Chapter 734: I just want you to live well

The archers behind the battlements recovered from their shock, frantically pulling back their bowstrings.

Arrows fell like a sudden rain from the battlements, pouring down in a dark mass toward the siege tower.

The shadow blades leapt up, tapping their toes to reach the front of the siege tower, blocking those behind.

Xiao Jieyun and the vanguard held their shields with one hand, protecting their heads and pressing their bodies tightly against the siege tower.

Inside their outer garments, they all wore the treasure armor that Tuan Tuan had brought back from the ice cave.

Arrowheads rattled down, striking them lightly and bouncing off before falling to the ground.

The archers cried out in alarm: "The arrows won't pierce! They're not human!"

"Shut up! If you dare to spout nonsense again, I'll behead you!" Chen Wang roared, charging to the battlements to look down; these people showed no abnormality—how could the arrows not penetrate?

He bellowed the order: "Fire again!"

"Yes!" the archers shouted, letting loose another volley of arrows.

Another rain of arrows came down upon them from above.

Qing Wang kicked an archer aside, snatched his bow and arrows in one motion.

He personally nocked an arrow, drew the bow to full, and shot it at the head of a shadow blade on the siege tower.

The shadow blade didn't even lift its head; the arrow struck the black cloth on its head, producing a white dot that bounced high before falling to the ground.

Qing Wang's face turned pale; he turned to look at Chen Wang: "Prince Brother!"

"Archers, hear my orders!" Chen Wang stared fixedly at the siege tower, noting the difference between the two groups, "Shoot at the ones below, not at those in black!"

"Yes!"

Qing Wang immediately drew an arrow, took two steps to the side, and fired again from the flank.

Another barrage of arrows rained down.

Most of the arrows were blocked by the vanguards' shields, but a few accidentally struck legs, causing those hit to scream and tumble down from the siege tower.

The archers' morale surged: "Shoot at the ones below!"

At that moment, the shadow blades had already leapt onto the upper part of the siege tower; they stepped on the horizontal rungs, leapt up, using the first step for momentum, and with the second step they were already on the battlements.

The defenders beside the battlements felt their vision darken; a black shadow fell like a huge bat before their eyes, scattering in all directions in the blink of an eye.

One hundred and one shadow blades landed almost simultaneously on the city wall.

The defenders immediately swarmed forward, raising their blades to slash.

The shadow blades didn't dodge at all; their movements were inhumanly fast, their techniques strange, their arms able to bend backward, and a single sweep could cut down everyone in front and behind them.

Soon the defenders discovered in horror that their blades could not penetrate these black-clad figures at all.

Faced with such a bizarre enemy, a moment of panic often sent them sprawling to the ground.

Moreover, the shadow blades were dressed head to toe in black, their faces unseen, their eyes especially cold and ruthless.

The defenders were instantly terrified, retreating en masse.

Qing Wang threw down his longbow, raised his treasure sword to block his chest, and slowly retreated behind Chen Wang.

Chen Wang looked horrified: "What the hell is this!"

A defender heard this and, without thinking, shouted: "Your Highness said they're ghosts! Not human!"

Chen Wang: "……"

That sentence ignited all their fear.

"So they're ghosts after all! How do we fight them?"

"Run! The ghosts are coming!" The defenders turned and fled.

Chen Wang flew into a rage, chased after them and stabbed two defenders to death: "Desertion before battle—kill without mercy!"

The defenders glanced at each other, helpless, and had no choice but to return and continue fighting.

The city wall descended into utter chaos.

Xiao Ningxun seized the opportunity to lead the first batch of vanguards onto the city wall.

He first glanced at the high platform; fortunately, everyone was down below, and above there was only that empty dragon throne.

Tuan Tuan, you must hide well—Third Brother will come find you soon.

Qing Wang's spirits lifted; these people not wearing black had just been struck by arrows!

He pointed his sword and shouted: "Kill!"

Countless defenders surged forward.

But moments later they discovered that these people were likewise impervious to blades and spears.

The defenders screamed: "We can't cut them! They can't cut us either!"

Panic spread like a plague, more and more defenders began to retreat, their blades trembling nonstop in their hands.

Qing Wang recalled that when he had shot arrows earlier, those who had fallen were all hit in the leg.

He roared: "Aim for the legs!"

In the residence where Cheng Jing lived, a faint rumbling like distant thunder could be heard from the direction of the city gate.

Lu Qi carried Tuan Tuan, carefully crouching on the roof ridge, lifting tiles one by one to search for Mo Zhanggeng.

Fortunately, because the army was besieging the city, the civilians had all hidden in their homes, and the streets were sparsely populated.

Although the cover of night was gone, at this point no one paid any attention to others' roofs.

As Lu Qi pried open a tile, a sound came from inside.

"Cheng Lang, listen—the fighting at the city gate must be intense right now; if we lose……"

"It's fine; even if we lose, there's a place for defeat—no need to worry."

These were Cheng Jing and Liu Guiyan.

Tuan Tuan tugged at Lu Qi's sleeve; Lu Qi understood, gently set her down, and the two peered down together through the gap.

Only two people sat on the bedside, Liu Guiyan leaning against Cheng Jing's embrace.

"I don't worry about other matters," Liu Guiyan gently rubbed Cheng Jing's hand back, "the realm you fought over, I never took to heart."

"I'm just worried about your Gu Worm." She sighed softly, "If we lose, how could we still capture Princess Jiayou?"

"She and that larval gu won't die; what will you do with your Gu Worm?"

Cheng Jing embraced his wife, comforting her softly: "There will always be a way; you and I have been wandering for years, can't we handle a child?"

"Before she hid in the dark, hard to find; after we win this battle, her parents and brothers will all be dead, where could she hide?"

Tuan Tuan clenched her little fists, puffed out her cheeks, "Damn it! You actually want to kill Dad and the brothers!"

"That said, as long as that Gu Worm remains for a day, I cannot rest easy." Liu Guiyan achingly curled Cheng Jing's hand and held it in hers.

"If there were no Mo Zhanggeng, I wouldn't even dare to think……"

"This is the way heaven leaves no one without a path, Guiyan," Cheng Jing gently kissed her forehead, "don't always be worried, okay?"

Liu Guiyan nodded.

"However," Cheng Jing withdrew his hand from his wife's, raised it and rubbed his brow.

Liu Guiyan immediately grew nervous: "What's wrong? Headache again? Didn't you just finish acupuncture?"

"Just a little, not serious, don't worry," Cheng Jing frowned: "Thinking of Mo Zhanggeng gives me a headache."

"He was forced to treat my illness, yet never wholeheartedly, his temper so huge, always making me unhappy."

Liu Guiyan chuckled: "Cheng Lang, who with real talent doesn't have a bit of temper? Mo Zhanggeng's temper may be big, but compared to Xue Tong of years past, it's much better."

Tuan Tuan heard Xue Tong, pouted: "That's also my Master! I haven't seen him in ages."

Cheng Jing nodded: "That's not wrong either."

Liu Guiyan thought for a moment, then said cautiously: "Cheng Lang, let's just go, return to Jiangnan, go to the Gobi, anywhere will do."

"Bring Mo Zhanggeng along; although his medical skill is superb, he knows no martial arts, a few servants will suffice to handle him."

"I just want you to live well; let's not concern ourselves with Jingcheng affairs, okay?"