Chapter 7: Bandits

A black moonlit night draped over the earth. It seemed as though everyone had fallen into a deep slumber, save for a few weary sentries struggling to stay awake.

"Hahaha, brothers! Kill them all, slaughter them all, and loot everything!" The sudden, raucous war cry jolted everyone from their sleep.

Following this shout, five or six hundred men swarmed down from all directions in a chaotic din.

"Bandits?" Wang Yu muttered to himself, puzzled.

Having inherited the memories of this body’s original owner for many years, he could certainly tell the difference between a disciplined army and a rabble of bandits. Yet, he wondered, was this group of mere bandits truly worth a divine-tier summoning card?

"Kill them all," a cold command emanated from Wang Yu's lips.

Since a divine-tier summoning card was at stake, he would rather execute three thousand innocents than let a single threat slip by. What if a powerful, hidden figure was lurking among these bandits? Besides, since this group had been the ones to provoke him, he felt no guilt in being merciless.

In truth, while Wang Ziejie had occupied this body and merged with the memories of the original Wang Yu, the original owner’s lingering influence remained strong. At least, the original Wang Ziejie would never have treated human life with such callous indifference. It was less of a possession and more of a fusion, though Wang Ziejie held the absolute dominant will.

"Form up!" Following Wang Yu's order, Zhao Yun strode out of the tent. At his command, one hundred armored soldiers surged forth, arranging themselves into a simple defensive formation with Zhao Yun at the center.

"How is this possible!" The bandit leader, observing the soldiers in their orderly armor, realized with a sinking heart that his prey had been prepared all along.

"Attack! Slaughter these dogs of the imperial court!" The leader knew there was no turning back now; the arrow had left the bow. Even if the enemy was prepared, they had no choice but to press the assault.

***

"Interesting," Wang Yu murmured, watching the scene unfold while pondering the origin of this crisis.

The system would not make empty claims; if it said someone was coming to assassinate him, it must be true. Yet, looking at the current situation, this group of bandits did not seem to fit the bill. Who was behind this? His own family? The northern grasslands? Or perhaps a faction from the Imperial Capital he was heading toward?

In his memories, the original Wang Yu had never left Zhen Dong City, so why was he being hunted the moment he stepped out? With so little information, Wang Yu could not make a sound judgment.

"Release arrows!" Zhao Yun’s voice rang out. The hundred soldiers, each wielding a crossbow, fired in unison. A single volley was enough to cut down a swathe of bandits.

"Keep firing!" Under the relentless hail of bolts, the bandits suffered heavy casualties. Many began to cower, their will to fight shattered.

"Mount up! Charge!" Seeing the enemy falter, Zhao Yun ordered his men to charge.

The Northern Garrison consisted of three hundred thousand troops, the most elite of which were the thirty thousand Black Cavalry. As a young general, Wang Yu controlled three thousand of these riders, and these hundred men were the cream of that crop. As true elites, they made short work of the demoralized bandits. Wherever they passed, corpses littered the ground and blood rained; nothing remained but screams and the sounds of slaughter.

"Useless trash! Attack!" The leader decapitated a fleeing subordinate and roared at the others, "Whoever retreats again, I will kill myself!"

Spurred by fear, the bandits halted their retreat and mustered a final, desperate sliver of resistance.

"Boss, these government soldiers are too strong! We should run!" a scarred man holding a tiger-headed blade shouted, his greed replaced by pure terror.

"Scar-face, they are cavalry! Can your two legs outrun their four?" the leader snarled. "Charge with me! If we kill their commander, we might stand a chance!"

"Die, you dog!" The leader didn't wait for a response and charged headlong toward the front.

***

Seeing his boss charge, Scar-face had no choice but to follow. After all, as the leader said, they couldn't outrun the horses.

"Courting death. Taste my spear!" Zhao Yun sneered as he saw the bandits charging at him.

"System, check the attributes of these two." Wang Yu had expected them to be mere thugs, but they seemed to possess some skill.

"Ding. Xue Zimo: Leadership 80, Might 88, Intelligence 79, Politics 59, Charisma 71."

"Ding. Chen 'Scar-face': Leadership 58, Might 79, Intelligence 58, Politics 52, Charisma 58."

"First-rate martial prowess? This bandit is no ordinary man," Wang Yu thought silently.

Though the Tianqi Continent was vast and home to many talents, a first-rate warrior could easily serve as a mid-level officer in the army. If one reached the super-first-rate, they would be a high-ranking officer. To reach the Heavenly Realm was to be a top-tier general, and Divine Generals were rare treasures found only in the most legendary of tales.

Even in the Zhen Dong Army, a first-rate warrior was a figure of note. It was bizarre to encounter such a man leading a simple bandit raid. Furthermore, Xue Zimo’s leadership and intelligence were not to be trifled with. How could such a man be a mere bandit?

Yet, even with these stats, Xue Zimo was not significant enough to warrant a divine-tier summoning card reward. This meant the night’s events were far from over—perhaps they had barely begun.