Xu Yu stood to the side, looking anxious.
Wu Shuangren looked at him and laughed, "Don't be afraid, your big brother will lead you out of here!"
Looking into Wu Shuangren's eyes, Xu Yu gradually calmed down and nodded vigorously.
Wu Shuangren looked up and glanced around, his gaze calm. "Are you from Mist Hidden Temple?"
"Wu Shuangren, today is your death day—"
Someone in the crowd shouted.
The sound echoed through the forest, causing leaves to rustle and fall, demonstrating the person's profound Internal Skill!
"Oh?"
Wu Shuangren looked at the speaker, "Has Abbot Ciwen of Mist Hidden Temple arrived?"
Why would the abbot need to personally kill you?
Another voice came from behind.
More than a dozen riders were chasing after Wu Shuangren from the direction he had just fled!
Even without Xu Yu, Wu Shuangren would definitely not be able to escape on horseback if he only wanted to.
Mist Hidden Temple had been preparing for this deadly trap for a long time!
"Ciwen dares not come, for he fears he will die at my hands like Kongzheng."
Wu Shuangren channeled his Internal Skill, his voice carrying far and wide, "That's why he sent you here to die!"
The crowd stirred slightly.
The death of Kongzheng had a tremendous impact on the Mist Hidden Temple!
Although the explanation given by Mist Hidden Temple to both internal and external parties afterward was that Wu Shuangren had borrowed the power of the battle formation, thus killing Master Kongzheng by outnumbering the enemy.
However, Wu Shuangren's strength First Rate top-tier expert cannot be concealed no matter what.
"No matter how powerful he is, he's only one person. Kill him, and you'll be rewarded with a hundred taels of gold and any ten secret manuals you can choose!"
Someone in the crowd shouted.
"Kill--"
Several riders charged out almost simultaneously, heading straight for Wu Shuangren!
106 Killer Moves
Mist Hidden Temple.
Hong Zhanming stepped over the threshold and entered the main hall.
Ciwen sat cross-legged on a futon in front of the Buddha statue, with his eyes closed, holding a string of prayer beads in his hand, his back to the temple door.
Hong Zhanming stopped three steps behind him and bowed in greeting:
"Abbot, judging by the time, Wu Shuangren should have received the letter by now. If he wanted to return to Bo County, he should have already set off."
Ciwen paused for a moment, then continued spinning the Ciwen beads in her hand.
"You orchestrated this scheme; how confident were you?"
Hong Zhanming lowered his head and said, "Fifty percent."
Ciwen opened his eyes, his voice revealing neither joy nor anger. "Such a massive mobilization, and you only have a fifty percent chance of success?"
Hong Zhanming bowed his head and said respectfully, "If Wu Shuangren chooses to return to Bo County, then this round will be won by our Mist Hidden Temple."
"If he chooses to secretly return to Bo County with only a small number of followers, he will surely die! If he returns to Bo County with several hundred men, our cavalry will join forces with the Zhang Clan and directly attack West River Market! Liaoming Elder Liaoming personally taking action, West River Market will definitely not be able to hold out without Wu Shuangren in charge!"
Ciwen: "If that's the case, why is there only a 50% chance of success?"
Hong Zhanming: "Because Wu Shuangren might choose not to go back."
Ciwen slowly stood up, turned to look at Hong Zhanming: "Why didn't you write in the letter that his parents were seriously ill, or that something had happened in Bo County? That would give him a reason to definitely go back."
Hong Zhanming explained, "Abbot, observing Wu Shuangren's actions in West River Market, every step he takes is very steady. This young man is extremely methodical in his work, not at all like a young man who is about to turn eighteen. If I were to write in the letter that his parents are seriously ill, or that some other accident has occurred in Bo County, given his personality, he might become suspicious and send someone back to Bo County to find out the situation first. That would be counterproductive."
Only his birthday is the most natural and unobtrusive reason to lure him back to Bo County, and it would be the most reasonable way to reduce his wariness.
Ciwen looked at Hong Zhanming, who was bowing respectfully, stepped forward, and personally helped him up, his face full of kindness.
"Excellent, I'm very relieved to have you handle things."
In the woods.
Wu Shuangren had Xu Yu follow behind him on horseback. The opponent was not good at mounted combat, and riding a horse would weaken his combat power and affect his performance, so it was better to fight on foot.
"Kill!"
Wu Shuangren spurred his horse and charged towards the oncoming riders.
In the blink of an eye, he passed the first rider. The rider on horseback lowered his body and swept his saber from the left, aiming straight for Wu Shuangren's warhorse!
Wu Shuangren also bent down and swung his Fish-Dragon Saber, striking the back half of his opponent's blade. In a flash, he pressed down and, using the momentum of the horse's movement, knocked the opponent's horse-slaying saber away.
Immediately afterwards, the rider on the right charged forward with a spear, the spear piercing through and thrusting towards Wu Shuangren's chest.
Wu Shuangren's Fish-Dragon Saber had already slashed back, accurately cleaving the spear tip, but the Fish-Dragon Saber was not long enough, and in this exchange between the two riders, he was unable to attack his opponent.
Xu Yu was following behind him, seized the opportunity and with one stroke, cut the rider who had lost his weapon off his horse!
Wu Shuangren continued his charge. This time, he seized the opportunity, leaning back at almost a ninety-degree angle on his horse to dodge the sweeping blade. He then quickly grabbed the hilt of his opponent's sword and, using the opponent's strength, skillfully disarmed him.
This horse-slaying saber is also a long-handled weapon, and it is somewhat similar to the Mo Dao. Wu Shuangren snatched one and made do with it.
Otherwise, using short weapons in mounted combat would be a huge disadvantage!
Next, Wu Shuangren charged at six riders in succession, wielding his horse-slaying saber left and right, cutting down four riders in a row!
In mounted combat, the two charged at each other on horseback, exchanging blows in the blink of an eye. The pace of the battle was extremely fast, and for Wu Shuangren, every round was a one-on-one fight.
Regardless of whether a victory or defeat has been decided, he will immediately switch to the next target using [Match for One Person].
Xu Yu followed behind him, targeting riders who weren't knocked off their horses in a single exchange. He would finish them off before they could recover, or when they were injured or had lost their weapons.
When the two had cut through the enemy in front of them, they had joined forces to kill nine riders!
Wu Shuangren discovered that this head-on mounted combat was very suitable for [Match for One Person]. Even if two riders attacked from the left and right at the same time, he could lock onto one person the moment they engaged, strike, and then immediately switch targets to deal with the second person's attack.
Mounted combat is faster-paced, more powerful, and riskier, but the fluidity of attacks is far inferior to that of foot combat.
In foot combat, if Wu Shuangren were surrounded by multiple attackers, he would need to expend more physical strength and energy to switch targets repeatedly and adjust his attack rhythm, which would definitely affect his efficiency in defeating the enemy.
When fighting on horseback, he can devote almost all his energy to each round of combat, fighting in the most efficient way!
After cutting through the enemy in front, Wu Shuangren turned his horse around and rode towards the official road. The enemy pursued him on horseback, continuously shooting arrows.
Before they had gone far, Wu Shuangren's warhorse was struck by an arrow and fell to the ground, forcing him to dismount again.
"Huff... huff..."
Wu Shuangren adjusted his breathing rhythm, fine beads of sweat appearing on his forehead.
He spotted a rider ahead, pushed off with his feet, and rammed straight into him!
The rider on horseback did not slow down, intending to use his warhorse to ram Wu Shuangren to death.
Just as the two were about to collide, Wu Shuangren's body seemed to be pulled sharply by an invisible rope, dodging to the side. Then, he grabbed the saddle with one hand, leaped up, mounted the horse, and sat behind the rider!
The rider on horseback was terrified. Before he could react, a strong force came from behind, and Wu Shuangren threw him off the horse, causing him to break his bones!
This delay allowed many enemies to ride around to the front and charge at Wu Shuangren again...
Near the edge of the woods, close to the main road, twenty riders followed at a distance, but did not join the battle.
These twenty riders were completely different from the other riders. Their warhorses were a head taller than the others, and were entirely black. The riders on their backs were all wearing full-body iron armor made of thousands of armor plates, which were the infantry armor!
Twenty men, twenty sets of infantry armor, exuding a murderous aura!
Martial artists who continuously activate their Internal Skill will expend a great deal of physical strength, something that even Great Grandmaster cannot avoid.
Therefore, there is no such thing as a true warrior capable of defeating ten thousand men in this world.
Hong Zhanming set up this trap for Wu Shuangren, sending a total of 153 riders, 20 of whom were elite warrior monks from the Mist Hidden Temple's Warrior Monk Hall. Each of them had Internal Skill cultivation of at least the Seventh Rank and was also equipped with a set of infantry armor!
This is a trump card prepared specifically for Wu Shuangren.
First, use ordinary cavalry to wear down Wu Shuangren's stamina, and then use these twenty riders to finish the job!
With such a force, even if Wu Shuangren possessed the strength of First Rank cultivator, it would be difficult for him to survive.
That's why Hong Zhanming told Ciwen that if Wu Shuangren chose to secretly return to Bo County with a small number of people, he would surely die!
P. S.: This chapter is a bit short; the next chapter will be longer to make up for it.
107 Bloodbath in the Forest!
In the locust grove, there were corpses lying everywhere and warhorses that had lost their masters. The air was thick with the stench of blood, and the withered leaves on the ground were soaked in blood.
Wu Shuangren had already changed horses three times. He was covered in blood, and the leather armor under his clothes was torn in several places. He had also been hit by two arrows in his left shoulder and back!
Fortunately, the leather armor provided protection, so the arrow wound wasn't too serious.
Xu Yu was in a better situation than Wu Shuangren, since he hadn't participated in the direct combat and the enemies' attention was mostly on Wu Shuangren.
The two fought fiercely in the forest for nearly fifteen minutes, killing twenty-six riders together!
The cavalrymen surrounding the two men were now somewhat terrified.
Of these hundred-odd riders, half were former bandits, and by now they had lost all will to fight.
They came for the bounty, not to die. The price offered by Mist Hidden Temple is high, but even with a lot of money, you have to be alive to spend it.
As for the cavalry trained by the Mist Hidden Temple, their organization and discipline were indeed stronger than those of the bandits, but they were not particularly interested in joining the fray at the moment.
They knew they weren't the main force; there were twenty skilled infantrymen in full armor behind them.
"The fight's gotten this bad, it's your turn to step in. We can't keep making us risk our lives!"
Many people had this thought at that moment.
At the edge of the woods, twenty riders stood in a row.
The person in the center was smaller than the others, carrying an iron spear. His face, beneath the visor, was somewhat aged and covered in wrinkles.
He is an elder of Mist Hidden Temple, and Ciwen's uncle-master— Liaoming.
Hong Fan had told Wu Shuangren and the others that Mist Hidden Temple had a total of three First Rate experts.
Abbot Ciwen, Headmaster Kongzheng of the Warrior Monk Hall, and the last one Liaoming.
In today's deadly situation, Hong Zhanming not only brought out twenty sets of infantry armor, but also invited Liaoming, a top -First Rate expert, to oversee the operation!
If Wu Shuangren returns to Bo County with several hundred men in a grand manner, Liaoming will lead these cavalry to join forces with the Zhang Clan and launch a joint attack on West River Market.
At that time, no one on the Fist Academy side will be able to stand against Liaoming, and they will most likely be wiped out!
Now, Liaoming's existence is to ensure that Wu Shuangren's last chance of survival is cut off!
From horseback, Liaoming also tell that the cavalry in the forest were not keen to continue their attack.
That's about it.
He raised his left hand and made a gesture.
The next moment, the twenty riders spurred their horses and charged towards the battlefield in the forest!
The armor plates rattled and clattered as the warhorses galloped, like the muffled roar of an impending flash flood.
The loud commotion immediately caught Wu Shuangren's attention, and he turned his head to look.
Soon, he saw twenty armored riders lined up in a row, like a moving iron wall, slowly advancing towards him. Each hooves left deep hoofprints on the ground, crushing withered leaves and turning up the soil!
'Infantryman A!'
Wu Shuangren gripped the horse-slaying saber tightly in his hand.
After confirming the identities of these enemies, he wondered—would Mist Hidden Temple use this trump card this time?