Shen Du was secretly annoyed. Not only had he failed to find the antidote today, but he now found himself trapped. He had suspected something was amiss with this camp earlier, but his concern for the antidote had led him to take the risk of entering. It was a miscalculation.
Meanwhile, Mo Qianzhi hadn’t given up on persuading Shen Du to “abandon darkness for light.”
“Do you know? The Great Zhou is sick, gravely ill,” Mo Qianzhi coldly stated. “As things stand, the Great Zhou is beyond saving. We must overthrow that woman.”
“We must reorganize the Great Zhou.”
Shen Du calculated his chances of breaking out alone.
“Your current actions are aiding tyranny!” At this point, Mo Qianzhi couldn’t help but become agitated. “Zhou Zhao is merely a woman. Her ascension to that lofty position is inherently unreasonable and cannot command respect. She can only indulge in framing loyal subjects through lowly characters like Lai Luozhi. The Shen family case years ago is a prime example. Shen Du, are you still not awakening to this?”
The unjust case of the Shen family, though years old, still held influence and has never been forgotten.
“She spared your life, not entirely because of this official’s act of kneeling all the way, but to demonstrate to the world that the Empress is not one who kills indiscriminately. It was merely to pacify the hearts of those who might rebel.”
Killing the chicken to scare the monkey, warning a hundred by punishing one.
He had thought mentioning the Shen family would awaken Shen Du, but unexpectedly, it didn’t elicit the anticipated response.
“You are the one aiding tyranny,” Shen Du twirled his dagger, his eyes resolute. “The Fire Moth Party has committed numerous evils and killed innocents indiscriminately. You condone their rampage and shield their murders. You’re gravely mistaken.”
Before Mo Qianzhi could rebut, he continued: “Moreover, the person behind the Fire Moth Party is Lai Luozhi.”
“Silence!”
Mo Qianzhi felt listening to Shen Du’s nonsense was a waste of time. He might as well just kill him and be done with it.
“Chen Huoe is a man. Furthermore, Lai Luozhi’s fellow lives by the grace of the Empress. While others might dare to rebel, he would never betray her.”
The Fire Moth Party was a cancer in the Great Zhou Dynasty, so it couldn’t possibly be Lai Luozhi.
“You’ve been deceived by the Empress, your eyes blinded by power. You’ve completely forgotten the wronged souls of the Shen family. You’ve betrayed virtue and forgotten righteousness. You deserve to die.”
Mo Qianzhi stepped back and coldly ordered, “Kill him.” With that, he turned away, no longer looking at Shen Du.
Seeing that he could stall no longer, Shen Du braced himself, seeking a way to break through the encirclement.
After taking down several Half-Faced Ghosts, more approached. Shen Du dared not slack off, staying alert for the next fight.
At this moment, the sound of war drums came from the distance.
The crowd surrounding Shen Du stirred but was quickly suppressed by Mo Qianzhi.
“This is nothing but their petty trick. How could reinforcements arrive so soon? Where would they get troops from?”
Mo Qianzhi scoffed coldly. This was a mirage tactic meant to confuse them. He had used such strategies himself when leading troops against barbarians years ago and saw through it immediately.
“Right, there are no reinforcements at all. They’re just creating an illusion.”
Lai Luoshu, fully wrapped up and nearly invisible in the night, appeared as if out of nowhere.
Mo Qianzhi snorted coldly, paying no attention.
Lai Luoshu stepped forward, her face smug: “Shen Du, your death is certain today.”
This action earned her a glare from Mo Qianzhi. She was truly a glory-seeker, clearly a cowardly rat.
The sound of horns grew louder and more majestic. Shen Du’s mind filled with doubts; this wasn’t part of the strategy he had discussed with Jing Lin. But he didn’t let it show on his face. Taking the chance to catch his breath, he didn’t forget to provoke his opponents:
“My death is certain? Yet I can’t help but feel it’s you who doesn’t know life from death.”
The Half-Faced Ghosts stirred restlessly at such brazenness from a man on the brink of death.
“A half-dead person still dares to stir up trouble everywhere,” Shen Du glanced at Lai Luoshu, seeing her gloomy expression, and felt quite pleased. “Aren’t you afraid of dying somewhere with no one to collect your corpse?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Lai Luoshu clutched her wound. Although the arrow hadn’t pierced her heart, it had hit her viscera. The residual force tearing at her flesh had damaged her internal organs, greatly weakening her. She had arrived late earlier because she was tending to her body.
Shen Du, as if not satisfied, continued: “Wearing someone else’s skin, you won’t live long anyway.”
Lai Luoshu’s face beneath her mask turned deathly pale. Fearing Shen Du might reveal more secrets if he continued, she endured the pain and spat back viciously: “Like a turtle in a jar, stop your futile struggles.”
Shen Du raised an eyebrow, his deep eyes unfathomable. Facing the Half-Faced Ghosts who looked ready to tear him apart, he showed no fear:
“Don’t worry, you’ll definitely die before me, because…” he pointed at his own face, “haven’t you already died once?”
“Stop spouting nonsense here,” she took a small step forward but was blocked by Mo Qianzhi. Forced to step back, she said, “This seat has died and been reborn, chosen by heaven. What are you in comparison?”
The Half-Faced Ghosts cheered: “Died and reborn!”
Their voices grew louder, drowning out all other sounds. Only then did everyone realize that the earth-shaking horn sounds had disappeared.
Immediately, the Half-Faced Ghosts cheered even more enthusiastically, surrounding Shen Du.
“Kill him!”
“Kill him!”
“…”
Seeing these people so blindly devoted, Shen Du shook his head and sighed. You can’t wake someone who’s pretending to sleep, so he gave up trying.
Lai Luoshu raised her hand, directly ordering Shen Du’s execution by arrows.
All the Half-Faced Ghosts raised their bows, aiming at Shen Du, while the official troops led by Mo Qianzhi remained motionless without orders.
This angered Lai Luoshu: “Lord Mo, this is the best opportunity. Don’t be soft-hearted like a woman.”
Mo Qianzhi’s face also darkened as he warned: “We agreed that everyone would follow my orders. What, do you want to go back on your word?”
At this moment, Lai Luoshu harbored killing intent towards Mo Qianzhi. To avoid internal strife, she turned and raised her hand:
“Kill!”
“Wait!” Mo Qianzhi tried to stop it, but it was too late. All arrows flew towards Shen Du at the center of the encirclement.
Shen Du drew his flexible sword to deflect them. Under the torchlight, silver light flashed. The blade clashed with arrows, creating a dazzling display of sparks like a silver flower tree.
An arrow grazed Shen Du’s arm, tearing flesh and causing searing pain.
“Everyone attack together, life or death doesn’t matter!”
The Half-Faced Ghosts surged forward, determined to slay Shen Du on the spot.
Mo Qianzhi’s fingers trembled beneath his sleeve, his fingertips clenched. His heart pounded rapidly. Although he considered himself resolute and had anticipated such a situation, when the moment truly arrived, seeing Shen Du surrounded by the swarming Half-Faced Ghosts, an inexplicable panic overwhelmed him, leaving him breathless.
Raising his hand, Mo Qianzhi looked into the night, still hesitant.
Before anyone could speak, the sound of war drums was heard again.
This time was different from before. The sound became more distinct, closer, and louder.
Everyone’s formation fell into disarray.
Impossible, reinforcements couldn’t arrive so quickly. Lai Luoshu listened in disbelief to the increasingly heavy drumbeats.
Suddenly, a large group of Great Zhou official troops appeared from all directions, waving flags and shouting battle cries. Their shouts shook heaven and earth. In the night’s shroud, ghostly shadows flickered, and smoke rose from the mountains, giving the illusion of thousands of troops arriving.