Chapter 122: The Allure and Cruelty of That Sideways Glance

Caiye was quite displeased that the Commander had left the Women’s Battalion in the city. Originally, these soldiers under the command of Ji Lan were a unique and vibrant sight at Desheng Pass, but now they were relegated to maintaining order and assisting in treating the wounded dragged down from the ramparts.

The number of casualties was rising sharply. The spirit-healing talismans stocked before each battle were being consumed rapidly. At this point, every practitioner was burdened with heavy combat duties, and there was no one left to spare for crafting more talismans. Fortunately, because the war had been anticipated, the supplies were still just enough. The real trouble was the lack of personnel, especially those capable of treating wounds.

The scene that Caiye was all too familiar with was about to play out once again: for those so severely wounded that death seemed imminent, no one would waste a healing talisman on them, nor would anyone bother to care for them.

"Caiye!" someone rushed over while she was patrolling. "There’s a situation! Someone is wasting our healing talismans!"

"Where?" Caiye glared, her left hand resting on the hilt of her sword as she strode forward.

"In the second wounded and sick zone!"

Caiye led a few others behind her. Most of the ground they stepped on was already stained with blood or littered with torn clothing soaked in gore. Many soldiers, lacking immediate care, were simply laid out on the ground, wailing and moaning. The field medics were so overwhelmed they barely had a moment to breathe. Caiye wove through the crowd and the noisy, chaotic hell on earth until she spotted a group of wounded soldiers huddled around a wooden pillar, begging and pleading.

"Move aside! What is going on?!"

As she drew closer, the situation became clear. A young soldier, clearly on the verge of death, was coughing up blood; he had already lost his right leg. Yet, a young girl crouched beside him was placing several healing talismans onto his wounds. These talismans were nothing compared to those crafted by Gu Pei; the moment they touched the severe wounds, they would vanish in a flash of light.

*Bang!*

Caiye kicked the teenage girl aside. "What are you doing?! He is already dying, why are you wasting so many healing talismans on him?"

It was a heartbreaking choice, but Caiye had to make it so that more people with a better chance of survival could live.

The girl let out a cry of pain and scrambled back. She didn't have a face full of tears; her eyes were merely red-rimmed and filled with terror, her arms trembling as she moved. "He can’t die, he can’t die, I have to save him, I have to save him," she whispered, not in a desperate shriek, but repeating the words over and over.

Caiye squeezed her eyes shut. For a fleeting moment, there was sympathy in her brow. "Take her away! Apply military law! No leniency!"

"Commander..." the tone of her subordinates was hesitant. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that the man lying on the ground dying must be her relative.

"I’ll handle it myself!" Caiye stepped forward. "Give me the talismans!"

"No! You can’t stop me from saving him!" The girl tried to push Caiye, but she had little strength left. Seeing the child begin to defy an officer, the others couldn't just stand by.

Caiye, driven by a frantic sense of duty, snatched the talismans from the girl’s hand. "Take her away and lock her up!"

In reality, doing this was pronouncing a death sentence on the soldier on the ground. Once the support of the talismans was removed, he closed his eyes, his body shuddered twice, and then he went still.

"We are short-handed. Use the talismans on yourselves," she said, handing the remaining talismans to those who could still manage to hold on. Some people were simply destined to be sacrificed.

The battles between practitioners were often even more cruel. Chen Mingguang and Wu Gang were constantly circling around the Seventh Princess, which was not a clever strategy; it alerted Mao Tai and Jin Ling that something was amiss. By making the Princess the focal point of their offense and defense, the two men found themselves restricted.

However, this minor disadvantage did not mean Desheng Pass was weak. With a practitioner at the Return to Origin stage holding the line, the experts of the Li Army dared not act rashly. As for the rest, the Xu Army relied on the tall, thick city walls for defense, making it impossible for the enemy to break through. After about an hour of fighting, there was hardly any section of the wall completely occupied by the Li Army. They would charge up, kill some people, but ultimately suffer even heavier casualties.

Sun Liang, the deputy to General Gu Feng, grew impatient and was the first to step forward. He was an elderly man with black cloth wrapped around his eyes, seemingly blind, with a withered frame and long hair hanging down. He was a unique practitioner; his weapon was an erhu. He was not skilled in close-quarters combat, but few could get close to him, including some experts of the Return to Origin stage.

Using musical notes for attacks was a potent battlefield tactic. Gu Feng kept him close for good reason; the old man was usually unobtrusive, only interested in eating, drinking, and being served, but on the battlefield, he became a god of slaughter. Ji Lan had heard the name of Sun Liang, the man who had killed countless, when she first arrived at Desheng Pass, but this was her first time facing him.

"Ugly, dark, and old," Ji Lan said, arms akimbo, lifting her leg slightly. She truly despised the man. Having been on the battlefield for so long, where life and death came swiftly, she disliked beating around the bush and expressed everything directly. For instance, she liked people who were handsome and would look down on those who were too ugly. She didn't see the point in pretending to be refined and virtuous; if she died one day, it would be a pity to have wasted the effort.

Sun Liang, however, was indifferent to such comments. He merely covered his mouth and coughed twice, his sickly appearance making one wonder if he was terminally ill. His movements in bringing out the erhu were very slow, but the moment his withered, bony fingers brushed the strings, the momentum shifted instantly, and the surrounding air began to distort.

He plucked the string with a single index finger. "First note."

Following his low, gravelly voice, a pitch-black, crescent-shaped beam of light shot out with extreme speed. It reached the walls of Desheng Pass in an instant. If it had passed Ji Lan and struck the interior, it would have surely left a vast expanse of ruins and bodies.

Ji Lan’s eyes narrowed, and she kicked out with her long, straight right leg.

*Bang!*

Her heel blocked the black crescent. At the same time, her body slid backward. Her spiritual energy could not disperse it. Ji Lan pivoted her body slightly, and her right leg traced an arc.

*Whoosh!*

The black light Sun Liang had unleashed changed direction and flew toward the mountain peak on the right. As it passed over the soldiers, a heavy sense of danger gripped them; some even stopped what they were doing to watch it crash into the mountain.

*Boom!*

The explosion in the mountain hollow could be felt clearly even from that distance. It was the first time Ji Lan had encountered such an opponent; the power was immense, and she had to be careful. The erhu was pitch black, not looking like ordinary spiritual energy.

"Second note."

With two plucks of the string, a dual-layered crescent of black light attacked again. It looked like one layer, but the two beams were extremely close. Ji Lan soared into the air, her right leg completely enveloped in spiritual energy, and kicked them back with two sharp *bangs*, this time aiming toward the Li Army’s formation.

The cold, conspicuous black light turned back, instantly causing a commotion in the ranks of the Li Army. This was an attack from a Return to Origin expert!

On the ramparts of Desheng Pass, the battle gradually slowed and subsided. Everyone began to notice the duel between the two Return to Origin experts, because if the expert on their side lost, winning the skirmish would ultimately be meaningless.

*Bang!*

Sun Liang pushed the black erhu to hover in front of his body. It began to spin faster and faster. Thick, viscous spiritual energy surged, and the chilling sensation caused the temperature to drop rapidly. The temperature difference created a wind, and white clouds in the sky began to converge. The two black beams that had been kicked back merged into the erhu and the surrounding spiritual energy, their violent nature vanishing.

Ji Lan frowned slightly; she had a bad premonition. If... if Sun Liang could release many such attacks, how could she, with only two legs, block them all?

Meanwhile, He Jiang and Shu Le did not look this way. They were willing to trust Ji Lan; they had no other choice but to trust her.

Sun Liang extended three fingers. Unable to touch the strings, he used spiritual energy to pluck them. "Third note!"

Each attack was not merely a stacking of moves; in reality, both the speed and power were increasing.

"Fourth note!"

*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*

The empty sky was suddenly stirred by seven black beams. The Xu Army soldiers on the walls couldn't help but feel afraid. Ji Lan dared not be arrogant and stopped holding back. With a *swish*, fiery, scorching spiritual energy surrounded her body. She drew her blade and slashed out seven times in rapid succession.

To those watching from below, it looked as if General Ji’s red figure flashed repeatedly, blocking every single black beam with every strike.

*Courtesy demands reciprocity.*

Ji Lan had been as still as a virgin earlier, but now, in motion, she was as violent as fire. Her speed in the air was incredible; people could only identify her by her red silhouette. In just a single breath, she had rapidly closed the distance to Sun Liang.

*Bang, bang!*

Two more black beams followed. Ji Lan did not dodge; after her red aura surged, she neutralized the attacks into nothingness. Closing in was already difficult; surely moving closer would be even more dangerous. Did Sun Liang think that because he was far away, others couldn't attack him? He was wrong.

The blade energy in Ji Lan's hand had instantly grown tens of meters long, and the sky was filled with red. This was the strength of a Deputy General. The blade energy, manifested through spiritual power, was tens of meters long, majestic and heavy, like a falling dragon.

Sun Liang had no way to dodge, just as Ji Lan had no way to dodge his black beams. Because behind him were his own soldiers, his own people, so there was no retreat.

Sun Liang, who had been sitting cross-legged, stood up. He grabbed the erhu with his left hand, and after muttering a silent incantation, black light instantly spilled from the strings, rapidly staining and wrapping around his body. The red giant blade had already descended. Sun Liang had no choice but to raise the erhu and, gathering all his strength, strike out with a palm!

A gale blew, causing Ji Lan’s hair to dance wildly, but it could not hide the determination and confidence in her eyes.

*Whoosh!*

The blade energy descended with terrifying speed, and the black vortex did the same. Red and black collided violently under the gaze of ten thousand people!

*Bang!*

The violent shockwave from the collision easily blew away other nearby practitioners in the sky, as well as countless soldiers on the ground. Some even lost their lives because of it.

At this moment, Ji Lan held her blade with both hands, pressed below her lower abdomen. Her expression did not change in the slightest, and she was still putting force into her hands to suppress Sun Liang’s momentum.

In this critical moment, a black crescent beam flashed out from the darkness at the edge of the red energy!

*That old bastard,* she thought, *he's truly cunning.* Ji Lan was certain that Sun Liang had no remaining strength to perform this move; he must have hidden it earlier, keeping it as a trump card to use while they were locked in combat.

The choice was the same as the one Sun Liang had just faced: she absolutely could not dodge. Behind her were ordinary soldiers and practitioners watching the battle between the two Return to Origin experts. They were all citizens of the Xu Kingdom.

Sun Liang, on the other side of the darkness, curled his lips. The trick he had saved was enough to secure victory.

It was a moment that decided the life and death of many. Would the black beam between Ji Lan and Sun Liang injure her, or would it...?

It seemed like a difficult choice, but it did not make General Ji hesitate for even a fraction of a second. She didn't even blink; her head and body veered slightly to the left, and the black beam grazed past her.

As it passed, the soldiers behind her were plunged into instant despair and terror. Many were so rigid they lost their ability to react. *What... what is happening?!*

"Run! Run!" someone shouted.

The explosions and carnage behind her did not cause the General’s eyes to waver, nor did her brow twitch in the slightest. However, Sun Liang opposite her looked slightly puzzled and let out a soft "Hmm?"

"Fool! They are just a few cheap lives! With a strong enemy in front of you, what are you distracted by?!" Gu Feng shouted angrily from the sky, while He Jiang kept his eyes locked on him, preventing him from interfering.

He could understand Ji Lan’s choice. It was her consistent style, just like when she had sent Wu Gang to his death. The style was simple and cruel: if it was worth it, she would trade anything, even lives, to achieve it.

Ji Lan’s hair was still dancing wildly. Gu Feng seemed to notice the momentary distraction in Sun Liang, and General Ji seized it as well. As she poured more spiritual energy into her strike, the blade pressed down.

Red prevailed over black.

All of this happened in an instant. The moment she tilted her body to dodge the black beam, the explosion occurred behind her, causing heavy casualties among the soldiers. In front of her, the red blade shattered Sun Liang, splitting the black light in two.

In the center, Ji Lan stood proudly with her blade, and no one dared to approach!

*An ugly man, and you still want to challenge me, General Ji?*

She sheathed her blade, her left hand on her hip, her right hand pointing forward—at Gu Feng. "You should find a stronger deputy. His weakness will result in all the Li soldiers here being buried with him!"

What she said was the absolute truth, because the split-in-two Sun Liang was the foundation of her confidence. Perhaps "all the Li soldiers" was an exaggeration, but with an extra Return to Origin expert, once she began the slaughter, the only possibility for survival was if she grew tired or ran out of time. Therefore, the trade was worth it.

It was also something Ji Lan had to do, because at this very moment, the ramparts of Desheng Pass were littered with corpses, and blood flowed like a river. That attack was from a Return to Origin expert, meant to ambush Ji Lan, so its power was naturally not to be underestimated; now, it had struck their own men.

...

Xiao Sha lifted Shao Dong’s upper body. He had lost almost half of his face; blood mixed with scraps of flesh clung to his eyeball, a truly terrifying sight. This was simply bad luck. When the black beam arrived, Shao Dong and several other practitioners at the Spirit Guarding stage hadn't reacted by running, but by joining forces to block it.

Heaven did not always reward the brave. Courage had power, but before absolute strength, it was nothing.

There were many others beside Xiao Sha who had already lost their lives. He himself was left with his head buzzing from the explosion, and black blood was flowing from his nose and ears. He barely noticed Shao Dong's wretched state until he heard him speaking. "What are you saying?! I can't hear you!"

Shao Dong raised his remaining hand, pointing nowhere, his half-mouth unable to articulate clearly. "Can... chi..."

Xiao Sha heard, but didn't understand, so he leaned his ear closer.

"Xin Chi... Xin Chi..."

"Xin Chi?! You mean Xin Chi?!" Xiao Sha realized it was the female practitioner from the Donghu Academy. "I'll go find her."

He laid the man down and stumbled over the corpses. Fortunately, as she was a girl, she was easier to find. Xiao Sha saw her face. "Xin Chi!"

Xiao Sha, unable to steady himself, fell to the ground. This fall terrified him. That face, that head, was not attached to anything else, even though her eyes were wide open.

"Ahhh!!"

It wasn't a cry of fear, but a hysterical collapse. Xiao Sha wanted to go back to find Shao Dong, only to discover that the man had closed his only remaining eye. He was dead, too.

They were all dead.

Ji Lan heard the roar. She wanted to turn and look, but she forced herself not to. At the same time, with a *whoosh*, her body began to descend rapidly. Beneath her was the main formation of the Li Army. The purpose of her descent was self-evident.

Because of her actions, He Jiang waved a fist at Gu Feng from across the air. "Where are you looking!"

Shu Le did the same. Ji Lan had won them an incredible opportunity. On the battlefield between two armies, for one Return to Origin expert to slay another was something even a storyteller wouldn't dare to boast about. Therefore, Shu Le would not let the man known as "Left-Handed Sword" Chang Meng escape for even a second.

This was a moment that required the commander-in-chief to have iron-clad decisiveness.

The Li Army also had many hot-blooded youths who, upon seeing the death of Sun Liang, lost their heads and became reckless warriors. But just as before, courage at this moment changed nothing—it only led to a faster death.

As Ji Lan’s body descended, the warriors understood what she was about to do. Naturally, it was time for the Spirit Guarding stage experts to lead, just as Shao Dong had done. Yet, they couldn't even block a single kick from Ji Lan. That kick, descending from above, was like a thunderclap; all those within its range were unable to withstand the pressure and died coughing up blood!

"Listen to my command! This attack on Desheng Pass is a failure! All Li Kingdom practitioners, all Li Kingdom soldiers, use every means possible to escape! Run!"

Gu Feng’s voice carried to every corner beneath the walls of Desheng Pass.

"Run?"

Ji Lan, who had been expressionless, revealed a bloodthirsty smile. She drew her blade, fire-red spiritual energy filling the steel, "Where will you run to?"

This order filled many with fear, and others with rage. The enraged charged forward, prepared to use their own lives to stop this god of slaughter.

"We cannot all just run away, or we will be easily hunted down and killed by her. We must join forces to at least hold her off! Buy time for the General and everyone else!"

If he had seen more of the Return to Origin stage in his life, he would not have thought so.