'How unpredictable the world is...'
The warning had surfaced yesterday, but even now, Chen Sheng's heart still pounded with fear as he recalled it. This was a matter of life and death, a great calamity, forcing him to be exceedingly cautious.
Fortunately, as perilous as this calamity was, it was merely a contingent event. As long as he didn't rashly take the initiative, he should be able to avoid it safely.
Soon, a horse-drawn carriage emerged from the camp.
Wu Kuang lifted the carriage curtain, his gaze sweeping over Chen Sheng and Huang Ren. He commanded in a deep voice,
"Form up the ranks and head southwest. Between the two of you, who is willing to be the vanguard and clear the way?"
Mindful of the Celestial Book's warning, Chen Sheng lowered his head and remained silent. Huang Ren, though surprised, immediately seized the opportunity.
"Commander, I volunteer!"
Ever since their wrestling match in the tent, Huang Ren had known he was slightly weaker than Chen Sheng and didn't dare provoke him openly. However, his competitive spirit had never died.
He was accompanying Wu Kuang to his new post as the County Captain of Changshan, and he knew a promotion would surely follow. The candidate would most likely be either him or Chen Sheng, so he had to seize every opportunity to prove his worth.
Upon hearing this, Wu Kuang shot Chen Sheng a surprised glance.
He had expected Chen Sheng to volunteer and was planning to go with the flow, giving him this chance to earn merit. After all, he had always considered Chen Sheng steady and reliable. What a waste of a good plan.
He had intended for Chen Sheng to accumulate some visible achievements, which would make his future promotion more palatable to others.
"In that case, Huang Ren, you will clear the way ahead. But you must be extremely cautious and remain vigilant at all times."
Wu Kuang's admonition to Huang Ren seemed to carry a hidden meaning.
However, Huang Ren was completely oblivious. He took it as a routine warning and accepted the order with glee. After Wu Kuang returned to the carriage, he even shot Chen Sheng a provocative glance, feeling he had finally gotten the upper hand.
Chen Sheng laughed inwardly but had no intention of warning him.
For one, this was a stratagem personally orchestrated by Captain Nie to lure out the enemy. Even he hadn't been briefed in advance, which suggested there might be a mole in the camp. He absolutely couldn't risk creating complications.
For another, his relationship with Huang Ren was casual at best; they were rivals. If he spoke up now, Huang Ren would likely assume he was just being jealous and trying to stir up trouble.
"Pass the order! Re-form the column and head southwest! No one is to leave the ranks without permission!"
Mounted on a tall steed, Huang Ren was in high spirits. He cracked his whip in the air and roared,
"Move out!"
...
"Commander, why did you let that Huang fellow take this chance to shine?"
A young soldier named Yan Ming sidled up to Chen Sheng within the marching column and muttered in a low, indignant tone. Watching Huang Ren parade around on his horse at the front, he couldn't help but feel it was unfair to Chen Sheng.
This Yan Ming was the very person who had presented him with the Secret Technique, the Fishing Toad Force.
Ever since Chen Sheng had added him to the list of attendants, Yan Ming had been determined to follow him, serving him with great diligence. Chen Sheng happened to need reliable men, so he kept him by his side.
"It's fine. It's a good chance to rest a bit."
Chen Sheng didn't say much, maintaining a nonchalant attitude.
He even went out of his way to be inconspicuous, dismounting his horse and mixing in with the common soldiers to march and maintain order.
"You truly operate on a higher plane, Commander, not deigning to squabble with the likes of Huang."
Yan Ming chuckled, casually delivering another piece of flattery.
Though he knew it was just bootlicking, Chen Sheng had to admit it was pleasant to hear.
But Chen Sheng had no mind for it. His sharp gaze scanned their surroundings, the corner of his eye occasionally darting toward the carriage that continued to advance steadily.
Despite the Celestial Book's warning, he still didn't know when or where the rebels would launch their sneak attack.
With danger looming, he didn't dare let his guard down for even a moment.
Inside the sealed carriage, Nie Yuanliu sat cross-legged in a suit of light Profound Armor, meditating with his eyes closed. A long spear with blood-red patterns lay across his lap, a cold light seeming to flow along its length. It was clearly no ordinary weapon.
Beside him, Wu Kuang was fully armed and armored, his face tense as if facing a great enemy. He was nothing like the calm and composed Nie Yuanliu, clearly having long known the true danger of this journey.
「Time passed quietly.」
The column marched for dozens of miles, but their surroundings remained peaceful. The soldiers gradually relaxed, their formation growing sloppy. Only Chen Sheng remained on high alert.
Huang Ren, meanwhile, galloped back and forth along the column. Whenever he saw a soldier out of formation, he would lash out with his whip and a sharp reprimand, exercising the authority Wu Kuang had given him as vanguard to the fullest.
He felt he was being diligent, seizing every chance to distinguish himself. If he couldn't replace Chen Sheng immediately, he at least wanted to stand as his equal.
However, in the dense forest just off to the side of the road ahead—
Viewed from above, one would see dozens of figures in mismatched attire lying prone amidst the trees. A Strong Bow was drawn to a full moon, a black-fletched arrow nocked on the string, its tip glinting with the cold light of death.
A burly man with a copper hammer on his back held his breath in concentration. Wisps of Innate True Qi flowed from his body, coiling around the arrow and locking it onto its target.
Finally, as the bulk of the troops entered the kill zone, his target shifted from the inscrutable carriage to the conspicuous, mounted figure at the head of the formation.
THWUMP!
The muffled thrum of a bowstring suddenly shattered the forest's silence!
In the next instant, the arrow flew, becoming a streak of black, life-stealing light. Imbued with impossibly sharp Innate True Qi, it tore through the air at a speed the naked eye could barely follow, aimed straight for the center of Huang Ren's back!
At that moment, Huang Ren was completely oblivious. He still sat proudly on his horse, head held high, even turning to joke with a confidant beside him, full of vigor.
He only became aware of the danger when the fatal whistle of its approach was upon him!
But it was too late.
He had no time to react. He had just turned his head when the arrow, filled with terrifying power, brutally punched through his chest plate!
"THWACK—!"
The immense force of the impact launched him from his saddle. He crashed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.
"Kill them! Leave no one alive!"
The burly man had roared the order the moment the arrow left the string.
Instantly, dozens of figures rose from the dense woods. The twang of bowstrings sounded like a sudden downpour, and a dense volley of arrows shot out from the trees like a swarm of locusts, descending to blanket the soldiers of the fourth company!
"Ambush! Shields up! On guard!"
At almost the exact same instant that Huang Ren was struck and fell from his horse, Chen Sheng's roar erupted. He had already raised a heavy shield to protect himself while shouting a sharp warning to the soldiers around him.
"BOOM—!"
At the same time, the carriage exploded!
A figure in Profound Armor shot up from the wreckage like a hawk, clutching a blood-red spear. He actually took several steps on empty air, crossing over the chaotic ranks in an instant and charging straight into the forest against the rain of arrows!
A furious roar, infused with Innate True Qi, rolled across the battlefield like thunder:
"You're courting death!"
All of this happened in the blink of an eye.
From the moment the arrow was loosed, to Chen Sheng's warning, to Nie Yuanliu bursting into action—it was all suffocatingly fast.
The deadly arrow, empowered by Innate True Qi, was simply too terrifyingly fast. It was a long-planned ambush; Huang Ren never stood a chance.
In that moment, Chen Sheng could almost see it with his own eyes—if not for the Celestial Book's warning, for its power of Seeking Fortune and Avoiding Evil, he knew exactly whose cold corpse would be lying there right now.
Huang Ren... had become his scapegoat.