Jiang Xingyan’s shout, amplified by Huo Ci’s full internal strength, carried far into the distance.
Fortunately, none of the Huo Family Army soldiers were mounted. Reacting quickly, they used their Qinggong to leap into the trees. In a series of swift, nimble movements, they evacuated the battlefield.
But they didn’t retreat entirely. Instead, they went to assist their comrades who were still clearing enemies from the hidden paths, ensuring everyone escaped together.
The Beiluo soldiers who recognized Huo Ci’s voice went wild.
“It’s the Hellish King!”
“Whoever captures him gets ten cities from the King!”
“Dead or alive!”
They shouted with great fervor, yet the pace of their advance noticeably slowed.
Even the Iron Pagoda cavalry tightened their reins, ready to decelerate at any moment.
It was clear just how deep a psychological shadow Huo Ci had cast over these men.
Jiang Xingyan had no time to reflect on the astonishingly high bounty on Huo Ci’s head in Beiluo. She suddenly remembered the fifty soldiers ambushed at the mountain pass.
She could already hear horn blasts coming from the top of Kan Mountain.
No doubt, they were calling for reinforcements from Hou Mountain.
It was impossible that Kan Mountain was the only place hosting such Iron Pagoda cavalry.
With their impenetrable steel armor and the devastating impact of a downhill charge, anyone in their path would be instantly killed.
That squad of fifty wasn’t particularly close to this mountain path and remained unaware of the new threat.
If they missed the critical window to escape, they would be completely annihilated, dying for nothing.
Jiang Xingyan turned and ran towards Hou Mountain.
“General! Where are you going?”
Xin Zhui, halfway through his own retreat, noticed Jiang Xingyan was gone and hurried after her.
“Get back! Don’t cause more trouble!” she ordered.
Xin Zhui stiffened his neck defiantly. “No! I promised to protect you. I won’t go back on my word.”
Jiang Xingyan was furious.
“Is this the time for heroics?!” Her voice trembled slightly.
She had never seen cavalry like that before. Even the battle-hardened Huo Ci would have been stunned speechless upon seeing them.
Having Xin Zhui by her side would only distract her.
“Get lost! That’s an order!”
Xin Zhui was determined to follow her. Gritting his teeth, he declared, “Even if you have me beaten to death with army sticks, I’m still following you!”
What more could Jiang Xingyan say?
“Fine! When the time comes, you lead the men away quickly. Abandon the horses, just focus on survival!”
As they spoke, they reached the ambush site.
A cloud of dust billowed behind Jiang Xingyan. Looking ahead, the heavy hoofbeats pounded like a drum summoning the underworld’s bailiffs.
In the next moment, they would all be lambs to the slaughter.
“All Huo Family Army troops, hear my command! Abandon your horses and return to camp! Do not engage the enemy!”
“Aye, General!”
Though clearly pained at the loss, all fifty soldiers moved in unison. They pushed off from their saddles, leaping into the air and vanishing into the depths of the forest.
Jiang Xingyan let out a heavy sigh of relief. She reached to pull Xin Zhui along, only to see him mounting a black warhorse.
“General, this horse has been with me since it was a foal. It’s like a younger brother to me.”
“I can’t just leave it here to die.”
“Please, let me bring it!”
Jiang Xingyan gritted her teeth: You goddamn…
“Get out of here, now!”
She kicked the horse’s hindquarters. The black steed leaped forward, carrying Xin Zhui swiftly down the mountain.
“General!” Xin Zhui cried out in panic, “Why aren’t you coming? Get on, quickly, General!”
Jiang Xingyan really wanted to curse: If we both ride, we’ll just be caught and killed together!
The other horses, following the lead of the black stallion, galloped after it.
For a moment, the scene was spectacularly grand.
But it lasted only a moment.
The Iron Pagoda forces from both sides closed in, encircling both the horse herd and Jiang Xingyan. Escape via Qinggong now seemed nearly impossible.
Jiang Xingyan’s heart sank like a stone.
Was she going to die here today?
The heavy cavalry charging down from Kan Mountain arrived first. Their leader swung his spiked mace, instantly smashing the head of one horse into a pulp.
His own warhorse crashed forward recklessly; its hard steel headpiece slammed into and overturned two other horses without losing momentum.
Instead of retreating, Jiang Xingyan surged forward. She dodged the mace swing, a dagger already reversed in her hand from her sleeve, and slashed at the cavalryman’s neck.
Clang! Clang!
Sparks flew as the sharp blade struck.
Even the neck was armored!
Despair welled up inside Jiang Xingyan.
“It looks like the Hellish King is going to fall by our hands! Haha!”
“Who would have thought the Hellish King would have a day like this!”
“Charge, brothers! We all get a share of those ten cities!”
A cornered beast will still fight.
Jiang Xingyan suddenly thought of Little Ya, her sweet voice calling her ‘Mama’.
Yes. She still had Little Ya.
She couldn’t die!
Her will to survive surged violently.
Relying on Huo Ci’s superior martial skills and exceptional internal strength, Jiang Xingyan performed a nimble flip in the air. She concentrated all her power into her calf and delivered a single, decisive kick squarely to the head of one Iron Pagoda soldier.
“Ahhh!”
The man screamed, tumbling from his horse.
Immediately, blood flowed from all seven of his orifices; he was dead before he hit the ground.
Jiang Xingyan flipped onto the now riderless horse, snatched up the fallen mace, and used it to block a spear thrust from the front. She then swung it backhanded into the chest of another soldier behind her.
Blunt weapons cause horrific injuries.
Infused with Huo Ci’s internal energy, the blow instantly shattered the man’s internal organs. He slumped over his saddle, vomiting blood, and died.
Jiang Xingyan had killed two men in the blink of an eye, causing the surrounding enemies who were about to attack her to hesitate for a crucial moment.
Seizing this opening, and ignoring the throbbing pain in her swollen calf, Jiang Xingyan dug her heels into the horse’s sides and broke through the encirclement.
Before she could even catch her breath, the warhorse beneath her let out a piercing whinny. Its legs buckled, and it crashed straight to the ground, throwing her clear.
The horse heaved a final, rough breath and collapsed.
A faint, elusive thought flashed through her mind.
But in this dire emergency, there was no time to grasp it.
Fortune favors the bold, and high rewards breed brave men.
The Iron Pagoda soldiers before her, driven mad by the astronomical bounty of ten cities, charged recklessly, consequences be damned, determined to kill “Huo Ci”.
Jiang Xingyan feinted, dodging a thrown spear.
She scrambled up a tree in a few movements, gathered her energy, and activated her Qinggong, running step-by-step across the very tops of the trees.
CRASH!
A tree was smashed down by an armored horse.
CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!
More trees were toppled by the iron steeds.
Jiang Xingyan cursed inwardly: Damn it!
They were determined to kill her at any cost, weren’t they?
Distracted for a split second, her footing faltered. The tree she had just landed on was struck before she could push off to the next. It shattered beneath her.
With nothing to support her, she plummeted straight down.
No, I can’t die!
She repeated this phrase countless times in her heart, her hands flailing wildly, until they finally caught hold of a branch.
But it was too thin. It only slightly broke her fall before snapping in her grasp.
She hit the ground with a heavy thud.
Before she could even spit out the mouthful of blood welling up, a spiked mace, glinting coldly, descended straight towards her face.