Xue Qiming left with dashing grace. He waved coolly towards the inn and then departed with the soldiers.
Inside the inn, Rao Shuang gently dusted off Xue Niang's shoulders and said, "Don't be angry. Someone has to go, and if Stormqueller isn't going, it can only be him."
"Why?" Xue Niang lowered her head, her voice barely audible.
Rao Shuang sighed inwardly, glanced toward Tang Jinnian's room, and shook her head. "You're still young, you wouldn't understand."
Baili Gucheng sat by the bed, looking at the unconscious Yang Lu, his face changing constantly between anxiety and self-reproach.
Tang Jinnian sat cross-legged on the ground, hearing the sound of the crowd moving away outside the inn. His brow furrowed deeper, and he murmured words that only he could hear, "Hurry... I need to hurry..."
Ye Beizhi stood by the window, watching Xue Qiming leave. Only when he saw the man vanish into the night did he turn to Chi Nanwei and say, "It's late, go rest."
Chi Nanwei bit her lower lip, hesitated, and then silently nodded before leaving without a word.
She walked down the corridor towards her room. When passing by Fang Dingwu's room, she noticed the door was wide open. Standing outside, she could see Fang Dingwu sitting alone at the table, drinking silently.
"Big Brother Fang," Chi Nanwei called out softly.
Fang Dingwu turned his head to look. Seeing it was Chi Nanwei, he forced a smile, pulling at the corner of his mouth. "Little sis, you're not asleep yet?"
Chi Nanwei opened her mouth, hesitated for a moment, then asked, "Brother Fang, what are you thinking about?"
Fang Dingwu forced a bitter smile, shook his head, and said nothing. He poured himself another drink and downed it in one go.
Chi Nanwei stepped inside, walked to the table, and sat down. "Brother Fang, are you worried about the fall of Liangzhou?"
Fang Dingwu shook his head, looking at Chi Nanwei with a bitter smile. "My life was saved once already at the northern frontier, at worst I'll just die again. What's there to worry about?"
"Little sis, you're smart, so you must understand why that drunkard agreed to go on the city wall tonight."
Chi Nanwei fell silent for a moment, then nodded. "Someone has to go. Young Master Tang is at a critical stage in his alchemy. The city cannot fall, so someone must go. Even if one person has little impact on the battlefield, it's still better than having no one."
"Yes..." Fang Dingwu gazed at the full moon outside the window. "Someone must go..."
Chi Nanwei continued from where he left off. "And among us... if Dummy doesn't go, it would have to be that Bodhisattva. It's my selfishness, I don’t want Dummy to take the risk. He... he promised me, so that's why he isn't going..."
"And that drunkard understands it well, so he went." Fang Dingwu smiled and shook his head. "He's a man of honor, but that little girl will be heartbroken. She’s young, yet she’s quite sensible."
Chi Nanwei said nothing, her expression filled with unease and guilt.
Fang Dingwu clenched his fist, his expression filled with frustration. "I hate that my martial arts aren't good enough. I would only be a burden if I went up the city wall.
"Otherwise, I should have been the one to go... This life of mine was saved by Young Master Tang and Young Master Baili, yet I don’t even have the chance to repay them!"
Chi Nanwei looked at Fang Dingwu's expression, her eyes full of confusion.
The future was shrouded in thick fog, making it impossible to see clearly.
A hubbub woke Xue Qiming up, still a bit disoriented. He rubbed his eyes and habitually called out, "Xue Niang, bring me the washbasin!"
The door was roughly pushed open, and the loud sound startled Xue Qiming awake. He quickly jumped up and saw that the one who barged in was Zhou Tong.
"Warrior Xue!" Zhou Tong's face showed some urgency. "The Northern Qiang have moved their troops again!"
The Northern Qiang moving their troops again meant they were planning to attack the city once more.
Xue Qiming yawned lazily, found his shoes under the bed, put them on, and waved his hand. "Got it. I’ll head to the city wall right now and take a look at how Northern Qiang fights."
As Xue Qiming leisurely walked up to the city walls, the Northern Qiang army had already formed up on the plain below.
"The hell is that!" Xue Qiming exclaimed as soon as he glanced down from the city wall. "Damn, there are so many Northern Qiang barbarians!"
Zhou Tong followed Xue Qiming up and, upon hearing his exaggerated reaction, replied, "That's right. There are nearly two hundred thousand enemy troops below the city. Originally, it was more than two hundred thousand, but after three battles, they have fewer than two hundred thousand left."
"How many of us do we have?" Xue Qiming asked curiously.
Zhou Tong chuckled bitterly. "With the fifty thousand soldiers led by General Jiang who came to recently, we should have had nearly one hundred thousand men. But after three consecutive battles... we have fewer than seventy thousand left."
"Seventy thousand against two hundred thousand," Xue Qiming smirked. "It’s no wonder you’re struggling."
As they spoke, there was a stir in the Northern Qiang ranks, and their formation slowly began to push forward.
Xue Qiming, still curious, stuck his head out from the city wall to observe, while Zhou Tong had already begun shouting orders loudly, "Archery team, stand ready!"
At once, the creaking of bows being drawn taunt came from the city walls.
Zhou Tong turned around and saw Xue Qiming still standing by the city wall. He hurried over to pull him back. "My friend, step back a few steps. The enemy is about to fire arrows."
As Xue Qiming reluctantly stepped back a few steps at Zhou Tong insistence, he immediately heard the sound of arrows flying up from below the city. An endless storm of arrows rained down on the city walls!
"Fire!" At almost the same time, the commanders of the defending soldiers on the city walls gave the command. The two torrents of arrows collided like two schools of fish. The metallic ringing of arrows clashing formed the opening notes in the symphony of war.
It was unclear which side suffered the first casualties, but death cries signaled a shift in the onslaught. A chorus of screams, cries, and wails followed, and the air filled with a deadly display of arrows, glinting coldly in the light, blood spraying everywhere, painting a picture of despair.
Zhou Tong suddenly realized that Xue Qiming hadn't spoken for a long time. Wondering if his friend had been frightened into silence, he hurriedly turned to look, but what he saw shocked him.
Xue Qiming's eyes were filled with sickly excitement and fervor, his whole body trembling with enthusiasm. He was muttering something under his breath. Zhou Tong leaned in to listen, and was stunned to hear Xue Qiming repeating, "It's beautiful, too beautiful... make it even more intense, just a little more..."
Zhou Tong widened his eyes in horror, turning quickly to stare at Xue Qiming. He never expected that the person he had painstakingly brought back was a madman!
Suddenly Xue Qiming dashed out!
Still holding onto Xue Qiming's arm, Zhou Tong was dragged along and fell to the ground. He quickly looked up, but all he saw was Xue Qiming's rapidly retreating back.
Zhou Tong was still wondering what Xue Qiming was doing, when he saw him rush under the storm of arrows to the spot where a pile of large logs and stones were placed. He then grabbed a log as thick as a person’s embrace with one hand, his fingers sinking deeply into the hardwood!
Zhou Tong’s eyes widened in astonishment. Through his gaze, he could see Xue Qiming's right arm suddenly bulge with power, the muscles nearly tearing through his clothes. The log, which would require four men working together to lift, was being single-handedly hoisted up by Xue Qiming!
Zhou Tong couldn't help but swallow, completely baffled by what had fuelled Xue Qiming's display and why he was holding up a log. Nevertheless, he knew this was a rare sight. What Xue Qiming was doing was far more impressive than those street performers who broke bricks with their chests.
"Hey!" Xue Qiming hollered toward the enemy below the city wall.
Zhou Tong stared at Xue Qiming, his eyes nearly popping out of his head.
In fact, Xue Qiming didn't need to say anything. The Northern Qiang archers below the city had already noticed him! After all, it was hard not to notice someone carrying such a massive log. Countless arrows immediately shot toward him.
Zhou Tong was about to shout at Xue Qiming to dodge, but suddenly he saw Xue Qiming's lips curl into a grin, as the log-wielding man began to laugh wildly.
Then, a voice like a tolling bell echoed across the city walls. "What kind of crap are you shooting?! Come and see what a real man's arrow truly looks like!"
The enormous log flew from his hands, cutting through the air with a sharp whooshing sound. The thousand jin log accelerated straight toward the Northern Qiang army formation!
At this moment, both on the city walls and below, everyone turned pale with shock!