Hell Emperor

Qingshi Town Gate.

The two-person high stone barrier protects the town's buildings and forms the last line of defense against foreign enemies. The stones on the barrier are worn by the wind and sand of the years, revealing the texture of vicissitudes. The city gate is tightly closed, and a man holding a long bow The archer stood on the top of the city, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings, alert for traces of the enemy.

Zhang Yong stood at the top of the city and paced back and forth, his brows furrowed and deep uneasiness welling up in his eyes.

Beside him, the soldiers were holding long spears and standing still, with their backs straight. No matter how the outside world changed, their eyes were always staring ahead.

"Commander Zhang Yong, we have found Miss Xia Wei."

The report from his subordinates made Zhang Yong look happy: "Invite Miss Xia Wei over quickly."

Soon, Xia Wei, who was resisting Mo Dao, was respectfully invited to the top of the city.

Seeing that she was small in stature but carrying such a heavy and domineering Seven-foot Mo Dao, the nearby soldiers were shocked and whispered about her origins.

"I remember her, she is Xia Wei, she was the one who held the tripod on the school field a few days ago... I didn't expect that just a few days later, her strength has improved by leaps and bounds. I'm afraid even Commander Zhang Yong is not hers. opponent."

"Wait a minute, that sword... that's the sword in the hands of the mid-level third-order monster, the shrimp-headed man!"

"Captain Qi Feng of the Demon Hunting Team died in the hands of the shrimp-headed man. Now that this knife appears in Miss Xia Wei's hand, doesn't that mean that Miss Xia Wei killed the mid-level third-level monster!"

"When did such a practitioner appear in Qingshi Town? If she is willing to help, I am afraid that the Hengshan Bandits will not be able to show off their power here."

Hearing the repeated exclamations from everyone, Xia Wei looked indifferent, not happy at all.

Zhang Yong stepped forward to greet him and praised: "We haven't seen you for a few days. Miss Xia Wei's strength has improved to a higher level. She is truly a hero. Now Qingshi Town is facing a disaster, and the Hengshan bandits are leading a team to attack. I represent the town." People, please help Miss Xia Wei to save the innocent people who are trapped in the fire!"

Xia Wei said coldly: "There is an undying blood feud between me and the Hengshan thief. I am willing to do my part to resist the thief."

Zhang Yong was overjoyed: "With the help of Miss Xia Wei, we have one more hope of resisting the Hengshan Bandit. The Hengshan Bandit has the strength of the late third level. When it comes to fighting alone, no one is his opponent, only everyone." Only by working together and fighting to the death can we achieve the final victory.”

Xia Wei asked again: "I heard from the people in the town that as long as we guard Qingshi Town for three days and three nights, we can wait for reinforcements from the general who patrolled the river. Is that true?"

Zhang Yong sighed, and after dismissing the nearby soldiers, he whispered: "To be honest, those words to appease the townspeople are just a delaying tactic. The reinforcements of the general patrolling the river will take at least seven days to arrive. After seven days, everything will be over. The dust has settled. In this battle, we can only rely on ourselves.”

Xia Wei was shocked: "Then why did you deceive the townspeople?"

Zhang Yong shook his head: "How can it be called deception? It was clearly a life-saving straw for the drowning people, a hope that they believed to be true. If I didn't say that, before the Hengshan bandits attacked, the army would be demoralized and morale low. , before the fighting started, people lost the courage to fight, and more people would die in the end.”

"The truth is cruel. Not everyone has the courage to face cruelty. Sometimes false lies are easier for people to accept."

A whisper that only Xia Wei could hear rang in her ears. Behind her, Ye Jie spoke slowly.

Xia Wei didn't answer, but carefully understood Ye Jie's words for a while, and then asked: "So, there won't be reinforcements in this battle?"

Zhang Yong looked downcast: "It's not that there is no chance at all. I have sent letters of help to all places where I can ask for help. Only a few Cloud Rangers have responded. They should arrive within a few days. I just rely on the power of those Rangers. It's better not to hold anything. Hope for the best.”

Just as he was talking, a fast horse ran over from outside the city. On the horse's back, the seriously injured and dying scout was vomiting blood, as if he would not live long.

"It's the scout who went to inquire about the news not long ago. How could he..."

"Open the city gate quickly and let him in!"

The soldiers exclaimed and quickly opened the city gate and brought the dying scout back to the city. Zhang Yong quickly stepped forward and asked: "What did you find out? Tell me quickly!"

The scout grabbed Zhang Yong's collar and muttered, his words slurred. He vomited more blood, tilted his head and stopped breathing.

"You..." Zhang Yong was annoyed for a while. He looked carefully and saw a dark palm print in front of the scout's chest. The palm print shattered his heart. It was already a miracle that he could hold on and come back. "It's a heart-breaking thing." Devil's Palm... He bumped into the Hengshan Bandit. Damn it, I obviously just asked him to gather information from the outside. What's worse, what did he see? "

The soldiers looked depressed. The scout who had just finished inquiring about the information died in front of everyone before he could report the precious information. It was really sad.

Xia Wei also followed. In her eyes, the world looked different.

Zhang Yong stood on the left side of the scout's body, but on the deserted right side, stood a dark and skinny figure, that was her master Ye Jie.

Ye Jie stretched out his slender palm, patted the scout's forehead, and muttered: "The soul is back."

The scout opened his eyes wide and sat up suddenly from the ground. Seeing Zhang Yong beside him, he hurriedly said: "Commander, I brought back important information!"

However, no matter how the scout called, Zhang Yong turned a deaf ear to his call, and everyone else turned a blind eye to him as if they hadn't seen him.

"How is this going……"

The scout's heart trembled. Before his doubts could last long, a whisper came from his ears: "You are dead, they can't see you."

Looking through the sound, the dark ghosts came into view, and the scout looked gloomy: "Really... I was slapped by the Hengshan Bandit. I thought I really wouldn't survive. It's a pity that the information I brought back with my life was left with me like this." We fell into hell together."

"Actually, there is a way for you to convey the information to them." Ye Jie reminded.

"Really? I hope my death will be more valuable, rather than just a meaningless death. Those important information must be passed on to the commander no matter what." The scout said in surprise.

"Of course." Ye Jie used local materials and quickly helped the scout achieve his wish.

Xia Wei saw the actions of the two people in her eyes. After finishing preparations, she reminded everyone: "Wait a minute, look, what is that in his arms?"

Everyone looked over, Zhang Yong stretched out his hand, and took out a small piece of torn cloth from the scout's arms. There were fresh blood stains on it that were not yet dry, and the eight words "Third-level peak, ruined temple, baby" were written on it. Words in blood.

Seeing this, everyone looked happy. It was obviously the information brought back by the scouts with their lives. However, after carefully thinking about the meaning, they couldn't help but take a breath:

"Third-level peak? That Hengshan bandit has actually reached the third-level peak?"

"Only Commander Zhang Yong in Qingshi Town has level three strength, and he is only at the early stage of level three. What should we do..."

"There is a huge difference in strength between the peak of the third level and the early stage of the third level. Even if the strength of all of us is added together, I am afraid that we will not be able to harm a hair on the Hengshan bandit..."

"Can we really resist the Hengshan Bandit? His strength is so strong, I am afraid that the only way for us is death..."

Seeing the horrified expressions on everyone's faces and the lack of military morale, Zhang Yong immediately put away the banner, scanned the crowd with unquestioning eyes, and exclaimed: "That's not what he meant, but that a third-level peak reinforcement will be there soon." We are about to arrive. Also, send an order to those who discuss this matter and undermine the morale of the army, and they will be killed without mercy!"

Everyone was silent, but they could not hide the panic in their eyes. Under the huge pressure, many people retched in their throats and vomited it out in public. Everyone looked confused and in shock. appearance.

On the side, Xia Wei also understood the seriousness of the situation and whispered to Ye Jie: "The Hengshan bandit has broken through to the peak of the third level. What should we do now?"

Ye Jie took a deep breath: "The opponent at the third level of the peak is simply not something you can match now. The shrimp-headed man you tried so hard to defeat may not be able to pass a single move in front of today's Hengshan Bandit. If it was the former You, I would advise you to escape quickly, as you will definitely die if you stay here, but the situation is different now. In your hand, there is a Wild Wave Sea Splitting Sword, which is the remaining move of the heaven-level technique. You are so proud of it. As long as a person's talent is used to the limit, he will be able to fight against the Hengshan bandits."

Xia Wei's eyes were filled with fighting spirit: "Master is right, so what if he reaches the third level? This time, we must make sure that the Hengshan thief never comes back."

Ye Jie put the scout's soul into the soul-calling flag, letting him stay inside with peace of mind, and said to Xia Wei: "Do you still remember what I taught you? When looking at things, you must always see the whole thing clearly, and you can't blind your eyes with one leaf. The scout clearly wrote "You read eight words, why did you only focus on the first four and ignore the last four?"

These words made Xia Wei's eyes light up, and she immediately suggested to Zhang Yong:

"No matter how strong the Hengshan Bandit is, he is only strong alone. The babies he kidnapped are now placed in an abandoned City God Temple. I know where that temple is, and I will wait for the Hengshan Bandit to attack When the city is occupied, the defense at the rear will be empty, so we might as well deploy a surprise force to rescue those babies while he is at a loss."

Hearing this, Zhang Yong suddenly realized and clapped his hands and said: "That's right! Attacking the place where it must be saved can not only relieve the situation and relieve the offensive pressure, but also defeat the enemy's spirit in one fell swoop and boost the morale of our army. Unexpectedly, Xia Wei At such a young age, the girl has great foresight and is so familiar with the art of war, which really makes me admire her.”

Xia Wei smiled faintly and glanced at Ye Jie, who was waiting quietly. If it weren't for her master's reminder, she had already been blinded by hatred and wanted to fight to the death with the Hengshan bandit immediately. How could she have thought of this?

At this time, he heard a noise coming from the soldiers in the distance. Zhang Yong frowned: "What happened? The enemy is in front of us. Why is there such a noise?"

Soon, several loyal men brought a thin, tied-up man in front of them: "We found that he dropped his weapons and tried to escape over the barrier."

"What..." Zhang Yong's eyes darkened, that man was actually a deserter.

"Commander, spare your life! I was just impulsive... That Hengshan thief has the third level of peak strength. If he doesn't escape now, he will only die." After being captured by everyone, the deserter regretted his mistake and begged repeatedly.

Zhang Yong took out the saber from his waist: "So you chose to escape from the battle and hand over the old, weak, women and children in the city who need your protection to the attacking enemies? This is simply extremely shameful and should be dealt with according to military law!"

Saying that, he was about to chop off his head.

Xia Wei couldn't bear it and advised: "Why kill him? Why not give him a chance to continue to pick up weapons and fight. Facing the incoming Hengshan bandits, one more manpower will give him more strength."

Zhang Yong stopped moving, worried. He thought for a moment before sheathing his sword: "Since Miss Xia Wei pleads for you, I will spare your life, but in the future battles, you must be at the forefront." !”

He then said to everyone: "If you pass on the order, if anyone dares to escape privately, he will be beheaded in public!"

The thin deserter who escaped the disaster thanked Xia Wei repeatedly: "Thank you very much, Miss Xia Wei. I will never forget this kindness."

Xia Wei waved her hand, and after everyone left, she heard a familiar sigh in her ears.

Ye Jie looked at the back of the deserter and reminded Xia Wei: "If you don't kill him, it won't be enough to deter everyone. People will take advantage of the opportunity. Before the Hengshan bandit comes, more people will escape. Defeat is certain. Although you saved the deserter, in the long run, it is not the most appropriate choice. Sometimes, you need to sacrifice some people to save more people..."

"It doesn't matter if you run away." Xia Wei shook her head, her eyes blazing, like two bright flames, showing determination and strength, "I will kill the Hengshan bandit with my own hands, and I will save them all."

"The old saying goes: The greater the ability, the greater the responsibility. I am very happy that you can have such an awareness." Ye Jie said with emotion, "If you want to defeat the Hengshan bandit, you can't just rely on empty words. You must seize the time. Before the Hengshan robber comes, practice the Mad Wolf Splitting Sea Sword."

After a pause, Ye Jie sighed: "How easy is it to challenge a higher level? Even if you are the reincarnation of an immortal, if you don't have the benefit of martial arts and only rely on your innate magical powers, you will probably be defeated against the Hengshan bandits. You don't have much time. , let’s learn the techniques quickly.”

Xia Wei nodded and asked Commander Zhang Yong for a quiet room. After sitting down in the quiet room, she placed the Mo Dao flat on her knees and listened quietly to Ye Jie's explanation of the essence of the technique.

As time passed, Ye Jie's tone of reciting the exercises was as calm as ever. However, this time, Xia Wei was no longer as comfortable as before. Instead, her eyebrows were furrowed and her teeth were clenched. Her expression was full of anxiety and uneasiness. She couldn't achieve anything for a long time. progress.