The Emperor's heart is won, she sits on the Phoenix Throne! The Divine Physician's Eldest

"Wei Xin, break through the checkpoint!"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

At Shen Pei's command, Wei Xin immediately sprang into action: "Brothers, charge with me! Kill them all!"

"rush!"

The imperial army swarmed forward, rushing towards the checkpoint and launching a frenzied attack.

Shen Pei leaped up and landed in front of the second brother.

The second brother looked at Shen Pei with a moment of bewilderment; he had never seen anyone with such high martial arts skills.

He was a seasoned veteran, but he reacted in an instant, cursing, "Damn it!" and then raised his broadsword and slashed fiercely at Shen Pei.

However, after making the first cut, he never had the chance to make a second one.

While the second strike was still in mid-air, Shen Pei's sword had already pierced his heart.

The second brother looked at Shen Pei, then his gaze shifted downwards to the sword that had pierced his body, his face filled with disbelief.

But he had no time to say anything. His eyes were filled with horror, resentment, and anger as he fell backward, dying with his eyes wide open.

Soon, the fourth checkpoint was breached.

Half an hour later, the fifth checkpoint was breached.

Everyone followed Shen Pei's instructions and immediately retreated.

Hengshan bandit den.

Everyone gathered around the second son, who was lying on the ground, their eyes filled with sorrow and hatred.

The imperial court has sent troops to besiege Hengshan so many times, and the Hengshan bandits have suffered both dead and wounded.

However, the second brother was the highest-ranking bandit to die among them.

"Boss, the imperial court has already withdrawn its troops. They are scared. We should take advantage of the victory, go down the mountain and kill them to avenge the second leader."

One of the bandits shouted, and the others echoed him.

"Yes! Go down the mountain and kill them!"

"Avenge the second-in-command!"

"revenge!"

"revenge!"

……

The shouts of battle were deafening, and the entire Hengshan was filled with their rage.

The leader watched them quietly, without saying a word.

"Boss, say something! Look, the brothers are furious right now. If you lead everyone to fight, we're sure to win."

Even the fourth brother, who never advocated violence, was furious. He clenched his fists as if he could kill a bull with one punch.

"Yes, boss, as long as you give the order, we'll rush down and kill the government officials to avenge the second brother."

The third brother, who advocated for harmony in all things, was also enraged. The four brothers were as close as family, and since the second brother was dead, they were determined to avenge him.

Everyone stared intently at the leader, waiting for him to speak.

After a long silence, the leader finally spoke.

"Brothers, we must avenge the second brother, but now is not the best time."

What has enabled us to thrive in Hengshan for so many years? It's the natural defenses! It's Hengshan's geographical advantages!

After descending Hengshan, without our geographical advantage, what can we use to fight the imperial army?

We don't have as many men as they do, and our weapons aren't as good. Going down the mountain now would just be suicide.

As soon as the leader finished speaking, everyone looked at each other, their previous arrogance instantly diminished by half.

The leader continued, "We must avenge the second brother. We need to plan carefully and make good use of our advantages."

With the leader's permission, everyone started making a fuss again.

"Boss, just give the order. I'll give up my life as long as it can avenge the Second Master!"

"Yes! We'll risk our lives to avenge the second-in-command!"

"Avenge the second-in-command!"

……

With a single glance from the leader, everyone immediately fell silent.

“Brothers, Lao Er was my brother, and I am heartbroken by his death. But we cannot act rashly. We must lure all the people from the imperial court up the mountain and wipe them out in one fell swoop. Every one of them is the murderer of Lao Er. I will make them pay for their crimes in blood to comfort Lao Er’s soul in heaven!”

The leader's passionate speech stirred everyone's emotions.

The crowd shouted in unison, "We will obey the leader's orders!"

The leader boosted morale and reassured everyone before letting them leave.

At this moment, only the third brother, the eldest brother, and the second brother lying on the ground remained in the room.

"Third brother, you should go too. I want to spend some quiet time alone with second brother," the eldest brother said.

The third brother didn't move. He stared intently at the leader. "You feel guilty, don't you? Ha, no, you were capable of such a thing, so how could you feel guilty?"

"Third brother, what are you saying?" The leader stared at the third brother, looking puzzled.

"You know perfectly well that the second son has a violent temper, yet you still make him guard the checkpoint. You're sending him to his death in vain!"

The third brother was too weak. He spoke too forcefully, and his pale face turned red, and his thin body swayed.

The leader's face immediately turned cold. "Third brother, is the second brother's life more important than the lives of the other brothers? If the second brother isn't going to guard the checkpoint, why aren't you?"

"That's just sophistry!" the third brother said angrily. "Do you dare swear to God that you have nothing to hide? Others may not be able to tell, but I know you well enough to know yourself."

"What do you want to say?" the leader asked with a stern face.

“This time, everyone wants to avenge the second brother, but you have been making excuses. If this had happened in the past, you would have been the first to stand up and lead everyone to kill and avenge the second brother without anyone having to say anything.”

The third brother pressed, "Boss, what are you hiding? What are you really thinking?"

"You doubt me? I'll live and die with you! I'm more heartbroken than any of you by the death of the second brother!" the leader roared.

"Boss, why don't you just answer my question?" the third brother continued to press.

The leader's face was cold. "Get out!"

"Boss!"

"I am now ordering you, as the leader of this bandit group, to get out of here!"

The leader spoke in a cold and stern tone, his face full of authority.

The third brother wanted to say something more, but in the end, he gave up.

"Yes!" The third brother bowed and turned to leave.

The leader watched the third brother leave, then bent down and placed his hand over the second brother's eyes.

"Second brother, you go first, we'll follow soon, and we'll reunite in another world."

The mountain village returned to peace.

This is a sign that a storm is coming.

That night, the people of the mountain stronghold were destined to be sleepless. They were waiting for their leader to give the order, so that they could go and avenge their second brother with hearts full of hatred.

The opportunity they had been waiting for finally arrived.

It is now nighttime, two days from now.

As planned, Shen Pei led his troops up the mountain stronghold. All five checkpoints had been breached, and this time they faced no resistance as they ascended the mountain.

When Shen Pei reached the mountaintop, he saw a dense crowd of people.

They held torches in one hand and weapons in the other, their eyes filled with hatred as they looked at Shen Pei.

"Brothers! This man in front of us is our enemy. He's the one who killed Lao Er. Now pick up your weapons and kill him to avenge Lao Er!"

At the leader's command, everyone in the stronghold swarmed forward, charging towards Shen Pei like ferocious beasts.

In an instant, a fierce battle broke out, with flashing swords and the sounds of battle filling the air.

In less than the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the mountaintop was filled with the stench of blood, the ground was littered with corpses, and there was a chorus of wails.

"Your Highness! Fire!"

At this moment, Wei Xin suddenly shouted, his face full of terror.

Shen Pei looked up and saw that the originally dark night sky had suddenly become bright, and the entire Hengshan Mountain had turned into a volcano.