At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

Eastern suburbs, on the edge of the mountains and forests.

The morning mist, like a veil, enveloped vast stretches of forest.

The trees are towering and lush, and sunlight filters through the gaps, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

In the distance, birdsong could be heard, clear and melodious. Occasionally, a wild rabbit would dart out from the bushes and quickly disappear into the depths of the grass.

Su Mu reined in his horse, Ferghana, and gazed with his cloudy old eyes at the deep forest ahead.

"A good place."

Zhao Tieniu rode behind, his face beaming with excitement: "Old Su, this place is definitely teeming with big animals! I've heard there are wild deer and roe deer in this forest, and if we're lucky, we might even spot a wild boar!"

"You two form a group, and I'll go in alone. We'll meet here in an hour."

Zhao Tieniu was taken aback: "Old Su, are you alone? This forest is quite large, what if..."

"What, afraid I'll get lost?" Su Mu smiled. "I'm not that old yet. Go ahead, don't waste time."

Gu Changfeng glanced at Su Mu, clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Yes."

The two men rode off in another direction.

Su Mu, mounted on his horse, watched the two disappear into the woods before turning around and galloping into the forest.

"drive!"

The light in the forest dimmed, with towering trees blocking most of the sunlight, and a thick layer of fallen leaves covering the ground, making a rustling sound as the horses' hooves trod upon them.

He took the longbow off his back, his withered fingers gripped the bow arm, and gently pulled it.

The bowstring vibrated with a "humming" sound, carrying a force of over a thousand pounds.

This bow was specially commissioned by him to be made by craftsmen. The bow arm was made of century-old ironwood, and the bowstring was made of bison sinew mixed with silkworm silk. Ordinary soldiers couldn't even pull it.

"A good bow." He nodded in satisfaction.

The Akhal-Teke horses traverse the forest at great speed.

Su Mu's ears twitched slightly, catching every sound in the forest.

Suddenly, a rustling sound came from the bushes ahead.

A male deer burst out of the bushes, its large body and forked antlers gleaming amber in the morning light.

It seemed to sense danger and galloped wildly into the depths of the forest.

Su Mu's lips curled up as he drew his bow and nocked an arrow.

"Whoosh!"

The arrow pierced the air with lightning speed, precisely striking the stag's neck.

The stag charged forward a few steps, then its legs buckled, and it collapsed to the ground with a thud. After struggling for a moment, it remained still.

Su Mu sheathed his bow and spurred his horse toward the prey.

Upon arriving at the destination, he dismounted, walked to the stag's carcass, and bent down to pick it up.

Just then, thirteen dark figures appeared simultaneously from the treetops, bushes, and behind rocks, like thirteen black lightning bolts, surrounding Su Mu.

Su Mu knew that the Thirteen Envoys of the Black Cloud had appeared.

They were all dressed in black, wearing black masks, revealing only pairs of cold, icy eyes.

Each person held a narrow-bladed longsword in their hand; the blade was jet black and had no luster.

It was a weapon specifically designed for assassination, and it wouldn't reveal its target in the dark.

Their heights varied, some as robust as oxen, others as thin as bamboo, but without exception, they all exuded a chilling killing intent.

The leader waved his hand.

"kill!"

Thirteen dark figures moved simultaneously.

Three men launched a feint attack from the front, four men flanked from both sides, three men attacked from behind, and three men leaped onto the treetops to block the retreat from above.

Their movements were as swift as ghosts, their blades flashing like snow. Thirteen black, narrow-bladed longswords wove an impenetrable net of death, enveloping Su Mu.

Su Mu reached out with his right hand, and the Dragon Slayer Saber was drawn from the side of the saddle. The dark gold patterns on the blade suddenly lit up in the dark forest, like a golden lightning bolt.

"Clang clang clang!"

Three metallic clanging sounds rang out almost simultaneously.

Su Mu drew a semicircle in front of him with his Dragon-Slaying Saber, accurately deflecting three longswords that were thrusting at him from the front.

He slightly shifted his body to the side, dodging the two stabs coming from the right. He then used his left hand to strike the back of the third assassin's blade, knocking him and his sword back several steps.

The Dragon-Slaying Saber swept out horizontally, its blade energy like a whirlwind, forcing back the four assassins who had flanked from both sides.

As the blade passed, a pine tree as thick as a bowl was cut in half, crashed down, and spewed wood chips everywhere.

The leader of the Thirteen Black Cloud Envoys' pupils suddenly contracted.

This old man's swordsmanship is even more terrifying than described in the intelligence.

Each strike was powerful and heavy, carrying immense force, and each strike was precise.

"Scatter! Don't fight head-on!" the leader shouted.

The remaining assassins quickly changed formation, no longer engaging in direct confrontation, but instead adopting hit-and-run tactics, circling around Su Mu, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

A knife came stabbing from the left, but Su Mu dodged it by sidestepping.

A slash came down from the right, and the Dragon Slayer Sword was used to parry.

A stab came from behind, but Su Mu didn't turn around. He swung his sword backhand and smashed the back of the blade into the assassin's chest, sending him flying.

Thirteen against one, and they couldn't gain the slightest advantage.

Yu Zhongyi and his special forces crouched on a distant hillside, watching the fierce battle in the forest through the gaps in the leaves.

A young soldier beside him, sweating profusely, asked in a low voice, "Captain, when do we make our move? They've already attacked Old Su!"

You Zhongyi stared intently at the battlefield, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"No rush, Elder Su hasn't given the signal yet."

"But..." the soldier said anxiously, "Thirteen men against one, what if Old Su..."

"What if what?" You Zhongyi glared at him. "When have you ever seen Old Su fight a battle he wasn't confident of winning? He's probably been cooped up for too long and wants to stretch his muscles with these guys. Just watch."

The soldier opened his mouth, but said nothing more, though he gripped the knife tightly in his hand.

In the forest, the battle had reached a fever pitch.

Su Mu's Dragon-Slaying Saber drew golden arcs in the dark forest, its blade energy forcing the Thirteen Envoys of Black Cloud to retreat step by step.

His white hair fluttered in the wind, and his hunched body charged left and right amidst the enemy's attacks, yet remained as steady as Mount Tai.

Suddenly, Su Mu's swordsmanship changed abruptly.

The Dragon-Slaying Saber slashed horizontally, its blade energy spreading outwards like ripples.

The three assassins were unable to dodge in time and were struck by the blade's energy. They groaned and flew backward, crashing into a tree trunk and spitting out blood.

Then, Su Mu suddenly leaped up, his hunched body rising into the air, the Dragon-Slaying Saber raised high above his head.

With a single, thunderous strike, the blade cleaved down.

"cut!"

The Dragon-Slaying Saber's blade energy transformed into a golden streak, slashing straight down from mid-air and striking the core of the Black Cloud Thirteen Envoys' formation.

The leader's pupils contracted sharply, and he instinctively raised his knife to block!

"Snap!"

His longsword was cleaved in two by the Dragon-Slaying Saber, but the blade's momentum remained undiminished, slashing diagonally down from his shoulder all the way to his waist and abdomen.

Blood spurted out.

The leader's body split in two, and his internal organs gushed out with a whoosh, splattering all over the ground.

Blood gushed out, drawing a dark red curtain in the morning light.

The entire room fell silent.

The remaining twelve assassins were completely dumbfounded.

For the first time, fear appeared in their eyes as they looked at their leader's two halves of his body, at the white-haired, blood-soaked old man, and at the still-dripping dragon-slaying sword.

"Chief...leader..."

"Impossible... How could he have stabbed me in one blow..."

Su Mu did not stop, raising the Dragon Slayer Saber and unleashing another flurry of attacks.

After one round, three more people were killed.

"This old man clearly came prepared; I reckon his men are already approaching from all around."

"What should we do?"

"Let's run?"

Someone shouted first, and the remaining assassins scattered and fled.

So the survivors fled in all directions.

Su Mu looked at the fleeing Black Cloud Messengers and laughed:

"The real hunt has begun."

He mounted the horse, and the Akhal-Teke neighed loudly, its hooves flying. He took the longbow from its back and drew three arrows from the quiver.

Draw the bow, nock the arrow, and shoot!

"Whoosh!"

The first arrow shot through the air like a meteor, striking an assassin who had fled fifty feet away right in the back.

The arrow pierced his chest and emerged from his front. The assassin didn't even have time to scream before collapsing to the ground, twitching twice before going still.

"Whoosh!"

The second arrow struck another assassin who had climbed into the treetop.

An arrow pierced the back of his head, and he fell from the treetop to the ground.

"Whoosh!"

The third arrow pierced through the layers of branches and leaves, accurately striking an assassin hiding behind a rock.

The arrow pierced through a crevice in the rock and struck him squarely in the throat.

Three arrows fired simultaneously, all three were fatal.

Su Mu did not stop.

The Akhal-Teke horse galloped wildly through the forest, and Su Mu, on horseback, drew his bow and shot arrow after arrow with the ease of shooting at a target.

An assassin ducked into the bushes, thinking he was safe.

An arrow pierced through the bush and struck him squarely in the thigh.

He screamed and struggled to his feet, but the second arrow had already arrived and pierced his throat.

Seeing the three remaining Black Cloud Messengers trying to escape from the woods, You Zhongyi revealed his murderous intent and said:

"Brothers, let's get to work!"

He led the special forces down the hillside like a pack of black cheetahs, quickly surrounding the entire forest.

The three men, who were just about to escape from the woods, were stopped and killed.

Su Mu, mounted on his horse, looked at the corpses scattered on the ground and said:

"Cut off their heads and send them to the city of Cangzhou as a grand gift to Tuoba Han. Since he sent me thirteen men, I will send him thirteen heads in return."

You Zhongyi's eyes lit up, and he clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Yes, sir!"

Without a word, the special forces soldiers drew their knives and began clearing the battlefield.

In the distance, on the canopy of a large tree, the black-clad swordsman crouched among the branches and leaves, watching the whole thing through the gaps in the leaves.

His mouth was slightly open, his eyes were wide open, and he almost dropped the long sword in his hand.

He never expected that a centenarian, facing thirteen top assassins, would kill the leader with a single slash, kill three others with three arrows, and then hunt them down in the forest like a hunter, killing one with each arrow until only one of the thirteen remained alive.

This isn't war, it's hunting.

Those self-proclaimed top assassins, the Thirteen Envoys of the Black Cloud, were nothing more than prey in his eyes.

A chill ran down the back of the black-clad swordsman, and he swallowed hard.

"Such ruthless swordsmanship...such terrifying archery skills..." he muttered to himself. "Everyone says this centenarian's swordsmanship is superb, and seeing it today, it truly lives up to its reputation."

And just as he was about to turn and leave!

Several figures emerged simultaneously from behind the surrounding trees, bushes, and rocks, surrounding him.

Gu Changfeng emerged from behind a large tree, holding a long knife, his gaze cold and stern.

At the same time, ten soldiers raised their hands, their crossbows aimed at the black-clad swordsman.

So close, so specific, that even if the black-clad swordsman had the best lightness skill, he would have a hard time escaping.

Gu Changfeng stepped forward and said:

"Your Mightiness,"

"Old Su requests your presence."