Nightfall

Wang Jinglue said, “Despite the fact that he is extremely powerful, I can help you to locate him. Just like what we have discussed, you have to make a few more attempts if you fail to kill him during the first shot.”

Ning Que shook his head as he said, “You will kill yourself.”

“I’m not afraid of dying. I should have lost my life when Master Yan Se drew the ‘Well’ Talisman when I was in Chang’an. I should’ve died when Xiong Chumo killed General Xu Shi years ago. That night when the entire Qinghe Prefecture was painted with fresh blood, I… have already died.”

Wang Jinglue gazed at the South as he said, “I don’t mind to die again and again as long as I can kill him.”

Ning Que paused briefly before he replied, “He’s not worth it.”

Then, he dismounted and released the big black horse from the rein and let it rest freely. He followed behind Wang Jinglue and headed toward the military base that was located at the side of the canyon opening.

The moment he entered the military base, he was swamped with an anguished wail before he was able to greet the five elder brothers.

With his trembling fingers, Beigong Weiyang pointed at Ning Que. Howling out of sadness and rage, he parted his quivering lips and said, “What took you so long?! What took you so long to reach here?!”

One’s sorrow was only genuine when one lost his voice after crying. To be able to speak clearly with barely any tear on his cheek, it was obvious that he was faking his tears. Annoyed, Ning Que responded, “I almost cracked my buttock to try to reach here as soon as possible. Is that not quick enough for you?”

Despite being exposed, Beigong Weiyang did not feel embarrassed at all. Instead, he condemned Ning Que furiously, “You people, who are good at battle, spend all your time loitering around the north and the west. Then, you left this area, the most important one, to us, the scholars. You are so shameless! I don’t care. We were sabotaged and you have to avenge our loss.”

Ning Que looked at the four elder brothers who were lying on the bed, badly injured. He said helplessly, “How can I revenge you?”

Before Beigong could reply, Song Qian, the fifth brother, spoke in a cold tone, “Of course you have to kill him!”

Subconsciously, Ning Que threw a glimpse at Wang Jinglue before he asked out of confusion, “The war summary that I received says that Elder brother won the battle and successfully took down Hengmu. Why do you sound as though you were wrecked instead?”

Frustrated, Beigong Weiyang said, “You were the one who designed the array and the scheme together with Senior Sister. How can you not know about the details? That is the exact reason why we failed to kill him and were crashed terribly. We have brought shame to our Academy and that is an absolute loss. Youngest Brother, you have to help us to reclaim our dignity.”

Ning Que received a bowl of ginseng soup from Wang Chi and finished all of it at once. Immediately, he felt as though his energy had recovered profoundly. Then, he took over the hot tower from Xu Jialun and wiped his face with it before he looked at the group and asked, “Before this, Wang Jinglue swore to kill him. And, now, Elder Brother expressed your wish to kill him too. Without question, he will be killed. But, why is everyone dwelling on this issue? You told me to kill him. Yet, you repeatedly emphasize that it is difficult to kill him. What is your true objective?”

Beigong Weiyang praised Ning Que, “Despite the fact that you rhymed it poorly, your sentences rhyme nonetheless.”

Ning Que disregarded him and tossed the towel back at Xu Jialun as he said, “You’re flattering the enemy and depleting our own morale. What do you want exactly? Can you be more straightforward?”

As Song Qian was the eldest among them, everyone turned to look at him in synchrony.

He said sternly, “I’m emphasizing this, hoping that you can be cautious. Hengmu is too powerful. Maybe, it’s better for us to defend temporarily for now… Verdant Canyon can act as a natural shield for us. Equipped with our arrays and poisons, we should be able to stay safe until elder brother’s arrival.”

Abruptly, an important question flashed across his mind, “Where is Elder Sister?”

“She is mildly injured and needs to rest for a period of time,” Ning Que answered. “Regarding your plan to defend… I disagree. It is against our initial arrangement and I am certain that Elder Sister will not agree with your suggestion either.”

“Despite the strength of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, Elder Sister was hurt… I would have sympathized with you if she came alongside you. You’ll be free to make your decision to attack Yangzhou. But now, I will not concur with you.”

“Why not? Nonetheless, we are heading south.”

Laughing, Beigong Weiyang applauded as he saw that Ning Que had no intention to amend his plan. Beigong Weiyang then said, “I foresaw that Youngest Brother would not agree with our decision. No matter what, we will have to figure out how to kill Hengmu.”

Ning Que replied, “I’ve never disagreed with this.”

Song Qian responded, “The concern now is the way to kill him… In my opinion, the best and most feasible method now is to utilize the Thirteen Primordial Arrows and take Wang Jinglue as the bait.”

With a grin on his face, Wang Jinglue took a step forward.

Song Qian stood up with the help of Wang Chi and walked toward Ning Que. He said, “If Wang Jinglue fails to do it, the four of us will take over and use our arrays to force the state out of him.”

Ning Que paused for a long while before he finally spoke, “For a very long time, you have been talking about how powerful Hengmu is. Is that your plan to convince me to accept your arrangement?”

Song Qian was brazen like everyone else from the Back Hill of the Academy. He remained a straight face as he said, “Hengmu has always been a strong dude. And our arrangement is considerably good.”

Realizing that the atmosphere had turned rather depressing, Beigong Weiyang made another compliment, “Now, you rhymed it well.”

Ning Que spoke without any contemplation, “I beg to differ.”

Song Qian exchanged gazes with his brothers before he heaved a sigh and said, “We’ve scripted this entire drama because we were worried that you might disapprove with our plan. Why can’t you be thoughtful for us?”

Ning Que gave Beigong Weiyang, who was about to speak, a glare before he said, “Don’t bother me with the rhymes. I don’t agree with your decision to defend, not to mention to sacrifice your lives in exchange for Hengmu’s life.”

He looked at Wang Jinglue and said, “Just like what I’ve told you just now, he’s not worth it.”

The audience remained silent as the plan they made with strenuous effort was a lack of success and they had now run out of options. Concerned, Song Qian asked, “So, how can we take Hengmu’s life?”

Ning Que answered, “How to take one’s life? Of course we have to kill him.”

His words sounded like nonsense. In fact, it was nonsense. However, nonsense made the best sense in this world. For instance, the best way to love a person was to love the person…

“He has surpassed the Five States.” Song Qian recalled the great force that came from nowhere when he was in the array that day. His expression turned sombre as he looked at Ning Que and said, “I know about your proficient battle skills. But, how do you want to compensate for the difference between the states?”

“Abbey Dean has acquired serenity. For the past thousand years, the only people who are stronger than him are teacher and uncle. But, if Eldest Brother and Senior Sister were to work together, they will certainly be able to compete with him. And, I can use wreck him using Chang’an.”

“Back then, Lian Sheng continuously lingered outside the gate of the Five States and the state was unpredictable as usual. Shanshan, Ye Hongyu, and I were respectively at the superior stage of See-Through, initial stage of See-Through, and initial stage of Knowing Destiny. Yet, we successfully broke free from his trap and burned him into ashes.”

“The cultivator was wrecked by a common person. An expert was crushed completely by an amateur. I was able to turn Long Qing into a fool solely by using an arrow, and not to forget, our teacher who is still fighting with Haotian at Divine Kingdom at this moment.”

“Battle is relevant, yet, also irrelevant to the state. Is it necessary to compensate the difference between the states? I don’t think so. I reckon Hengmu, too, shares the same opinion as me.” Ning Que spoke out his testimony without a pause. He appeared composed as he stood by his statement firmly. Seeing that his elder brothers did not respond, he turned and left the military base.

Song Qian and the rest of the group remained quiet as they stared at Ning Que’s back as he walked away. They shook his head after Ning Que had exited the military base. Beigong Weiyang scanned the group and said in a serious tone, “Youngest Brother… He seems strange today. He used to always act before he speak. He has never elaborated his explanation like today.”

Song Qian answered in a low tone, “Youngest Brother was trying to explain the situation, not only to us, but also to himself. It seems like he’s not exactly confident to face Hengmu too.”

The atmosphere of the military base turned quiet after Song Qian finished his words. For a very long time, none of them said a word.

…

Wang Jinglue left the room alongside Ning Que and walked toward the tent of the middle troops. After half a mile, Wang Jinglue could not hold back his question any longer and he asked, “Do you not have any confidence?”

He shared similar thoughts as all the elder brothers of the Academy who were inside the military base. Ning Que would not have given an elaborated explanation if he is confident in defeating Hengmu. He might not have anything to hide, but he definitely has his concerns.

Startled, Ning Que froze in his tracks, turned and looked at Wang Jinglue, “What about my confidence?”

After a brief pause, Wang Jinglue replied, “Your confidence in defeating Hengmu.”

Ning Que inconspicuously raised his eyebrows as he pondered on Wang Jinglue’s words. After a while, he finally understood the meaning of Wang Jinglue’s words. He forced a grin and said, “I was directing my words to our brothers. I don’t want them to act foolishly with you.”

Wang Jinglue replied, “Our sacrifices are not foolish.”

Ning Que rebuked, “Unnecessary sacrifices are foolish.”

Wang Jinglue questioned, “Then, what is your plan to win against Hengmu?”

Ning Que answered, “I will win the victory once I kill him.”

He gave another pointless answer just like what he said in the military base. His reply to the question of how to defeat Hengmu remained the same, boring yet somehow correct answer.

However, Wang Jinglue was not convinced. He stared right into Ning Que’s eyes and asked persistently, “How are you going to kill him?”

Ning Que chuckled as he replied with another question, “Do you want to know?”

Appearing determined, Wang Jinglue nodded.

Ning Que turned and headed toward the tent of the Southern Battlefront Army’s middle troops. His answer echoed across the Verdant Canyon, “You’ll find out after I kill him.”

…

Song Qian, the brothers of the Academy, and Wang Jinglue were not the only one who were resolute with their plans, even the generals of Southern Battlefront Army and Yulin Royal Guards strongly believed that reasonable sacrifices, accompanied by the use of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, were the best way to win against Hengmu. However, Ning Que had a different opinion. He continued to stand firmly by his dissent despite the dispute between him and the others.

He was the Youngest Brother in the Academy and not the first in sequence. However, he was, in fact, the leader of the Academy at the moment. Both the imperial court of Great Tang and the people listened to him as well. Therefore, his decision was very powerful and potent. In spite of the different judgements of Song Qian and the generals of the Tang troops, everyone had to act according to his order.

When dawn broke on the next day, the Tang troops left the Verdant Canyon and headed south. Before long, they arrived at the field with fertile soil that was located at the north of Qinghe Prefecture.

This was the first time that the Tang troops had set their feet here after the rebellion of the cliques of Qinghe Prefecture. The military flag fluttered in the wind under the beautiful morning light and formed a picturesque scene.

As Ning Que personally sent the news of the destruction of the Golden Tribe Royal Court to the generals, the news had quickly spread among the soldiers. Their long-time enemy at the north had turned into ashes overnight and their morale was markedly boosted. As they gazed into the terrain before them, which used to be their enemy’s colony, they were filled with aplomb.

Even the generals and cultivators, who were threatened by Hengmu, felt at peace at this moment. They were not amused by the beauty of the legendary scenery before them but were thrilled to be part of this picturesque scene. The Tang had finally reclaimed the things that were once belonged to them. Leaving the Verdant Canyon was the first step of their process. However, they had to make sure to stay unyielding.

There were a total of forty thousand cavalry from Southern Battlefront Army and Yulin Royal Guards. Together with a huge number of experienced private soldiers, they left the Verdant Canyon as an enormous team. They passed by the paddy field and headed south. Throughout their journey, they did not meet any challenge. The armed rebels from the clique, who were hiding at the villages, were easily removed by the Tang troops. The rebels of the clique hardly delayed the Tang troops’s journey, not to mention, impeded the troops’ journey to the south.

What laid before the eyes of the hundred thousand of Tang troops was a lovely cottage surrounded by a big yard. Beside the cottage was a stream, that was well known for being beautiful, flowing underneath a small bridge. They quietly and joyfully enjoyed the scenic view before them. But, their peacefulness did not last for long.

There were dead bodies everyone.

The huge number of hanged men ruined the supposedly serene atmosphere. A few thousand bodies were hung on the branches of the trees that were located beside the bridge or at the gate of the yard. Some of the bodies had decomposed while some of the dead men were glaring angrily with their widened eyes. The used-to-be quiet southern cottage of the Great Tang had turned into a broad expanse of graveyard.

The views along the hundreds of miles of journey from Verdant Canyon to Yangzhou City was agonizing to watch. The Tang troops passed by one after another towns. Their joy was completely gone as their expression turned graver and graver while they hastened their pace.

They knew clearly that the hanged bodies at the Qinghe Prefecture were definitely their peers. Indeed, Qinghe Prefecture had commenced their rebellion against the Great Tang many years ago. However, there were still many people, especially the young ones, who were loyal to Chang’an. As long as one stayed faithful to the Great Tang, one would always be part of the Tang’s compatriots.

The Tang troops continued their journey south quietly. They did not release the hanged bodies from the rope. Besides, there was no unnecessary attention and mourning for the bodies. The troops knew that the only way to grieve the dead men was to arrive at Yangzhou City as soon as possible and eject the armies of the Divine Halls of West-Hill and the South Jin Kingdom out of this place.

The Tang troops arrived at Yangzhou City as another day broke. Uncountable military flags waved as the wind blew. The war horse squealed while the soldiers sitting on horseback flashed their weapons. The ancient city was now overwhelmed by terrifying bloodthirstiness.

It was mayhem inside the Yangzhou City. The leaders of the cliques and the Divine Halls of West-Hill were promptly notified when the Tang troops departed from Verdant Canyon. However, they did not expect the troops to arrive in such a short period of time!

Yangzhou was a big city. It was one of the five largest cities in the entire Tang. It was a very difficult task to ambush the city. The Tang troops did not attack the city merely based on their impulse. The generals of Southern Battlefront Army and the Yulin Royal Guards calmed their soldiers down and ordered the soldiers to pitch tents at the gentle slope that was located ten miles north from the city. The sound of ramming echoed across the atmosphere.

As one of the soldiers was plunging the pole into the earth, he heard a sound emanated from afar. He lifted his head and looked toward the origin of the sound, only to see the city gate of Yangzhou was gradually being opened. Cavalrymen, dressed in black, swarmed out of the gate.