Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The entrance to the Scale Fragments Valley was like the cross-section of a horn. It was more than ten li in width, facing the Gulang Plains. From there, the road became narrow while the cliffs on both sides increased in height. One would find themselves in the depths of Mount Jade Dragon after venturing further into the valley.
The riders who entered the valley were from the Shatu Seven Tribes’ Dark Wood Tribe. The exact figure was 318 men. Without Yan Liqiang’s hindrance, these people were probably here to rendezvous with Morbeto and transport the first batch of captives from the Great Moon Tribe.
Given Morbeto’s confidence in taking down the Great Moon Tribe this time, he didn’t even consider the possibility of failing. His only concern was probably the few days of delay while transporting the first batch of captives due to the bad road conditions. Hence, he scheduled the rendezvous five days after he ‘took down’ the Great Moon Tribe. By right, he would have caused a great stir in the Gulang Plains right now after destroying the Great Moon Tribe by capturing the elders and other important figures. Therefore, he would gain respect for himself and the Dark Wood Tribe.
The troop of about three hundred men entered the Scale Fragments Valley with a few steeds at the rear, pulling along wooden caged wagons behind them.
That was Morbeto’s plan. Even when he was at death’s door, he was still fantasizing the scene where he would bring Seranchi back to the Dark Wood Tribe and dominate her. Sadly, the thoughts that flashed through his mind before his death never became a reality. Yet, it allowed Yan Liqiang to discover a lot of information that Morbeto never mentioned. That was why Yan Liqiang assembled a team to carry out this operation.
Morbeto was a ruthless show-off. The planned rendezvous at Scale Fragments Valley was definitely to have these people from the Dark Wood Tribe wait for him in the depths of the valley instead of him waiting for them outside the valley with all the captives in tow. Therefore, the men from Dark Wood Tribe charged inside without any hesitation.
The prisoner wagon creaked along the road. Due to the large number of people traveling between the valleys over many years to enter Mount Jade Dragon, a road was paved to be wide enough for the prisoner wagons to pass through.
Among the troop of three hundred men, less than twenty men carried bows on their backs while the rest carried scimitars. Everyone had extremely relaxed expressions on their faces. They were chatting with each other while riding because they were not here to fight a war; they were here to transport their ‘spoils of war’ today. Naturally, no one felt anxious since they didn’t have to risk their lives. Furthermore, this place was one of the Shatu Seven Tribe’s territories and the Dark Wood Tribe’s settlement was right next to it. What could possibly happen? Given a few more guts, no one probably dared to do something as foolish as messing with the Dark Wood Tribe here.
Yan Liqiang narrowed his eyes while watching the troop of 318 men slowly walking into his trap like a few hundred sheep walking into a slaughterhouse. The Great Moon Tribe’s warriors hid, silent and unmoving, among the bushes as well as behind the rocks and trees on both sides of the valley while keeping a close watch on those approaching Shatu men.
Hatred and determination were in their eyes. Many lives were lost in the Great Moon Tribe this time. These warriors’ family members, brothers, companions and acquaintances died or were injured during the upheaval a few days ago. As the Shatu men drew closer to them, the flames in their heart burned even more intensely.
Everyone clutched their bow their hands, ready with an arrow nocked onto the bowstring. They held their breath, waiting for Yan Liqiang to release the first arrow. No one dared to be reckless and challenge Yan Liqiang’s authority as the Elder Guardian at this very moment.
Minutes felt like hours to these Great Moon Tribe warriors. When all the Shatu men entered their area of attack, the warriors hiding on both sides of the valley could even hear the Shatu men laughing loudly below them…
A few seconds later, the anticipated sound of arrows slicing through the air was finally heard…
Yan Liqiang finally fired his first shot. Four arrows flew out from the Horned Python Bow in his hands. They passed through the gap between the rocks and the short bushes at the foot of the mountain like bolts of lightning, then impaled four archers riding at the rear of the troop. The four archers immediately fell off their steeds.
The archers were all riding at the back, giving Yan Liqiang the perfect chance to seal off the troop’s escape route.
The first shot was like a starter pistol. As soon as the Great Moon Tribe’s archers heard the arrows, they immediately came out from their hiding places and started shooting downward.
Chaos immediately descended upon the Scale Fragments Valley. Blood-curdling creams, angry bellows, frightened yells, and the agonized neighs of steeds resonated across the valley.
These hundred men Yan Liqiang requested from the Great Moon Tribe were all above average archers. They were hiding on the high ground on both sides of the valley, which was only fifty meters away from troops down in the valley. The well-prepared group suddenly attacked and immediately reduced the Shatu riders by a quarter.
When the Great Moon Tribe’s archers released their first shots, Yan Liqiang had already made his second shot.
The targets of his four arrows were still the archers down there. As soon as the first four archers fell off their steeds, another four behind them followed suit. It was only at this moment that the archers with quicker reactions leaped off their steeds or retrieved their bows…
Even so, their reaction speed wasn’t quick enough to Yan Liqiang. They were slow, too slow in fact. Dismounting and retrieving their bows required at least a second. During the span of one second, Yan Liqiang fired twice, launching eight arrows. The remaining few archers in the troop were completely wiped out by Yan Liqiang alone without even having the chance to draw their bows…
Without their archers, only a bloodbath awaited the remaining men at the open space in such a short distance from the hundred well-prepared archers from the Great Moon Tribe.
Of course, Yan Liqiang didn’t hold back either. Within ten seconds, he fired every arrow in the two quivers before him. It took only a man and his bow to wipe out a quarter of the Shatu troops. A few Shatu men among the group who had progressed into a decent cultivation realm, well above the Martial Warrior level, took the initiative to rush up the hills on both sides. These opponents were conveniently Yan Liqiang’s focus. When the bowstring of the Horned Python Bow in his hand vibrated, it was proven that these men’s lives weren’t worth more than the other ordinary Shatu men around them.
The entire battle lasted for only half a minute from the moment Yan Liqiang fired his first arrow until the moment when the final Shatu warrior collapsed on the ground.