After taking away everything of value, George began the other half of the mission - turning Breakers into a pile of ruins.
Soon the town of Polang was completely engulfed in fire. In the flames, there were houses, shops, warehouses, fences, corpses, as well as port docks and ships in the harbor.
When the Fifth Army was retreating, a small boat was rowing towards Greendo Island. The two oarsmen were covered in the same bloodstains. In the cabin, Ma Long, who was soaked in blood, had his eyes closed. Although he had fainted, he still held the weapon tightly in his hand...
…
The night wind blew over the hills and also blew up the ends of Oddo's hair. After a slight sigh, he looked up at the twin moons in the sky and said to the vulture and Puya beside him: "We all guessed wrong. They must be in great danger..."
Vulture nodded slightly, stretched out his arm and patted Oddo's shoulder: "Don't think too much, you have such a heavy burden on your shoulders, you can't be distracted."
Odo smiled bitterly: "I have a heavy burden, and so do you. If we really talk about difficulty, Colonel Puya's burden is heavier than both of ours."
"Pfft, two grown men are here to flatter each other, right?" Pu Ya laughed, "Think about it, no matter how heavy your burden is, can it be heavier than the lord's?"
Odo was stunned for a moment and then nodded: "Colonel Puya is right. The lord carries the entire continent on his shoulders."
"That's right." A hint of pride flashed across Puya's face, "The story of the lord is the most mysterious legend on the continent."
"Okay, let's not waste any more time and rest early. Puya's third regiment will set off before dawn, and our two regiments will also have to build the last section of fortifications. The lord and his men must have already started their work, so we can't fall behind." said Vulture.
Oddo nodded...
…
Two days later on the morning, Qi Yuan convened a citizens' assembly in Longvington. Although it was called a citizens' assembly, it was naturally impossible for all citizens to participate. It was nothing more than representatives, and these people, at least on the surface, all supported the Duncan family.
The purpose of Qi Yuan's meeting was very simple. He wanted to see how many people would support the incorporation of Lunvington into the Tianjuan Empire. Of course, this was also a selection. All those who opposed would be purged as quickly as possible because the Duncan family did not need any opposing voices.
After finishing his opening remarks, Qi Yuan, who was too lazy to waste time, went straight to the point - he put forward a proposal to accept the Tianjuan Empire's amnesty.
The meeting place suddenly became a commotion. Some people were secretly happy because this meant they would not have to worry about being affected by the war. Some people were angry. They could tolerate the Duncan family turning Lunvington into a private territory, but they could never tolerate being ruled by foreigners. Some people were very conflicted...
The participants were either cursing, whispering, looking at each other, or keeping silent. Some even walked away in anger. For a moment, the place was as chaotic as a market.
Qi Yuan sat on the podium, looking at the noise from the audience with an indifferent face. Wei Huo beside him had already turned his head away, pretending to whisper with the assistant, and making excuses to ignore it. At the side of the venue, more than 20 civil servants had already taken out paper and pens, and quickly recorded the names of those who needed to be recorded...
Humph, go ahead and make trouble. The more trouble you make, the more I will kill. Qi Yuan clenched his right fist lightly, and the veins were exposed.
After a while, the venue gradually calmed down, because everyone finally realized that something was wrong - with the domineering Duncan family and Qi Yuan's viciousness, how could they allow chaos to happen? Seeing that everyone had quieted down, Qi Yuan raised a hint of pride at the corner of his mouth.
Just as he slowly stood up and prepared to start a scolding, a guard of honor suddenly appeared at the entrance of the venue.
"The temple envoy has arrived!" A loud voice spread throughout the venue.
"The Temple's envoy?!" The attendees' attention was immediately drawn to him, and many couldn't help but wonder, hasn't the successor disappeared? Qi Yuan looked sideways in surprise, and saw that the High Priest Torre of the Lunwenton Temple and a middle-aged man in scarlet priest clothing walked quickly into the venue, surrounded by twelve priests in white.
"It's a scarlet-robed priest!" someone exclaimed. The scarlet-robed priest's status was higher than the high priest of the city-state temple. He seldom moved around and could only be seen in Assyrian temples in the past. But unexpectedly, he appeared here today.
Qi Yuan was in a dilemma, because it would be inappropriate whether he went forward to greet him or not.
Wei Huo saw his father's dilemma, so he went up to Qi Yuan and whispered something to him. Then he turned around quickly and went to meet the scarlet-robed priest who had stopped and was waiting.
"Your Excellency the Scarlet-robed Priest, may I ask..." Wei Huo hesitated for a moment, bowed and asked for the name.
Unexpectedly, the red-robed priest ignored him, waved his sleeves, and looked past Wei Huo and fell on Qi Yuan.
"I am the scarlet-robed Winged Diesel under the command of the Grand Priest Saint Woolley of the Assyrian Temple. I have been ordered to come to the city of Lovington to convey the message from the Grand Priest Saint Woolley to the Chief of the Assyrian Senate, Duncan. May I ask, is the Chief of the Assyrian Senate, Duncan, here now?" Winged Diesel's voice was like a bell, and everyone in the audience could hear it clearly.
Qi Yuan's face turned red, and he was filled with hatred in his heart. He thought to himself, you, the Scarlet-robed Priest, are too abominable. You keep giving me problems one after another. Humph, if I say I'm here, wouldn't I be making a fool of myself? "Not here, right?" Wing Diesel frowned and raised his voice a little more, "Then I will convey the message from the High Priest Saint Woolley to the citizens of Lunvington!"
A message to us? The citizen representatives present were all stunned and held their breath.
"Wei Huo!" Qi Yuan stood up and shouted angrily, signaling Wei Huo to stop it. Unexpectedly, Torre and a group of white-robed priests were already prepared. As soon as Yi Diesel finished speaking, they surrounded him and protected him.
"Citizens of Lunwenton, the Tianjuan Territory has the heart of a viper and the nature of a jackal. It has long harbored evil intentions and has been eyeing the mainland. In the years since it established its country and proclaimed itself emperor, it has slaughtered the Kimos and the Hurrians, and invaded Assyria, occupying a large area of our land and causing the deaths of thousands of innocent people in war. Yet it is not satisfied and even intends to wipe out the entire Assyrian race..."
"Catch him!" Qi Yuan was furious. Wei Huo hesitated for a moment, gritted his teeth, drew his sword and pointed it at Torre: "If you keep talking, you'll be dead!"
Torre glanced at Wei Huo, with a hint of sneer on his face.
"I, Wuleglindo, have been blessed by the true god Amon to succeed the position of high priest of the Assyrian Temple. I am willing to follow the example of the high priest Saint Lean and take the welfare and peace of the Assyrian people as my own responsibility, and to defend Assyria against foreign humiliation as my own responsibility. Although we are now outnumbered by soldiers and lack of food, and surrounded by powerful enemies, I will still resolutely point my sword at the favor of God and fight to the death..." Wing Diesel quickened his speech. Although he was knocked so hard that he could hardly stand, he still tried to ensure that every word he said was clear and passionate.
"Temporary difficulties are not enough to be an excuse for cowardice! We, the Assyrian citizens, should not forget the shame and rise up to resist, even if we cannot take up swords and go into battle! We must not associate with jackals and wolves! And encourage the invaders' power!" Wing Diesel raised his arms with all his strength.
"Kill!" Qi Yuan gritted his teeth and shouted.
"Kill!" A cold light flashed in Wei Huo's eyes, and he swung the sword in his hand with force, cutting the throat of a priest in white.
The venue was in chaos, and more soldiers rushed towards Yi Diesel and others. The citizens present stood up one after another. Some asked loudly, some screamed in panic, and some rushed forward to stop the soldiers from slaughtering...
"Amon is watching you!" Wing Diesel shouted, "Amon is watching you! Amon is watching you!"
"Puchi!" A long spear passed over the shoulders of two white-robed priests and fiercely stabbed into Yi Diesel's chest. The moment the blood gushed out, Yi Diesel grabbed the gun barrel, gave the stabber a contemptuous look, and turned his head to look at Qi Yuan on the podium.
"God Amon! I'm watching you!" Wing Diesel roared his last roar...
"Mads! All the Duncans are crazy!" A citizen roared and rushed to the chief platform...
"You are blaspheming!" Some citizens cried and hugged the sword-wielding soldiers, and then fell to the ground together.
"Kill them!" Qi Yuan shouted as he retreated hurriedly...
Many citizen representatives pushed aside the soldiers who were blocking their way and fled the venue...
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Soon, panic and anger filled the entire city of Lovington. People in every street and alley were talking about the tragedy that happened at the venue - the Duncan family not only prepared to order everyone to surrender to the enemy, but also killed the scarlet envoy sent by the temple, the temple's high priest Tore, more than a dozen white priests who were guarding, and a dozen citizen representatives who strongly opposed...
Almost at the same time, the third regiment led by Pu Ya appeared outside the east gate of Salt Marsh City.
"Soji, I'm Puya, open the door!" Puya recognized the city gate officer at a glance.
"It's Instructor Puya, open the door immediately!" This man named Suoji had followed Wu Lai to garrison the Gap Defense Zone and was quite familiar with Puya. Not only had he been on Wu Lai's list of traitors early on, but he also served as the East Gate Officer under the arrangement of Plancy and De Leng.
As soon as the city gate opened, Suoji rode up to greet them: "Instructor Puya, the new consul Khufu is organizing gladiatorial entertainment in the barracks. After receiving the notice four days ago, the guards of the three gates were replaced by our own people. The people around Khufu are also our people."
Puya nodded: "How many troops are there in the barracks?"
"Less than four thousand. None of them have weapons. We have already arranged for the men in the armory," Soji replied.
"Great, after we enter the city, close the three gates and don't let anyone in or out." Pu Ya gave the order.
"Yes." Suoji puffed out his chest, but he was happy in his heart, because he knew that he no longer had to worry about being enslaved by the Tianjun people.
"Let's go!" Pu Ya waved her hand and rushed into the city gate first...
…
These days, Hufu is in a good mood. Although he has been in office for a short time, he has already "erased" all the things that Wu Lei had done before. Common People's Congress? Get out! School? Get out! Equal pay for equal work? Get out! Get out! All of them! This is the territory of my Duncan family. Only the surname Duncan can make the decision! No, only I, Hufu Duncan, am qualified to make the decision!
Khufu thought Plancy was a complete fool. He didn't even touch the many benefits and beautiful women in Saltmarsh City. What was he trying to do as a consul? "A warrior! A warrior through and through! A warrior and a fool!" After Khufu finished commenting on Plancy, he recruited followers with his confidants who had accompanied him from Lovington. He also exploited the people of Saltmarsh City and imposed 41 taxes on them. And he did not count from the time these tax items were promulgated, but counted back three years - everyone had to pay the taxes within the specified time.
The school was turned into a prison, specifically used to detain people who resisted paying taxes or were unable to pay. For a time, the huge school was overcrowded, and the entire Salt Marsh City was filled with complaints.
But Khufu didn't care about these things, he just wanted to make himself happy.
Khufu was very happy now. It was a pleasure to watch the gladiatorial contest while drinking and eating meat. Moreover, the contestants of today's gladiatorial contest were arranged by him personally - there were two contests in total, each of which consisted of three soldiers who made mistakes and twelve "mobs" who resisted paying taxes. These "mobs" defined by Khufu included five women...
All contestants will be shackled and stripped of their clothes, because Khufu said that this will make the show more interesting.
In order to make the match more "exciting", Khufu designated the weapons - three soldiers held mallets and shields, and the twelve "mobs" held oak swords for training. Such weapons were naturally difficult to kill with one blow, but they would make the pain more lasting and tragic...
Feeling that specifying the weapons alone was not enough, Khufu announced the basic rules of the contest: anyone who kills four people and survives will be pardoned, regardless of sin or tax.
In order to prevent these people from not taking action, Khufu placed a elbow-long candle in front of his chair. After lighting it, he announced with a smile that those who had not been pardoned by the time the candle burned out would be put to death.
After hearing this, almost all the soldiers were worried about the person who was about to go on the field...
The match was as exciting as Khufu had expected. Before the candle of the first match was half burned, only one soldier was left on the field. He was almost soaked in blood. When Khufu stood up triumphantly and was about to announce his victory and pardon, he resolutely inserted a wooden sword deeply into his abdomen and spun fiercely.
"I do this to stop them from being humiliated!" the winner shouted loudly while spinning the wooden sword to strangle his own intestines. In the "match" just now, he personally ended the lives of nine people, including his own sister.
His words moved almost all the soldiers. Some soldiers simply lowered their heads and dared not look at him. After listening to him, Khufu shook his head disapprovingly and spat out two words in contempt: "Idiot."
When the victor struggled and fell beside his sister's body, Khufu clapped his hands with a smile and shouted, "Excellent! Come on! Start the second round!"
At the same time, a large number of figures were moving quickly between the walls and fences outside the barracks, and Puya was the leader...