The next moment, arrows rained down.
Xiang Gui's eyes widened.
"You brat, where is your sense of honor?"
But he didn't have much of a chance to speak; arrows instantly covered him.
Xiang Gui was a fierce warrior. Even against a rain of arrows, he managed to swing his massive war hammers to block them, allowing only a few to actually pierce his flesh.
He remained stubbornly standing.
In fact, he even seemed to lean forward.
"Hah, if one volley of arrows isn't enough, then we'll do another!"
Ren Tianye ordered: "Second volley, loose!"
Once again, arrows rained down.
Under two volleys of arrows, Xiang Gui, who wore no heavy armor, could no longer endure. He was quickly turned into a pincushion. The pair of war hammers that symbolized his glory slipped from his grasp and fell heavily to the ground.
With a loud thud, man, hammers, and horse all crashed down!
Like a centipede that refuses to fall even when dead, though his life was fading, his eyes remained wide open, filled with intense reluctance and defiance.
"Ren Tianye, you, you..."
"You are shameless!"
"My disciple, your master... can no longer protect you..."
Then, he closed his eyes completely, unable to utter another word.
Ren Tianye didn't stop. He charged over, delivered a finishing blow, and then, riding his Jade Lion of the Night, swept toward the three hundred men like a whirlwind.
The army of three thousand eight hundred soldiers behind him immediately followed.
Charging fiercely!
"General Ren, we are willing to surrender!"
Before Ren Tianye even reached them, some of the three hundred burly men had already dropped to their knees.
Like falling dominoes, they instantly collapsed into a kneeling crowd with a clatter.
"General Ren, we were originally frontier guards. After being dismissed by His Majesty, we had nowhere to go, so we sought refuge with Xiang Gui. We haven't done anything against you, General."
"We beg General Ren to remember that we were once comrades in arms and spare our lives."
"We are willing to serve as your vanguard!"
Neigh!
Ren Tianye pulled the reins and halted.
Zhang Shi also rode up and whispered, "Great General, many of them are indeed former frontier guards. I have dealt with them before."
Ren Tianye nodded. He didn't have much ill will toward these men. Moreover, there were three hundred of them. Even if their combat power wasn't at its peak, many were former frontier soldiers who could be sent straight into battle with little to no training.
He was inclined to keep them.
Immediately, he waved his Sky-Piercing Halberd: "If you are truly willing to surrender, I can spare your lives!"
"General Ren, we sincerely wish to serve you. Xiang Gui and his disciple have always mistreated us. It was all because Ye Fan said that men like us shouldn't be fully fed, that we only work hard when we are hungry. So they deducted our agreed-upon monthly salary of one tael of silver and scolded us at every turn. We only stayed because we feared Xiang Gui's extraordinary martial arts and didn't dare to flee. Seeing you now, General, is like seeing the sun and the moon."
"Please take us in, General!"
The crowd was already denouncing Xiang Gui and Ye Fan. Seeing their righteous indignation, it didn't seem faked. Then someone shouted.
"General Ren, we have a total of three thousand men. We are willing to act as your vanguard and persuade them to serve you as well!"
"General Ren, there are also eight hundred thousand shi of grain and forage hoarded in Qiniu Town. We are willing to guide the way for you, please accept it, General!"
Hearing this, Ren Tianye was stunned.
Three thousand men?
Eight hundred thousand shi of provisions?
Wait, he had only brought three thousand eight hundred men and seven days' worth of rations on this expedition. Suddenly, he was gaining three thousand men and eight hundred thousand shi of provisions?
He was quite excited, but he remained rational.
"Zhang Shi!"
"Here, sir!"
"I order you to incorporate these men."
As he spoke, he gave Zhang Shi a meaningful look.
Zhang Shi immediately understood.
They had all started out following the Great General when he gathered the Eight Hundred Army. Naturally, they had ways to control soldiers whose loyalty was not yet confirmed.
"Yes, I will do it at once."
"Eight Hundred Army, follow me to slay Ye Fan!"
Ren Tianye spurred his horse and galloped away.
...
Inside the room, Ye Fan rushed in hurriedly.
"Xiu'er, my master died in battle!"
"What?" Su Xiu looked astonished. Fear instantly welled up in her red, swollen eyes, fear of Ren Tianye. However, it was also mixed with a trace of joy, joy that Xiang Gui was dead.
"My master treated me like his own son, yet he was shot to death by Ren Tianye's volley of arrows. This hatred is irreconcilable. I must take Ren Tianye's head to avenge my master."
A sharp light shot from Ye Fan's eyes, and for a moment, he exuded the aura of a ruler dominating the world.
"Brother Ye Fan, so now, are you going to lead men to fight Ren Tianye?"
"Foolish!" Ye Fan frowned slightly. "My master traded his life for my chance to survive. How can I not preserve this useful body of mine?"
"Ah?" Su Xiu was confused again. "But didn't you just say..."
"Xiu'er!" Before Su Xiu could finish, Ye Fan said with awe-inspiring righteousness in his eyes, "As a chess player, one must maintain enough calmness and rationality. One must never let emotions ruin things."
"That is a major taboo!"
"Not only must I leave immediately, but I cannot shed a single tear, nor can I go collect my master's body and waste time. He died a worthy death. When he reaches the underworld, he should feel gratified."
"Yes, Brother Ye Fan. What should we do now?"
"Let's go to Sifang City first," Ye Fan said. "My uncle listened to my advice long ago, executed all the officials in Sifang City, and started an uprising. Now, Sifang City has countless hoards of grain and forage, as well as twenty thousand soldiers."
"Most of these soldiers are recruited stragglers from the Northern Frontier, and their combat prowess is quite impressive."
Profound hatred flashed in his eyes. "Once I reach Sifang City, I will order Song Wan to come to our aid. At that time, with two armies encircling him, I will definitely let Ren Tianye know how formidable I am!"
As he spoke, a strong light of confidence appeared on his face again, as radiant as the morning sun, making it truly hard not to be convinced.
But Su Xiu's heart was truly wavering at this moment. Although she disliked Xiang Gui, she knew the bond between Ye Fan and his master. She could see even more clearly how important Ye Fan was in Xiang Gui's heart.
Now that Xiang Gui was killed because of Ye Fan, he was fleeing immediately.
Was this really rationality?
But she didn't dare say much, nor did she want to say much.
She only hoped that once they reached Sifang City this time, they could escape Ren Tianye's relentless pursuit. At the same time, she hoped Brother Ye Fan would love her well, and that there would be no more messy affairs to disturb their romance.
The two immediately got up, mounted their horses, and fled.
By this time, Ren Tianye had just arrived in pursuit. From a distance, he saw the figures of Ye Fan and Su Xiu, but they were a few hundred meters away.
"Chase them!"
Ren Tianye ordered once again.
Leading the Eight Hundred Army, he surged forward like a golden dragon, galloping endlessly. Arrows were continuously fired from afar, but unfortunately, the range was insufficient. Since they were chasing, the arrows lost their momentum and fell before they could even reach Ye Fan and Su Xiu.
...
d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!
ap a wealthy young lady? Or else I'll be eliminated by the system? Ye Feng, who awakened the Kidnapper System, originally wanted to live a peaceful life but never imagined he would become a kidnapper of young women. However, after some time, he discovered that all the girls the system ordered him to kidnap were far from ordinary. "Big brother Ye Feng~ You've kidnapped my heart, and now you're not allowed to leave me ever again~" "Ye Feng~ You kidnapped me back then, now it's my turn to capture you♡" "Little Feng, you're mine! You can only be mine!" "Ye Feng, none of them deserve you. Only I love you the most♡" ... This is madness, they've all gone mad! Wait, what? Why are all the girls I kidnapped yanderes?!
for mindless slaughter, this isn't for you.] My name is Ye Shu, and I'm a transmigrator. It seems I'm supposed to be the protagonist, but that feels pretty unlikely. This world has been invaded by a system. The antagonists on the other side have suddenly become pure, flawless saints. The female leads have been force-fed the so-called "original plot," making them think they've been reborn. Now, everyone thinks I'm scum. Including the old lady in my ring. And here I am, in the Monster Beast Mountain Range, braising pork. To put my situation in perspective— It's as if, the moment Xiao Yan stepped into the Monster Beast Mountain Range, the Soul Emperor already knew he would become the Flame Emperor, and Yao Lao had been turned to the enemy's side. I have nothing right now. Oh wait, that's not true. I do have a white-haired loli child-bride who's the Heavenly Dao, and her only skill is acting cute. So, tell me guys... what are my chances of making it to the end?
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
