Wang Yutang sucked in a deep breath, his expression turning unprecedentedly pale.
The expressions of the other high-ranking generals also became extremely solemn, and extreme anger rose in their hearts!
One of the generals said angrily, "If this lowly general remembers correctly, the sinister kid in black who has been following Han Sanhe around seems to be from the School of Spring and Autumn!"
Another general was huffing and puffing as he said angrily, "That's right, that's right. I remember when someone went to gamble that day and we were chatting with our bosses, we heard Han Sanhe mention this. He looked so proud then … Hmph!"
"How did the School of Spring and Autumn's Soul-Sealing Spike end up with us?"
Wang Yutang frowned.
"Isn't that obvious?" A general said angrily, "It must be Han Sanhe who has ulterior motives and has done this to us. Hmph, this is how the so-called God of War came to be …"
"Despicable and shameless!"
"Let's return home first. This lowly general shall report this to His Majesty and send troops to Dongxuan to seek justice!"
"Yes, we must capture that despicable Han Sanhe and avenge the marshal!" The generals cheered, all of them raging with rage.
If the Empire of Yutang had been behind this incident, they would not have been this furious, even if they were angry.
After all, both sides were enemies and were destined to be irreconcilable enemies. There was always a reason for using despicable tactics against the enemy, whether it was despicable or shameless. However, if the culprit was Han Sanhe who was their ally, the nature of the incident was entirely different!
This was akin to not dying in the hands of the enemy on the battlefield but dying from an arrow shot from the back by one's own people!
Being schemed against by one's own comrade was the most painful taboo of a soldier on the battlefield. This outcome infuriated all the generals and generals.
Wang Yutang said loudly, "Don't act rashly for now. What's more urgent now isn't what we should do to Han Sanhe. Our priority now is to protect the marshal and our brothers' lives. Everything else can wait until we return to the capital city. If you have connections, quickly think of a way to get the antidote for the Soul-Sealing Spike … Everyone, check yourselves carefully as well. With Han Sanhe's cunning, this might not be his only plan. There might be more to it.
Wang Yutang's white beard fluttered in the wind. "At least for now, no one is allowed to act rashly. Even if we really want to take revenge, acting rashly will only increase our own casualties. It's futile to mess up our own formation!"
"Since Han Sanhe dared to do something like this, he must have planned it in advance. If we act rashly, we'll only fall into a deeper trap. Instead of moving now, it's better to stay put. Perfect planning is the right way to retaliate!"
"Everyone here has been through hundreds of battles and understands this. I believe I don't need to say anything more!"
Wang Yutang's white beard fluttered. "Let's go back first! Hurry back to the capital as fast as you can and treat the poisoned people. "
"Yes!"
The people from the Empire of Ziyou sprinted back at top speed.
Wang Yutang bit his finger and wrote something in blood on a piece of white silk on the bumpy carriage that looked like it could fall apart at any time.
"Your Majesty, Marshal Zi's poison …"
The group sprinted like a meteor chasing the moon, traveling day and night.
What they did not know was that the four physicians were baffled.
They had heard that there was no antidote for the Soul-Sealing Spike; death was certain for those who were poisoned. The poison would erupt within ten days; even if it did not attack the heart, it would burn the meridians and corrode the bones, destroying the blood and tendons. Although the marshal and the others were stiff and their flesh was grayish-green, their internal organs were corroded by the poison and they were in a critical condition, there were no signs of imminent death. They could at least stay alive for ten days to half a month.
Could it be that this Soul Locking Needle only had an undeserved reputation?!
There was also the Eclipse Panther's cry before it left.
"Meow …"
The four physicians were not far away then, so they heard it loud and clear.
It was the Eclipse Panther!
But … meow?
What did it mean?
It was not only the four physicians, there was also the Empire of Ziyou's leading expert, a Perfected grandmaster expert. It was a must for him to have sharp ears and eyes.
He had also heard that cry, but he felt that it was inconceivable.
He almost thought that he had heard it wrong.
How could the Eclipse Panther meow?
This was a little strange.
…
At the same time, the Empire of Dayuan's returning troops had also reached a forest. Three people had succumbed to the poison and had fallen to the ground.
After a moment of panic, the group found out what had happened.
The Soul-Sealing Spike!
The old marshal of Dayuan's expression was grim.
"Han Sanhe! Everyone saw that you brought the School of Spring and Autumn with you. Why did you do this to the alliance? Why did you leave no room for maneuver? Could it be that advocating for the empires to join forces against Yutang was also part of his plan? Yes, yes. Dayuan has suffered the most in this trip to Yutang, even Sir Liang has perished in the Residence of Nine Supremes, but Dongxuan has suffered the least among all the empires. Everyone has left at the same time, only Han Sanhe has stayed. If it wasn't for this scheme, how could this have happened? "
The generals were also indescribably sorrowful and indignant, their hearts filled with rage.
Just as everyone was in a frenzy, trying to save the poisoned, an Eclipse Panther emerged from the forest and charged into the crowd.
It was a massacre!
When the guards and experts fought back, the Eclipse Panther's calf-sized body had already drifted to the top of the tree and left like a bolt of lightning, traveling thousands of miles away in the dense forest.
Looking at the mess and the dozen men killed by the Eclipse Panther, the Empire of Dayuan's generals could only feel the pain in their hearts, yet they had no tears left to cry.
Who would have thought that a ninth level mystical beast would jump out and attack a place that had been recognized as safe for generations, just as they were about to return home?
"Go back. Ask for the antidote from Han Sanhe immediately! "
"If he doesn't give it to us, we'd rather start a war!"
"Ask him to kowtow and apologize, or we won't let this go!"
…
The Empire of Tianci could not avoid the disaster as well.
The situation was basically the same as Dayuan and Ziyou. Three people had been poisoned by the Soul-Sealing Spike as well! Similarly, an Eclipse Panther had appeared and attacked.
In spite of this, Tianci's casualties were the lightest among the three empires. It was probably because the Empire of Tianci's reinforcement troop had been waiting here since a long time ago. Although the Eclipse Panther was a ninth level mystical beast, it was no match for the army.
It had only harassed them slightly before leaving.
In spite of this, the Empire of Tianci's army's rage was like a prairie fire that could not be suppressed.
"Han Sanhe!"
"Despicable scum, how dare he poison them!"
It was the same for the three empires. Something like this happening in front of everyone's eyes could not be covered up. Rumors about Han Sanhe's conspiracy spread like wildfire. The military was enraged.
…
Although the three empires had suffered heavy casualties, most of them had returned safely.
In spite of this, the journey back to Dongxuan for Han Sanhe and the rest was a turbulent one.
Dongxuan had sent a total of five thousand men to Yutang this time. When Zhan Ge and the rest left, they had only taken a thousand men with them to ensure Han Sanhe's safety.
Han Sanhe led the remaining four thousand men and the expert guards hidden among the troops. Their capabilities were formidable. If it were not for the official army's interception, ordinary forces would not have been able to stop them. However, ever since Han Sanhe's troop had left Tiantang City, they had been traveling day and night, but they had been met with continuous harassment and ambushes since the second night.
What was worse was that Han Sanhe had swiftly come to the conclusion that this level of harassment and ambushes was definitely not the work of Yutang's officials!
Because the attackers were all people of the pugilistic world!
Assassins of all kinds, gangs, forces, groups …
Sometimes, there was only one person who would charge in and kill for a while before leaving.
Sometimes, they would charge into the army in groups of three to five, charging in and out of the front and back to kill.
What was even more outrageous was that there were bandits who had set up roadblocks along the path they had to pass, specifically to stop Han Sanhe's army.
The journey back was truly a bloodbath for every inch of land and river; an inch of blood was no more than an inch of land and river!
Before the four thousand men had even traveled halfway, they had already lost more than three thousand and three hundred men!
There were less than seven hundred men left from the original four thousand men.
The casualties sent chills down Han Sanhe's spine even though he was a veteran of the battlefield. He vaguely knew that the assassination along the way could not have been arranged by anyone else; it was definitely the old scholar, He Hanqing, who was in Yutang City!
However, Han Sanhe could not figure out who the old scholar was, no matter how hard he racked his brains.
How could he have such a high influence in the martial world?
Other than the old man's own influence, he had even hired top-notch assassins to ambush them!
Along the way, The Merciless Tower's men had appeared three times while the Concourse of the Underworld's men had appeared a few times too!
As for the local forces, they were experts among experts as well. The lethality and terror of these ambushers was not something an ordinary army could withstand.
Of course, no matter how skilled these people were, they would never be a match for the strict military tactics. The problem was that Han Sanhe had too little manpower at hand.
"If I had twenty thousand men and horses, I'm confident that I can bury all the experts and assassins along the way, no matter what kind of experts and assassins they are … It's a pity …"
Han Sanhe heaved a long sigh.
What he said was true.
A martial artist against a soldier could be said to be a sure-win!
However, a thousand martial artists against a thousand soldiers would basically lose!
Even if their cultivation base was much higher than the soldiers', there was no exception.
Even if it was a Tenth Perfection grandmaster, if he were to fall into the encirclement of thousands of elite soldiers, with a marshal like Han Sanhe directing them, the grandmaster would only be left with a dead end in the military formation.
Along the way, however, none of the ambushers had fought Han Sanhe's army head-on.
They would leave immediately after killing a few of them, never lingering on the battle nor delving deeper.
Along the way, it was like a pack of wolves fighting a lion; they would take a bite and gain an advantage, then they would leave. Then, there would be a new pack of wolves coming up to bite the lion!
Faced with such a situation, even if Han Sanhe was exceedingly capable, he could only sigh helplessly.
A pack of wolves fighting a lion; no matter how ferocious the lion was, it would eventually be exhausted. Once it was exhausted, it would be buried in the wolves' mouths!
"Who is this He Hanqing? How can his forces be so vast? " Han Sanhe's face was already ashen. "Also, who ordered Bai Yixue to do this …"
"There's a mastermind behind all of this!"
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