The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear

Chapter 60

In that brief moment of distraction, a fierce battle had broken out outside. A large group of people suddenly appeared around the hero, spinning around like a revolving lantern, making Zhu Huihui dizzy and unable to distinguish how many enemies there were.

However, she could see that Feng Xuese's movements were becoming slower and slower under the siege of these enemies, and the snow-white sword light was gradually losing its luster.

Zhu Huihui felt a sense of foreboding.

There were too many enemies, and they seemed to be in some kind of formation. The hero would just force one enemy back, and another would rush in; he would just dodge an attack from the front, and someone would attack from behind. Moreover, most of them were using a kind of long, curved, pointed snake-shaped staff. The hero, with his arm and sword, was not even as long as their snake-shaped staff. How could he possibly fight back with just two hands against such a barrage of attacks!

Seeing that Feng Xuese's situation was becoming increasingly critical, Zhu Huihui pulled a kitchen knife from her back pocket and bit her lip until it bled. But she dared not go out! She knew she was utterly useless; if she went out like this, not only would she be of no help, but she would also distract the old man! She had never hated herself so much before; she realized she was such a good-for-nothing…

The farming couple hid inside their house, watching everything unfold before them. The farmer, hoe in hand, gritted his teeth, then suddenly turned to look at his wife, gently stroking her belly with tenderness: "Aqing, please take good care of yourself. The baby will be a burden for you from now on!"

With a determined look, he opened the door and jumped out, shouting, "Zheng Hu, Black Star of Danfeng Hall, Luzhou, Fengxue City, is late. Please forgive me, Young Master."

Despite being surrounded by enemies, Feng Xuese still raised his voice and replied, "Brother Zheng, there's no need to be so polite!" His voice was calm, without any sense of urgency or pressure.

Zhu Huihui was taken aback. She never imagined that this honest and simple farmer would be Feng Xuese's subordinate!

Before Feng Xuese could finish speaking, the farmer pounced, his hoe whistling through the air as he moved with surprising strength. However, his martial arts skills were utterly lacking; he was quickly drawn into the fray, unable to escape, and riddled with several bloody holes in his body.

Feng Xuese, listening to the wind and discerning the weapon, said, "Brother Zheng, come to my side!" He swung his sword to deflect the enemy's attack for him, but a lock of his own hair was cut off.

Now, he not only has to take care of himself, but also do his best to protect Zheng Hu from harm. He is struggling to cope and his situation is even more difficult.

The peasant woman stared blankly, touched her swollen belly, and tears suddenly streamed down her face. She wiped her tears, reached for a hardwood door cane leaning against the door, and slowly walked out.

"Sun Qing, the nineteenth incense master of Jingxue Hall in Luzhou, Fengxue City, greets Young Master!" After saying this loudly, he charged into the battle, brandishing his cane.

Her words stunned not only Zhu Huihui but also the farmer Zheng Hu. He braced himself against the attack, shouting, "Wife, what did you say?" He was utterly dumbfounded; he hadn't expected his wife to be a member of Fengxuetang, and even a branch leader!

Feng Xuese raised her eyebrows slightly: "Master Sun, be careful!" With a flick of her longsword, she cleared a path for her and safely led her into the formation.

"Thank you, young master!" Sun Qing swung his door cane to block the attack aimed at Zheng Hu. "Brother Hu, I'm sorry!"

Although Maple Snow City maintained a low profile, its organization was extremely tight-knit. Even brothers within the same branch didn't know each other well, let alone those from different branches. Therefore, this was the first time she had realized that her husband was actually a subordinate of Maple Snow City, just like her!

"Ah, no, nothing..." Despite having a thousand words to say, this was not the time to speak, so Zheng Hu simply said this and stepped in front of his wife.

Although Sun Qing was six months pregnant, her martial arts skills were far superior to Zheng Hu's. The couple worked together and managed to shield Feng Xuese from one attack.

Feng Xuese was not surprised at all by the sudden appearance of these subordinates from Fengxue City.

His Maple Snow City has 360,000 followers scattered throughout the world. Most of them are just law-abiding citizens when there is no trouble. Some have never even been summoned by the city in their entire lives. However, the followers, regardless of whether they are men or women, all have a passionate heart. Once there is trouble in the city, they will risk their lives without hesitation.

Feng Xuese has now regained her composure and unleashed a continuous stream of sword strikes, gradually leveling the situation.

The Nine Nether Ten Ghosts, having failed to break through after a long siege, knew that the couple was in their way. Filled with hatred, they exchanged glances, while the others feigned an attack on Feng Xuese, secretly diverting their men to intensify their assault on Zheng Hu and Sun Qing.

Sun Qing, being heavily pregnant, was physically unable to move easily. In the midst of the fierce battle, her protruding belly was struck hard by a staff, sending her flying. She fell to the ground and let out a low cry of pain.

Zheng Hu rushed over and hugged his wife tightly, only to see a large amount of black blood gushing from under her skirt. He was heartbroken and cried out, "Aqing! Aqing!"

Sun Qing barely managed to lift her head, wanting to speak, but saw a snake-shaped staff thrusting towards her husband. Before she could scream, she used all her strength to push her husband aside.

Zheng Hu was stunned for a moment, then realized that an iron rod had pierced through his wife's high abdomen, pinning her to the ground.

Zheng Hu went berserk, swinging his hoe and charging forward.

Nine Netherworld Happy Ghost sneered, flicked his snake staff, threw away Sun Qing's corpse, and thrust the staff at Zheng Hu.

Zheng Hu seemed to have completely lost consciousness. He neither dodged nor avoided the staff as it pierced through his chest. Instead, he leaped forward and grabbed Jiu You Kaixin Gui.

Caught off guard, Jiuyou Happy Ghost struck Zheng Hu in the back with his backhand.

Zheng Hu smiled bitterly, opened his mouth, and bit down hard on the carotid artery of the Nine Nether Happy Ghost, severing it. Blood spurted all over his head and face. He listened to the gushing blood of his enemy and the sound of his own ribs breaking, and peacefully closed his eyes.

In a matter of moments, the couple and their unborn child were murdered.

Seeing this horrific scene, Zhu Huihui, who had been peeking through the crack in the door from inside the room, collapsed to the ground, her legs giving way. Thinking of how the couple had protected her just moments before, her heart ached, and her body trembled violently.

"I'm not afraid, I'm not sad. They died because they were so stupid. They knew going out was suicide, but they still went out..."

She muttered to herself, then suddenly felt a cool sensation on her face. When she reached up to touch it, she found her face was already covered in tears.

Is this what heroes often say: "Where righteousness lies, I will risk my life," "Knowing it is impossible, I will still do it," and "Even if there are thousands of people, I will go"?

Zheng Hu and Sun Qing, an unknown couple, made Zhu Huihui truly understand for the first time the true meaning of the word "chivalry" that Feng Xuese tirelessly pursued.

Upon hearing of the tragic deaths of Zheng Hu and Sun Qing, Feng Xuese's eyes widened in fury. He let out a long, mournful roar, and his longsword swirled with light that filled the sky. The light was so bright that it could stun and pierce the eyes of anyone who heard it…

Zhu Huihui's blurry, tear-filled eyes were also stung by the dazzling light, forcing her to close them. When she opened them again, the scene outside had changed.

Corpses lay scattered haphazardly on the fence, in the vegetable garden, under the melon trellis, and under the grape arbor.

The only remaining person was locked in a struggle with a serpent staff and a maple-colored sword.

The Nine Netherworld Big-Headed Ghost fought desperately, but Feng Xue Se was simply too powerful. Under the pressure of Feng Xue Se's internal force, the snake staff felt like it was being crushed by a mountain, slowly descending towards his head. He gritted his teeth and channeled his internal energy, attempting to force the hateful longsword back. However, the sword only paused briefly before slowly pressing down again.

Blood trickled from the corner of the big-headed ghost's mouth as he glared angrily at Feng Xuese, desperately resisting. Then, he noticed that Feng Xuese's eyes seemed... devoid of any spirit...

He suddenly remembered that since the start of the battle, Feng Xuese had always remained seated on the stone bench, regardless of his circumstances, without ever moving. A thought struck him: Could it be that his eyes...

He laboriously moved one hand aside, reached into his waistband, pulled out a short dagger, and tentatively and slowly stabbed it towards Feng Xuese, one inch, two inches, three inches... Feng Xuese was completely unaware.

Big-Headed Ghost was overjoyed. It seemed he had guessed correctly! He shifted all his strength to this arm and slowly stabbed the dagger toward Maple Snow's waist.

Just as the dagger tip touched his belt, a sudden gust of wind rushed from behind him. He turned around and saw a dark-skinned girl wielding a large kitchen knife, viciously chopping at his neck.

Startled, he had no time to change his move. He let go of the snake staff, threw it down, and rolled away to avoid the cleaver that was attacking him from behind.

Before he could stand up, Zhu Huihui pounced on him and continued hacking. With her skills, trying to kill the Nine Nether Big-Headed Ghost would have been like the sun rising in the west!

But today the sun really did rise in the west!

Big-Headed Ghost was already seriously injured, and because he had let go of his staff earlier, he was forced to vomit several mouthfuls of blood by the pressure of Maple Snow's internal force. His whole body was weak and numb, and he had no strength at all. In addition, Zhu Huihui was excited and her speed was surprisingly fast. She actually managed to cut Big-Headed Ghost's buttocks with her knife.

Zhu Huihui felt a deep sense of regret. She had aimed for the enemy's neck, but her aim was off, and she missed by a considerable distance...

Big-Headed Ghost mustered his last bit of strength, endured the pain, and swept his leg back, kicking Zhu Huihui in the shin and sending her flying.

Zhu Huihui heard a "crack" sound and knew her lower leg had probably broken; the pain made her vision blur. But she still gripped the cleaver tightly, gritting her teeth as she crawled towards the big-headed ghost. "Damn it, even if it kills me, I'll chop your big head off first!"

The big-headed ghost shouted, "He's blind! He's blind! His eyes..." His voice carried far, but before he could finish the last sentence, the snow-white sword had already pierced his heart.

From the moment Zhu Huihui lunged forward with her knife to the moment Da Tou Gui was killed, it all happened in the blink of an eye.

Feng Xuese coughed up a mouthful of blood, paused for a moment, and said, "Zhu Huihui!" Her voice was full of worry.

"I...I'm here!" Zhu Huihui was in so much pain she was about to faint, but she still managed to answer.

Feng Xuese swayed slightly and came to her side. He reached out and touched her, but only felt her head covered in sweat.

Where is the injury?

"No...it's nothing, it's probably...my left leg is broken."

Zhu Huihui gritted her teeth and said that she really wanted to cry out loud, but for some reason, when her eyes fell on Zheng Hu and Sun Qing's corpses, especially when she saw Sun Qing's swollen belly, she felt that her eyes were spitting fire, and the little bit of tears of pain were burned away before they could flow out!

Feng Xuese reached out and touched her calf, gently humming in agreement, and said, "It's not broken, it's probably just a fracture."

He reached out and touched the bamboo fence, then snapped two bamboo poles in half. He tore off a piece of his shirt and used it to quickly immobilize her leg, comforting her, "Grey Grey, just bear with it for now. We'll heal your wounds properly once we break through!"

Zhu Huihui said through gritted teeth, "Great hero, I'm fine, don't worry!"

Feng Xuese stroked her hair, thinking to herself, "This child is behaving herself."

"The Nine Netherworlds and Ten Ghosts, are they all dead now?"

"Yes, yes!" Zhu Huihui said. Besides Zheng Hu and Sun Qing, there were ten other corpses on the ground—it turned out that there were only ten Nine Netherworld Ghosts! She had thought there were nineteen. She was terrified!

"Alright, let's bury Zheng Hu and his wife, then fight our way out!"

"Yes, hero!" Zhu Huihui crawled over from the ground, picked up Zheng Hu's hoe, and Feng Xuese took it. They went to the vegetable garden, dug a large pit, and then, under Zhu Huihui's instructions, put the bodies of Zheng Hu and his wife into the pit and buried them with soil.

As Zhu Huihui helped cover the soil, she said, "Hero, I will always remember them!"

Zhu Huihui recalled the heartbroken, reluctant, and tragic expression on Sun Qing's face as he stroked her abdomen, and couldn't help but shed tears again.

This couple, the man not handsome, the woman not beautiful, and neither skilled in martial arts, were driven by a sense of righteousness to disregard their own lives and their unborn child. Perhaps this is what it means to sacrifice oneself for righteousness?

Maple-colored, handsome face was as cold and aloof as snow, his voice calm: "I will remember them too."

Although this couple was just an insignificant figure among the 360,000 followers of Maple Snow City scattered throughout the country, and although he had never even seen what they looked like, he would always remember that their blood added a strong touch of heroism to Maple Snow City. He did not know that Sun Qing was pregnant, and if he had known, he would probably have been even more heartbroken.

The leaden clouds piled up heavily in the sky, threatening rain but not quite, which only made people feel more depressed and uncomfortable.

It was nearly dusk when, outside Zhuma Village, there stood a solitary courtyard with a few thatched huts.

Grandma Chen, who lives alone, looked at the sky outside her main house and sighed.

The thatched roof is very old, and the house leaks badly when it rains. If the wind is even slightly strong, the thatch will be blown away. If the roof is not repaired soon, these two thatched huts may not survive this rain!

Grandma Chen tiptoed to the woodshed in the side room and carried out a bamboo ladder. She carefully placed it on the roof, then painstakingly carried over a tightly packed bundle of straw mats. With difficulty, she tied the straw mats to her back, then, holding onto the ladder, her tiny, dumpling-like feet climbed up the bamboo ladder, trembling slightly, intending to spread the straw mats on the roof.

Before, when her husband was still alive, he did all the work, and she only needed to stand under the eaves and hand him tools. But since her husband passed away last winter, she has been left as a lonely old woman with no children or relatives, and she has no one to rely on, so she has to do everything herself.

Level 1, Level 2, Level 3...

The ladder may not have been placed securely, and under the weight of the person, it slid to one side.

Grandma Chen cried out in alarm. At her age, if she fell hard, she would either die or break a few bones...

Suddenly, a hand reached out from the side, steadily supporting the ladder. After a brief pause, the ladder was slowly returned to its original position.

Granny Chen, still shaken, looked down.

At first glance, one sees a sallow face, as if the person is terminally ill, but upon closer inspection, the features are extremely handsome, with bright and deep eyes, and a gentle smile on the face.