In fact, before Wu Fengxian could even order his troops to fire arrows for reinforcements, the accompanying guards had already reacted in the shortest possible time.
They drew their swords and lined up to protect the young general Wu Fengxian in the very center.
The guard holding the Cloud Piercing Arrow was exceptionally skilled. With a leap, he soared into the air and flew straight out of the main hall.
boom!
The next second, a dark figure was seen drifting back into the hall like a kite with a broken string, then crashing heavily onto the floor, bleeding from all seven orifices, its life hanging in the balance.
Upon closer inspection, everyone realized that the person who had fallen to the ground was none other than the same Yuhou Army soldier who had just leaped out of the main hall.
He still held the Cloud Piercing Arrow, which was in the firing position, tightly in his hand!
Unfortunately, the arrow, which could have been released with a gentle pull, failed to fly.
Then, an armored general carrying a sword slowly descended from the top of the main gate of the Hall of Supreme Harmony using a steel cable, and strode in to the astonishment of Wu Fengxian and his troops inside the hall.
"Pang Xianchu, it's you—"
Wu Fengxian was greatly surprised, recognizing the newcomer as Pang Xianchu, the renowned and valiant general of the Po Lu Army.
Pang Xianchu was eight feet tall, with a robust physique and extraordinary strength, possessing the courage to defeat ten thousand men.
He followed the late King Chen Polu in battles across the north and south for more than ten years. He killed no fewer than a hundred enemy generals and countless enemy soldiers.
That is why he was given the title of Valiant General.
Compared to Wu Fengxian's self-proclaimed title of "Butcher of Men" for his ruthless killing, the title of "Butcher of Men" bestowed upon Pang Xianchu by foreign tribes was far more prestigious than that of Wu Fengxian.
Wu Fengxian's title of "butcher" was mostly due to the infamous reputation he earned by torturing and killing surrendered soldiers, generals, and innocent civilians.
Pang Xianchu's title of "Butcher of Men" was entirely due to the military merits he accumulated on horseback, expanding the dynasty's territory and beheading enemy soldiers. It was the foundation for his being named a brave and valiant general despite being the son of a slave.
It is no exaggeration to say that if Wu Fengxian and Pang Xianchu had switched backgrounds, Pang Xianchu would probably have been a general who sealed the wolf's lair in the Xin Dynasty long ago.
As for Wu Fengxian, he most likely became an unknown pile of wolf droppings on the northern grasslands many years ago.
"Kill him!"
"I order you to kill him and fight your way out!"
When the real and fake "Butchers" met, Wu Fengxian was the first to lose his temper and immediately ordered his personal guards to kill Pang Xianchu, carving a bloody path through the enemy lines.
"kill!"
The twenty-odd guards at the front roared in unison and swarmed forward, brandishing their swords and hacking at Pang Xianchu, attempting to compensate for their lack of combat strength with their numerical advantage.
As the saying goes, even a fierce tiger can't withstand a pack of wolves, but Pang Xianchu was a lion, not a tiger, and Wu Fengxian's Yuhou Army was not a pack of wolves, but at most hyenas.
Facing a tidal wave of attacks from all directions by more than twenty of Wu Fengxian's personal guards, Pang Xianchu showed no fear on his face, calmly drawing his sword to deal with the situation, exuding an aura of "I will go even if there are thousands of people against me."
The Longquan sword bestowed upon Pang Xianchu by the late King Chen Polu seemed to come alive in his hands, each swing accompanied by the roar of a dragon and the cry of a tiger.
His sword techniques are not flashy; each swing and block reveals a contest of strength and reflexes.
Swords flashed, and screams filled the air.
In a short while, more than twenty guards were killed or wounded, but Pang Xianchu didn't even catch his breath.
Not a single drop of blood stained the blade of the Longquan sword in his hand.
The twenty-odd Yuhou soldiers who were killed or wounded had their armor shattered and blood flowing freely, which was enough to show how fast and powerful Pang Xianchu's sword was.
In the blink of an eye, Wu Fengxian witnessed his most elite and strongest Yuhou Army soldiers being slaughtered by Pang Xianchu like cutting melons and vegetables, and he was immediately filled with fear.
"Charge! All of you, charge at him! Kill this madman for me!"
Wu Fengxian screamed and shouted like a madman to release his fear and pressure.
"Form ranks!"
Another thirty or forty guards from the Yuhou Army were dispatched to carry out the order.
This time, these guards learned from the experience of the previous wave of cannon fodder and did not rush to attack Pang Xianchu, who had superhuman strength, with swords and axes. Instead, they formed a battle formation with swords and knives, trying to surround Pang Xianchu.
"Hmph, Wu Fengxian, all you've got left is the ability to make others risk their lives for you!"
Pang Xianchu snorted coldly, drew his sword and stepped forward, his eyes filled with contempt and disgust for Wu Fengxian.
"In the seventeenth year of Zhenwu, during the Battle of Mobei, I led eight hundred elite cavalry on a thousand-mile raid straight to the Yuan court, killing three thousand enemies and capturing countless prisoners. However, your father, Wu Qingyun, seized the military merit through trickery and force, ultimately pinning it on you, Wu Fengxian."
"In the twentieth year of Zhenwu, war broke out again in the northern desert. You led ten thousand Yunhui soldiers deep into enemy territory and were surrounded. It was I who disregarded past grievances and risked my life to rescue you."
In the end, you turned around and accused me in court, saying that I colluded with the remnants of the Yuan Dynasty to betray the country for personal gain. If it weren't for Prince Jin vouching for me, I would probably have been unjustly imprisoned long ago.
"In the twenty-third year of Zhenwu's reign, the war to pacify the southern barbarians in western Yunnan was fought by you, Wu Fengxian..."
Pang Xianchu's eyes were cold and filled with murderous intent. As he spoke, he swung his sword to break through the formation and directly attacked Wu Fengxian.
The battle formation cobbled together by thirty-four Yuhou soldiers was no match for the valiant general Pang Xianchu, who had been through many battles. Every swing of his sword was accompanied by the screams of a Yuhou soldier.
In a short while, the battle formation that Wu Fengxian's personal guards had formed to trap Pang Xianchu was reduced to a broken formation, with more than half of the guards being killed on the spot.
The remaining guards were already terrified by the terrifying martial prowess displayed by Pang Xianchu, their faces pale with fear. No matter how Wu Fengxian scolded and berated them, they no longer had the courage to take a step forward.
At this moment, inside the vast Hall of Supreme Harmony, Pang Xianchu stood on horseback with his sword drawn, while Wu Fengxian and his dozens of personal guards, armed with swords, trembled with fear.
Pang Xianchu stepped forward with his sword drawn, and dozens of Yuhou soldiers all took a step back in unison.
Pang Xianchu took another step forward, while the Yuhou Army's personal guards, carrying the pale-faced Wu Fengxian, took another step back.
With each side advancing and retreating, they quickly forced Wu Fengxian and his party to the foot of the steps of the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
If they retreated any further, they would have to climb the steps to face Chen Huai'an, who sat atop the dragon throne in the main hall, watching the world with amusement.
Wu Fengxian glanced at the bloodthirsty Pang Xianchu, then turned to look at Chen Huai'an sitting on the dragon throne. In a moment of inspiration, he roared furiously:
"To catch the thief, first catch the king! All of you, charge! Take down Chen Huai'an!"
His shout finally brought the remaining guards to their senses, and they all looked toward Chen Huai'an, who was sitting on the dragon throne at the very top of the hall.
To these guards, although Chen Huai'an was also wearing golden armor, his image and temperament always seemed to exude the air of a refined and cultured scholar.
Compared to Pang Xianchu, who was relentlessly pressing forward with a murderous aura, the one on the dragon throne seemed like an easy target.
Squeezing the weak is something these Yuhou Army guards, who are used to following Wu Fengxian's tyrannical ways and acting as his henchmen, are best at.
Immediately, a squad of Yuhou soldiers turned and climbed the steps, brandishing their swords and heading straight for Chen Huai'an, who was sitting on the dragon throne at the top of the main hall.
Facing the menacing Yuhou Army's personal guards, Chen Huai'an, sitting upright on the dragon throne, remained calm.
He even adjusted to a more comfortable sitting position, crossed his legs, and looked with a smile at the furious Wu Fengxian and the murderous Yu Houjun.
"kill!"
In the blink of an eye, more than ten guards of the Imperial Guard had rushed up the steps of the main hall. The two sides were only a dozen steps apart. Chen Huai'an on the dragon throne could even feel the gale-force winds brought up when these soldiers swung their swords and slashed at him.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
The next second, countless arrows rained down from the sky, instantly killing all the guards of the Imperial Guard who had rushed into the main hall.
Immediately afterwards, eighteen elite warriors clad in silver armor and masked in black veils descended from the sky.
Using a steel cable, he slowly descended from the roof beams of the main hall to stand in front of Chen Huai'an. He then threw away the repeating crossbow in his hand, drew his sword, and stood guard around Chen Huai'an.
"The Eighteen Riders of Dragon City!"
Below the main hall, Wu Fengxian cried out in shock, his face ashen.
He had only heard that Prince Chen Polu of Jin had a team of silver-armored warriors who were always by his side. Each of them was exceptionally brave and skilled in martial arts, and could take the head of an enemy general from among thousands of soldiers as easily as taking something out of a bag.
Because this team of silver-armored warriors consisted of only eighteen people, they were also known as the "Eighteen Riders of Dragon City"!
However, what puzzled Wu Fengxian was that these eighteen riders from Longcheng had already been poisoned to death on their way back to Longcheng from the capital with Prince Jin, Chen Polu. How could they have reappeared in the Hall of Supreme Harmony?
"Wu Fengxian, you do have some sense!" Chen Huai'an, sitting on the dragon throne, waved his hand with a smile and said, "Go, give them a quick death!"
"I will obey Your Majesty's command!"
Eighteen silver-armored assassins immediately accepted the order, brandishing their swords and charging down the steps into the battle.
Seeing this, Pang Xianchu was not to be outdone, and he drew his sword and slashed as if he were in an empty field.
In a short time, all the guards of the Imperial Guard in the Hall of Supreme Harmony were slaughtered, with almost all of them killed or wounded.
Wu Fengxian was left alone, consumed by impotent rage, his hands trembling as he gripped his sword.
"Chen Huai'an, let me tell you, there are 20,000 of my Yunhui Army troops outside the city, and my father's 80,000 troops will arrive in Longcheng first thing tomorrow morning. If you dare to kill me today, my father will definitely not let you off!"
"I don't care whether you rebel or not, but if anything happens to me in this Dragon City today, you'd better think carefully about whether your eight thousand Polu soldiers can withstand the attack of one hundred thousand Yunhui soldiers."
This general advises you: don't let a moment of pleasure lead to a terrible disaster!
"Otherwise, the day the Yunhui army breaches the city will be the day of massacre!"
Chen Huai'an sneered and said, "Wu Fengxian, you're about to die and you're still being stubborn!"
Then, he waved his hand and said, "Pang Xianchu, I order you to cut off the head of Wu Fengxian, the vanguard general of the rebel army, and hang it on the city tower as a sacrifice to the flag!"
"Your subordinate obeys!"
Pang Xianchu faced Wu Fengxian directly, raised his Longquan sword, and unleashed a powerful strike that split Mount Hua.
In the heat of the moment, Wu Fengxian instinctively raised his sword to meet the attack.
Swords clashed, sparks flew.
With a clang, Wu Fengxian's prized "Thousand-Man Slayer" ring-pommel sword snapped in two, and the impact numbed his right hand.
He then realized that Chen Huai'an's words about cutting off his head and hanging it on the city gate as a sacrifice to the flag were not just empty talk.
Wu Fengxian asked anxiously, "Chen Huai'an, are you serious?"
"Pang Xianchu, don't come any closer!"
"Chen Huai'an, Chen Huai'an, Your Highness, please don't kill me! I know about the death of Prince Jin—"
Before Wu Fengxian could finish speaking, he felt as if his body had suddenly become light and he had flown away.
The last image reflected in his pupils was a headless corpse in the magnificent Hall of Supreme Harmony, wearing armor, holding a broken sword, and spurting blood. He staggered back two steps before collapsing to the ground with a resentful thud.
Before losing consciousness, Wu Fengxian recalled the repeated advice he received from his deputy, Chang Chenghu, before entering the city. His last thought was:
If you're reborn as a human in your next life, you must listen to advice!
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