Chapter 85: Run

"Do not retreat! This official orders you to continue fighting!" Seeing the constables and yamen runners about to flee, Lv Dazhi cursed in a rage, but those constables and yamen runners paid him no mind at all; they took to their heels, wishing their parents had given them an extra pair of legs so they could run even faster.

That group of hunters had such fierce firepower; how could they have so many cannons? Shrapnel rained down like raindrops, and their companions fell in droves. The surviving constables and yamen runners simply could not hold them back; they were terrified out of their wits and only wanted to escape quickly, to get as far away from those hunters as possible.

"Clang!" Lv Dazhi drew the precious sword at his waist and, with a *swish*, cut down a yamen runner who was fleeing with his head in his hands. Then, using the blood-dripping sword, he drew a line of blood on the ground and shouted, "Those who cross this line shall be executed!"

Lv Dazhi was usually quite cowardly, but he was the County Magistrate of Luolong County; others could flee, but he could not.

Not to mention that Demon Beasts were ravaging outside the city and Lv Dazhi had nowhere to flee, even if he could escape, he could not run, because according to the laws of the Great Wu Heavenly Dynasty, a County Magistrate had the duty to defend the land; if he abandoned the city and fled, Lv Dazhi would not escape the fate of being beheaded.

The fleeing constables froze for a moment, but the hunters from Qinghe Village behind them were already in pursuit, and the cannons roared; if they didn't run now, they would be riddled with holes.

"My Lord, we really can't hold them back. You should flee quickly too; if you don't run now, there won't be another chance."

"Too many of our brothers have died, and the enemy's firepower is too fierce. My Lord, retreat quickly."

"As long as the green hills remain, there is no need to worry about firewood."

The surviving constables and yamen runners were led by the Second-Rank Head Constable Fang Cheng, who was trying to persuade him with earnest words, while the other constables and yamen runners chimed in; in short, they did not want to fight anymore.

"You cannot retreat! Whoever dares to say the word 'retreat' again, this official will definitely execute without mercy." Lv Dazhi glared with wide eyes, brandishing his blood-stained sword, forcing the constables and yamen runners to continue fighting.

Seeing that this group remained unmoved, Lv Dazhi had no choice but to use the County Magistrate Seal again to mobilize the little remaining People's Will, pointing at Fang Cheng and saying, "A soldier is kept for a thousand days to be used for a single moment; now is the time for this official to use you. Fang Cheng, this official orders you to lead these men, continue firing, and annihilate this group of hunters."

The County Magistrate Seal was a very special treasure; it allowed an official to mobilize the Dynasty Luck and People's Will within their jurisdiction, but People's Will was also a form of spiritual power derived from the common people.

After ordinary people had their Spiritual Power drained, they would feel exhausted, as if they hadn't slept for three days and three nights, and would need to rest well before they could have their Spiritual Power drained again.

In order to deal with Meng Yifan, Lv Dazhi had already drained the Spiritual Power of over ten thousand commoners, and the Spiritual Power he could mobilize again was already scarce; this time, he had drained almost all of it to force Head Constable Fang Cheng to continue fighting.

"Eating the imperial court's food and receiving the imperial court's money and grain, one should serve the imperial court. How can one desert in the face of battle at a critical moment? How could one do such a thing, worse than a pig or a dog?"

Fang Cheng suddenly felt that his act of fleeing was shameful; he slapped himself hard twice, then raised his arms and shouted, "Brothers, follow me and continue fighting!"

Seeing the suddenly repentant Fang Cheng, Lv Dazhi smiled with relief and said, "To realize one's mistake and correct it is the greatest virtue! Fang Cheng, fight well; once we are victorious, this official will reward you heavily."

Fang Cheng picked up a Steel Shield and turned to block the incoming Lead Bullets from behind. There were a dozen or so yamen runners who usually hung around Fang Cheng, and they had a good relationship; now that they saw Fang Cheng going back to fight, they followed him back to fight as well.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" A round of Bird Gun fire went off, knocking down two more pursuing hunters.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!" Meng Yitong and the other young men also began to return fire, but Fang Cheng was a Second Grade Martial Artist with great strength and strong personal defense; he carried that two-meter-wide, three-meter-high Shield, blocking the Lead Bullets and shrapnel fired by Meng Yitong and the others.

The other constables and yamen runners also hunched down, hiding behind the large Shield to fire, making the hunters of Qinghe Village afraid to pursue.

Meng Dayong, in order to better inflict damage on the enemy, had loaded his Elm Cannon with shrapnel; with one blast, the dense shrapnel hit the large Shield with a clanging sound.

But Fang Cheng was now single-mindedly thinking of shedding his blood to repay the imperial court's salary; he gritted his teeth and did not retreat, stubbornly blocking the multiple blasts of the Elm Cannon.

"Meng Yitong, quickly send me an Elm Cannon loaded with an Iron Ball; I want to blast open his turtle shell!" Meng Dayong roared. He hadn't expected that the enemies, who had already begun to flee, would suddenly have their courage greatly increased and turn back to fight.

Meng Yitong ran toward the back and soon brought over a loaded Elm Cannon, handing it to Meng Dayong.

"Boom!" Meng Dayong lit the fuse, and with a roar of the Elm Cannon, a scorching Iron Ball shot out, hitting Fang Cheng's large Shield directly.

"Bang!" The Iron Ball, containing powerful kinetic energy, smashed the Steel Shield to pieces in an instant, and without losing momentum, it slammed into Fang Cheng's chest.

"Pfft!" Fang Cheng was sent flying, his chest caved in, and he spat out a mouthful of blood while still in the air.

Without Fang Cheng's large Shield, the hunters of Qinghe Village fired another volley, knocking the dozen or so yamen runners who dared to resist into a pool of blood.

"Charge! Kill the corrupt official, act on behalf of Heaven!" Meng Dayong shouted, and all the hunters were in high spirits, clutching their Elm Cannons and Bird Guns, marching forward.

The enemy had arrived, and the constables and yamen runners who dared to fight had all been killed, which made the other constables and yamen runners realize that if they didn't run now, they would all be killed.

At this moment, the surviving constables and yamen runners couldn't care about anything else; saving their own lives was the priority. A few people used their Lightness Skill, leaped forward, jumped over the line of blood on the ground, and ran away without looking back.

"Presumptuous!" Lv Dazhi swung his sword in anger, but unfortunately, he was a scholar with no strength to truss a chicken, and this sword strike couldn't hit the Martial Artists who wanted to flee.

"Run! Run quickly!" Seeing someone take the lead in running, the other constables and yamen runners also began to flee one after another.

"You cannot run! All of you, come back to me!" Lv Dazhi was the County Magistrate; these constables and yamen runners were usually very respectful to him, but now these bastards were deserting in the face of battle—they were all deserters, and they deserved to die, all of them deserved to die.

"Swish! Swish!" Lv Dazhi was frantic and kept brandishing his sword; two unlucky ones were cut and injured, but when the others saw this, they all used their Lightness Skill and ran around Lv Dazhi.

The whole scene was like a farce: Lv Dazhi went to the left, and everyone ran to the right; Lv Dazhi chased to the right, and everyone ran to the left.

Magistrate Lv usually lacked exercise; how could he possibly catch up to the constables and yamen runners, who were at least First Grade Martial Artists?

In a few seconds, the constables and yamen runners had all run away, leaving only the panting Lv Dazhi, still clutching his sword, standing at the line of blood he had drawn himself.