Returning

The walls of Qingya County were blackened after the battle, and the gate was damaged. Everywhere were traces of smoke, and corpses were scattered about. Vultures, gorging themselves on carrion, were perched on treetops and the city walls. Having tasted human flesh, these vicious birds no longer feared people, squatting in corners, their scarlet eyes scrutinizing the suffering civilians below as if they were food, emitting unsettling "caw caw" sounds that made one's heart race with unease.

Chen Luo returned under the cover of night.

Having broken through to the Bone Forging Realm, sneaking back into Qingya County became exceedingly easy.

Perhaps because the 'bandit suppression' had ended, the checkpoint Soldiers were not as vigilant as before, and he encountered no trouble on his return.

Under the cloak of night, Chen Luo concealed himself in a secluded spot, searching for an opportunity to slip into the city.

Soldiers patrolled the newly repaired city walls. Because the war had just ended and no final verdict had been reached, Qingya County was still under military control.

"Time for the shift change is almost here."

Chen Luo counted silently in his mind.

He had been observing for so long not to watch a show, but to study the pattern of the Soldiers' shift changes.

Sure enough, before long, the relief Soldiers arrived. Taking advantage of the moment when the two groups were chatting, Chen Luo flashed into action, quickly sneaking below the city wall. This was the very breach through which they had escaped that day. After Qingya County was captured, there were even more damaged places on the city wall, so such a breach was not conspicuous in the current Qingya County.

Perhaps these Soldiers knew what kind of business they were engaged in, their faces relaxed throughout, their vigilance merely a formality, allowing Chen Luo to easily slip into the city.

As soon as he squeezed through the breach, a stench assaulted his nostrils.

Several charred corpses lay inside, their faces contorted in agony. They were the beggars they had encountered when they fled. But those who were alive that day had all become corpses now.

From their blackened, taut, and stiff arms, it was clear that they had suffered immense torture before their deaths.

"Rest in peace."

Chen Luo murmured in his heart.

He skirted around the charred corpses, then somersaulted into the city.

The defense of the inner city was even more lax, and there were hardly any people on the streets.

Compared to the Qingya County of the past, the current Qingya County was like a land of the dead, withering everywhere. One could barely see any lights. Beside some burned-down houses, there were still some homeless people weeping.

After the ravages of war, it was always the common people who suffered.

Chen Luo did not consider himself a do-gooder, but he could not help feeling a surge of anger when he saw this scene.

Slaughtering unarmed civilians, could they still be considered human?

Suppressing his anger, Chen Luo followed his memory and hurried toward the alley entrance.

He planned to go back and take a look first. They had left in a hurry that day. After he and Third Uncle disposed of Eunuch Wei's body, the two of them packed up and ran away. Going back now would let him know if anyone had come looking for them afterward. If someone had been there, it would mean that this matter was not over, and he would have to be more careful in the future. If no one had come, it would mean that this matter was over, and he could boldly do what he wanted to do.

Like taking the head of Qingya County's County Magistrate!

The power of the Bone Forging Realm gave him the confidence to do so. As the saying goes, with a sharp weapon in hand, the desire to kill arises!

Chen Luo now really wanted to kill someone.

Along the way, Chen Luo saw corpses placed in front of several houses. There were men and women, but mostly the elderly and children. Not to mention the houses, many of which had been burned down by the fire. A large part of the black smoke that he and Third Uncle had seen at Fierce Tiger Stockade was caused by the burning of these civilian houses.

"What are you crying about! You stinking bitch, you dare to resist? Do you want to be a Rebel?"

A voice suddenly came.

Looking from afar, he saw two drunken Soldiers dragging a girl out of a burnt-down house. The girl looked to be only twelve or thirteen years old. Under the Soldiers' tugging, her tender face was filled with fear. Her hands were clutching the door panel tightly, and tears were streaming down her face.

The faces of the surrounding civilians were almost all filled with fear.

No one dared to stand up and speak. Those who dared to stand up and speak in the beginning were already dead.

They had become the Soldiers' merits.

That is, 'Rebels'.

"What are you dawdling for? If you ask me, we should just do this stinking girl right here on the street." Another Soldier, who was already drunk, said impatiently, staggering forward two steps.

"That's a good idea! Do it right here on the street."

The faces of the two fellows, who were already half-drunk, simultaneously revealed lewd expressions. One of them even started to unbuckle his belt. The other took two steps forward, held the little girl down, and began to tear at her clothes.

Bang!!

A black brick suddenly flew over from behind. Before the Soldier holding down the little girl's hands and feet could react, he saw a brick slamming into him from the side.

The brick, infused with Internal Qi, was like a locomotive. It directly smashed away half of this guy's head, brain matter splattering everywhere, blood flying in all directions.

The remaining corpse flew backward on the spot, crashing into the wall behind.

After twitching a few times, he lost his breath.

Chen Luo, who was hiding in the dark, finally couldn't bear it anymore. In his opinion, for such a beast to live for even a second longer was a desecration of the world. After confirming that there were no other enemies on this street, he picked up a brick from the broken wall next to him and slammed it toward the guy's face.

He didn't even use martial arts.

It would be an insult to use martial arts to kill this kind of guy. A brick was just right.

"Who!!"

The Soldier who was unbuckling his belt was shocked, and his drunkenness dissipated. He subconsciously grabbed the weapon beside him and turned around. But before he could turn around, the blood-stained brick slammed over again. The light dimmed, and then he felt a buzzing in his head, and then he lost consciousness.

The second corpse rolled out, crashing into the back wall and splashing a pile of red and white matter. He was dead, dead as could be.

With Chen Luo's current strength, killing these two Soldiers was like crushing ants. There was no possibility of failure.

"Close the gate securely. Leave the city at dawn. There's a breach in the west wall; you should know where it is."

Chen Luo glanced at the girl who was already scared witless, left those words, and turned to leave. In the nearby rooms, some of the common folk who had been peeking out to see what was happening all shrank back after noticing his gaze, each one hiding indoors and trembling.

Chen Luo didn't bother with these people; he couldn't manage them all anyway.

Soon, he reached the entrance of the alley.

This was where Third Uncle's house was located. In the past, at this time of day, Old Man Liu would have already opened his stall, but now this place had been burned down. Old Man Liu's noodle stall cart had been dismantled, and several unattended corpses had fallen into the noodle stall frame, emitting a strong stench.

Walking into the alley, Chen Luo soon saw a familiar face.

A hunched old man was burning paper money there, with someone lying on a straw mat in front of him.

These two people were none other than Old Man Liu and his wife, who used to run a stall at the entrance of the alley. Old Man Liu, who had a limp, had bandaged his leg simply; the wound had already scabbed over, the color turned black.

Lying on the mat was Old Man Liu's wife, Auntie Wang, who sold breakfast at the entrance of the alley. Every time Chen Luo went to buy soy milk and buns, Auntie Wang would give him an extra one, saying that he looked a lot like her son.

"Chunhua, it's my fault, I'm useless, I'm incompetent. You've suffered with me your whole life, without a single day of good fortune."

Old Man Liu didn't notice anyone coming up behind him and continued speaking in front of the corpse.

The old man's spirit seemed to have been drained, and he had aged a lot all of a sudden.

If it weren't for the woman he still had to take care of, he would probably have gone with his old partner.