Chapter 468: The Soul Lamp Burns No More

Chapter 468: The Soul Lamp Burns No More

“Time to go, Qingge.”

After Chu Hao was gone, Hong Jianglong beckoned Chu Qingge to follow him and turned toward the city. He was just about to take off when suddenly, Zhou Hengshan blocked his way and declared, “You can’t leave yet.”

“Zhou Hengshan, you’re really starting to piss me off.” A storm came over Hong Jianglong’s face. “Do you actually think I won’t beat the shit out of you?”

“Of course you would,” Zhou Hengshan replied neutrally, but it was clear from the fact that he was still holding the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand that he had no intentions of moving out of the way. “But please wait.”

“Fatty, oh fatty...” Hong Jianglong dragged out his voice like someone dragging a sword across the floor. It was chilling to say the least.

Clop clop clop!

It was at this moment the sound of hooves came from the distance. Soon, the Hengshan Army appeared from the horizon with swords and sabers, grim-faced and just about ready for anything.

Two people were leading the army. The one to the left was a stern, gritty-looking man wearing a set of white tiger armor. He was the battalion commander of the Tiger Battalion, Zhao Peihu. The one to the right was a harsh, cruel-looking man wearing a set of blue wolf armor. He was the battalion commander of the Wolf Battalion, Fei Chuan.

This also meant that the army following behind them was the Tiger Battalion and the Wolf Battalion.

When Zhang Peihu and Fei Chuan came to a stop in front of Zhou Hengshan, Hong Jianglong and Chu Qingge, the army behind them came to a stop as well. The two battalion commanders dismounted and saluted their general respectfully, “General.” The rest of the troops also dropped to one knee without saying anything. The sounds of their armor pieces clanging against one another resonated throughout the whole plains.

Zhou Hengshan paid them no heed, however. He simply stared at Hong Jianglong and repeated his words, “Please wait here, Hong Jianglong.”

“Hmph. You think you can intimidate me?” Hong Jianglong narrowed his eyes slightly while sneering. “I know what you’re thinking. You’re worried that I would try and mess with Ye Qing’s Soul Lamp, right? Fine then! I’ll wait. I have done nothing wrong, and I have nothing to be afraid of.”

To be honest, Hong Jianglong wasn’t sure if Ye Qing was alive or dead either. That was why he wanted to rush back to the Pacification Bureau and notify Fang Xiaoman or Gu Suitang to check up on Ye Qing’s Soul Lamp. If it was extinguished, then Ye Qing was dead. Everything would be over, and there would be nothing to worry about. If it was lit, then he would order them to extinguish the lamp. After all, Ye Qing was far better off “dead” than alive right now. Assuming he was still alive, his only chance of escaping his pursuers’ attention was to fake his death. New novel chapters are published at novelhall.com

It was why he repeatedly emphasized that Ye Qing was dead. It was also why he wanted to head back and tamper with Ye Qing’s Soul Lamp as soon as possible. Unfortunately, Zhou Hengshan saw through his ploy and stopped him, and now it was too late. Knowing Chu Hao’s abilities, it would take the man less than half a teatime to gain the information. Even if he managed to force his way out—and that was a big if considering that he would have to fight the Hengshan Army as well—it was impossible to do so without harming the Hengshan Army. His enemies would have the perfect excuse to accuse the Pacification Bureau of corruption and drag them into a right mess then.

If he was just Hong Jianglong, a Grandmaster with no ties to anything whatsoever, then he wouldn’t hesitate even a second to do what was necessary to protect those he cared about. However, he was the Pacification Commissioner of the Pacification Bureau. Everything he did represented the will of the Pacification Bureau, and he couldn’t act without considering the ramifications and consequences to his faction first.

After Hong Jianglong was gone, Zhou Hengshan abruptly spat out a glob of blood. The bony white Slaughterer of Ten Thousand suddenly turned a shade of bright red, and blood began pouring profusely down its edges. The saber also emitted a strange buzz that sounded like a ghastly wail.

“General! Are you... alright?”

Zhang Peihu and Fei Chuan hurried forward, but they turned as white as a sheet when they got too close to Zhou Hengshan. They felt like Zhou Hengshan had suddenly turned into an avatar of hell itself, brutal and terrifying.

“Bring them,” Zhou Hengshan uttered shakingly. His eyes were bloodshot, his whole body was shaking, and it strained him greatly just to say a single word.

“Bring me the death row prisoners.”

Zhang Peihu looked at a deputy general, and the man waved over a troop of Hengshan soldiers escorting a group of death row prisoners. They numbered at least several hundred.

As soon as he laid his eyes on the death row prisoners, Zhou Hengshan immediately rushed forward like a thirsty man who found an oasis in the desert. As soon as he reached the nearest prisoner, he raised the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand and cut them in half.

Crimson blood splattered across Zhou Hengshan’s face, but not only did he not feel disgusted by it, he actually licked them off his lips with a satisfied, intoxicated look on his face. He immediately moved onto the next prisoner and beheaded them, cut off the limbs of the third, eviscerated the fourth...

Just a moment later, every death row prisoner on the scene was killed. Their heads littered the floor like trinkets at a market stall, and their blood ran freely like a river.

It was only then the unnatural redness covering Zhou Hengshan’s eyes faded. The Slaughterer of Ten Thousand also stopped shaking and returned to normal.

“Are you okay, general?” Zhang Peihu asked.

“I’m fine.” Zhou Hengshan put away the weapon and shook his head.

Just now, he was suffering from the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand’s rebound. As an infamous, deadly tool of slaughter, the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand was as powerful as it was cursed. For starters, the wielder was constantly beset by bloodthirst and the desire to kill for as long as they wielded the weapon. Second, it must slay a certain number of people after unleashing its power to quench its bloodthirst. If not, the consequences were severe.

Usually, Zhou Hengshan could wield the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand without paying any price. His power was enough to keep him in check. However, Ye Qing’s trap had injured him somewhat, and his attempt to kill Ye Qing using the Slaughterer of Ten Thousand had further depleted his energies. The hit from Hong Jianglong was the final straw. Unable to suppress the saber’s rebound anymore, he had no choice but to kill a couple hundred death row prisoners to finally vent both his and the saber’s bloodthirst.

Zhou Hengshan then looked at Zhang Peihu and ordered in a harsh voice, “Peihu, message Wugou and have him return to Tian Yong this instant. I want him to mobilize the Black Dog Brigade and search along the Yong River until Ye Qing and the Corpse Ship are found. I will have that bastard’s corpse if it’s the last thing I do.”