Chapter 49: One Husband on the Righteous Path

  Thanks to "Zhao Wu Xu 2014", "Evil Wolf Star", "Tiger Ye Not Deluded" and "ZUXJZUXJ" for their strong support.

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  Three hundred paces in front of the mouth of Bai Zhang Gorge, a dense mass of blackness, numbering three to four thousand Xianbei and Wuhuan cavalrymen. In the center of this mixed pursuit and killing army were the main leaders: Zhi Bi Neng, Shi Luo Hou, Fu Lou Han, Xiao Wang Xie Gui Ni, You Xi Hou Neng Chen, Yan Rou, Li Gu, and others. However, Uwien's Left Valley King Lou Ban, Liao Dong's subordinate country Xianbei Sha Mo Han, Liao Xi's Xianbei Cheng Lv Gui, and Liao Dong's subordinate country Wuhuan's Ya Wang Su Pu Yan were not seen. It is clear that in dealing with Ma Yuan's problem, not all the barbarians' opinions were consistent, and Ma Yuan was not yet a public enemy of the barbarians.

  At this time, Suluo Hou was gritting his teeth and fiercely whipping Luobang: "The deer that had been caught were all let go by you, scoundrel! Losing the face of Xianbei's brave warriors! Why not exchange one life for another!"

  Luobang was crawling on the ground, his back was being flogged until it was covered with wounds and bloodstains. He gritted his teeth and didn't dare to utter a word.

  Yan Rou waited until the anger of General Luo had dissipated before riding out to meet him, bowing his hands and saying: "Your Highness need not get so worked up. That Ma Xun is already trapped on Mount Tong, with no way to escape. Why bother risking the life of one of your precious brave warriors just to exchange it for that of a man who's as good as dead?"

  Someone stepped forward to give him a step down, and the Marquis of Luo finally stopped whipping. The remaining anger had not dissipated, and he shouted: "The man escaped from your hands, you will be the first to rush up and behead him to regain your lost honor!"

  Luobang heavily knocked his head on the ground and said in a hoarse voice: "Please, sir, give me fifty men, I will use that 'Han Beast's' blood to wash away my shame."

  Everyone frowned at the words of Ziluo Hou, who was openly punishing his subordinates but actually trying to steal credit. According to Yan Rou's words, this "heart-digging beast" had been controlled by medicine and turned into a soft-shelled turtle. Luo Bang also confirmed this point, now is the best time to take down this beast and break its undefeated warrior halo, but Ziluo Hou took the lead. His words were reasonable, and there was no way to argue with him.

  Yan Rou was perplexed. Judging from Ma Hong's behavior, he had indeed been poisoned, but why could he still use one arm? First kill his own brother, then show weakness to the enemy and control Luobang. Moreover, how did he break such a tough cowhide rope? Could it be that he had a divine weapon similar to "Fish Intestine" hidden on him? After thinking for half a day without understanding, Yan Rou could only shake her head and give up. Anyway, this person was already a turtle in a jar, catching him would solve all the problems.

  Lobang held a knife in his left hand, enduring the severe pain of his broken palm and back injury, led fifty Xianbei people with bows and blades, rushed to the valley entrance, and started climbing the mountain.

  Luobang only chose fifty people, not because he wanted to boast, but because the mountain path was narrow and could only accommodate two people walking side by side. The Han beast was indeed crippled, at least his lower limbs had not recovered - Luobang saw with his own eyes that the woman half-carried him up the mountain after being thrown off the horse. If it weren't for his hands being tied in a strange way with his thumbs bound behind his back, and almost choked by the strangling force, he really wanted to chase up and kill them. If he had been braver at the time, he wouldn't have suffered such humiliation in front of everyone.

  At this point, Luobang gritted his teeth - Alright, after turning the corner up ahead, we'll reach the summit. Heart-digging beast! Now it's Grandpa's turn to dig your heart out...

  Luobang Chong was in the lead, and as soon as he turned the corner, his knife stretched out to brush aside the weeds on the mountain wall in front of him, when suddenly a muffled "thud" sound was heard.

  "Bad!" Luobang's blood pressure dropped, and he was about to make an evasive reaction, but everything was too late. A black dot appeared in front of him like lightning, and with a "poof", it hit him right between the eyebrows.

  The last words in Lu Bu's mind before he died were: "We'll meet again on the battlefield!"

  It started with the death of Luo Bang, on the mountain rocks, among the miscellaneous trees, the bowstring was tight and the sound shook the ears, one arrow after another, like a string of pearls. The blood arrows shot on the mountain path, the mournful cries and rolling sounds echoed in the valley. Even thousands of Hu riders hundreds of steps away couldn't help but change color, their horses were even more frightened, neighing and restless.

  "Why? Why does he still have the strength to fight back?" Lord Luo was furious, his face red with rage, and he shouted at Yan Rou, the leather whip in his hand cracking loudly. If Yan Rou wasn't a noble guest, he would have already struck him with it.

  Yan Rou's face was also pale, and she muttered: "It's been less than six hours, how could the medicine have worn off? It doesn't make sense! No one has ever recovered in such a short time, not even a donkey!" At this moment, Yan Rou couldn't help but want to fly up the mountain peak and see with her own eyes what was going on!

  ……

  "They must be eager to get to the bottom of things - especially that Yan Rou, who is afraid of being unable to fly up the mountain or dig out his eyeballs and throw them over to take a closer look."

  Ma Huan said this when he was comfortably leaning against a large stone with a smooth surface. In front of him, there was a tree stump as thick as a bowl, its roots deeply embedded among the rocks. The part above three feet had been cut off by a sharp blade, leaving only two fist-thick branches that looked like a giant slingshot at first glance. Ma Huan's leopard bow was horizontally placed on this "giant slingshot" tree stump.

  Just as Yan Rou had guessed, Ma Huan's body hadn't recovered and he could barely walk. Drawing a bow? Don't even think about it, let alone six stones, he couldn't even handle six dou.

  Horsemen gather like clouds, sharpening their blades with a whoosh. In the face of desperation, heaven and earth are unresponsive. The only way out is to save oneself! Ma Xiao's only reliance was his mechanical arm, which had repeatedly helped him escape danger. How to make the mechanical arm shoot arrows single-handedly would be the key to life and death.

  Ma Huan and Li Ji went up the mountain, first finding a suitable small tree, cutting off the top with a knife, leaving the forked branch, then using the cut-off skin rope to firmly fix the bow on the tree fork. Ma Huan's fixed position for the bow was very particular, just at the two ends of the grip near the bow arm, so as not to block the arrow shooting, nor restrict the bow arm's elasticity, affecting the range. In this way, this tree stump was equivalent to Ma Huan's left hand, helping him open the strong bow and snipe the Hu cavalry.

  The only drawback is that the bow body is fixed and cannot be moved or turned, and the shooting range of the bow and arrow is only about 30 degrees. However, it is enough to completely seal off the mountain path and canyon entrance.

  "I also want to know what's going on, but I suppose you won't tell me either." A soft and gentle voice came from beside him.

  Ma Huai slightly turned her head and saw Li Ji kneeling beside her, helping her take out the arrows from the quiver and placing them one by one on her right side, making it convenient for her to pick up the arrows. At this moment, Li Ji's hair was disheveled, her face was flushed, and her clothes were covered with weeds and thorns, even torn in several places. Compared to her elegant and refined appearance last night, she looked quite disheveled now, but despite her disheveled state, Li Ji's kneeling posture remained dignified and graceful, as if she were in a grand hall. It was clear that this was a kind of etiquette and demeanor that had been deeply ingrained in her bones.

  Ma Xun's heart was clear and bright, and he knew that Li Ji's birth was definitely not ordinary. But who would she be? He guessed in his heart, but smiled on his lips: "I also want to tell you, but you will definitely not believe it, so let's just forget it."

  Li Ji pouted and said, "Never mind, but there's one thing you must tell me - how many arrows can your arm strength shoot? The Xianbei people are going to attack again, and this time they've brought more people than before."

  Ma Xian turned his head to look, and indeed, the Xianbei people had sent out over a hundred men this time, each holding a bow. Ma Xian's face was stern: "Quickly hide behind the rocks, don't come out unless I call you. As for how many arrows I can shoot, if you're bored, you might as well count them."

  Seeing the enemy still had strong combat power, they actually shot and killed more than 30 people in just over a dozen breaths. The Xianbei people did not dare to make a big move again, not only did their numbers increase by twofold, but they also used new tactics. Fifty men at the entrance of the canyon road drew their bows and fired upwards to cover, while another fifty men quickly held their bows and rushed towards the mountain path.

  Ma Xian was well-prepared for this, as he was standing on a protruding cliff that was over 20 zhang (about 66 feet) above the ground, surrounded by rocks and small trees. The Xianbei people below could hardly see him when looking up, making it impossible to aim directly at him, so they could only estimate their shots, which naturally had no accuracy, and were essentially just random arrows flying everywhere. Of course, these random arrows should not be underestimated either - during the Three Kingdoms period, many famous generals died from them. Therefore, Ma Xian also set up a few wooden stakes around himself, with thick branches placed horizontally on top of his head, making it look like a crude and ugly hut, but effective nonetheless. It can be said that unless someone came charging up the mountain path to attack him directly, it would be almost impossible for anyone shooting from the valley below to hit him.

  The Xianbei people who were supposed to be "covering" below the valley entrance could be ignored, and Ma Xian only needed to concentrate his forces against the fifty Xianbei people who came up from the mountain path.

  Among these fifty people, there were those wearing armor and those not wearing armor, those holding shields and those holding bows... But in Ma Hu's eyes, to be precise, in the face of the leopard bow's powerful killing power, everything was just a fleeting cloud. From his position, when the first Xianbei person rushed up the curved mountain path, he could have shot an arrow to kill him. However, Ma Hu did not take action, he wanted to wait until all the Xianbei people rushed up the mountain path, then picked up a three-edged armor-piercing heavy arrow, iron arm holding the bow and arrow, aiming at the one in front...

  Whoosh! A fierce arrow is coming!

  The Xianbei people at the front were very cautious, holding wooden shields covered with leather to block their bodies and heads. But when the shield was violently shaken, as if struck by a giant crossbow, the faces of the Xianbei people suddenly changed.

  Pffft! A blood arrow shot out, the Xianbei man in front seemed to have been hit by a heavy hammer, his shield fell off, and an arrow pierced through his chest, heavily leaning back and knocking down several people behind him, rolling down the sloping mountain path. Wherever it passed, it brought down a piece of land, and rolled up a string of calabazas. On a narrow mountain path, all the Xianbei people were busy avoiding and fleeing.

  Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!

  Ma Hu grabbed the opportunity and shot five arrows in a row, with each arrow spaced less than one second apart. At a distance of twenty zhang, not a single arrow missed its mark, killing five people and adding four more blood gourds to his collection. The most frightening was the fifth person, who had just jumped up to avoid the rolling bodies of his companions, only to be shot in the chest by an arrow at the moment his feet left the ground, causing his body to crash into a large tree behind him, where he was pinned alive to the trunk.

  Such a violent arrow, scared the surviving Xianbei people's gallbladder, one by one rolling and crawling down the mountain. The fifty Xianbei archers responsible for covering up were also infected with fear, plus they had been shooting arrows for half a day without even hitting a bird, and under the frustration and terror, they also dispersed in an instant.

  Ma Huan turned his head and shouted: "Li Ji, little girl, you can come out now. Take advantage of the Xianbei people's retreat and quickly pick up a few bags of arrows." Ma Huan originally had only one bag of iron-tipped arrows, but after taking control of Luo Bang, he obtained two more bags from the two horses. However, just now, the front and back wheels of rapid arrows had already consumed one-third of the arrows. Whenever there was an opportunity, they had to be replenished to avoid the embarrassing situation of "arrows arriving when needed".

  Liji poked her head out and gazed at the blood-stained mountain path and the corpses scattered all over, "This...so fast..."

  Ma Xun said lightly, "This is the advantage of terrain - this mountain path is like a rope, and fifty Xianbei people are like locusts strung on the rope. Stringing up fifty 'locusts', how long do you think it will take?"