Chapter 124: Damn those beasts!

On the frontier, a massive army of 100,000 from the Wusang Kingdom had crossed the border, setting foot upon the soil of the Great Shang. The commander leading this force was a man named "Jijiguba."

The Wusang Kingdom was a land of harsh climates and perpetual snow, home to nomadic tribes. Their ancestors had lived as savages, drinking blood and eating raw meat. Even amidst the brutal, snow-swept environment, this nomadic tribe had thrived, dancing with beasts and surviving to this day. Although the Wusang Kingdom remained in what seemed to be a slave-era state of cultural development, they were not a force to be underestimated. Perhaps due to the unforgiving climate and their nomadic, unsettled existence, they raised their children like wild beasts, subjecting them to a cruel system of natural selection where only the strongest survived.

In their world, if you were strong enough to kill those weaker than you, you earned the right to live. Consequently, anyone they deemed powerful was hailed as a "hero." Only these "heroes" were considered worthy of existence, entitled to ravage the weak. Murder, arson, and plunder were the inherent nature of the Wusang people. To them, the weak were nothing but prey that deserved to die.

"Report, Commander! Five miles ahead lies a settlement of the Great Shang people. Shall we quicken our pace?" a scout asked.

Jijiguba’s tiger-like eyes widened, filled with malice. "Good! Speed up! Hmph, we have marched all this way and haven't seen a single Great Shang soldier. It seems... ha! They must have been so terrified by our mighty lion of an army that they’ve fled in every direction."

The cowardly Shang people had to be wiped out completely. He had long heard that the lands of the Great Shang were fertile, filled with grain and livestock. Most of all, the women of the Shang were said to be delicate and beautiful. The hunger of his men, like starving wolves from the grasslands, was insatiable—their blades were already restless.

War! Slaughter! Kill all the men of the Great Shang, and capture all the women to be kept as beasts of burden and slaves for their pleasure.

"Charge, brothers!"

The 100,000-strong army surged forward like a pack of starving wolves, descending upon a place called "Taiping Town."

Burn! Kill! Loot! Plunder! Wherever the Wusang soldiers went, fire raged, and the tragic, piercing cries for help shook the heavens.

Within a quarter of an hour, the village of thousands was nearly razed to the ground. Those lucky enough to survive became trembling birds, hiding and fleeing for their lives. But how could a pitiable, miserable mouse escape the claws of a cunning fox?

The slaughter continued.

"Ah! No..."
"Please, spare me..."
"Mother, save me..."
"Father, Mother, Wan'er doesn't want to die..."

The tragic cries continued unabated. At the village entrance, in the center, at the outskirts, under eaves, in the grass, and by the river—women were being dragged away by Wusang soldiers. They were truly wretched and pitiful creatures, tormented by these vicious beasts until they wished for death.

As the sun set, the riverbank was stained red with blood. The fire burned for an entire day and night. The darkness before dawn was so thick and suffocating that one could not see their own fingers. When the morning sun finally rose, it illuminated the tragic scene of the village.

The remnants of the fire and the charred, withered corpses were intertwined, a dense and chilling sight.

"Father, Mother, where are you!" wailed a young survivor, the sound echoing with grief.

*Clatter, clatter...*

The rhythmic sound of hoofbeats approached from the distance. Three thousand light cavalry from the Great Shang arrived, and as they gazed upon the scene of ash and ruin, every soldier’s eyes turned red. Some, overcome by grief, even tumbled from their saddles. Those charred corpses in the ashes were their own people. How could such a cruel, bloody, and heart-wrenching tragedy occur? Why?

"Those god-damned beasts!"

"Listen up! Search the area immediately and see how many survivors remain," ordered Su Hu and Huang Feihu, suppressing the immense agony in their hearts.

Taiping Town was no longer peaceful. The charred, broken signpost lay alone on the ground, the half-visible characters serving as a cruel irony. The 3,000 soldiers began their search. Within an hour, they rescued survivors hiding in dry wells and abandoned tunnels. These survivors had witnessed the tragedy with their own eyes, seeing their loved ones and neighbors slaughtered by those beasts. The blood that had flowed still haunted their eyes, and they trembled whenever they recalled the massacre.

"Report, General! After counting, 108 villagers have survived. Only 38 are men; the rest are women, including 38 children..."

Su Hu and Huang Feihu felt a bitter ache in their hearts. The Wusang Kingdom—these god-damned beasts deserved to die!

Su Hu swallowed his grief and comforted the survivors: "Good people, it is over. You are safe now. We will avenge you. Now, can anyone tell us which direction those beasts headed?"

After a moment, a gaunt man stepped forward, trembling. "General, those beasts headed south. They... they are truly animals! They stole our grain and set fire to everything while slaughtering us..."

"They went south? Are you certain?" Huang Feihu asked.

The man nodded. "They went south. I am certain, even if they burn everything to ashes, I would recognize them."

"Very well! Since they went south, we will pursue them. With our light cavalry, we should catch up to them soon," Su Hu decided.

Huang Feihu expressed concern: "General Su, should we not wait for the King's main army? We are only..."

"We cannot wait, and we have no time to wait. You have seen this village, General Huang. If we wait for reinforcements, we will lose precious time. We must stop them now."

Su Hu’s expression was fierce. "If those Wusang beasts reach the next village, it will suffer the same fate, perhaps even worse. We must intercept them."

A life-and-death battle was inevitable. The soldiers of the Great Shang were filled with a resolute, burning rage. They were ready to fight to the end.