Chapter 491: First Volume, Chapter 491: Killing Intent Beneath the Night

First Volume, Chapter 491: Killing Intent Beneath the Night

On the battlefield, whoever holds the initiative gains absolute dominance.

Qin Feng gradually fell into the meticulously laid trap of Ye Xiao, the North Di's elite spy organization.

Since forming the Tianji Camp Guards, Qin Feng had never suffered such a crushing defeat.

Screams and shouts erupted endlessly behind him; he could not tell friend from foe—his only chance lay in carving a bloody path through the enemy's encirclement.

Qin Feng gradually calmed down from the earlier ambush, took a short knife from his saddle gear, and gripped it tightly; bow and arrow required years of specialized training, and as Beixi's Main General, he should prioritize studying strategy and civil administration over archery—after all, each art has its own mastery.

For Qin Feng, a fully qualified general and a half-baked warrior, the knife was far more practical than the bow and arrow!

Torches were hurled around him, accompanied by whistling arrows.

Qin Feng crouched low over his horse, minimizing his profile, dodging stray arrows, daring not a single gamble.

As the flames were left behind, Qin Feng finally roared at the top of his lungs: "Where is Ning Hu? Where are the Tianji Camp Guards? Where are the Beixi Light Cavalry?"

Almost as soon as he shouted, a cavalryman sped toward him; the darkness was absolute, visibility near zero—only the rapid pounding of hooves and the darkening silhouette drew closer.

Knowing enemy and ally were hopelessly mixed together, Qin Feng dared not let his guard slip.

He lowered his body, maintained his horse's speed, watched the approaching rider with extreme caution, and raised the short knife before him.

When the rider was less than three zhang away, Qin Feng suddenly felt something slash across his chest—he instinctively thrust forward, feeling a wooden shaft the thickness of a tiger's palm glide past his front, a halberd!

"Damn it!"

Qin Feng's back instantly drenched in cold sweat—if not for the pitch darkness and the rider's poor aim, that charge would have pierced him clean through!

Though Qin Feng dodged the halberd thrust, the rider maintained full speed and slammed straight into him.

The warhorse beneath Qin Feng was struck from the side by the enemy's mount and instantly lost balance.

The two warhorses rolled together and crashed heavily to the ground.

Qin Feng was thrown clear, rolling two or three zhang away; fortunately, the terrain was relatively flat, mostly soft sandy soil—otherwise, he'd be dead or crippled.

The two warhorses were not so lucky—one broke its neck, the other shattered its leg.

The warhorses' mournful cries echoed through the bleak North night!

Qin Feng scrambled to his feet and rushed back to the horses, finding a dark shape pinned beneath one, groaning in low, pained roars.

Without hesitation, Qin Feng swung his knife down at the dark shape's head—hot blood splashed across his face!

The pampered Qin Feng seemed awakened by the blood—his inner darkness stirred, fear vanished instantly, his gaze and heart realm grew colder.

Kill one, break even; kill two, profit!

With both warhorses now useless, Qin Feng swiftly stripped weapons and materials from the saddle.

He stuck the short knife in his lower back, slung the bow and arrow across his body, and picked up the halberd—over two zhang long. Just as he prepared to flee on foot, another warhorse galloped toward him, its rider clutching a fire torch.

A torch? Must be enemy!

Qin Feng immediately flattened himself beside the dead horse, concealing his form; meanwhile, he laid the halberd across the carcass. When the enemy rider drew within five zhang, pulled his reins to slow, and prepared to check for survivors, Qin Feng suddenly leapt up from beside the corpse, raising the halberd and charging forward.

The enemy rider was slowing, left hand on the reins, right hand holding the torch—caught off guard by Qin Feng's sudden attack, he panicked and hurled the torch straight at Qin Feng's face.

Qin Feng didn't dodge—he let the torch smash into his head, felt a sudden whirring pain, teeth gritted, but still forced himself forward through sheer willpower.

The enemy rider had no time to turn his horse—he frantically reached for his halberd from the saddle, but before he could lift it, Qin Feng was already upon him.

Qin Feng planted the two-zhang halberd's end into the ground, gripped the shaft tightly with both hands, angled the tip upward toward the enemy's mount—creating a sharp angle.

The enemy's warhorse charged straight into the halberd tip—its thick neck was pierced clean through, then the rider and horse crashed heavily before Qin Feng, the halberd snapping on impact.

As the enemy rider fell, Qin Feng discarded the halberd, snatched up the short knife, and lunged forward—blade swung down, cleaving straight into the enemy's skull.

Red and white splattered together.

Before Qin Feng could catch his breath, an arrow shot from behind—striking his left shoulder.

His light armor offered no defense against the step bow's penetration—the shoulder armor was pierced clean through, the arrowhead fully embedded in his flesh.

His body lurched violently—he gritted his teeth against the searing pain in his shoulder, ignored the arrow, and rolled aside, hiding behind the dead horse.

Then arrows rained down one after another from the night sky, astonishingly accurate—all striking the dead horse before him.

Under Qin Feng's icy gaze, a hidden Ye Xiao assassin crept closer to his hiding spot, drawing and releasing arrows in rapid succession.

Though the arrows were all blocked by the horse carcass, the Ye Xiao clearly had no intention of killing Qin Feng—he merely suppressed and advanced.

If the Ye Xiao reached him, Qin Feng's half-baked combat skills would see him cut down in an instant.

His arrows were too accurate!

Qin Feng then noticed—the fallen torch from the enemy rider had illuminated his hiding spot.

Qin Feng immediately snatched up the enemy's halberd and swept the nearby torch away.

As darkness swallowed him again, the arrow suppression ceased—but footsteps grew frantic.

Clearly, the enemy was crouching low, closing in fast—Qin Feng also abandoned his hiding spot at once, vanishing into the night toward the North.

He had barely run two or three zhang when the sound of axes and cleavers erupted behind him—the hidden Ye Xiao, without hesitation, hacked at his former hiding spot!

Qin Feng dared not call out for his guards again—he scanned left and right, watching the flickering torches, avoiding enemy cavalry patrols as much as possible; if escape was impossible, he dropped to the ground, covering himself with sand to avoid detection.

Playing dead wouldn't work—they'd cut the "corpse" without a second thought.