Stranger Danger

Chapter 458: The Flames of War Horn Blows

The northside of the city, Black Tortoise Street. Squadrons of Hengshan soldiers wielding sabers, spears, swords and more were crawling through the streets like ants. The atmosphere was solemn, and the light reflecting off their armor and weapon was ice cold.

Right now, five Black Water Cavalry elites were riding side by side on the street, their mounts drawing five creaky wooden carts behind them. The carts were filled with heaps and heaps of dead bodies. As the bodies were still fresh, their blood seeped through the cracks and painted red winter plums on the limestone floor. Despite their grim work, they almost looked relaxed compared to the rest of their colleagues.

“It’s been a while since we found the bodies. Why is it so quiet? Is the Leopard Commander still searching for Ye Qing?” One of the elites glanced at the Hengshan infantry still searching for signs of Ye Qing and asked.

“Isn’t it obvious? If he had found Ye Qing, we would have heard or seen some commotion already,” his comrade answered.

“Where on earth is he hiding?”

“Doesn’t matter. Ye Qing is already a dead man. The general has issued the kill order, and both the Leopard Commander and the Wolf Commander are involved. He could be a god, and there is still no way he can escape this situation alive.”

“Hmph. Killing him would be too easy a punishment. Did you see how many he killed? If I was the general, I would skin him alive, rip out his bones, and light his soul on fire so he may atone for his sins for eternity.”

“Hmph. And what’s the point? Will torturing him bring back our dead brothers?”

“Everyone who dons this armor knows that they will die someday. It’s just a matter of when. You’ve been a soldier for more than half a lifetime, and you still can’t get over this?”

“I’m not thinking about me! I’m thinking about our brothers! As a soldier, we can die for our country, the people, and our families. But to die in the hands of nobody? How can that be an honorable death?”

“Enough. The dead are dead. Let’s just focus on putting them to rest, shall we?”

The five men fell silent and continued toward the exit.

The Hengshan Army’s headquarters was located within the city, but their morgue was located outside the city. There were several reasons. One, it made collecting their dead more convenient. Two, it was easier to bury or cremate the bodies outside the city. And three, no harm would come to the populace if an epidemic or other accidents were to break out.

Right now, the five elites were transporting the bodies to the morgue outside the city. They would notify the families and bury the bodies later.

Creak... creak...

The wooden carts made creaky noises as they got closer and closer to the northern gate. Then—

“Halt!”

Five soldiers stepped away from the gates and blocked their way.

“Identify yourselves and state the reason you’re leaving the city!”

One of the elites handed his identity tag to the soldiers while explaining, “We are the elite units of the Black Water Cavalry, and we serve the Leopard Commander. Our orders are to transport our dead brothers to the morgue outside the city.”

The soldier checked the identity tag closely. After he confirmed that the identity was genuine, he returned it to the cavalryman and waved his hand. “You may pass!”

Shuffle shuffle...

The soldiers guarding the gate immediately stepped away so that the five carts could pass through unhindered. The Black Water Cavalry elite nodded and said, “Thank you.”

Since the Hengshan Army’s headquarters was located at the northside of the city, they were in charge of guarding the northern gate as a matter of course. Since they were a military unit, there were strict rules and rigid protocol one must follow to use the northern gate. This applied even to the Hengshan Army themselves.

The five cavalrymen slowly walked along the long, narrow passage under the gate soldiers’ watchful gaze. They were about halfway there when suddenly—

OoooOOooooOoOOO!

The long, low-pitched, desolate sound of a war horn deafened the ears and shook heaven and earth. The clouds above the city stirred ominously as if the invisible smoke of war was disturbing its formation, and millions of soldiers were fighting each other on the ground.

“That’s the Flames of War Horn!”

The blood drained away from every soldier’s face when they heard the war horn. The gate commandant immediately shouted, ““The Flames of War Horn is blown! All units, close the gate immediately! Starting now, no one is to enter or leave the city without the general’s order! Anyone who disobeys this order will be executed without mercy!”

The Flames of War Horn was blown only and only during situations of grave importance. When it was blown, it meant that something terrible had happened, and all Hengshan soldiers must don their armor and enter a battle ready state immediately. The northern gate must also be shut at first notice, and no one was allowed to pass through it without permission. Those who disobeyed would die.

Tian Yong was the hinterland of Chu, so the Flames of War Horn was used only three times since the Hengshan Army was formed. However, every incident that triggered the horn was as serious as it could get.

The first time the Flames of War Horn was used, the current Grand Mentor was patrolling the realm on the emperor’s orders. When he reached Tian Yong, he encountered an assassination attempt. The Hengshan Army used the Flames of War Horn to mobilize all their soldiers and slay a total of seventy eight assassins.

The second time it was used was a decade ago. Constant rain had resulted in a devastating flood that hadn’t happened to Tian Yong in a century, and at least hundreds of thousands of civilians lost their homes.

The refugees traveled to the city to seek refuge, but evil cults such as the Way of Taiping and the Unliving Sect took the opportunity to sow dissent among the people and cause chaos. In the end, the Hengshan Army used the Flames of War Horn, suppressed the budding rebellion in its nascency and slew hundreds of cultists.

The third time it was used was three years ago. Thirty six factions in Tian Yong had come together for a rare meeting with the intention of forming a coalition, so the Intelligence Department commanded the Hengshan Army to cooperate with them. The blood ran like rivers, and the bodies piled like hills that day. It was a stunning, terrifying incident that was still remembered to this day.

That was why the gate commandant didn’t hesitate to order the gate shut as soon as he heard the horn blow. If something bad were to happen because of his inaction, he could be beheaded ten times and still not atone for his sins.

The five Black Water Cavalry elites that had just reached the gate came to a stop as well. Just like the gate commandant, they knew full well what the Flames of Warn Horn meant. Surprised they might be, they didn’t hesitate to turn their Scale Horses around and get ready to return into the city.

It was at this moment the pile of corpses lying in the foremost cart suddenly flew into the air and scattered in every direction. There was no sound, but their momentum was so great that the soldiers getting ready to close the gate were knocked off their feet.

At the same time, a single man rose from the center and glided toward the gate like a phantom.

“What the—”

“It’s Ye Qing!”

“Message the commanders now! Quickly!” A Black Water Cavalry elite shouted when he finally snapped out of his shock.

Standing on top of the city gate, the gate commandant quickly figured out why the Flames of War Horn was sounded as well. Someone must have figured out that Ye Qing was hiding among the bodies, but they were unable to get the information through in time because the time was too short, and they were too far away. So, they used the Flames of War Horn in hopes of shutting the gate before Ye Qing could slip through.

It was a great idea. Unfortunately, they were still a step too late.

There was one silver lining though. When the Flames of War Horn was sounded, the cart Ye Qing was hiding in still hadn’t left the city yet. Otherwise, the trail would be cold long before reinforcements showed up, and they would be blamed for whatever shitshow that might result from their “failure”, never mind that they had reacted as well as they could have.

But right now, it still wasn’t too late. They could still capture Ye Qing and make up for their mistake.

“We must capture Ye Qing! To me!” The gate commandant declared before racing out of the gate before anyone else.

......

Outside the city, Ye Qing felt as if an invisible weight had lifted off his heart.

That was cutting it a little close there, but I ain’t complaining.

Although things hadn’t gone exactly to plan, he was ultimately able to escape the city. Originally, he wanted to disguise himself as a Hengshan soldier and slip out of the city without anyone the wiser, but as the saying goes, the best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry. A guard of Black Water Cavalry had seen through his disguise because they were too honest for their own good. He had no choice but to destroy them.

Ye Qing knew there was no way he could keep things under wraps of so many no matter how powerful he was. The moment the Hengshan Army discovered the bodies, his escape plan would be snuffed out faster than he could say oops. Moreover, the northside of the city was where the Hengshan Army’s headquarters was situated, so he had no doubt that the danger he was currently facing was ten, no, a hundred times worse than what it was before.

Trying to skulk his way back to the other gates wasn’t an option either. He had already tricked the Hengshan Army once, and the thought that they might make the same mistake and allow him to fool them a second time was unthinkable.

Hiding definitely wasn’t an option. Tian Yong was huge, and its population was massive. He was certain he could hide for a day or two without being discovered. However, it would be no different from drinking blood to stave off one’s thirst. Once Tian Yong entered a state of total lockdown, it was only a matter of time before the Hengshan Army or the Harmony King dragged him out of his hidey-hole and killed him.

Therefore, the only way left for him was to pretend to be dead. During one of their idle conversations, Gao Ningan had briefly told him about the Hengshan Army and how they functioned. So, he knew that the Hengshan Army had a morgue outside the city that they used to keep their dead temporarily. That was why he decided to disguise himself as one of the bodies and let the Hengshan Army themselves deliver him to freedom.

To this end, he purposely left some of the Black Water Cavalry alive and left the area right in front of their eyes. He wanted them to think that he had escaped elsewhere and mislead their comrades. After he snuck back to the crime scene, he destroyed one of the bodies and assumed their identity.

He was hoping to leave Tian Yong without anyone noticing, but his enemy had seen through his ploy faster than he expected. Luckily for him, he was already at the gate when it happened, so he was ultimately able to escape the city.

Ye Qing wasn’t worried even though he was discovered. So long as he managed to escape the death trap that was the city, he was certain he would survive one way or another.

Swoosh!

Ye Qing had just taken two steps when suddenly, his instincts warned him of danger. He dashed sideways just in time to avoid an arrow putting a deep hole in the ground. It was after the fact that he heard the sound of an arrow whistling through the air.

A bad feeling suddenly gripped Ye Qing. He looked back and saw a black-armored, black-masked man looking down on him from the top of the gate like he was an ant. He was carrying a huge bow.

“Duan Zipao...”

Ye Qing’s heart sank bit by bit. This... wasn’t the plan.

The next moment, the earth trembled, and the noise of hoofs thudding against the ground entered his ears. A massive black tide emerged from the distance and rushed toward him with great speed and power. When it was about thirty meters away from him, it split into two and surrounded him in a tight circle.

“The Black Water Cavalry...”

Ye Qing’s heart sank completely.

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