Chapter 9

Under the shaman's sorcery, the originally dispirited and heavily wounded Hu cavalry suddenly launched another charge!

Blood and fire! Life and death! And the battle for survival between different races once again unfolded on the earthen walls of Daqing Village!

Unlike before, the appearance of the shaman boosted the morale and combat power of the Hu side to their peak, while the Daqing Village side fell to a low point.

Amidst the blood-red sunset, the Hu launched several charges, nearly breaking through the defenses. It was only through the desperate efforts of Wang Yin, Wu Ming, and other martial artists that they managed to hold the line.

By the time the Hu retreated under the starry sky, Wu Ming and Wang Yin were visibly exhausted, their armor battered and bruised.

"Phew..."

With the help of two village guards, Wang Yin finally managed to take off his iron armor, which was soaked in blood and almost stuck to his body. He smiled bitterly at Wu Ming and said, "Young Master Wu, I have expended a great deal of true qi today. I need to rest for the night to recover before I can return to the battlefield. I entrust this place to you..."

"Don't worry, I don't want the Hu to invade and leave us with no place to bury our bodies either!"

Today, Wang Yin fought bravely on the front lines, charging even more fiercely than Wu Ming, and took on the most enemies, which everyone could see. Wu Ming immediately smiled and said so.

"Very well... When the Hu retreat, I will make a good friend of you!"

Wang Yin was very friendly to Wu Ming, and it was unclear whether this was influenced by Huang Ying.

Seeing Wang Yin leave, Qin Hu stepped forward, "You've done a lot today too. Go and rest early! Don't keep your lady waiting..."

As he spoke, a knowing smile appeared on his face, clearly misunderstanding something.

In reality, although Wu Ming seemed brave, his purpose was different from Wang Yin's, and he secretly reserved some of his strength.

At this moment, seeing Qin Hu take the initiative to take over the night watch, Wu Ming's heart stirred, and he showed a grateful expression on his face, "Thank you!"

Without saying more, he directly left the earthen wall.

However... Qin Hu did not notice the cold look that flashed across Wu Ming's face after he left the wall.

...

"Our mission is just to survive... Therefore, we can choose to side with Daqing Village, or we can choose to side with the Hu!"

In the dark attic, Wu Ming stood beside Huang Ying, looking at the seemingly peaceful village, and suddenly said.

"You... Do you mean Qin Hu is planning to...?" Huang Ying covered her red lips. Although she had some suspicions, hearing it was still hard to believe: "Isn't he afraid..."

"Everyone always thinks they are special... Perhaps he believes that his contributions will earn him favor with the Hu!"

Wu Ming's lips curled into a mocking smile, "The Hu are strong, and Daqing Village is weak. If not for a stroke of luck, the village would have fallen today, and there's no way it could hold out for seven days with the shaman's assistance... This person worships strength and submits to the powerful. What do you think he would choose in this situation?"

"You know he's going to betray the village? Why don't you stop him...?"

Huang Ying stopped speaking halfway, a bitter smile appearing on her face.

After all, they were outsiders just like Qin Hu. Even if they exposed Qin Hu's plot, they would likely be more suspected.

Moreover, even if they eliminated the internal threat, they had no confidence that Daqing Village could hold out until the seventh day.

"Therefore... we must take a risk!"

Wu Ming suddenly listened intently and noticed a disturbance at the earthen wall. The regular sound of hooves came from outside, and he said to Huang Ying, "It's started. Let's follow the plan!"

"I understand!"

Huang Ying gave Wu Ming a complex look and disappeared into the darkness.

...

"Lord Qin, what... what are you doing?"

Seeing Qin Hu suddenly attack and chop down the two people beside him like cutting melons, the surrounding village guards were stunned.

"What am I doing? Heh heh... I'm surrendering, of course!"

Qin Hu licked the blood from his blade, his expression wild and cruel.

Suddenly, he lunged forward, his blade flashing. As a third-level Flesh Body expert, he was like a tiger among sheep when dealing with ordinary village guards, quickly slaughtering all the guards at the gate.

"Murder!"

"An outsider is killing!"

...

Screams and the sound of gongs and drums rose, but Qin Hu sneered, "Heh heh... Wu Ming, Huang Ying, you two dogs are on your own!"

He then pulled the mechanism, slowly opening the gate.

Outside, the Hu, who were already prepared, immediately charged in, several riders rushing in like the wind.

The Hu were a horse-riding race, and only on horseback could they unleash their full power. For several days, they had been forced to fight on foot, which was their weakness. Now, riding into the village, they were incredibly fierce, cutting down anyone in their path!

"Your Excellencies, I am..."

Qin Hu's face quickly changed as he saw this, and he smiled, moving forward to greet them.

But in an instant, his face changed again.

The Hu, seeing him, not only did not stop but spurred their horses, their faces twisted in cruel smiles, and charged forward.

"Ah..."

A flash of blade light appeared. The Hu rider, combining his horse's momentum, swung his blade with a force that rivaled a True Qi expert.

Qin Hu barely raised his steel blade to block.

Clang!

In the loud sound, his arm shook violently, his palm split, and his long blade flew out. A huge wound appeared on his chest, and he fell to the ground, blood foaming from his mouth, his eyes still struggling, clearly in his last moments.

Tramp! Tramp!

Immediately, a large number of hooves trampled over him, turning him into a bloody pulp.

"Kill!"

"Kill all the Han dogs!"

The Hu cavalry screamed excitedly, scattering like tigers among sheep, slaughtering one after another.

Daqing Village instantly turned into a hell on earth.

Near the ancestral hall where the elderly, women, and children were sheltered, the crowd woke up in a panic, and chaos erupted. Wang Yin ran out in a disheveled state, "What's happening? Why are the Hu already inside?"

In the chaos, no one could answer him. He could only draw his snake spear and throw it, piercing a Hu cavalryman.

"Brother Wang!"

Wu Ming, wearing leather armor, suddenly arrived, "The Hu launched a night attack and broke through the gate. It's my fault! Now, we must kill the Hu leader to have any chance of survival!"

"I'll go too!"

Wang Yin did not back down.

Through Huang Ying's reconnaissance, Wu Ming knew that this person, though cold-faced, had a warm heart and a straightforward nature. Now, with the entire village's fate in his hands, he felt a sense of duty.

"Yin!"

Wang Yin immediately drew his snake spear, ignoring the disheveled Wang Qiao, and followed Wu Ming.

...

"Hmm! Very good... With the thousand people outside and all the lives in this village, my magic drum will surely be refined to perfection!"

At this moment, the shaman, wearing a deer horn mask, rode a horse, a ten-man squad nervously following him into the village but not participating in the slaughter.

He raised his blood-red magic drum, shaking and hitting it continuously, muttering incantations.

Under the firelight, the blood-red color of the drum was vivid, and the strange symbols on it seemed to come to life, writhing with a sinister aura.

"Damn, the evil shaman is performing a ritual!"

Wang Yin's eyes turned red when he saw this, "The shaman's magic drum is made from bones, with human skin as the surface, and dyed with blood. It can collect the power of wronged souls..."

In ancient times, people placed great importance on the afterlife. The shaman's method of killing and tormenting the dead was even more hateful than desecrating an ancestor's grave.

Even Wu Ming felt a chill run down his spine.

"Follow me!"

Wang Yin called out, drawing a short spear from his back and throwing it, instantly piercing a Hu cavalryman through the heart.

"Protect the shaman!"

The Hu cavalrymen roared and charged forward.

"Kill!"

Wang Yin poured his strength into his snake spear, bending the long handle into a strange curve, and swung it.

Thud!

A Hu cavalryman and his horse fell, and the subsequent village guards hacked him to pieces.

"Fire arrows!"

The two sides clashed, the fighting was brutal.

Seeing this, a hint of disdain appeared under the shaman's mask. He suddenly pulled a bone whistle from his pocket and blew it.

Swoosh! Swoosh!

The piercing whistle sounded like an invisible arrow, and a village guard clutched his neck and fell straight down, his face turning pitch black.

The shaman continued to blow the whistle, and each time, someone fell, his power was overwhelming, and the surrounding Hu cavalry gradually gathered, putting Wang Yin and the others at a disadvantage.

"Don't stand in front of the shaman, his whistle is poisonous!"

Wu Ming, who had been keeping a low profile, shouted after observing for a moment.

"Right, don't let the whistle point at you!"

Wang Yin, moving like the wind, killed two more Hu cavalrymen and shouted.

The village guards scattered, drawing their bows to defend, but the shaman continued to kill with his whistle.

Boom! Boom!

Suddenly, the surrounding light grew brighter, and terrifying red and yellow flames spread.

"Fire!"

"Fire!"

...

The dazzling flames almost illuminated the sky, making the entire Daqing Village tremble in the sea of fire.

"What's happening?" Wang Yin was anxious, "The Hu are setting fire?"

At this moment, the shaman also seemed anxious, shouting loudly, trying to gather and organize his troops.

After all, the spreading flames were dividing the Hu cavalry and could even cause friendly fire.

Daqing Village was surrounded by earthen walls, and the space inside was not large. The buildings were continuous, and the outermost buildings were mostly made of wood and thatch, with few bricks. This made the fire even more dangerous.

If things went badly, the villagers of Daqing Village and the Hu would perish together.

"Neigh!"

At this moment, the shaman, with his last close guard, turned his horse, clearly intending to leave.

But Wu Ming wouldn't let him go. He immediately drew his fine ox horn bow, drew an arrow, and released it.

Swoosh!

The arrow aimed at the shaman, but it was blocked by the horse, hitting the neck, and blood gushed out.

Shoot the horse first, the shaman's mount fell, and he rolled on the ground in a disheveled state.

"Ha! Your life is mine!"

Seeing the Hu reinforcements blocked by the fire, although he was anxious, Wang Yin wouldn't miss this heaven-sent opportunity to capture and kill the enemy leader. He roared, and his snake spear, like a snake emerging from a cave, knocked the last guard off his horse and charged towards the shaman.