Shi, and repeatedly promise that he would send people to provide support.

Kang Shi, as the temporary head, was also unable to spare the time.

He could only entrust this matter to Huang Lie.

Suppressing the restlessness in his chest, he pleaded, "Please, Alliance Leader Huang, save my lord! I, Kang, will be eternally grateful!"

Huang Lie nodded repeatedly: "Definitely, definitely."

Kang Shi led his men back to their own camp, his tense expression finally easing a bit. He said, "This act wasn't easy to put on either."

Lü Jue turned his head and glanced back in the direction he had come from.

Question: "Will Leader Huang really take this to heart?"

Kang Shi sneered with his thin lips: "One must always care about appearances."

Lü Jue said, "You care about appearances but neglect the substance?"

Kang Shi chuckled and said, "Whether it's the elite troops under our lord being ambushed by Tao Shenyu and suffering heavy losses, or Tao Shenyu being killed by our lord and severely weakened, it's all what Huang Lie wants to see."

While powerful allies can bring a sense of security, they can also cause unease, especially at this crucial juncture when the battle for supremacy is nearing its final stage. Our lord's performance at Chaoli Pass was too remarkable, and he also recruited Wei Shou and his troops, significantly increasing his strength.

It would be strange if Huang Lie didn't have some thoughts about it.

He is the one who most wants Shen Tang and Tao Yan to break off their relationship.

However, the conflict between Tao Yan and his lord was limited to verbal arguments. The most serious incident was that the lord beat up the foul-mouthed Tao Yan. Both sides suppressed their anger and the conflict did not escalate into a full-blown fight.

Tao Yan's evidence of treason is clear. Not only can we eliminate an enemy spy, but we can also eliminate Tao Yan completely and weaken Shen Tang as well. Wouldn't Huang Lie be laughing his head off in private?

Lu Jue shook his head: "Everyone has their own selfish motives, so the name 'Dragon Slaying Bureau' is somewhat undeserved..."

Kang Shi said, "That's how people's hearts are."

Looking at the moonlight, Lü Jue said, "I only hope that my lord is safe and sound."

Kang Shi was not worried at all. With the enemy in the open and him in the dark, he had the upper hand. With such a good hand and a perfect start, if they could still lose, what would they be doing coveting the world's power?

You're so bad at this, you should just wash up and go to bed.

only--

Kang Shi still felt a little sour inside.

It's one thing for the lord to show favoritism to his cousin, but he also has such a fondness for Gu Wangchao. In contrast, he himself is diligent and hardworking, and can be said to be the only reliable literary talent in this eccentric group... The lord is not close to him, which makes Kang Shi so jealous that Psyduck frowns.

Kang Shi made no attempt to hide his jealousy and complaints.

Upon hearing this, Lü Jue's expression became subtle.

Military Advisor Kang, are you serious?

Miaojiang, the surface of the river.

Tao Yan stood on the raft, the river breeze blowing, his brow never relaxing. Shen Tang's army was marching too fast; they hadn't found a suitable opportunity to send out the message. Judging by Shen Tang's current pace, a siege and surprise attack would be inevitable after landing…

Although he had defected to Zheng Qiao, only Zheng Qiao knew this; the generals under Zheng Qiao were unaware, and a fight between the two sides would be disadvantageous to him.

What infuriated Tao Yan the most was that Shen Tang had disrupted his plans. He had originally intended to use Shen Tang's head as a pledge of allegiance; if successful, he would gain great merit upon surrendering and be able to secure even more benefits later. But Shen Tang's actions had ruined his plans.

Thinking of this, he sighed softly and exhaled a puff of white mist.

Ms. Feng rode with him on a raft.

Hearing the noise, he didn't say anything to inquire about the situation.

The mighty river flowed ceaselessly, drowning out countless sounds, including the buzzing of arrows as they left the bowstring and the whooshing sound of thousands of silver arrows slicing through the sky. The rain of arrows arrived with incredible speed, rapidly magnifying before our eyes in the blink of an eye—

Tao Yan's pupils suddenly contracted: "Enemy attack—"

Zhang conjured a weapon.

Before his voice even reached her ears, Lady Feng had already seen the rain of arrows falling from the sky, and her heart skipped a beat. Countless thoughts raced through her mind, but her body almost reflexively drew the sword from her waist. With two clangs, her personal guards stepped forward and raised their shields.

Pfft—

A literary barrier of advisors rose up in front of Tao Yan.

The magical barrier could only temporarily stop the assassination attempt; it could withstand the first wave of arrows but not the second. Finally, caught off guard, an arrow pierced his arm. Fortunately, his own vanguard reacted immediately and rushed to protect their leader.

Unfortunately, this place is on the river, and the only foothold is a wooden raft.

Where is it as convenient as flat ground?

This sudden enemy attack caught them completely off guard while they were still on the river. Tao Yan initially thought it was Zheng Qiao's troops, but in a flash he remembered that the opposite bank was calm and that Shen Tang's troops, who had arrived first, had not encountered any ambush.

Does this mean anything? Do we even need to guess?

The grandson who launched the sneak attack was Shen Tang!

Tao Yan gripped the arrow in his shoulder, his whole body trembling violently, crimson blood oozing from his knuckles like winding, tiny red snakes. Ignoring the excruciating pain, he gritted his teeth and pushed the arrow forward a little, the arrow piercing his shoulder and falling with a thud onto the raft.

“Sinking—Young—Pear—”

Tao Yan's angry shout, mixed with martial spirit, made the air tremble.

Three words, each one filled with endless hatred.

Shen Tang's response was an arrow.

On the Miao River, chaos reigned. Shen Tang didn't know exactly which raft Tao Yan was on, so he could only fire a volley based on the general direction. He hadn't expected Tao Yan to be so cooperative; the moment he spoke, Shen Tang, relying on his superhuman hearing, locked onto him completely.

bite--

The arrow was blocked by the protective aura emanating from Tao Yan's body.

The collision of two completely opposite forces caused a surge of air and a water column that shot into the sky, reaching a height of three or four zhang (approximately 10-13 meters).

The troops under Shen Tang, who had not yet landed, turned sharply and charged towards Tao Yan's vanguard, whose formation was in disarray. A cloud of high morale quickly formed, and each soldier conjured a three- or four-zhang-long spear with a sharp tip. The spearmen worked in perfect coordination, two or three at a time thrusting at a single target. Although the latter wore armor, the spears couldn't pierce it immediately, but—

This is Miaojiang.

Thump thump, thump thump.

One after another, enemy soldiers were thrown into the water like dumplings being dropped into a pot. Most of them weren't very good swimmers, and the rest were complete landlubbers. In addition, the Miao River was quite swift, so they could barely defend themselves, let alone organize a counterattack against Shen Tang's troops.

call out--

call out--

call out--

The spearmen were responsible for stabbing people into the water, while the archers with decent aim used bows and arrows to fire wildly at the dumplings on the river surface. The dumplings were so densely packed that even aiming was unnecessary.

All of this happened in just a few breaths.

Tao Yan was so angry she felt like her lungs were about to explode.

He couldn't afford to ponder why Shen Tang had suddenly taken action—whether Shen Tang had finally lost her temper or their plan with Zheng Qiao had been leaked. Dealing with the immediate crisis was the right thing to do.

He hurriedly urged the group of scholars: "Hurry, hurry, hurry—"

However, their numbers were limited, and the spiritual energy barriers couldn't rise one after another without any spiritual energy. Seeing this, Tao Yan almost gritted his teeth. Movement on the river was very inconvenient, and even the most valiant martial artists had to restrain their strength to avoid destroying the rafts beneath their feet.

With a helpless, dark expression, he directed his soldiers to build a shield wall with high morale, buying precious time for his side to stabilize their position.

As the fighting intensified, the river surged and churned. Feng, an ordinary person, was nearly swept off her raft. Pale-faced, she lay prone on the ground, gripping whatever piece of wood she could hold onto, struggling to maintain her balance. Her guards held shields above their heads to deflect arrows. However, given the raft's limited capacity, the shields couldn't be too large, thick, or wide.

There will always be areas that are not protected.

Feng suddenly felt a sharp pain in her ankle.

The sharp blade pierced her ankle, the sensation of it penetrating her flesh sending a clear signal to her brain; the pain nearly made Feng faint. Just then, she heard Tao Yan's words and immediately shouted angrily, "What's the rush! My lord, immediately order the army to retreat!"

Feng's voice reached the ears of nearby generals.

The group realized something was wrong!

How should we retreat at this point?

Shen Tang's attack was too sudden. The vanguard was caught off guard, let alone the soldiers following behind. Most of them did not know what was happening. If a retreat order was given at this time, panic would spread and the formation would be destroyed.

"No retreat!"

Mrs. Feng was so angry that her vision blurred!

"The vanguard will retreat from both flanks—"

Who told them to turn around and run away!

Can you escape from the center of the Miaojiang River?

()

After so many years in the industry, this is the first time I've surpassed 10,000 average daily subscriptions and received the 10,000-subscription badge—a truly joyous occasion! There are still some monthly pass posts in the book review section that haven't been claimed yet. Participate in the event; each monthly pass is worth 200 Qidian coins. It pains me to see you all unable to claim them all.

P.S.: Surprisingly, the chapters where the big boss and the empress were locked in the dark room have been released. How rare!

PS: There's a bug. Tao Yan is a martial arts master, and Mushroom is fixing it.

P.S.: The bug should have been fixed. Remember to refresh.

PPPS: It seems like nobody noticed Huang Lieyou's handwriting?

(End of this chapter)