The Death of the Arrow God (Part 2)

  Xu Hui was shot in the forehead with an arrow, but still did not die. Lu Junyi and others saw this and were all shocked. Wu Song asked his subordinates: "Which of you knows the origin of that old thief?"

  Tang Que walked forward and said, "Reporting to the national teacher, that old thief is called Xu Huai, with a courtesy name of Hu Lin. The older man beside him is called Xu He, the middle-aged woman is called Xu Qingniang, and the two younger ones are Xu Changsheng and Xu Weisheng, both sons of Xu He. Xu He's courtesy name is Congfu, he is a paternal cousin of Xu Huai, and an uncle-nephew relationship with Xu Qingniang. They all learned from Chen Nianyi, participated in the inner canon of Zen Buddhism, and have some magical powers."

  "This Xu Qingniang is the aunt of Yan Shude, a great general under Chen Xizhen. Her husband died early and she has some magical powers, so she returned to her maiden home and became Xu He's Daoist companion."

  Wu Song exclaimed in surprise: "Xu Qingniang is Xu He's niece, how can she be his Taoist partner?"

  Tang Huan's expression slightly froze, and he smiled: "I think it's just a spiritual connection, not a physical union, but I'm not sure. After all, Daoist partners need to complement each other's yin and yang, and it's hard to guarantee that we won't lose control. Although we are people from a hidden door, an unorthodox sect, we are much cleaner than these people!"

  Many Taoist priests and Wu Song couldn't help but burst out laughing. Chen Liqing drew her bow again, and the four girls, Osmanthus fragrans and Mentha, also shot arrows at the inner city. Although these four girls were not as skilled in archery as Chen Liqing, they were all first-rate marksmen, using three-stone strong bows.

  In the army, there were also skilled archers who excelled at drawing strong bows. Under the leadership of Langzi Yan Qing, they shot arrows towards the inner city in succession. The powerful archers inside the inner city immediately counterattacked, and both sides exchanged arrows back and forth. Some arrows with insufficient range fell to the ground, triggering a series of explosions, which set off the steel wheel fire cabinets.

  Steel wheel fire cabinet, this thing is a bit like the landmine of later generations. In the late Northern Song Dynasty, it had been developed by Moism and then disappeared in the long river of history like a fleeting flower.

  Wu Song's eyes flashed as he ordered the soldiers to carefully dig out a steel wheel fire cabinet, preparing to have someone disassemble it and understand its manufacturing method.

  "As long as we figure out the manufacturing method and hand it over to the craftsmen in the camp, we can also use this old-fashioned landmine to fill up the main road of Qingyun Mountain, so that Chen Xizhen cannot get down the mountain."

  Between the two cities, arrows flew back and forth. Many Taoist priests surrounded Wu Song and Gong Sunyan as they walked down the city wall, leaving only the generals to command. The entire outer city of Qingzhou was densely packed with government soldiers, shooting inward. Liu Hui Niang and others were also afraid of being accidentally injured by stray arrows, so they all came down and set up flying towers inside the city to give orders from a distance.

  Wu Song immediately ordered the catapult to be pushed forward and fired at the flying tower, whereupon Liu Hui Niang had no choice but to descend from the tower and hide inside the city to direct secretly.

  At this moment, only a cheer was heard from the outer city wall. Countless officers and soldiers shouted: "General Chen's divine arrow!" Wu Song hastily ordered someone to ask, and it turned out that Chen Liqing used an enhanced iron bow to name the defenders of the inner city one by one. One arrow shot Deng Zongbi dead, another arrow shot Dong Ping dead, Xin Congzhong was hit by an arrow and fell to the ground, unknown whether he was dead or alive. As for others with unknown surnames, even more were killed, countless in number.

  At that time, everyone in the city was in a state of panic, and all the generals were hiding behind the city walls, afraid to show their heads for fear of being shot. Despite this, Chen Liqing still used her rapid-fire arrows to shoot at the back of the city walls, hitting several more high-ranking officers, who were carried away by others.

  It's just that at this moment, they can't get down from the city wall. The bandit army is waiting outside the city, ready to attack at any time. The generals on the inner city wall are using large shields to protect themselves in front and behind, and morale has fallen to an all-time low.

  Liu Hui Niang immediately ordered the captured Thunderbolt chariot to be moved to the city tower, and counterattacked Chen Li Qing. Those bandits had just climbed up when they were shot dead one by one by Chen Li Qing and four other female generals, not even the Thunderbolt chariot could be used.

  The government troops outside the city saw this, and cheered loudly, shouting "Divine Arrows". Xiaoli Guang Huarong was in the city recovering from illness, heard the loud shouts outside, immediately struggled to get up, brought three quivers of arrows and a spear, led his horse and led an army to come.

  Gongsun Sheng saw that his face was flushed with a sickly red glow and hastily advised: "You are ill, what are you doing going out?"

  Hua Rong mounted the horse, but it refused to move. It turned out that it was frightened by the bandits' intimidation and Hua Rong had no choice but to dismount. He said, "The shout of 'Divine Archer' outside the city, isn't it calling me to take the field?"

  Gongsun Zan saw that he was somewhat unclear, and hurriedly told Chen Liting about the great female general who shot and killed many generals of Qingzhou, saying: "You are still ill, wait until you recover before going into battle again."

  "How can a great man like me be suppressed by a mere woman?" Hua Rong's face turned red with rage, and he led his 300 archers up to the city wall. The defenders inside the city were all cowering on the ground, unable to lift their heads. When they looked up, they saw the government troops outside shouting loudly like thunder, while five female generals rode a mechanical beast back and forth along the outer city walls, killing anyone who dared to stand in their way - no one could withstand even a single arrow from them!

  Hua Rong flew into a rage and ordered his men to bring up his strong bow, which was as heavy as ten stones. With great effort, he drew it open and shot at Chen Liqing. With a "ding" sound, the arrow struck down the flower pin on her head!

  Chen Liqing was shocked, and hastily looked over to see a frail young general, wearing a helmet with a crimson tassel and golden phoenix wings, adorned with a pair of yew-leaf-shaped shoulder guards and a Tang-style armor, with a gilded lion-headed belt around his waist, and a red silk battle robe with a beast-faced brooch on the front and back, and a pair of yellow leather boots with cloud patterns.

  Although pale and sickly, with a bow in hand, he seemed like a celestial being. Chen Liqing was perplexed, but then Hua Rong shouted loudly: "That woman, I am Hua Rong of Qingfeng Stronghold, the number one archer. I spared your life with my first arrow, not wanting to kill you with a hidden arrow. You also claim to be a divine archer, dare you compete with me?"

  Chen Liqing had never encountered an opponent since the start of the battle. Upon hearing this, she stopped her mechanical beast and smiled: "What's there to be afraid of?" As soon as she finished speaking, she shot an arrow, which was met with a cold smile from Hua Rong, who also shot an arrow. The two arrows collided in mid-air, their tips shattering each other, and fell to the ground.

  Hua Rong then loaded three bronze tooth arrows on the bowstring, exerting great force to shoot them off. One arrow flew straight towards Chen Liqing, who lightly dodged it. Another two arrows were shot, one towards Lu Junyi, which was deflected by his long spear, and another that hit Hao Siwen's chest, causing him to fall headfirst from the city tower and splatter into a pulp.

  Chen Liqing was shocked and angry, only to see Hua Rong shooting three arrows again. She hastily hung up three arrows and shot them against the wind. Unexpectedly, Hua Rong's three arrows collided with each other in mid-air, and Chen Liqing blocked two of them, but one arrow hit Baisheng Jiang Haitao, entering from his eye socket and exiting from the back of his head, making him dead beyond death.

  Han Tao and Hao Siwen, two heroic spirits, flew away to Qingyun Mountain.

  Lu Junyi and other generals were shocked and hastily descended from the city wall to report this matter to Wu Song. When Wu Song climbed up to the tower to take a look, he saw that inside the city, the enemy army's drums shook the sky, shouting "Arrow God!"

  Hua Rong caught sight of a general wearing a golden helmet with a dragon-shaped finial and a suit of golden armor adorned with linked rings, ascending the city wall. He moved with the lithe ease of a tiger or an eagle, exuding an aura that was both captivating and intimidating. Hua Rong thought to himself: "This man is undoubtedly a martial hero. If I can just kill him, then Liu Huiniang and Chen Liqin will be nothing but jokes!"

  Hua Rong immediately strung five arrows, let out a loud shout, his muscles bulging, his body rising high, and shot at Wu Song. The five arrows had just left his hand when a whistling sound was heard, the bowstring snapped with a "pa" sound, but it was Chen Liqing who had spotted an opening and shot an arrow to break Hua Rong's bowstring.

  Those five arrows shot in front of Wu Song, were grabbed by Wu Song's big hand, and all caught in his hands. Hua Rong was stunned, unsure what to do. Chen Liqin originally wanted to shoot him dead with one arrow, seeing the situation hurriedly stopped her hand, shouting: "Hua Rong, you've lost your bow, if I take advantage of this opportunity to kill you, it wouldn't be heroic! Quickly go get your bow!"

  Hua Rong glanced at Chen Liqing, ordered someone to bring a six-stone bow, which was already the hardest bow in the army. Hua Rong drew it twice, but it didn't feel quite right in his hand.

  Liu Hui Niang had heard about the archery contest between Hua Rong and Chen Li Qiang, so she hastily raised the flying tower to watch. Seeing that Hua Rong's bowstring was broken, she ordered someone to bring out a reinforced composite bow and said: "General, the military advisor has made a strong bow, wishing the general can only draw it twice, then there will be no strength left, I wonder if the general can use it?"

  Hua Rong held a bow in his hand and pulled it with force, happily saying: "What a good bow!"

  Liu Huiniang then ordered someone to give him the pot of poisonous arrows and instructed: "This arrow shaft is coated with pigeon poison, sees blood and seals the throat. General, you can use this arrow to shoot at Wu Zei. If Wu Zei catches the arrow, he will surely die! With this poisonous arrow, General, you have already won half the battle against Chen Liqing!"

  Hua Rong threw down the jar of poisoned arrows and said with a stern expression, "If I were to win using poisoned arrows, what kind of hero would that make me?"

  Liu Hui Niang knew he was proud and arrogant, and unexpectedly abandoned the poisonous arrow without using it. She couldn't help but sigh, and ordered someone to bring a mechanical beast: "General, when competing with Chen Li Qing in archery, you must have a mount. This mechanical beast can move forward and backward at will, I wish General good luck."

  Chen Liqing saw that he had a bow and arrow and a mount, and shouted loudly: "Hua Rong, why don't you and I go to the city below to shoot arrows? The steel wheels of the fire cabinet at the bottom of the city have all been broken by bows and arrows. You and I ride our horses, and we are not inferior to each other!"

  Hua Rong readily agreed and ordered the 300 archers: "I will compete with Chen Liqing in archery, do not secretly shoot arrows to harm her."

  Chen Liqing also instructed Guihua and others: "I will compete with Xiaoli Guanghui in archery, no one is allowed to secretly shoot him." She then turned to Wu Song and said: "Brother, you are not allowed to secretly help me either."

  "Call Uncle!" Wu Song lovingly patted her steel helmet, Chen Liqing was somewhat displeased, leading the mechanical beast down from the outer city wall, and came to the alley between the two cities. There, Hua Rong had also come down from the city wall, leading a Qilin beast, carrying a quiver of arrows, a bow, and a silver spear.

  Chen Liqing saw that he only had one pot of arrows, and said: "I don't want to take advantage of you." She threw away two pots of arrows and also left only one.

  The two men mounted their steeds, and the four mechanical beasts galloped away with a loud clatter. Wu Song gave the order: "Beat the drums!" Immediately, strong men with bare arms and holding large wooden mallets began to strike the war drums with a deafening crash.

  Liu Huiniang climbed up the city wall and ordered someone to beat the drum, also instructing Zhu Yongqing to prepare. When she saw Chen Lijin's weakness, she would shoot her dead. Zhu Yongqing hesitated for a long time and refused to respond. Liu Huiniang secretly sighed in her heart, saying: "Lijin is after all his wife who has not passed the door, and also the daughter of Chen Daizi, Yongqing dare not take action. Shi Dalang is indeed a useful person, unfortunately he doesn't know archery."

  Both sides temporarily ceased fire, and each looked down at the city below. They saw Chen Liqing and Hua Rong rushing along the city wall, each taking out their lifelong skills and shooting at each other. There were still unexploded steel wheel fire cabinets under the city, which were trampled by two huge mechanical beasts, and they exploded with a loud roar.

  These two mechanical beasts were extremely fast and had already sprinted past them before the explosion sounded, without harming the duo in the slightest.

  Hua Rong's archery was an old way, either one arrow was shot three times or one arrow was shot five times. In the air, they collided with each other, or hit the city wall and bounced back, like a flower cluster, making it impossible to defend against.

  Chen Liqing's archery skills were slightly inferior, but the difference was negligible. Hua Rong's arrows were all blocked, but he was mostly on the defensive and rarely counterattacked, causing his arrows to be consumed at an alarming rate.

  The two quickly emptied a pot of arrows, each got off the mechanism beast, picked up three arrows in hand, and jumped back onto the mechanism beast, saying: "Let's have another round of three arrows. If neither of us can overcome the other, we'll compare our spear techniques to decide life and death!"

  The three arrows were shot out again, and it was a draw. Hua Rong pulled out his silver spear and shouted: "Wonderful! Wonderful! Good girl, let's see who's the real master of spear techniques!"

  Chen Liqing saw Hua Rong's face getting redder and redder, like a drunkard, shaking his head: "No need to compare, my archery skills are indeed not as good as yours. If we talk about spear skills, you're not as good as me. You have an illness in your body, go back and rest for two days, recover from your illness and then come again!"

  Hua Rong burst out laughing: "A great man, how can he be despised by a little woman?" Even though the mechanical beast came forward, dancing with its silver spear to kill him, Chen Liqing was helpless and could only raise her gun to meet it. After more than twenty rounds of fighting, Hua Rong stood on top of the mechanical beast, his face red as cloth, his strength growing greater and greater, astonishingly even surpassing Chen Liqing's innate divine power!

  Liu Huiniang and the rebels saw Hua Rong's mighty display, ordering the strong men to beat the drums with all their might to aid in the battle. The drumbeats shook the heavens. Wu Song grew anxious at the sight, calling over Guihua, Bohan, and the four women, secretly instructing them: "If we are defeated, immediately shoot Hua Rong dead!"

  The four women nodded in agreement.

  Chen Liqing saw Hua Rong's gun technique was like a storm, and she also stood on the back of the mechanical beast to resist with all her might. After more than a dozen rounds, just as she was about to collapse, Hua Rong suddenly put away his gun, propped up the butt of the gun with both hands, and smiled: "How's that?"

  Chen Liqing also put away her gun, looking at him with a complex expression. Standing on the mechanical beast, she bowed to Hua Rong and said: "I lost, but you didn't win either. The God of Arrows, Hua Rong... what a pity..." Then she turned around and left.

  Liu Huiniang saw Chen Lqing admit defeat, and Hua Rong won a great victory. He said to Gong Sunsheng: "Hua Rong is indeed a person who will not use his full strength unless he is stimulated. Now our side's morale has been greatly boosted, we can hold on for some more time and wait for Chen Daizi to come and reinforce us."

  Xu Huai laughed and said: "The martial bandit relies on his bravery, now that he has met his match, tomorrow we can make Hua Rong come out to battle and see who can withstand it!" The Qingzhou generals were overjoyed, but after waiting for a long time, Hua Rong still did not appear.

  Liu Huiniang was puzzled in her heart and smiled: "Could it be that he still resents me for humiliating him in the past, and wants me to apologize to him? I still have this much dignity." She ordered a small soldier to go down the city to invite Hua Rong, while she herself stood aside with hands clasped together, preparing to apologize to Hua Rong. After waiting for half a day, only to see that small soldier rush up to the top of the city wall, crying: "General Hua... has ascended to heaven!"