Qin Yi fiercely kicked his horse’s belly, swinging his horse lance to strike at Xiao Li again: “Huyan brat! You traitorous rebel subject, you still dare come attack Luodu today!”

Hearing Qin Yi address him this way, Xiao Li felt increasingly that something was wrong. He raised his halberd to parry the horse lance. When Qin Yi pressed down the lance shaft to continue sweeping at him, he leaned back on horseback to dodge. Turning the halberd shaft back to block the lance’s spear blade again, he shouted his question: “For whom do you defend Luodu?”

Qin Yi’s beard and hair floated in the bitter wind like a lion’s mane, his pair of murky eyes also fierce as a lion’s: “Naturally for His Majesty, Great Liang’s founding ancestor!”

With a great shout, he wrenched forcefully. After retrieving his horse lance, both arms swinging that lance continued attacking Xiao Li, thrusting left and right like a swimming dragon.

After hearing the words he shouted, Xiao Li’s brows furrowed even more severely. At present he only evaded without fighting. When Qin Yi shouted “You scoundrel, don’t dodge,” he struck his halberd against the front leg of Qin Yi’s war horse.

The horse startled. Immediately rearing its front hooves with a whinny, Qin Yi had no choice but to free his hands to control the horse, temporarily slowing his offensive.

After Xiao Li pulled distance from him, he turned his horse around, raising his halberd and eyes to look toward the city tower.

Pei Song, braced with both hands at the wall crenellations watching the battle situation below, happened to meet Xiao Li’s gaze directly.

How to describe that look in the other’s eyes?

Ice-cold, indifferent, and fiercely sharp. Clearly in the lower position, yet viewing those above as ants.

Pei Song had originally been worried about Qin Yi’s safety. In this brief instant of meeting Xiao Li’s eyes, however, his heart suddenly surged with both humiliation and a fury that burned his entire chest and abdomen with hidden, searing pain.

These two emotions tearing at him made Pei Song feel that never before, like this moment now, had he hoped so fervently for Xiao Li to die immediately.

What did he amount to!

How dare he look at him with such eyes?

A prostitute’s bastard whom the mad and deranged Qin Yi had mistaken for himself and taught military strategy and martial arts – a lowlife scoundrel as base as could be – was actually scrutinizing him?

Pei Song almost curled his lips wanting to smile, wanting to mockingly ask the other what qualifications he had?

Because he’d served as a substitute for over ten years, did he think himself Qin Yi’s son as well?

Xiao Li saw the mocking curl of Pei Song’s lips. Scene after scene of Qin Yi teaching him martial arts in prison from years past floated before his eyes. Images of Xiao Huiniang pinching an embroidery needle passing it by her temple, eyes squinting as she did needlework by the door; coughing while rolling up her sleeves to wash clothes in the courtyard; arranging bowls and chopsticks to call him to eat… all also appeared one by one before his eyes.

Those repeated calls of “Huan’er” and “Huan’er” seemed at this moment to echo intertwined in his ears.

The last thing that floated into his mind was the image of Xiao Huiniang collapsed in the sea of flames.

His lips pressed into a tight line.

When Qin Yi again raised his horse lance roaring as he charged to kill him, he forcefully suppressed that trace of reluctance in his heart. Raising his halberd, he heavily clashed with the other. The force of this collision was tremendous – both men along with their horses retreated several steps.

After Qin Yi used his horse lance to prop against the ground to steady his form, he said cheerfully: “Huyan brat! Exactly like this! Come again!”

Xiao Li swung his halberd horizontally to smash at the other. Qin Yi raised his lance to block. The halberd shaft smashed against the lance shaft. The force of one strike not yet dissipated, another blow fiercely swung over. Qin Yi along with his horse retreated continuously, momentarily finding it difficult to parry.

Xiao Li’s eyes churned with blood-shot fury as he shouted lowly: “How much longer will you continue this madness?”

“Liang’s founding ancestor has been dead how many years? Great Liang has already perished a full cycle. For whom are you defending Luodu?”

Qin Yi’s murky eyes seemed to freeze for an instant, then he pointed straight at Xiao Li with his lance spear shouting: “Pure nonsense! How could my Great Liang perish!”

Xiao Li deflected the other’s spear tip with one halberd strike. Using the crescent halberd blade on the long halberd to hook the spear blade, he used brute force to press it firmly to the ground. “Why not ask your good son how Great Liang perished! And how he slaughtered the Wen clan and half the court!”

Qin Yi wanted to lift the long halberd pressing on his horse lance, but he was advanced in years after all. The disparity in strength between both sides was great. Momentarily constrained, his heart for some unknown reason kept beating wildly after hearing these words.

He shouted: “You rebel! What nonsense are you spouting! My Huan’er is only ten years old. He has a high fever and is ill in prison right now!”

“After this general beheads you, this rebel, His Majesty will naturally understand my Qin family’s loyalty that can be verified by sun and moon, overturn my Qin family’s case, and release my entire clan from prison!”

These words seemed to give him some tremendous support. His arms exerted force again, about to lift Xiao Li’s halberd blade pressing him down. Just then, Pei Yuan and a crowd of lackeys also fought against the human flow from the city gate area. Seeing Qin Yi constrained, they immediately flung eagle-claw hooks to hook Xiao Li’s arms.

Zheng Hu and Xiao Li’s personal guards were relatively far away – they couldn’t rush over in time.

Xiao Li had no choice but to release the long halberd pressing the spear blade. With one swing back, he blocked the eagle-claw hooks flung at him. Because Qin Yi had previously mustered all his strength to lift the halberd blade, caught off guard by Xiao Li’s sudden release of force, his entire center of gravity became unbalanced as he fell backward. Fortunately, he timely used the lance spear to prop against the ground and managed to steady his form.

After Zheng Hu swung his hammer to send a blocking Pei soldier flying, seeing lackeys surrounding and attacking Xiao Li, he urgently turned his horse to gallop this way, cursing loudly: “Dog bastards! Using underhanded tricks from behind counts as what skill? Come spar with your Grandfather Zheng!”

Pei Yuan coldly glanced at Zheng Hu pursuing from behind, ordering the lackeys who killed out of the city with him: “Take the old general away!”

He himself flung the eagle-claw hook again, one claw hooking the neck of a young general riding his horse toward them face-on. After pulling the person down from horseback, he himself slapped the horse and leaped onto it in one bound, fiercely kicking the horse’s belly and charging toward Xiao Li.

Xiao Li had just blocked several more eagle-claw hooks flung at him. A strand of loose hair fell before his forehead in the fighting. He raised his halberd coldly staring at Pei Yuan charging toward him, his eyes exceptionally fierce and sharp.

When Pei Yuan closed to less than a zhang from him, the long halberd in his hand swept out at the other’s waist. Pei Yuan, also born from the lackeys, had a body far more nimble and flexible than ordinary generals. At present, his entire person leaned back on the horse’s back, his entire back almost completely adhering to the horse’s back to dodge that halberd strike. Then he flung the eagle-claw hook. After the thin steel cable wound several circles around Xiao Li’s long halberd, the claw hook firmly grasped that crescent halberd blade.

The steel cable at the other end of the eagle-claw hook, he passed over the front bridge of the saddle then wound around his left arm twice, attempting to use the horse’s power to yank Xiao Li’s long halberd from his hands. Simultaneously, his right arm swung a horse-slaying long blade horizontally to chop at Xiao Li on horseback.

Xiao Li’s one hand still gripped the halberd shaft tightly. With one hand bracing the saddle, his entire person almost leaped into the air. After dodging that blade, the positions of the two war horses had already shifted.

The war horse beneath Pei Yuan continued galloping forward. Xiao Li landed back on horseback. The right arm in armor showed no arc of bulging muscle, but his jaw tightened. With one hand controlling the reins, the other hand fiercely yanked the halberd shaft. In an instant, the war horse beneath him was dragged such that its four hooves slid through the sandy ground for over two inches before, together with its master, tensing to withstand that dragging force.

And that already taut steel cable almost instantly sank into the saddle and Pei Yuan’s arm binding. It yanked Pei Yuan’s entire person suddenly forward in a lurch. The war horse beneath him reared its front hooves neighing painfully without end.

Pei Yuan’s complexion was also extremely pained. The steel cable in his hands, under this tremendous force, tightly bound his left hand and the saddle’s front bridge together. The outer layer of iron armor on that arm binding had already been pulled into deformity. If not for another layer of tanned dog leather inside as cushioning, his entire hand would almost have been severed alive by this steel cable.

Unfortunately, the end of that steel cable with the handle had also been firmly pressed by the upper steel cable under this tremendous force. Even if he released his hand, there was no way to free that arm with the steel cable deeply embedded in the arm binding.

He decisively drew his dagger to hack at that steel cable strike after strike. But because the steel cable that could extend and retract through mechanisms on this eagle-claw hook was specially made, even though the dagger struck sparks on that steel cable, it showed no signs of cutting it through.

When Xiao Li swung the long halberd back again, because the weight of person and horse were together, that steel cable continued tightening and sinking deep into flesh. Pei Yuan cried out in pain loudly, hastily using the dagger to cut through the leather straps on the saddle. Now only he and the saddle were yanked down from horseback by that tremendous force, dragged along all the way.

The several lackeys ordered to take Qin Yi away were also not proceeding smoothly. Qin Yi treated them as deserters and surrendering generals. They couldn’t get close to Qin Yi’s body and nearly had their heads sliced off by the horse lance as he cursed loudly.

At present, seeing Pei Yuan being dragged, they hastily turned back to rescue Pei Yuan.

Facing the lackeys swarming around him again like flies swinging eagle-claw hooks, Xiao Li forcefully smashed the long halberd in his hand downward. That steel cable wound on the crescent halberd blade was finally severed.

After being dragged several zhang, Pei Yuan, half-dead and covering his left arm wound to near loss of sensation, had not yet managed to climb up when Zheng Hu had already ridden his horse over. Without a word, he bent down swinging his hammer to smash at him.

Pei Yuan hastily rolled on the ground to dodge the trampling of horse hooves and this fatal blow. Fortunately, two more lackeys rushed over to help him up, urgently calling: “Tenth Captain.”

Zheng Hu’s strike unsuccessful, he turned his horse around again and charged at them. Two other lackeys who rushed over afterward hastily flung eagle-claw hooks to restrain him.

Pei Yuan coughed and panted, raising the back of his hand to wipe away blood overflowing from the corner of his mouth. Looking toward Qin Yi who, after no longer being blocked by lackeys, again gripped his horse lance attacking Xiao Li, he suddenly felt this was an excellent opportunity to eliminate Xiao Li. He immediately ordered: “Kill that one surnamed Xiao!”

After the two lackeys supporting him saw he had recovered, they also hastily joined the battle, charging to kill Xiao Li.

Xiao Li responding to the siege of Qin Yi and over ten lackeys, because he had long been familiar with the lackeys’ siege tactics, relying on his fierce bravery, actually did not fall to a disadvantage.

Instead, after Qin Yi exchanged several moves with Xiao Li in this chaos, he withdrew his horse lance and shouted: “Using many to bully the few is not the conduct of a great man. All of you withdraw!”

But not one of the lackeys listened to him.

Pei Yuan seized the opportunity to shout: “General Qin! Kill this person and Luodu can be defended! His Majesty will surely greatly reward you. Think of your wife and child still in prison!”

Qin Yi’s pair of murky eyes locked onto Xiao Li battling in melee with the lackeys. His cheekbones protruded slightly after his jaw tightened, as if after brief struggle he finally made some decision. Fiercely kicking his horse’s belly with a great shout, he again charged to kill Xiao Li.

Facing Qin Yi’s life-risking posture, and with the lackeys’ sneak attacks impossible to guard against completely, while Xiao Li couldn’t truly strike heavily at Qin Yi, responding for a time inevitably became more strenuous.

Qin Yi discerned that Xiao Li held back in exchanging blows with him. He couldn’t help but shout loudly: “Huyan brat! Today either you die or I perish! Whatever other skills you have, fully use them all!”

While dodging the lackeys’ siege, Xiao Li’s face had already been cut by a flung eagle-claw hook. He panted heavily. When Qin Yi raised his lance sweeping at him, he looked deeply at the other once. His long halberd sent out to slap away the lance spear then pressed against the other’s waist. When the other blocked again, he switched hands holding the halberd and swept at the opposite neck.

He integrated the boxing techniques and moves Qin Yi had taught him before into these several strikes.

After Qin Yi rode his horse backward avoiding that neck-sweeping strike, he indeed froze, pointing at him with the lance spear shouting his question: “How do you know my Qin family’s boxing?”

Xiao Li raised his halberd while blocking the lackeys’ attacks while reciting: “Supply wagons and cavalry invaders, penetrate solid formations, defeat infantry and cavalry invaders coming at night before, military strategy calls this lightning strike.”

“Supply wagons and cavalry invaders, penetrate solid formations, defeat infantry and cavalry invaders coming at night before. Spears, halberds, support carts, light chariots, carrying praying mantis warriors three men, penetrate solid formations, defeat infantry and cavalry – this is called thunder strike!”

Qin Yi raised his hand to cover his head. In the dark prison cell, the memory of a youth in filthy prison clothes covered with whip marks and bloodstains standing before him reciting this passage of military strategy suddenly floated into his mind, making his entire person even more confused.

That youth’s face gradually overlapped with the face of this fierce young general before his eyes.

His brain ached with stabbing pain. Gripping his horse lance, he stared at Xiao Li with alarm and uncertainty: “Huan’er? Are you my Huan’er? You’ve grown this big?”

Xiao Li swept away with one halberd strike a lackey surrounding and attacking him. Seeing Qin Yi had recognized him, in that instant myriad emotions surged into his heart, making the blood-shot intent in his eyes intensify. Yet he clenched his jaw coldly saying: “The General has mistaken someone.”

“On that city tower – that lackey running dog of the Ao clan who destroyed Great Liang, slaughtered the Wen clan, and ignited war fires across the realm – he is the General’s good son!”

As if a thunderbolt struck directly into Qin Yi’s mind.

Memories of that day when Pei Song entered Yongzhou’s great prison to interrogate him, of being transferred to another courtyard after which Pei Song would occasionally stand outside the main gate coldly watching him – these memories slowly cleared.

These ten-plus years of confusion also scene by scene rapidly connected together in his mind.

Years ago wrongly imprisoned, his wife died of illness during exile, followed by his son also “dying of illness”…

He went mad from this shock, remaining mad for over ten years.

Once awakened, all old friends and relatives were severed. His only son who escaped with his life, because of the hatred from those years, had destroyed these rivers and mountains into this appearance!

Tremendous pain came crashing down in this clarity. Qin Yi let out a grief-stricken roar that shocked soldiers from both sides fighting around him to all raise their eyes to look at him.

And he himself slowly raised his eyes toward the city tower.

Beneath banners fiercely fluttering in the cold wind, Pei Song stood braced against that crenellation, gazing at him with bloodshot eyes. What showed through them was only endless hatred, and the grievance pressed beneath that hardness, hidden for over ten years.

As if telling Qin Yi – he was not wrong!

Qin Yi’s eyes filled with sorrow. For a long time he gazed at his son whom he hadn’t seen for over ten years. Opening his mouth, he slowly said: “A son not taught is the father’s fault; when a son has crimes, the father should also atone for them.”

The next instant, a spray of blood color splattered onto the sandy ground beneath the horse.

Qin Yi, with the spear tip on his horse lance, pierced through his own throat.

This all happened too suddenly – no one could stop it in time.

Heaven and earth seemed to briefly fall silent for an instant. Xiao Li’s entire person froze like a clay figure. Seeing Qin Yi’s body lose support and topple sideways from horseback, only then did he fiercely kick his horse’s belly spurring it forward to catch him.

But he was still one step too late.

Qin Yi’s corpse heavily struck the ground. The fresh blood gushing from his neck also quickly pooled into a small puddle on the ground.

On the city tower, Pei Song gripped the wall brick at that crenellation with all his might, eyes splitting as he screamed hoarsely: “Qin Yi——”

If not for being timely grabbed by the shoulder and held back by lackeys behind him, he would almost have jumped down from the city tower like that.

Below the city, Pei Yuan and others, seeing Qin Yi’s death, also no longer lingered in battle. They directly flung eagle-claw hooks up the city tower, intending to climb the steel cables to ascend the city wall.

Zheng Hu directed arriving Xiao camp personal guards to shoot arrows at them. Random arrows struck several people, but most lackeys still successfully climbed onto the city tower.

“The barbican gate will soon be breached! Quickly take the master away!”

Gongsun Chou urgently ordered the lackeys on the city tower.

The lackeys gripped Pei Song’s arms those who gripped his arms, pried his five fingers those who pried his five fingers gripping the wall crenellation. Hot tears rolled and crashed down from Pei Song’s eyes. Before being completely dragged away, he finally screamed heart-wrenchingly toward that person fallen in the pool of blood: “Father!”

The barbican gate was completely breached. The Xiao camp troops outside the city poured in like a flood.

Xiao Li did not immediately set out to pursue Pei Song. He dismounted, crouching before Qin Yi’s corpse, raising his palm to close for the other those eyes that even unto death still gazed at the city tower.

Rising, the wind blew the banners fluttering on and below the city, also blowing the loose hair fallen before Xiao Li’s forehead.

The blood-shot color in his eyes slowly intensified in this wind.

His heart felt extremely empty, also extremely desolate.

As if in this vast heaven and earth, only he alone remained.

He raised his head, closing his eyes with difficulty.

—He had never had a master, nor had he ever had a father.

Everything was only because the other’s consciousness was unclear and mistook him for someone else. Those past kindnesses and protections – not the slightest bit of them were given to him.

So after the other recovered his sanity, he also wouldn’t remember him in the slightest.

He suddenly very much wanted to see Wen Yu.

Regardless of whether when seeing her again she treated him with false feelings or pretense, he wanted to see her.

Like a homeless stray dog, urgently wanting to find a place to belong.