Chapter 501 – Siege of Fengyi County (Part Nine)
Since arriving in Xiangyang County, Li Yun had been questioning whether his skills were getting rusty.
First, his Lord had snatched the bandit leader’s head, which he could tolerate—after all, that was his lord, the provider of food and clothing who couldn’t be offended.
Now, however, someone had outpaced him and taken another head. Li Yun couldn’t bear it any longer. As he deftly retrieved his Silver Spear and caught a glimpse of who had taken the kill, he found himself speechless—Nong Qin, the female battalion lieutenant, was even ranked higher than him.
Just as he withdrew his spear, tension coursed through him, and he twirled it to shake off the attackers, suddenly striking out, impaling two men in quick succession.
The Silver Spear spewed blood, carving a silver arc in the air, as the Lord of Hell mercilessly claimed two lives.
Li Yun’s gaze landed on Nong Qin. He hadn’t even realized when she had dashed in front to snatch the kill; now that he focused, he couldn’t help but agree with Meng Hunyun’s words—this woman really was not to be trifled with!
If most soldiers relied on brute strength, attacking or defending in coordination with their comrades, Nong Qin was a lone wolf, slipping into the enemy lines without needing any support. When she struck, it was always lethal, each move aimed at the vital points.
With two blades of differing lengths in her grip, one short and one long, she wielded them like a judge’s pen, erasing names with each cold, ruthless stroke.
If one were to talk about ferocity, her performance was no less than that of Meng Hunyun or Li Yun. While Meng Hunyun took broad, sweeping actions, and Li Yun displayed intricate techniques, every move of Nong Qin was meticulously crafted for killing. When the blood splattered onto her face, not a single crease formed on her brow.
In just a few breaths, she had stepped forward three paces, leaving five corpses at her feet.
She seemed less a general and more of an assassin—that was Li Yun’s sentiment, as she maintained the advantage in close combat.
Li Yun had no time to ponder further; the encircling enemies slowly formed an effective attack.
The Green Garment Army had transitioned from shock to retribution, scrambling for weapons to counterattack. Some despicable souls even seized a woman, using her as a shield while they hid behind her to launch a sneak attack.
Li Yun hesitated to strike, harboring a flicker of mercy, but in a moment’s distraction, the woman used as a shield was already dead at Nong Qin’s hands. Her expression remained as icy as a wooden sculpture, while the cowardly man who had used her as a shield barely had time to react before a blade pierced through his throat, cleaving him from one side to the other.
He had thought Nong Qin might show mercy because of the woman’s identity, perhaps hesitate, but her actions shattered Li Yun’s preconceptions.
What he didn’t realize was that Nong Qin’s worldview had already converged closely with Jiang Pengji’s.
On the battlefield, there was no distinction between men and women; no leniency or harsher treatment based on gender.
Only the living and the dead remained.
If Nong Qin were to hold back because the Green Garment Army used a woman as a shield, it would not only be unjust to her comrades but also set a precedent, leading to more women being seized as shields.
It would be a vicious cycle.
In a mere moment, Nong Qin ended the life of the innocent shield and then swiftly dispatched the man who had wielded her.
In the midst of the slaughter, Nong Qin was coldly calm to the extreme.
A thought flickered through Li Yun’s mind as he thrust his long spear, parrying the enemies’ blades with quick, decisive strikes. With a swift phoenix nod, the silver shadows danced as one enemy’s throat erupted in blood from a circular wound.
When it came to spear technique, only Li Yun’s master could teach him the essence of martial arts, leaving others struggling to compare. Having endured countless bloody skirmishes, he struck with relentless momentum, unfazed even when enemies pressed close.
“A foot longer brings an inch of strength; an inch shorter brings an inch of peril.” On such a battlefield, one could barely thrive in close combat like Nong Qin, yet her speed and agility were exceptional, making it hard for the ragtag Green Garment Army to land a hit.
The female soldiers might not match Nong Qin’s fearsome prowess, yet they performed commendably.
Pairs or triples worked together to surround and attack a single enemy.
However, their training time was limited, and their mental resilience was lacking; facing such bloody scenes, they were bound to falter.
One female soldier, unfortunately, found herself dangerously close to the Green Garment Army, staring up at a massive weapon raised to strike—
“Ah—”
She thought she was doomed, only to hear the enemy’s agonized howl beside her.
Opening her eyes in a panic, she saw the Green Garment soldier’s eyes filled with two bloody holes. Her teammate held two suspicious blood-colored orbs in her hand… The male soldiers in the chaotic melee hadn’t noticed the anomaly, but three hundred crossbowmen from the Vanguard Regiment lurked in the shadows, ready to strike. Just as another female soldier prepared to assist, they watched in astonishment as one of them gouged the enemy’s eyes.
What the hell—
The sight sent chills down the spines of the soldiers, nearly causing one to fumble their shot.
Those female soldiers were not to be trifled with; they’d rip out eyes without a second thought. The men had nothing on their ferocity.
“What are you standing around for—”
The shout from her comrade snapped the female soldier back to reality, and her body reacted before her brain could catch up.
Drawing her dagger from her waist, she struck just as the Green Garment soldier bent over in pain, plunging the blade into the back of his neck.
The Green Garment Army was few in number, and those grain transporters had already fled in fear during the first volley.
Those women, bound by ropes, were no match for the Vanguard Regiment.
In fact, the Vanguard Regiment had barely claimed any lives, as the women from the battalion overcame their initial fright, charging at their next target with predatory ferocity. They might not have the strength yet, but their teamwork was impressive; none of the enemies were left alive.
As the saying went, one should pick the softest persimmon to squeeze; realizing that part of their attackers were women, the Green Garment Army aimed to break through by targeting the female battalion. Yet when they actually charged in, they discovered these little ladies were far more ruthless than any men!
The women they had perceived as weak and susceptible were now fierce and fierce. The long spears they wielded were modified, not the usual length but rather just two heads taller than their own, and significantly lighter, allowing for easy swings.
Puff! Puff! Puff!—
The sound of spear tips piercing flesh echoed repeatedly, as the female soldiers even yelled to push their spears deeper, skewering their opponents’ bellies.
Slaughter could induce fear and dread, but it could also elevate spirits.
Clearly, the female battalion belonged to the latter, casting aside their fear of death while clinging fiercely to life. Each showed a daunting side. Among these five hundred soldiers, half hailed from Hejian, while the other half were recruited from Xiangyang County.
Undoubtedly, the former displayed far more steadiness and composure compared to the latter, reducing unnecessary casualties with their synchronized actions.
