Chapter 1491

The lead guard pried open the bluestone pressing down on top.

A rope that had been prepared hung inside the well.

The guard tied Cheng Yu's body to the rope and then slowly lowered him into the well.

Two of the guards stepped onto the edge of the well together and descended into the well with Cheng Yu.

When they were about to reach the water surface, the two placed Cheng Yu's body into a space next to the well that had been dug in advance, which could only accommodate one person.

Subsequently, the two looked up at the two guards above.

The four looked at each other; the two above smiled and then covered the bluestone back.

At this moment, all words were superfluous.

Entering the place of refuge even a moment earlier was equivalent to having more hope of survival.

Without a doubt, at this moment, the two partners above had given the hope of survival to the two in the well.

The fire in the city burned brighter and brighter.

Houses, which were almost all wooden structures, were ignited in continuous patches.

When the Xiongnu and Xianbei soldiers gathered at the exits of the four city gates, they realized that raging flames were burning in the gate tunnels, around the city walls, outside the city, and on the moat.

Watching the city behind them being swallowed bit by bit, with heat waves rolling in from all directions, scorching the hair on their bodies until it smelled burnt, the excitement of the Xiongnu and Xianbei soldiers, who had previously been enjoying the feast of slaughter, completely faded away.

Replaced by panic, fear, and despair.

"Charge out, charge out!"

Yufuluo, riding on his horse, pointed his curved blade at the gate tunnel where the raging fire was burning.

The crowd around him made no move.

Charge?

How to charge?

Even if they charged out of the gate tunnel, the moat outside the city had already burned away, and the moat itself was burning with raging flames.

It seemed that in the eyes of the Xiongnu and Xianbei, the river water itself had ignited.

Some Xiongnu and Xianbei had already knelt on the ground, crying and praying, begging the heavens to forgive their slaughter.

Because in their eyes, how could river water catch fire?

If this was not a punishment sent down by the gods, what was it?

A large group of Xianbei, holding water buckets and pouring water on the fire, not only failed to extinguish the flames but caused them to burn even more fiercely, were completely stunned.

After that, large swaths of Xiongnu and Xianbei knelt on the ground, crying and begging.

"Don't cry, stand up, all of you stand up for me, this is just a trick of the Han people, stand up, drive the warhorses out!"

Yufuluo shouted loudly.

His personal guards obeyed Yufuluo's order and drove the warhorses they were riding toward the burning gate tunnel.

However, when the warhorses were a few meters away from the flames, they struggled as if they had gone mad; despite whipping and blade-slashing, they would not take another step forward, and after breaking free from the reins, they neighed and ran back into the city.

Heat waves rolled, and the scorching air made Yufuluo feel like he couldn't breathe.

But the flames before him showed no sign of extinguishing.

Those crimson flames seemed like hideous faces, wanting to swallow all the Xiongnu and Xianbei.

In the distance, Guo Tu, seeing this scene, had a face ashen like death.

"It's over..."

"It's over..."

Guo Tu muttered to himself, his eyes hollow and lifeless.

At this point, even if Guo Tu were a fool, he could see that this was an extremely carefully planned trap.

This was their burial ground tonight.

Duan Yu must have long ago discovered the Xiongnu's betrayal.

It was to wipe them all out here, not letting them divide their forces to wreak havoc in Bingzhou.

A great fire, a city, one hundred thousand foreign cavalry, the people of a city!

"Duan Yu, what a poisonous heart, what a ruthless hand you have!"

Guo Tu's eyes were about to split as he roared at the sky: "History books will surely record that you used such methods to burn the people of a city; you will surely bear the infamy of a thousand years, you... you will not die a good death!"

"I, Guo Tu, will be waiting for you in the underworld!"

The fire burning under the night sky dyed half the sky crimson.

The crimson firelight could be seen from a hundred miles away.

On the plains dozens of miles away from Mayi.

An army of over fifty thousand was advancing rapidly.

The torches held in their hands, viewed from high above, looked like a winding crimson giant dragon.

Jia Xu and Li Ru were not riding in carriages but were on horseback.

The first vanguard army led by Ma Chao, Zhang Xiu, Cao Ren, Cao Hong, Xia Houyuan, and Xia Houdun had already taken a step ahead.

"Pass the order down, faster, even faster."

Jia Xu ordered the messenger beside him.

Although this carefully planned fire used 'combustible water', it might not necessarily keep all the Xiongnu and Xianbei behind.

If they were allowed to break out of the city, it would mean that the people of this city had all died in vain.

And Cheng Yu, the Zhang clansmen in the city...

Therefore, they must arrive at Mayi County before the Xiongnu and Xianbei could think of a way, or before the fire went out, and then line up outside the city.

If there were any Xiongnu or Xianbei breaking out, they would completely cut off the path of survival for the Xiongnu and Xianbei armies outside the city.

"Zhongde... you must hold on." Li Ru's gaze looked at the crimson light over Mayi in the distance.

Just as Jia Xu and Li Ru were leading tens of thousands of Liangzhou troops rushing toward Mayi.

Several miles behind them.

A team bathed in moonlight was advancing at an incredible speed.

And they were not making any sound.

Pairs of oily green pupils, definitely not those of warhorses, emitted a chilling light in the night.

There was not a single torch in the team, but the speed of their raid was extremely fast.

Illuminated by the night, giant beasts covered in blue-gray fur were running wildly.

At the very front of the team, a huge black shadow was even faster.

PS: "Book of Han: Treatise on Geography" was written by Ban Gu of the Eastern Han Dynasty, which records that Gaonu County (modern Yanchang County, Shaanxi) had the You River (Xiao River), which could burn. ===== CHAPTER 1493 =====