Death Row Camp, Last Meal

The Assault Camp's barracks were located in the shady, westernmost part of the military camp, right next to the stables and the manure pit. Even before getting close, a foul stench mixed with sweat, foot odor, and the smell of blood assaulted the nostrils.

It didn't resemble a military camp at all; it was more like a livestock pen.

Dozens of ragged men lay sprawled on the muddy ground, basking in the sun. Some were missing ears, others had the character for "prisoner" branded onto their faces, and a few were sharpening strangely shaped weapons with whetstones.

Ji Ye, carrying the standard-issue iron spear he had just received, walked in with Pockmarked and dozens of surviving Black Stone County militiamen.

The previously noisy camp fell silent for a moment. Dozens of cold, sharp eyes fixed on them, as if sizing up newly arrived pigs and sheep.

"Is this the new Centurion?"

A burly man, bare-chested and covered in black hair, sat up from the crowd. He tossed a bloody pair of dice in his hand and glanced sideways at Ji Ye's bandaged chest. "Why is he a weakling? Is Captain Qin out of men?"

A burst of laughter erupted from the surroundings.

"Weaklings are good," another man, thin as a monkey, said sinisterly. "It's good to have them die and make room. That black sable coat looks nice; I could trade it for two jars of good wine."

Ji Ye said nothing, not even looking at them. He walked straight to the large pot in the center of the camp used for cooking. The pot contained mushy bean porridge, with a few flies floating on top.

"Pockmarked," Ji Ye said.

"Here."

"Smash the pot."

The entire place fell silent.

The smile on the black-haired strongman's face froze. He stood up abruptly, his nearly two-meter-tall frame casting a shadow.

"Kid, are you looking for death?" The strongman casually grabbed a wolf-tooth club lying nearby. Its spikes glinted with a dark sheen. "This pot is mine, and the rules here are mine."

He was the original leader of the Assault Camp, nicknamed "Black Bear." Rumor had it he was a bandit who robbed and murdered before enlisting, with over a dozen lives on his hands.

Ji Ye turned around, looking at Black Bear. The iron spear in his hand lowered slightly, its tip touching the ground.

"Rules?"

Ji Ye stomped his foot and exploded forward without any warning.

No wasted words, no probing.

Black Bear reacted extremely quickly. The wolf-tooth club swept through the air with a whistling sound, heading straight for Ji Ye's head. The blow was powerful; if it had landed, it would have splattered his brains.

Ji Ye didn't try to block it head-on.

As he charged, Ji Ye suddenly lowered his center of gravity, sliding like a snake close to the ground. The wolf-tooth club grazed his scalp, the resulting gust of wind stinging his cheek.

The moment he dodged the attack, Ji Ye's iron spear flicked upwards sharply.

Not the spearhead, but the iron drill at the butt of the spear.

"Thwack!"

The butt of the spear precisely struck Black Bear's chin.

"Crack!"

A crisp sound echoed as Black Bear's jaw shattered instantly. He was thrown backward, spitting a bloody mist mixed with broken teeth.

But he was tough. This blow didn't take him down. Black Bear let out a muffled roar, endured the pain, and lifted his leg to kick Ji Ye's chest.

Ji Ye sidestepped the kick and, as he did, dropped the iron spear. His hands shot out like lightning, grabbing the ankle of Black Bear's kicking leg.

[Talent: Brute Force x3]

Ji Ye's arm muscles bulged. He put his back into it, as if swinging a giant sack.

"Up!"

Black Bear, weighing over two hundred pounds, was lifted clean off the ground by him, arcing through the air in a semicircle.

"Bang!"

Black Bear slammed heavily onto the ground, splashing mud and water.

Before Black Bear could recover, Ji Ye stepped on the wrist of the hand holding the wolf-tooth club.

A bone-cracking sound rang out.

Black Bear screamed and released his grip.

Ji Ye bent down, picked up the wolf-tooth club, and weighed it in his hand.

"Too light."

He casually tossed the wolf-tooth club into the large pot.

"Clang!"

The iron pot was smashed through, and the scalding bean porridge spilled everywhere.

Ji Ye clapped his hands and swept his gaze over the stunned death row inmates and military riffraff surrounding them.

"From today on, there is only one rule here."

He pointed at himself.

"If I say you eat meat, you eat meat. If I say you die, you die."

No one dared to speak. Black Bear lay on the ground, twitching, his jaw askew, his eyes filled with terror.

Just then, the sound of hooves echoed from the camp entrance.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf to avoid losing it next time.

Qin Wuji's adjutant rode up and stopped outside the fence, holding a command token in his hand, his expression cold.

"Assault Camp Centurion Ji Ye, receive your orders!"

Ji Ye turned around and cupped his fists.

"A remnant force of Barbarians, about a hundred strong, carrying supplies, has been discovered at Black Wind Pass. The Captain has ordered the Assault Camp to depart immediately, annihilate the enemy, and retrieve the supplies."

The adjutant threw down a token and turned to leave.

"If you are not back by sunset, you will be treated as a deserter and summarily executed."

Black Wind Pass.

It was a treacherous gorge, easy to defend and difficult to attack. A hundred remnant Barbarian soldiers, if they held the pass, would make even a regular army lose a few teeth, let alone the motley crew of the Assault Camp.

"They're sending us to our deaths..." Pockmarked picked up the token, his face pale.

"To our deaths?"

Ji Ye picked up his iron spear and wiped the dirt off it.

"That's for others to say."

He looked at the death row prisoners on the ground.

"Did you all hear? If you want to live, grab your weapons and follow me. If you want to stay here and freeze, I won't stop you."

With that, he walked out of the camp without looking back.

The Black Stone County private soldiers behind him immediately followed.

The death row prisoners exchanged glances. Black Bear clutched his jaw, struggled to get up, picked up a broken saber, and staggered after them.

With someone taking the lead, the rest of them picked up their weapons one after another.

In the Assault Camp, not fighting was a capital offense, but fighting might mean survival. They understood this calculation clearly.

Black Wind Pass, its terrain lived up to its name. The cliffs on both sides were like black fangs, with only a narrow mountain path in between. The wind whistled through the gorge, sounding like wailing ghosts.

Ji Ye crouched behind a rock, looking down at the camp below.

The remnant Barbarian soldiers were not "fleeing with supplies" as the intelligence reported, but had set up camp here.

Several large carts were arranged in a circle, with a bonfire burning in the center.

"Something's not right."

Ji Ye narrowed his eyes.

Although the Barbarian soldiers looked disheveled, the curved sabers in their hands were gleaming, and... their mounts were not ordinary warhorses, but a uniform unit of Black Mane Wolf Riders.

Those were Hulei's personal guards!

A hundred elite wolf riders were equivalent to five hundred ordinary cavalry in combat power. Qin Wuji's intelligence was either false or deliberate.

"Boss, these aren't remnants, they're elites!" Pockmarked whispered, his teeth chattering. "Our small group charging down there wouldn't even be enough for them to chew on."

"Who said we're charging down?"

Ji Ye took out the empty bottle of the Dragon Tiger Great Pill from his bosom, which now contained sleeping powder he'd "borrowed" from the army doctor.

He pointed to the wind gap above the gorge.

"The wind today is blowing south."

"Go, mix this medicine with the dry horse dung, light it, and throw it down from the upwind side."

"Poisoning?" Black Bear shuffled over, his jaw so swollen it looked like a bun, and mumbled, "These Barbarians have sharp noses, they'll smell it."

"That's why we need to add something."

Ji Ye pointed to a few dead pine trees nearby.

"Chop them down and burn them. Pine smoke is strong and can cover the smell of the medicine."

"Also..."

Ji Ye drew the Wild Goose Feather Saber from his waist and looked down at the resting wolf riders.

"Prepare the rolling stones. Once the smoke rises, smash half of them to death, and then we'll go down and collect the corpses from the rest."

Half an hour later.

A thick plume of pine smoke rolled down the gorge with the wind, instantly engulfing the Barbarian camp.

Coughs and curses could be heard from within the smoke.

"Release!"

Ji Ye gave the order.

Dozens of millstone-sized rocks roared down from the cliffs.

"Rumble—"

The canyon instantly turned into hell.

Screams and the neighing of warhorses mingled together.

"Kill!"

Ji Ye was the first to leap out of cover, sliding down the steep mountainside. His iron spear scraped sparks off the rocks.

If you find this book good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.