Monk Tang

The county soldiers stood at the very front, their armor mismatched, yet every one of them carried a blade or spear.

Beside them were disciples from several martial arts schools, armed escorts from escort agencies, and guards sent by wealthy households.

These people came from all walks of life, yet at this moment, a single military order had pressed them all into service here.

At a rough count, there were more than two hundred of them.

Deng Qing quickly spotted Li Cheng, Wang Wei, and Zhou Tie in the crowd.

Besides the saber at his waist, Li Cheng had a section of black bamboo tube hanging there, its mouth sealed with red cord. Who knew what it contained? Two guards followed behind him as well.

Deng Qing took a closer look and found that one of those guards was actually Zhang Bo.

Li Cheng said something to Zhang Bo and the other guard, then quickly joined the Celebration Hall formation with Wang Wei and Zhou Tie, taking up positions beside Deng Qing.

The four exchanged glances, but no one spoke.

Suddenly, the drums stopped.

A middle-aged official clad in armor mounted the high platform. He was Su Bing, the county commandant.

His gaze swept over the drill ground. With a broad wave of his hand, two yamen soldiers behind him carried up two chests, one large and one small.

Both chests opened at once. The large one revealed gleaming silver and gold ingots.

The smaller chest contained rows of sealed porcelain bottles.

Someone murmured, "Ginseng Pills."

A stir immediately swept through the drill ground.

Su Bing raised a hand, pressing the noise down. His voice carried out, "The military order has been issued. Everjoy County and Dongting County will launch a joint assault today to uproot the Donghuang Cult stronghold outside the city.

"Any who shrink back in battle, make excuses to avoid advancing, or disrupt military orders will be dealt with according to military law."

Once those words fell, the commotion on the drill ground diminished considerably.

Su Bing pointed at the two chests. "Those who kill enemies will be rewarded. Those who recover military supplies will be rewarded. Those who rescue comrades will be rewarded. All who render meritorious service will be rewarded."

The eyes of quite a few people burned with eagerness.

Fan Sheng stood beside Deng Qing and said quietly, "Don't let gold, silver, and Ginseng Pills dazzle your eyes. On the battlefield, staying alive comes first."

Deng Qing nodded in acknowledgment.

Before long, Su Bing finished arranging the troops and gave the order to march.

After the force left the city, it headed west all the way.

For the first dozen or so miles, villages and farmland still lined both sides of the official road. Further on, the roadside gradually grew desolate.

After traveling thirty miles, they saw beneath a slope the traces left behind by the previous battle.

Broken arrows, shattered armor, and great numbers of charred cart planks littered the ground.

The bloodstains in the roadside grass had already darkened, drawing swarms of black flies.

The voices in the ranks abruptly fell much quieter.

After another twenty miles, the mountains ahead began to rise.

A stretch of black pine forest pressed down on both sides of the mountain hollow. Its branches and leaves were dense, and when the wind blew, they rustled softly.

Su Bing reined in his horse and pointed ahead.

Everyone followed his finger and saw a dilapidated Mountain God Temple deep in the hollow. Its walls were mottled with age, and half its roof had collapsed.

"That is the Donghuang Cult stronghold."

Su Bing shouted coldly, "It must be uprooted today."

Several rows of cheval de frise and barricades lay across the entrance to the hollow.

Jumbled logs, stones, and broken cart planks had been piled together, blocking the road ahead.

Shadows shifted in the darkness, yet the Mountain God Temple itself was eerily quiet.

Su Bing swept his gaze across the crowd. "Who will lead the vanguard?"

For a moment, no one answered.

Everyone knew the vanguard bore the greatest risk.

Several breaths later, Zhang Yan stepped forward with his sword in hand. "Zhang Yan of Celebration Hall is willing to serve as the vanguard."

Su Bing clapped heavily. "Brother Zhang, magnificent!"

Zhang Yan cupped his fists in salute, then charged straight toward the mouth of the hollow with his sword raised.

He moved with astonishing speed, reaching the cheval de frise in only a few strides. With a flick of his longsword, the crossbeam snapped and the barricade was flung aside.

The crowd's spirits surged.

Just then, bowstrings rang out from the black pine forests on both sides.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

A storm of arrows shot from the woods.

Zhang Yan gave his longsword a shake. Sword light flashed repeatedly before him, knocking aside every incoming arrow.

Rather than retreating, he took another step forward.

Su Bing drew his saber and roared, "Charge the formation!"

The county soldiers pressed forward first. Disciples of martial arts schools, escort agency fighters, and household guards from wealthy families poured into the mountain hollow after them.

The Donghuang Cult followers fought as they retreated.

Ding Yuan rushed ahead, cutting down two men in succession. Raising his bloodstained saber, he shouted, "Donghuang demons, nothing more than this!"

Su Bing saw him from the rear and asked, "Who is that man?"

Someone beside him answered, "Ding Yuan of Celebration Hall."

Su Bing said, "He has bolstered our army's courage. Record his merit!"

Hearing those words, the light in Ding Yuan's eyes intensified, and his feet moved even faster.

Fan Sheng followed beside Deng Qing and said in a low voice, "Ding Yuan has also broken through to the Skin Refining Second Layer. After fighting battle after battle lately, he's obtained quite a few resources and is anxious to climb higher."

Deng Qing nodded. As he smashed through the barricades, he kept looking toward the Mountain God Temple.

The closer he drew to that temple, the heavier the unease in his heart became.

The advance had gone too smoothly.

Deng Qing said quietly, "Senior Brother Fan, shouldn't we steady ourselves first?"

Fan Sheng said, "Don't worry. Today's a rich man's battle. Even if there's an ambush inside, they're only remnants."

The instant he finished speaking, a shrill whistle suddenly sounded from the black pine forest ahead.

The next moment, arrows rained down in volleys from both sides.

Boulders also came rumbling down from the slopes.

Shouts of battle erupted from the Mountain God Temple.

Su Bing shouted, "This is all that remains of the Donghuang Cult's remnants. A trapped beast still fights—hold your ground!"

Though Su Bing was only a county commandant, he was a seasoned hand at warfare. He had stationed powerful martial artists on both flanks.

Now, as arrows streaked through the air and stones flew everywhere, the Skin Tempering Third Layer and Fourth Layer martial artists on the wings swept them all aside.

Just as the main force drew ever closer to the Mountain God Temple, a band of roughly a hundred men suddenly rushed down the mountain path ahead.

Su Bing shouted, "Hold them! These are the last of the remnants!"

Before his shout had even faded, Su Bing sprang forward like a great bird.

A simple-looking man also charged out from the Donghuang Cult's side and met Su Bing head-on. The moment the two exchanged blows, explosive booms rang out and shattered stones flew everywhere.

Someone gasped softly, "Blood Butcher Xiong Zhen!"

Deng Qing's expression turned grave. He had heard the legends of Blood Butcher Xiong Zhen. In Everjoy County, he was the kind of figure who could stop children from crying at night.

Before long, the main forces of both sides clashed together.

Deng Qing stayed close behind Fan Sheng. Though Fan Sheng was injured, the strength of the Skin Tempering Third Layer was still not to be underestimated.

Li Cheng and his two guards were transferred to the right flank, while Wang Wei and Zhou Tie had gone pale, clinging tightly to Deng Qing.

The four formed a small group, supporting one another and barely managing to preserve themselves amid the torrent of battle formations.

Suddenly, a huge, fat monk charged straight at them with a Buddhist staff in hand.

The monk's face was covered in flesh, his robes ragged and worn. With one swing of his staff, he smashed two county soldiers so hard that they coughed blood and flew backward.

Within a few breaths, the monk had already fought his way close.

Fan Sheng raised his saber to meet him. Already wounded and weakened in battle strength, Fan Sheng's shoulder wound burst open from the shock of the monk's heavy staff after just one exchange.

At the same time, Fan Sheng's strike sent the monk staggering several steps back.

"You bald donkey, state your name!"

Fan Sheng shouted sharply.

"This humble monk is your Grandpa Tang."

The monk swung his staff again and charged at Fan Sheng.

Fan Sheng dodged away, and the monk did not pursue him, instead continuing to strike wildly through the crowd.

Deng Qing, Wang Wei, and Zhou Tie had long since dodged to one side.

Wang Wei said quietly, "It's Monk Tang. This bastard is one of the top experts of the Skin Refining Second Layer. Even though Senior Brother Fan is injured, he's still powerful among the Third Layer, yet he refuses to fight this fiend head-on. That shows just how capable this bastard is."

Zhou Tie said, "I heard more than a dozen Skin Refining Second Layer martial artists have died at this fiend's hands. He's extremely hard to deal with."