Reckoning and Going Home

"Ah!"

With a miserable scream, a Qing Kingdom soldier carrying the Qing Kingdom banner dropped to the ground with a thud, five iron arrows embedded in his body.

The moment the banner fell, the panicked Qing Kingdom soldiers trampled it into a scrap of tattered cloth.

As the banner fell, the morale of both the thousand-odd Qing Kingdom soldiers trapped in the encirclement and the Qing Kingdom soldiers feigning an attack outside Blackstone Town plummeted.

The Qing Kingdom Thousand Commander watched this scene with rage splitting his liver and gallbladder. Staring at Li Yi, who had fired that arrow from atop the wall, he snatched a spear from one of his personal guards.

"Damn Chen Kingdom dog! You actually dared to deceive me!"

A Qing Kingdom Centurion possessed at least the cultivation of Body Tempering Level Five. In his fury, he infused the spear with the force coursing through his body and hurled it viciously at Li Yi.

Danger!

Li Yi's sixth sense screamed a frenzied warning. He instantly rolled across the ground, narrowly evading the spear.

"Archers, heed my command! Fire!"

After scrambling to his feet, Li Yi nocked an arrow and drew his bow, while directing the archers under his command to loose countless arrows.

Wave after wave of arrow rain reaped the lives of Qing Kingdom soldiers.

While the archer unit suppressed them with its arrow rain, the close-combat infantry led by Han Jia raised their swords and shields, forcing back the Qing Kingdom soldiers attempting to counterattack.

With the natural advantage of the terrain and their ambush, countless Qing Kingdom soldiers were swiftly killed or wounded, and even their room to maneuver was steadily compressed.

A huge number of Qing Kingdom soldiers were packed into a tiny patch of ground. Coupled with the vast amount of water the defenders had poured down, the muddy ground caused many Qing Kingdom soldiers to slip and fall, only to be trampled to death by their panicked comrades.

"Thousand Commander, every route of retreat has been cut off!"

Hearing his subordinate's report, the Thousand Commander's heart sank with a thud.

It was over. Completely over.

While the Qing Kingdom soldiers had already fallen into despair, Li Yi and the others were filled with delight.

These were all military merits!

Rewards! Military posts!

Li Yi turned to look outside Blackstone Town. The remaining fifteen hundred Qing Kingdom soldiers were madly assaulting the western wall, attempting to relieve the encircled troops.

But amid the rolling thunder of hoofbeats, General Guan emerged in the distance, leading five hundred elite iron cavalry.

These elite iron cavalry had been painstakingly trained by General Guan in Iron Horse Stockade.

After deciding to turn the enemy's scheme against them and swallow this wave of Qing Kingdom forces whole, General Guan had secretly hidden these cavalrymen in a forest near Blackstone Town.

These two hundred cavalrymen were all heavy cavalry. Once they picked up speed, a single charge punched straight through the Qing Kingdom line.

As for the Qing Kingdom light cavalry, before these heavy riders, they were no different from toys, utterly unable to dare a head-on clash.

Under the slaughtering charge of the two hundred heavy cavalrymen, the besieging Qing Kingdom soldiers were thrown into complete disarray. Some soldiers even began to flee.

"Brothers, push harder! They're almost unable to hold on!"

After observing the situation, Li Yi's heart settled. He directed the soldiers to continue shooting down the Qing Kingdom troops.

Clang!

The sound of a golden gong rang out. The Qing Kingdom soldiers, whose courage had been utterly shattered by the killing, gradually withdrew from Blackstone Town under the lead of their commander.

Hearing the signal to sound the retreat from outside Blackstone Town, the many Qing Kingdom soldiers caught in the encirclement instinctively looked beyond the city.

They had kept fighting because the Thousand Commander had constantly encouraged them, claiming reinforcements were coming from outside.

Now that the troops who had come with them had already retreated, could they still live?

Standing atop the wall and continuously using Five Stars in a Row to reap experience, Li Yi instantly realized an opportunity had come.

Li Yi suddenly beat the war drum before him and shouted at the many Qing Kingdom soldiers within the inner wall:

"The Qing Kingdom has been defeated! Those who surrender will not be killed!"

Han Jia, who was locked in close combat with the Qing Kingdom soldiers, hurriedly waved the nine-ringed broadsword in his hand in response to Li Yi.

"Those who lay down their weapons shall be spared death!"

Following Li Yi's call for surrender, quite a few Qing Kingdom soldiers whose courage had been shattered slowly lowered their hands.

Sensing the dispirited atmosphere around him, the Qing Kingdom Thousand Commander was greatly alarmed and hurriedly shouted:

"This is a Chen Kingdom trick! Even if you surrender, you still won't live!"

"I order you to take up your weapons and charge with me!"

"Kill an enemy, and you'll be rewarded fifty taels of silver!"

Leading his personal guards, the Qing Kingdom Thousand Commander tried to rouse these soldiers whose fighting spirit had waned.

It was nothing more than the last struggle of a trapped beast.

Watching the Thousand Commander send out his personal guards to supervise the battle, Li Yi gave a cold snort.

"I guarantee with my life that those who surrender will not die! After the time it takes an incense stick to burn, anyone still holding a weapon will face the utmost penalty!"

"Furthermore, anyone who presents the head of a Qing Kingdom thousand-man commander shall be rewarded with five hundred taels of silver and promoted two ranks!"

Although Li Yi was only a temporary commander for the moment, when he had discussed strategy with General Guan and Hundred-Commander Song Jie, General Guan had expressly granted Li Yi the authority to adapt as circumstances demanded.

Five hundred taels of silver? A promotion of two ranks?

Hearing Li Yi's words, the Qing Kingdom soldiers' expressions changed, and an indescribable air filled the way they looked at their own commander.

"What are you trying to do? Are you going to defy military orders?"

Looking at the hundred-odd soldiers beside him, the thousand-man commander felt killing intent enveloping him tightly and instinctively threatened them.

The despairing Qing Kingdom soldiers looked at one another, then saw the thousand-man commander's personal guards holding blades as they supervised the battle, and silently began to move.

"My lord, give the brothers a chance to live!"

A Qing Kingdom soldier let out an enraged roar and suddenly swung his blade down at the thousand-man commander.

As a thousand-man commander who commanded a thousand troops, he naturally possessed exceptional martial skill.

With a sharp crack, the attacking soldier was beheaded by a single stroke from the thousand-man commander.

But that completely ignited the scene. Countless soldiers, mad as demons, brandished their weapons and rushed at the thousand-man commander.

The personal guards at the thousand-man commander's side instinctively raised their blades to fight back.

For a time, the area within the inner wall descended into a chaotic melee. The Qing Kingdom soldiers split into two camps and relentlessly attacked one another.

Seeing this, Li Yi signaled his soldiers to halt and watched the brawling troops from the sidelines.

Outside Blackstone Town, the sounds of slaughter had already vanished.

After repelling the attacking Qing Kingdom soldiers, the many troops atop the city walls were all watching the Qing Kingdom soldiers who had fallen into infighting.

"You kid, not bad!"

After directing the cleanup of the battlefield on the other three sides of the walls, Hundred-Commander Song Jie also came over to Li Yi's side and looked at the enemy troops Li Yi had provoked into a chaotic brawl.

"I think one day, sooner or later, you'll become a general."

Just as the sounds of killing by the inner wall gradually subsided as well, Song Jie suddenly sighed in a low voice.

Within the inner wall, the thousand-man commander's personal guards had all been killed. Large numbers of Qing Kingdom soldiers had thrown down their weapons and huddled against the city wall.

Meanwhile, the center of the inner wall was littered with corpses, along with unfortunate fellows who had fallen wounded and wailed in pain.

Relying on their overwhelming numbers, the mutinous soldiers had successfully killed the thousand-man commander and all his personal guards.

But after killing the thousand-man commander, in order to claim the reward, the soldiers began attacking one another again, fighting over the thousand-man commander's head.

At this point, only two burly men, drenched in blood, remained, each gripping the thousand-man commander's head and refusing to yield.

"Since the two of you obtained this head, you'll split the reward between yourselves!"

"Each of you will receive two hundred and fifty taels of silver and be promoted one rank!"

After discussing it, Song Jie and Li Yi settled on the final reward.

Without the thousand-man commander, these soldiers, who had already lost all will to fight, were no longer a threat.

Squad after squad of Chen Kingdom soldiers entered the inner wall and bound the surrendered Qing Kingdom soldiers.

Once the situation had stabilized, Li Yi, who had fought fiercely for so long, felt his whole body ache, and even his hands trembled slightly.

Only after the adrenaline ebbed did the fatigue in his body begin to surface.

After the reserve troops went up onto the walls and took over the defense, many menials who had failed their assessments and become logistics personnel began clearing the battlefield.

"General!"

Li Yi had just returned to camp after coming down from the city wall when he ran into General Guan.

Earlier, it had been General Guan who personally led two hundred elite cavalry to cut down and drive off the more than one thousand Qing Kingdom soldiers laying siege.

Seeing Li Yi covered in blood but still in high spirits, General Guan nodded approvingly.

"Can you still move?"

At those words, Li Yi's heart stirred, and he quickly replied, "Reporting to General, this subordinate can!"

"Good. Then you and Song Jie will go confiscate the Cao Family estate!"

Confiscate the Cao Family estate?

Li Yi froze, then was instantly overjoyed.

He had never expected the reckoning with Cao Li and the Revenue Officer to come so quickly! And—

"Thank you, General. This subordinate will certainly not disappoint your expectations!"

Leading men to settle accounts with the Cao Family would not only let him avenge himself, but would also bring quite a few benefits.

How much money could be seized from confiscating an estate? Wouldn't that be whatever they said it was?

This was a perk bestowed by the general!

Li Yi believed that as long as he did not go too far, General Guan would naturally turn a blind eye.

Having received General Guan's military order, Li Yi did not dare delay. Taking Han Jia and his other trusted men, he hurried with Song Jie toward Qinghe County.

"Arrest every last member of the Cao Family!"

Looking at the sprawling Cao Residence, Li Yi was full of high spirits as he directed the soldiers into the estate.

The county magistrate, who had rushed over after hearing the news, was about to argue a few words when the command token in Li Yi's hand forced him back down.

Bandits passed like a comb; soldiers passed like a fine-toothed comb.

One item of property after another was dug out by the excited soldiers and carried before Li Yi and Song Jie.

"My lord, we found a secret chamber!"

Led by his men, Li Yi hurried to a secret chamber within the Cao Residence.

Aside from some valuables and weapons, several boxes had been placed inside the chamber.

Li Yi and Song Jie exchanged a glance. After ordering their trusted men to stand guard outside, they began examining the boxes.

The first box contained a porcelain bottle. Upon inspection, it proved to hold a healing medicine worth several hundred taels of silver, something that could save a life at a critical moment.

The second box contained some beast bones and sinews.

These bones and sinews were unlike those from any of the fierce beasts Li Yi had hunted before. They were sturdier and heavier.

"These were taken from exotic beasts."

Song Jie identified the origins of the beast bones and sinews at once.

In an instant, Li Yi thought of the Army-Breaking Bow he had bought from Old Zhang.

If he remembered correctly, that Army-Breaking Bow had also been forged from materials taken from exotic beasts.

The third chest contained several sets of fine-metal armor.

According to Song Jie, these suits of armor had been mixed with rare metals, and their defensive power far surpassed that of ordinary iron armor.

As for the remaining boxes, they were all filled with gold, silver, and other treasures.

Looking at the boxes, Li Yi's heart stirred. He began searching the secret chamber again and again.

[Scouting and Concealment] activated instantly, and every inch of the secret chamber fell into Li Yi's sight.

"Something's wrong here!"

Very soon, Li Yi discovered an abnormal section of flooring.

When he opened it, he found a small pit beneath it, with a little box inside.

The box contained more than a dozen letters.

After handing some of the letters to Song Jie, Li Yi opened the rest and began reading them.

"Just as I thought—this Cao Li really has been colluding with the Qing Kingdom!"

These letters seized from Cao Li's residence had all been written in Cao Li's own hand. They recorded the many dealings between him and the Qing Kingdom.

"Let's see how you explain your way out of this now!"

The items obtained earlier from the household registrar's home had all been written by the registrar himself, so they could not completely nail Cao Li down.

But with these letters, even if Cao Li grew a thousand mouths, he would never be able to explain himself away.

Under Li Yi's lead, Cao Li's home was thoroughly searched from top to bottom.

Looking at the vast pile of valuables before him, Li Yi knew that today's main event had arrived!

"Li Yi, you deserve the foremost merit in this operation, and you found these secret letters as well. Take your pick first—what do you want?"

Of the property seized during a confiscation, roughly thirty percent would be given as rewards to those carrying it out.

This was an unspoken understanding throughout the Chen Kingdom.

With Song Jie's approval, Li Yi thought for a moment before making up his mind.

"Give me that box of exotic beast bones and sinews! Also, I want two sets of fine-metal armor!"

As his strength grew, finding a suitable bow had become increasingly difficult.

But the existence of the Army-Breaking Bow had given Li Yi an idea.

He intended to use these exotic beast bones and sinews to forge a bow of his very own!

As for the fine-metal armor, he was asking for it for himself and Han Jia.

Han Jia had followed him through life and death. He could not let his brother be left coldhearted!

"As for the valuables, I don't want any."

Gold, silver, and treasures could be obtained at any time, but such fine equipment and materials were precious goods that money alone could not buy!

Li Yi naturally knew which mattered more and which less.

"You brat, you're far too polite!"

Song Jie laughed heartily and patted Li Yi on the shoulder. "Give every brother who took part in the confiscation a reward of five taels of silver!"

"And don't be so polite yourself. Pick out a few pieces of jewelry for your family!"

Hearing that, Li Yi had no reason to refuse.

He thought of his little sister Li Yue at home, Liu Fang and Liu Ru, the two sisters, and the sensible Li Xin. He immediately selected a few suitable items from those chests of gold, silver, and treasure.

After dividing up the wealth, everyone was all smiles, and they worked with even greater vigor.

By the time night fell, the Cao Family had been thoroughly cleaned out. After having the county magistrate send men to guard the Cao Family estate and properly arranging the captured Cao Family members, Li Yi and the others returned to the military camp with the seized valuables and letters.

By then, the results of the battle at Blackstone Town had also been tallied.

Of the 1,500 Qing Kingdom soldiers who had feinted an attack on Blackstone Town, General Guan and his men had killed five or six hundred. Fewer than a thousand remained, and they retreated back to the Qing Kingdom.

Of the 1,500 Qing Kingdom soldiers lured inside the inner wall, nearly a thousand had been killed, while around five hundred had been captured.

In this single battle alone, they had eliminated two thousand elite Qing Kingdom soldiers!

On their own side, only a little over two hundred had died in battle, and more than three hundred had been wounded, most of them lightly.

Such results were exceptionally brilliant, and the entire military camp was filled with joy.

Inside the main camp, General Guan was handling a multitude of affairs. As he looked over the letters Li Yi had brought, he shook his head in disappointment.

"Men, bring Cao Li in."

Very quickly, two personal guards dragged the tightly bound Cao Li into the main camp.

Seeing Li Yi and Song Jie before him, Cao Li's face was full of hatred. He then turned his gaze to General Guan.

But before Cao Li could speak, General Guan indignantly threw the letters in his hand before him.

"These were all found in your home. You wrote them yourself, didn't you?"

"At this point, what else do you have to say?"

At the sight of those letters, Cao Li's face turned ashen.

"The laws of Great Chen state: those who secretly collude with an empire shall be beheaded without delay!"

General Guan read the words one by one.

Upon hearing this, the despondent Cao Li suddenly raised his head and stared wide-eyed at General Guan.

"You can't kill me!"

"If you kill me, the Cao Family won't let you off!"

Cao Li's words rang through the entire main camp.

Great Chen was now in ruins, and a large part of the reason was that numerous great clans held the court in their grasp and brought calamity upon every region.

The Cao Family was one such great clan entrenched in the area.

Hearing Cao Li's stream of threats, General Guan flew into a rage.

He strode forward, drew the long blade at his waist, and swung. Cao Li's head instantly flew into the air, blood spraying everywhere.

As he watched the head roll across the ground, General Guan swept his tiger-like gaze over everyone present.

"Whoever dares collude with the enemy! This will be their fate!"

Looking at Cao Li's severed head and body, Li Yi finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Now that both the Household Affairs Officer and Cao Li were dead, no one in Qinghe County would target him for the time being.

After shaking the blood from his blade, General Guan turned his gaze to Li Yi.

"Li Yi, step forward!"

At once, Li Yi hurried out from the crowd and came before General Guan.

"Li Yi delivered vital intelligence and used himself to lure the enemy. He deserves the foremost merit in this battle!"

"By military precedent, he is promoted to Company Commander and placed in command of an archer unit!"

"Additionally, he is awarded one hundred taels of silver and one finely crafted longsword!"

Hearing General Guan's rewards, Li Yi was overjoyed.

"Thank you, General! This subordinate will certainly serve loyally and fulfill his duties!"

The others were quite envious of Li Yi's rewards.

Fortunately, everyone had gained something from this battle, so they all sincerely congratulated Li Yi.

Before long, everyone had dispersed.

Only Li Yi, who had remained behind at a hint from General Guan, and General Guan himself were left in the main camp.

"You brat, you truly didn't disappoint me!"

After hearing Song Jie's report on the confiscation of the Cao Family's property, General Guan had become increasingly satisfied with Li Yi.

"What Breathing Method do you cultivate?"

Li Yi quickly replied, "I cultivate the [Gale Breathing Method]. I am currently about to break through to the third level of Body Tempering!"

"I know this Breathing Method. It is the most widely circulated one in the army—easy to learn, difficult to master. But if cultivated to a profound level, it is quite extraordinary."

General Guan paused, then continued:

"There was a reward I didn't give you earlier, with so many people around."

"You possess extraordinary talent—you're prime material for the army. The [Gale Breathing Method] is decent, but it cannot fully unleash your potential."

"This [Wind-Breaking Breathing Technique] shall be your reward. You may switch to cultivating this breathing technique!"

Li Yi caught the dark yellow booklet General Guan tossed over, his heart brimming with excitement.

A breathing technique that General Guan had singled out as a personal reward was surely no ordinary thing.

Powerful martial arts manuals had always been secret transmissions of clans and sects. Outsiders could only cultivate commonplace goods.

Cao Li, whom he had just killed, had once used a powerful breathing technique to threaten Li Yi into pledging loyalty.

After putting away the breathing technique, Li Yi thanked him repeatedly.

"That's enough. You've been busy all day; go back and rest."

"Also, I'm giving you a few days off. You can head home and straighten things out for a few days."

With a wave of his hand, General Guan lowered his head and continued handling the piles of documents.

Seeing this, Li Yi thanked him once more, nodded to Song Jie, and returned to his own tent.

By the light in his tent, Li Yi leafed through the [Wind-Breaking Breathing Technique].

This breathing technique was exquisitely profound, several tiers above the [Gale Breathing Method] Li Yi cultivated.

"Though the [Gale Breathing Method] is easy to learn and hard to master, I have the skill panel to help me. As long as I persevere, I'll reach the end of it sooner or later."

After that battle, many of Li Yi's skills had improved considerably.

[Archery (Major Accomplishment): 1000/6400]

[Effect: Draw a ten-stone bow, master Storm Arrow]

After reaping skill experience in great quantities, Li Yi's [Archery] skill had risen from Minor Accomplishment to Major Accomplishment.

Now, in the art of archery, Li Yi had mastered the Gale Arrow technique, could draw a seven-stone bow, and fire Five Stars in a Row!

His breathing technique had also made considerable progress.

[Points Breathing Method (Minor Accomplishment): 1024/1600]

[Effect: The five senses become divine, the body like sturdy grass]

"This breathing technique is already just a hair's breadth from its ultimate realm."

Feeling the progress of the [Gale Breathing Method], countless thoughts rose in Li Yi's mind.

He recalled what General Guan had said: this breathing technique was easy to learn and hard to master, but cultivating it to a profound level would bring many benefits.

"Then I'll continue cultivating this breathing technique for now. Once I've thoroughly mastered the [Gale Breathing Method], I'll switch to the [Wind-Breaking Breathing Technique]!"

Wu Chuansheng had once taught Li Yi much cultivation experience. For many martial artists, switching breathing techniques was perfectly normal.

Having made up his mind, Li Yi resumed cultivating.

Early the next morning, Li Yi packed his belongings and hurried home.

"Big Brother Li Yi, you're back! I was just about to go look for you!"

The moment he reached the village entrance, Li Yi ran into Dog Egg, who had previously brought him the news.

"Looking for me? Did something happen at home again?"

He had already asked Uncle Liu to look after his family. By all rights, nothing should have gone wrong.

Dog Egg's face was bleak as he cried, "It's Uncle Erniu—he's not going to make it!"

Li Yi was shocked and hurried to Li Erniu's home.

There, Liu Fang and her sister were brewing medicine and caring for Li Erniu.

"Li Yi, you're back!"

The moment Li Yi entered the room, Liu Fang's eyes reddened, and she looked on the verge of tears.

"Brother Erniu!"

Li Yi handed his luggage to Liu Fang and looked toward Li Erniu on the bed.

Li Erniu's face was pale, his breath thin as a thread, and his entire body radiated the aura of death.

Li Yi's heart sank at the sight.

Li Erniu had treated him well. Seeing him in such a miserable state made Li Yi's heart ache.

"Brother Erniu, wait here. I'll go into the city and fetch a physician!"

At those words, Li Erniu coughed several times and barely managed to grab Li Yi.

"Don't waste your time. I know my own body—I don't have much time left."

"It's good that you came back. There are some things I need to entrust to you!"

Li Erniu coughed violently a few times, signaling for Liu Fang and her sister to leave.

"How have things been in the army?"

Seeing this, Li Yi fed Li Erniu a pill, then told him that he had already become a Company Commander.

Hearing Li Yi's words, Li Erniu's expression brightened, and he seemed far more spirited.

"Now that your cultivation has borne fruit, you must have realized how extraordinary the [Gale-Rending Formation-Breaking Spear] is, right?"

At the beginning of his cultivation, Li Yi had discovered the power of this spear technique. Later, in Hundred Trees Forest, it was precisely because of this technique that Li Yi had escaped the assassination attempt by three assassins.

"This spear technique is incredibly powerful, but during my time in the army, I've found that it seems connected to certain military cultivation methods. Why is that?"

For example, the [Gale Breathing Method] could be used in harmony with the [Gale-Rending Formation-Breaking Spear]!

Hearing Li Yi's question, Li Erniu revealed a miserable smile.

"Because the [Gale-Rending Formation-Breaking Spear] is the Chen Kingdom army's secret spear technique!"