Chapter 94

With the great battle imminent, the Chu family had made preparations to flee at any moment. As the head of the family, Chu Siming had taken all the valuables he could carry with him. At this moment, he had been thoroughly searched by Qi Hanjiang and the others.

Chen Hai took out several long iron needles and inserted them into several main meridians of Chu Siming to prevent him from secretly gathering true essence to struggle against the bindings. Then he found a large wooden box for crossbow bolts and put Chu Siming inside.

"Killing him would be simpler," Qi Hanjiang and several other bandit leaders suggested, making a gesture of cutting their throats, advising Chen Hai to kill Chu Siming to eliminate the root cause.

"We can't waste good goods," Chen Hai smiled slightly, then crossed his legs and sat on the wooden box, counting the valuables taken from Chu Siming.

The Wuwei Army was launching a large-scale southern invasion, but it would not be easy to completely flatten Helan Mountain. They might accept the He Xiang Army's request for peace after gaining sufficient advantages. Key prisoners could be exchanged for large ransoms, so how could they be killed at will?

The Chu family had deep roots, and even produced a prodigy like Chu Rong.

Although Chu Siming was only at the early stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, he wielded a mid-grade Yellow Rank spirit sword. Chen Hai thought it would be perfect for upgrading Wu Meng's spirit sword. The spirit armor was a bit inferior, but the spirit ring was a low-grade Yellow Rank magical treasure, which could be used by Zhao Shan and Shen Kun.

Six Golden Secret Armor Talismans, three Flame Blade Talismans, and four bottles containing over four hundred Spirit Nourishing Pills. Chen Hai called Zhou Jun and Wu Meng over, and the three of them divided these items equally. The remaining Spirit Nourishing Pills and other ordinary spirit medicines were distributed to Qi Hanjiang and the other bandits for cultivation and replenishing vital energy.

In addition to these, Chu Siming also carried a blood soul jade, no larger than a thumb, with a body that seemed to be made of congealed blood. It was a precious material for refining mid-grade Yellow Rank magical treasures, which Chen Hai unhesitantly put into his own bag.

After a while, Zhao Shan and the County Lieutenant of Chixian returned to the southern city tower, bringing wine, meat, and money as rewards. They were accompanied by a steward from the Chu family, who brought a large pile of gifts, hoping to ransom the head of the Chu family, Chu Siming.

Chen Hai unhesitantly accepted all the gifts and then rudely drove the steward of the Chu family off the city tower. He had not killed Chu Siming immediately because he was waiting to exchange him for a ransom. How could he release him now?

Chen Hai also scolded the County Lieutenant of Chixian, Ding Shuang, and ordered him to hand over the County Lieutenant's seal. Then he personally led people out of the city to drive away the refugees on the imperial road and set up additional sentry posts along the northern border of the county.

To prevent any accidents, Chen Hai also ordered the bandits to stay near the southern city tower, not to leave his sight, to prevent them from contacting outsiders and to avoid them revealing any signs of impatience.

Then Chen Hai issued a series of dizzying orders from the southern city tower, which were conveyed by Zhao Shan and Shen Kun, making the local military forces of Chixian County run around in circles, leaving them no chance to suspect anything.

Chen Hai's various orders, in addition to dispersing the local military forces, driving away the refugees on the imperial road, and setting up additional sentry posts along the northern border of the county to enhance vigilance, also dispatched limited local troops to strengthen the defense of nearby villages.

While dispersing the local military forces, Chen Hai also ordered the county office's archers and swordsmen to assist Zhao Shan and Shen Kun in conscripting civilian soldiers from the city to strengthen the city's defenses.

On the surface, Chixian County quickly recovered from the chaos. Not only did the imperial road on both sides of the county become unobstructed, but the nearby villages also enhanced their defenses. However, only two hundred troops were left in Chixian City, mainly to maintain order in the city, and to prevent the local gentry and wealthy families from escaping.

Chen Hai not only prevented the local gentry and wealthy families in Chixian City from escaping, but also kept those who had fled to Chixian City in the past two days.

The two thousand temporarily conscripted civilian soldiers seemed to enhance the defense of Chixian County, but the command authority was firmly in the hands of Chen Hai at the southern city tower. Chen Hai not only held the County Lieutenant's seal, but the civilian soldiers were also personally organized by Zhao Shan and Shen Kun. Even if someone exposed Chen Hai's true identity, these civilian soldiers would only scatter, unable to seize the command authority.

Chen Hai entered Chixian County at noon and by midnight had completely controlled the situation in Chixian City. He then ordered the closure of the northern and southern city gates and the implementation of a curfew, concentrating the sixteen heavy crossbows at the southern city gate.

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At dawn, the earth shook violently.

Chen Hai did not dare to relax even for a moment at night, sitting on the wooden box containing Chu Siming, meditating and adjusting his breath. When he opened his eyes and looked through the arrow slit, he saw a great flame rising from the direction of Yanchuan City, the sky and earth changing color, the elemental energy flowing wildly, and the cold moonlight distorting into ripples of light.

The giant sword of light that had once split the iron wall on Yulong Mountain reappeared, heading towards Yanchuan City.

The defensive magic array deployed by the He Xiang Army in Yanchuan City now came into play, with wave after wave of silver light, like huge waves, rushing towards the towering sword of light.

A lush green mountain peak suddenly appeared above Yanchuan City, crashing down forcefully.

Chen Hai and his companions were three hundred miles away, and the green mountain peak appeared only as large as the County Lieutenant's seal. Considering the scale of Yanchuan City, the green mountain peak was at least two to three hundred feet high, and was clearly a magical treasure that could be wielded by a mystic cultivator.

On the eastern side of Yanchuan City, more and more sword qi and sword light were slashing out, and in the dazzling light, one could see rocks like a heavy rain being thrown towards Yanchuan City.

The earth was shaking in a very regular pattern, indicating that a powerful earth-shaking technique was being used to shake the foundation of Yanchuan City's defensive magic array from underground.

The vanguard of the Wuwei Army had already reached the front of Yanchuan City, and General Dong Liang of the Wuwei Army was among the vanguard, clearly unwilling to give the He Xiang Army any chance to react, and determined to completely tear apart the northern defenses.

The green mountain peak was also a well-known Heaven Rank magical treasure of the Taowei Sect.

At this moment, Chen Hai put the letter he had written earlier into a metal tube, released the spirit crane that was covered with a cloth bag, and tied the metal tube firmly to the spirit crane's claws. He watched as the small body of the spirit crane flew like an arrow into the vast night sky, heading north towards Yulong Mountain.

"Who is below the city wall?" Wu Meng, who was guarding the city tower, shouted angrily, then wielded his spirit-patterned sword and slashed forward.

With the help of the sword light from the spirit-patterned sword, Chen Hai saw a black figure turning to leave in front of the fence.

Seeing the spirit-patterned sword coming, the figure quickly called out, "Captain Wu, it's me, Ding Shuang. I have something to report to Captain Chen!"

Ding Shuang, the County Lieutenant of Chixian County!

Chen Hai had ordered Ding Shuang to personally lead troops to set up sentry posts along the northern border, but he had secretly returned to the city without any escort, and even came to the southern city tower alone. Chen Hai naturally did not believe he had any business to report.

The bandit soldiers were on the city tower, but the civilian soldiers guarding the two wings of the city wall had already noticed the commotion below and were raising torches to shine down. Chen Hai could not let Wu Meng openly kill Ding Shuang, so he called out from the city tower, "It's Mr. Ding. What business do you have? Please come up and talk."

Wu Meng did not put away his spirit-patterned sword, and Zhou Jun personally flew out to "invite" Ding Shuang to the city tower.

Chen Hai placed his Frost-Infused Golden Spear across his knees, sat on the large wooden box, and watched as Ding Shuang, who was being escorted by Wu Meng and Zhou Jun, was brought into the city tower.

Ding Shuang was about thirty years old, with a thin face and a very capable appearance, and had reached the late stage of the Mystic Realm. However, in the eyes of Chen Hai and his companions, he was not worth much. Seeing the surprise and suspicion in his eyes, but still managing to maintain a calm demeanor, Chen Hai secretly acknowledged that he was a capable person.

"Mr. Ding, you came alone. What business do you have with me?" Chen Hai stroked the Frost-Infused Golden Spear and asked with a smile, "Are you here to find out where I have imprisoned Chu Siming?"

"Captain Chen, you are joking. The Chu family has been bullying Chixian County for years, but I have no connection with them. With the great battle imminent, the northern defenses may not hold, so I came alone to find Captain Chen, hoping that Captain Chen would be lenient and allow my wife and children to leave the city to the south. Without any worries, I would naturally be at Captain Chen's disposal." Ding Shuang forced a smile.

Chen Hai laughed and said, "Since Mr. Ding has come to me for this, the gifts you have prepared must be substantial!"

Ding Shuang's face stiffened for a moment, then he forced a smile again, "Yes, but I wonder if Captain Chen will be satisfied?"

Seeing that Ding Shuang's hand was in his chest but not taking anything out, Chen Hai patted the wooden box under his buttocks and said with a smile, "I won't hide it from you, Mr. Ding. Chu Siming is imprisoned in this wooden box. I believe you can now tell me your true intentions."

Even if Ding Shuang had only a suspicion, Chen Hai could not let him leave easily at this moment.

Ding Shuang's face changed drastically, realizing he could not bluff his way through, and said sternly, "I have no grudge against Captain Chen, and countless civilian soldiers saw me enter the city tower. Surely Captain Chen cannot detain me without cause."

Wu Meng and Zhou Jun were also secretly troubled. From now on, they could not afford any slack. If they forcibly detained the County Lieutenant, Ding Shuang, they could not hide it from others. Although the local troops in Chixian City were not worth much, a mutiny and a mass exodus of soldiers and civilians would cause chaos that they could not control.

"I have no intention of detaining Mr. Ding, but I will invite your wife and children to the city tower as guests. If anything goes wrong in Chixian County, I will personally escort your wife and children to safety," Chen Hai said with a smile. "Now, please write a note, and I will arrange for someone to invite your wife and children to come as guests..."

Ding Shuang's face turned pale, and his voice trembled as he asked, "Who are you? Why do you want to detain my wife and children?"

"I am just a nobody in the Wuwei Army, and Mr. Ding would not have heard of my name. But the He Xiang Army incited the people of Yulong City to rebel, resulting in the deaths of over fifty young nobles from the Hexi region in Yulong Mountain. They should have known that retribution would come," Chen Hai said with a cold smile. "I might as well tell you, Mr. Ding, that we have already secretly moved tens of thousands of elite troops to the south of Chixian County over the past two days, waiting to intercept the fleeing soldiers. If I let you go now, what are your chances of escaping with your family to Hechuan Ridge?"

Zhou Jun and Wu Meng secretly admired Chen Hai's composure, as he could still come up with another story to persuade Ding Shuang to join them.