Chapter 31: Chapter 31: Desolate City of the Northern Border

Editor: Henyee Translations

In the dense forest.

Countless mountain bandits lay in secret ambush, coldly staring at the prison cart below.

Whoo—tweet tweet—

Bird calls with some rhythm began to sound, and the bandits’ eyes flashed with a bloodthirsty light as they surged out from behind rocks, from bushes, and atop trees.

“Brother, lend me your clothes.”

A voice rang out behind a bandit. Before the bandit could turn around, there was complete silence.

Zhou Yi changed into the clothes, his mana coursing as he employed the Bone Transformation Skill. After altering his facial structure, he further disguised himself with the Art of Disguise, ending up looking seventy to eighty percent similar to the dead bandit.

At this time.

The Imperial Guards on the mountain path had already detected something amiss.

The head of the Imperial Guards, Yang Shou, saw birds suddenly take flight from the mountains and waved his hand to signal a halt to the march, ordering scouts to investigate on the mountain.

After a long wait with no sign of the scouts returning, it was certain that an ambush lay within the mountains.

“Form up, prepare to meet the enemy!”

Yang Shou led the elite of the Imperial Guards; they quickly gathered around the prison cart and formed a defensive circle, ready for action.

“Hahaha! Heaven above! As a protector under the Heavenly King, today I will slaughter all of Butcher Li’s clan as a sacrifice to the Heavenly King!”

A deafening laughter echoed through the air, followed by dozens of huge rocks flying from the mountain, raining down on the troop formation like raindrops.

“Stone-Throwing Cart!”

Yang Shou let out a cry of alarm but before he could scatter his troops, the boulders came crashing down upon them.

The huge stones thrown from the mountain were too powerful for any man to withstand; as they struck the crowd, screams of agony followed without cease.

After three or four rounds of boulders, the formation of the Imperial Guards was shattered.

“Kill! Kill…”

Charging and killing shouts erupted from both sides of the mountain, the sound suggesting the presence of at least several thousand people.

Yang Shou shouted loudly, “Form up, form up!”

The Imperial Guards struggled to reassemble their ranks only to face a downpour of arrows resulting in heavy casualties and deaths.

“Defend!”

A look of despair flashed through Yang Shou’s eyes, not from fear of the enemy’s numbers, but from another speculation that had formed in his mind.

At least a dozen Stone-Throwing Carts, organized archers—these were not things that mountain bandits or rebel armies could afford. The mention of a background was clearly just a pretense.

As soon as the Imperial Guards made contact with the mountain bandits, they immediately sensed that something was off.

The elite Imperial Guards, hardened by daily training, were overwhelmed by the formidable strength of the mountain bandits.

Yang Shou, wielding his long spear, killed several bandits and had a clearer view from horseback—it was evident that the Imperial Guards were being forced back step by step.

“I cannot die like this!”

The commander’s heart harbored thoughts of retreat, and if he would not stand and fight, how could his soldiers? And whether intentional or accidental, there were no bandits blocking the mountain path ahead or behind.

Thus, after Yang Shou was the first to flee on his horse, the Imperial Guards broke rank and scattered in retreat.

The bandits’ target was the prison cart; they made no move to chase the fleeing soldiers, instead wielding their weapons to slaughter the prisoners.

The members of the Li clan in the prison cart, with shackles on their hands and feet, were utterly incapable of resistance and could only watch as they were massacred.

In the woods.

Zhou Yi, carrying the young Li Hong, stood on a tree branch.

“Time to go. In a while, they’ll check the corpses and might notice something odd.”

During the confusion of the fight between the Imperial Guards and the bandits, Zhou Yi took the opportunity to rescue Li Hong and left behind a similar-sized bandit with a disfigured face on the prison cart.

“Senior, please wait, I want to watch my clan members die with my own eyes, so that I can etch this hatred even deeper into my heart.”

Li Hong showed no tears or sorrow but listened as his mother, elder brother, and relatives screamed in agony, each meeting their end under the bandits’ blades.

A moment later.

All members of the Li clan lay dead, and the bandits opened the prison cart, laying out the corpses one by one.

Several of the bandits, dressed in long robes, came forward to count the bodies. Among them, a few corpses had faces so mangled with blood and flesh that they had to be carefully identified by their body shape and attire.

“This was the doing of a prominent family from Jiangnan.”

Hearing the conversation between the men in long robes, Zhou Yi said, “They haven’t suspected you, they just think that your face was severely wounded in the melee.”

“Those few are my younger uncle Li Chi, my cousin Li Yi, my younger cousin Li Liang, and I am only a year or two apart from them in age, and our statures are also quite similar. Eldest brother is meticulous, fearing that I would be pursued by the Jinyiwei, he sent someone to disfigure their faces.”

Li Hong’s voice was calm and unemotional, the only sign of distress was the bloodshot redness in his eyes.

“To be honest, I am more impressed with your brother. Neither the person who disfigured their faces nor the one who struck the blow likely knew the purpose behind what he did!”

Zhou Yi, holding onto Li Hong’s collar, leapt away and disappeared into the woods in a few bounds.

…

Northern Border.

Desolate City.

Just hearing the name, one knows it is a place of bitter cold.

Criminals exiled by Fengyang Country were all in this place, with an iron mine nearby, continuously worked until they died or a general amnesty was declared.

The sound of horse hooves in succession awakened the soldiers on watch.

“Halt!”

The soldiers hurriedly drew their swords and stopped the two riders who came galloping up: “What brings you to Desolate City?”

“To visit an old friend.”

Zhou Yi dismounted from his horse, and two silver lumps rolled out: “Oh? Brother, you dropped your silver!”

“Ah?”

The gate official seemed to have never encountered such a brazen briber; even those officials who were the least concerned with saving face would transfer silver on the sly.

Disgusting, even with a covered face?

The gate official felt contempt in his heart, yet he quickly reached forward to pick up the silver, wiping it off and stuffing it into his chest: “Who is it that this gentleman is looking for?”

Zhou Yi replied, “I only know his surname is Wei, from Yuzhou, probably came here around the thirty-sixth year of Chongming.”

The gate official dragged out his words, “It’s been nearly thirty years; who knows if he’s still alive, it’s not going to be easy to deal with!”

Zhou Yi flicked his sleeve, and another two lumps of silver fell out.

The gate official helplessly said, “You can go to the city and look for Liu San, he manages the miners from Yuzhou, if he’s still alive, you’re certain to find him.”

Zhou Yi took out two more lumps of silver from his chest: “Is there a way to see him, to arrange some lighter work?”

The gate official felt it burning his hand: “For that, you need to go to the yamen and look for Steward Sun from the household department; with silver, you could work as an odd-job man at the yamen.”

Zhou Yi continued handing over silver, “Is there anything else I need to be aware of?”

“My lord, you’re generous!”

The gate official patted his chest, “I’ll take care of it for you, don’t worry about finding someone; heck, even getting someone out of Desolate City is possible.”

Zhou Yi said in surprise, “You can take someone away?”

“You don’t understand, how else would the mine have so many deaths each year if people couldn’t be taken away?”

The gate official instructed his soldiers to guard well and not to let any thieves into the city, then led Zhou Yi and another into the city.

Inside the city, walls were broken, and weeds grew wild in the streets; not even a single figure was visible. The shops on both sides were desolate, broken windows and doors creaking in the wind, the noise echoing like ghosts.

“This place used to be a military base, quite prosperous back in the day. Now that the border troops have moved to Yizhou, what’s left is just an empty city…”

The gate official seemed to feel guilty about taking the silver and began acting as a tour guide, narrating the history of Desolate City.

“Look at the Gathering Generals Platform, where once the Duke of the State beat the drums of war…”

“This tavern used to have Divine Capital’s finest wine. After every victory, the Duke would come here for a drink…”

“…”

Most of what the gate official spoke about related to the Duke of the State and only upon arriving at the Northern Border did one truly understand the extent of Li Wu’s renown and his far-reaching influence.

Li Hong, following what the gate official said, seemed to see his father commanding troops on the Gathering Generals Platform, drinking merrily in taverns.

Zhou Yi patted Li Hong’s shoulder and whispered, “Remember what your brother cautioned!”

Li Hong nodded slightly, subduing and containing his emotions.

“Rest assured, sir, I will change my surname to Zhou before advancing to Innate.”

Silver played a bigger role in Desolate City than Zhou Yi had anticipated.

Thanks to the introduction by the gate official, Steward Sun from the household department proved to be understanding, stating his price openly.

“A thousand taels for a living person, with an additional two hundred taels to be added to the household registry — fair and square for young and old alike!”