The grass was flattened by the wind.
Although it was autumn, the temperature in the air did not drop. After passing Xinzhou City, there were fewer pedestrians on the road and in the mountains. Occasionally, there was a burnt smell in the wind. Shi Jin knew that it was the smell of burnt corpses.
The Jins had not come, but the vanguard of the Righteous Victory Army, who had surrendered to the Female Zhenren at Yanmen Pass, had already wreaked havoc in the area near Xinzhou City. When Shi Jin and the other six people passed Xinzhou City, the entire city had begun to be under martial law. The scattered Wusheng Army and half of the nearby Wuwei Army had entered Xinzhou City, ready to defend the city and wait for an opportunity to attack. But on the other side of the road, more people continued to head south, hoping to enter a big city like Taiyuan.
As people of the Lulin Forest, Shi Jin and the others were not slow. They set off in the evening and went north along the official road. When it was late at night, the road was already congested. They took some detours and passed Xinzhou City at midnight. A large number of officers and soldiers were entering the city through the gate. Torches stretched out, illuminating the whole city and the ancient city walls. The cries and chaos made such a night as noisy as the day. However, after passing Xinzhou, the light gradually went out. The seven people seemed to have entered a wild ancient land. They carefully chose the road and slowed down their speed.
In the process of going from dawn to dawn, the foothills were unusually silent. Occasionally, they could see the light of one or two torches. Probably the villagers walking in the nearby mountains had been left behind by the main force, but they were still fleeing to the south. They might not be safe, but at least, in such a late night, the main force would not act again.
As they moved forward, they could occasionally smell burnt corpses, which were left around yesterday evening. Fog gradually surged in the mountains in the early hours of the morning. When it was close to dawn, the white fog connected and stretched out. When they led their horses and quietly walked down a hill, they saw a faint red light burning in the fog in front of them.
It was a sign of burning flames, but there was no sound of people. They walked forward in the fog like a ship in the sea, and the smell of burning became stronger. The people walking in front first found the corpses lying in the small stream surrounding the village. There was a stone bridge in front of them, and in front of the stone bridge, there were dead people hanging on giant trees. The scenery in front of them gradually became clearer. Half of the village was still burning, but most of it had already been reduced to ashes.
Burnt and unburnt corpses appeared in front of him in a shocking manner. This was a mountain village that had been massacred and burned for most of the night.
There was no one alive.
Some of the houses in front of them had already collapsed, and the road through the village was also blocked. They walked around the village silently. In the floating fog, the ruins of the village next to them were burning. As they walked past, there were also houses that had collapsed and burned, giving off white smoke. It looked like a huge ship that had been hijacked and was burning and sinking on the sea.
In the fog, the seven of them led their horses, and surprisingly, they did not speak as they moved forward. Those who lived in the Greenwood Forest had more or less seen blood on their hands. Shi Jin, who had seen massacres on Liangshan, might be one of the other six. But perhaps there was no scene that could give them such a strong feeling of "sinking". Compared to the destructive power that came from the whole country, no single army or bandits could cause such a strong feeling of destruction, because everyone understood that the same scene might be happening in many places around them.
"This time the Golden Dog is heading south. The general commanding the western road is Guhan."
After passing the village and walking in front, the skinny inquisitor spoke in a low voice. His name was Qian Fei, and he was quite famous in the Yanmen Pass area. The so-called Huohan was Wanyan Zonghan's real name.
"Since Grandmaster Zhou was in the north, he has followed this army all the way in order to find out the truth. Guhan is one of the most powerful people in the Jin court. If we can kill him, we can solve the siege of this army. "
Among the seven people, except for Shi Jin and Qian Fei, the other five were divided into two groups. One group of three was the first to arrive at the restaurant. It seemed that they had been in the Greenwood Forest for a long time. They were called "Red Copper Hand" Wei Bao, "Heavy Sword" Fang Ya, and "Iron Hook" Chen Xiuqing. The other two were relatively young. One of them was a saber and the other a sword. It was said that they also had some hidden weapon skills. They were called "Hebei Double Heroes". One was Chen Xian, and the other was Tang Zuhan. But they did not seem to be very famous. According to them, they heard Takeshi's stories and felt that a great hero should serve the country and the people. So when they heard the news that the Female Immortal was heading south, they felt that they should come and do something.
For Shi Jin, among the six people, except for Qian Fei's lightness skill, the other people's kung fu was at most average or below average in Jianghu. Even the "Hebei Double Heroes" were not very strong. After passing Xinzhou City, they were obviously a little nervous. But at this time, it was difficult to ask for more.
When the sun rose, they heard the sound of horses' hooves shaking the ground. Qian Fei, the inquisitor, said, "We're almost at Dai County." They temporarily left their horses in the woods and went all the way forward. When they reached the edge of the woods, they could vaguely see the city wall in the distance.
A team of Golden Men galloped on the road outside, and the soldiers stationed on the city wall in the distance were already Female Immortal soldiers.
Smoke rose from the city and rose into the sky. In the county, there were all kinds of small sounds, as if there were countless people whispering, screaming, and screaming. They lay in the grass and listened for a moment. Qian Fei's fist hit the ground. "The city has been occupied …"
"Senior Zhou … how should we contact him?" Tang Zuhan asked anxiously.
Qian Fei shook his head. "I don't know. When I went south, it was my master who contacted Senior Zhou. Now that the war is so dangerous, I don't know where Senior Zhou is now. If he is in the city … we may have to wait until dark to go in to find him …"
"The Female Immortal is massacring the city." Chen Xiuqing said this through gritted teeth. "So what if we go in? Can we find Senior Zhou?"
"We have to try."
"Let's go around the city and see if there are any openings around …" Shi Jin lowered his voice and crawled backward in the grass. They accepted his idea and retreated into the woods to go around.
Perhaps it was because after the Female Immortal completely occupied the city, she had rushed out to kill the surrounding people. There were traces of people running in the woods. Occasionally, they saw arrows stuck in the ground and bodies exposed in the grass. The smell of blood permeated the air. Occasionally, there seemed to be a small team of Female Immortals walking in the woods. Fortunately, they all knew martial arts. Qian Fei had high attainments in lightness skills and camouflage, and Shi Jin had profound internal energy. It was not difficult for them to avoid these boring patrols. But when they saw the south gate of Dai County, a shocking scene appeared in front of them.
The south gate was filled with piles of civilian corpses. There seemed to be hundreds of them. The smell of blood had already dyed the road red and even pushed the roadside into a small swamp. There were also corpses stuck in the ground, hung on flagpoles, or on the city gate. Upon seeing such a scene, Tang Zuhan of "Hebei's Two Heroes" covered his mouth and almost vomited. Qian Fei gazed into the distance in the shadow of the tree. After a while, everyone saw him kneel down and slowly kowtow with tears streaming down his face.
"The one on the city gate … is my master …" He said simply. Among them, only Shi Jin had the highest internal energy and could clearly see the corpses hanging on the city gate. But he did not know that the master Qian Fei mentioned was the dwarf's corpse that was almost cut in half on the city gate.
At this moment, they heard a sound from the city wall. Then, two naked bodies were pushed down from the city by the Female Immortals on the city wall. They fell to their deaths.
Qian Fei clenched his teeth and said in a low voice, "Let's go again and see if there is a place nearby that we can enter …"
So they took another detour, but they could not find a place nearby that they could enter during the day. They hid in the nearby woods. Occasionally, Qian Fei and the others went to the city wall to see what was going on. The massacre in the city became clearer as the sun rose. From afar, they heard the "Hebei Double Heroes" talking about going out to kill the Female Immortals. After the city was breached, it was unknown how many people were found in the city, killed, humiliated, and tortured. Even Shi Jin could only grit his teeth at this time. At noon, he heard the "Hebei Two Heroes" discussing going out to kill the Female Daoist.
"They will always be separated. I will go and fight them …"
"Killing one is one, killing two is a pair. I can't stand this …"
Qian Fei clenched his fists. "Is it meaningful? Is it meaningful? "
"Anyway, we can't find Grand Master Zhou in this situation. If he is in the city, maybe at this time, he will …"
Although they said so, they did not really rush out to fight with their lives. In the afternoon, the sun shone through the gaps between the trees. Shi Jin looked up and suddenly felt a little confused about his hot-headed decision to go north. Of course, he had thought that he would die in the war, and he also thought about the possibility of turning around and running away. But now that he had come up with Qian Fei and the others, he could not find Zhou Dong, who he wanted to see. It was really unexpected.
He wanted to see Zhou Dong because he was concerned about Brother Lin. But even if he really saw him, he might not be able to say anything. He could accept fighting with his life or running away, but he did not know what to do here, which seemed a little silly, especially in such an environment. The Female Immortals were massacring the city, and many people were dying at every moment. It was especially silly not to know what to do.
"Otherwise, I won't find Zhou Dong and just get rid of these people. At that time, whether I turn around or fight with my life or sneak into the city, it will be much easier. " Such a thought came to his mind. At this time, Qian Fei, Wei Bao, Fang Ya, and Chen Xiuqing had already gone to explore the situation on the other side of the city wall. They heard the shaking of the earth.
Shi Jin and the "Hebei Double Heroes" hurried to the edge of the woods, but only found Qian Fei. From the side, the Female Immortals' banners came out of the south gate of Dai County. The cavalry formation spread like a huge torrent of war horses and banners. Shi Jin asked Qian Fei about the whereabouts of the three people. Qian Fei said, "The Female Immortals went out of the city to attack Xinzhou. The three of them went to other places to see if there was a place where the Female Immortals withdrew the city defense."
"The city defense hasn't been withdrawn." Shi Jin looked at the patrolling soldiers on the city wall and whispered, "Only a part of the people came out. The people inside are still killing people. I'm afraid they can't get in until nightfall."
Qian Fei nodded silently. They hid in the shadows, not far from the Female Immortals who went out of the city to the south. After watching for a long time, they saw people being driven out from the rear. Most of these people had their hands tied with long ropes. There were men and women, old and young, and they were tied up in strings. The Female Immortals' cavalry drove them desperately with whips, and the sound of crying filled the air. The desolate scene really made people want to rush out of it.
Shi Jin watched for a while, clenched his teeth, put his hands on the shoulders of the "Hebei Double Heroes", and whispered, "Let's go back …"
When they returned to the place where they had been hiding, they were still trembling. However, the other three people had not come back yet. After a while, they heard a commotion coming from not far away. Someone was shouting, "Go! Go! Ah ah — "Shi Jin recognized that it was" Heavy Sword "Fang Ya among the three people.
They had rushed in that direction with weapons in hand. The other side was also the edge of the woods, but it was a rugged slope. When they rushed over, they saw "Heavy Sword" Fang Ya and "Iron Hook" Chen Xiuqing running up with two other people. The two people were a man and a woman. They seemed to be civilians. The man was covered in blood, and the woman's clothes were ragged, barely enough to cover her body. Behind them were five Jurchen cavalrymen, and one of them was holding a human head in her hand.
Red Copper Hands Wei Bao's head.
They had arrived at Dai County, and one of their companions had already died before they even entered. Although they knew that these people might not be very skilled in martial arts, it was inevitable that they would feel a sense of defeat for not being able to achieve anything.
The 'Hebei Twin Heroes' shouted and rushed out together. Shi Jin gritted his teeth and leaped past the two of them in a few steps, running down. Seeing that reinforcements had arrived, one of the five Jurchen cavalrymen suddenly released a whistling arrow, which exploded in the sky. At that moment, 'Heavy Sword' Fang Ya was hit by the spear of a cavalryman who was charging at him. He vomited blood and flew into the air. On the other side, Shi Jin had already rushed over from the hillside. A Jurchen cavalryman brandished his spear. Shi Jin leaped into the air, his body curled up like an ape, and then suddenly exploded!
With a bang, the Jurchen cavalryman was sent flying by this powerful blow. His internal organs were most likely shattered. The warhorse, which was originally standing horizontally, was affected by the power of this strike. It actually lost its footing and tumbled down the hillside, causing dust and gravel to fly everywhere.
"Let's finish this quickly!"
Knowing that the other side had released a whistling arrow, the surrounding Jurchen patrols would immediately arrive. Shi Jin let out a low roar, waved his long staff in the dust, and charged forward. Qian Fei and the 'Hebei Heroes' had also rushed over. Together with 'Iron Hook' Chen Xiuqing, they suddenly clashed with the other four cavalrymen.
On the battlefield, victory and defeat were determined in a few breaths' time. Qian Fei and Chen Xiuqing attacked at almost the same time, killing a cavalryman. Chen Xian and Tang Zuhan also knocked a Female Immortal off her horse. Shi Jin was fighting two people alone. He knocked one of them off his horse, and the other cavalryman rushed over at high speed. Shi Jin and his spear brushed past each other, and the wooden stick smashed on the other party's body. The other party was smashed a few times in the air before falling to the ground with a rumble. Shi Jin snatched the spear, turned around, and stabbed the other cavalryman who had been knocked off his horse to death.
When he turned around, he saw that Chen Xian of the 'Hebei Heroes' was standing not far away in a daze. He and Tang Zuhan had knocked down a Jurchen cavalryman, but the other party was also very brave. He pulled out his saber and charged forward. The two of them joined forces, and Tang Zuhan chopped off the other party's head. At this moment, the saber was still embedded in the dead Female Immortal's head, and the other party's saber had cut off Chen Xian's right hand. At this moment, blood was spurting out from the wound. Tang Zuhan, who was watching from the side, was at a loss. Chen Xian also stood there in a daze, looking at his shoulder and the arm that was holding the sword on the ground. Under the sunlight, his body staggered and he fell backward.
Shi Jin rushed forward and mercilessly pressed several acupuncture points near his severed arm. Then, he tore a piece of cloth from his clothes and used it to tie up the wound on his shoulder. Chen Xian was still in a daze, unable to react. Not far away, 'Iron Hook' Chen Xiuqing was gasping for breath as he talked to Qian Fei and Shi Jin. "I, I, I … we went to see the city wall … and saw these Jurchen doing evil … There were only six of them, and we thought that we would definitely win, we thought …"
The three of them came together, but by this time, Wei Bao and Fang Ya were already dead, leaving him alone. Shi Jin turned around and shouted, "Ride! Go quickly! " Qian Fei had already turned over and mounted a warhorse. Chen Xiuqing, in her nervousness, also turned over and mounted a horse. Chen Xian pointed at the severed arm on the ground with his left hand. "My hand, my hand …"
"Your hand is gone!" Shi Jin shouted, and then said to Tang Zuhan, "Wait for him to run!" In the distance, arrows were flying over! About a dozen Jurchen patrols had already rushed over.
Shi Jin grabbed the long spear and turned over and mounted the horse. Tang Zuhan also hurriedly took Chen Xian to mount the horse. Chen Xian cried and said hurriedly, "My hand, my hand …" It was as if he didn't know that the blood from the severed arm had soaked half of his body.
Qian Fei rode out, grabbed the ragged woman on the slope, and laid her across the horse. Shi Jin also rushed over and reached out to catch another man who was covered in blood, but suddenly caught nothing. When he looked carefully, he saw that the man had been shot in the back by an arrow and had fallen to the ground, motionless.
Shi Jin reined in his horse and fixed his gaze on the dozen or so Jurchens who were charging at him. The Jurchens drew their bows and shot arrows at him. Shi Jin brandished his spear and knocked away the arrows. He then shouted at Foreplay and the others in a low voice and signaled them with his eyes. After they ran far away, he turned his horse around and galloped in a slightly different direction.
Not long after, the Jurchen patrol team was divided into two teams, and the larger team followed in the direction of Shi Jin's escape.
The warhorses chased, fled, fought, and ran into the mountains. And on the road parallel to them, a terrifying Jurchen army was heading south in the direction of Xinzhou City. A large number of civilians of the Wu dynasty were swept up in it. Every moment, someone died in whipping and crying.
*****
At night, the sun had already set in the sky. In the dim light brought by the stars, the Jurchen horseman stood in the mountains, steel saber in hand, quietly listening to the movements around him. At a certain moment, he suddenly turned in a certain direction, waved his hand, and drew his bow. The sound of horse hooves came galloping over. The figure of the warhorse suddenly rushed out and fiercely collided with the warhorse he was riding. The two warhorses collided in the darkness with a dull sound, and the arrow flew out with a bloody light into the night sky. The horsemen on the two warhorses were also knocked away, rolled on the ground several times, and then stood up.
The Jurchen warrior gripped his steel saber. The man in front of him stood up, but he stretched his arms. His figure was sturdy, tall, and well-proportioned. There were also wounds on his body, and there was blood at the corner of his mouth, but he was walking in this direction empty-handed. The Jurchen warrior let out a loud roar and brandished his saber as he charged over. The two figures collided under the starlight. In just two fierce exchanges, the steel saber had changed hands. The tall, unarmed man swung his saber five or six times in a row, each strike landing directly on the opponent's body.
The Jurchen's body exploded as if it had been cut into a wave of blood. When he fell to the ground, the speed at which he swung his saber slowed down. He swung his saber a few more times at the corpse on the ground before stopping.
"Nine-tattooed Dragon" Shi Jin. He wiped the blood off his steel saber in the mountain ridge and put it away. When he looked at the two warhorses again, he discovered that they had both been injured after the violent collision and were lying in a pool of blood, unable to walk. He sighed, turned his head to get his bearings, and then walked in the direction of Xin Province.
In the process of fleeing just now, he had killed all the Jurchen cavalry following him one by one. Among them were two Jurchen scouts who had just joined the chase. Although they were also injured, their injuries were not serious. Just like that, he continued to descend. In the outline of the mountain ridge not far away, he could vaguely see the ruins of the burning village that he saw in the morning. Now, it no longer carried any fire. In the darkness, it looked like a grave.
Shi Jin passed through the mountain ridge and encountered two Jurchen scouts on the way, but he killed them and stole a horse to continue walking in the mountains. When he reached a woodland, he suddenly sensed something and stopped his horse. A figure jumped down from a tree not far away. It was Qian Fei, who was in charge of scouting.
The two looked at each other and said nothing. Qian Fei led the way, and Shi Jin followed. In a certain place in the forest, Shi Jin saw several people running away. Chen Xiuqing curled up into a ball in the darkness, looking at a corpse in front of her. It was the corpse of the woman they had saved. She had stabbed a saber into her chest. It seemed that she had committed suicide. Not far away, Chen Xiuqing, one of the "Two Heroes of Hebei", whose arm had been severed, was lying under a tree. Tang Zuhan sat beside him in a daze.
Seeing the highly skilled Shi Jin quietly come, Chen Xiuqing and Tang Zuhan seemed to become a little more clear-headed. Shi Jin looked at the corpse of the woman who had committed suicide. Chen Xiuqing looked at him in the darkness. "We, we didn't save a single person … we didn't save a single person …"
Qian Fei whispered a few words to the side. In fact, even if he didn't explain, Shi Jin would have thought of it. That woman was previously in rags, and even though she had suffered such humiliation, she had still desperately fled. But when she ran here, she could calm down and think clearly, but she had committed suicide. In the end, it seemed that the deaths of "Scarlet Copper Hands" Wei Bao and "Heavy Sword" Fang Ya had been worthless.
Shi Jin couldn't say anything and went over to Chen Xiuqing and Tang Zuhan. Chen Xiuqing's arm had been severed, but it seemed that it had been bandaged and he was still breathing. Shi Jin watched for a moment and unexpectedly woke up in a daze. He looked at the people around him and said in a weak and hoarse voice, "I'm useless, kill me … I'm useless …"
Shi Jin carried the steel saber on his back, picked up a long spear, stood up, took a deep breath, and said, "This is war."
Last night, there were still seven people who came up, but they hadn't done anything yet. Now there were only five people left alive, and one of them had a severed arm. But in any case, this was a battlefield. In the afternoon, Shi Jin still felt empty and didn't know what he was doing, but now he knew clearly. This was war. The army of the Jurchen was still moving south like a torrent, scattered and surrounded by countless scouts. Countless people wanted to resist, and countless people would be crushed like this. In such a situation, the power of one or a few people was really insignificant.
"You may be useful in the future if you are alive. This is war. "Shi Jin clenched the long spear in his hand." I'm going to Xinzhou. "
Qian Fei looked at him. "To help defend the city?"
"Dai County has been breached, and it's not big enough. Xinzhou City is big enough. After the city is breached, there will be street fighting. At this time, the situation is the most chaotic. If Guohan enters the city, we will have the possibility to assassinate him. " Shi Jin said, "If Grand Master Zhou is not dead, he may have the best chance to kill him there. In any case, I want to see him. "
Chen Xiuqing and Tang Zuhan looked over. Qian Fei was silent for a long time, took a breath, and looked at Shi Jin. "I wanted to go back to Dai County and find a way to save Master's body and bury it, but what you said makes sense … I'll go with you."
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