The city guard noticed that although the newcomer was dressed in civilian clothes, the decorations on his horse were of their own rank, so he asked, "So, are you here to deliver a message to the State of Chen?"
"Indeed, the military situation is urgent. Open the gates immediately, lest we miss the crucial military opportunity!" Shang Huaiyi followed his instructions and urged him to open the city gates again.
The soldiers guarding the city muttered something, and the iron gate slowly opened, and the drawbridge was lowered. Just then, Shang Huaiyi heard a commotion behind him. He knew something was wrong. Seeing the guards peeking around, he didn't wait for the city gate to be fully open and the drawbridge to be stable before he spurred his horse and rushed over, almost knocking several guards to the ground.
The soldiers guarding the city steadied themselves while cursing, but suddenly their expressions changed drastically, because a voice from behind them clearly shouted: "Open the city gates! Don't let anyone leave!"
The soldiers who were lowering the drawbridge immediately reversed the cable and were about to raise the drawbridge again when Shang Huaiyi happened to be on the drawbridge. He spurred his horse and thought to himself, "My horse, my horse, everything depends on you!" The horse seemed to understand his thoughts, neighed and leaped into the air, crossing the drawbridge and landing just on the other side of the moat.
The soldiers guarding the city were taken aback. By the time they started firing their arrows, Shang Huaiyi had already left them far behind.
Section 3
Shang Huaiyi lay on the horse's back, the horse's long mane brushing against his face, making it itchy.
This feeling was very familiar to him. It had made him feel very comfortable, and after getting used to battle, he felt very fond of riding a horse at full gallop. In fact, if he did not ride at full speed for a long time, he would feel a little uncomfortable.
But at this moment, he had no mood to enjoy this feeling of soaring through the clouds. All that came to mind was fire and blood, the groans and roars of his brothers. Although the camp remained but the soldiers came and went, these two thousand brothers had followed him ever since he came to Li Jun's side. They had spent half a year together day and night, and there was no strict hierarchy in the Peace Army. How could they not develop deep feelings for each other?
Suddenly, overwhelmed by uncontrollable emotions, he buried his head deep in the horse's neck and cried out loudly and painfully.
A man doesn't easily shed tears, only when he is truly heartbroken.
He didn't know how long he had been traveling, and without proper rest, coupled with exhaustion, Shang Huaiyi almost fell asleep on horseback. The journey from Huichang City to Ningwang City would take at least four days. He was penniless and poorly dressed, and he had no idea whether he could make it to Ningwang.
As dawn broke, no one moved about on either side of the post road. Shang Huaiyi's heart, like the surrounding wilderness, was empty and desolate, utterly without support.
Finally, voices could be heard ahead, and judging from the sound, there seemed to be quite a few people. Like a frightened bird, Shang Huaiyi looked up and saw a group of soldiers. He could feel the cold glint of their weapons from afar.
He was overjoyed. This place was far from Huichang, and if the riders were soldiers, they must be other Peace Army units transporting supplies. He whipped his horse, and the horse, sensing his excitement, galloped faster.
Upon approaching, a group of men dressed in Peace Army uniforms appeared. Shang Huaiyi cracked his whip and shouted, "Which general commands you? I am Shang Huaiyi!"
The men, already wary of him riding alone on the road and dressed in rather thin clothes, became even more alert upon hearing his shout. Shang Huaiyi spurred his horse closer, panting heavily, and said wearily, "Which general is leading this group? Quickly inform him!"
But he suddenly felt something was wrong. The peacekeepers did not lower their guard because of his words. On the contrary, they were all staring at him with cold eyes.
"Who...who are you people!" Shang Huaiyi finally became alert and shouted, drawing his waist knife.
"Surrender and I'll spare your life." A horseman emerged from the crowd, his general clad in golden armor, standing out starkly against the gloomy sky.
"Who are you people!" Shang Huaiyi asked again. Now that he was trapped in this group of people, it was almost impossible to break through. He could only wait and hope that an opportunity would come.
"Zheng Dingguo, the senior master under the tutelage of Master Cheng Tian of the Divine Sect!" The newcomer smiled faintly and announced the name that almost made Shang Huaiyi fall off his horse in astonishment.
The Lotus Dharma Sect has five leaders, Cheng Tian being one of them, and sixteen masters. Among them are those skilled at winning hearts and minds, like Xue Qian, who was forced to death by Li Jun, and others as brave and skilled in battle as Zheng Dingguo, who is rumored to have single-handedly charged into and out of the 30,000 soldiers of the Chen Kingdom nine times, killing thousands at his hands. Shang Huaiyi knew that he had just escaped one danger only to fall into another.
"Zheng Dingguo, how did you end up here?" Given the current situation, it was clear that there was no way to escape safely, but Shang Huaiyi still couldn't help but ask. This person was originally in the southern part of Chen State, following Cheng Tian and fighting against Liu Guang, but he didn't know why he appeared here.
"The one who should be interrogated is you," Zheng Dingguo said calmly, lightly shaking the spear in his hand. "Will you dismount and surrender, or do I need to exert myself a little more?"
His gun merely trembled twice, yet Shang Huaiyi felt a murderous aura emanating from its tip and penetrating his body, sending a chill down his spine. This bone-chilling cold was even more piercing than the weather outside.
"Give me a gun, and I'll fight you to the death!" Shang Huaiyi threw his saber far away and shouted desperately. To this kind of enemy, using a short weapon like a saber only meant certain death; even with a gun in hand, he had no confidence of winning.
“You are nothing but an unknown general, how dare you challenge me to a life-or-death duel?” Zheng Dingguo remained unmoved, but one of his subordinates understood his meaning and threw an iron spear to Shang Huaiyi. Shang Huaiyi caught the spear, pointing the tip diagonally at the ground, as a sign of respect for the other's magnanimity.
Zheng Dingguo then said, "Considering you are a brave warrior, I will give you this fair chance today. If you can escape seven shots from me, you can leave safely."
Shang Huaiyi remained silent for a moment, his mind racing. The thoughts of surrender and battle swirled in his mind for a while, finally settling on the howls of his brothers in Huichang City. He looked up to the sky and sighed, "Come on, I don't believe I can't escape seven shots from you!"
The soldiers slowly cleared a space, and Zheng Dingguo slowly rode forward. Suddenly, he shouted, and his spear, like a dragon emerging from the sea, ripped through the air and whistled as it struck Shang Huaiyi's throat.
Upon seeing this move, Shang Huaiyi knew for certain that he could not escape death today; Zheng Dingguo's strength was even more terrifying than he had imagined. However, he was unwilling to simply surrender and await his fate. So he held his iron spear horizontally, creating a flurry of spear shadows in front of him. But before it even touched Zheng Dingguo's spear, the qi emanating from Zheng Dingguo pierced through his spear dance, and he felt a cold, sharp pain in his chest, as if pierced by the spear tip. Then, their weapons clashed with a clang. Shang Huaiyi desperately swerved to the side on his horse, using the momentum to deflect some of the powerful spiritual energy emanating from the opponent's spear.
"Still capable of a strike," Zheng Dingguo said coldly, his expression unchanged. He then flicked his spear, creating fifteen phantoms on the tip before Shang Huaiyi, the red tassel on the spear transforming into fifteen red plum blossoms. Shang Huaiyi cried out. The previous attack had already caused his blood and qi to stagnate, and the pain in his chest proved that the opponent's internal energy had inflicted some damage. Now, with his opponent unleashing fifteen plum blossoms from his spear, he had no way to block or dodge. He had no choice but to abandon defense and launch a counterattack, swinging his spear outwards. Although he couldn't unleash his internal energy, this strike, using the spear as a staff, was still quite powerful.