Patrol Captain

The news of the Northern Liang cavalry's advance into the interior spread like wildfire, fermenting faster than expected!
The news reached Chengdu at noon that day, and by the afternoon it had spread to inns and taverns, causing an uproar and spreading like wildfire.

In the late afternoon, the setting sun hung obliquely over the western mountains, dyeing the sky a somber orange-red, like charcoal embers that had lost their heat, with only embers faintly flickering behind the clouds, illuminating Chengdu below.

As dusk fell, in a private room on the second floor of a restaurant called Huicuilou in the northern part of the city, an unfamiliar voice could be heard.
"Now that the Northern Liang has breached the pass, the situation in Chengdu is extremely precarious, and it may soon trigger a chain reaction. I urge everyone to make plans as soon as possible!"

"I called you all here for two reasons: first, to give you a heads-up, and second, to bid you farewell. I must take my family and leave Chengdu. I can no longer stay here to drink and chat with you all."

"Brother Yue, where are you going?" someone asked in surprise.

"I don't know, but in my humble opinion, news has come that Chengdu will soon be unsafe. Demons may stir in the south and west. I have ambitions but cannot realize them, so I can only take my family to a safe place. I have to break my promise to you all and become a deserter for now." The speaker sounded dejected, seemed to shake his head, and forced a laugh.

“Brother Yue, what are you saying? If you’re a deserter, then most of the martial artists in this city are cowards. Back then, we followed the will of that Martial Saint General, our hearts filled with passion, and went to the front lines to slay demons and monsters, fighting valiantly and forging deep bonds of brotherhood. None of you here are cowards.” Another person immediately spoke up.
Then came a sound of someone slamming their hand on the table, and the tone suddenly became indignant and impassioned.
"General Chen had initially opened up the situation, but then he encountered the Grand Preceptor who was guarding this place. This man has no real ability, ha, but he's a master at suppressing people. He's always been looking for stability and has never dared to launch an offensive. Now, the Demon Suppression General in the west has been recalled, the western front has fallen, and the demons from the Demon Kingdom are still advancing. In the south, the Ten Thousand Mountains suffered heavy damage, but we haven't heard any further news. In the north, he mobilized troops, but he's just holding the northern passes and hasn't taken the initiative to wipe out the northern rebels. What is he afraid of? He's just asking for trouble. And look at what's happened to Shu now."

"Trying to maintain the overall situation, but in the process of trying to stabilize, everything went completely out of control!"

"Even if we wanted to do something righteous, we didn't have the chance. Damn it, it's so frustrating!"

"Alas, the land of Shu is fraught with hardship. The land beneath our feet is our home. We originally wanted to do our duty, but we have only passion and enthusiasm, with no way to serve our country. Now we have to leave our homes. Brother Yue's decision seems to be the right one. I have also thought about it, and it is time to return to reality. Tomorrow I will leave Jin Guan and return to my sect!" Another person spoke, his tone filled with disappointment, and sighed.

"Brother Jiang, are you leaving too?"

"In that case, everyone should wake up and think about their options."

"."

Soon, the people at the table in the private room, as they talked, were filled with disappointment with the current situation and even the imperial court, and began to think about ways out.

From their conversation, it's clear that they were all once a group of ambitious people from the Sichuan region who answered the call to protect their homeland and fight against demons on the front lines.

These people, sharing similar experiences and aspirations, became friends and came together.

However, later, a series of major events occurred in Shu, the situation changed drastically, and everyone retreated to Jin Guan to observe and wait for an opportunity, which resulted in the current situation.

The high-ranking official sent by the imperial court took over the Shu region, but he remained complacent and lacked ambition, nearly ruining the region. This also dampened the spirits of those still full of passion in the martial arts world.

Suddenly, during the meal, someone asked:
"Where is Brother Gongsun?"

The slightly noisy atmosphere in the room quieted down for a moment.

The view shifts to the private room, where five or six people sit, all dressed in martial arts attire, exuding energy and bearing an extraordinary air. At an age when they should be full of vigor, their faces bear the marks of hardship.

Following the question, everyone looked at a man at the table, dressed in a black outfit, carrying a sword box on his back, his eyes sharp and discreet, but one sleeve was empty.

This person's face was strikingly similar to that of Gongsun Wuji, who had known Chen Yuan in his early days. They had met on a night-time ship, but their circumstances had changed, and they rarely saw each other again.

This once renowned successor of the Sword Tomb, a prominent figure among the younger generation in northern Sichuan, was swept away like a firefly in the torrent amidst the successive upheavals in the region.

He had responded to Chen Yuan's call and gone to the southern front, Chuanzhong Pass, with many other martial artists to fight demons. During this time, he caught a glimpse of Chen Yuan leading his troops back in triumph from Weiyuan Pass. Later, when Chen Yuan was trapped in the Ten Thousand Mountains, the situation became urgent. Pei Yanhu, who was stationed at Chuanzhong Pass, quickly organized his men, issued a call to arms, and summoned those with ambition to go to the three fallen prefectural cities in front of Chuanzhong Pass to inquire about the demon clan's teleportation array.

At that time, this successor of the Sword Tomb took a hero's invitation and went to a fallen prefecture to investigate. However, he was only a novice soldier at the time and encountered a life-or-death situation, barely escaping with his life.

That's where his arm was broken!
Gongsun Wuji, with his one arm, raised his cup in silence, drank, and then set it down, accepting the gazes of his friends. His large, white-lacquered eyes remained calm.
"I'll wait a little longer!"

"As long as the Ninth Mountain still exists, nothing will happen to the Shu region!"

He never revealed to others that he knew the famous Martial Saint General. When he escaped from the ship during the night voyage, one morning, this general, who was then just a patrol officer, gave him a horse and saw him off at the city gate!
He kept this incident in his heart. He didn't talk about it before because he felt a little proud when facing the gap. Later, he stopped talking about it because he had experienced life and death, so he regarded it as a precious experience in his life and buried it in his heart.

Now, he only feels admiration for Chen Yuan, who rose from a military officer to a martial saint, and has no other thoughts.

The group of friends fell silent upon hearing this!
Rumor has it that the general has resigned from his post and fallen out with the court. He is still at Ninth Mountain, but he has not gone to the front lines again.

Yunding Mountain initially issued a gag order for this news, but since Chen Yuan was resigning from his post at the time, there were many officials present, and the news inevitably leaked out.

In the midst of this silence, a man with a short black beard, dressed in a light blue outfit, and appearing to be around thirty years old, stood up and said in a low voice:

"Time is almost up. We need to get out of the city before the gates close. My wife and daughters are already waiting for me at the gate. I must say goodbye now!"

"Once I've settled down, I'll definitely write to you brothers and let you know that we can have a drink together again sometime!"

As he spoke, the man raised his hands in a fist salute, his eyes slightly reddening, and his gaze swept over his friends at the table, his tone solemn.

"Farewell!"

Everyone stood up, respectfully cupped their fists in a respectful gesture, and the atmosphere at the gathering was filled with a sense of reluctance to part.

"Take care, Brother Yue!"

“Take care along the way!”

"."

Amid farewells, the chivalrous man surnamed Yue left the private room and went downstairs.

A carriage was already waiting by the street in front of the gate. Through the gap in the curtain, a woman could be seen leading a little girl and carrying luggage inside. At this time, it wasn't just this one carriage that was making such a scene on the wide street. One carriage after another was carrying people and luggage, heading towards the north city gate. The neighing of horses, the thumping of wheels, and the urging voices were all mixed together.

The man surnamed Yue walked to the carriage, then looked up towards the private room on the second floor. He saw that the window was open and a group of figures were standing there. He cupped his hands towards the window, and then, like a wanderer leaving his hometown, he forlornly disappeared into the carriage.

As the coachman cracked his whip and shouted, the wheels rolled and merged into the traffic on the street.

From the second-floor window, a group of friends watched him leave. Following their gaze, they looked north towards the street, where a long line of carriages and horses stretched to the distant north gate. Many people, like Brother Yue, were planning to leave Chengdu and seek refuge in advance.

In the past, countless people flocked to this city to seek refuge. Now, the situation has reversed. Many capable individuals and forces understand the current situation and know that if things become unstable, Jin Guan City will be the first to be affected. Upon receiving the news, they have already made arrangements for people to evacuate.

As the sun sets, it illuminates the long line of people leaving the city, making this once bustling metropolis resemble an old man in his twilight years!

"Ugh!"

"Let's go too!"

Inside the private room, the atmosphere of parting was melancholic, and the crowd dispersed.

Gongsun Wuji bid farewell to his friends and walked against the flow of carriages and people heading north out of the city. His empty sleeve swayed in the breeze, and his silhouette carried a touch of desolation in the afterglow of the setting sun.

Three days later, news came again that after the fall of Dasanguan Pass in Guanzhong to the Northern Liang cavalry, the enemy marched east and captured a city. The imperial army sent by the court was ordered to defend the city, but under the command of a third-level imperial envoy, the campaign failed and the envoy was captured alive.

Meanwhile, the news came on the same night.

In the dark forests outside Youmen Pass, shadowy figures loom, their hideous forms revealed in the sparse moonlight.
The demon soldiers and generals who had retreated to the depths of the Ten Thousand Mountains began to reappear on the outskirts to investigate the situation in the outer mountains.

These are scouts from the demon race!
Inside the Netherworld Pass, in a terrifying pool of blood, Luo Cheng, the Bone King who had been using the essence of demons to heal his chest wound, opened his terrifying, scarlet eyes.

The next moment, he leaped out of the thick, terrifying pool of blood and soared into the sky. His blood-red hair carried an overwhelming murderous aura, and his blood-red eyes gazed at the mountains and forests to the south.

Soon, a tall, undead creature covered in bloody flesh and with a pair of eagle wings on its back flew rapidly from outside the city, its withered, bony claws, seemingly covered with a layer of skin, clutching something!
When the undead creature flew to a stop in front of King Luo Cheng, it threw down the object it was carrying, and then its mountain-high body knelt down on one knee.

"Heavenly Lord, the demons in the Ten Thousand Mountains have begun to move and have captured a messenger." This undead creature's body was already covered with large areas of flesh and blood, but its throat and tongue had not yet grown out. When it opened its mouth, the air vibrated, and its voice had a metallic tremor.

King Luo Cheng glanced at the object thrown by his subordinates with his scarlet eyes and saw that it was a humanoid demon!
Its face was long and pale with sharp features, two dark bony ridges on its forehead, narrow vertical pupils with dark silver irises, and the corners of its eyes slanted upwards. The whites of its eyes were covered with fine blood vessels. Its lips were turned outwards, revealing several sharp canine teeth. There was a deep, bone-revealing cleft on each side of its mouth, extending to its jaw. It had a silver wing on its back. Originally, it was a pair, but in another location, there was a hideous wound, as if the other wing had been torn off by some terrifying being.

This humanoid demon's aura was clearly that of a Gu Diao Great Demon, but at this moment, facing the crimson gaze of King Luo Cheng, it trembled with fear, as if it would die at any moment. It had no demonic power whatsoever, and was like a trembling little chick, without even the courage to make a sound.

"It seems you Ten Thousand Mountains have finally lost your patience. Could it be that you're planning to attack my city?" King Luo Cheng said with a wicked grin.

The great demon Gu Diao knelt on the ground, not daring to raise its head. "Your Majesty, please calm your anger. The King of the Holy Clan sent me to deliver a message to you. Past grievances and entanglements are still unresolved. Since you have been reborn, your past lives should be returned to dust. The Holy Clan is willing to discuss grand plans with the Seven Kings to reshape this world and help you ascend back to the Heavenly Realm."

King Luo Cheng's scarlet eyes twitched slightly.
"Oh, it seems your Holy Clan has some ancient beings who know our identities?"

"Yes, the king of the Holy Race has awakened from his slumber on the Holy Mountain." The Great Demon Gu Diao lowered his head and nodded hurriedly.

"Are you finished?" King Luo Cheng asked, turning to ask this question.

"Uh, I'm done!" The great demon Gu Diao was a little confused and responded blankly.

"Throw it into the blood pool," Luo Cheng said casually and indifferently.

The green flames flickering in the eyes of that undead creature in the Dragon-Tiger Realm immediately surged, and its pale, sharp bone claws lashed out at the Gu Diao Great Demon.

The Gu Diao, which had been trembling with fear, let out a piercing shriek after sensing the threat of death, and its body suddenly burst out with dazzling silver light.

"shhhhhh"

A series of sharp whooshing sounds suddenly arose.

One after another, dark silver arrows shot out from the dazzling silver light, like a rain of pear blossoms, and the demon vanished into thin air.

The dragon-tiger undead creature was completely unafraid of the sharp feathers. It crushed the arrows with its claws, and then the green flames in its eyes suddenly turned to a dark silver feather light shooting downwards. Its mountain-like body swayed in the void, and its claws reached out to grab the feather light.

Soon, a scream rang out.

A large, dark silver bird was pierced through the void by bone claws and then torn in two by the undead creature, its blood splattering across the sky.

Then the demon's corpse was thrown into the blood-red pool of demonic blood below, where it became nourishment!
At this moment, King Luo Cheng's scarlet pupils and blood-red hair faded like the tide, turning pitch black, and his clothes also turned white.

Luo Cheng gazed at the demonic shadows in the distant mountains and forests, muttering to himself.

"The world is in chaos, and demons are rampant. I am merely a resurrected flesh and blood from my previous life, but the memories of my death remain."

"There's nothing I can do. My hands are already stained with demonic blood, it's seeped into my bones, and it seems there's no way to get rid of it."

As he murmured, a chilling glint flashed in his dark pupils, and he gave the order.

"Go! Slaughter every last demonic creature outside!" (End of Chapter)