Records of Mysterious Things in the Southern Dynasties

Chapter 479 The Bloody Return

On the north bank of the Yellow River, the White-Robed Army marched rapidly westward, with Chen Zhao carrying the unconscious Chen Qingzhi in his arms.

The soldiers remained silent, the atmosphere heavy with tension. In just one day, the situation had taken a dramatic turn for the worse… They had been advancing triumphantly, seemingly invincible, but in the blink of an eye, their commander's fate was unknown, and the entire army was fleeing in panic. No one could accept such a situation.

What they found even more unacceptable was that their defeat was due to betrayal by the dynasty's guardian deity. Even if He didn't help, He shouldn't have stabbed them in the back!

"Damn it, if anything happens to A Yuan, I'll fight him to the death for the rest of my life!" Chen Baxian gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot.

"Don't worry, A-Yuan will be fine..." Yang Zhong's face was ashen, but the throbbing veins on his forehead betrayed his feelings.

The conversation between the two men stirred up the soldiers' worries again. Commander Chen's fate was already unknown, and they hoped that A Yuan would not suffer any further mishaps.

Someone secretly glanced at Ayao, who was trailing at the back of the line, and saw that she was radiating coldness and her eyes were filled with a murderous aura.

No one was surprised by her behavior; what surprised them was why she would obediently listen to Ren Yuan and leave as soon as he told her to.
But no one dared to ask her anything, or even look her in the eye, for fear of getting into trouble. They could only silently pray that A-Yuan would return safely.

~~
On the other side, the Tianlu Army had completely taken control of Luoyang City. All the princes, officials, and civil and military officials who had previously welcomed Yuan Hao to the capital went out of the city for twenty miles to welcome Yuan Ziyou back to the city.

But Erzhu Rong had not yet arrived, so Yuan Ziyou dared not enter the city and could only wait with the court officials for the arrival of the Heavenly Slaughter God.

It wasn't until dusk that they saw Erzhu Rong's nine-zhang-tall divine body suddenly descend from the sky.

"Welcome, Divine Lord!" Yuan Ziyou hurriedly led the crowd in a grand ceremony of worship.

Many people, seeing Erzhu Rong's divine body for the first time, couldn't help but steal glances... Good heavens, how could he be so horribly mutilated? His entire body was charred, all his arms were gone, one leg was reduced to bone, and half of his head had been blown off...

They were unaware that Erzhu Rong's divine body originally had six arms.

"Alas, my elder brother just wouldn't listen to advice, and now he's a withered tree." Erzhu Dulu sighed upon seeing this.

"Say less, or the God will scold you again," Erzhu Tianguang whispered a reminder to him.

At this moment, Erzhu Rong retracted his divine form and returned to his normal human size. Fortunately, his original arm was still intact…

"Move the entire army out and pursue the White-Robed Army!" Erzhu Rong, disregarding all other matters, hurriedly ordered in a deep voice, "We must not let them escape back to the Southern Dynasty!"

"Yes!" the Heavenly Slaughter Army responded in unison, immediately lining up to prepare for departure.

The generals all looked troubled. Erzhu Dulu whispered, "Brother, let's quit while we're ahead. We can't stop them."

"Times have changed." Erzhu Rong was not angry. Firstly, Erzhu Dulu's reaction was normal. He was too busy avoiding the White-Robed Army to chase after them.

Secondly, although Wu Yang saved his life, he only kept him alive. He had been beaten so badly by Chen Qingzhi and Ren Yuan that his divine body was shattered and his divine core was broken. It was unknown whether he could recover, so where would he find the strength to get angry?

So he patiently said, "Chen Qingzhi has been killed, and that demigod named Ren Yuan has also been destroyed, body and soul. The White Robe Army is leaderless and can only flee westward. You can pursue them relentlessly and wipe away your shame!"

"Really? That's great!" Upon hearing this, the generals' confidence soared, and they felt as if they were invincible again.

~~
But ideals are often grand, while reality is harsh. The Heavenly Slaughter Army has clearly forgotten the principle of 'do not suppress returning troops'... Even without Chen Qingzhi and Ren Yuan, the White-Robed Army remains a formidable force!
Within a few days, he fought fiercely against the relentlessly pursuing Tianlu Army for more than ten zhang, and still won every battle, without a single defeat.

Of course, without top-notch minds and top-notch combat power, the White Robe Army could not remain unaffected, with the most significant change being casualties.

Under the relentless pursuit and attacks of the Heavenly Slaughter Army with its superior numbers, the White Robe Army suffered considerable casualties every day. Moreover, several attempts to cross the river failed.

The Heavenly Slaughter Army didn't just blindly pursue them; they also used every means to lure the White Robe Army into attacking them...

Taking advantage of the betrayal of the surrendered Wei army, they set up a trap and intercepted Yu Tianmin and two hundred cavalrymen at Tongguan Pass.

Yu Tianmin and his generals fought to the death and refused to surrender. Murong Shaozong had no choice but to order a complete annihilation, ultimately sacrificing four thousand Tianlu soldiers to eliminate the two hundred white-robed soldiers.

They then cut off the heads of Yu Tianmin and others, and displayed them on the tips of their spears to provoke the White-Robed Army across the river.

"Damn it, let's fight them!" Seeing their comrades' bodies being so insulted after their deaths, the white-robed soldiers were enraged and lost control.

"Don't fall for it!" With Commander Chen absent, Mr. Gongsun was in charge of commanding the army. He shouted, "They're trying to lure us across the river. If we go now, they'll eat us up!"

"Get the hell out of here!" The cavalrymen were the most agitated, shouting, "That's our brothers' head!"

Having said that, they spread their Vermilion Bird Wings, leaped across the Yellow River, and rushed towards the Heavenly Slaughter Army soldiers who had their heads pierced by spears.

Gongsun Lu was so angry his nose was crooked: "Damn it, they've all gone too far!"

"What should we do?!" Ma Fonian asked upon seeing this.

"What else can we do?!" Gongsun Lu said impatiently, "You take Commander Chen and leave quickly, I'll lead men across the river to provide support!"

"Let's switch," Ma Fonian said hastily.

"Change my ass!" Gongsun Lu spat out. "I have a temper too!"

He then called out loudly, "Hu Longya, Ji Buli, bring your men and come with me. The rest of you, follow Vice General Ma!"

Without further ado, he leaped across the Yellow River, drew a giant brush from his sleeve, and wrote two lines of bold, silver-hooked characters in mid-air:
"The wind howls, the Yi River is cold; the brave warrior departs, never to return!"

The entire battlefield was shrouded in a tragic atmosphere. The fatigue of the white-robed soldiers vanished, replaced by boundless strength!
Amidst howling winds, the soldiers, with unwavering determination, charged swiftly into the enemy ranks!
"Entering the tiger's den to explore the dragon's palace, I look up to the sky and shout, and a white rainbow appears!" Gongsun Lu wrote two more lines.

The brushstroke abruptly stopped, and suddenly a thunderclap resounded in the sky. A white rainbow pierced the sun from the heavens, splitting into thirty-six cold rays in the air—the very phantom of 'Madam Xu's dagger.' Where the cold light passed, blood streamed from the throats of the Heavenly Slaughter Army soldiers.

Before they even fell, dozens of people had already died, their pupils constricting. Lady Xu was a renowned swordsmith of the Warring States period, skilled in crafting concealed-edge weapons. This dagger, made by her for Jing Ke, was incredibly sharp, capable of killing instantly upon contact with blood!

The other generals also displayed their unique abilities. Chen Baxian stepped into the Nine Palaces and drew fire with his fist. With a move called "Raising Fire to the Sky", fire poured down from the sky in an instant. The crimson flames danced wildly like angry dragons, engulfing a hundred Heavenly Slaughter Army soldiers in a sea of ​​fire. The scorching smell mixed with thick smoke rose into the sky.

After three years of arduous training, he finally reached the pinnacle of supernatural powers!
Yang Zhong was equally formidable, unleashing his Nine Apertures Divine Power, his fists slamming into the ground, cracking it completely. From where the earth shattered, a deep abyss, like a colossal beast, devoured dozens of Heavenly Slaughter Army soldiers, along with their horses.

(End of this chapter)