The Adamantine Bell Shield

The scattered bandits were stunned. Although they had often been routed by the imperial army in previous years, they had never witnessed anything like this—a single rider breaking through their formations, something only seen in plays. Even the strongest warriors of the imperial army usually couldn't fight their way in and out of formations of multiple cavalrymen. Yet, this general of the imperial army had personally broken through the formations of archers and spearmen. In the blink of an eye, he had slain several of their veteran soldiers. Most importantly, he had blocked arrows fired at close range with one hand, completely unharmed.

This man must be a monster who was impervious to blades and spears. They should flee quickly. After all, peasant army generals like Li Guo were experienced in rallying defeated soldiers and forcing civilians to join them. The central plains and the northwestern lands had long been ravaged by these bandits. Stealing grain inevitably forced ordinary people to become rebels. They spoke of Chuang Wang not collecting grain, but he didn't need to because the peasant army simply robbed everything.

These people were used to fleeing and immediately split into groups to escape. As for the civilians they had forced along? Oh, they didn't care at all. If they lost them, they lost them. They could gather a large group again after robbing somewhere else. Moreover, if they were handed over to the imperial army, civilian officials would be troubled by how to resettle these people. Eating the government's grain was also a good outcome. Bai Lang urged his horse forward. The people in front were all with their backs to him; he just needed to cut them down.

"They're all small fry. The real rebels are running fast!" Bai Lang's warhorse was heavily burdened and couldn't run too fast. It was even harder to catch up to the bandits who were even discarding their belongings to escape. Perhaps they were even thinking that the imperial army would fall into disarray picking up the treasures, and then they could launch a counterattack. The Ming Army following behind, however, was in complete disarray, just as Bai Lang had predicted. They were scrambling to grab the treasures on the ground and busy collecting enemy heads, no longer resembling an organized army.

If the enemy were to counterattack now, the imperial army would be finished. However, they couldn't. Bai Lang had already cut down the central army's banner, and anyone attempting to rally the troops for a counterattack had now had their heads mounted on their saddlebags. In these small-scale skirmishes, Bai Lang had no equal. The enemy cavalry had gathered dozens of riders, intending to use this opportunity to counterattack the imperial army, but Bai Lang directly charged them, showing them what it meant to be impervious to blades and spears.

Truly impervious to blades and spears, because neither side's horses could gain full speed and could only charge slowly. In this situation, their spears and lances could hardly penetrate Bai Lang's Thirteen Great Protectors' Adamantine Bell Shield. Even mountain pattern armor would struggle to be pierced directly. Even if it pierced the mountain pattern armor, it would still be blocked by chain mail, let alone the Golden Bell Shield, which was like plate armor—and this plate armor also possessed extreme toughness.

Sensing this, Bai Lang unleashed his killing spree without much defense. In the blink of an eye, he scattered the dozens of cavalry before him, killing half of them. The civilians who were forced along couldn't escape. They were already malnourished and didn't know where to run. Most importantly, they still held some reverence for the imperial army. Surely, this army of thousands wouldn't slaughter them all to claim bounties? In fact, they really didn't dare to. Even if those Ming soldiers wanted to, Governor Deng wouldn't dare to do such a thing.

But there was nothing that could be done about these people. Governor Deng had no choice but to issue a directive to all prefectures and counties, ordering them to be responsible for comforting these refugees. "They are all loyal subjects of our Great Ming and cannot be abandoned to the rebels again." For several days after the battle, they couldn't move an inch, as they had to handle all the aftermath. Bai Lang didn't care about the aftermath. He was a warrior; his job was only to charge into formations. He didn't even handle troop deployment. He was a dueling general, not a commanding general. After cutting off so many heads, Bai Lang didn't get promoted. Bandit heads weren't worth much, at least not enough for a promotion. Bai Lang didn't want money.

"My understanding of saber techniques has improved quite a bit. I've familiarized myself with the nature of the long saber. It seems the progress in martial arts ultimately comes through slaughter." Bai Lang practiced in his courtyard, reflecting on his gains. His martial arts were becoming more proficient, and the ferocious aura emanating from the Tiger Form True Intent was becoming increasingly sharp. Now, he probably looked like a man-eating tiger.

The force of his Tiger Claw and the bone-piercing energy were even more ferocious. As his body moved, it exuded an aura of intimidation, like a fierce tiger pouncing. Ordinary opponents would likely have their minds go blank and be easily killed. His Golden Bell Shield skills had also progressed significantly. During the charge, spears, sabers, and arrows struck him. Even though his armor reduced the damage, preventing him from taking hits comfortably, he still made progress.

His internal energy was even more abundant and smooth, with no sense of lag when circulating. The fourth level of the Golden Bell Shield no longer seemed distant but was already on the horizon. "I still can't unleash the Void Splitting Palm power from the novels," Bai Lang muttered. By this time, he had followed Governor Deng to Governor Sun's location. The two governors had joined forces with their respective troops. However, according to unwritten rules, they would soon part ways again. After all, they were both governors; they couldn't stay together.

Naturally, their subordinates also met. The generals under Governor Sun had heard of Bai Lang's martial prowess, how he had killed hundreds of Eastern barbarians and recently routed the troops of Li Guo, who was known for his cunning and combat ability among the rebels. Thus, these individuals came to meet Bai Lang, hosting banquets while also wanting to see if he was all talk. Then, they were all terrified. Bai Lang's martial arts had not yet reached the level of returning to simplicity. A murderous aura emanated from him. Although his expression was calm, those who saw him felt as if a great beast was silently approaching them.

As for the subsequent martial arts demonstration, after Bai Lang tore apart chain mail with his bare hands and punched a wall down with one blow, the observing generals were stunned. However, Bai Lang continued to demonstrate the Thirteen Great Protectors' Adamantine Bell Shield. He bared his upper body, allowing soldiers to hack and slash, stab and shoot arrows at him. Not even his skin could be broken. Some skeptical generals tried it themselves, and the results confirmed Bai Lang's "invulnerability to blades and spears." Governor Sun and Governor Deng also witnessed this and praised him. Thus, everyone began to ask what this technique was. Many believed it was some kind of divine talisman.

"Thirteen Great Protectors' Adamantine Bell Shield!" Bai Lang answered their questions quite gently. "I practiced diligently since childhood, and only then did I achieve this." He was lying here. Beside Governor Sun, a scholar smiled. "Young hero has excellent internal energy." This voice seemed to echo only in Bai Lang's ears. Bai Lang glanced at the scholar, seeing a man with a gentle appearance, bright eyes, a long beard, and a long sword hanging at his waist.