Xi Fenghe came with the doubts of the entire military. His power surpassed realm seven, but the cultivator behind him who attacked now might represent that the military had not been reassured with Xi Fenghe. In presence, confidence, and the power of this attack, this person was not weaker than Xi Fenghe. Even a true volcanic eruption could be nothing more.
Sensing the burning and dominating sword essence, Tang Zhefeng, who had once relied on a dull blade to clean out all horse bandits in Wulan Mountain, saw the long haired cultivator out of the corner of his eyes and raised his eyebrows in displeasure. He was not worried, and even became excited.
The hot air came before the true sword essence, and blew on the cold cultivator’s long hair. His white face and the edges of his hair were stained red. In the next moment, his body seemed to ignite, the ice fading into unimaginable flames.
The sword essence coming from all directions exploded like a volcano, but his sword essence came and suppressed the other. It was like a giant furnace was set up in the world with a thud. Compared to this enormous furnace, the volcanic sword essence was like a flame flowing into the furnace.
The people on Tang Wei’s side clearly all knew the result of this long-haired man drawing his sword. Most of them showed admiration. But Xi Fenghe and the cavalry behind him all paled!
“Zhao Sword Furnace!”
The domineering voice turned into a disbelieving exclamation.
The moment the exclamation sounded, the two sword essences met. With a loud boom, the wind sweeping outwards suddenly became real crimson fire.
Long chains of flames swept out dozens of feet to the sides. Then they started to disappear, the shocked cavalry found the long haired cultivator was already standing in front of Tang Mei and the others, still in a sword swinging position.
He held a crimson long sword that spat out real flames. It was an ordinary style, but as the flames moved, there was the sound of bellows. His sword seemed to have been lifted from the ground up. The tip of the sword had sliced across the ground with the surroundings around the mark having been melted by terrifying heat into a lava zone. Lava was dripping from his blade.
On the crimson longsword, curving and twisting seal scripts were like flows of lava. Everyone who saw it at first glance would feel that the sword was melting and going to split along the seal scripts. Yet in the next moment, the sword’s heavy presence was one of being forged over and over again.
The long-haired man’s black hair had turned red in the light of the red sword, giving off an enchanting charm. His cold eyes were now fire red, flashing with light.
In the world, only the Zhao Sword Furnace would have such a sword, such sword essence, and such a cultivator.
Within the cavalry, the armor of the cultivator who had attacked was shattered. While he had managed to stay upright, his feet had created deep furrows in the ground. His sword was also crimson red, and the flame-like seal scripts were golden yellow. But at this moment, his sword was shaking, and there were some black scorch marks on the blade.
The powerful military cultivator was not angry at being pushed back with a single blow. He was just shocked and puzzled.
“How come you are from the Zhao Sword Furnace?”
Some of the people who had not fought were also shocked and one yelled.
“My master accepted many students. Zhao Sword Furnace has more than just Zhao Yi and Zhao Si.” The long-haired man slowly drew his hand back, and his lifebond presence pulled back, the sword disappeared from his hand. But the peerless presence that naturally flowed off him was still frightening.
Xi Fenghe took a deep breath and looked at the long-haired man with a complicated gaze. “Why did you always follow him?” He was referring to Tang Mei.
This was not a boring question.
Each disciple of the Zhao Sword Furnace was a true hero. Even those who had died had left behind astounding stories. Up to present, after Ye Celeng killed Zhao Qi of the Zhao Sword Furnace in Changling, most cultivators in the world subconsciously thought the Zhao Sword Furnace only had Zhao Yi and Zhao Si left.
Why would a hero of the Zhao Sword Furnace be willing to follow and live in hiding with a general of the Chu Dynasty?
Even back before Tang Mei had retired, he was not in a high position in the Chu Dynasty. His position back then likely was not as high as Xi Fenghe right now.
“My master had me cultivate forbearance. My master agreed very much with General Tang’s means of using soldiers, and had me follow him.”
The long-haired man’s expression was cold, but the eerie red light in his eyes had not faded. He appeared both eerie and powerful. He said these words, and then looked at Xi Fenghe and the cavalry behind him. “Are there more questions?”
“No more questions,” Xi Fenghe solemnly answered. Then he said nothing else and turned his horse around.
No one would have more questions. No one felt that they were stronger than that grandmaster of the Zhao Sword Furnace in the past. Even now, most cultivators through the grandmaster of the Zhao Sword Furnace had been stronger than Wang Jingmeng at the time.
The cultivators of the Zhao Sword Furnace thought the same. They thought that Wang Jingmeng owed their master a fair battle. If a cultivator like the Dull Blade who had a legendary story following Tang Mei was a coincidence, then a cultivator from the Zhao Sword Furnace was not an accident.
Even more importantly, the other riders with Tang Mei did not look weak. At least, the four marquises in charge of the Qin army, on their own, may not have so many powerful cultivators.
The cavalry waited for Tang Mei and the others to reach the rear before they started to move steadily and quickly. The night came. The troop did not rest. They switched to already prepared horses in a mountain valley and continued to advance at full speed.
At the other end of the wastelands of the Chu Dynasty.
There was another cavalry troop sprinting. The wolves howled. The leading general looked up at the moon. A hungry feeling took over his mind like his stomach was empty at this moment. A terrifying feeling of being empty and needing to eat filled his mind.
This general started to realize that it had been too long since the last rest and meal. His subordinates likely needed to eat more than he did. He was silent for a moment, and knew that there was a problem in his urgency to reach the north. He ordered them to rest where they were and make a meal.
When the bonfires lit up, he decided for all the soldiers except him to take off their golden armor, bury them and then erase all the traces.
People rarely questioned his orders, but this order caused the temporary camp’s air to grow very heavy. One general immediately questions in a loud voice. This was the tradition of the army, and the experience of this troop. Anything that could shake the will of the army had to be resolved in a public way.
“General, we all know you are in a hurry to get to the north battlefield, but I worry that you will have problems with your emotions due to being so eager. The Gold Flame Heavy Armor has always been the strongest weapon of the Gold Dagger Axe Army. We are used to fighting with this heavy armor. We are used to unconsciously using the fact the armor is hard to penetrate and can withstand powerful energy to make our charges. If we take off our armor …will we be still so fierce, will we be the Gold Dagger Axe Army?”
This was the Gold Dagger Axe Army. The leader of naturally the strongest general on the other side of the Chu Dynasty, Xiang Yan.
“I know that there were problems with my previous emotions. Comparing the military power of the two sides, from any point of view … our Gold Dagger Axe army is likely the key to victory.”
Xiang Yan slowly moved among the bonfires under the moonlight. His firm gaze moved across every soldier looking at him. His voice was not very loud but unusually steady and clear. “Based on the travelling speed, even if we hide the gold flame armor now, and go in light armor, the earliest we get to the north, the war will be in the middle and late stages. From a certain point of view, the arrival of our Gold Dagger Axe army is not important for how many Qin soldiers we can kill, but to give the armies in the north confidence. We just need … I fear we will only have time to fight one or two key battles.”
“Our Gold Dagger Axe army is important for arriving at the key time, and not how well our state and combat power is. As to whether or not we are accustomed to the armor that lets us charge at well. There is a long time from here to the north. We can get used to it along the way … If it really gets to the one or two key battles I speak of, if there is no other way, we will use our flesh as armor and win the battle.”
Xiang Yan’s last words were out of helplessness, but these helpless words contained his fearless bravery. Before he even said his last words, countless howls and roars rang through the camp.
They took off their golden armor, their bodies cooling, but their blood was boiling like the flames of the bonfires.
