Ask Them

Dead.

Many dead people.

Although they were burned to a crisp, the shapes were still discernible: men, women, the elderly, children... The remains were twisted and struggling, piled together.

This is... a massacre of the village.

Kang De slowly exhaled.

My stomach... is churning a bit.

He had seen dead people—people burned to death, hacked to death, run over, beaten to death, blown up—many, many, and... he had done it all himself.

At that time, he did not experience any physical discomfort.

Extremely calm, extremely insane, extremely efficient—that's how he killed.

He cleaved open the farmer's skull, burned the knights loyal to Glittering Sand to death, shot the sentries of the military camp, chased and killed the bandits who took advantage of the chaos, and finally drove a tanker truck into the Glittering Sand Manor.

Nobles, commoners, soldiers, bandits, beggars—the number of people he killed is countless. He even piled the corpses of bandits who took advantage of the chaos into a mound. To achieve the greatest intimidation effect, some of his methods could be described as torture... Logically speaking, Kang De should have been accustomed to death.

But actually, no.

Seeing an entire village burned to the ground, black smoke billowing from the ruins, twisted corpses piled together, and countless wronged souls wailing in all directions... at that moment, he felt immense disgust and revulsion.

"Maybe I'm being a bit hypocritical."

Kang De said in a low voice, "But even in my most insane, bloodthirsty, and tyrannical moments, I never took the initiative to attack the civilians of Glittering Sand Town —even though many of them participated in the chase that night."

"There were no survivors."

The Autobots's voice slowly rose, low and angry. "I can't understand... many of these dead were weaklings with no fighting ability or threat whatsoever. Why kill them?"

"Perhaps it's because their leader is a bloodthirsty pervert, perhaps it's an elf occupation strategy, perhaps there are other reasons we don't know... If we have to explain it, this is war."

As Kang De answered, he bent down and touched the still-warm black dust on the ground.

He said in a deep voice, "They haven't gone too far, and there aren't many, so... let's go ask!"

Humvee Hummer emitted a metallic clang, as if countless parts were vibrating. The Autobots's voice was no longer as calm and composed as usual, but rather carried a hint of murderous intent.

It replied in a deep voice, "That's exactly what I was thinking."

All the hard work these past few days in learning, enchanting, crafting, and refining—the more sophisticated weapons and more powerful ammunition they've created—must come in handy.

Moreover, my father once said that if you have a share of happiness and share it with others, you will have double the happiness. But if you have a share of pain and then bring pain to others, you will feel happy when you see them in pain. The two cancel each other out, which is equivalent to you throwing your own pain onto others.

--Although he always felt this was a fallacy, seeing this miserable village, seeing these men, women, and children who died in agony, the young Autobots felt that it wasn't so bad to blame the murderer for all the hardships, anxieties, and speechlessness he had endured from his father's teasing these past few days, as well as the tedium and boredom of his daily work.

Kang De cast one last glance at the pile of charred corpses.

Glittering Sand's experiences completely changed his temperament. He had a different perspective and understanding of life and death, so he did not intend to collect the remains of these people. It would be too much trouble and a waste of time, and would further reduce the probability of catching the murderer... In the end, once someone is dead, they are dead. Their spirit has left their body. What remains in the world is just a pile of decaying flesh and bones. Even if they were collected, what would be the point?

If these dead people have spirits in heaven, then their unjustly killed souls would surely cry out and beg him to hunt down those cruel murderers, instead of wasting time collecting meaningless remains.

"Goth People, this time, I stand with you."

Kang De whispered, "You'd better not disappoint me..."

The Humvee rumbled into motion and drove out of the destroyed village.

The setting sun was like blood, its rays sinking westward. Before long, darkness would rule the earth. But those who walked in the darkness were not only rampant and cruel executioners, but also executioners who hunted the darkness. Just as evil can occur under the sun, justice can also stand in the darkness.

The Autobots said, "Father, look, hoof prints."

The road north of the village was marked with messy hoofprints, stretching northwards, crossing farmland, leaving the main road, and heading into the depths of the wilderness.

Kang De sat in the passenger seat, with boxes of ammunition in front of him. The golden-orange cartridge cases shimmered with magical light. He loaded the ammunition into the magazine one by one, checking the equipment.

He leaned out of the carriage window upon hearing this and glanced at the hoofprints on the ground. These were not horse hooves. He had heard from the knights that the Elven light cavalry and projectile cavalry used domesticated and improved spirit deer as mounts. Their size, speed, alertness, and courage were no less than those of warhorses, and their agility was even greater.

"Small numbers, not a large force, that's good news."

Kang De locked the loaded magazine into his pistol and said calmly, "Chase after them and reason with them."

The vehicle accelerated, galloping across the plains. The space behind the driver's seat was now concealed, and the crisp hum of mechanical changes rang out as the Autobots conceived their reasoning.

The Humvee's speed had been pushed to its limit, thanks to the relatively flat terrain, so the Mercedes could proceed with confidence. As the sky grew darker, the headlights came on, and across the open field, only the dazzling beams of light sped forward.

About forty minutes later, they caught up with their target.

The sky was not yet completely dark, and the setting sun still cast its glow. Kang De took out his telescope, its lenses engraved with a night vision enhancement. With the help of this night vision equipment, Kang De saw the herd of deer galloping ahead.

There were about thirty riders, their cloaks billowing, carrying long spears and strong bows. They rode spirit deer, their size no less than galloping horses. When Kang De saw them, this group of cavalry also noticed the monster approaching from behind. After all, in the open field, the roar of the Humvee was clearly audible, and the gleaming headlights were extremely conspicuous.

The enemy cavalry immediately scattered, turned around, and drew their bows in preparation for battle.

As they turned to face him, Kang De got a clear look at their faces. They were strong and burly, just like the people he had seen on the Holy Seal Archipelago, with very noticeable pointed ears.

It's definitely an elf.

He breathed a silent sigh of relief.

The Autobots keenly noticed this subtle movement. "Father, what's wrong?"

Kang De said calmly, "I feel relieved. If it were discovered that the massacre of the village was not carried out by elves, but by humans, that would be absolutely awful—it would be disgusting, like swallowing a bomb."

The Autobots exclaimed in surprise, "Humans? Why would humans do such a thing?"

Kang De coldly replied, "Why can't humans do such a thing? Don't underestimate humans."

The Autobots still couldn't understand, because he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, hadn't experienced it firsthand, so he simply couldn't imagine what motivation humans would have to kill each other.

You might understand later... but I hope you never have to.

Kang De didn't elaborate, because the elves were already on high alert, and this wasn't the time for idle chatter. He said, "Get a little closer, but be careful of their magic and arrows. Turn on the megaphone; I need to ask them first."

The Autobots asked in surprise, "What do you mean?"

"Just to be on the safe side, let's ask a few questions. After all, anything can happen. There are Elven inscriptions on the corpses, and hoofprints of Elven war deer were found north of the village, but this doesn't necessarily mean the murderer is an Elf. Perhaps it was someone else, and these Elves just happened to be there and witnessed the ruins and the massacre."

The Autobots were increasingly surprised. "This..."

The simple-minded kid couldn't understand—there's actually such a thing?

"The probability is small, but it's not impossible."

Kang De said calmly, "I stand with Goth because of a promise I made. I have no personal grudge against the elves. I am willing to help them fight honorably, but I will not become someone else's pawn without knowing why."

He still remembered the elven lieutenant he had captured on the Holy Seal Archipelago, who had warned him to be careful of humans and told him that elves weren't so bad.

To be honest, having witnessed the courage and sacrifice the elves on the Holy Seal Archipelago ultimately displayed, and having experienced Glittering Sand's unforgettable betrayal, Kang De now sees the elves as even better than the Empire... This is truly a great irony.

The microphone slid down from above, Kang De calmly said, "Can you hear me, elf? I come from a village in the south, where a massacre took place. All the villagers were burned and killed. Is this related to you?"

The two sides were not close, but Kang De could still hear the loud laughter carried on the wind, full of mockery and pleasure, and even lingering aftertaste of the thrill of killing.

That laughter was a silent acknowledgment.

Slaughter and bloodshed can blind intelligent beings... whether human or elf.

Then he saw one of them draw his bow and nock an arrow, which flew through the air like a shooting star.

A streak of icy blue light flashed across the sky, Humvee suddenly accelerated, deftly dodging the arrow.

Kang De glanced at the ground not far away, where the arrow was planted at an angle, and a small patch of ice had formed around it. He sighed, "No need to ask anymore."

As soon as the words were spoken, the roof of the Humvee opened, and a twin-mounted mortar nest emerged. Bang bang bang bang bang, a total of twelve Molotov cocktails shot into the sky, each engraved with Flame enchantment, soaring high into the air and whistling down towards the elven cavalry.

Elves are indeed elves! A race of archers, their archery skills are unparalleled. Although the sky was dark, they still saw a dark mass of projectiles falling towards them. At their leader's command, more than a dozen people drew their bows and shot into the air. Every arrow hit its mark, but they were Molotov cocktails!

The violent impact triggered Flame enchantment, shattering the fragile bottle. Thick, flammable liquid poured down like rain, ignited by the power of Flame. In an instant, the sky brightened, and a rain of fire fell!

Putting everything else aside, the spectacle was truly extraordinary. The elves, seeing the rain of fire falling from the sky, were both shocked and furious, thinking it was some kind of Flame magic. They scattered and dodged away. The spirit deer also felt the scorching heat descending upon them and became uneasy, for living beings fear fire—it's an instinct.

At that moment, the Humvee accelerated.

The mortar nest had twelve launch slots, and had just launched twelve Molotov cocktails. However, on both sides of the launch slots were two four-barreled mini-bombs, which were modified from small gas cylinders with enchantments. The Humvee roared, and the launching devices kept changing direction, sometimes high and sometimes low. With four loud bangs, the mini-bombs flew out of the air!

Due to their different firing mechanisms, the small bombs bombarded much faster than the Molotov cocktails. Amidst the rain of fire and chaos, elite archers still managed to snipe, including the elf who fired the ice arrow.

However, there is no load to carry!

Three small bombs were detonated on the spot, but explosions were never the most important means of killing. Shrapnel swept across and steel balls flew, and even though the distance was not close, they still managed to leave wounds on some elves and spirit deer. The huge force of the explosions also made them even more confused - after being attacked, these elven troops put up a magical defense according to their training manual, but they found that this was not a magical attack at all!

Most importantly, the last little bomb went unnoticed and quietly flew to the top of their heads!

This unit was clearly light cavalry, armed only with light armor and shields, relying on speed and mounted archery to win. They never engaged in direct combat with the enemy, but instead used hit-and-run tactics. But today, they encountered an enemy they had never faced before.

The unknown is the most terrifying thing—because you don't understand the other party's methods, and therefore you are unable to deal with them.

The shockwave raged, sending debris flying everywhere. This time, the damage was far greater. Fortunately, the elves had already spread out their formation, otherwise this attack would have been enough to take away most of their fighting power. Even so, this small, explosive shockwave directly knocked over several elves and injured more than a dozen riders around them, leaving each elf covered in blood—but their nightmare had only just begun.

Because the previous two attacks... were both civilian-grade weapons.

The Humvee is already approaching.

Long and short firearms emerged from the engine, sides, and top, unleashing a dense and interwoven barrage of fire. Flame- covered bullets streaked across the darkness, leaving crimson trails—the color of blooming death flowers. Some elves glowed with emerald green light, deflecting the bullets, but the next moment, they were met with larger-caliber bullets, while many more fell like wheat.

The Humvee crashed into the enemy ranks, and the nightmare continued to spread. The bizarre alchemical chariot transformed into a five-meter-tall giant in a dazzling yet extremely shocking way. The rumbling Tomahawk in its hand swept across the path of death, cutting down an elf and his spirit deer, and blood splattered across the sky.

Such a scene was suffocating for the elves. Waves of attacks, incomprehensible yet incredibly powerful, followed one after another. These Twilight Moon elites were used to roaming the world and considered themselves the world's hegemon. In their minds, their nation's military might dominated the continent and looked down upon all other races. The so-called human nations, whether in terms of magic, craftsmanship, tactics, or even weaponry, were nothing more than uncivilized barbarians compared to the great Dusk Moon Dynasty.

But now...

Explosions, flames, incomprehensible yet terrifying weapons, steel giants that seemed like creations of the gods, and a completely unprepared, inexplicable defeat and casualties—the elves were utterly stunned!

This is not a power that humans could possess! Absolutely not!

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PS1: I've been thinking, I'll stop here for today... It's been like this for the past two days, writing too much, staying up late, and not sleeping well. It was the same yesterday. I'll start writing early tomorrow! I need to get my writing schedule back on track these next two days! If I can't do that, I won't play Total War: Three Kingdoms!