Reincarnation and Rebirth

Before they even left the village, they saw a person lying on the ground in the distance. Su Chen, who was small but had bright eyes, pointed at the figure on the ground and said, "Grandpa, Dad, is that Grandpa?"

The Su family was shocked and rushed forward to check. When they got closer and saw the person on the ground, Old Mrs. Su sat down on the ground and rushed over to grab Old Mr. Su and cry.

Su Youfu stepped forward to check his breathing, then sat down with a thud. "Mother, Father, Father is dead."

"Damn Black Tiger Stronghold, you murderous old man, you died such an unjust death."

Su Youcai looked around nervously. "Mother, keep your voice down, or we'll attract attention again."

Upon hearing this, Old Lady Su slapped Su Youcai across the face, saying, "Your father is dead, and you don't even cry, but you won't even let me cry? How could we have such a heartless son like you?"

Xiang Shi helped Su Youcai, who had almost been knocked down, and said, "Mother, now is not the time to cry. Quickly bury Father so that he can rest in peace. We need to hurry and catch up with the village chief and the others."

Su Youfu also advised, "Yes, Mother, now is not the time. Let's bury Father first, and then come back and give him a proper funeral once things have calmed down."

Despite the crowd's clamor for advice, Old Lady Su, ultimately fearing death, directed her sons and grandsons to hastily bury Old Man Su before heading towards Sunset City.

On the way, the lucky Su family actually found an oxcart. It was probably because the village had been hit by disaster, and the ox had been startled and ran out on its own, with the cart frame still attached to it.

With the oxcart, the family quickly arrived at the city gate.

"Look over there, so many people, could it be the village chief and his men?"

"Why don't they go into the city?"

"Let's go over and take a look first."

Upon closer inspection, it turned out that they were indeed all people from Suhe Village.

Su Dewang was the first to notice the disheveled Su family members. "What happened to you all?"

The Su family members talked all at once, and Su Dewang finally understood. When the people of Suhe Village heard that their village had been burned down, they were filled with grief, and many of them started to cry and curse Black Tiger Village.

Suddenly, the sound of horses' hooves came from afar, striking the hearts of everyone present.

"Could it be that the Black Tiger Stronghold has returned with their attack?"

"No way, what should we do?"

Su Youfu looked at Su Dewang and asked, "Village Chief, why don't we go to the city?"

"We have to pay 20 catties of grain to enter the city, and we can't bear to part with it, so we're sleeping here."

Su Yang, standing on the city wall, also saw the warhorses in the distance. His pupils shrank sharply, and he thought to himself, "This is bad. This formation doesn't look like the Black Tiger Stronghold. It looks more like a well-trained army. Could it be the Purple Flame Army?"

The trusted confidant beside him glanced into the distance and said anxiously, "Su Yang, what should we do? This person doesn't seem friendly. There are still so many civilians at the city gate."

"Quickly, open the city gates and let the people in."

"Ah, there are still people from Black Tiger Stronghold here. Can we agree to this?"

Su Yang said coldly, "The people who came with me, although they all became bandits, most of them still have a bit of backbone. If they really were the Purple Flame Army, they wouldn't be willing to do something like selling out their country for personal gain."

The man beside Su Yang, named Sun Cheng, quickly descended the city wall and said to the city guards, "The Ziyan Kingdom has attacked! Quickly let the people into the city."

"What? The Purple Flame Army? You must be mistaken."

“But the chief said that without food, they won’t be allowed in,” someone retorted.

"What time is it now? Think of your own families. These people are innocent. If there were no war, it would be fine, but now, Zi Yan's iron cavalry is about to trample over us. Are you really just going to watch them die?"

The bandits looked at each other, some reluctant to open the city gates, others determined not to.

"Sun Cheng, hurry up!" Su Yang said anxiously from above.

"Now that the Purple Flame Army has come, do you think they will let us go? Rather than be humiliated, we might as well take a gamble."

A spy from the Purple Flame Army coldly said from the crowd, "There are so many people outside the city. What if there are Purple Flame spies among them?"

Now, the people at the city gate split into two groups. Seeing that the city gate was not opening for a long time, Su Yang anxiously walked down the city wall, kicked aside a few guards, and said to the crowd, "Everyone, hurry up and get into the city!"

The evening breeze carried his voice far, and the people of Suhe Village heard it, including Wu Shi. "It's Su Yang, it really is Su Yang! Quick, let's go into town!"

The village chief hesitated for a moment, "This...could it be a trap?"

Wu said, "I believe my son, village chief. The sound of horses' hooves is getting closer. Since both sides are bandits, I would rather believe my son."

The villagers thought about it and agreed, so they all followed Wu toward the city gate.

There were so many people that by the time the Purple Flame Army arrived at the city gate, a quarter of them had not yet entered the city.

"Ah, this really is the Purple Flame Army."

The leader of the Purple Flame Army is their First General, surnamed Weng.

"Hahaha, a bunch of petty villains! Today, we'll take Sunset City and present it to our little princess as her birthday gift, how about it?"

"General, you are wise! General, you are mighty!" the Purple Flame Army shouted in unison.

The people were even more frightened.

"Who is your leader?" General Weng raised his sword and pointed at the city gate, shouting, "As long as you are willing to surrender, our Ziyan Kingdom will not treat you unfairly."

Su Yang replied sternly, "We would rather die than surrender!" As soon as Su Yang finished speaking, a deep male voice came from behind him.

"Good! I like men with backbone!" General Weng looked at the speaker and saw a man in a white battle robe, holding a long spear, standing beside Su Yang. General Weng's expression changed drastically.

"Young Master? What brings you here?" Su Yang asked in surprise.

The person who arrived was none other than Xiao Yun Shen, who had disappeared. He hadn't expected his body to recover so quickly. After thinking it over, he realized that it must be the medicine that girl had given him last time that had improved his physique and, incidentally, even enhanced his internal strength.

"Weng Bingchang, you didn't expect to see me again so soon, did you?"

"Hmph, just a defeated opponent."

As they were talking, all the people at the city gate had retreated into the city.

Su Yang and Wu Lin Kun knelt on one knee before Xiao Yun Shen and said, "Greetings, General Xiao."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of those present changed. "General Xiao, is that the General Xiao from the War God family?"

"My God, it really is General Xiao."

A Zi Yan spy silently approached Xiao Yun Shen from behind, intending to launch a sneak attack, but was spotted by Shun Lei and his men, who then delivered a fatal blow to his throat.

Xiao Yun Shen looked at the trembling Black Tiger Stronghold members and said, "These people are spies from Zi Yan. They infiltrated your Black Tiger Stronghold to attack our Zi Yun Kingdom."

He looked around at the bandits and said, "Now that the country is in trouble, every citizen has a responsibility. Although you are members of the Black Tiger Stronghold, you are also citizens of the Purple Cloud Kingdom. If you can stand with the Purple Cloud Kingdom today and fight against the Purple Flame, I guarantee that I will not pursue your responsibilities."

The men of Black Tiger Stronghold looked at each other in confusion. One of them looked at Su Yang and said, "Second Master, you...you are a spy sent by the imperial court?"

"You traitor."

Su Yang looked at them and said, "I am only following General Xiao's orders to investigate the evidence of Black Tiger Stronghold's treason. As long as you have not betrayed Ziyun Kingdom, the General also said that you can make amends for your crimes."

These people were not particularly wicked, which is why they followed Su Yang. They usually robbed corrupt officials and unscrupulous businessmen.

Upon hearing Su Yang's words, after a moment's thought, someone knelt down first, saying, "I am willing to follow General Xiao."

Once one person did it, another followed. Immediately, many people knelt down, forming a large, imposing crowd that greatly boosted morale.