Chapter 184: Slay! Escape!
Just as Chu Yang had said earlier, revealing Li Gexiao's true identity now would only strengthen Magistrate Xu's determination to kill them.
Impersonating an officer of the Embroidered Guards was a serious offense; pretending to be a prince was a crime that implicated one's entire clan. If Magistrate Xu killed them, he would be credited for it. On the other hand, if Chu Yang really was a prince, then offending him would mean certain death. Either way, he was doomed.
A blade to the neck whether one advances or retreats—Magistrate Xu had no choice left.
The yamen soldiers formed up, closing in step by step, squeezing their space as much as possible. Li Gexiao could naturally see their intention—to completely surround them. He had to strike first.
His self-created blade technique, Heaven and Earth Unjust, excelled in group combat. Combined with Yan Nantian's Divine Sword Technique, each strike unleashed waves of sword energy. Blades and swords whirled in a deadly dance, and sure enough, he carved a bloody path forward.
Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou flanked him on either side, doing their best to hold open the path Li Gexiao had carved.
But whether it was Lu Xiaofeng's Spirit-Finger Strike or Hua Manlou's Drifting Cloud Sleeves, neither was a martial art known for its lethality. They might excel in one-on-one duels, but within a melee formation, they were clearly at a disadvantage.
As time passed, and the onslaught intensified from all directions, the two of them were soon struggling just to protect themselves.
Chu Yang guarded a gravely wounded, unconscious soldier, his gaze icy as he looked at the yamen soldiers so eager to kill. A surge of killing intent rose within him.
"Your Highness, if you kill them all, there will be no one left to defend the city."
"The demon army's assault can't be held off by one man alone. No matter how powerful you are, you can't stop an entire cavalry charge."
"Besides, not all of these yamen soldiers are evil. I'm sure many were just coerced into this by Magistrate Xu."
"Please, Your Highness, spare them!"
Though blind, Hua Manlou's senses were razor-sharp. He sensed Chu Yang's killing intent surging and quietly stepped to his side, speaking in a low voice.
He had known Chu Yang was an exceptional master since their time at Tower of Euphoria.
Lu Xiaofeng hadn't witnessed Chu Yang repel the Rosy Skeleton, but Hua Manlou had "heard" every detail. He just never said anything.
Chu Yang shook his head. "If this keeps up, you two will fall before they do. Don't gamble with your lives."
Still, Hua Manlou couldn't bear to see too many innocents harmed. He pleaded, "I only ask that you hold back a little longer, give them a chance."
"Yamen soldiers aren't like the Qi Army. They lack that kind of cohesion. Once casualties exceed ten percent, they'll fall apart on their own."
Jinling's yamen force numbered in the thousands. That meant they'd have to kill hundreds. Easier said than done.
"Don't delay the city's defense," Chu Yang said.
He didn't believe they could hold out that long. Still, since Hua Manlou insisted, Chu Yang was willing to have their backs. It was no trouble to him.
Seeing Chu Yang agree, Hua Manlou breathed a sigh of relief and rejoined the fight, battling shoulder to shoulder with Lu Xiaofeng and Li Gexiao.
His Drifting Cloud Sleeves swept away the dozen men besieging Lu Xiaofeng. Landing behind him, he relieved the pressure on his beleaguered friend.
"What did you say to Chu Da-Shao… His Highness?" Lu Xiaofeng asked.
"I asked him to hold back and kill fewer people."
"You're crazy. Things are already this bad and you're telling him not to act?"
"If His Highness stepped in, how many of these yamen soldiers would survive? Once the demon clan attacks the city, who will be left to defend it?"
"You've got a point, but I think you're overthinking it. I've known him for years—he's not that ruthless."
"Chu Da-Shao is one thing, His Highness is another. If you can't tell the difference, you're going to suffer for it one day."
"Stop scolding me! I already regret it!"
"There are things even His Highness may not realize. When he acts as a prince, he unconsciously becomes more domineering. The mindset of a ruler is already taking root in his heart."
"Enough. What you're about to say—I don't even dare to hear."
The two fell silent, steadying their minds and focusing on the battle before them.
Li Gexiao was killing in a frenzy, striking down anyone in his path.
The Martial Garment Technique left in his body by Yan Nantian hadn't fully been digested. Some of its power still lay dormant in his acupoints, but the intense battle was now awakening it, flooding his dantian and qi sea with unending true essence.
His power had returned to its peak—and was still climbing. He was ascending the peak of martial arts!
His terrifying blade aura chilled the yamen soldiers to the bone. Magistrate Xu, too, was deathly pale. If this continued, he was done for!
"Don't panic, my lord, I'm here!"
Just as the situation turned one-sided, the deputy magistrate—who should have been guarding the city gates—suddenly arrived, bringing all the gate guards with him.
With reinforcements, the battle swung back to its original deadlock.
"You're here? Then what about the gates?" Magistrate Xu roared.
"To hell with the gates! You think we can defend Jinling with just this few?" The deputy looked at him like he was an idiot. "The Qi Army's trapped. The south is lost for sure. If we don't take our brothers and run now, are we supposed to stay and die?"
Magistrate Xu stood there, dazed. In all his years of service, he had never considered abandoning the city. With the Qi Army present, it never seemed necessary.
But now, perhaps there really was no other choice.
Still, if he fled, what would happen to the people of the city?
"My lord, have you seen how the demons eats people?"
"It's like you eating lychees—peel off the skin, suck, and the flesh's gone!"
That last sliver of conscience in Magistrate Xu was immediately crushed. He grabbed the deputy's arm, trembling. "I've always treated you well. You can't leave me behind."
The deputy chuckled. "That's why I came to get you. Don't worry. We kill these few people, find a place to hide, and once the demons leave, we come back and clean up the mess. Anyone dares talk, we kill them on the spot. No one will know a thing."
Magistrate Xu closed his eyes in anguish.
"Men! Escort the lord out of here!"
At the deputy's command, a few yamen soldiers carried Magistrate Xu away.
Hearing all this, Hua Manlou trembled in rage, sorrow surging uncontrollably. With officials like these, where could the common folk turn?
A hand gently tapped his shoulder.
"You always hold out unrealistic hopes for the world. Naturally, disappointment is inevitable."
"I gave them a chance—for your sake."
"Don't worry. I won't kill too many."
"Li Gexiao, return."
With that simple command, Li Gexiao immediately reined in his killing intent, leapt back, and silently took the unconscious soldier from Chu Yang's arms.
Chu Yang took a step forward—and a divine altar erupted from the ground beneath his feet. Standing atop it, he looked down upon the crowd.
In that moment—
An overwhelming aura of murderous dominance burst forth like a tidal wave!
All the yamen soldiers were drowned in an indescribable pressure, their minds struck by an immense force.
They didn't pass out, but stood frozen in terror, staring at Chu Yang as if he were a god.
Magistrate Xu and the deputy were no exception.
Chu Yang formed a hand seal and barked coldly, "Slay!"
A terrifying wave of slashes surged forth like a meat grinder, reducing everything in front to pulp.
The encircling formation of thousands was torn open by a hurricane of destruction. Blood and flesh blanketed the ground—like a giant had been skinned alive.
The deputy and his henchmen were pulverized, reduced to sludge indistinguishable from the stone beneath.
Magistrate Xu had lost his lower body, lying dazed on the ground. He couldn't even scream from the pain—only silently await death.
That he was still alive, Chu Yang couldn't tell if it was luck or misfortune.
Those who had helped the wicked were missing limbs—arms, legs, even heads sliced in half.
Chu Yang had promised Hua Manlou he wouldn't slaughter them all. The dead were few—most were maimed. They'd be the first cannon fodder in the coming battle. If they survived, their past sins could be forgiven.
The intense pain hadn't hit yet; their adrenaline dulled their senses. But soon, the real agony would come.
The uninjured ones were petrified. Only when screams erupted did they snap back to reality.
"AAAHHHHH!!!"
"My leg! My hand!"
"My eyes! I can't see!"
Under the barrage of slashes, everyone had lost something—eyes, noses, limbs. They looked like broken rag dolls, writhing in misery.
The louder the wounded screamed, the more terrified the others became.
Clang!
Someone dropped their weapon. In seconds, heavy thuds echoed as others followed suit.
The once-fierce yamen soldiers now knelt trembling, begging for their lives.
Even Li Gexiao, who had pledged loyalty to Chu Yang, felt fear. In that moment, he couldn't sense a trace of humanity from Chu Yang—only a cold, ruthless god of death.
Lu Xiaofeng, who'd seen all manner of horror across the land, threw up. Staring at the pulp-covered street, he nearly emptied his bile.
Blind to the gore, Hua Manlou was hit even harder—his heightened hearing and smell overwhelmed by the reek of blood and viscera. It nearly drove him mad.
Carrying the unconscious soldier, Li Gexiao shouted, "Magistrate Xu and the deputy plotted to abandon the city and have been executed! The main culprits are dead! If you follow His Highness and help defend Jinling, your crimes can be atoned. Otherwise, even if you survive today, you'll be executed in the public square later!"
The yamen soldiers trembled in fear, hastily pledging loyalty to Chu Yang.
"I don't know how to command troops," Chu Yang said. "You handle it. I'm going to sit on the wall for a bit."
He handed over command to Li Gexiao. As a vice commander of the Embroidered Guards, this was well within his ability.
"Understood. I'll arrange everything and join you shortly."
Now wasn't the time for false modesty. Li Gexiao didn't spout any nonsense about protecting the prince first.
Whether Jinling could be held or not depended on Chu Yang. Like the deputy had said—how could a few thousand yamen soldiers stop the demon army?
After Chu Yang left, Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou approached Li Gexiao to ask what he planned next.
"I know General Qi's temperament. If he dared to leave Jinling with the Qi Army, then there must be something left in the city that can help defend it."
"For instance, the Qi Army's special Anti-Demon Heavy Crossbows—each bolt can kill a spirit beast. The power is terrifying. Even great demons dare not face them head-on."
"I'll stay and organize the yamen force. Please head to the General's Manor and see if you can find the Anti-Demon Heavy Crossbow."
Lu Xiaofeng and Hua Manlou nodded and departed together. Watching their retreating backs, Li Gexiao silently prayed that they would find the Anti-Demon Heavy Crossbow.
With County Magistrate Xu's death, the news of the great demon assaulting the city spread like wildfire. The high-ranking officials and nobles of Jinling had already begun packing, preparing to flee this city on the brink of war.
Taking advantage of the chaos, the wealthy scrambled to rush their carriages toward the city gates. Servants and maidservants, laden with bundles of belongings, trailed behind, wailing in panic, terrified of being left behind.
The constables stationed at the gates tried to stop them but were scattered by the charging carriages, each of them bruised and battered. The horses pulling those carriages were hybrids, bred from demonic beasts—far stronger than ordinary ones—and the constables simply couldn't hold them back!
"Let them go!"
Standing atop the city wall, Chu Yang gazed down coldly at the scene below. These people were only trying to survive. There was no blame in that—only that they'd chosen the most foolish way.
Given the dire circumstances, Chu Yang couldn't be bothered to persuade them otherwise. They had chosen their path, and they would have to bear the consequences.
"As you command!"
The constables answered respectfully, then stood motionless like statues on either side of the city gate, no longer stopping the fleeing merchants and nobles.
Among those fleeing were not only people in carriages but even some being carried in sedan chairs, surrounded by flocks of servants. The spectacle was ostentatiously outrageous.
Chu Yang asked, "Who's in the sedan chair?"
A constable quickly scrambled up the wall and whispered, "Your Highness, that's the son of Grand Secretary Yan of the Inner Cabinet. He came to Jinling a few days ago for leisure, and I heard he brought along many other nobles' sons as well."
Chu Yang gave a faint, amused smile. "So that's the infamous 'Little Grand Secretary' Yan Shifan, isn't it?"
The constable chuckled nervously but dared not respond.
Yan Shifan was known as the Little Grand Secretary not just because his father, Yan Song, was the current Grand Secretary—head of the civil officials and wielding immense power—but also because Yan Song had handed over much of the cabinet's affairs to his son. He would often say, "I'll decide after discussing with the boy from the Eastern Chamber."
Less a deputy than a de facto leader, thus the title "Little Grand Secretary" had taken hold.
"If Yan Shifan dies, Li Gexiao might find a bit of solace—consider it an early interest payment on revenge."
Chu Yang's lips curled into a faint smirk. He looked at the extravagantly fleeing Yan Shifan as if he were already a dead man.
"Go tell Li Gexiao what's happening. Tell him that if he wants to avenge this with his own hands, he can leave the city now. I can defend Jinling alone."
The constable broke into a cold sweat at those words, then quickly climbed down the wall and disappeared into the streets.
At the city gates, the traffic was constant as people continued to flee. The nobles and officials left first, followed by shopkeepers and business owners who hesitated at the threshold.
Innkeepers, tavern owners, sellers of rouge and powder, silk and satin merchants, coachmen, boatmen, brokers, laborers, blacksmiths, butchers—
Unlike the wealth-hoarding magnates, what these people were giving up were their very livelihoods. If it weren't a matter of life and death, they would never abandon it.
"No one else is allowed to leave!"
Just as they gritted their teeth and prepared to go, Chu Yang waved his hand. A violent gust of wind suddenly surged out of nowhere, toppling people left and right—and slammed the massive city gates shut!