With the invasion from Huang Tian Sect, the government office's military camp and the remaining families of Wang and Li became the main targets of the attack.Inside and outside the county city, chaos reigned.
Faced with such a situation, County Magistrate Du Yuntong and his subordinates simply lost their will to resist. They charged haphazardly through the messy streets, bolted out of the east city gate, and fled directly.
It caught everyone by surprise.
Many guards who had the heart to resist watched as County Magistrate Du Yuntong and his men scurried away and immediately lost all morale, surrendering on the spot.
One by one, locations throughout Taiping County quickly fell.
Within the Inner City, flames soared into the sky; the air was filled with thick gunpowder smoke and the stench of blood, while cries and desperate pleas for help rose and fell in succession.
Shen Qing's face grew sterner as he constantly whipped and struck Zhuifeng's haunches.
He noticed on the Water Ink Panel within his line of sight that the Progress of his Riding Skill was visibly jumping up a little bit at a time.
Zhuifeng, as if sensing Shen Qing's urgency and resolve, galloped as if on the wind, forging a path through the chaos.
By the time they reached the bottom of the east city gate, Shen Qing fiercely clamped his legs around the horse's belly. Zhuifeng, like a wild horse freed from its reins, charged out of the gate, leaving the chaos and despair far behind.
After running one tael straight through, leaving the mayhem behind him, Shen Qing finally slowly reined in, allowing the horse to catch its breath.
He couldn't help but turn his head back in the direction of Taiping County.
At that moment, Taiping County seemed to be shrouded by a heavy pall, the sky no longer the usual blue, but turned into an unsettling shade of earthy yellow.
That yellow light seemed to float over from the far southwest, with layers upon layers, carrying an oppressive aura.
The yellow light continued to spread, with some of the edges already extending over Shen Qing's head.
Shen Qing gazed at the county engulfed in yellow light, his heart sinking heavily. Continue your adventure with mvl
This was clearly not a Martial Arts technique; it was closer to Daoism.
Huang Tian Sect might be stronger than he had imagined.
Shen Qing took a deep breath, suppressed the turmoil inside him, patted Zhuifeng on the neck to signal it to keep going.
Now, he must catch up with his master and aunt as quickly as possible.
"Drive!"
Zhuifeng raised its head proudly, let out a resounding neigh, and once again galloped away.
...
Up ahead on the main road, considering Shen Qing's need to find people, Li Linfeng and Uncle Shen Er, along with a convoy of nearly twenty people, travelled slowly.
Tian Xiaohu, who was handling the carriage, occasionally looked back at the road behind them, appearing preoccupied.
They had walked so far that Taiping County was no longer in sight, but when they saw the sky above the county turn yellow, their expressions immediately soured.
Something had happened in Taiping County.
On their way, they had already heard that Huang Tian Sect was attacking the county, which had given them a scare.
Tian Xiaohu knew clearly that with his meager abilities, it was a fool's dream to survive unscathed in such chaos.
Luckily, he had made the right choice once again.
Boom, boom, boom.
Suddenly, the sound of thunder echoed from the clear skies above, startling everyone in the convoy, who looked up.
The sun still hung high, its golden light piercing the sparse cloud cover, intermingling with the occasional flashes of silver lightning, creating a bizarre and surreal scene.
Shen Fang, sitting inside the carriage, was jolted awake by the sound of thunder. She gently lifted the curtain on the carriage and looked out.
Faced with such strange weather, worry washed over Shen Fang's face. She asked Xiao Zhi and Tian Xiaohu, "Has Qingzi returned yet?"
Tian Xiaohu turned around and gazed down the road again, then shook his head and said, "Not yet, but he should be here soon."
"Hiss..."
The caravan led by Li Linfeng and the others suddenly stopped ahead, causing the distracted Tian Xiaohu to hurriedly pull on the reins.
The mare immediately halted, avoiding a collision with the carriage in front.
Under this inertia, Shen Fang, who was kneeling and stretching her head out, would have been thrown forward if not for Xiao Zhi's quick reflexes, swiftly supporting her to prevent a fall from the carriage.
"Why did they suddenly stop at the front?" Tian Xiaohu handed the reins to Xiao Zhi and said, "Don't move, I'll go up front and take a look."
Tian Xiaohu trotted towards the very front of the caravan.
As he moved forward, the smell of blood in the air became stronger.
At the very front of Li Linfeng's caravan, shadows flitted about. By the time Tian Xiaohu arrived, the area had already been surrounded by Li Linfeng and his people.
Squeezing through, Tian Xiaohu's gaze fell upon the scene before him, and he stood frozen, fear creeping over his face.
Bodies were strewn haphazardly ahead: faces twisted in agony, some heads tilted to one side, staring blankly at the sky, while others had fists clenched tight, with fingertips deeply embedded in the mud.
Most had gaping wounds as if pierced by arrows.
The air was heavy with the smell of blood and rust.
But that wasn't what mattered; what did was their attire—they were all from the Guardian Martial Department!
Rustle rustle.
Suddenly, from the shadows of the bushes on both sides behind the caravan, came a series of footsteps and the sound of metal scraping.
One after another, disciples of the Huang Tian Sect, dressed as such, emerged from the bushes.
Armed with heavy crossbows, they aimed at Li Linfeng and his group, leaving everyone in the caravan aghast.
Among these disciples of the Huang Tian Sect, a giant of a man, standing seven feet tall, walked out, and the surrounding disciples of the Huang Tian Sect automatically cleared a path for him.
This man held a high position within the Huang Tian Sect.
The uncles and aunts, who had not seen much of the world, were terrified and quickly gathered closer to Li Linfeng and the others.
Li Linfeng realized that they might be facing big trouble today and quickly stepped forward. With both hands raised to the leading man, he said, "Esteemed hero, we are just ordinary folk passing through here. I hope you can show us mercy."
The robust man looked Li Linfeng up and down and, with an unexpectedly delighted face, said, "The Commander ordered us to wait here like sitting ducks, to prevent those greedy officials from escaping and ruining our plans. I didn't expect to be graced by you fat sheep first."
Li Linfeng's heart skipped a beat.
From the sound of it, these people were not planning to let them go today.
He was about to speak up to plead for mercy, hoping to buy their way out of disaster, when suddenly he saw someone from the opposite side rushing over, shouting, "General, the dog officials from the city are coming this way with a large group of men. What should we do?"
The stalwart man's face showed a trace of displeasure, and without a second thought, he said, "Quick, get the brothers and sisters ready. We have to kill that bunch from the Ji Family."
"And them?"
"Kill them first!"
"General, there's no time. The officials from Taiping County are on fast horses; they'll be here any minute now."
The bearded giant glanced at Li Linfeng and the others, cursed under his breath, "You're lucky," and gave orders, "Have a few brothers keep an eye on them; the rest follow me to prepare an ambush for those dog officials. Today we must ensure no one escapes."
"Yes."
The thirty or forty disciples of the Huang Tian Sect behind the caravan, well-trained, quickly adjusted their crossbows and ran ahead to set up the ambush.
Clip-clop, clip-clop...
The sound of horse hooves drew closer and closer.
The moment the ambush was set, County Magistrate Du Yuntong, together with Wang Yanjun and others, charged headlong into the Huang Tian Sect's trap.
"Kill!"
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