Chapter 9

Outside the city of Xiliang, Zichen stood in a set of black combat attire, his jet-black hair tied back, revealing a handsome face. On his back was a large black longbow, and his eyes, like black gems, swept over the long line of slaves heading north. Each slave's face bore the mark of a slave, but due to their large numbers, they were not chained but had their hands tied with ropes.

Under the watch of three thousand iron cavalry, these more than twenty thousand people took heavy steps, advancing step by step toward the north.

"General, you gave me three thousand Qingyi Iron Cavalry. What about you?" Seeing the spirited Qingyi Iron Cavalry, Zichen felt deeply moved.

Zili had asked Ximen Zhan to prepare personnel for him. He had thought that not giving him those miscellaneous troops would be good enough, but who would have thought that Ximen Zhan would give him the most elite three thousand Qingyi Iron Cavalry?

According to the military hierarchy of the empire, a Lingwei could lead at most two thousand soldiers, and these three thousand were already an excess.

"Hehe, now Xiliang City has ten thousand Xianyi Iron Cavalry guarding it, and another fifty thousand reinforcements are on the way. These three thousand Qingyi Iron Cavalry are dispensable for me, but not for you. The journey ahead is perilous. With these three thousand iron cavalry, your chances of survival will be much higher!" Ximen Zhan smiled and shook his head.

"General, you are too kind to me..." Zichen was deeply moved.

"Hehe, if it weren't for you, Xiliang City might have been destroyed. What is this compared to that? Take care on your journey. If anything unexpected happens, your life is the most important. As long as you are alive, there is always a chance, understand?" Ximen Zhan shook his head bitterly.

Zichen, who had saved Xiliang City, should have been honored and received rewards from the court, but because of Zili's arrival, he was given this almost certain death mission. As the city's lord, Ximen Zhan felt deeply guilty for not being able to do anything.

"Don't worry, if we really encounter the demon cavalry, I will be the first to run away..." Zichen chuckled.

"Hehe, you rascal, you are still as mischievous. Well, it's not early anymore, hurry up and set off..."

"Wait, there's one more thing..."

"What is it?"

"Since you have given me your most beloved Qingyi Iron Cavalry, why not also give me your beloved daughter?" Zichen leaned in.

"..." Ximen Zhan was speechless, never expecting that at this moment, this guy would still be thinking about his daughter.

"Although she is a bit young, I don't mind at all..."

"Get lost..." Ximen Zhan was furious again. "You don't mind, but I do!" Enraged, Ximen Zhan kicked Zichen's horse, and the carefully selected steed neighed and galloped away, with Zichen's laughter echoing from the saddle.

Seeing Zichen's retreating figure and hearing his cheerful laughter, Ximen Zhan's eyes slowly filled with tears.

"Kid, remember, you are the son of General Ziyang. You must not come to any harm..." Muttering to himself, Ximen Zhan turned and returned to the city with his deputy.

Zichen, however, showed no signs of dejection. Leading the three thousand iron cavalry, he headed north.

After about a day's journey, Zichen and his men had reached the edge of the Western Wasteland. A little further west was the territory of the grassland demons.

As the sun set on the horizon, a group of iron cavalry galloped over to Zichen, one of them lifting his helmet to reveal a rugged face—it was Luo Yun, who had previously looked down on Zichen.

"Sir, it's getting dark. Should we camp here?" Luo Yun asked respectfully.

Seeing Luo Yun's rugged face, Zichen did not immediately answer but sighed. "General Luo, why are you doing this?"

Luo Yun had been a deputy general and, with the merit of repelling the grassland demons, had a good chance of being promoted to a junior general. But after hearing about Zichen's mission, he had resigned from his position and joined the Qingyi Iron Cavalry as a common soldier to follow Zichen.

"Sir, I am a rough man, but I know how to repay kindness. If it weren't for your two arrows that day, I wouldn't have survived, let alone earned any merit. Now that you are being framed and given this dangerous mission, how can I, Luo, feel at ease accepting such merit? Not just me, if it weren't for the fear of attracting Zili's attention, Lin Hu and Liang Yin would also have resigned and followed you..." Luo Yun said solemnly.

Seeing Luo Yun's solemn expression, Zichen was deeply moved. Even though Luo Yun had been disrespectful to him in the past, he knew that these border soldiers were straightforward and spoke their minds.

"General Luo..." Zichen wanted to say more but was interrupted by Luo Yun.

"Sir, I am no longer a general but just a soldier under your command. If you have any orders, I will follow them without hesitation, even if it means climbing a mountain of knives or diving into a sea of fire."

"Very well, Luo Yun, listen to my order..."

"Your subordinate is here..." Luo Yun immediately saluted.

"I hereby appoint you as the Qingyi Commander, in charge of the third battalion of the Qingyi Iron Cavalry."

"Thank you, sir..."

"Now, gather all the captives immediately. I have something to say." Zichen said sternly.

"Yes, sir..."

A quarter of an hour later, the twenty thousand captives were all gathered in the center, while the three thousand Qingyi Iron Cavalry remained mounted, circling around the captives. Any sign of unrest would be met with immediate and ruthless action.

Zichen rode his steed to a hill, looking down at the densely packed captives. In the fading light of the sunset, he could clearly see the fear, anger, and humiliation on their faces.

"I know you all have heard about the death of your Prince Wanyan Gu. Yes, it was I who killed Prince Wanyan Gu and the immortal master you invited," Zichen suddenly raised his voice, his thunderous shout echoing across the grassland. The captives below were taken aback, clearly not expecting this young, seemingly weak youth to be the archer who killed Prince Wanyan Gu.

"I know you don't believe me, but that doesn't matter. I just want to tell you that Wanyan Gu is dead. You should know better than I do how important Wanyan Gu was to your Khan. With the prince dead and you, his protectors, still alive, how do you think your Khan will punish you?"

Zichen's words were met with a murmur of voices. The captives knew that, given the Khan's usual methods, they would face severe punishment upon returning to the grasslands, ranging from beheading to being torn apart by horses, and even their families might suffer.

Thinking of their families possibly being implicated, the captives looked at Zichen with hatred. If not for him, they wouldn't have been captured.

Some even had a murderous glint in their eyes, considering whether to fight to the death with these Han people.

"Do you hate me? But let me ask you, what right do you have to hate me? It was you who killed my people, who massacred our Tang villages, who attacked Xiliang City. You want to kill us, but you don't allow us to resist?" Zichen roared, and the captives, who had been restless, fell silent.

Yes, they were the invaders, and the other side was merely retaliating. What right did they have to hate him?

"The battlefield is merciless, and weapons have no eyes. I am strong enough, so I killed your prince, and my army defeated yours. Whether you accept it or not, you are all losers. Losers have no right to hate. Now, you are my captives, but I don't want captives..." Zichen roared again. The faces of the twenty thousand captives and even Luo Yun and the others turned pale. Did he mean to kill all the captives?

Even if he wanted to kill them, he didn't need to shout it out. If the captives revolted, even the three thousand iron cavalry might not be able to handle it.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you. In fact, if it weren't for me, you would have been dead already." Zichen sneered, seeing the shock on their faces.

Regardless of whether the captives believed him, they all secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Who would choose death over life?

"Recently, the new commander of Xiliang City, my brother, Junior General Zili, secretly decided to execute you. It was I who saved you because I believe you are the bravest warriors of the grasslands, the most valiant fighters. You can die, but not by the executioner's blade, not in a prisoner camp. Your destiny is the battlefield. Now, I give you two choices: one, return to your grasslands and face the Khan's wrath; two, follow me north peacefully..." Zichen roared, his handsome face twisted with ferocity.

As his words fell, the vast area fell silent. Luo Yun and the others looked at Zichen in shock, never expecting him to release the captives. If Zili found out, he could easily accuse Zichen of treason.

As for the captives in the center, they looked at each other in disbelief. Could it be true that the man who killed their prince and the immortal master was now offering to let them go back to the grasslands? Was this a dream?

【Yesterday, 181 brothers and sisters gave rewards, and the number of favorites increased by more than six hundred. On the first day of the new book, I am grateful for everyone's support... Here is the second chapter for today...】

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