The three of them cursed "the dog emperor".
But in fact, Zheng Xiu, Fan Yao, and Xie Yunliu all knew that the Daqian Dynasty was in turmoil now, and this was the most correct thing for the new emperor to do.
There is nothing wrong with defending the country called Daqian at the minimum cost.
Even Fan Yao, Xie Yunliu, and a thousand soldiers heading west were all victims of this move.
After Zheng Xiu settled Xie Yunliu and more than a hundred soldiers in place.
Xie Yunliu later told Zheng Xiu that after he became General Pingxi, he had met Chu Chengfeng and Bai Xiaosheng.
Chu Chengfeng is no longer what he used to be. His words are domineering and his ambition to conquer the world cannot be concealed.
Bai Xiaosheng gave him a piece of news for free: the Northern Barbarians were colluding with the Shache Kingdom, and the Shache Kingdom was mobilizing its army to invade Daqian from the west. Daqian is dangerous.
The "jianghu" that Xie Yunliu is familiar with has long existed in name only, and things have changed and people have changed. After he and Bai Xiaosheng had a drink, they joined Fan Yao and embarked on the road of no return to the west.
A few days passed in the blink of an eye.
Every day, the sky is cloudless, the wind and sand are silent, the air in the distance is distorted, and the sun is hot.
Every time I take a breath, it feels like the air around me is filled with lead, stuffy and heavy.
The soldiers walked around the town wearing only armor and stomach, and soon they were covered in hot sweat.
Many soldiers simply took off their armor and stomach. Under General Xie's military order, they assisted the Lieri tribe with only a hundred people, hoping to complete the feat of guarding the border.
Zheng Xiu, who was familiar with the desert climate, speculated that a sandstorm that was rare in several years was brewing in the desert.
One night.
After meal.
Zheng Xiu found that Fan Yao was missing, so he looked around, looking for Fan Yao.
The lady pointed into the distance.
Under the bright moon, the silver glow shines. A lonely figure raised a glass to the moon on the eaves.
At this time, Fan Yao no longer had the usual sullenness and confidence. Under the moonlight, his whole body was filled with a sense of tranquility, as if he had experienced the prosperity of the world and savored the coolness.
For a moment, Zheng Xiu seemed to see the former monk in Fan Yao.
Ha~
Zheng Xiu shook his head and chuckled.
They are the same person.
Just, it cracked.
Zheng Xiu made a big hand out of sand. He stepped on the big hand calmly, letting the sand support him, and easily climbed up to the roof.
Fan Yao drank a drink and listened to Zheng Xiu's footsteps on the mud tiles. Without looking back, he asked calmly: "Come to kill me?"
Zheng Xiu smiled: "We won't wait until now."
Fan Yao nodded calmly: "Yes."
Zheng Xiu sat next to Fan Yao, "Can I ask something?"
"Why don't you ask another question..."
Fan Yao smiled slightly.
"Sure." Zheng Xiu agreed readily. He never suffered a loss and asked first, "What kind of place is the incomplete building?"
Fan Yao turned around and glanced at Zheng Xiu. He was very curious as to why Zheng Xiu would ask a question about the outside world in this ghost place where hypocrisy was hard to distinguish. Fan Yao didn't seem to want to hide anything at this point. He paused for a moment and replied: "A place where countless poor people gather."
Zheng Xiu frowned. Fan Yao didn't seem to be going to deal with this casual answer, and continued: "You should know Ye Weiyang, Night Lord?"
Zheng Xiu nodded.
"Under the palace, there is a huge secret room, which once contained many... gifted people. The Night Lord wanted to 'sew' new crow-raisers, and there, we just used it to piece together the 'crow-raisers' The flesh and blood of the arakkoa, nothing more."
"Sewing?"
"Well, the corpse stitcher's unique thaumaturgy can be used to sew corpses together, but he used it on each living person. Twenty years... oh, I should say about two hundred years later, during the war, corpse stitching There are countless craftsmen. After sewing, the remaining 'us' become incomplete people. But the funny thing is that this 'incompleteness' allowed us to glimpse a new door after escaping from that place, which is independence. A small path beyond the main road - a side door."
"That's it." Zheng Xiu was shocked and suddenly realized. At this point, he finally understood why the disabled building was full of disabled people. It turned out to be this reason.
"But why did the Night Lord sew a 'crowman'?"
Fan Yao smiled slightly but didn't answer.
Zheng Xiu was stunned for a moment, then shut up and stretched out his hand to signal: "Please."
Fan Yao thought for a while: "Based on the magical skills you have performed, you are indeed a 'painter'? But I have met several world-famous painters. With all due respect, you are definitely not any of them I have met. "
"Is this a question?"
"Calculate."
Zheng Xiu replied: "Now I am indeed a painter, but I am unknown."
"That's it." Fan Yao was satisfied with this answer, nodded, and took the initiative to answer Zheng Xiu's second question: "I don't know why the Night Master is obsessed with sewing a 'crow farmer', but the first crow farmer Still living in the incomplete building, he cannot speak or understand human language, just like a real... crow. In my personal opinion, the existence of the 'crow breeder' is to raise more new breeds for him. The many ravens, the ravens, are the 'eyes' of the Night Lord."
Eye?
Zheng Xiu subconsciously glanced in the direction of Sunset Mountain.
The Lord of the Night is Zhu, and Zhu is the sun chaser. He lived many years ago, and he saw the "scorching sun" at the end of his pursuit. What does he need so many "eyes" for?
Zheng Xiu and Fan Yao then asked and answered questions even more quickly.
Zheng Xiu: "Are you an ascetic?"
Fan Yao: "Yes. Who are you?"
Zheng Xiu: "An ordinary small wealthy businessman, not worth mentioning. Who is your poster?"
Fan Yao: "Ah. Wei Chen. Do you know my inner demon?"
Zheng Xiu: "Hmm, I don't know. Friend. How do you understand the magic of the crow farmer?"
Fan Yao: "Eating the eyes of a crow-keeper who has not lost his sight can cure the 'death spell', provided that the person who is affected by the spell has not died completely. Oh? You were hit?"
Zheng Xiu: "...It didn't hit the target completely. What magic technique did you use to catch Xie Luohe's arrow?"
Fan Yao: "Huh. It's not a thaumaturgy, but the real martial arts of Lou Mengkong, the Yin and Yang Reverse Sutra. To learn this skill, you must first go to the palace. Do you want to learn it?"
Zheng Xiu: "Not interested. You know the situation here, why do you take so much trouble to destroy the 'Martial Arts'?"
Fan Yao: "I'm looking for you. Bai Xiaosheng didn't want to tell, and he refused to tell me whether he was alive or dead, so I told him. If he didn't tell me for a day, I would kill a martial artist. Gradually, no one among the people dared to claim to be a martial artist. Man, that's ridiculous. Do you still want to go out?"
The quick Q&A between the two came to an abrupt end.
Zheng Xiu opened his mouth, but fell silent for a moment.
He hesitated.
"I understand." Fan Yao smiled helplessly: "Ten years have passed and my original intention has been lost."
Zheng Xiu turned his head and looked in the direction of "home".
There was a home there, a bed, a table, a chair, a well, a cat, and... his wife.
Fan Yao stood up, faced the bright moon, turned his back to Zheng Xiu, and said softly: "Five years ago, I was still looking for you and wanted to ask you if you knew how to escape. But one day, Fan suddenly realized that here Fan I have lived for fifty years. Fifty years have gone by in a blink of an eye, and everything around me has changed. Everything in the past has gradually become strange and indifferent. What is true? What is false? I have long lost track of who I am. Ballad, or Lou Mengkong. Life is short, how many fifty years are there? I have lived here for a lifetime as Lou Mengkong, enjoying all the glory, wealth, and delicious food. I have no regrets. Really, why not pretend? What's there to be afraid of?"
"And you,"
Lou Mengkong gave a long laugh, and floated away into the distance like a wild goose. His voice came back: "How can you be sure that you are Gongsun Mo, or who you think you are?"
"The time of life, the wonderful play in the pavilions, is it a big dream or in vain?"
"Since I have lived here for fifty years, what's the harm in living my whole life as a dream of the building?"
Zheng Xiu returned home, and the house was dark.
Two eerie green eyes stared at him in the darkness.
"Meow~"
With a meow, Xie Luohe, who was hiding behind the door, hugged Zheng Xiu forcefully from behind.
"What did you say?"
Xie Luohe asked.
"Can't you hear me?"
Xie Luohe was silent for a moment and shook his head: "I don't want to hear it."
"He said that everything before him was just a big dream. But I couldn't believe him."
Zheng Xiu smiled.
Xie Luohe's embrace suddenly tightened, and she saw through her husband's thoughts.
Zheng Xiu paused for a moment, knowing that his thoughts could not be hidden from his wife, so he sighed softly: "Even so, I will accompany you to the end of this dream."
"Yeah." Xie Luohe smiled in the darkness: "Okay."
Ten days later.
"coming."
To the west of Richan Valley, beyond the horizon, the black army formed a line between heaven and earth, pressing towards Richan Valley in a mighty manner, stretching as far as the eye could see.
When Ri Ding spread the news throughout the tribe, the Lie Sun tribe was filled with sorrow.
It is roughly estimated that after one month, the ambitious "Brake King" gathered an army of thirty-six countries, numbering tens of thousands.
"Obviously, certain death."
Fan Yao said firmly.
Zheng Xiu shook his head: "Not necessarily. The path of Richan Valley is narrow and can only accommodate ten people shoulder to shoulder. No matter how many of them there are, we will stick to the entrance of the valley and fight with a bow formation. With the help of the terrain, we should be able to withstand one or two. If it doesn't work, we will retreat into the desert. With the Lie Sun Tribe’s familiarity with the desert, they may not be able to devour an army of ten thousand people.”
Xie Yunliu shook his head with a grimace: "Brother-in-law, you have never been on the battlefield, so you don't know how terrifying an army of ten thousand people is. Just defend the mouth of the valley. When you reach the open area of the desert, the fine sand is weak, and the camels here are weak. They are no better than the war camels in the Western Regions." "Bi, I caught up with you in just a puff of smoke. The army of ten thousand people rode on war camels and charged. Even if my archery skills are incredible, I can't stop the might of the army of ten thousand people."
Xie Luohe said nothing.
Ri Di gritted his teeth: "We will defend Sun Chan Valley! Boss Mo, Mr. Xie, when it comes time to stop us, you two can escape back to the Central Plains on camels. There is no need to worry about us!"
Zheng Xiu was stunned. Listening to Ri Di's tone, he was obviously mentally prepared to live and die with Ri Chan Valley. But he couldn't figure out why Sun and Earth were so stubborn and would rather die with their entire clan than retreat to the Central Plains.
"Why?"
Ri Di showed a difficult smile: "This is our root!"
After the discussion, the sun and the earth began to prepare for the battle before the Western Region army attacked.
…
An army of ten thousand people entered Richan Town three days later.
The leader was not Aturu, but a strange general. He first used rockets dipped in boiling oil to shoot randomly at Sun Cicada Valley from a distance.
A wave of rockets came down, forcing Zheng Xiu and others to hide behind the rocks.
But everyone in the Lie Sun tribe has practiced Xie's archery skills, and they can turn arrows when they miss. Strange arrows were shot from the Richan Valley, but they were all blocked by the strange "fan shield" of the Western Region.
Xiaofeng Miao shivered and stood on Xie Luohe's shoulder. Xie Luohe held a long bow in his hand and bit his lower lip without taking any action.
Xie Yunliu, wearing iron armor, stood in a military formation with a hundred troops and guarded the valley. It was difficult to stand still.
Zheng Xiu cut his wrist, blood gushed out, and he drew countless ghosts directly on the rock wall.
"Monsters, demons...soul-capturing!"
The moment Zheng Xiu completed the painting, countless illusory ghosts roared and swarmed into the army. The color of the sky and the earth changed in an instant. Tens of thousands of people in the army in the Western Regions were shocked to look at the sky at the same time. The sad ghosts passed through their bodies, and those who were hit by the magic fell one after another.
Seeing this, Fan Yao's eyes flashed with light.
"Sorcery! Sorcery! He knows sorcery!"
Some people in the Western Region army were frightened.
Zheng Xiu used this hand to take away a small piece in the blink of an eye. Seeing this, the generals of the Western Regions waved their flags and the army retreated.
"Win...win?"
Sun and Earth were shocked.
"No." Zheng Xiu's face turned pale and he stared into the distance. I saw that the retreating army of the Western Regions did not retreat completely. Instead, they stood up their shields in the dilapidated town, maintained their formation, and defended rather than attacked.
After a long stalemate, at dusk, Xie Yunliu finally couldn't bear it anymore and launched a charge.
"kill!"
However, the camels under their command are only used for daily transportation and are not used on the battlefield. Seeing Xie Luohe launching a charge, the flag was waved again on the opposite side, and the rumble of war drums sounded. The frightened camels immediately refused to obey orders, disrupting the formation of the hundred-man Shenwu Army.
After disrupting the camels, a hail of arrows were fired at Xie Yunliu's hundred-man army from the opposite side. Xie Yunliu gritted his teeth and flew up, with a long sword like a dragon in the air. The air flow rolled up and hit a wave. His heroic posture was comparable to that of Xie Luohe who was attacking with all his strength.
However, even if Xie Yunliu is so brave, it is difficult for him to block the rain of arrows by himself. During the retreat, six people were killed and more than ten injured, and the army of hundreds retreated into the valley in disgrace.
The army of the Western Regions was stationed behind Richan Town and was in no hurry to attack. The opposing general seemed to know that the terrain of Richan Valley was difficult and easy to defend but difficult to attack.
However, the empty streets of the town are very suitable for large armies to attack. Xie Yunliu's army of a hundred people lost their mounts, and the infantry could not play a big role on the battlefield where the enemy's formation was stable, and they could only stay in the valley in a dilemma.
There was a moment of stalemate.
This stalemate lasted for another ten days.
Sunrise and sunset.
Since yesterday, thick gray clouds have been floating far outside the desert, as if there is a huge cover over the desert, pressing down on the sky.
The Lie Sun Tribe is now clearly facing two problems.
First, the desert wind and sand are coming, and Cicada Valley usually serves as a natural barrier, so they are naturally not afraid of the wind and sand. But once Richan Valley is breached and a sandstorm hits behind them, they really have no way out.
The second is supplies. In terms of water sources, although they can send people to the nearest oasis to replenish them, in terms of food, they are already stretched thin and it is difficult to continue to maintain it.
The Western Region Army sent troops to harass from time to time. Once the resistance from the Lie Sun tribe became fierce, they immediately retreated and never hesitated to fight. Now this war has fallen into a strange situation. The side with fewer people would rather die than surrender, while the side with more people is extremely cowardly.
"They want to kill us."
While keeping an eye on the movements of the Western Region Army, Xie Yunliu expressed his thoughts with a straight face during the night discussion.
Zheng Xiu, Ri Di, Xie Luohe, and Fan Yao looked at each other.
At the same time, he looked at Xie Yunliu in surprise.
Fan Yao was surprised: "You... just saw it?"
Zheng Xiu was helpless: "Isn't it obvious?"
Xie Luohe was a little depressed: "They seem to be waiting for something."
Since the beginning of the war, Xieluohe has not fired an arrow, and I don’t know why. He usually seems taciturn, completely different from usual, completely different from the other two. Now that he suddenly spoke, Zheng Xiu seemed to be inspired and thought of a possibility: "Waiting for Atulu?"
Ridi asked in confusion: "He's not dead yet?"
Fan Yao asked: "Atulu? Who?"
Zheng Xiu twirled his beard and murmured to himself: "What are you waiting for him to do? No, it's very possible. Artulu said at that time 'the reincarnation of the Buddha', and the people in the Western Regions seemed to call 'foreigners' the 'reincarnation of the Buddha'. If Tulu is still alive, he will naturally know the power of the aliens. Their goal is not just a Richan Valley. They want to break through this place at the minimum cost and go straight into the Central Plains. After all, after Sun Chan Valley, they still have to face boundless enemies. The desert, as well as the stubborn resistance that the Central Plains may encounter. If I were the King of Brakes, I would also find a way to win this place at the minimum cost."
Fan Yao heard this, and although Zheng Xiu didn't answer, he roughly knew that Atulu should be a stranger from the Western Regions. He had met Zheng Xiu and his wife, and he was probably disabled. Thinking of this, Fan Yao showed a strange smile: "Using strangers to deal with strangers? Ha, it is very possible."
Several people looked at each other, and the more they thought about it, the more likely it was. Just for a while, I couldn't think of a way to deal with it.
Either retreat or fight, but both will have a narrow escape.
Another ten days passed.
Ridi ordered people to cook several pots of leaf soup in the back, with a few thin slices of meat floating in it.
The gray clouds in the distance of the desert are closer.
The wind and sand were actually moving in the direction of Richan Valley.
There is still a stalemate inside and outside the valley, with both sides suffering losses from each other. If this continues, it will only be a matter of time before the Lie Sun tribe is exterminated.
But on the tenth day, something changed.
The group of people came from the Central Plains and arrived here, as if being chased by wind and sand.
Nowadays, the Lie Sun tribe is in turmoil. Sun Earth and others immediately noticed that another strange team came from the Central Plains and crossed the desert.
There were about a few hundred people in the team, walking on the backs of camels at the front with flags flying.
The flag has the word "Chu" written on it.
"Hahaha!"
When Xie Yunliu saw the flag, he twisted his bare head vigorously, chewed leaves in his mouth, cried and jumped on the spot, and waved to the distance.
"Lao Chu! Lao Chu! It's Lao Chu!"
After a while, the team crossing the desert arrived at the mouth of the eastern valley.
The first person lifted up his cloak. His dark skin was full of dust, his thick beard was twisted into a knot, and his dry hair was as messy as a chicken coop. Underneath his tired look, he had a pair of resolute and bright eyes.
At this moment, Chu Chengfeng still has the demeanor of the "Third Young Master" back then, looking like a beggar on the street.
Chu Chengfeng grinned, got off the camel, looked around at everyone, first hugged Xie Yunliu tightly, and then saw Zheng Xiu, his expression was stunned. He patted Xie Yunliu's bald head angrily, and said angrily: "Why didn't you tell me that Brother Gongsun was there? here?"
Xie Yunliu said sheepishly: "This is a secret. We can't betray my brother-in-law, can we?"
"You fucking treat me like an outsider. If I had known it, I wouldn't have come!" Chu Chengfeng kicked Xie Yunliu away. He wanted to hug Gongsun, who had been away for more than ten years, but Xie Luohe stood aside silently, his eyes calm.
Chu Chengfeng stopped suddenly, rolled his eyes, and held his hands towards Xie Luohe and Zheng Xiugong.
"This commander... ahem, I will not change my name or surname when I go downstairs. The third young master of Plum Blossom Villa, the weapon chart ranking... Bah! The weapon chart has been gone for a long time. However, it is still known as 'Looking for blue falls in the world, a little plum on the Cangshan Mountain' Of...Chu Chengfeng. How have you been all these years?"
These words suddenly reminded Zheng Xiu of the first time he met Chu Chengfeng.
After Chu Chengfeng, the group got off their camels and took off their cloaks.
There were actually many faces that Zheng Xiu was familiar with. Many of them, Zheng Xiu couldn't name, had met once at the martial arts competition in Dugu Villa.
Xiao Qinshou, who was also a prisoner, Chu Chengfeng's wife Wen Shishan, several knights who were beaten by Zheng Xiu in the martial arts competition, and the Iron Lady who used scissor kicks on Zheng Xiu but was scissored back, and others who competed in light kung fu on the mountain road. Brother Ximen and Brother Gu.
The Iron Lady now had her hair tied up in a woman's bun. She looked at Xie Luohe and Zheng Xiu, who looked like a couple in a fairy tale. She showed regret at first, and then smiled with relief. That scissor kick ten years ago silently left a desolate silhouette in her heart. She had hidden it for ten years, and now it was gone.
"Long time no see, brother Gongsun! You are really blessed!"
A little old man who was fatter than ten years ago and had white hair and beard suddenly jumped over and smiled slyly at Zheng Xiu, who was staring blankly.
"Jiang, Fatty Jiang."
Zheng Xiu didn't know them, but they knew Zheng Xiu.
Back then, Zheng Xiu participated in the martial arts competition with the vest of "Xiao Buping" and left a deep impression on them. Not to mention the invincible Sierra River.
"You're welcome and safe."
"Hey! This is a good meeting, and we are very happy. Today we meet in the world, let's have a drink and have a good time!"
"Ahem, Qingshan will not change... No, what should I say?"
"Hahaha! We have such a great country, how can we let this group of outsiders ruin it!"
"It's been hot for half a month, and it's finally cool here!"
The knights exchanged pleasantries one after another, using the polite words that were popular in the world at that time. It's just that when talking about it now, it seems a little unfamiliar. Some people can't help but laugh out loud as they talk, as if they think of their youthful self ten years ago.
The knights of the past have long since retired to the mountains and forests, and now they are full of the smoke and smoke of the world. Some became cooks, some worked as farmers, some had gray hair, and some became wives.
They used to be all-powerful in the martial arts world, but after retiring to seclusion, they did not care about worldly affairs.
The imperial court was unfair to them, and the secret factory destroyed the martial arts world.
First, Zheng Xiu and Xie Luohe lived in seclusion here. Xie Yunliu came here because of his old sister. Chu Chengfeng rushed to the desert because of his relationship with Xie Yunliu. Bai Xiaosheng was worried about his old friend and relied on his own connections to gather the old masters in the world. Together.
The last person walking silently in the team took off his bamboo hat, revealing a pale complexion.
Under the old cloak, he still wore a pale blue gown, with a black scabbard hanging on his waist. This person's hair was messy and scattered, and there were two twisted fonts on his face like birthmarks.
"Cheng Xiao!"
With a pale face and a black scabbard, Cheng Xiao remained the same as before. However, there are more words on the face and more wrinkles between the eyebrows. And his eyes were no longer empty and lifeless. When he saw Zheng Xiu, he smiled slightly. He always felt that Zheng Xiu and Xie Luohe looked particularly friendly.
Before Zheng Xiu could ask, Cheng Xiao took the initiative and said, "The great revenge has been avenged. I will have no regrets in this life, so I will come to the desert to see my old friend."
There weren't too many grudges or grudges. A simple thought brought Cheng Xiao here, free and easy.
Now in the desert, this group of knights who had aged and lost their grace reminded Zheng Xiu of a word.
——"Jianghu".
Although the world is small, there are always people there.
"hehe."
Deep in the crowd.
Fan Yao looked at the lively crowd, smiled low-key, looked pleased, and whispered.
"Done."
