Chapter 45: Initial Exploration of Reality and Illusion

  The next day, just after dawn, Ying Tianlong walked out of the cave and was surprised to see that everyone was already standing in front of the cave waiting. The soldiers were fully armed, each one spirited and with high morale. No one showed a frightened expression, people were silent, staring at their leader.

  The dragon was extremely excited, these people were all heinous criminals, but in this special occasion, they became brave soldiers. The sound of swords and horses' hooves, the battle between attack and defense, advance and retreat, strategy and conspiracy, loyalty and betrayal, all twistedly unfolded in this bloody battlefield. In the flash of knives and swords, you might never be able to predict the outcome of the war, who is the real winner is no longer important, what's important is that one's goal is getting closer step by step. Using their filthy blood and cheap lives to exchange for more people using righteous blood and precious lives to gain something, this calculation seems reasonable.

  "Let's go!" Tian Long roared loudly.

  "Whirlwind Camp" and "Black Wind Camp" were not far apart, the troops set off with a grand momentum, forming a long snake array, with knives, guns, swords and halberds, war flags fluttering, and arrived at the gate of "Black Wind Camp". The city wall of "Black Wind Camp" was lined with soldiers, the gate was tightly closed, and the guards inside did not dare to relax for a moment, watching the development of the situation nervously, and immediately sent someone to inform the master of the house, Luo Guoyong.

  Lu Guoyong sat in a chair for a long time without making a sound after hearing the news. Is this Ying Tianlong really going to take action? Has he eaten leopard gallbladder or something? In terms of strength, "Heifengying" has always had the upper hand, and in terms of morale, they are not much worse off than them. After training soldiers for a thousand days, "Heifengying" has a batch of brave and skilled warriors, and Hong San, who was newly promoted to be in charge, is rough but has more courage than others, with dozens of good men under him, many of whom were also former soldiers, and the weapons in their hands are even more advanced than those of "Xuanfengying". Lu Guoyong couldn't understand it - did Ying Tianlong really dare to crash eggs against a stone?

  Hong San said on the side with a look of desperation: "Master, they're bullying us to our faces, you give the order."

  Lu Guoyong said, "What's your hurry? Come out with me and take a look around."

  Two men arrived at the gate, seeing outside surrounded by people of "Whirlwind Camp", each holding guns and knives, carrying shields, spears, bows and arrows, as well as ladders for attacking cities, staring fiercely, as if they were about to charge over at any moment.

  Lu Guoyong climbed up onto the high city wall and his men shouted loudly: "Our great master summons your great master to come out and talk."

  "Tell your master that if he has something to say, he should say it; if he needs to fart, he should let it rip. I don't have time to waste on him here."

  Lu Guoyong sneered and replied: "You're really bold, with just this small group of people you dare to come and attack the city, have you taken the wrong medicine?"

  Ying Tianlong retorted, "It's not the number of soldiers that matters, but their quality. Every single one of my men is a brave warrior, capable of taking on ten enemies at once. Unlike you, who are like turtles hiding in your shells, too afraid to come out from behind your city walls."

  Lu Guoyong said: "Ying Tianlong, must we meet with swords drawn?"

  Ying Tianlong said, "Aren't you just talking nonsense? You've cut off our water source and forced us onto a dead-end path. If we don't fight back, are we supposed to just wait for death?"

  Lu Guoyong suddenly turned his head and stared at Hong San: "Was it you who ordered them to cut off their water source?"

  Hong San nodded his head and replied "yes".

  Lu Guoyong let out a long sigh: "You, you've ruined my big plan. Do you know what it means for them to have their water source cut off? It's pushing them towards a dead end. They'd be stupid not to rebel. Alright, I don't want to blame you now, let's just see how things develop."

  Lu Guoyong replied to Tian Long: "I don't know about the water cut-off, what do you think of this plan? I'll immediately send someone to restore the water supply. Can your troops withdraw now?"

  Ying Tianlong replied: "In addition to supplying water, you also let us go to the forest to cut down trees. You have agreed to these two conditions, and I will consider withdrawing my troops."

  Lu Guoyong's face sank: "Ying Tianlong, don't think that you can just drink the penalty wine without eating. You're asking for too much and it won't do you any good. I only agreed to provide water, don't think about anything else."

  Ying Tianlong turned his head and said to his subordinates: "If Luo Daren doesn't agree, what should we do?"

  The crowd shouted in unison: "Kill them all, leave no chicken or dog alive."

  "Kill, kill."

  The shout made Luo Guoyong's heart tremble with fear, not because he was afraid that the Heavenly Dragon Society would attack, but because of the leadership ability of the Heavenly Dragon Society. What are they, unpardonable criminals, who doesn't have blood debts on their hands, and who is a lamp that saves oil? To think that these scattered troops can be organized so well, it's not something an ordinary person can do.

  This Tianlong will be his strongest opponent yet.

  Hong San and the others were impatient: "Boss, I'll lead my brothers to charge down, kill him with a single shot, I want to see if these people are human, will they bleed when stabbed by a bayonet."

  Lu Guoyong said, "Spare me the nonsense. With just over a hundred men and a few broken guns, they think they can attack the city? Dream on! Prepare more rolling logs and rocks for me, and when the time comes, I'll have them heavily bombarded, killing a few of them will make them know fear. Let's play along with them, and when they're tired, they'll naturally retreat."

  Hong San said high school entrance examination, I'll go prepare now.

  Lu Guoyong personally guarded the city wall and shouted to his men: "Brothers, a thousand days of training for one day of battle. Today is your day! Hold the gate, tonight we'll drink wine and eat meat!"

  On this side, Ying Tianlong and Qin Ming exchanged a glance, Qin Ming understood, and immediately organized people into two rows, each holding bows and arrows. With a loud command from Qin Ming: "Release."

  A burst of "brushing" sounds was followed by two rows of sharp arrows shooting towards the city wall, and some people were shot down on the spot, accompanied by miserable cries.

  Lu Guoyong was pierced by an arrow that shot through his clothes, fortunately it didn't enter his body, and he was so scared that his soul flew away, rolling and crawling to hide in a dead corner. Seeing several soldiers fall down, some people died on the spot.

  Arrows were still coming up continuously. The real battle had begun.

  Shouts of charging came from under the city wall, three rows of soldiers carrying ladders for attacking the city rushed up, set up the ladders and were about to climb up. Hong San happened to rush over, ordering to shoot arrows, throw stones, and roll down logs. In an instant, smoke and fire rose everywhere, and the shouts shook the sky. The smell of the battlefield became more and more intense.

  Just as things were getting lively here, someone came to report: "Master, there's someone attacking the city in the west."

  "How many people?" Luo Guoyong asked loudly.

  "It's unclear, but judging from the number of bows and arrows, there are definitely not a few people."

  Lu Guoyong hastily and anxiously told Hong San: "You stay here, I'll go take a look."

  Hong San abruptly took off his clothes and shouted with a bare back: "Give me arrows, shoot them dead."

  Ying Tianlong let out a cold laugh, took the bow and arrow from his subordinate, aimed, and with a burst of strength, shot an arrow that seemed to have eyes, flying straight towards Hong San. Hong San was also skilled, quickly dodging the arrow with his body, but didn't expect Ying Tianlong's second arrow to arrive, shooting into his left arm with a "thud", piercing through it, and blood spurted out.

  Hong San let out a "ma ya" and fell down, his subordinates rushed to support him.

  The people of "Whirlwind Camp" actually all shouted in unison.

  However, during the siege, "Whirlwind Camp" also suffered casualties, losing four or five brothers. In response to Tianlong's order, the men were withdrawn and shields were formed into a wall to block the arrows shot by the enemy. At the same time, they counterattacked. The two sides were in a stalemate, and the battle subsided slightly.

  Wang Xiaofeng walked over and said to Ying Tianlong, "Master, this is their firepower deployment diagram. The city wall has watchtowers and arrow towers, all marked one by one."

  Ying Tianlong said: "It's done well, tomorrow it will be their turn to be unlucky."

  In the following time, Ying Tian Long did not order the attack on the city. After all, flesh and blood could not withstand stones and rolling logs. Both sides sent people to shout and scold each other. They cursed whatever was unpleasant, and their ancestors were turned over eight times. As for this kind of shouting and scolding, Ying Tian Long really found it amusing. Anyway, now was the time to kill time, and the sky was still early, so playing around a bit was harmless.

  Lu Guoyong returned, saw Hong San's injuries were not light, and was so angry that he scolded loudly: "Ying Tianlong, I am at odds with you, today I will play with you to the end."

  Don't want to play with Tianlong anymore, order the subordinates to retreat, and shout at the city gate: "Tell your master that we will come again tomorrow. If you have the ability, line up outside the city and fight a decisive battle with us. Our master said, happy to accompany."

  Lu Guoyong stuck his head out and replied: "You also tell your master, I Lu Guoyong am willing to accompany him."

  Back at the camp, as ordered by Tian Long, they gave a grand burial to their fallen brothers and quickly treated the wounded. After briefly summarizing today's experience and shortcomings in attacking the city, he said to everyone: "I really admire your performance today, not one of you was timid on the battlefield. In war, there will be deaths, and both sides suffer the same losses. But today's true winner should be us. Because 'Whirlwind Camp' fired the first shot after all, this tells Luo Guoyong that his era of claiming kingship is over. Brothers, rest well and prepare for tomorrow's decisive battle."

  Arriving at the cave, he asked Yin Tao about his preparations for Tianlong Lake. Yin Tao replied: "Don't worry, everything is going according to plan. Tomorrow's battle will definitely be exciting, just wait and watch the show."

  Ying Tianlong said: "I believe tomorrow should be our turning point. After defeating Luo Guoyong, the next step will be easy for us. I really miss my family."

  Yin Tao asked who was at home?

  Ying Tianlong's face turned red: "Family members are family members, aren't you asking deliberately?"

  Yin Tao smiled mysteriously: "The master of the house, you'd better be careful, I have something on you, beware of me counterattacking."

  "Alright, alright, you win," Tian Long hastily raised his hands in surrender.