madnovel Chapter 17 Desolate Mountains and Wilderness, Places of Slaughter
Chapter 17 Desolate Mountains and Wilderness, Places of Slaughter
The Song Mansion, a large inner courtyard.
The sun was scorching.
Sixteen bodyguards stood in a line.
Chen Yu was among them.
The queue was perfectly straight and completely silent.
Song Xiangxiang stood with her hands behind her back on the steps of the main hall, wearing a red cloak and with a steel knife hanging at her waist.
She glanced at everyone and spoke directly.
"Three days ago, the wanted criminal Wei Rongfang was severely injured by a master from the prefectural city. This man has a hundred or so lives on his hands, is skilled in swordsmanship, proficient in light footwork, and is best at hiding in crowded places."
She paused, then pulled a scroll of portrait from her sleeve and unfurled it.
"Just yesterday, someone saw him at the 'Drunken Immortal Pavilion' in the West Market, leaning against the window drinking wine, his right hand holding the cup."
A faint gasp came from the guards.
"Wei Rongfang is left-handed, and he holds the cup with his right hand, which means that he has an injury on his left arm—it was caused by a crossbow bolt when he broke through the encirclement the day before yesterday."
"This injury prevents him from running far and has also reduced his fighting ability by at least 50%."
"Now, I have received accurate information that Wei Rongfang is hiding in Niuwei Mountain, on the southern outskirts of the county town."
Suddenly, Song Xiangxiang threw the portrait to the ground and crushed it with the sole of her boot.
"Heed my command—"
"Everyone here, follow me straight to Niuwei Mountain in the south of the city!"
Song Xiangxiang suddenly ripped off her cloak, revealing the soft armor underneath and the steel knife at her waist.
"Now is the time to make a name for yourself and achieve great things!"
"Anyone who helps me capture Wei Rongfang will be rewarded with one thousand taels of silver!"
Chen Yu sneered inwardly upon hearing this.
He knew Song Xiangxiang too well.
This young lady's money isn't so easy to take.
Even if we could obtain it, the price we would have to pay would be extremely high.
They claimed to be assisting in capturing wanted criminals, but in reality, they were just using her as a human shield and cannon fodder.
A job with a near-death experience, and you expect people to risk their lives for a mere thousand taels?
Moreover, it's not certain that they can capture Wei Rongfang.
The so-called reward money is nothing but a pie in the sky.
This kind of unprofitable business, others might be willing to do it, but Chen Yu definitely wouldn't.
So he decided to just go along with the charlatan.
Never stand out; if there's danger, be the first to run.
The surrounding crowd, on the contrary, were all eager to try and extremely excited.
The most excited was Zhuang Fangyuan, who was eager to curry favor with Song Xiangxiang.
Zhuang Fangyuan felt that this time he was bound to make a fortune.
With so many people going, Wei Rongfang will surely be easily captured.
As long as I perform well, I'm sure I'll receive a hefty reward, and I might even be promoted to the position of Commander of the Imperial Guard.
Chen Yu stared coldly at Zhuang Fangyuan's back.
This guy has tripped me up time and time again. If I hadn't been careful, I probably would have been killed long ago.
During this time in the mansion, he had not found a suitable opportunity to strike.
This collective action might be a good opportunity for me.
A good opportunity to kill someone in the chaos and settle old scores.
……
Suburbs of Changhe County.
Song Xiangxiang and her group made their way stealthily.
Wei Rongfang had been a criminal for many years, committing crimes and escaping repeatedly.
He is clearly a very cautious person.
Any slight disturbance could put him on high alert.
In order not to alert the enemy, Song Xiangxiang specifically asked everyone not to ride horses and to avoid the main roads, instead taking secluded and rarely traveled paths.
After many twists and turns, we finally arrived at the foot of Niuwei Mountain just before sunset.
As you walk forward, the dirt road begins to slope slightly upward, and the boundaries of the fields are gradually replaced by tall grass.
The wild grass rustled in the wind, the light became distorted, and the shadows cast began to lengthen and sway.
"Stop!" Song Xiangxiang commanded.
"We're almost there. Now we'll split into two groups and act in unison according to my plan."
"First team, Zhuang Fangyuan, you take four men and head to the east side of Wild Boar Ridge. No need to engage in battle, just provide support from a high vantage point. Use the smoke signal as a guide and then come to provide support."
"Second team, follow me straight to Broken Soul Cliff, go all out, and capture Wei Rongfang!"
After making the arrangements, Song Xiangxiang felt that everything was in perfect order.
He personally led the main attack, with another team providing support from the flanks. He knew that Wei Rongfang would have no chance of escaping.
Now her only worry is He Taifeng and his group.
If they arrive before me, they might steal my thunder.
Thinking of this, she quickly urged everyone to get moving.
The four less skilled guards followed Zhuang Fangyuan down another road.
The rest of the guards, including Chen Yu, continued to follow Song Xiangxiang toward the main road.
Further on, the terrain suddenly rises.
The trees had somehow formed a dense grove.
The air became damp and heavy, filled with the scent of decaying leaves and moss.
The fallen leaves underfoot were several inches thick, making an unsettling, soft sound when stepped on.
There seems to be something moving under the decaying leaves.
Chen Yu, with his sharp ears and keen eyes, immediately noticed something was wrong and quickly stopped in his tracks.
"Ahhhhh!"
A loud shout suddenly came from the crowd.
"Blood, it's blood!"
"There's a body!"
Song Xiangxiang remained relatively calm. She had someone brush aside the rotten leaves to examine the area closely.
The deceased was completely submerged in mud, and the coarse cloth garment on his chest was soaked with blood.
The fatal wound was in the waist, a single knife wound that was cut into two neat pieces.
This is clearly Wei Rongfang's approach.
"The blood on the body hadn't dried yet, so it was clear the person hadn't been dead for long, meaning they weren't far from Wei Rongfang."
Song Xiangxiang couldn't hide her excitement.
We finally found him!
Just one step away: take down Wei Rongfang, and then who will dare to laugh at me for being a spoiled brat!
When the guards saw the corpse, some felt sad, some became afraid, and some became even more excited.
Under Song Xiangxiang's constant urging, whether they were willing or not, they had no choice but to continue.
Along the way, they traveled further and further, discovering more and more corpses, and the corpses' deaths became increasingly gruesome.
Not only were they cut in half at the waist, but some were torn to shreds, their eyes wide open, dying with their eyes wide open, as if they had seen something extremely terrifying.
Upon reaching another dense forest, Song Xiangxiang discovered a familiar corpse.
The corpse lay among the rocks, its blood still flowing, seeping from the cracks in the rocks and congealing into dark brown, centipede-like streaks.
Even from a distance, Chen Yu could tell that the deceased was Ma Chengfeng, the young master of the Iron Bull Boxing Gym.
Just a few days ago, he was chatting eloquently at Hongyun Restaurant, but today he has become a victim of violence.
Song Xiangxiang stepped forward to check and recognized Ma Chengfeng. She was secretly pleased.
This kid arrived early, but unfortunately, he wasn't strong enough, so it's normal that he got killed.
After all, he was just a martial artist who had only achieved minor success in Blood Refining, while I was a master who had achieved major success in Skin Refining.
Now that Ma Chengfeng is dead, there's no need to worry about him trying to steal the credit.
Soon, the group followed the trail of corpses to the edge of the Cliff of Broken Souls.
The scene on Broken Soul Cliff was also one of utter devastation.
Upon seeing the face lying in the middle, Song Xiangxiang finally began to panic.
It was He Taifeng, writhing laboriously in the pool of blood.
A knife wound slashed diagonally from his right shoulder to his left abdomen, the cut as clean as if it were cut paper, demonstrating the speed, ruthlessness, and decisiveness of the strike.
The skin and flesh rolled up to the sides, revealing the stark white ribs underneath.
All the ribs were broken, with sharp edges, shattered by the force of the blade.
"Wei Rongfang...we've forced him to the edge of the cliff..."
"He's dying too, don't rush to kill him... save me first..."
He Taifeng said weakly as he crawled.
Before he could finish speaking, his pupils began to dilate into a grayish-white mist, and two streaks of blood slowly oozed from the corners of his eyes.