Chapter Twenty-Two: Borrowing the Armor

The fourth day since the fall of Yangzhou City.

At the break of dawn, Jiang He fought the current of the river, arriving at the northern bank of Slender West Lake. He barely managed to evade the pursuit of the Qing army’s halberd guards. By the time he climbed ashore, his face was devoid of color. The wound from the Grand Shaman’s poisoned arrow bled incessantly; neither standard hemostatic measures nor cauterization could keep the gash from reopening moments later.

"At least the wound is small."

Jiang He tore a strip of fabric from his garment to bind his shoulder. The poisoned arrow was a common-grade item, designed to keep wounds from healing for a full day—a tool favored by borderland hunters to bleed out high-danger prey.

The operation had failed, and the cost was catastrophic. Liu Taibao, the resistance leader, was killed in action; the renowned spear master, Old Master Wu, had sacrificed himself; and the hundred-odd men they had gathered were wiped out. Having heard the news, the surrendered troops outside Yangzhou would surely choose the path of survival, even if they had once harbored thoughts of rebellion.

The air was thick with the sounds of slaughter. Jiang He made his way to an ancestral graveyard of a wealthy family. The tombs had already been ransacked by Qing soldiers; the gold and silver funerary objects were gone, leaving only bleached bones. He collected the remains into his storage pouch to dispose of them, then climbed into one of the empty graves. After a simple camouflage, he lay still to calm his breathing and reduce the bleeding.

The wind wailed, and the air was filled with cries of grief. With the resistance crushed, the restraint orders on Tie Duo’s various units were lifted, and the slaughter reached its peak. Civilians hung themselves, threw themselves into wells, or set themselves on fire. Streets were littered with blood-smeared faces and severed limbs; those struck by blades but still clutching at life with twitching hands numbered over ten thousand. The sound of steel against flesh never ceased throughout the city.

Inside the tomb, Jiang He meditated.

"The failure this time stems from my loss of initiative. I appeared brave in battle, but it was equivalent to letting go of my spear. I blindly trusted Liu Taibao’s arrangements, but in truth, his status as a high-ranking official held no decisive influence in this operation."

"By the same token, in the real world, I must maintain distance from the Order Bureau and limit cooperation to strictly local and temporary matters."

"The most direct factor in this failure was the elite army and artillery under Tie Duo. Fundamentally, treating this as an organization-versus-organization conflict was a mistake. They held absolute superiority in that regard; there was no chance of victory."

"In martial arts, one must use strength to overcome weakness."

"My advantage is my transcendence—I possess power far beyond that of a common soldier. To hunt Tie Duo, I must amplify my own strengths and exploit his weaknesses. Acting with a large group only dragged me into the mire. The times are changing; supernatural power increases the individual's weight. One must adapt to the environment by streamlining the team or acting alone."

...

By late at night, Jiang He rose from the grave. The wound from the poisoned arrow had stopped bleeding; his constitution and the nutrients supplied by his heart had allowed him to survive. His steps were slightly unsteady, but he remained combat-ready.

As for the main quest, the target of killing 200 Qing soldiers had been exceeded, though the panel was still recording—perhaps it would impact the final evaluation.

Under the cover of night, Jiang He headed straight for the Yan Family Graveyard. Had he not met Liu Taibao and Chu Fuqiang on the way, he would have reached his destination long ago.

***

Regions marked with the word "Graveyard" in ancient times were rarely wealthy, and the Yan Family Graveyard was not far from the city's western district.

Along the way, fires grew increasingly fierce, burning through forests with light that scorched the sky like lightning. Jiang He paused, momentarily stunned. Recalling yesterday, the entire city of Yangzhou had been submerged in a watery darkness, devoid of any light. In reality, there should have been many who chose to die by fire, so this sudden change was abnormal.

"So that's it. The granary fire alerted Tie Duo."

At the old Yan family estate, the home of He Laoer’s in-laws, the outer walls had collapsed, and the wealth had been plundered. Because the surrounding area was poor, there were few Qing soldiers stationed at the Yan family site.

Jiang He walked through the estate, and as he passed the ancestral hall, someone called out to him.

"Brother Moke!"

On the rafters of the hall, Chu Fuqiang greeted him with a weak expression. His left palm had been severed; it could only be repaired with a large-scale recovery potion, but such things were currently unavailable for purchase.

Jiang He asked directly, "Where is the secret passage?"

Chu Fuqiang climbed down and pointed to the wooden altar dedicated to the ancestors. "Just push it aside. It’s very heavy, filled with stone. Many people from the Yan family graveyard have already escaped through here. I intend to guard the entrance."

Jiang He was surprised. "Given your personality, you should be escorting more civilians out."

Chu Fuqiang fell silent, then forced a bitter smile. "Human strength has its limits. It was my arrogance that led to the deaths of Liu Taibao and the others. You don't know—Tie Duo discovered our attack early, likely because I burned the dungeon. It was just my own cleverness backfiring. If I go out to find more civilians, I might just lead to the deaths of those who have already escaped. Now, I just want to guard this place and wait quietly for these ten days to pass."

Hearing this, Jiang He examined his own actions. He, too, had burned the granary, but he felt no regret; perhaps it was because he was more inclined to take sole responsibility for his own life and death.

"Lend me your armor. I intend to kill Tie Duo."

Chu Fuqiang: "..."

*Seriously, brother? Still killing? We’ve already lost everything.*

Chu Fuqiang rubbed his temples, speaking plainly, "If you are truly determined to keep hunting Tie Duo, it’s just an external object, so of course I can lend it to you. But I fear you’ll just run off with it. After all, I’m not a martyr."

Jiang He pondered for a moment and displayed his main quest regarding the hunt for Tie Duo. There was no longer any need to hide it.

Chu Fuqiang was stunned, then patted him on the shoulder. "Brother Moke, judge by actions, not intentions. You’ve killed so many Qing soldiers; you need not feel guilty for your private ambitions."

***

As to why a Level 3 player had been mixed into a derivation mission with Level 6 and Level 7 players, or why the mission difficulty was so clearly skewed, both sides maintained a tacit understanding and did not speak of it.

Jiang He’s expression was strange—he felt absolutely no guilt.

"I’ll state this in advance: Tie Duo might not die, but your armor will definitely be ruined."

Chu Fuqiang waved his hand. "Then it only proves it wasn't sturdy enough. That has little to do with you."

Jiang He nodded, took the armor, donned it, and pushed aside the altar to enter the tunnel.

[Name: Rhinoceros Armor]
[Category: Defensive Gear]
[Quality: Rare]
[Effects: ① Reflects 15% of slashing damage. ② Hardness +2. ③ Strength attribute +1]
[Note: An indestructible humanoid rhinoceros!]

...

Inside the tunnel, Jiang He moved forward. Last night, he had been struck by a solid shot from a Red-Clothed Cannon. Despite the reduction from his Long Resentment Spear and scale armor, he had been severely injured. However, he discovered that his pure-hearted core possessed a slight self-healing capability—more accurately, the special energy converted from the food he consumed could heal his body.

"The foundation of martial arts is the body of the five grains."

This tunnel was much longer than the one at the granary.

Jiang He walked for a full two hours before reaching the end. As he emerged, he was immediately surrounded by a group of strong youths holding bamboo poles.

"He is an associate of mine."

An old man, looking much like a fisherman, walked out, waved the crowd away, and turned to Jiang He. "This place is over ten miles outside the city. Since you’ve come out, you cannot go back. It is surrounded by mountains, and fifty thousand troops are stationed on the plains outside. Stay here with me and Miss Fuxue until the mission ends."