Zishan Province, Kuwen County.
The fire in the mountains had been burning for a whole week. The land was charred and soft, and it felt warm underfoot.
The soldiers formed long lines and searched carefully, occasionally stabbing the ground with their rifles or bayonets to find a possible tunnel entrance.
But after searching for a long time without any results, the commander of the imperial army began to summon mages to use shock magic to impact the earth, in order to bury those underground passages on the spot.
In the forest of collapsed ruins like charcoal, a pair of eyes emerged from the ground, quietly observing the approaching soldiers, and then the figure drilled deep into the ground.
There, the only 100 people left were lying in a narrow earth pit. During this week, they launched several counterattacks, but unfortunately they all ended in failure. In the end, only this small number of people were left to hide again.
"Has it come to this..." After listening to the report, Tokolin stopped talking and slowly leaned against the wall.
"Tell everyone." He had already prepared himself mentally.
After a moment of silence, everyone began to make final adjustments and rest.
Surrender is impossible, as it would not only go against their original intention, but the other party would not accept it.
Half an hour later, another unequal battle broke out. The few remaining muskets were thrown to the ground after being fired, and these people rushed down the hillside holding spears and knives.
Opposite them were more than two thousand neatly arranged black gun barrels. The imperial soldiers in the front row were half-crouching, while the back row was standing. They were wearing red and white uniforms and were quietly aiming, waiting for orders.
"Hmph, fire!" The commander didn't want to waste any more words and gave the order directly.
Continuous gunshots rang out one after another, short bursts of flames merged into one, and thick green smoke rose from the dense array.
The running figures were hit in the firelight, and countless blood splatters were emitted. They were like broken rag dolls, floating in the wind and then slowly falling down.
Those faces looked up at the white sky, black stains and dust all over their faces, and finally their hands gradually became weak and let go of the long swords in their hands.
The metal blade rolled down the hillside, bumping and undulating, occasionally hitting gravel and making a noise, until it got stuck in front of a ravine and stopped silently.
There were no heroic miracles, no earth-shattering reversals, everything ended in silence.
Looking at the scorched earth where no one stood anymore, the commander brandished his sword and ordered his men to search and clear the battlefield.
"Report to the Lord, all the enemies have been destroyed!"
Half an hour later, a soldier came running over and stood at attention to report.
"Very good, collect these bodies and drag them back."
"yes."
He certainly did not do this to commemorate these idealists, but rather to impale their bodies on wooden spikes to frighten the local residents and warn them not to indulge in wishful thinking.
Two days later, a row of charred bodies appeared on both sides of the main road in Zishan Province. These dried-up bodies were arranged in various strange postures, which made the passing travelers and merchants feel chilled and fearful.
Countless people passed by these "sculptures" in silence.
"I'm late."
A man wearing a feather hat and hunting clothes rode along the road. He stopped and slowly dismounted when he saw the charred 'sculptures'.
He lowered the brim of his hat and silently looked at the black "sculptures", carefully distinguishing their appearances and trying hard to recall their names.
The hands holding the reins gradually tightened, as if they wanted to crush the leather reins into pieces.
After a long time, his emotions gradually stabilized.
He wrote down the names of the deceased one by one, rode his horse slowly forward, and finally stopped under a "sculpture".
Tokolin...
His rival and opponent from his youth has now left this world before him.
He once thought that this opponent was so talented that he could not reach him, but fate played a trick on him and the opponent left before him.
Tokolin was once a nobleman and enjoyed the benefits that came with his nobility, but unfortunately he did not succumb to them.
The cruelty and bloodshed he witnessed during the Western Expedition that year finally awakened him and made him become what he is today.
He dismounted and stood before the body of his rival and friend. He slowly took off his hat, revealing his short wine-red hair and slightly weathered face.
Time is merciless, and he is no longer the passionate young man he used to be.
Many things began to rot slowly, and nothing was as it was originally envisioned.
I once had such a dream. Tokolin led those energetic young people to overthrow this corrupt country and establish a new, beautiful country, just like the country in the west.
Unfortunately, miracles don't happen often and they still failed.
What is even more tragic than not being able to find the meaning of life is that even if you find it, you clearly realize that you will never be able to reach that state, and it is absolutely despair that it can never be achieved.
There are not so many young men who slay dragons. There are more weak mortals who are devoured by evil dragons.
The man jumped on his horse and galloped away again.
Soon after, the 'sculpture' suddenly caught fire and burned to ashes, leaving only gray powder that surprised the patrolling soldiers.
————
A fiery red meteor streaked across the night sky, leaving behind a long flame tail. Two tiny figures descended upon the most wild province in the southern border. It was a sparsely populated area where magical beasts and dragons roamed everywhere. It was a dangerous and isolated place.
After jumping off the fluffy back of the phoenix, Xia Lanluote and Phoenix stood on the top of the mountain, overlooking the undulating red rock forest. The scorching and poisonous smell gushed out from the cracks in the ground from time to time. Some giant pythons the same color as the rocks were coiled nearby. Several lava suzuks with long horns jumped over various gravels, looking for the dried mushrooms growing in the mountains.
These fiery red-striped mushrooms are a local specialty, said to grow only near geothermal cracks and possess magical powers of heat and poison.
In the sky, above the dark clouds, a dark shadow slowly descended, and then the oppressive figure appeared in the vision of all living beings.
With red iron scales like rocks, a ferocious head, and two rows of curved and numerous fang-like horns, this strange dragon swooped across the earth, and the strong wind brought by its wings lifted up rocks and smashed them into pieces.
The heavy mouth opened wide, and as if chewing a chicken, it bit the Suzuka, python, stones and other things on the ground into pieces.
The sound of bones breaking could be heard from time to time, accompanied by violent explosions of magical flames, but these had no effect on it.
It is the famous evil dragon of the South, Zephermos.
As a special Sequence 7 dragon, the Savage Horn Ancient Dragon, its strength is far beyond that of an ordinary Sequence 7, and it can even fight against a Sequence 8.
"One day, sooner or later, I will make it surrender."
Xia Lanluo stood on the top of the mountain, facing the painful sand wind, staring at the ferocious dragon, and slowly pulled out the sword at her waist.
She is no longer a child. As a descendant of the Pascal family, she should be like her ancestors, commanding the dragons of the southern border and mastering the most powerful violence in the world.
The Dragon of Evil, the Dragon of Tyranny, no matter what the name is, only by holding power can people feel at ease to listen to their thoughts.
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