Chapter 887: How Can You Say You Have No Clothes? I Share My Robe With You

The rain passed and the sky cleared; the hunter squad, having rested for the night, continued their journey.

To secure supplies, Lan Yu led his team across the mountain gullies, heading toward the nearest town.

The mountain path was muddy after the rain, and the group's pace was not fast.

Lan Yu and Old Zhang were still discussing the topic from last night:

"The Northern Barbarians are too poor. Even if the Western Continent were willing to sell them weapons, what would they use to buy them? They can't even feed themselves."

"Indeed. As long as we can block these barbarians and keep them from looting anything, they won't have the money to trade with the Western Continent."

"If you ask me, it's unlikely the Prairie Royal Court would trade with the Western Continent anyway; the distance is too great."

"By land, large shipments are easily discovered. By sea, how far would the Western Continent have to sail around?"

"That makes sense! In that case, the only ones likely to trade with the Western Continent are the two desert nations."

"Hmm, the situation in the Southern Border is not our concern."

"."

Lan Yu was truly concerned about the possibility of the Western Continent selling weapons.

After thinking about it all night, he had finally reached this conclusion.

This eased the anxiety in his heart slightly.

"When will we be able to produce guns like that ourselves?"

Along the way, Lan Yu kept fantasizing about the day he would hold new-style weapons and slaughter his way across the battlefield.

Slap!

The sound of a heavy object hitting the ground shattered Lan Yu's fantasy. He turned his head to see a soldier carrying a wounded comrade accidentally fall into a mud pit.

Nearby teammates rushed over to help them up, only to find that the wounded man had suddenly stopped breathing.

"Quick, save him!"

"Medicine!"

"What happened—"

After a flurry of activity, the wounded man could not be saved.

He had already been severely injured, and that fall had finally snuffed out his life.

"It's all my fault! It's all my fault!"

The soldier responsible for carrying the wounded man was filled with guilt, his face covered in tears.

Lan Yu walked to his side, looking at the jagged scar on the soldier's face.

Fighting until now, everyone in the squad was wounded; it was only a matter of whether the injuries were light or heavy.

This weeping soldier was named Geng Yong, the youngest in the squad, only twenty-one years old this year.

In yesterday's battle in the jungle, Geng Yong had been slashed across the face, his mouth nearly cut open.

When eating last night, he had shivered from the pain, yet he hadn't shed a single tear.

Lan Yu pulled Geng Yong into a hug: "It's not your fault. Brother Xu was already at his limit."

"It's all my fault..."

Geng Yong was completely trapped in his guilt, unable to pull himself out.

The Brother Xu he had been carrying had saved him more than once, and now he had caused Brother Xu's death.

"Little Geng."

"It's all my fault..."

Slap!

Lan Yu suddenly slapped Geng Yong hard across the face, causing the wound on his face to split open again, blood flowing out.

This blow snapped Geng Yong out of it.

Lan Yu glared at him like an enraged lion:

"Are you awake now?!"

Geng Yong stood up silently, wiping the blood and tears from his face.

"Continue forward!"

Lan Yu issued the order.

They had no time to bury their teammate, as they could encounter Northern Barbarians in this area at any moment.

They needed to secure supplies as soon as possible.

Brother Xu's body was laid by the side of the road, and the squad continued forward through the muddy mountain stream.

"Enemy spotted!"

The scout's warning suddenly came from ahead.

Lan Yu immediately grabbed two Botening pistols and hurried forward.

But the scene ahead was different from the battle he had imagined:

Thick smoke obscured the morning sun. Lan Yu and the others crawled on the hillside, peeking down below.

A charred, fishy sweetness drifted through the morning mist. A village in the mountain hollow was billowing black smoke, with orange-red flames leaping beneath every column of smoke.

The screams of women pierced the mist, mingled with the intermittent crying of children, scraping against every soldier's eardrum like a dull blade.

"Damn it!"

Old Zhang gripped his rifle, his knuckles turning white.

In recent days, they had passed several villages looted by Northern Barbarians, leaving only a scene of devastation.

There were no living people, nor were there any corpses.

This was the first time they had encountered a village currently being looted.

Lan Yu's Adam's apple bobbed. With his extraordinary eyesight, through the broken fence in the distance, he could clearly see a Northern Barbarian warrior wrapped in furs dragging a young girl toward the granary, the girl's embroidered shoes leaving winding bloodstains on the mud.

A dozen corpses lay across the village's eastern threshing floor; the eldest elder was pinned to a millstone by a spear, his white hair soaked in a pool of dark red blood.

Several Northern Barbarian warriors were using scimitars to hack at villagers for amusement; as the silver light of the blades flashed, arms flew onto the haystacks.

A rough estimate showed there were over two hundred Northern Barbarian warriors below, and the tattoos on some of them clearly marked them as Tuodu warriors—that is, martial artists—and the proportion was very high!

Not to mention that this hunter squad was already more than half-depleted, even at full strength, it would be difficult to defeat such a Northern Barbarian force.

Lan Yu's breathing gradually grew heavy.

"Boss."

Old Zhang grabbed Lan Yu's arm, gritting his teeth: "The situation with this Northern Barbarian force is strange. There are too many Tuodu warriors; there might be big fish among them. We can't be impulsive; we must send the military intelligence back!"

He used this reason to persuade Lan Yu, and at the same time, to persuade himself.

These hunter squads were also needed to relay intelligence so that the generals above could deploy tactics and allocate troops based on the military situation.

Lan Yu turned to look at Old Zhang, then turned to look at his teammates, looking at these faces he spent every day with:

The scout Chen Ping's arrow scar on his left cheek was twitching, the oldest veteran Old Zhao's single eye was bloodshot, and Geng Yong, with blood still seeping from the corner of his mouth, was trembling—but not from fear.

Even the slickest team medic, Little Liu, had bitten through his lip.

They had fought hard for days, were wounded, and were short on ammunition.

Lan Yu could see deep exhaustion and irrepressible anger in their expressions, but he saw no retreat.

He suddenly smiled.

To be able to fight side-by-side with a group of brothers like this, this life was worth it.

"As soldiers, we can't stand for this!"

He also gave himself a reason:

"Old Zhang, you take a few men and the wounded in the back to retreat, and send the intelligence here back."

"Damn you!"

Old Zhang was furious immediately.

"This is an order!"

Lan Yu roared back in a low voice:

"The rest of you, come with me and kill these barbarians!"

"Yes!"

The group gripped their weapons, their expressions relieved.

"I'm not leaving!"

As the deputy leader, Old Zhang was the only one who dared to question Lan Yu, "If we die, we die together!"

Lan Yu glared at him: "You damn fool, you just said these people below are strange; someone must take the intelligence back!"

"."

Old Zhang was speechless.

He was the deputy leader and the second-strongest fighter in the squad after Lan Yu.

He was the best candidate to lead the team to relay the intelligence.

"Stop talking nonsense, get out of here, and send the intelligence back!"

Lan Yu urged.

There was no room for hesitation on the battlefield; Old Zhang left with bloodshot eyes.

"Open fire, draw them all up here. Everyone find a good position, watch for crossfire."

Lan Yu laid out the tactics simply.

They only had a dozen people in total; charging down directly would not make a dent.

Only by utilizing the terrain to lure the Northern Barbarians below into charging up could the greatest damage be inflicted.

Estimating that Old Zhang and the others had already left a certain distance away, Lan Yu fired the first shot.

However, the village below was over a thousand meters away, already beyond the effective range of the guns, so this shot was merely to attract the attention of the Northern Barbarians.

Sure enough, as soon as the shot rang out, the Northern Barbarians who were reveling in the village were all startled, and their movements came to a halt.

Lan Yu stood straight up, holding a piece of human skin embroidered with a tattoo high in his hand.

This was the totem from the body of the Northern Barbarian warrior at the Martial Artist level of Strength Refinement that he had killed yesterday; it was his trophy and the proof of his military merit.

Among the Northern Barbarian warriors below, there were those with keen eyesight; upon seeing the piece of human skin in Lan Yu's hand, they immediately let out angry roars, pointing at Lan Yu and cursing loudly.

Soon, a small squad of about thirty-some Northern Barbarians split off from the village and charged toward the hillside where Lan Yu and the others were located.

"Prepare!"

Lan Yu squatted back down, holding his dual pistols leveled.

Six hundred meters, five hundred meters, four hundred meters...

"Fire!"

After the Northern Barbarians entered the three-hundred-meter range, Lan Yu shouted to open fire.

Intense gunfire erupted.

Those who could be selected for the Hunter Squad were all elite veterans.

Even if they were not martial artists, their marksmanship was outstanding; with over a dozen people firing at once, more than half hit their targets!

Half of the Northern Barbarian warriors who were charging in a scattered formation fell.

The remaining dozen or so looked fearless and continued their charge.

They were very clear that as long as they reached close quarters and entered hand-to-hand combat, the advantage would be theirs.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The unique gunfire of the Botening rang out clearly and rhythmically.

Lan Yu picked off the few fastest Tuodu warriors one by one!

Once these Northern Barbarian warriors reached close range, the remaining soldiers switched to revolvers and fired continuously.

More than thirty Northern Barbarian warriors eventually all fell on this hillside; the Northern Barbarian warrior who had charged the furthest was only a few meters away from being able to strike Lan Yu with his blade.

This was the advantage brought by weapons and equipment.

If one were to set aside the battles of top-tier powerhouses, if a million-strong Northern Barbarian army were to consolidate, they might be directly crushed by one hundred thousand Northern Border troops!

Even louder roars came from the village below, and more Northern Barbarian warriors began to charge toward this hillside.

The previous battle had already made them see clearly that there were no traps in the terrain and that the number of people with Lan Yu was very small, so the remaining ones no longer had any misgivings.

Before these Northern Barbarian warriors could enter range, a figure darted out at extreme speed and rushed to the very front.

The opponent had no intention of dodging in a curved path at all, charging straight up the hillside and leaving behind trails of afterimages!

His speed had already exceeded the reaction limit of the other soldiers; in the squad, only Lan Yu could barely keep up with the opponent by fully activating his own extraordinary ability, and then rely on his "gun sense" to shoot.

The moment Lan Yu aimed, crimson energy erupted from the opponent's body.

Lan Yu's four consecutive bullets hit the same spot, yet failed to break through his protective energy.

The distance of several hundred meters was quickly covered by this Northern Barbarian warrior; the air was torn apart, and the turbulent airflow kicked up dust, forming an earthy-yellow long dragon that spread straight toward the top of the hillside!

"A Tuodu warrior?!"

Lan Yu's heart sank.

A Northern Barbarian Tuodu warrior was equivalent to a powerhouse at the Dao Foundation realm of the Central Plains!

Lan Yu had not expected to encounter such a powerhouse here.

"What a pity, no chance to use that new type of rifle."

Such a thought flashed through Lan Yu's mind.

He fired three more shots, still failing to break through the opponent's protective energy, and this Tuodu warrior had already charged in front of Lan Yu with a bloodthirsty face.

Without giving Lan Yu any chance to react, he grabbed Lan Yu by the throat and lifted him up, his feet leaving the ground.

This Tuodu warrior could actually have killed Lan Yu from a distance using his energy, but he did not do so.

He wanted to use the most cruel method to torture and kill this ant who used a gun, bit by bit!

With a sweep of crimson energy, over a hundred wounds were cut into Lan Yu's body, turning him into a bloody mess.

Seeing this scene, the surrounding soldiers were incensed, and they drew their blades one after another to charge over.

Geng Yong, whose face was still bleeding, charged at the very front:

"Come on! Kill me first—"

Swish—

A golden sword aura appeared out of thin air, like a hot knife through butter, breaking through the Tuodu warrior's protective energy, then piercing through his skull and splitting him in two!

Warm blood splattered all over Lan Yu; he sat on the ground in a daze, witnessing the most shocking scene of his life:

Streaks of sword aura were weaving back and forth among the group of Northern Barbarian warriors at the foot of the hill.

Wherever the sword aura crisscrossed, whether they were ordinary Northern Barbarian warriors or Tuodu warriors who had become martial artists, they were torn apart like rags!

In the blink of an eye, over a hundred Northern Barbarian warriors had turned into corpses covering the ground.

Those Northern Barbarian warriors who had remained in the village did not even have time to feel fear before golden sword aura appeared above their heads, picking them off one by one!

The battlefield, which had been clamorous just a moment ago, now became incomparably quiet.

"Are you the Northern Border troops?"

A gentle voice brought Lan Yu back to his senses; he turned his head and saw a young man dressed in golden robes, his expression filled with uprightness.

Lan Yu felt inexplicably nervous; he nodded and stood up from the ground:

"We are a Hunter Squad of the Northern Border troops, acting under the orders of the Provincial Military Commander to hunt down invading Northern Barbarians in the rear. Who are you?"

"I am Li Fei."

The newcomer said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Lan Yu and the surrounding soldiers all widened their eyes, doubting their own ears for a moment.

But combined with the shocking scene from just now, they soon believed it.

"This subordinate pays respects to the Marq—"

Lan Yu endured the intense pain, stood straight, and gave a military salute to Li Fei.

He had intended to address Li Fei as "Marquis," but as if guided by a ghost or god, he changed the title:

"Pay respects to the Grand General!"

The dozen or so surrounding soldiers also saluted Li Fei one after another, saying in unison:

"Pay respects to the Grand General!"

This shout of "Grand General" came from the bottom of everyone's hearts.

Not only because Li Fei's position was the Grand General of the Northern Expedition, but also because of his record of defeating seven opponents single-handedly in Lanling City, which had spread to the Northern Border.

As soldiers, Lan Yu and the others were all filled with burning passion!

Upon learning that Li Fei would lead the army north to fight side-by-side with them, Lan Yu and the others felt a sense of honor!

Li Fei was silent for a moment.

Since he had taken the post of Grand General of the Northern Expedition, this was the first time he had been addressed this way.

Addressing him as "Marquis," while respectful, still carried a sense of distance.

Addressing him as "Grand General" meant that they were already comrades-in-arms!

Li Fei's gaze swept over these soldiers; he guessed what had happened at a glance from the situation on the scene.

So he solemnly returned a military salute to Lan Yu and the others:

"You've worked hard, well done!"

Hearing this, the youngest, Geng Yong, shed tears again.

He hurriedly turned away to wipe his face.

The Grand General was watching; he couldn't lose face for the Northern Border troops!

A soft green light suddenly enveloped the soldiers present.

The over one hundred wounds on Lan Yu's body began to heal at a speed visible to the naked eye; the injuries on the others were the same, and their exhausted spirits were also soothed, becoming incomparably relaxed.

A moment later, Li Fei stopped using "Green God."

"Grand General..."

Lan Yu's eyes reddened; he very much wanted to say that they were not worth Li Fei expending so much power.

Li Fei waved his hand: "I still have things to do, I will be going first."

How could Lan Yu and the others dare to delay Li Fei? They saluted and thanked him again.

"Grand General."

Just as Li Fei was preparing to soar into the air, Lan Yu suddenly called out.

Li Fei looked at him.

Lan Yu took a deep breath and said loudly:

"It is our honor that you could come to the Northern Border and that we could fight side-by-side with you!"

Li Fei smiled and also said seriously:

"It is also my honor to be able to fight side-by-side with soldiers like you!"

After speaking, he nodded to Lan Yu and the others, then soared into the air and soon disappeared into the horizon.

Lan Yu and the others all looked up at the sky.

Slap!

A slap suddenly rang out.

Lan Yu turned his head to look, only to see Geng Yong, whose facial injuries had already healed, slap himself:

"I'm not dreaming, am I?"

"Damn it, this life was worth it!"

"If I can make it back alive, I'll be able to brag about today for the rest of my life!"

"Hehe, suddenly I don't want to die anymore."

"."

The crowd spoke all at once, all of them looking excited.

Lan Yu, however, was somewhat puzzled.

According to the marching speed, the Northern Expedition Army coming to reinforce them should still be on the road.

How had Li Fei already arrived in Beichuan Province alone?

After thinking for a while, Lan Yu stopped dwelling on it; in any case, it was not his place to worry about it.

He looked up again in the direction where Li Fei had disappeared, his gaze firm.

Although the Great Lan Dynasty was currently an enemy to the whole world, because Li Fei was there, it was still full of hope!

Above the sea of clouds, the rapidly flying Li Fei was also recalling Lan Yu and the others he had just seen.

A dozen or so people had launched an attack against an enemy several times their size.

Knowing it could not be done, yet doing it anyway!

At this moment, Li Fei also had a thought in his heart:

With such a group of people in the Great Lan Dynasty, there was still hope!

He recalled that final conversation with Lan Yu and felt the sword intent in his chest surging, wanting to let it all out:

Who says you have no clothes? I will share my robes with you.

This sentiment is worthy of a sword strike!

Boom—

Li Fei suddenly accelerated, turning into a streak of golden light as he sped forward.

In the air, the sea of clouds was cleaved apart.

Sword Qi whistled for a thousand miles, and thunder shook the heavens and earth!

(End of chapter)