Longzang

Chapter 930 Daily Battle
The chariots on both flanks opened fire first, and the shells began to burn in the air, turning into fiery meteors that landed on the flanks of Song Cui's army formation.

The shell exploded into a ring of fire upon landing, burning silently. Strangely, the fire couldn't ignite anything, but anyone who came into contact with even a tiny bit would be instantly engulfed in flames.

The burning warriors screamed in terror, but to no avail; the fire simply wouldn't go out. In the blink of an eye, the burning warriors lay on the ground, the dark flames still burning silently, yet their bodies bore no wounds.

The bizarre scene instantly terrified the Song and Cui soldiers. Fortunately, even if they were only a step away from the circle of fire, as long as they didn't touch it, they wouldn't get burned. So those who were close to the circle of fire desperately retreated, and the flanks began to squeeze the center of the army, causing the formation to break apart.

The chariots fired relentlessly, creating long corridors of fire on both flanks, forcing them to retreat to the center and forcing their formation into a rectangle. Soldiers in the center resisted, but this only provoked their comrades on the flanks to turn on them with swords, and dozens were cut down in the blink of an eye. The soldiers on the flanks preferred to face military law rather than be burned to death by this eerie fire.

"Karmic fire!" Cui Chengxiao exclaimed in shock and anger, pointing at Zhang Sheng and shouting, "How vicious your methods are!"

Zhang Sheng cupped his hands in farewell: "I am no match for your wife."

Cui Chengxiao was furious and speechless with rage. He said, "I have no choice but to bully the weak today!"

Zhang Sheng stood with his hands behind his back and said, "The enemy is challenging us to battle. Why don't we meet them now?"

Feng Chutang, from the rear guard, looked helpless and glared at Zhang Sheng. However, his entire face was covered by a mask, so his expression was completely hidden.

Feng Chutang leaped up and met Cui Chengxiao, a dark dragon rising from the ruins above his head.

Cui Chengxiao said in a deep voice, "Your Dharma appearance is quite rare, and you have a bright future ahead of you. Why ruin it here? You may leave. I will not make a move."

Cui Chengxiao didn't make a move, nor did Feng Chutang. Instead, Feng Chutang said, "Our two families were already on good terms, almost like an alliance. Why have things come to this? Is this truly what our Cui family's ancestor wished?"

Cui Chengxiao remained calm and said, "How could mortals predict the Immortal Ancestor's plans? We only need to follow the rules. But now that you are using karmic fire to kill our soldiers, this cannot be resolved peacefully."

Feng Chutang said, "The karmic fire is merely a means, and a swift death. But you massacred our entire delegation first, and there is already conclusive evidence of this! How is such brutality any different from that of foreign races? Once this matter is made public, the world will judge right and wrong!"

At this moment, the woman below shouted angrily, "What are we waiting for if we don't kill this mere junior?!"

Cui Chengxiao sighed inwardly, knowing that it was no use reasoning with him now. So he said to Feng Chutang, "If you feel you are no match for them, you may leave on your own. I am bullying the weak, so I will not actually kill you."

His words still left room for maneuver. After all, Cui Chengxiao was a seasoned imperial advisor, and he had the insight and knowledge to know that someone with Feng Chutang's rare immortal appearance would definitely be highly valued by the Taichu Palace. If he were to actually kill him, or even just harm his cultivation path, his master and sect would certainly not let it go. In that case, he would be the one to suffer. The beautiful woman in palace attire would at most receive a reprimand and be confined for a few decades, and that would be the end of it.

To everyone's surprise, Feng Chutang was unmoved and simply said, "There is no reason to flee halfway through this battle! Please, senior!"

Cui Chengxiao's face darkened, and he said, "I have already yielded to you many times. Since you don't know what's good for you, I have no choice but to teach you a lesson! Do it!"

Feng Chutang took out a dark red talisman and stuck it on the hammer. Instantly, the hammerhead burst into flames! With a casual wave of his hand, Feng Chutang created a large circle of fire.

Seeing Cui Chengxiao's grim expression, Feng Chutang smiled and said, "Senior, please be careful. This karmic fire not only burns karma but also damages the mental world. Senior's karma is so heavy, it's best not to get involved." With that, Feng Chutang charged straight at Cui Chengxiao's chest with his hammer! The flames on the hammerhead, stimulated by the power of the Dao, instantly grew several feet long, and several sparks flew out.

Choi Sung-hyo's face was ashen, and he had no choice but to step aside. The karmic fire was so close that he could even smell a foul stench. Suddenly, Choi Sung-hyo's heart skipped a beat, and he immediately recalled several past events where he had incurred heavy karmic consequences.

Feng Chutang, not one to back down, kept stabbing Cui Chengxiao with his hammer, while the hammer spun around, sending sparks flying in all directions.

The Azure Nether army formation below had already reached the Song-Cui army. The Song-Cui army had already fired two volleys of arrows, though they were not very well coordinated, and were then blocked by the Azure Nether warriors raising their shields. Against the Azure Nether warriors with their massive shields and heavy armor, the Song army's conventional arrows were completely useless.

In the blink of an eye, the two sides closed to within ten zhang. The Qingming Army maintained its orderly steps, with all soldiers advancing at the same pace. The sound of their footsteps was like the war drums of giants, echoing in the hearts of every Song soldier. The ground trembled and shook, and many Song soldiers were not even sure whether the ground was moving or their own legs were shaking.

Fear was already evident in the eyes of the Song soldiers in the front row. Suddenly, a soldier broke away from the main army formation and charged alone towards the Qingming army formation, shouting.

With a loud bang and a flash of fire, the lone Song soldier who had charged forward was sent flying backward, his chest and face covered in blood and gore, and almost half of his body was sliced ​​off.

The Azure Warrior who fired the shot continued to advance, keeping pace with the others; only the blue smoke from the muzzle proved that he had just fired a shot.

The two sides closed the distance by another three zhang, and could clearly see each other's eyes. Suddenly, the Azure Nether Warriors raised their guns and fired simultaneously, a barrage of lead pellets raining down on the Song army, instantly knocking down the entire front ranks, some even having their shields shattered!

The Qingming Army took two steps forward and fired another shot, cutting down the second, third and fourth platoons of the Song army like weeds!
Some of the exposed rear-line Song soldiers charged forward, some remained stationary, and some even pushed back. But the flames of war still raged on the Song army's flanks, which had already been squeezed into the center, transforming the horizontal rectangle into a vertical one. The center was incredibly crowded; those in front wanted to retreat, but there was nowhere to move.
The few Song soldiers who charged towards the Qingming army formation were met head-on by a row of chilling blades! The double-barreled muskets now issued to the Qingming heavy armored legion were equipped with three-foot-long blades, weighing nearly a hundred pounds with the blades, requiring at least a mastery of body forging to use them.

With this single strike, both man and horse were shattered!
The charging Song soldiers were instantly cut into pieces. Suddenly, the first rank of Qingming warriors charged forward, using the distance of several meters to accelerate, and then, carrying their hundreds of pounds of equipment, slammed into the Song army formation!

The Song army's formation immediately trembled, compressing several feet in size! The rear was so crowded that it was impossible to move, and some soldiers in the center were even crushed to death!

The rows of blades were raised high and fell one after another, and blood rained down in front of the Song army, with severed heads and limbs flying everywhere.

There was no way to retreat on either flank. The chariots continued firing, rekindling the flames where they had died down, maintaining the long wall of fire.

The Azure Warriors had remained silent since the start of the battle, and now they were mechanically charging and slashing, charging and slashing again, in a cycle that turned the battle into a meat-slicing mode.

The beautiful woman in palace attire in the rear chariot had a pale face and had already smashed everything she could get her hands on, but no matter how the generals pleaded, she refused to give the order to retreat.

She suddenly shrieked, "You're using karmic fire... Fine, burn! Burn as much as you can, the better! The more karmic fire you use, the worse you'll all die! Trading tens of thousands of ants for a genius who can use karmic fire is a good deal!"

Above the battlefield, Feng Chutang wielded a flaming hammer, chasing Cui Chengxiao so fast he was leaping and bounding. Cui Chengxiao finally managed to hold out until the flames on Feng Chutang's hammer burned out, only to see Feng Chutang take out a talisman and slap it onto the hammer, after which he was chased and leaped and bounding again.

P.S.: I recommend Wandering Toad's new book, *The Mortal Immortal*. He's a seasoned, flamboyant author; every opening chapter is worth anticipating. If it's not flamboyant enough, don't criticize me; criticize him instead.

(End of this chapter)