Chapter 184: Shade's Defeat

New Moon Night.

Starless and moonless, the ink-black sky was as if soaked in thick oil, swallowing even the last trace of daylight.

In the hilly border region between Luo River and Thus entries: Thus entries: Anping, all sounds ceased; even the summer insects fell silent.

Wind blew through the withered grass and scattered stones, emitting a mournful wail, adding a touch of gloom.

In this extreme darkness and silence, more than a dozen black shadows, nearly merging with the night.

They moved with inhuman agility and utter silence, sneaking toward the Thus entries: Thus entries: Anping granary.

They were like ghosts, their feet touching the ground without making a sound;

Their silhouettes flashed past the shrubs, causing the branches to tremble.

They were the 'Shade Squad' dispatched by the Iron Crow Army.

Their eyes were hollow, their breathing faint and even, their entire aura restrained to the utmost.

Only occasionally, at extremely close range, could one detect a faint, almost imperceptible cold scent mixed with metal and azure crystal.

Their target was clear—Thus entries: Thus entries: Anping's Number 3 Granary.

It stored nearly thirty percent of Luo River's grain reserves; once burned, it would be a heavy blow to Chen Wen's forces.

The leading shadow made an extremely concealed gesture;

The squad instantly dispersed, like mercury dropped on sand, slipping along several seemingly impassable steep paths toward the granary's outer perimeter.

They avoided the watchtowers in the open;

they bypassed the patrol teams' regular routes;

they even keenly detected several cleverly installed tripwire bells.

and avoided them with astonishing flexibility and precision.

Everything seemed to be proceeding according to their plan.

The Luo River side's garrison seemed unaware of this deadly squad's infiltration.

……

Meanwhile, outside the Thus entries: Thus entries: Anping granary, within a concealed mountain hollow,

this was Shi Dun's preset ambush command point.

He lay motionless like a dormant rock, only a pair of sharp eyes.

Through a gap in his camouflage, he fixed his gaze on the distant silent hills.

Beside him, several elite Peaceful Army soldiers holding strong bows and crossbows likewise held their breath and focused.

The air was thick with suppressed excitement and icy killing intent.

"General, at the East Side No. 3 Ambush Point, abnormal bird calls have been detected, not local species."

A scout with exceptionally keen hearing leaned close to Shi Dun's ear and reported in an extremely low voice.

Shi Dun's mouth curled into a ferocious arc.

"Damn, they've finally come."

He took a deep breath, but did not give the order immediately;

instead, he continued to wait.

He was waiting for these 'Shade' to fully enter the core of the death trap he had meticulously woven.

……

The Shade Squad continued to advance deeper.

They had already passed the outer two defense lines, with less than a li remaining to the tall granary walls.

This area was relatively flat, growing waist-high withered grass, providing excellent cover for stealth.

The leading shadow again gave a hand signal, indicating to speed through.

However, at the moment his foot stepped out.

Suddenly, an anomaly arose!

"Whoosh—!"

A whistling arrow, carrying a piercing scream, tore through the night's tranquility and shot straight into the clouds!

This was no ordinary arrow; its tip was bound with a specially made whistle!

The sharp whistle sounded like an alarm, instantly spreading across the wilderness!

Almost simultaneously with the whistling arrow's ascent.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

More than a dozen spots on the ground suddenly collapsed!

Expertly concealed pits, dug deep several zhang, appeared without warning;

The pit bottoms were densely packed with sharpened bamboo spikes and iron caltrops.

Three or four Shade Squad members failed to react in time, instantly falling into the pits, managing only a few short groans before falling silent.

"An ambush!"

The leading shadow's voice remained icy, but his speech quickened slightly.

He did not panic; his form retreated like a ghost, while he waved a hand to give orders.

"Scatter! Charge forward! Target unchanged!"

The remaining Shade Squad members immediately obeyed the order, displaying astonishing combat capability;

They no longer concealed their movements, speed bursting forth like arrows released from a bow, scattering apart, still fearlessly charging toward the granary.

In their view, as long as they rushed past this final stretch and hurled the specially prepared fire oil and incendiary into the granary, the mission would be accomplished.

However, the feast Shi Dun had prepared for them had only just begun.

Fire arrows!

Shi Dun's thunderous roar exploded in the mountain hollow.

The next moment.

Whoom—!

A dense, scalp-tingling bowstring vibration rang out from all directions!

That was not scattered shooting;

but a volley from at least five different directions, with over two hundred strong bows and heavy crossbows firing together!

Arrows fell like a torrential downpour, covering the area where the Shade squad was and all their possible advance routes;

Among them were spear-like bolts fired from huge divine crossbows, possessing terrifying penetrating power.

Instantly pinning two Shade squad members who tried to dodge using movement techniques to the ground!

Raise shields! Form up!

The leading black shadow bellowed.

The surviving seven or eight Shade squad members immediately huddled, small yet extraordinarily sturdy metal round shields appearing in their hands, waving them to try to block the arrow rain.

Their movements were so fast they left afterimages, the shields whirling so tightly as to be airtight.

They actually managed to block most of the arrows, emitting a dense clinking sound.

But these arrows were too many, too dense!

Moreover, the attack was far from over.

Boom!

Boom!

Several pre-placed gunpowder packs, made from thunder-fire mortar, were detonated;

Although their power was limited, the huge sound and rising flames instantly disrupted the Shade squad's formation and vision.

Taking advantage of this brief chaos.

Peaceful Stability Army! Kill!

Shi Dun led the charge, like a tiger bursting from its gate, wielding a thickened and weighted machete, he surged forward from the front!

Behind him, over a hundred of the Peaceful Stability Army's finest armored soldiers surged like a steel torrent.

Emerging from various preset sortie points, they instantly completed the encirclement of the remaining Shade squad.

These soldiers had sharp eyes, steady breath, and coordinated movements, clearly having undergone rigorous training.

Furthermore, before battle, they received a certain Concentrated Endowment blessing!

Their strength, speed, and endurance far surpassed that of ordinary elite troops!

In close combat, they instantly erupted!

Shade squad members possessed formidable individual combat strength, their moves vicious and tricky, often able to launch attacks from unimaginable angles.

But the Peaceful Stability Army's armored soldiers, relying on slightly superior strength and faster reactions,

and tight battle formation cooperation, they stubbornly blocked the Shade squad's desperate counterattack.

Blades flashed, flesh and blood flew.

Roars, clashing weapons, blades piercing flesh, and dying screams intertwined, breaking the night's silence.

Shi Dun was even more unstoppable, his machete whirling like a whirlwind, carrying terrifying power.

He directly split in half a Shade squad member who tried to approach, shield and all!

The battle did not last long.

Faced with absolute numerical superiority, meticulous tactical deployment, and the overwhelming individual strength brought by Ability Granting, even as formidable as the Shade squad, they could not turn the tide.

Less than the time to burn an incense stick.

The last Shade squad member, after being struck by several arrows and then pierced through the body by three spears,

still struggled to throw a dagger from his sleeve, but Shi Dun stepped forward and beheaded him with a single blow!

His head rolled to the ground, and in those hollow eyes, the last trace left was an incredulous coldness.

The battle ended.

No enemies remained standing on the field.

More than ten Shade squad members were all slain!

The air was thick with the heavy smell of blood and the gunpowder smoke after burning.

The Peaceful Stability Army side also paid a price of over ten casualties.

But compared to annihilating that terrifying squad, this cost could be called minor.

Clear the battlefield!

Check casualties!

Let's see what's weird about these guys!

Shi Dun leaned on his machete, panting heavily as he gave the order, his face showing victorious excitement and a trace of lingering fear.

These guys are indeed tough to deal with!

Soon, the soldiers searched the Shade squad members' corpses and found some standard-issue peculiar weapons and a small amount of azure-blue crystal fragments.

And… each of them carried an identical metal token on their person.

Engraved on it was a lifelike crow with icy eyes.

……

The news was transmitted immediately to the Luo River Defense Commissioner's Office.

"Sir, the ambush succeeded! Sixteen attackers, all annihilated! Captured tokens and some crystal fragments!"

Qian Gui's voice carried an uncontainable excitement.

Chen Wen slowly set down the pen in his hand, his face showing little joy, merely exhaling a breath of turbid air.

The heavy stone in his heart temporarily settled.

He asked in a low voice:

"How are our casualties?"

"Seven killed, eleven wounded, all properly arranged."

"Good."

Chen Wen stood up.

"Send the captured items immediately to the artificer camp, to be studied carefully by Zhao Lao Nian and Lei Huo."

"Provide generous compensation to the families of the fallen soldiers."

"Spare no effort to treat the wounded."

"Furthermore, report the battle results to Chen Prefecture via eight-hundred-li urgent dispatch, to be submitted before the governor's desk."

He paused, then added:

"Just state the facts, no need for embellishment."

"Yes!"

Qian Gui received the order and departed.

Chen Wen walked to the window, gazing toward Thus entries: Thus entries: Anping.

Although this deadly sneak attack had been thwarted, he knew that the contest with the Iron Crow Army was far from over.

This time they were able to use Nether Shade; what about next time?

Moreover, the fifty-man squad led by Zhao Kuangyin that disappeared remains missing to this day.

The crisis was merely temporarily alleviated.

But regardless, this clean and neat victory greatly boosted troop morale.

It also verified the formidable combat strength of his Jun Ying after receiving full preparation and the blessing of Ability Granting.

The Growth Progress Bar, after successfully resolving this major crisis and consolidating the foundation, quietly rose to 18%.