Chapter 1419: Seizing the Bridge, Blowing Up the Waterway (Part 10) [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
"Arrogant brat, let Grandpa deal with you first."
Several dark green beams of light suddenly exploded from the thick fog, and steel-like claws tore a sliver of space through it. A figure appeared swiftly, as elusive as a wisp of smoke. The newcomer's voice was sinister and shrill, like a fish gliding through wisps of mountain mist, making it impossible to pinpoint their location. Shen Tang lightly touched the stirrups with her toes, leaping into the air and drawing her sword with a backhand motion, the blade flashing like a bolt of lightning as it struck her target.
clang--
The impact of the metal striking the stone was so strong it hurt people's eardrums, and sparks flew everywhere.
As soon as Shen Tang stepped onto the long bridge, he felt as if a thousand pounds were pressing down on his shoulders, and his hands and feet seemed to be sinking into the mud. Every seemingly easy movement required many times more effort than normal, and his originally smooth martial energy was inexplicably blocked.
On the other hand, the other side looked relaxed and at ease.
A pair of sinister, triangular eyes revealed a bloodthirsty and ferocious light.
"She is quite a beautiful woman." The Central Allied Army knew that Shen Tang was personally leading the expedition, but they did not expect her to personally take the lead. Seeing her attire, they thought she was Bai Su. "Your hands are not suitable for holding a sword, but for holding an embroidery needle."
Bai Su used a sword, and so did she; they were about the same age and appearance.
He stepped back on the iron chain, his figure perfectly disappearing into the thick fog, his tone full of contempt and disdain: "If you surrender, I can grant you wealth and honor, and make you a big shot."
Although their vision was obstructed and they couldn't see the details of the two's exchange, their hearing was fine, so they naturally didn't miss his words. Ji Moqiu gripped the wooden staff tightly, his thumb tracing the intricate patterns on it. The small red flower at the tip of the staff, which had been swaying back and forth, seemed to sense his change in mood, extending a slender, curled green leaf as if to soothe his cheek, while the other one rested on its hip!
Ji Moqiu came to his senses: "This person should be handed over to me."
In a battle between generals, manipulating each other's mentality is basic. Asking an opponent of the opposite sex to lay down their arms and retire to a peaceful life as a wife and mother is considered a low-level tactic. Those with slightly more extreme tastes might flirt with their good-looking opponents of the same sex—even those who are not good-looking are not spared. Their attacks would focus on the lower body and the opponent's family background.
Ji Moqiu knew these rules and knew that he would inevitably encounter such humiliation in the next duel, but he just couldn't bear to see these foul words reach His Highness's ears: "If I were to fight..."
This person's intestines will surely be ruptured and his stomach rotted, then his tongue will be cut off and fed to the Gu worms.
Shen Tang remained calm in the face of trash talk: "You old hag, you're not even fit to be a footstool, let alone enter my inner quarters. These hands are perfect for taking your life!"
The strangely shaped old thing disgusted her eyes.
Shen Tang judged how far he had traveled by the swaying arc of the iron chains beneath his feet. Within the thick fog, several shadowy figures, like swimming fish, darted and weaved nearby, occasionally closing in, their metallic claws shooting out from tricky angles. Shen Tang used his longsword to sometimes deflect them, and sometimes to pierce through the gaps in their claws, hooking them and attempting to pull them out of the fog to beat them mercilessly.
"Tsk tsk, almost there."
A cold hand reached out from behind her neck and swiftly stroked Shen Tang's chin. Shen Tang's sword arrived even faster than the hand, and the expected splatter of blood and flesh did not occur. Instead, a woman's arm, resembling a lotus root, dissipated into smoke: "You're a truly ruthless woman."
The first sentence could be identified as being spoken by a man.
The next sentence was spoken entirely in a female voice.
Shen Tang remained unfazed. Her sword suddenly shifted, unleashing a slash of light as she switched hands mid-air. A muffled groan came from the depths of the thick fog, and a string of blood droplets splattered onto the iron chains. She flicked her sleeve, unleashing a spell, and a barrier of spiritual energy burst open from the iron chains beneath her feet.
Sizzle—
A sharp object tore through the barrier with a piercing sound.
"Literary Qi?" The person in the thick fog was stunned for a moment upon seeing this, then quickly realized what was happening. Their voice, brimming with barely suppressed excitement, smoothly intertwined with the female voice, "Martial Qi? You're not Bai Shaoxuan?"
Cultivating both literary and martial skills doesn't necessarily lead to a short life; if you don't live to fully mature, you'll either become an idiot. The only current exception is King Shen Youli of Kang Kingdom, meaning—Shen Youli himself is taking action. He said, "In that case, I'll take your life even more!"
Two voices, one male and one female, burst forth simultaneously from the thick fog.
They attacked Shen Tang's vital points from both the front and the back.
"...Why are there two?"
Due to the unique nature of the battlefield, Shen Tang could not fight in the air for extended periods as usual. He could only rely on the iron chains to maneuver and reduce the consumption of physical strength and martial energy. While attacking the enemy, he had to find the most appropriate force and speed, and also pay attention to the safety of the iron chains.
The sneak attack failed, and the two dark figures separated, landing lightly on the iron chain like feathers, one in front and one behind, blocking the path of the chain. Judging from the blurry shadows through the thick fog, neither of them were the burly type of warriors; their figures were too slender, but their arms and legs were surprisingly long, looking as if they had been stretched to twice their original size in Photoshop.
In an instant, the two of them moved at the same time.
One person unleashed a palm strike accompanied by the whistling sound of iron claws tearing through the air; the sharp claws almost grazed Shen Tang's hair ornament. Another attacked Shen Tang's lower body, the iron chains beneath her feet vibrating violently, while adjacent chains, some at a distance, were thrown towards her. Shen Tang leaped up, grabbing the third iron chain ring, using the momentum to levitate halfway around, hooking her legs onto the chain for further leverage, and stabilizing herself with a twist of her waist. Another gust of palm wind struck.
This palm strike appeared light and airy, but it actually concealed a fierce power.
Shen Tang raised her hand to grab it with her palm, but the force of the grab far exceeded her expectations. Just as her feet touched the iron chain, the nearby mountain mist transformed into a female black shadow, which used her hand as a knife to thrust straight at her face. Shen Tang parried with her sword, but the male black shadow's claws aimed straight for her chest and abdomen, but missed.
Shen Tang looked at the deep marks on her shoulder.
Seeing through their plan: "Close combat?"
Initially, it was thought that the enemy generals wouldn't be affected by the mines beneath the long bridge, but it now appears that was a misjudgment. They are affected too, but they've found a balance, giving them a greater advantage than our side. Otherwise, why would the enemy generals need to engage in close combat while wearing heavy armor, instead of using the expansive, powerful fighting techniques of a martial arts master to wear her down more quickly?
Although martial armor is different from heavy armor forged from normal metal, and martial artists feel almost zero weight, allowing for greater freedom of movement in their limbs, it is still a heavy item weighing several tens of kilograms. How could it possibly be as light and agile as when going into battle?
Therefore, under normal circumstances, military generals would either wield weapons and slash at each other, or conjure warhorses to charge with long weapons, or transform their martial energy into massive swords dozens of meters long to chop at each other. Those with more elaborate techniques might fly through the air, disappear into the ground, or use bows and arrows. Hand-to-hand combat? That only happened when both sides were exhausted but still couldn't determine a winner, and refused to consider it a draw, dragging the fight on until it came down to a battle of willpower and stamina.
Just then, a tearing sound came from directly above, and the woman's muscular calf rapidly enlarged before Shen Tang's eyes. The calf didn't seem particularly thick, nor was the speed of the kick particularly fast, but the force of the fall was immense. Shen Tang crossed his arms to block, and the iron chain beneath his feet visibly sank three or four feet.
Shen Tang then realized that the woman was not wearing a full set of armor.
It only has a few parts: legs, elbows, and shoulders.
The male shadowy figure then swept across Shen Tang's waist.
In a flash, Shen Tang grabbed the woman's calf with his other hand. The skin he touched felt as cold as a corpse, yet it didn't feel like a body; it felt more like grasping a weightless ball of air. Shen Tang swiftly bent over, hooking his leg around the iron chain while simultaneously using the female figure as a punching bag to fling back at the male figure. He spun around, grabbing the iron chain with one hand to steady himself from falling.
She asked, "A martial arts totem?"
The female shadowy figure was neither alive nor dead; its state resembled that of a martial arts totem. She carefully recalled the various martial arts totems she had encountered, and the more she thought about it, the more likely it seemed. Humanoid totems were rare, but not nonexistent; Shen Tang herself was one of them.
The man gripped the iron chains with both hands and feet, lowering his upper body in a bizarre posture, like a lizard, and chuckled strangely from his throat: "Your Majesty is very knowledgeable. You are the first person to recognize my true nature at first glance. I will let you die a quick death."
Shen Tang: "..."
She was wondering what would happen if she summoned the Courage Totem.
Shen Tang's Martial Spirit Totem is essentially a plus version of Ji Moqiu's. The High Priest's robes are more complex and voluminous, with seven or eight layers, aiming for the most mysterious and ornate style, giving him an imposing, mysterious, and solemn appearance. When fighting, he swings his wooden staff and flicks his sleeves, displaying the air of a master. He fights a battle without breaking a sweat, perfectly embodying the demeanor of a master.
Forehead……
The high priest's robes were raised, and the sleeves almost reached Shen Tang's shoulders. Judging from his attire, he didn't look like someone skilled in close combat. So, this thought slipped through Shen Tang's mind and was quickly forgotten.
The male figure leaped into the air, his left knee striking Shen Tang's face, while the female figure simultaneously attacked Shen Tang's lower body. The seemingly light kicks carried the force of a mountain. Shen Tang parried with his elbow, spun and twisted his hips on the iron chain, and stomped hard on the female figure's throat, but she dodged with a sliding tackle along the chain.
The iron chains vibrated and veered off course. Shen Tang had no choice but to transform her sword into a spear, thrusting it into another iron chain. Using the momentum, she spun half a circle, kicking the unsteady male figure into the thick fog. Shen Tang keenly noticed that the landing point of the kick felt somewhat different, and she heard a muffled groan from the other party.
"You, you vixen—"
The man's voice was restrained yet brimming with boundless rage.
Shen Tang recalled her actions just now.
He chuckled and said, "Why are you angry? You're already so old, do you still need that thing of yours?"
The female shadowy figure formed claws with her five fingers, from which sharp blades sprang forth.
The attack came flying, this time much closer than before. Shen Tang could even clearly see the bulging veins on the female figure's temples. He could also smell a putrid, stench. The iron claw missed, and the male figure unleashed a barrage of whip-like kicks, each one heavier than the last, so fast they left only afterimages.
The thick fog on the iron chain was swirled into a spiral.
Despite its terrifying appearance, it didn't put much pressure on Shen Tang.
It even helped relieve her stress.
With a snap—
A sound of bone cracking could be clearly heard.
The female shadowy figure's lower legs were folded at an eerie 180-degree angle, making it almost impossible for her to stand upright. A flying spear from Shen Tang pierced her face, pinning her firmly to the iron chain.
“You’re getting anxious, and your Martial Spirit Totem is getting anxious too.”
In the heat of the moment, they forgot about the special environment on the long bridge.
Disrupting the rhythm and frequency resulted in the leg being broken by the recoil force.
"You two have been so impressive for so long, now it's my turn!" Shen Tang had roughly figured out what speed and force to use, and how to hide the undercurrent that was about to erupt beneath the calm surface.
Suddenly, she kicked the bottom of the spear, and the spear tip stuck in the iron chain slid out along with the bent shaft. The female shadows strung along the chain were pulled by the enormous force and rolled for more than ten feet. Just before they were about to fall off the chain, they scattered with a bang and turned into mountain mist.
It coalesced again, its form appearing much more ethereal than before.
Meanwhile, the male figure in the shadows recovered from the shock of his disastrous defeat. Beads of cold sweat rolled down his brow, and his eyes flashed with a terrifying ferocity as he looked at Shen Tang. Shen Tang twirled his spear, kindly reminding him, "You still need to wear full armor in battle. Who told you to show off by not wearing trousers? Even a badass like Gong Xi Chou knows to protect his lower body even if he only wears half a suit of armor."
Half-suit armor means wearing all individual pieces, while paired pieces are worn only once, not leaving the necessary parts unworn for ease of movement at key joints. The person opposite naturally couldn't understand Shen Tang's lewd talk, but could hear the gloating in her words. Immediately, they were so enraged they nearly ground their teeth to powder: "Today I'll disembowel you and take out your womb to drink with!"
The punch contains the force of a battering ram.
A fist shadow exploded, spanning dozens of feet.
The moment the fist touched her face, Shen Tang spun and dodged beneath the iron chain, avoiding the venomous, relentlessly entwining female shadow. The heel of his boot grazed the woman's hair, leaving a deep gash near her eyelid. The first strike was followed immediately by a second, his toe kicking the back of her knee. Using her body as leverage, he rose above the iron chain, his spear thrusting diagonally upwards towards another person's throat.
Long spears don't offer much advantage in close combat, but Shen Tang's ability to switch between long and short weapons so quickly is unpredictable. After each 20 or 30 rounds of fighting, Shen Tang would switch to the furthest iron chain and reassess his position based on the arc of the chain's swaying—it's fine if it's close to him, but if he accidentally runs towards the enemy, that would be disastrous.
Shen Tang complained, "They're really troublesome!"
The longer the game dragged on, the more obvious the difference in physical strength between the two sides became.
The mineral vein beneath the long bridge was consuming more physical strength and martial energy than Shen Tang had anticipated. Even though she was skilled in both martial arts and literature and had a much higher endurance than her peers, she was now clearly feeling a bit tired. Of course, fighting here was like carrying two heavy warhorses on your shoulders while facing two opponents against one. Shen Tang had to deal with both of them simultaneously, requiring far more maneuvering than they did. How could she not be exhausted quickly?
It's a pitfall, but it also has some advantages.
We are not afraid of being attacked from the shadows.
The idea of using a cold arrow first came to Shen Tang's mind.
Gu Chi stroked the hilt of his sword. He couldn't see the specific situation on the battlefield, but could roughly judge the situation based on the sounds. Hearing that the enemy was two against one, he thought of secretly firing an arrow to take out one of them first.
The result, naturally, was no good.
It wasn't that the others were particularly virtuous; it was simply that lethal arrows were imbued with the power of words. If ordinary arrows were infused with that much force, they would shatter into pieces upon entering the airspace above the long bridge, unable to withstand the recoil. To control the force would further diminish the chances of success. The generals sent by the opposing side were not as skilled as their lord, but they wouldn't die so easily from a single arrow.
Gong Xichou was not killed by arrows back then.
Moreover, what about the one right now?
Of course, what truly dissuaded Gu Chi was Gongyang Yongye's words: "How can there be two enemies? One of them is the Martial Spirit Totem, so this doesn't violate the rules of the duel. In my opinion, Lord Shen is having a great time down there and won't suffer any losses."
Even after playing like this, he still has the energy to constantly be aware of his position.
Gongyang Yongye couldn't see where she was struggling.
That's why they say being young is a good thing!
Look how flexible young people are! If he were to leave the ring, he'd probably strain his back in just a few rounds.
()
The package was never found, and the security camera footage didn't capture it.
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