The Battle Never Ends

Shitou led the youths in paying homage to their ancestors. After three rounds of war drums, the youths filed out of the ancestral hall.

Seventeen horses had been readied. The Clan Chief stood at the ancestral hall's entrance with his War Saber raised, while Long'er's mother raised her Scepter and shouted, "Ancestors, protect us! To battle! To battle! To battle!"

The seventeen youths heading into battle raised their weapons and joined the other clanspeople in answering, "Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Fully armed, their faces masked and red cloth strips tied around their arms, the youths mounted together under their eldest brother Shitou's command.

Shitou took the lead, charging out of the village entrance, and the other youths followed one after another.

As they passed the Huaxia Sect, Grandpa Zhang, who had already heard that the youths were going into battle, stood holding clear water. "This old man offers water in place of wine. May the young heroes of our Huaxia Sect return victorious."

Shitou accepted without ceremony and drained it in one gulp. "Good!" Laughing heartily, he spurred his horse onward. The other youths urged their horses after him.

They galloped along, but before reaching Wan Family Town, Shitou halted the group. Wenlong dismounted. "Linzi, come with me." The two sped away using their lightness skills.

Behind them, Shitou instructed everyone to conceal themselves in the woods and await news from Wenlong and Linzi.

Wenlong dared not be careless either. Wan Family Town was now in sight; caution was essential. If they still dared to leave themselves unguarded after the last attack, they could only blame their own bad luck.

He activated his Mental Power to probe for activity in the distance. Sure enough, a force of a hundred men lay hidden in a mountain hollow.

Wenlong led Linzi around the spot and continued scouting ahead, but found no other hidden members of the Kai clan.

Returning to join Shitou and the others, he said, "Brother Shitou, about a hundred men are hiding in a mountain hollow, waiting for us to walk into their encirclement. Are you confident you can wipe them out, then ambush the enemies from Wan Family Town?"

"No problem. They're out in the open now, while we're in the shadows. We'll quietly finish them off, then hurry over to surround the others." With Repeating Crossbows and Darts at their disposal, Shitou was brimming with confidence.

"Good. Have someone watch for activity in town. If anything happens, send word, eliminate the enemies here immediately, and come support me." Wenlong considered it, but still felt uneasy.

"Brother Shitou, before you act, choose a few experts with Darts to sneak into their quarters and assassinate them. If you're discovered, everyone must immediately shoot them down with crossbow bolts." Wenlong gave them these instructions, judging a safer approach more prudent.

Shitou agreed that it was a good plan. "All right, we'll do it your way. Be careful yourself."

"Finish the fight before the hour of the ox, then head to the Ambush Site. Brothers, let's aim for no casualties." With that, Wenlong sprang away using his lightness skills.

Night had long since fallen, but with his Mental Power probing his surroundings, the darkness posed no obstacle to him.

Once he began the assassinations, he would have to deal with those troublesome Yellow Hounds first. Every time he came to Wan Family Town, he had to avoid those large dogs with their keen noses. They were such a nuisance.

He reaped another great harvest of wealth. The Kai clanspeople now hid their money and grain securely, but that still could not keep them out of Wenlong's searches. Once again, he collected them into his space, one stash after another.

The entire Kai clan possessed untold wealth. Who knew how many times he would have to fill his little room-sized space before he could haul it all away?

Once money and grain filled his space, he rested for a while. He reckoned the hour of the rat was approaching; it was time to begin the hunt.

Only now did he remember that he had not asked the slaves who held the real power in the Kai clan. It seemed he would have to launch a decapitation strike next time.

Without their key figures to command them, the blade hanging over the Wen clanspeople's heads would no longer be so deadly.

With that thought, Wenlong singled out the Kai clan's grand, wealthy households for his attacks.

Only after he had slaughtered several Kai households in succession did he alert large numbers of their clanspeople. With the aid of his Mental Power, Wenlong deftly avoided those who had prepared their defenses.

Soon, people were lighting torches and rushing out to hunt him down. Wenlong hid in the darkness, waiting for them to charge out and deliver themselves to death.

The Kai clanspeople carrying torches had no idea what was happening. Hearing the gongs, they knew someone was attacking their clan and rushed outside.

Little did they know that a volley of crossbow bolts awaited them, sending them straight to their deaths where they stood.

The gongs rang incessantly. More and more Kai clanspeople gathered, coming from every direction, while Wenlong kept shifting his position in the shadows.

Just then, the whistle of a Signal Arrow sounded in the distance, filling Wenlong with delight. It was Shitou's signal; he knew they had arrived.

He attacked the enemy while moving toward Shitou's ambush position. His pursuers advanced slowly because Wenlong kept attacking from different directions in the darkness.

As soon as they entered the ambush zone, rows upon rows of Kai clanspeople fell. Those arriving behind them charged forward carrying objects to shield themselves.

Seeing this, Shitou shouted, "Shoot their feet!" At once, even more agonized screams and wails rose from the enemy.

When he saw the enemy's torches split into several groups, Shitou hurriedly fired a Signal Arrow, and the Wen clanspeople moved toward the second Ambush Site.

Wenlong also moved toward the second Ambush Site. There was no telling how many pursuing Kai clanspeople fell along the way.

But they had numbers on their side, and Wenlong was unwilling to fight them head-on. As they pressed closer, he immediately fell back to the third ambush position.

"Brother Shitou, tell our brothers to fire all their bolts, then withdraw immediately. I'll cover the rear." Seeing the situation turn against them, Wenlong immediately urged Shitou to retreat.

"All right. Be careful." Shitou led the others to mount their horses, which were waiting nearby.

Wenzhu also brought two horses to the rear. With sweeps of her hand, she sent several waves of Darts at the enemy using Goddess Scatters Flowers.

"Long'er, go!" Wenzhu sprang onto her horse. Seeing this, Wenlong unleashed Goddess Scatters Flowers several times in succession, bringing down another great swath of enemies.

"Until the Kai clan is destroyed, the battle never ends!" With that, Wenlong sprang onto his horse as well, still remembering to probe the enemy with his Mental Power to see whether they dared pursue.

Unfortunately, they still lacked the courage. Wenlong and the others slipped away easily and headed back to Wen Family Village.

At Wen Family Village's ancestral hall, the victory drums sounded once more. All seventeen youths who had gone into battle returned unscathed and paid homage to their ancestors in gratitude.

Naturally, a victory feast followed. Every member of the Wen clan could now hold their head high, unlike before, when each clan battle had cost them many lives.

This victory was so satisfying that they prostrated themselves with even greater devotion when worshipping their ancestors.

In the meeting hall, Wenlong told his father, "Father, the Kai clan has suffered heavy losses several times in a row now. They certainly won't let this rest. We need to strengthen our defenses around the Huaxia Sect, with the sect at their center."

When his father agreed, he turned to Shitou. "Brother Shitou, organize a group of capable fighters to intercept and kill their scouts in secret. Eldest Sister, step up their training."

Shitou and Wenzhu nodded in agreement. Wenlong rose and smiled at his uncles. "Uncles, you need to work harder on your martial arts too. Starting next year, we'll establish our sect. Taking disciples and teaching them will be your responsibility."

His uncles froze, suddenly feeling the pressure weigh on them like a mountain. Wenlong ignored their reaction and addressed his aunts as well. "Aunts, if you train your martial arts well, you can take female disciples too."

Without waiting for anyone's response, Wenlong pulled Seventh Uncle along. "Come on. Let's find a way to develop stronger weapons."