(Guys, I'm learning how to operate the book review on the new website. If I learn it, I can add a smart chat. A few days ago, I looked at both. I was tired, and I didn't know how to play. Really, I'm scratching my head. Also, the monthly votes are back in fifth place. Haha, I'll pull again, pull again. Also, of course, I'm not a lesbian. I'm a male, middle-aged, fat kind.)
…
…
The assassin's head flipped back. Only that lonely and thin spine hung upside down behind him. A blood-red and disgusting cavity faced the blue sky that had stopped snowing.
Without time to catch his breath, Fan Xian pulled out the long sword stuck in the snow. His feet pushed off the ground, and his body curled into a ball. He retreated backward with incredible speed. After his body curled into a ball, the area that was exposed to the air became smaller. The grey-white Overwatch Council robes covered his entire body without a single hole.
The sound of crossbows rang out in the field. It was as somber as the Xihu iron zither, but it all shot around Fan Xian's body. His movements were truly too fast. Even the fastest crossbows could not accurately hit him.
Occasionally, a few crossbow bolts hit, but they were unable to pierce through his body.
Fan Xian swept to the top of the city-guarding crossbow. Circulating the remaining Tyrannical zhenqi in his body, he flipped his hand up.
How much strength did this require?
The massive city-guarding crossbow spun in the air and smashed into the two city-guarding crossbows beside it.
In this short moment, Fan Xian flipped his hand and flicked the tip of his sword, hitting the crossbow's spring in the air. The crossbow had already been nocked and was at its most critical moment.
The Emperor's sword that Wang Qinian had sent thousands of years ago was indeed a precious blade rarely seen in the world. Wherever the edge of the sword passed, the spring string snapped without reason.
The surrounding assassins panicked and roared angrily. They charged toward Fan Xian, but they ignored the problem of the city-guarding crossbows.
Creak, creak. A series of shocking sounds rang out at the top of the snowy mountain. With three loud bangs, the city-guarding crossbows smashed together and immediately changed their direction. One of the spring strings had already been cut by Fan Xian. The fully metal crossbow bolt, which had been charging for a long time, finally shot out.
However, it was not aimed at the valley. It was aimed at the ground.
The powerful recoil caused the massive city-guarding crossbow to jump up. It flipped up half the height of a person and directly pressed down on the group of people chasing Fan Xian.
When it ran over, it left a mangled mess of flesh and broken limbs.
The two City Guarding Crossbows that had been smashed were no longer able to control the bowstrings on the crossbow mechanism. With two whooshing sounds, the crossbow bolts flew out without any direction, shooting out randomly!
Two streaks of sharp light flashed past, and one of the crossbow bolts hit an old tree. How could the trunk withstand such a powerful force? The bark was difficult to fly, and the hardwood was sliced apart like tofu, creating a large hole in the middle. Immediately after, the tree broke off from the center of the hole and collapsed with a loud bang.
The damage caused by the other crossbow bolt was even more shocking. It directly pierced through the bodies of the three snipers, directly impaling them on the snowy ground!
Fresh blood flowed along the terrifying crossbow arrow onto the snowy ground, and the three snipers who had been pierced into meat skewers were unable to die immediately, moaning incessantly.
Chaos ensued.
…
…
Taking advantage of the chaos, Fan Xian once again hid himself in the snowy forest. Leaning on a tree branch, he panted heavily. He had to be careful not to let the blood on his back fall off the snowy tree and alert the snipers.
The other party had crossbows in their hands. If another group of crossbowmen surrounded the heavily injured Fan Xian, Fan Xian was not confident he could survive.
His mission had already been completed. The density of crossbow bolts in the snowy forest had decreased greatly. The deaths of the three leaders made the ambushers feel a chill in their hearts and panic. Without anyone to command and without the suppressive effect of the three city-guarding crossbows, the pressure on the black carriages in the valley immediately lessened greatly.
Fan Xian leaned on a tree branch and listened to the movements in the forest across from him. He knew that the Shadow had already gotten ahead of him and had already disturbed the camp on that mountain. The morale of the ambushers was in chaos. The assassins of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council finally had their chance to show off.
The people of the Overwatch Council knew where the opportunity was. Without waiting for their leader to give the order, they had long charged out of the carriages. Pulling out the black metal drills at their sides, they dodged the already sparse rain of crossbows and silently and angrily snuck into the forest.
In the carriage, they had long put on their black official robes inside out. Like ash-white ghosts, they entered the snowy forest and began to use their methods and resentment to kill any living thing in the snowy forest at all costs.
An ambush and crossbow battle that had been planned for a long time finally became a close combat battle in the woods under the reckless attacks of Fan Xian and the Shadow, these two aces.
In this world, no one was better at killing than the assassins of the Sixth Bureau of the Overwatch Council.
Even the most powerful Qing army in the world was no match for the Sixth Bureau in a close combat battle in the dense forest.
Listening to the strange silence in the snowy forest, the occasional sound of crossbows, the occasional sound of breaking snow, the occasional sound of metal drills entering the abdomen, and the occasional wretched cry …
Fan Xian knew that his subordinates already held an absolute advantage. The revenge killing was being carried out methodically. After the 200 crossbowmen who had ambushed the Overwatch Council had caused heavy casualties, they had no chance of survival.
His heart, which had been tense all this time, finally relaxed.
…
…
There were no survivors. Just as Fan Xian had predicted, the swordsmen of the Sixth Bureau were ruthless and did not leave a single survivor. Of course, this was not just because the Sixth Bureau was ruthless. When the battle was about to end, the remaining 20 crossbowmen committed suicide in unison.
Fan Xian stood on the snowy ground and looked coldly at the 20 bodies on the ground. Looking at the faces of these bodies, he found that there was no sorrow or fear on their faces. There was only determination and loyalty.
The Qing army was indeed the most powerful martial force in the world. If this kind of discipline and valiance were placed on the battlefield, it would be a terrifying power.
Of the 30 or so Overwatch Council officials in the black carriage in the valley, only 20 or so were able to enter the snowy forest alive. Just these 20 people had killed over 100 crossbowmen.
In the woods on either side of the snowy valley, behind the dark rocks and under the trees, there should still be a number of bodies whose blood had already frozen.
Fan Xian's state of mind was agitated. He coughed and coughed up some blood. Slowly turning around, he looked at the bloody person on the ground.
This person was covered in blood. One of his eyeballs had been pierced by a dagger. It was as ugly as a deflated wineskin. Both of his arms had been neatly chopped off. There was a bloody hole in his left hand, and his right hand had been broken by the Tyrannical zhenqi.
This was one of the three aces earlier. He had attacked Fan Xian from behind and had fearlessly held onto Fan Xian as he died. Unexpectedly, in the end, he had become the only survivor among the assassins.
Fan Xian walked to this person's side and slowly raised his foot. Stepping on this person's face, he woke him up.
The bloody person slowly woke up. His soulless gaze swept in all directions. He saw the Overwatch Council secret agents around Fan Xian and the bodies of his brothers scattered in the woods. After a wave of grief, he became determined. Suddenly, a pitiful expression shot out of his eyes. Enduring the pain, he said in a trembling voice, "Sir, don't kill me. I'm willing to do anything …"
It was a teeth-closing sound.
Fan Xian's hand moved like lightning. He inserted his finger into the person's mouth and pulled forcefully. The person's jaw was pulled off by a bloody chunk. It could no longer be closed. Even a few teeth fell out.
Fan Xian stretched out his hand and wiped away the blood on it in the snow beside him. "Don't think about killing yourself. You're still useful to me. Now that you don't even have a hand and can't close your mouth, how can you prove your loyalty with death?"
"Help him stop the bleeding and keep him alive," Fan Xian ordered the subordinate beside him.
He then slowly walked toward the snowy valley at the foot of the mountain. As he walked, he coughed up blood. Blood gradually flowed down his back.
Hong Changqing followed behind him and wanted to help him up, but he stubbornly shook off his hand.
Hong Changqing's luck was not bad. He had not died under the rain of crossbows. He had only suffered a light injury to his left arm.
However, the other people of the Overwatch Council were not so lucky. Of the 30 or so trusted aides who had followed Fan Xian back to the capital, half of them were dead. Those who were alive were all injured and weak.
As they walked toward the valley, the Overwatch Council officials along the way bowed slightly in greeting. This was respect for the commissioner from the bottom of their hearts. Everyone knew that if the commissioner had not fearlessly launched a sneak attack, the people of the Overwatch Council would probably all have died in this valley.
The Overwatch Council officials gradually gathered behind Fan Xian. Dragging the only survivor, they returned to the valley beside the broken carriages.
…
…
Fan Xian crouched beside his overturned carriage. His fingers pulled at the shattered shaft. Occasionally, he glanced at the dead driver in the carriage. His expression was calm. No one knew what he was thinking. He had also refused the Overwatch Council subordinates' request to treat his wounds.
Why? Why was all of this?
The valley was filled with provincial soldiers' corpses. Which faction was so daring to carry out an ambush in a valley so close to Jingdou? Who had the power to mobilize so many aces from the military and even move the city-guarding crossbows?
The city-guarding crossbows were the second point of suspicion in this attack. The assassin needed time to set up the crossbows and needed to make a lot of noise. Why did the Jingdou Garrison responsible for the safety of the Jingdou countryside not sense anything at all?
What chilled Fan Xian the most was how the other party was able to calculate the time of his return to the capital so accurately. From Yingzhou to Weizhou, he had purposely set up a diversion and had the Jiangnan water bandits send out fake news. Then, he had gone straight in. If they wanted to assassinate him, these soldiers would not have dared to lie in ambush near Jingdou for too long. How could they have calculated the time so accurately?
Even more terrifying was that although he was close to Jingdou, Fan Xian did not let down his guard. He had sent out spies from a distance of three li. Why was the initial report from the spies that everything was normal? Did the spies not notice the abnormality in the valley? Until the Shadow beat him to the warning …
Countless questions surged into Fan Xian's mind, particularly in one area, which made his entire body cold.
The situation today was completely different from the one in the Hanging Temple.
Today's situation was a dead end. The other party had used such great power and meticulous preparation. Without question, it was to kill him. If it was the Eldest Princess who incited Yan Xiaoyi to act, then a great change must have already happened in Jingdou for the other party to be so unbridled and dare to look down on the Emperor. However, if there was truly chaos in Jingdou, even if the Palace could not send out news, what about you?
Fan Xian thought darkly. But what about you? Even if everyone in the world was frozen, you must have a way to notify me.
This was a mutually contradictory proposition. If there was no great chaos in Jingdou, then it could not explain why the Eldest Princess and Yan Xiaoyi dared to do such a thing. If Jingdou was truly in chaos, why did he not receive a warning?
…
…
"My lord, it's time to make a decision." A member of the Qinian Unit, whose face was covered in dried blood, spoke quietly by Fan Xian's ear. The member of the Qinian Unit had been with Fan Xian the longest, so his words were more direct. In a heavy voice, he said, "Should we retreat to Weizhou and first make contact with Jingdou, or should we directly enter Jingdou?"
Fan Xian was silent. He glanced at his heavily injured subordinates around him and knew he had to make a decision immediately.
If the capital really was in chaos, returning to the capital would be suicide.
He was silent for a long time. Suddenly, he raised his head and looked at the faintly visible outline of Jingdou outside the valley. Coldly and valiantly, he said, "Send out the signal for fireworks."
"Yes."
A flaming arrow rushed into the sky from the snowy valley, carrying a shocking roar, carrying dazzling radiance, completely covering this great snowy sky and the dim sun.
This was the Overwatch Council's distress signal. The entire Qing Kingdom's military and the Overwatch Council used this signal. Thus, Fan Xian was not sure whether the people who would be coming into the valley to receive him would be from the military or the Overwatch Council.
He hoped it was the former.
— —
After an indeterminable amount of time, the urgent sound of horse hooves came from outside the valley. Horses neighed repeatedly. In the blink of an eye, a group of about 200 riders rode into the valley. These riders wore bright armor and held swords and spears at their sides. They were very solemn, but they didn't even have time to raise their banners.
In Fan Xian's eyes, not raising a banner was even more strange. Having just experienced a bloody assassination, he didn't trust anyone.
The leader was a middle-aged man of about 30. His expression was solemn, and a short beard fluttered below his chin. At his waist was a sword. However, there was a glimmer of confusion in his solemn expression.
When he saw the corpses and horse corpses all over the mountain and valley, the overturned carriages everywhere, and the crossbow bolts embedded in the cracks of the rocks, other than confusion, there was boundless shock and hidden anger in this general's solemn expression.
The general clenched his right fist and swung it up. In a loud voice, he shouted, "On guard."
The 200 riders behind him immediately became alert and watched everything in the valley.
The person's expression was dark as he rode into the valley. He rode directly to Fan Xian's side, who was sitting by the carriage. Very confidently, he flipped off the horse. Holding the long sword in his hand, he asked in a heavy voice, "Are you okay?"
Fan Xian coughed and looked at him. "What do you think?"
"Who did this?" The general's face was full of murderous intent as he spoke through gritted teeth.
Fan Xian lowered his head and suddenly said, "I didn't think that the person who came would be you. Is there no other general in the Jingdou Garrison? To have disturbed you, the Commander, to come and save people. "
The person who came was the second son of the Qin family, the present commander of the Jingdou Garrison, and the most popular military figure in the court, Qin Heng.
Qin Heng saw that Fan Xian was alive and could still speak. He knew that the enemies had certainly been purged. Only then did he relax and sigh. "The Overwatch Council's first-level request for help. Everyone in Jingdou knows you're about to return. Of course, they guessed it was you. I was scared to death. How could I not come?"
He lowered his voice and self-mockingly said, "If you died, who knows how many people in the Jingdou Garrison would be buried with you."
In reality, the moment he saw Qin Heng enter the valley, Fan Xian had relaxed. Since the Qin family still controlled the power of the Jingdou Garrison, it meant that the Emperor still controlled the Jingdou Army. There shouldn't be any trouble in Jingdou.
He still asked, "Is Jingdou alright?"
Qin Heng understood what he was worried about. He shook his head and said, "Everything is calm."
Fan Xian lowered his head and said, "Then … that is truly strange."
Qin Heng also understood what he meant. If everything was calm in Jingdou … who would risk the Emperor's anger to assassinate a dragon?
…
…
Fan Xian briefly recounted the day's events to Qin Heng. Qin Heng listened with incomparable fear. He furrowed his brows and said, "These people truly have wild ambitions and do not die."
Fan Xian suddenly looked at him and asked, "You are in charge of the Jingdou Garrison. For such a powerful army to be buried in this valley so close to Jingdou … how do you explain this?"
"Unable to explain," Qin Heng straightforwardly said. "This is our problem."
Fan Xian nodded.
Qin Heng said, "Go back, your injury needs to be treated." He then sighed and said, "These people were very ruthless. Have all your subordinates died?"
"No." Fan Xian coughed and smiled slightly. "My subordinates are all waiting for you."
A dozen Overwatch Council secret agents slowly walked out of the woods on either side of the valley. They all held crossbows in their hands. Calmly and coldly, they faced Qin Heng and the Jingdou Garrison responsible for clearing the bodies in the valley.
Qin Heng's expression changed slightly. "What? You don't believe me? "
"Who do you think I can trust now?" Fan Xian smiled mockingly. "Don't forget, I almost became a ghost earlier."
Qin Heng silently shook his head and helplessly said, "If you feel that pointing these little crossbows at me will make you feel more at ease, then you can do it." He then furrowed his brows and said, "How about I accompany you back to the capital first? You might feel much safer there. Leave the clearing work in this valley to the Jingdou Garrison. This has always been our job."
This successor of the Qin family calmly and seriously said, "If it is really as you say and there is a military power involved in this matter, believe me, the Qin family will certainly help you get justice."
Fan Xian shook his head and said, "There's no need. Let's go together. I want to keep these bodies."
Qin Heng knew what kind of anger was hidden under Fan Xian's calm expression. He nodded and looked at the sniper at Fan Xian's feet, who was on the verge of death but not yet dead. He asked, "What about this survivor? I'm afraid the Emperor will personally interrogate him. "
Fan Xian said expressionlessly, "All the dead people in this valley are mine. The living are also mine."
…
…
They temporarily ignored the bodies of the provincial soldiers. They only carried out the officials of the Overwatch Council who had died in the line of duty. They also gathered the bodies of the assassins who had died in the woods on both sides.
Fan Xian looked at the cold bodies of his subordinates and tilted his head slightly. He then glanced at the bodies of the ambushers and quietly said, "Take good care of the bodies of our own brothers. As for these people … why are they dragging so many bodies? Chop off all their heads and bring them back to the capital. "
At the side, Hong Changqing accepted the order in a loud voice.
Qin Heng watched this scene from the side and furrowed his brows slightly. If there were no surprises, these bodies were all good soldiers of the military. Although they had become murderers of the court's imperial envoys because of internal strife in the court, their deaths were not to be regretted. However, Fan Xian's humiliating bodies still seemed to make this young general feel a glimmer of discomfort.
Fan Xian completely ignored Qin Heng's feelings beside him. With a mocking expression, he watched his subordinates chop off heads.
After everything had been tidied up, the remaining bloodied bodies, horse corpses, and broken carriages in the valley were taken care of by follow-up people from the court.
Half of the 200 Jingdou garrison riders dismounted and carefully helped the bodies of the Overwatch Council officials onto their horses. At the same time, they had the injured Overwatch Council officials get on their horses.
This was all Qin Heng's decision. He knew that at this juncture, he had to think of all ways to pacify Fan Xian's anger and the Overwatch Council's anger.
The Overwatch Council and the military had always had a close relationship and a long friendship. Because of the battle in this little valley, a wound that would never be healed would certainly appear.
After Fan Xian also got on his horse, Qin Heng flipped himself up and calmly said to his side, "Have you ever thought that if the military truly wanted to harm you … I could completely kill all of you right now."
The Overwatch Council officials had already put away their crossbows. They were all heavily injured after the calamity. Qin Heng brought 200 riders, so he indeed had the confidence to say these words.
However, Fan Xian didn't even glance at him.
Behind the two of them were the horses carrying the bodies of the Overwatch Council officials. Suddenly, the body on one of the horses bounced up.
The corpse was like a ghost that flashed across the distance between the three horses. It lightly floated behind Qin Heng and sat on his horse. It pressed tightly against his chest. It was so intimate … it was like his shadow.
Qin Heng paled in shock. He only had time to draw the sword at his waist halfway when he felt the person behind him gently blow a breath of air on the back of his neck. It was very cold.
Qin Heng knew that he had been caught off guard. Given the terrifying skills of the person behind him, if the other party wanted to kill him in such a situation, even if the Great Grandmaster Ye Liuyun came, he would not be able to save him.
The shadow behind him was disguised as a common secret agent. He wore gray and white clothing. His head was lowered as if he was dozing off.
Qin Heng was silent. He sheathed his sword and glanced at Fan Xian. Fan Xian didn't look at him. He only narrowed his eyes and looked at Jingdou in the distance.
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