The Human Emperor c1-2382

by Huangfu Qi (皇甫奇)

  A skerry is a Scottish term for a small rocky island and can also be used for a series of such islands.

  Chapter 211: Impetus!

  RDE Chapter 211: Impetus!

  When Zhao Qianqiu saw Wang Chong once again, he was astonished. To think that the latter would be able to build a second fortress on the mountain!

  First, he used stones to fill the metal cages, and now, he was actually using the carcasses of the wolves brought over by their enemies to serve as a barrier against them. Wang Chong’s line of thoughts was indeed unfathomable.

  However, what left Zhao Qianqiu truly surprised was the group that Wang Chong gathered.

  In just a short moment, nearly twenty Imperial Army guards and instructors, along with thirty recruits were gathered.

  “So many people!”

  Zhao Qianqiu found this feat astounding.

  On top of that, Zhao Qianqiu also realized that the group Wang Chong was directing weren’t fighting their own individual battles. Instead, the location they each stood-in seemed to obey some kind of logic.

  “This is a battle formation!”

  Zhao Qianqiu recognized it in an instant.

  This was a battle formation that allowed the entire group of fifty people to form a single entity. By complementing one another, they maximized their fighting prowess and minimized the danger and damage each individual faced.

  And the best proof for the effectiveness of the battle formation was the huge pile of wolf carcasses and Goguryeon warrior corpses.

  “It must be Wang Yan who taught him this!”

  A thought flashed across Zhao Qianqiu’s mind. The Wang Clan was a clan of ministers and generals, and Wang Chong’s father was a well-known general who guarded the borders. It wouldn’t be surprising if Wang Chong was knowledgeable in this aspect.

  “Wang Chong!”

  Zhao Qianqiu walked over. The mountain wind whistled, and within the darkness, he could see that the young man’s face was slightly pale. Even so, he had a clear look of composure.

  “Instructor!”

  Hearing the voice, Wang Chong turned around and said, “You’re here.”

  “You were looking for me?”

  Zhao Qianqiu dove straight into the topic.

  “Do you still have sufficient strength left for a battle?”

  Wang Chong asked.

  “You have a plan in mind?”

  Zhao Qianqiu immediately understood what Wang Chong was up to.

  “Un.”

  Nodding his head, Wang Chong continued, “Instructor, if I can get you off the mountain, are you confident in killing those master archers at close range?”

  “Are you joking with me? What master archers fear the most is close-range combat. Even though their fighting prowess isn’t too bad, there’s no way they can match up to close-range troops like us. If we could get to them, do you think it’s possible for us to be put in such a vulnerable situation?”

  Zhao Qianqiu frowned in displeasure. He thought that Wang Chong had some masterful plan in mind, but to think that it would just be this.

  The current situation wasn’t whether they were able to kill the master archers or not but that no one could leave the mountain at all. The other party had come prepared, so how could they possibly make such a crude mistake? Given the huge number of master archers in the area, they were more than capable of preventing anyone from getting into proximity with them.

  No one, even Zhao Qianqiu, would be able to descend from this mountain safely at the moment!

  “Instructor, what if I tell you that I’ve a way of getting you down the mountain safely?”

  Wang Chong’s long hair danced in the wind as a slight smile crept onto his face.

  “If that’s the case, I guarantee you that I’ll be able to clear away those master archers!”

  Zhao Qianqiu was stunned for a moment before cold killing intent emanated from his eyes.

  The greatest flaw of White Tiger Peak was the lack of cover. It was extremely easy for one to be killed while scaling down the mountain. However, if one could get to the foot of the mountain and dive into the forest which was filled with trees, rocks, and vines… They would be able to turn the tables, and the master archers would be placed in a vulnerable position instead.

  “But that’s impossible. This is all just theory. Given the current circumstances, we can’t even get to the foot of the mountain, needless to say, get to them.”

  Zhao Qianqiu soon shook his head.

  “Hehe, it’s impossible under normal circumstances but look over there.”

  Wang Chong chuckled heartily as he stretched out a finger toward a direction amidst the darkness.

  “The cliff?”

  Zhao Qianqiu was taken aback. The direction where Wang Chong was pointing at was a depression, and a little further was a cliff. The other party expected him to jump off the cliff to get to the master archers?

  Was this some kind of joke? How was he supposed to survive jumping off the cliff? Even with his cultivation, he would surely die jumping from this height!

  “I’ve checked the area during the day and the slope over there is the gentlest. More importantly, there are some ivy growing there.”

  Wang Chong immediately revealed the reason behind his confidence.

  Taken aback, Zhao Qianqiu suddenly understood Wang Chong’s intentions.

  The presence of ivy on a cliff made a huge difference. Wang Chong had already scouted the area in the day and confirmed that the cliff was facing the shade. Due to the absence of sunlight, a significant amount of ivy was growing in the region, extending all the way from the top to the bottom.

  Currently, dozens of master archers had locked onto White Tiger Peak. The shortest way down the mountain was via the ivy, and more importantly, it would be the least conspicuous one as well.

  “But this is not sufficient. Even with the ivy on the face of the cliff, my mobility while scaling down will be severely limited. I would surely be unable to avoid their arrows if they were to notice me.”

  Zhao Qianqiu began to contemplate over this course of action seriously and a moment later, he replied.

  Chuckling, Wang Chong came clean with his entire plan.

  “Your plan is feasible! It’s worth a try.”

  After hearing Wang Chong’s plan, Zhao Qianqiu’s eyebrows leaped in agitation.

  Even though Wang Chong’s plan sounded risky, it was actually fleshed out. It could be seen that Wang Chong wasn’t just proposing this idea on a whim. Rather, he had considered all different aspects before presenting it to him.

  More importantly, this was the only way to break out of the current situation. If they didn’t clear the dozens of master archers on the surrounding cliffs, it would be impossible for them to reverse the situation.

  On this aspect, Zhao Qianqiu shared the same view as Wang Chong.

  Hu!

  A bright flame suddenly bloomed at a distance not too far away. Then, a second one appeared. The two large conflagrations danced and distorted, throwing their surroundings further into shadow.

  At the same time, this blinding pair of flames blocked the vision of the master archers from two directions.

  Hong long long.

  Right after the two bundles of flame appeared, a few oversized rocks were rolled off the edge of the cliff. Pupupu, wolf fang arrows immediately streamed in from all directions in response.

  Next, a cluster of wolf carcasses were thrown off the mountain. Following which, another bunch of wolf fang arrows rained down. Thereafter, the defenders baited a third wave and a fourth…

  After several waves of such, the master archers seemed to have realized that something was amiss. Thus, they no longer reacted as vigorously to this stimulus.

  “Instructor Zhao, it’s about time. When you are scaling down in a moment’s time, make sure to tuck your limbs tightly together. Allow yourself to fall freely for a period of time before using the rocky surface of the cliff to decelerate. While you’re going down,
I’ll release a few waves of rocks to confuse the enemies. As long as we make use of this well, it should be sufficient to allow you to reach the base of the mountain.”

  “Also, there will be a few alarmed war steeds when you get there. Once you reach the bottom, choose one and chase the rest away. This will help you reach the master archers as soon as possible.”

  Some other recruits on White Tiger Peak had noticed the war steeds and reported it, and so, Wang Chong integrated their presence into his plan as well. The ivy on the cliff and the war steeds at the bottom of the mountain… As long as Zhao Qianqiu played his cards well, this could potentially turn the tables around.

  “I understand.”

  Zhao Qianqiu nodded. Under the cover of the two flames, just as Wang Chong directed his group to throw another wave of wolf carcasses down, Zhao Qianqiu blended in and slid down, vanishing into the darkness silently.

  “Instructor Zhao, take care. You’re the key to whether we’ll be able to overcome the current crisis or not.”

  Gazing at the direction where Zhao Qianqiu had disappeared, Wang Chong soon regained himself.

  Now wasn’t the time to be worrying about Zhao Qianqiu. Too many people had gathered at the center of the buildings, and this would make them an incredibly conspicuous target. If a rain of high trajectory shots were to fall here, they would suffer heavy losses.

  Wang Chong knew clearly that it would be unwise for them to congregate at a single location.

  “Now, we’ll proceed on to the second location!”

  Drawing his sword, Wang Chong pointed at the second strategic location in the distance on White Tiger Peak. Looking at the direction he was pointing toward, everyone was flabbergasted.

  The direction Wang Chong was pointing toward was the giant White Tiger statue at the peak of the mountain.

  To Wang Chong, that location was a natural barrier against the high trajectory shots of the master archers. If he were to stack a lot of wolf carcasses around the area to serve as walls, that could potentially become the third fortress on the peak, as well as a strategic geographical high ground!

  The group moved quickly without any hesitation, and a moment later, they managed to conquer the second location. With the prior experience, the movement of the group was much more efficient this time.

  In just a few breaths time, they were already half done with the defenses. It wouldn’t be long before the second fortress would be complete. Meanwhile, Wang Chong had gathered yet another thirty Imperial Army guards and instructors previously spread across the region.

  They already formed quite a powerful force at the moment.

  As long as the Great Tang’s Imperial Army guards got a chance to regroup at a safe location, the momentum would only continue to pile up as though a snowball. In truth, Wang Chong didn’t need to worry about much now.

  Wang Chong pointed out the third location to occupy, but he didn’t head over personally. Instead, he sat down cross-legged beneath the White Tiger statue.

  “I should make some preparations for now. I won’t be long before I will have to make my move!”

  Wang Chong’s mind was in turmoil. He had already searched through the White Tiger Peak and confirmed that Wei Hao and the others weren’t on this mountain.

  “Wei Hao, I hope that you can hold on.”

  Wang Chong thought as he retrieved the two pills that were bestowed to him by the Sage Emperor back when he was still locked in the imperial prison. Initially, he had decided to only use them after he had successfully cultivated the Hexad Arms Technique.

  However, that was too much of a luxury for him now given the current circumstances.

  ‘Gu lu‘, Wang Chong swallowed the two pills. Instantly, immense medicinal energy burst within his body.

  His face reddened and his body became extremely hot. It didn’t take long for a layer of white mist to shroud his entire body. The immense medicinal energy that came from a pill forged by the top-notch alchemists of the royal palace gushed through his body.

  Wang Chong guided the immense Origin Energy toward the meridians and acupoints along his hands.

  Peng peng peng!

  Under the overwhelming might of the medicinal energy, the innumerable sealed meridians and acupoints were opened. In just this short moment, Wang Chong had achieved progress in his Hexad Arms Technique that would have taken him several months of hard work under normal circumstances.

  “What concentrated medicinal energy, as expected of a pill from the royal palace!”

  Wang Chong thought as he continued driving his Origin Energy along with the medicinal energy toward his meridians and acupoints.

  Hong long!

  After an unknown period of time, Wang Chong’s body suddenly jolted. The final acupoint required for the Hexad Arms Technique had been opened. At the same time, delighted cheerings sounded from the distance. The instructors and Imperial Army guards that Wang Chong had gathered had successfully managed to claim the third strategic location as well.

  Finally, Wang Chong’s plan was reaching its final stage.

  Chapter 212: True Martial Realm Halo!

  Klang!

  The ringing cry of a sword sounded. Beneath the massive white tiger statue at the peak of the mountain, Wang Chong drew his sword and executed his Single Character Consecutive Slash.

  Shua! Slashing about rapidly, Wang Chong’s two arms turned into four, and eventually into six.

  Aooooo!

  A desolate howl of agony sounded, and the six Turk wolves surrounding Wang Chong previously immediately fell to the ground.

  Shua shua shua!

  Driving the potential of his Single Character Consecutive Slash to the maximum, Wang Chong danced amongst the wolf packs, leaving carcasses in his wake. Every single time his Wootz steel sword was raised, six wolves would fall.

  In a short moment, a river of blood formed in Wang Chong’s surroundings. The bodies of giant wolves filled the surroundings, and the crowded mountain peak suddenly cleared up.

  In terms of efficiency in slaying these wolf packs, Wang Chong was even more formidable than Zhao Jingdian, Zhuang Zhengping, and the others combined.

  This was the might displayed when the Hexad Arms Technique and Single Character Consecutive Slash were used together.

  Xiu!

  As Wang Chong was in the midst of his slaughter, a piercing sound suddenly streaked across the sky. In the depths of the darkness, a furiously rotating thick wolf fang arrow tore through the aether, headed toward Wang Chong.

  “Be careful!”

  An anxious voice sounded. It was Chen Burang.

  In that blink of an eye, Wang Chong turned his head around, only to see Chen Burang’s head appearing from the tattered room.

  And at the same time, as swift as a bolt of lightning, a wolf fang arrow fell from the sky.

  Klang klang klang!

  There wasn’t any time to think then. Wang Chong’s Wootz steel sword immediately divided into six, repeatedly striking the wolf fang arrow that plunged toward him.

  Hong!

  Back in the room, Wang Chong was unable to get a clear gauge. However, now clashing with the arrow directly, he finally understood how powerful these master archers were.

  When the Wootz steel sword struck the wolf fang arrow, Wang Chong felt as though he was striking a steel mountain. His hands went numb and a sweet taste regurgitated in his throat. Not only did the Wootz steel sword fail to split the wolf fang arrow, the immense force of the latter even blasted him out.

  Hong, Wang Chong skidded more than ten zhang away. He tumbled and rolled all the way to the bottom of a zhang deep depression, barely escaping with his life from this crisis.

  (~3m)

  “That was a close shot!”

  Wang Chong’s heart was pounding frantically as he slid into the depression. This was his first direct clash with master archers in this life, and he could tell that the reason why he couldn’t break that arrow wasn’t due to the resilience of the arrow but that the
Origin Energy imbued inside it was far greater than his.

  Archers would infuse their Origin Energy into the arrows they shot, making it impossible for an ordinary man to cut their arrow apart.

  Xiu!

  At the moment when Wang Chong slid into the depression, in the distance, from Chen Burang’s room, a torrent of arrows shot out, headed toward the direction where that arrow from before came from.

  At this crucial moment, Zhou Huang made a move.

  In an instant, the surroundings fell silent. There was nothing to back up his conjecture, but Wang Chong instinctively sensed that the opposing master archers had lost one more of their comrade.

  Xiu xiu xiu!

  However, not too long after Zhou Huang made a move, innumerable arrows whizzed through the sky, covering the area where Chen Burang and Zhou Huang were stationed.

  “This is a good chance!”

  Making use of the opportunity where the attention of the master archers were focused on Zhou Huang and Chen Burang, Wang Chong leaped out from the depression.

  As soon as he got out, he flicked a few wooden panels up with his sword.

  Peng!

  At the same moment, an arrow whizzed through the air, crushing the wooden panels Wang Chong flicked up just a moment ago into dust. On the other hand, making use of the momentum from this strike, Wang Chong rolled into the depths of one of the buildings.

  Wolf carcasses were stacked up high in this building.

  “Safe!”

  Kneeling on the floor, Wang Chong glanced outside and heaved a long sigh of relief. Even though he had made many preparations and countermeasures, White Tiger Peak was still filled with danger.

  “I can only hope that Zhao Qianqiu and Zhou Huang can work together to free us of the threat from the hostile master archers.”

  Glancing outside the door, Wang Chong thought.

  At this moment, Zhao Qianqiu’s greatest advantage lay in the fact that no one had noticed him yet. As long as he worked exactly as Wang Chong said and hid below the belly of the horse, he would be able to cover countless li in an instant, thus swiftly reaching the master archers.

  And getting into proximity, he would be able to clear the master archers one by one.