Chapter 261 Blood Wolf
Meng Xingyuan said, "Instead of waiting to be killed, we should take the initiative. Let's rest for half a day, and when it gets dark, we'll go straight to their door and catch them off guard."
The Emperor was aware of the banditry in the area, but was unaware that it had escalated to the point where the entire government had fallen. He wrote a letter to the Emperor explaining the situation. Perhaps if the Emperor learned that the bandits were killing officials but not civilians, he would worry that this "Headless Gang" was threatening his empire and might send reinforcements.
He doesn't seek victory tonight, but only to severely damage the Headless Gang, giving himself and his veterans some time to survive until reinforcements arrive.
The soldier's voice was weak: "Can we do it? I heard from the locals that the leader of the Headless Gang is a monster, nicknamed Blood Wolf. He can chop off soldiers' heads like chopping watermelons, one slice after another. If we go to their doorstep, won't we just be offering ourselves up?"
Meng Xingyuan was also very afraid, but as the general of this army, he could not show his fear before the battle. So he said with a flushed face, "What kind of monsters are there in this world? It's just a rumor. If they come to kill us tonight, we will ambush them at the entrance of their gang, injure a group of them, and then leave immediately."
The soldiers still lacked confidence.
"I'm afraid that we're old and frail, and we won't be able to outrun them when we leave..."
Meng Xingyuan said sternly, "We have to run even if we can't outrun them! Otherwise, we'll just stay here and wait to die... As long as we win the first battle today, we can outmaneuver the bandits and hold out until reinforcements arrive. If we can do that, we'll have a chance to survive."
Both soldiers looked doubtful. "Will there be reinforcements? Will the imperial court still care about us...?"
When they were selected by the Ministry of War, they privately speculated that the Emperor was reluctant to send troops to suppress the bandits, but did not want to be accused of not caring about the lives of the people, so he specially selected them, the old, weak, sick and disabled, to deal with the matter.
They already knew they were the emperor's abandoned pawns and dared not even hope for reinforcements.
Meng Xingyuan knew what they were thinking and said confidently, "Times have changed. If bandits can be so arrogant as to slaughter government officials and hang the heads of soldiers, they might rise up in rebellion one day and threaten the country. As long as I explain the situation truthfully, the court will definitely send reinforcements."
Seeing Meng Xingyuan's resolute expression, the soldiers regained some courage, nodded in agreement, and withdrew to carry out Meng Xingyuan's instructions.
Meng Xingyuan then wrote a detailed account of the situation, emphasizing the bandits' brutality and their intention to kill government soldiers. He stressed that he would fight the bandits to the death, but the two sides were vastly different in strength. In order to prevent these bandits from harming the emperor's country, he earnestly requested that reinforcements be sent immediately.
After writing it down, Meng Xingyuan handed it to two of the best-footed soldiers and asked them to send it back to the capital as quickly as possible and deliver it to the emperor.
As night fell, Meng Xingyuan led his soldiers slowly toward the entrance of the Duan Tou Gang. In order not to alert the enemy, they split into three groups and, under the cover of darkness, slowly occupied the woods on both sides of the entrance, using the vegetation for cover.
The first group of soldiers were positioned beneath a large tree from which dozens of heads were hanging.
By the moonlight, you could see dozens of human heads on the tree; some were already rotting and stinking, some were still oozing blood, and some had their eyes still open...
A gentle breeze blew, and the heads on the trees swayed precariously, the air thick with the pungent smell of blood.
The soldiers dared not look, yet they couldn't help but steal glances. Several men couldn't help but vomit on the spot, while others gripped their weapons tightly and trembled uncontrollably.
Meng Xingyuan was at the forefront of the soldiers. He covered his nose and dared not look up, for fear that if he looked at the enemy, he would be unable to resist fleeing. He was the backbone of this army. If he was the first to show fear, the whole army would fall apart.
He whispered words of comfort to his soldiers while gently stroking his own wildly beating heart.
Just then, a drop of icy water fell onto his forehead. Meng Xingyuan wiped it with his hand and saw that it was a drop of blood. His hand trembled uncontrollably, and he mustered up his courage to look up.
The neck was cut cleanly.
A face covered in blood and gore.
Two eyes rolled back.
"ah……"
Meng Xingyuan really didn't mean to scream, but the instinct driven by extreme fear was beyond his control. After speaking, he regretted it deeply, thinking that his scream would not only terrify his subordinates but also alert the bandits.
But almost at the same time he screamed, a figure fell from the top of the tree, grabbed Meng Xingyuan and leaped ten meters away. The soldiers were shocked and immediately chased after him, but were quickly forced back by the gleaming broadsword in the other party's hand.
The man who descended from the sky was tall and imposing. Meng Xingyuan, who was of a fairly slender build, was lifted in his hands as easily as a chick. His face was covered with something so that his features were not visible. His eyes glowed red, and he looked exactly like Blood Wolf, the leader of the Headless Gang, as the people were talking about.
Just when the soldiers thought their operation had been exposed and they had been discovered by the enemy, this man kicked Meng Xingyuan to the ground, then turned him around so that his back was to everyone, and swung his knife to cut off Meng Xingyuan's head, with blood splattering several meters away.
"Blood Wolf killed the lord! Avenge the lord!"
"Run! It's a monster! Help! Run!"
"Waaaaah, I don't want to die, please don't kill me..."
The soldiers cried and shouted, many scattering in terror at the bloody scene. Only a few loyal soldiers charged forward, weapons in hand.
The man showed no sign of panic. He picked up his long knife and slashed Meng Xingyuan's face several times, leaving it a bloody mess. Then, carrying the severed head, he flew up to a tree and hung Meng Xingyuan's head on a branch.
Then, covered in blood, he fell again, raised his long sword at the few remaining soldiers, and slightly raised his eyes, which glowed red. The last few soldiers could no longer hold on and turned around, screaming and fleeing.
Since the adults are already dead, the most important thing right now is to protect my own life.
One of them fainted from fright. These soldiers were rare, kind-hearted men in the army. Unable to bear seeing their comrade suffer any more harm, they simply dragged him along and fled for their lives.
They thought their lives were in grave danger, but strangely enough, the blood wolf failed to catch them, and they miraculously escaped with their lives.
Out of breath, they had no idea that the man hadn't come after them at all. Instead, after they left, he dragged another person out of the jungle where he had killed someone, carried him away on his back, and took him with him.
If the soldiers saw the man he was carrying, they would surely be shocked and horrified once again.
This person must be none other than their general, Lord Meng Xingyuan.
Meng Xingyuan, whom they had just witnessed having his head chopped off by Blood Wolf, his face slashed several times, and his head hung on a big tree, was now unharmed and completely unharmed, being carried away on the shoulder of what they thought was Blood Wolf.
This person was certainly not Blood Wolf from the Headless Gang.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
