novelraw Chapter 155: The Ambush Arrives
Chapter 155: The Ambush Arrives
This escort run by Qingfeng Escort Agency was precisely the plan to lure the snake from its hole.
One Second-Rank Martial Artist, eight First-Rank Martial Artists, fifteen formally ranked Martial Artists, plus forty-four Quasi-Martial Artists as capable hands—He Han, leading the vanguard, had never fought such a lavish battle in his life.
He Han rode a tall, powerful horse, his gaze sweeping sharply across both sides of the official road, his eyes keen and alert.
CREAK! CREAK!
The wagon wheels rolled in sequence over the potholes in the dirt road, leaving deep ruts behind. The convoy moved at a steady pace—neither fast nor slow.
The escort convoy left Huishui County and followed the official road as it drew near the mountains, heading north. To the right was the “Sanhe River,” under Yulong Gang control. To the left stretched an unbroken range of mountains.
The only official road ran straight between them, leading toward “Liangshui Bridge” several li ahead.
“We set out at dawn. Those bandits should still be asleep in the mountains. Can they really reach Liangshui Bridge ahead of us and set an ambush?”
While they traveled, an elder rode up beside Yang Feiyue and spoke in a deliberately lowered voice—yet it could not escape Wangchuan, only a cart away.
Wangchuan was worried too. With He Han’s convoy leaving so early, would the Five Poison Sect miss them?Yang Feiyue replied coldly, “Do not worry. The Five Poison Sect has many eyes and ears. The new manpower they recruited has likely already infiltrated Huishui County and settled in. With Qingfeng Escort Agency making such a large movement, it is impossible for them not to know…”
He paused slightly, looking toward He Han’s back.
“The earlier we depart and the faster we move, the more it fits the nature of a heavy cargo escort. He Han must have his own considerations. We only need to wait for the fish to bite.”
To disguise himself as an old cart driver, Yang Feiyue had deliberately dressed in coarse cloth patched again and again. He hunched his back and coughed from time to time, an absolute master of acting.
After traveling several li, Liangshui Bridge came into view in the distance.
He Han frowned slightly.
The men of the Five Poison Sect still had not taken the bait.
What was going on?
Yet with the bow drawn, there was no turning back. He could only keep performing.
“Pick up the pace!”
He Han turned and shouted loudly.
“Once we cross Liangshui Bridge, we will be safe.”
“Hyah!”
The lead driver snapped his whip, urging the horses to strain forward and accelerate.
One escort cart after another sped toward Liangshui Bridge.
In the nearby mountains, the forest was dense. Behind thickets, many bandits had already nocked arrows and drawn their bows, prepared.
Pairs of sharp, icy eyes watched through gaps in the brush as cart after cart passed by outside.
Behind the trees, even more bandits lay prone.
They were villagers and vagrants seized from the outskirts of the county.
After several operations, their grips tightened around their weapons, and their eyes had gained a vicious, ruthless gleam. They had clearly been dragged into the mire and had become wanted criminals of the authorities.
“Loose!”
A short, low command sounded from within the forest. Dozens of archers stepped out from behind trunks and brush…
WHOOSH-WHOOSH!
WHOOSH-WHOOSH!
A rain of arrows swept down, blanketing the convoy on the official road.
He Han and the three escort masters behind him received the heaviest attention.
He Han abandoned his horse at once, using it as cover to evade the arrow storm.
The three escort masters at the rear were not as quick to react. They tried to draw their sabers and deflect the arrows, but two of them were struck and fell…
Their wounds turned dark purple, their blood black. It was clear they were finished.
He Han also saw that every arrow wound on his mount bled black. His heart jolted with dread.
“Poison!”
“The arrows are poisoned!”
“Everyone, be careful!”
He Han shouted the warning.
Five Poison Sect disciples, along with more than a hundred bandits, surged out of the forest in a swarm, ferocious in momentum.
The Martial Artists in the escort convoy, seeing the “snake” emerge at last, immediately flipped out their weapons and sprang forward to meet them.
For ranked Martial Artists, a distance of a dozen meters was no more than an eye blink.
Yang Feiyue charged at the front!
His blade flashed, and the first two bandits had their throats cut.
The four elders followed close behind, easily killing seven or eight bandits.
Instructor Yu and Constable Wu led eight seasoned yamen runners. Steel sabers came free in a cold, bright arc.
“The county office is handling a case! Five Poison Sect, prepare to die!”
Their voices were full and righteous, so imposing that many timid bandits faltered, their morale collapsing.
At that moment, Wangchuan had already seized his Iron-Reinforced Bow and arrows. With a snap of the string, an arrow drilled into the forest and killed a Five Poison Sect disciple first.
The disciple had been about to aim at Instructor Yu. Instead, his throat was suddenly pierced through. He screamed and tumbled out from behind the brush.
Snap!
Snap!
Wangchuan’s shooting speed was fast.
Five Poison Sect disciples fell one after another to his arrows.
Bai Yuhui, Hong Kaibao, Captain Zhao Heiniu, and Chen Ergou remained in place, loosing arrows as well.
Ever since the hall’s battle against the snake tide, each of them had reached Entry-Level Mastery in 《Archery》. Their shooting was far stronger than that of ordinary Martial Artists.
Captain Zhao Heiniu, in particular, focused on the Five Poison Sect disciples hidden in the forest, never wasting an arrow.
However, there were dozens of archers in the woods.
As long as the poison-tipped arrows broke skin and drew blood, the toxin was ferocious, turning the blood’s color instantly.
The Five Poison Sect was truly vicious.
They ordered ordinary bandits to charge and fight in the front while they stayed behind and fired poisoned arrows.
Even though two or three dozen bandits were cut down upon first contact, the poisoned arrows still posed an astonishing threat, injuring more than ten Quasi-Martial Artists in succession.
Men from the escort agency, the county office, and the Yulong Gang all suffered injuries.
Then Wangchuan spotted a familiar face among the bandits.
Lin Dahai!
Lin Dahai stood near the back, his expression one of utter despair.
He saw Wangchuan and Captain Zhao Heiniu. He saw Bai Yuhui and Hong Kaibao.
Of course he did not dare charge forward. He trembled with his weapon in hand.
Behind him came the furious curses and threats of the Five Poison Sect disciples.
“Move!”
“Cowards die!”
Lin Dahai’s face was bloodless, his eyes filled with hopelessness.
Wangchuan’s brows tightened.
His arrow shifted slightly.
The Five Poison Sect disciple who had been shouting was struck in the head and dropped.
“Protect Lin Dahai!”
At that moment, Wangchuan held nothing back. He drew and loosed at maximum speed, killing three Five Poison Sect disciples hidden in the brush behind Lin Dahai in rapid succession.
Captain Zhao Heiniu, Bai Yuhui, and the others followed immediately, focusing their shots on the Five Poison Sect disciples behind Lin Dahai.
But that also drew frenzied retaliation from the Five Poison Sect archers.
“Excellent!”
With the Five Poison Sect archers either killed or pinned down, the pressure on Yang Feiyue eased greatly. He broke through the bandits in front, drove straight in, and charged into the forest.
The four elders surged in together.
Then came Instructor Yu, He Han, and the rest…
With ranked Martial Artists fighting at close range, the Five Poison Sect disciples were cut down like melons and vegetables.
Seizing the moment, Wangchuan shouted loudly:
“Brother Lin! Come here!”
Lin Dahai looked as if he had been granted amnesty. He threw away his weapon and sprinted toward them.
Several men beside him did the same, clearly players from the game studios.
With people on this side taking the lead, the bandits on the official road began throwing down their weapons and surrendering to save their lives.
Once they were pulled into the convoy and secured, Lin Dahai’s group—kidnapped for nearly ten days—was finally freed.
Wangchuan felt as if a heavy burden had lifted from his chest.
“Thank goodness!”
At least Lin Dahai had not followed Heipi and Old Li into the grave.
However, at that moment, a figure suddenly shot out of the forest like a cannonball.
It was an elder of the Yulong Gang.
A half-chi-long gash had been torn across his left shoulder. A footprint was stamped on his chest. He flew off the official road and spat a mouthful of blood. With terror in his eyes, he warned Wangchuan:
“Second rank! There are two Second-Rank Martial Artists inside! Save the Gang Leader, quickly!”
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