As the night deepened, as the moon grew darker, and as the last scream faded, Zhao Yiwu put down his long sword and looked back at the people still standing in the field.
Amidst the chaotic corpses, only thirty-two people from Woniu Village remained standing. Including those who were merely pigs being slaughtered and weeping in the distance, Qingmang Village had a population of just over three hundred left.
Yes, over three hundred. After a fierce battle, only this many remained. But it doesn't matter, they won! They won completely!
They won, they won, but is winning all that matters?
"Village chief! We won! We won!"
"Hahaha, village chief, I'm still alive! I killed a martial artist! I killed him!"
"Village chief, my brother is dead, my father is dead, my younger brother is dead, I'm all left! Village chief!"
The crowd slowly approached, their expressions a mixture of joy and sorrow, their happiness at surviving masking a range of emotions.
"Yes, we survived! Thanks to Lord Daocheng's grace! We survived! We won against the combined attacks of thirty martial artists and two hundred men!"
"But is that all? Is winning all that matters? Look! Among these attackers, among these people who want to kill us, are people from other villages, people we know and people we don't know!"
"They come to kill us, they come to cut us down! Why? It's all for the food, the treasure, and the livelihood that Master Daocheng gave us!"
"They resent everyone who comes to kill us and rob us! We didn't provoke them! We didn't rob them!"
"We won, but what did we sacrifice? Our families! Our brothers! Our clansmen! We sacrificed so much! Just to protect ourselves! Is that all?!"
Zhao Yiwu urged them on, but was that enough? Not even a little bit! Hearing his words, those who already trusted Zhao Yiwu because of the battle were all persuaded.
Yes, why, why! They were all ready to have a good New Year with their wives and children, and their families all together, but these deadbeats robbed them of both!
Why! Why were they robbed! Why did they have to sacrifice so much! And it's over like this? I'm not reconciled! I'm not reconciled!
"They rob us, so we'll rob them too! Kill them! Rob them!"
The man, whose entire family, including his wife, had just died, raised his nicked knife with bloodshot eyes and spoke to Zhao Guanwu.
The others were also shocked, but their fear of the government and the disparity in power made them unable to move. Seeing this, Zhao Yiwu simply said one sentence.
"Lord Daocheng will protect us! Because we are also protecting everything that belongs to Lord Daocheng! For our deceased family, brothers, wives and children! To take revenge, to seize! I will lead the charge! If you still have the guts, follow me!"
Upon hearing Dao Chengyi's name, these people no longer hesitated. Yes, so what if they died? In any case, their current happiness was given to them by Dao Chengyi, and Dao Chengyi would protect them, because they had a reason to protect everything that Dao Chengyi had given them!
So……
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
As one man charged out with a knife, the others followed without hesitation: Kill! Kill! Kill! Killing one is enough! Killing two is a huge bonus! Kill! Rob! For the sake of Master Daocheng!
Driven by self-preservation and a desire to shirk responsibility, the crowd's hearts aligned, and they marched towards other villages, chanting slogans with fervor. As they shouted, they vaguely sensed that the thick stench of blood was also sweet and cloying, and their bodies felt incredibly strong!
As the people of Woniu Village began to charge outwards, in the northern part of Qingmang City, the gangs, which had been in chaos due to the subversion of power and tacit approval, were gradually rekindled with orderly flames, and groups of people, whether they knew each other or not, gathered together.
"Come with me! I am Li Zhengyuan, a scholar! I can protect everyone! If you want to live, come with me!"
A thin, weak scholar, carrying a scroll on his back, walked across the collapsed houses, directing the crowd forward. Several martial artists guarded him.
This place is far from the battlefields of gang warfare, and it is also the last group of innocent residents from the north of the city who are still intact. All the others died at the hands of the gang members who were blinded by greed.
People in the crowd, some with their families and others carrying all their belongings, walked silently and orderly. They shouldn't be like this, because death and chaos are near, and they should be showing human disorder, shouting and pulling everywhere.
But strangely, they all listened to the scholar who wasn't even a martial artist, and listened to him shouting "Save your life!" over and over again.
They wanted to live, without a doubt. If it meant they could live, they would be happy to listen to this person. And the fact is, he did save these people, and even more people, so more people listened to him.
At first, they were just a few people, thinking that more people would make it easier to run. They gathered together and caused trouble, but the scholar had the right reasoning to explain things to them and patiently protected them.
He persuaded martial artists to join him in protecting them, and he also organized a group of people to kill the attacking martial artists without sustaining any injuries. He was clearly very weak, but he still managed to achieve such a miracle.
So everyone spontaneously obeyed and spontaneously maintained order, because the scholar had said that only in this way could they survive and run fast!
And so it was with hope. Even with such a large group, they miraculously bypassed one plundering group after another and reached the exit of the northern hamlet, just one step away...
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