Tangli Fried Snow

The divine soldier who descended from the sky was none other than Jiang Qimo.

He leaped up with all his might, and while still in the air, he flicked the sword in his right hand upwards, deflecting the two men's deadly strikes. Then, with a short sword in his left hand, he swiftly thrust it at Xu Hu. Even the fierce Xu Hu was startled and could only retreat temporarily to avoid the sharp sword.

Jin Cheng's sword slashed at the neck of the person in front of him, and the sound of flesh and bone breaking was heard. The person stumbled forward and rolled to the ground.

Another man seized the opportunity and thrust his sword at Jin Cheng's chest. Jin Cheng, taking advantage of his fear that he wouldn't actually plunge the sword into his own chest, met him head-on. Sure enough, the man hesitated for less than a second, but that hesitation was enough to be fatal. Jin Cheng slashed his arm, and he could no longer hold his weapon, retreating to the side, unable to fight.

Xu Hu roared again and charged forward, slashing down with his sword.

His arm strength was astonishing, and Jin Cheng dared not fight him head-on. He shouted, "Well done!" He stepped back, twirled his weapon, and blocked Xu Hu's overwhelming sword strike.

Jin Cheng immediately felt his arm go numb, and the area between his thumb and forefinger was sore from the shock.

Several all-out battles and the loss of blood from his injuries left Jin Cheng exhausted. He glanced at Jiang Qimo, who was entangled with several burly men. In a moment of desperation, he kicked Xu Hu in the stomach. The fierce lieutenant general staggered back a few steps, his eyes flashing with even more murderous intent. He regained his footing and attacked him again.

Several more swords struck his face, and Jin Cheng felt a surge of fear.

The sound of a crossbow bolt came from the right, and a bolt shot towards him, piercing the chest of the nearest man. The man fell to the ground. Jin Cheng felt a surge of energy and fought Xu Hu for a few moves, forcing him back once again.

Jin Cheng looked to his right and saw a group of seven or eight people carrying crossbows join the battle, instantly taking down seven or eight enemies.

Jiang Qimo's spirits lifted, and he finally managed to leap onto his horse. From his high vantage point, he sheathed his double blades and brandished a long spear, unleashing a flurry of spear shadows. His spear technique was incredibly fierce, and with a move called "Autumn Wind Sweeping Fallen Leaves," he slaughtered the soldiers surrounding him from all sides, sending them sprawling.

He shouted at Jin Cheng, "The miners have all left, why aren't you mounting your horses?"

Upon hearing this, Jin Cheng quickly glanced around and saw that the miners had fled the area after seeing the soldiers fighting. He climbed onto his warhorse, spurred it on, and with his last bit of strength, slashed at the pursuing soldiers. He then controlled the horse with both feet, forcefully breaking through a passage, and ran towards the mine entrance with Jiang Qimo.

Xu Hu was held back by the crossbowmen. He watched as Jin Cheng rode off to the west. His eyes were bloodshot and he was extremely anxious. He and several skilled men mounted their horses and chased after them. There was a group of miners there, blocking the road. The two men were sure to get away.

After running less than a hundred meters, Jin Cheng and Jiang Qimo dismounted and, under the cover of the horses and the crowd of miners, quickly took off their clothes, revealing their tattered clothes underneath. Jin Cheng then removed the mask from his face and transformed into another person.

If Sherry were here, she would recognize him at a glance as Hong Zhanying.

The two men smeared their faces with nearby coal, blended into the crowd of miners, and hurriedly ran toward the nearest mine shaft.

Xu Hu caught up and dismounted to pursue Jin Cheng.

But when they got closer, they were dumbfounded. There was no trace of Jin Cheng. All they could see were a group of miners dressed in tattered clothes, carrying farm tools, their hands and faces blackened, and their bodies stained with blood.

He looked up to the sky and roared, "My life is over!"

. . . .

Duan Jingyu had just gotten out of his bride's bed when someone rushed in to tell him that there had been an accident at the mine.

He was startled. When he arrived at Babaoshan with his men, Xu Hu was interrogating the miners.

Duan Jingyu glanced at Xu Hu, who immediately knelt down, clasped his hands in a fist and reported to the general without daring to raise his head, "This subordinate deserves to die! General, please execute me!"

Duan Jingyu gave him a cold look, his tone seemingly icy: "Is your head worth even one of Jin Cheng's fingers?"

Xu Hu choked, unable to speak any more, and collapsed to the ground in despair.

Duan Jingyu arrived at the small hut where Jin Cheng was being held. The iron cage was opened, and the handcuffs and leg irons were also removed. The key was left openly in the hut, and the guard responsible for carrying the key died on the spot.

Duan Jingyu took a few deep breaths and had someone bring Xu Hu to him.

Xu Hu stared at him, his face ashen, waiting for the general to speak.

"Tell me everything from beginning to end, without missing a single word," Duan Jingyu said with a gloomy face.

Xu Hu suppressed his panic and recounted the large-scale brawl among the miners yesterday, which lasted from afternoon until morning, the two explosions, his arrival to investigate, and his pursuit of Jin Cheng.

After listening, Duan Jingyu remained silent. He closed his eyes and thought about the whole thing from beginning to end. A full quarter of an hour passed. Xu Hu and the others were feeling very uneasy, and they felt a chill creep up their spines.

He opened his eyes and slowly said, "Xu Hu, you've fallen for their trick of luring the tiger away from the mountain!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Hu's body trembled. Looking at the dead soldier and the key left behind, a flash of inspiration struck him, and he said, "The person I saw in the cage was Jin Cheng!"

Duan Jingyu slowly nodded and said, "Someone must have brought a human skin mask and put it on him. You mistakenly thought Jin Cheng had escaped and led people to chase after him, leaving this place unguarded. The person who came to meet him killed the guard with the key and used the key to open the iron gate and chains. He has already disguised himself as another person and can escape in a swagger."

"But I clearly fought a bloody battle with Jin Cheng! I saw his face and figure with my own eyes, that was Jin Cheng himself!" Xu Hu said in disbelief.

“That must be a double with a similar build, wearing Jin Cheng’s disguise mask,” Duan Jingyu said coldly. “If he takes off his clothes and mask and hides in a crowd, you wouldn’t recognize him even if you were face to face with him.”

"He must be mixed in with those miners. I'm sure I can find him! That double must know Jin Cheng's whereabouts!" Xu Hu said, unwilling to give up.

Duan Jingyu took a deep breath. "This matter was meticulously planned. They needed to know where Jin Cheng was, send people in to infiltrate and deliver messages, find a double to make a mask, and devise this foolproof plan. There must have been at least several hundred people involved. Jin Cheng has already escaped. They may have started planning this a month ago. There's no need to interrogate those miners; they were just used to deceive people."

Xu Hu said dejectedly, "Please, General, kill me!"

Duan Jingyu snorted coldly: "Hmph! You wish! Keep this life and let me play as a striker."

Xu Hu trembled all over and said in a low voice, "Thank you, General."

Duan Jingyu's face was dark and gloomy, as if a huge rock was lodged in his heart.

Xu Hu said cautiously, "The miners outside are brave and fierce, fearless of death. They are all the most courageous warriors. Why not recruit them as soldiers?"

Upon hearing this, Duan Jingyu became interested, took a deep breath, and said, "Oh? Tell me more?"