Translator: Legge
A very exciting escape had suddenly begun in the wilderness. After a short rest, Ren Xiaosu led the Great Hoodwinker and Xun Yeyu to try to bypass the pursuing barbarians and quickly get back to Mt. Zuoyun.
But how were those barbarians able to keep up with them the entire time?
Initially, Ren Xiaosu wanted to take the opportunity to fight back against the elite barbarians. But later, he heard Xun Yeyu describe that almost all of them were rated on the level of T5 combatants.
With 80 T5s pursuing them from behind, even Ren Xiaosu’s scalp went numb when he heard that.
Under such circumstances, turning around to fight back would be suicidal.
Moreover, Xun Yeyu could sense that the four expeditionary army’s brigades in the wilderness were actually coordinating with these elite barbarians to encircle and intercept them.
While they were trying to get to Mt.. Zuoyun, the enemy’s brigades cut off their path forward.
If not for Xun Yeyu’s perception power, they would probably have headed straight into the enemy’s encirclement.
Of course, if not for Xun Yeyu’s presence, Ren Xiaosu would probably have already returned to Mt. Zuoyun. There wouldn’t have been any further incidents of ambushing the expeditionary army’s main forces.
Xun Yeyu started getting a little anxious. As he fled, he panted heavily and said, “Future Commander, the elite barbarians behind us are getting closer and closer. What should we do?!”
To be honest, Xun Yeyu was really a little panicky. At this moment, he only hated himself for not exercising more often. Even if it were just going for a jog, it would have been good.
Now that they were gradually getting caught up to, Xun Yeyu knew full well he was slowing down Ren Xiaosu and the Great Hoodwinker’s escape. If it were Ren Xiaosu and the Great Hoodwinker alone, they would probably have already shaken off these barbarians. After all, they were very fast.
In truth, Ren Xiaosu’s current physical fitness was still not equal to a T5 combatant’s. But even though the elite barbarians’ strength was on par with the T5s, their dexterity was slightly inferior to Ren Xiaosu’s.
As long as he tried his best to escape, it would be a little difficult for the barbarians behind to catch up to him.
But it was different for Xun Yeyu. Ren Xiaosu’s Dexterity was 17.1, while his Dexterity was probably only 6.
Therefore, Xun Yeyu was most worried that Ren Xiaosu and the Great Hoodwinker would abandon him just so they could shake off the barbarians.
The Great Hoodwinker glanced at Xun Yeyu. The old man was smart as a tack and immediately saw Xun Yeyu’s thoughts. He snapped, “Don’t worry, we won’t leave you behind. At worst, I’ll turn around and buy you some time.”
Xun Yeyu teared up and muttered, “As long as I survive this, I’ll definitely play my part for the Prosperous Northwest, I promise….”
All of a sudden, a figure rushed over from the other side of the wilderness. Xun Yeyu focused his gaze and saw it was White Mask!
Ren Xiaosu had been keeping Old Xu on guard outside. But in order to escape, he summoned it back.
After Old Xu joined them, it placed Xun Yeyu on its shoulder without any effort.
Ren Xiaosu chuckled and said, “We can advance at full speed this way. The barbarians behind us can eat our dust.”
Old Xu’s Strength was rated at 35, and its Dexterity was 34.2. If the barbarians behind continued closing in on them, Ren Xiaosu thought he would just let Old Xu carry him as well and make their escape together.
Xun Yeyu was being carried by Old Xu on its shoulder. Although he was on the verge of vomiting from the bumpy ride, he perked up when he realized he did not have to die anymore. “Future Commander, let’s shake them off quickly!”
However, Ren Xiaosu shook his head. “No, we can’t leave them too far behind. We have to get them to chase after us!”
Xun Yeyu and the Great Hoodwinker were stunned. “Future Commander, they’re 80 T5-ranked experts. You shouldn’t play with fire.”
“Don’t worry,” Ren Xiaosu said, “I know what I’m doing.”
The location of their departure point was 90 kilometers away from Mt. Zuoyun. Based on Ren Xiaosu’s estimation, it would take more than an hour for them to reach the tunnel and return to the defensive position through it.
This was because they still needed to avoid the expeditionary army blocking their way. Otherwise, their pace would be even faster.
An hour later, Ren Xiaosu suddenly asked, “Xun Yeyu, how far behind us are the barbarians?”
Xun Yeyu said as he spat out a mouthful of bile, “About 1.5 kilometers.”
“Are there any expeditionary army troops blocking the way up ahead?” Ren Xiaosu asked.
“The enemy has already set up a formation about 10 kilometers ahead.” Xun Yeyu said, “It seems they’ve guessed that we’re returning to Mt. Zuoyun, so they’ve been waiting there in advance.”
While they were fleeing for their lives, the expeditionary army even stopped their attack on the defensive position and turned around to send two of their brigades to block their path. This was so they could intercept Ren Xiaosu and company outside of Mt. Zuoyun.
However, Ren Xiaosu estimated the distance. If it were 10 kilometers, the enemy could not stop them, because the entrance of the tunnel lay between them and the expeditionary army!
Xun Yeyu and the Great Hoodwinker did not know about the tunnel. Seeing that there was an army in front and pursuers behind them, when Ren Xiaosu did not show any signs of changing his route, even the Great Hoodwinker was a little confused. “Future Commander, are we going to kill our way through?”
“Don’t worry, there’s no need for that!” Ren Xiaosu chuckled.
Twenty minutes later, the 80 barbarians who had gradually caught up saw the expeditionary army’s brigades approaching from the horizon ahead. However, the people they were chasing had disappeared!
The road between them and the expeditionary army’s main forces was completely empty.
An elite barbarian shouted, “Anatoli, where are they? Did you lose track of their scent?”
Puzzled, Anatoli replied, “No, their scent is just up ahead!”
The barbarian who spoke first felt that something was wrong. He quickly ran forward, but after running for just 200 meters, he suddenly saw a one-meter-wide tunnel entrance appear in the ground!
“They escaped through here!” The barbarian said angrily, “Where does this tunnel lead?”
“No matter where it leads, the general has given the order that we must catch up to them!” Anatoli said, “Let’s go. Even if there’s a maze underground, I can still locate them by scent!”
“No.” The barbarian who spoke earlier refuted, “20 of us will go down. The rest of you, stay on guard aboveground. After all, we don’t know what’s going on inside. If we head in rashly, we might run straight into trouble.”
“Alright, 20 of us will enter the tunnel!”
With that, the barbarians filed in and left behind 60 of their comrades to stand guard aboveground and wait for the main forces to arrive.
However, Ren Xiaosu and company did not even have to lower their heads as they ran in the tunnel due to their height. This was because Ji Zi’ang had made it based on Ren Xiaosu’s height. The tunnel’s height was exactly 10 centimeters taller than Ren Xiaosu.
Although Ren Xiaosu was now 1.81 meters tall, most of the barbarians were around 1.95 meters tall. Therefore, the barbarians found it extremely difficult to run in the tunnel.
However, the barbarians thought it was fortunate that the underground tunnel was not a maze. There was only one path forward.
“Wait, we can’t give chase anymore. This tunnel leads all the way to Mt. Zuoyun. Who knows if we might just reach the inside of their defensive position.” A barbarian said anxiously, “At that time, there will only be the 20 of us while they have several thousand soldiers!”
The barbarians were not stupid. They immediately guessed where this tunnel might lead.
The barbarians in the tunnel slowly came to a stop. One of them sneered and said, “They’re trying to lure us into the defensive position to kill us, but that’s really underestimating us. The farthest man behind, go and tell those on the surface that we need 20 more men down here. Tell them to inform the main forces at Mt. Zuoyun that we’re going to break through from behind enemy lines right now and create a chance for the main forces to break through from the front!”
The barbarians’ plan was instantly formed. If this tunnel really led to the defensive position, the sudden appearance of these 40 combat experts would surely cause enough damage to the defensive position of the Central Plains people.
Although they would die, death was nothing compared to the glory of the expeditionary army.
As long as they could disrupt the rhythm of the defensive position and allow the main forces to occupy this place, their sacrifices would be worth it. Their names would also be carved onto the stone tablet in front of the palace they would build here!
Thinking of this, the elite barbarians got fired up. Someone shouted, “Have the main forces bring their heavy armor here! Remember, maintain formation. Don’t exit the tunnel at the first signs of light at the entrance. Instead, we should break through the surface from the tunnel at lightning speed so the enemy will be caught off guard!”
Actually, they all knew that since they had been chasing after these Central Plains people for so long, they would definitely have to go in and have a look no matter what. Otherwise, no one would feel satisfied. Furthermore, they were under the orders of their general, so even if they knew it was dangerous up ahead, they would still have to charge in.
One of the highest-ranked barbarians said ruthlessly, “If the Central Plains people plant explosives at the end of the tunnel, Alexius, use your body to block the blast, understand?”
After that, the barbarians returned to the surface and put on their heavy armor before crawling back into the tunnel.
Ren Xiaosu had already returned to the defensive position. He said solemnly to Ji Zi’ang, “Let’s begin.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Ji Zi’ang altered the terrain and connected the exit of the tunnel to the cesspit used by 6,000 people.
Wang Yun muttered, “They’ll probably be left with psychological trauma for the rest of their lives….”
