But over a decade of companionship, meticulous care, unwavering support, and unquestioning obedience. Including his desperate leap from the city walls just now, willingly facing death, all for her sake…
If she were to lose even this person, what would she have left?
Wang Bingchang heard Huo Qixiao’s desperate cry, but he dared not look back. He feared that seeing the despair on the face of the one he loved would make him falter, lose the courage to leave Huo Qixiao, and unable to face the agonizing pain in his heart.
Deliberately ignoring the heart-wrenching screams from above, Wang Bingchang pointed his sword at Huo Qiyuan and shouted with his profound inner force, "Great Yu Dynasty's First Rank Cavalry General Huo Qixiao, his strategist Wang Wentu! Rebel Huo Sijun's son, Huo Qiyuan, do you dare to step forward and fight?"
So he was Wang Wentu! With the appearance of a frail scholar, yet fifteen years ago, he single-handedly massacred all one hundred and fifty-two souls in Xiaonan Prefecture – leaving no fowl or dog alive. Later, he stirred up the wind and clouds in the silent wars of succession among several princes!
Frailty his guise,
Slaughter his game with princes.
Cruel in his methods, deep in his schemes, skilled in both civil and martial arts, thus earning the name Wentu. The leader of the Great Yu Dynasty's most renowned assassin organization, the Chiming Pavilion!
He never expected him to be following Huo Qixiao… Huo Qiyuan's eyes deepened, no wonder Huo Qixiao had changed so much! He wondered when the two had colluded!
Huo Qiyuan glanced at Wang Wentu, who stood with his sword drawn, and then at Huo Qixiao, who was staring at him from the city walls. He knew they intended to lure him in.
As long as he stepped into the range of the Divine Fire Cannons and engaged Wang Wentu, Huo Qixiao would ignite the fuse, and in the ensuing clash, a slight misstep would have him blown to smithereens.
But Huo Qiyuan couldn't understand. If he was injured by the bombs, wouldn't Wang Wentu be able to dodge them smoothly? From Huo Qixiao's demeanor, he seemed reluctant to use such a capable subordinate as Wang Wentu as bait.
In fact, he wasn't afraid of Huo Qixiao's Divine Fire Cannons at all. Su Muqing had given him so many powerful firearms that, if he wished, he could level Chehe City in no time.
However, doing so would inevitably result in countless casualties among the Great Yu Dynasty's soldiers. Although he was now the regent of the Hua Xia Dynasty, having been with Su Muqing for so long, he no longer wished to instigate such wars.
Moreover, Su Muqing had mentioned that 217 had once warned him against excessive use of firearms, as they did not belong in this world. She worried that excessive disruption of the world's balance might lead to the spatial realm being downgraded.
Therefore, Huo Qiyuan, holding a large quantity of bombs, did not act rashly. His earlier actions were merely meant to toy with the enemy. Capturing the king is the key to capturing the rebels. As long as Huo Qixiao, the commander-in-chief, was apprehended, the two sides should be able to avoid a bloody conflict, without the need for bombs, and without so many lives lost. This seemed like the best approach.
"My Lord, allow me to face this Wang Wentu for you!" Leng Ren also saw their objective, but historically, there was no precedent for refusing a challenge issued before a battle formation. Therefore, he eagerly stepped forward, wanting to fight in Huo Qiyuan's stead.
"No need! I will go myself." Huo Qiyuan was gambling that Huo Qixiao would not easily sacrifice Wang Wentu, and with the bombs in his possession, even if he tried to avoid killing, he could still use them to intimidate the enemy.
He beckoned to Leng Si and Leng Ao. The eagles, grasping the two men, slowly flew into the sky. Leng Si aimed his gun at Huo Qixiao on the city wall, while Leng Ao took out a grenade, pulled the pin, and casually tossed it onto an empty patch of ground below.
With a loud "Boom!", a wide crater appeared on the flat ground. The sound of this explosion was much louder than Huo Qixiao's Divine Fire Cannons earlier. Those slightly closer could feel the ground trembling.
Huo Qixiao’s hands trembled as he moved away from the Divine Fire Cannon. This time, the giant eagle was very close, and he could clearly see the man in its talons holding a strange object and aiming it in his direction.
And what was that thing that exploded just now? From Huo Qixiao’s angle, he could only see another person in the eagle’s talons holding a small object and throwing it down, resulting in such a terrifying explosion.
Huo Qixiao knew they were warning him! Since Wang Bingchang was below, he had no intention of igniting the cannon.
If the green hills remain, there will be wood to burn. Compared to his desperate desire to kill Huo Qiyuan just moments ago, Wang Bingchang being alive and well, and by his side, was clearly much more important now.
It was already nine o'clock in the morning, with the sun shining brightly. Two hours had passed since Huo Qiyuan arrived at the city gates, and the standoff had continued for more than two hours. The longer time dragged on, the higher the temperature rose.
Huo Qiyuan stood with his hands behind his back, dozens of meters away from Wang Wentu. Under the scorching sun, Wang Wentu was drenched in sweat, while Huo Qiyuan remained dry, his forehead smooth as jade, not a single drop of sweat on him.
Sweat dripped into Wang Wentu's eyes, a burning sensation stimulating his nerves. He raised his sword and lunged at Huo Qiyuan.
In a high-stakes duel, sword against sword often led to a fight to the death. In close combat, Wang Bingchang lightly raised his long sword, and before the blade even reached, a wave of sword energy shot out, directly at Huo Qiyuan's face.
As the invisible sword energy approached, Huo Qiyuan, with his hands behind his back, lightly touched the ground with his toes and leaned to the side, easily evading it.
In this short span of time, Wang Wentu had closed in. The edge of his long sword was almost touching Huo Qiyuan's face.
At the critical moment, a short blade dropped from Huo Qiyuan’s wide sleeve. He cupped his hand slightly and flicked his wrist fiercely. The short blade, originally less than a foot long, suddenly extended to the same length as a regular long sword.
"Clang!" A loud noise. Swords clashed, and sparks flew.
Huo Qiyuan's parry sent Wang Bingchang staggering back several meters. A tingling sensation spread from his tiger’s mouth, followed by a burning pain, and his entire arm began to tremble uncontrollably.
When Huo Qiyuan dodged the sword energy, he was already in a sideways backward position. After deflecting Wang Bingchang's long sword, he spun around and stood firmly, his tiger’s mouth also feeling slightly numb.
The two stared at each other for a few breaths. Wang Bingchang raised his sword again, performing a sword flower, his blade moving so quickly that blurry afterimages appeared all around.
Wang Bingchang advanced with an erratic footwork. Although he held only one sword, to the observers, it seemed as if he was wielding countless swords.