Because it was difficult to write, it was a bit slow. The contents of this chapter satisfied my long-suppressed desire for a story. I wrote what I wanted to write. I am very pleased …
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At the T-junction, the two groups of riders, who were going to use their collisions to decide life and death, swept out of their respective alleys like two gusts of wind. In the empty space in the northwest corner of the square in front of the Palace, they collided together viciously.
In the instant before the collision, the black cavalrymen who were charging forward at high speed were fully armored. They held the reins in one hand and did not hold any swords or spears in the other. Instead, they held their crossbows horizontally. Before anyone could react, they pulled the trigger!
The Qing Kingdom's riders were skilled in the art of mounted archery. In such a head-on charge, they were usually used to facing each other with knives and spears. Basically, no one would use crossbows to charge. The crossbows themselves were heavy. Furthermore, in such a short distance, if one's movement was slightly slower, the two sides would probably collide before the crossbow could be fired.
However, the Black Knights were different. From the first day they entered the Overwatch Council, they had developed this habit. Holding the crossbow with one hand, they remained steady. More accurately speaking, the nearly 1,000 Black Knights of the Overwatch Council were, in reality, a powerful mass assassination and surprise attack weapon.
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The sound of the arrows breaking through the air rang out. In such a short distance, hundreds of sharp and poisoned crossbow bolts all shot out. They did not give the riders suddenly coming from Zhengyang Gate any chance to resist.
After countless muffled sounds, countless riders in the front of the riders suddenly coming from Zhengyang Gate were hit by the crossbow bolts and fell tragically from their horses. However, some persevered on their horses and pulled out knives. With a wild roar, they hacked at the riders coming closer and closer.
The Black Knights abandoned their crossbows and pulled out knives from under their saddles. With a backhand slash, the knife turned into a snowy light and directly chopped off the rider's head.
Two hundred Shadow Knights performed the same action at the same time. They abandoned their crossbows cleanly, drew their swords with the force of mountains and rivers, and slashed at the enemy's head with a soul-stirring slash. Two hundred men neatly performed such a difficult attack, and it looked extremely beautiful on the battlefield.
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On one side was the group of rebel riders who had bitterly attacked Zhengyang Gate. After being strangled for a long time by over a thousand Overwatch Council subordinates and imperial soldiers, they had finally managed to clear a path and arrived with great difficulty in front of the Royal Palace. On one side was the mysterious Black Knights who had endured silently for a long time and built up their strength. Once the Commissioner gave the order, they would deliver the Overwatch Council's most powerful attack.
The momentum, spirit, and physical strength of both sides were originally not that far apart due to the current situation. However, the gap was suddenly pulled to a point where it was impossible to bear on the battlefield.
The 200 Black Knights were like a heated knife. They charged into the Qin Family cavalry with incomparable sharpness. They easily and happily cut open a large hole in the formation of the cavalry that had reached into the square of the Royal Palace. Following the countless spurts of blood and corpses falling from their horses, the Black Knights successfully broke through the Qin Family cavalry. They separated Qin Heng and the 300 riders from the main group, making them an isolated army.
The Black Knights' riding skills were superb. Amidst their speed, they successfully changed their formation. The entire group suddenly scattered. The riders charging at the very front pulled on the reins to the right. Relying on their extraordinary speed and powerful momentum, they blocked off the main group of riders behind them.
The remaining 100 or so Black Knights stabbed to the left like a pack of wolves. They quickly picked their targets and pressed close to where Qin Heng was in the Vanguard camp. They stuck closely together and used the knives in their hands to bite and kill.
In an instant, the Vanguard camp Qin Heng was in had suffered heavy casualties. The hearts of the main group of riders in the back had been shaken by this thunderous attack. For a moment, they were unable to charge forward to help. Although there were many rebel soldiers in the square, there was still a distance between them. Particularly as the rebel army was changing their formation, the situation was slightly chaotic. Looking at the Black Knights' lightning-like speed, no one knew whether or not they would be able to completely kill these hundreds of riders when the main group came to surround them.
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The hooves of the horses were like thunder. The horses under the Black Knights silently advanced with all their might. The horses under the Qin family riders neighed and ran wildly, just like the mood of their masters on their backs. The speed of the Black Knights' pursuit was too fast. In a moment, they had chased Qin Heng's Vanguard camp into the square for some distance and separated from the main group behind them.
This scene was truly frightening to watch. There were rebel soldiers all around them. The old Qin Master and Ye Zhong had long reacted. They ordered the rebel soldiers to quickly close up the gap in the northwest. They had to make contact with Qin Heng before the Black Knights succeeded.
If they allowed the tens of thousands of rebel soldiers to successfully surround them, no matter how tyrannical the Black Knights were, only death awaited them. Even if the Black Knights successfully followed Fan Xian's orders to kill Qin Heng, they would probably still die in the end. However, the Black Knights, led by Jing Ge, did not seem to consider this at all. Under the gazes of tens of thousands of people, surrounded by countless rebel soldiers, and in the spacious square in front of the Palace, they fearlessly chased after the tail of Qin Heng's Vanguard camp bravely and somewhat arrogantly.
Dust gradually rose. Under the eyes of tens of thousands of rebel soldiers, a hundred or so Black Knights chased after hundreds of elite Qin family riders. This kind of decisive stance, this kind of arrogant and disdainful aura, and this heart-shaking scene would remain in people's memories for a long time.
In a dragon of dust, hundreds of riders risked their lives in pursuit from the northwest corner of the square all the way to the center of the square.
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Qin Heng was not a weakling. Otherwise, he could not have become the second youngest Commander of the Jingdou Garrison after Ye Zhong at the age of 30. He also could not have become the Deputy of the Bureau of Military Affairs at such a young age. As for the situation on the battlefield, this second-generation leading figure of the Qin family had, without question, his own wisdom and judgment.
He was good at leading troops and reacted quickly. When the shadows of the Black Knights appeared beside his eyes, he immediately made a decision and carried out the first head-on charge. As long as they could stand against the first wave of attacks, the main force in the rear would continue to come. The opponent's mere 200 riders would not be able to affect them at all.
However, the battle in Jingdou was truly too different from the killing on the battlefield. The street fighting under Zhengyang Gate was also very different from the street fighting described in military books. Qin Heng had never thought that the Overwatch Council, a department that relied on intelligence and assassination, would be able to explode with such power in street fighting and cause the Qin family riders to suffer heavy losses. At the same time, they had used up too much of their morale, mental, and physical strength.
The most important thing was that Qin Heng had never thought that a mere two hundred Black Knights would actually have such a powerful aura, a fast charging force, and an extremely cold killing method.
He had never thought that the 500 riders in the Vanguard would not even be able to stand against the opponent's first wave of attacks and be ruthlessly cut in half by the opponent.
Qin Heng's heart was cold, but his reaction was strangely fast. He whipped his horse and did not stay where he was to fight against the Black Knights. Instead, he increased his speed and led his riders toward the center of the square. All around them were rebel soldiers. As long as they entered the encirclement, the Black Knights could only wait for death.
What he had to do was be fast, as fast as possible.
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It should be said that Qin Heng's reaction was strangely fast. The training of the Qin family riders was also very effective. Although the Black Knights were like a pack of wolves charging and biting, the Vanguard still successfully escaped from the Ding family road into the square.
However, the Black Knights were faster and more ruthless. They were not left behind at all. Instead, they faintly formed an encirclement. The silver-masked leader of the Black Knights charged over from the side. He was only three horse lengths away from Qin Heng.
A cold light shot out of Qin Heng's eyes inside his helmet. The bravery of the Black Knights was beyond his expectations. The other party actually dared to chase him deep into the rebel army's encirclement. It looked like they were prepared to stab him to death even if it meant risking their lives. However, he knew that the Black Knights' ambush had already failed. He knew that his old father would not just watch him die.
At the same time, the rebel army's camp change was halfway through. They discovered that Qin Heng was in deep danger. Naturally, they sent out two large groups to come to his aid. At the same time, they intended to completely wipe out the Black Knights who seemed to have suddenly descended from the heavens. However, these two groups were still some distance away from the dust dragon. Most of them were infantry. If they could keep up with the Black Knights' ambush and Qin Heng's extraordinary speed of running for his life …
At this moment, a mighty order rang out from the rebel army's camp. "Release!"
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There was the Lord God tablet on the palace walls. The rain of arrows did not have the glory of landing. The soul-stirring scene in the square could not stop the old Qin Master's determination. Following this order, countless arrows flew toward the dust dragon.
The sound of the arrows piercing through the air rang out in a continuous stream. It enveloped all of the riders who were fighting with their lives on the line. They did not care that the Black Knights were chasing their own riders.
Qin Heng had long guessed that his father would never have any hesitation on the battlefield. He also knew that this rain of arrows would arrive. His face was ashen, and the high speed caused his lips to turn white. Before the rain of arrows arrived, he had already flipped his body and shot towards the back of his mount.
The merciless arrows pierced into everyone's bodies, breaking through the bodies of the charging cavalrymen. The spinning arrows tore through the cavalrymen's light armor, pierced through the human's brittle skin, and pierced into their internal organs and bones!
In an instant, the riders on both sides charging at high speed were attacked by the rain of arrows at the same time. One by one, they fell off their horses and fell to the ground. Their bones and flesh separated from their bodies with a series of muffled thuds.
Regardless of whether it was the Qin family's riders or the Overwatch Council's Black Knights, they all met the same fate, a wretched fate.
Although the Black Knights' armor was specially made by the palace treasury's Third Workshop and was lighter and better than the Qing army's elite armor, they still suffered heavy losses under this round of arrow rain. The Qin family's own riders also met with a disaster.
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The Crown Prince abruptly turned his head and looked at the old Qin Master in disbelief. It was as if he had not thought he would give such a terrifying order. Was he not worried about Qin Heng's life or death? Furthermore, these 200 Black Knights could not cause any major damage. To use this rain of arrows to kill without distinguishing between friend and foe, was he not worried that it would destabilize the army's morale?
The old Qin Master narrowed his eyes. A cold light shone through the two small cracks. Of all the people present, only he knew what the goal of the Black Knights was. Only he knew that if he allowed these 200 Black Knights to continue their pursuit, the vanguard camp led by Qin Heng would not be able to escape before the rebel army's reinforcements arrived.
He knew the power of the Black Knights. He thought that Fan Xian's arrangement at Zhengyang Gate and the Black Knights lying in ambush here were all because of the words that had made him extremely angry earlier on the palace walls.
"I want the Qin family line to end without descendants!"
The old Qin Master was a ruthless person. Since Fan Xian wanted to end his line, he would rather do it himself than humbly watch as the people Fan Xian had arranged killed his son. Furthermore, how could the son of the Qin family die so easily?
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Qin Heng did not die. His mount was covered in arrows. After two mournful cries, it fell heavily toward the ground. Because he had been prepared, although he had been hit heavily by the forward roll of the horse after it fell to the ground and the armor on his body even created countless weak sparks because of the friction with the ground, he had already dissipated most of the force. Furthermore, with the cover of his mount, he was not hit by the arrows.
There was only one wave of arrows, and then it stopped. Most of the pursuing cavalrymen had already fallen into pools of blood. Although the Shadow Cavalry had more survivors, they had also lost their mounts and suffered heavy or light injuries. However, they did not panic. Instead, they continued to raise their sabers and charged at the Qin Family cavalrymen who had fallen to the ground.
At this time, Qin Heng had already stood up. The rebel army reinforcements around him also quickly approached.
Jing Ge, the silver-masked Deputy Commander of the Black Knights, had become the tip of the Black Knights' spear from the beginning of the battle. With the most decisive stance and the fastest speed, he stared fixedly at Qin Heng, not letting him out of his line of sight.
As the rain of arrows came, Jing Ge and his horse also received a terrible blow. An arrow very cleverly passed through the armor on his body and slanted into his left shoulder. A streak of blood quickly seeped out. The front legs of the horse under him also weakened and silently fell to the ground.
His feet landed heavily on the saddle. In the instant that the rain of arrows stopped, he held the long black spear in his hand and leapt out like a wolf king. Carrying with it a thirst for blood that had been hidden for many years, his power could not be stopped.
The distance of 30 feet was covered in a flash. Qin Heng had just pulled his leg out from under his horse and stood up with great difficulty. It looked like his mental and physical strength had been exhausted to the extreme. With the sharp killing intent of the black spear pointed at him, it seemed that he could only wait helplessly for death.
But no one would have thought that Qin Heng's body, which looked extremely tired, actually had energy again at this moment. With a fierce shout, he did not turn around, but had already pulled out his sword. His entire body quickly began to spin, and like a shadow, he very strangely brushed past the sharp black spear shadow!
Jing Ge's spear stabbed out with all his might. He had not expected his opponent to have such an ingenious movement to counter the spear. His entire mind and spirit were focused on this spear. The tip of the spear missed and stabbed viciously into the stone floor of the square beside Qin Heng. With a crack, the stone floor was shattered into countless pieces.
In that muffled sound, Qin Heng's body did not stop spinning. In a moment, he was close to Jing Ge's body. With a cold huff, his left elbow shot out, and the blade of the sword in his hand sliced toward Jing Ge's neck.
One flash, one turn, and one slash. Such a clean and efficient three-hit combo was used in such a complicated battlefield situation. Qin Heng was indeed valiant. No wonder the old Qin Master had so much confidence in him to let him face the silver-masked Jing Ge's sudden attack alone.
At such a close distance, such a vicious slash would probably be difficult for even Fan Xian to block. Jing Ge was probably dead for sure.
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During this soul-stirring chase, the rebel army's attacks on the Royal Palace never stopped. The heavy carriages that were used to ram into the Palace gates still did not know fatigue. They were not afraid of falling rocks or burning the ground. They continued to ram into the three Palace gates one after another. A loud muffled sound reverberated throughout the Royal Palace from time to time. It sounded like a soul-shaking drum beat.
In the last moment of the strange chase in the square, when Qin Heng's sword was only three inches from Jing Ge's neck, a shocking change occurred in the attack and defense of the Palace doors.
With a loud bang, the heavy Palace door in the middle was smashed open.
In this instant, all of the rebel soldiers could not believe their eyes. Immediately after, wild joy and excitement took over.
The Black Knights had already been defeated, Jing Ge was about to die, and the Palace doors had already been opened. The scales of victory had, without question, thrown away all barriers. They began to cowardly snuggle up behind the rebel army.
Looking at this scene, the Crown Prince's spirit rose. He glanced at the old Qin Master and Ye Zhong beside him and took a deep breath. "Attack with full power!"
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Fan Xian stood on top of the black coffin and gently used the tip of his foot to tap a rhythm no one could understand. He watched these fatal changes happen in a flash on the palace walls, but he still did not make a decision. He kicked open the coffin with one foot and took out the heavy sniper rifle inside.
Because he was standing higher than everyone else, just as Chen Pingping had once taught him, he could see further than everyone else. He could see some details that no one else had noticed.
He saw that the generals of the Dingzhou family were still in the rebel army camp in the west discussing something with the Second Prince. They gradually moved closer and naturally isolated the Second Prince's trusted aides on the outside.
He saw that in the rebel army camp, Ye Zhong's expression was as calm as usual beside the Crown Prince, who showed a joyous expression for the first time. However, Gong Dian had lagged a step behind. During the process of the rebel army changing camps and the chaos brought by rescuing Qin Heng, the Dingzhou army gradually changed their formation. Although it was subtle, it was particularly piercing in Fan Xian's eyes, who was looking down from above.
If a complicated situation was made up of countless pictures, then in Fan Xian's eyes, these pictures were undergoing changes that no one understood. However, he knew that his gamble would determine the final success or failure based on the changes in these pictures.
He tied the Wei Emperor's sword tightly to his back and pulled on the hook the Third Bureau had prepared for him two years ago. Glancing in the direction of the city guarding crossbows, he narrowed his eyes slightly and said, "Get ready."
Then, he tapped the coffin with the tip of his foot for the last time, thinking, I still won't use you today.
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The change in the images suddenly occurred in the next moment. This change would decide the future of the Qing Kingdom. It was destined to become something that young historians with a conscience in the future would discuss enthusiastically.
The first scene to change was the silver-masked Jing Ge, who was about to face death, lowering his head the moment the tip of Qin Heng's sword reached his neck.
Jing Ge lowered his head. In the time it took for a spark to fly off a piece of flint, lowering his head looked simple, but it was actually extremely difficult. However, he had done it so naturally and quickly. It was as if five hundred years ago, Jing Ge already knew where Qin Heng's sword would come from and where it would go. He had already simulated it countless times and had long been prepared to meet the edge of this sword.
It was this gentleness of lowering his head that allowed Qin Heng's murderous sword to cut across Jing Ge's silver mask and draw out a streak of silver sparks. However, it did not cut his neck.
What was even more unexpected was that Jing Ge's spear, which seemed to have poured all of his spirit into it, pierced empty air and broke the stone floor on the ground. It seemed to have a life of its own and quickly bounced back. Following the empty space between his thumb and index finger, it bounced back with a bang.
Jing Ge's hand gripped the tip of the spear tightly three inches below and abruptly stabbed upward.
All of this happened too quickly. The silver mask on Jing Ge's face was still sparking when the tip of the spear in his hand had already pierced ruthlessly into Qin Heng's jaw.
With a muffled crack, the sharp tip of the spear pierced straight through Qin Heng's jaw into his brain. Fresh blood sprayed out. Qin Heng's body froze and then went limp. He died just like that.
Jing Ge gripped the shaft of the spear tightly. The tip of the spear held Qin Heng's body.
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With a crisp sound, Jing Ge's silver mask broke in half and slid to the ground, revealing his true face. It was the face that Fan Xian had always wanted to see. It was the face that had been hidden under the silver mask ever since he had been fished out of the Black Prison by Chen Pingping and became a member of the Black Knights.
The features of this face were delicate and pretty, but, from the left ear to the bottom of the right ear, it had been viciously sliced open in the middle by some unknown sharp weapon. It was a very old injury, but it still appeared terrifying. One could imagine what kind of injury he had suffered in the past.
The wound was large, revealing the bone, flesh, and white teeth inside. It appeared unusually terrifying. Although Qin Heng's earlier strike had been blocked by his silver mask, the sword intent still struck his face and shook open his old wound. Fresh blood gradually flowed out, making him appear even more savage.
The entire square was completely silent as they looked at this scene in shock. They looked at the savage Commander of the Black Knights using the tip of the spear in his hand to hold up the old Qin Master's only son. Involuntarily, they thought of Fan Xian's curse of ending the Qin family line.
Fresh blood dripped down from Qin Heng's throat and slid along the longsword to Jing Ge's hand. Jing Ge was silent. He was thinking, Back then, your brother had used this move to ruin my face. These years, my hatred toward the Qin family caused me to wear a silver mask and constantly ponder the Qin family's methods on the killing field. Today, you still used this move. If you die at my hands, don't cry injustice!
Jing Ge held up Qin Heng's body and looked toward where the old Qin Master was in the rebel camp. In a stern voice, he said, "I am Jing Ge!"
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