As Ahuici gathered the plundered goods and captives. He divided grains, food, and other goods first, then moved his gaze to the captives.
Picking out a woman who stood out for her beauty, he held her in his arms. Observing the way she trembled, he laughed heartily and said, “Nothing beats the charm of a captive woman!”
His comment sparked laughter among his men, but Ahuici’s tone turned bitter as he reflected on their plight. “If it weren’t for Jianixi, that starving wolf, we wouldn’t be in this mess. My Ahui Tribe, once strong with three thousand warriors, was decimated by his hand.”
The mention of Jianixi silenced the crowd, their faces painted with a mix of fear and resentment.
One of them quietly said, “The folks in the south say that Jianixi is destined to be the wolf king of the northern foot of Mount Yue...”
Another added, “I heard he’s the offspring of a human and a wolf! Ruthless like a wolf and cunning like a fox, he’s pushing eastward by ancestral decree...”
Ahuici shivered and cut his men off sharply. “Enough of that nonsense! He’s bad luck!”
He raised his cup and yelled, “Come on, drink up! We’ve just raided the Li Family’s tribe! Let’s celebrate with a feast! Each of you gets to pick a captive for yourself!”
His call reignited the crowd’s spirits, though internally, Ahuici harbored concerns.
That archer’s skill was formidable. We should steer clear of the Li Family’s tribe to avoid retribution.
Wait a minute.
His thoughts were interrupted by a sudden realization.
“Has anyone seen our scouts return recently?!” he roared.
A burst of laughter erupted from the group as someone replied loudly, “Don’t worry, Great King! Those people will never be able to detect our scouts!”
All of a sudden, Ahuici felt a sharp sting on his face. He looked up abruptly, only to be met with a blinding white light before his eyes. Ahuici’s legs gave way beneath him in shock, and he collapsed to the ground. Crawling backward, he watched in disbelief as an arrow struck the ground right before his eyes, sending a shower of sandy soil into the air.
The mountains and forests were soon ablaze as battle cries echoed in the air. The soldiers from the Li Family stormed into Mount Yue, armed with sabers.
The drunken Mount Yue tribesmen were mowed down like wheat in a field, their bodies riddled with arrows. Ahuici rose slowly to his feet, his mouth agape in disbelief.
“How could this be?” Gripping his sledgehammer tightly, Ahuici roared angrily, “Get up! All of you, stand!”
The scattered Mount Yue tribesmen gathered around him with newfound resolve. Ahuici quickly did a headcount, realizing there were only two to three hundred men by his side. The rest of the tribesmen were scattered into four or five groups, struggling against the onslaught of armed soldiers.
It’s over .
Yet, just as despair seemed to take hold, Ahuici’s gaze fell upon a middle-aged man approaching who was clad in light armor, wielding a light gray longsword that gleamed with a soft light. The gray light pulsated menacingly, causing Ahuici’s eyelid to twitch at the sight of it.
“Shit!” he cursed.
The man advanced swiftly, closing the distance between them, and aimed his sword directly at Ahuici.
Ahuici attempted to block with his sledgehammer, but the force of the impact nearly knocked it out of his hand. Pain shot through his body as he realized the vast difference in their strength.
————
Li Xuanxuan’s cultivation at the third stage of the Embryonic Breathing Realm granted him formidable prowess amidst the chaos of battle. Although the adult tribesmen were armed to the teeth, he cut through them effortlessly. He could easily take on three or four opponents at the same time, possibly beating any single one of them to death with just a punch.
Surrounded by twelve elite clan soldiers who dutifully protected him, Li Xuanxuan’s presence on the battlefield was commanding and lethal.
As he fought fiercely, the thrill of battle awakened a certain ruthlessness within him. His eyes were ablaze with intensity as he seized an elderly Mount Yue tribesman, intending to hurl him aside.
However, their eyes accidentally met.
The old man’s terrified gaze, his gray hair, and the deep wrinkles on his face struck Li Xuanxuan unexpectedly, like a hard slap across his face. It halted Li Xuanxuan in his tracks, and he stared at the old man who was old enough to be his grandfather.
The old tribesman, with tears streaming down his face, bit down on Li Xuanxuan’s arm in a desperate act, only to lose his already bad teeth in the process. The impact of his retaliation once again struck Li Xuanxuan like a hard slap across his face, leaving him shaken and reflexively pushed the old man way,
The old man collapsed to the ground in agony and broke a few bones in his body. Blood and fecal matter exploded from the lower half of his body. He let out a wail of agony that sounded nothing like a human and glared at Li Xuanxuan with hatred in his eyes, causing tears to well up in Li Xuanxuan’s eyes.
Li Xuanxuan was shaken to his core. He stood rooted to the spot for a few moments, feeling a shiver traveling from the top of his head down to his spine.
For a moment, the chaos of the battle and screams on the battlefield faded into silence. The veil of his sheltered existence was lifted, revealing the harsh realities of the world.
“I... see...”
He drew the saber at his waist slowly. Surging emotions in his heart quelled as he began to calmly dispatch his foes without uttering another word.
Meanwhile, not far away...
“Hurry up and retreat now, Great King!”
Despite the terrified pleas of his tribesmen, Ahuici shook his head. His sledgehammer had slipped from his grasp after attempting to block Li Tongya’s attack.
“How can I retreat? We’re surrounded! There’s no escape!” Ahuici yelled back, watching his tribesmen falling one by one in despair.
“Stop! Stop! I surrender!” he pleaded loudly.
Li Tongya, his sword's light fading, regarded Ahuici in silence. Around them, the remaining Mount Yue warriors, recognizing their defeat, surrendered and echoed the call, "Those who surrender will be spared!" The battlefield, once filled with the clamor of combat, silenced as the words spread, marking the end of the conflict.
The gray light on Li Tongya’s blade slowly faded. He watched Ahuici in silence. Realizing the futility of their resistance, the remaining tribesmen swiftly clutched their heads and crouched in submission.
The clan soldiers were shocked by their display, but soon heard a commanding voice saying, “Those who surrender will be spared!”
More and more tribesmen dropped their weapons and kneeled down. Ahuici, with a heavy sigh, followed suit, tossing away the other sledgehammer he had on him as he, too, kneeled with his head bowed.
The clamor of battle gradually subsided.
The clan soldiers from the Li Family bound the arms of the captives quietly without saying a word. In this moment of stillness, Ahuici wrestled with his thoughts.
Is surrendering no different from a death sentence for us? Would it have been better to fight to our last breath..?
How did he manage to evade my scouts in the mountains anyway?! Forget it, we’ve lost this time.
Caught in his contemplation, Ahuici was startled when a pair of gray wolfskin boots came into his view. Looking up hastily, he saw a chiseled face with narrow eyebrows framing a pair of intense eyes.
“JIANIXI?!”
For a moment, Ahuici’s heart leaped in his chest and his lips quivered. Shock gripped him as he nearly sprang up from the ground.
Upon closer look, Ahuici’s fear momentarily subsided as he realized the eyes that bore into his were not the nightmare-inducing brownish-yellow, but a serene grayish-black.