Chen Xia told the eldest princess to wait three days for him.
On the first day.
He rested properly at home, rolling over a few times.
On the second day.
He cleaned his house thoroughly, inside and out, even went fishing for a while at the entrance to town, then leisurely strolled home.
On the third day.
Toward evening, Chen Xia sought out the three sect leaders, asked exactly where the fighting at the border was taking place, and set off.
With just a single step, he appeared a thousand meters away, approaching the border at a terrifying speed.
Had anyone been able to watch from the sky, they would have seen Chen Xia's figure practically flickering across Great Song, occasionally stopping to watch the spectacle of other families arguing.
Inside the border city, a soldier came to report.
"General, the barbarians are attacking again. A hundred thousand armored cavalry are charging toward the city."
The woman wore heavy armor and sat at the head of the room, her expression troubled. "Have the soldiers ready their bows and crossbows and hold the walls. Don't leave the city. Just shoot the barbarians from there."
"Yes." Having received his orders, the soldier was about to withdraw.
"And tell the martial arts experts in the city to stay alert and defend the interior. Don't let the barbarian experts slip through any gaps."
The soldier acknowledged her again and hurried out of the tent.
The woman pinched the bridge of her nose and asked the officer beside her worriedly, "Has the immortal still not arrived?"
The officer on her left hurriedly replied, "The soldiers guarding the cities to our rear haven't heard anything. I imagine the immortal hasn't arrived yet."
The woman nodded and said helplessly, "Let's hope that's all it is. An invincible warrior has emerged among the barbarians. Last time, he single-handedly broke through thirty-three hundred armored soldiers. He's almost reached the point where he can sway a battle alone."
The officer hurriedly replied, "That barbarian is mighty, but we have martial arts experts too. They should be able to stop him on the battlefield."
The woman shook her head, helplessness written across her brows and eyes, and replied.
"I asked Zuo Feiyang. He said that even together, he and the old monk were still a notch below that barbarian warrior, and victory would be difficult. If they fought to the death, that barbarian would very likely take their lives."
The officer froze, then asked incredulously, "Is this barbarian warrior truly that invincible?"
The woman exhaled. "Six years ago, when that barbarian warrior burst onto the scene, he broke through thirty-three hundred armored soldiers and slaughtered his way to fame. Afterward, every battlefield he appeared on saw nothing but victory. Had Zuo Feiyang and the other martial arts experts not stopped him, he would have breached the city long ago."
The officer paused, then nodded blankly. "It seems only the immortal can stop him now."
"Not necessarily." The woman's expression grew grave as she rejected that claim, her tone turning serious as she continued.
"I suspect the barbarians have colluded with the overseas Qi Refining practitioners."
"Qi Refining practitioners?" The officer froze, then frowned and asked, "Didn't the Qi Refining practitioners seal off their islands a hundred years ago and announce they would no longer interfere in worldly affairs?!"
"You believed them just because they said so?" the woman asked, then continued.
"Many of the barbarians' methods seem to have Qi Refining practitioners behind them. Especially during the battle when the city fell six years ago. The weather was unusually hot, and a fire spread for hundreds of meters through the city's provisions. Chaos broke out before the fighting even began, giving the barbarians an opening."
At this, the officer recalled that day's fire and also felt it had been too strange. It had seemed to ignite on its own, yet not quite.
"I'm worried this barbarian warrior will join forces with the overseas Qi Refining practitioners. His strength is already brutal. With all the overseas Qi Refining practitioners' Divine Abilities added to it, I'm afraid he might not fear the immortal then."
The officer frowned and argued, "But this immortal has the Divine Ability to sever rivers and shatter mountains with a flick of his finger. If he truly acts, how could a barbarian warrior possibly beat him?"
Worry clouded the woman's brows and eyes. She nodded and replied, "Let's hope so."
With that, she dropped the subject and headed outside, intending to oversee the battle from the walls.
Before she even approached, she could see abundant firelight atop the walls, where soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder, solemnly watching below.
The defending officer stood nearby, ready at any moment to issue orders and respond to the barbarian assault.
The woman approached and asked the officer, "What's the situation?"
The officer hurriedly replied, "My lady, the barbarian cavalry are circling a thousand meters away, in no hurry to attack. Our bows and crossbows can't reach them. We can only keep defending the city."
"Mm." The woman nodded in acknowledgment and frowned down from the walls. A thousand meters away, she could faintly see the barbarian cavalry circling and watching without charging.
This was not good for the defenders. The cavalry could circle and rest, under less pressure, with no need to remain on tenterhooks. Resting and replenishing supplies were also more convenient.
The defenders could not do the same. They had to concentrate fully on guarding the city. The slightest movement from the barbarian cavalry forced the defending soldiers to rouse themselves again.
If this continued, the defenders would inevitably become dazed and muddleheaded.
The woman sighed. Against tactics like these, one generally had no choice but to hold fast with stubborn resolve. There was no other good solution.
If the soldiers' wills were tough enough, they could hold.
But the barbarian cavalry never seemed to intend to attack, simply dragging things out. Occasionally, a cavalry unit would suddenly charge forward, only to gallop back laughing before the soldiers could loose their arrows.
Toying with them. This was blatant toying.
But what could the defenders do? They could only listen in silence to the barbarian cavalry's mocking laughter.
When the sky began to brighten.
The defending soldiers were all somewhat weary, and it was time for others to relieve them.
Suddenly, heavy hoofbeats rang out beyond the city, seeming to shake the very earth beneath them. Tens of thousands of armored cavalry charged together, holding nothing back.
The defenders hurriedly rallied, bent their bows, and nocked their arrows, ready to shoot the barbarians.
Ahead of the cavalry, a figure shot forward at incredible speed without pausing, charging at the very front of the troops. Deep footprints marked every place his feet landed, and a casual leap carried him dozens of meters.
"It's that barbarian warrior, Tiemuwu!"
The officers cried out in alarm, ordering the soldiers to shoot at once.
A vast rain of arrows swept toward the cavalry, seeking to kill Tiemuwu along with them.
Tiemuwu swept one hand forward, snapping dozens of arrows before him, and continued charging toward the city.
A thousand meters took no more than five breaths.
Tiemuwu was about to set foot on the battlements. The soldiers panicked. They could fight ordinary men, but how could they withstand an immortal-like figure such as Tiemuwu?
Tiemuwu alone could slaughter every soldier on the walls!
Fortunately, before Tiemuwu reached the battlements, a sword swept out from the city and struck him back down below. A figure immediately followed at tremendous speed and fought Tiemuwu beneath the walls.
An instant later, an elderly monk in a scarlet kasaya leaped out of the city and shouted down below.
"Young friend Feiyang, let me lend you a hand!"
Beneath the walls, the two supreme experts battled the barbarian warrior in a fierce deadlock. Their Qi Gang alone sent explosions ringing out for dozens of meters around them, and even the charging cavalry dared not approach.
The battle between the two sides erupted in full, vast and thunderous.
Chen Xia was still on the road, watching two women fight. The story behind it was anything but simple. He watched for over three hours before finally sorting it out.
He had to admit, even television dramas did not have plots this full of twists and turns.
Every time Chen Xia thought it was about to end, it turned out to be only the beginning of another story.
These two women alone had dragged up at least eighty percent of the town's gossip.
Only now did Chen Xia finish listening, and he could not help exclaiming, "Brilliant."
He looked up at the sky and felt it was about time. The sounds of the border city's defenses being breached, several thousand meters away, had already reached his ears.
Chen Xia delayed no longer. With a step, his figure vanished instantly as he raced toward the border.
The situation in the border city was far from promising. The cavalry's assault had reached a frenzy as they slammed ferociously into the gates.
The gates were in imminent danger and had already sustained damage.
The battle between the two supreme experts and the barbarian warrior was no more promising. They were now at a disadvantage.
The barbarian warrior seemed to possess inexhaustible strength. His attacks were sweeping and unrestrained, without the slightest restraint, and immense protective True Qi surrounded his body, preventing Zuo Feiyang and the old monk from hurting him.
Meanwhile, Zuo Feiyang and the old monk were running short of internal strength and could no longer withstand the barbarian warrior's all-out assault.
"Whew." Zuo Feiyang exhaled. Just as he tried to catch his breath and muster his Qi, Tiemuwu gave him no opening, driving a fist straight at his face.
Zuo Feiyang raised his sword to block and angled his body slightly, trying to deflect the force. But the blow made his sword ring sharply, and his body could not withstand the pressure that followed. He flew backward, rolled twice, then used the momentum to get to his feet.
His sword hand trembled. Looking at Tiemuwu before him, he said incredulously.
"You've broken through again?!"
Speaking broken Great Song speech, Tiemuwu sneered in reply, "The martial path is meant to keep climbing. You two pieces of trash stopped moving forward. Naturally, you'll be weeded out."
Zuo Feiyang was just about to reply.
Tiemuwu stomped the ground to pieces and instantly appeared before Zuo Feiyang. His towering body loomed over him as he raised a fist, its Gang swirling the air into a vacuum, and hammered down at Zuo Feiyang to kill him!
The old monk tried to rescue him, but the earth suddenly churned beneath his feet, restraining him. His eyes widened as he cried out in surprise.
"A Qi Refining practitioner!"
Boom!
The fist fell.
Like a battered kite with its string snapped, Zuo Feiyang flew backward to the foot of the city wall. His right arm was broken, and even he did not know where his sword had fallen.
If it had been a stalemate before, that stalemate had now been broken.
The barbarians held the advantage.
Standing at the highest point of the battlements, the woman watched the scene below the walls with bitterness. She shook her head helplessly and said sorrowfully.
"After holding out for six years, does it all end today?"
"Withdraw shortly, my lady. We still have defensive lines behind us. Leave this place to us," an officer urged.
The woman shook her head and smiled bitterly. "Withdraw where? Six years ago, we already retreated a hundred li. If we retreat again now, we can only fall back to the capital."
"I have no face to meet the people of Great Song. Let me live or die with the city."
"My lady..." the officer called sorrowfully, but could find no further words. He simply strode out of the command tent, ready to take his saber into battle and kill the enemy!
Meanwhile, the hole in the gates grew larger and larger.
The barbarians' vicious, mocking laughter could already be heard through the hole, unbearably grating.
The cavalry wielded a huge pointed ram, battering the gates again and again. Each impact tore open another gap.
Once those gaps began to widen, there was no stopping them.
The soldiers inside the city stood behind the gates with weapons in hand, ready to rush forward and fight once the barbarian cavalry broke through.
They would most likely die.
But no one cared. They only wanted to defend the city.
Under the impacts of the barbarians' huge pointed ram, the gates finally failed. Groaning beneath the unbearable weight, they crashed down.
Their only barrier was gone.
The barbarian cavalry appeared before them, their faces vicious beyond measure.
As the final dull crash of the falling gates rang out.
A figure suddenly appeared between the two armies and casually waved a hand, speaking in a lazy tone.
"Go crawling back."