Jungle Battle

The cold blade and the sight of his dead comrades froze Walig in place, his voice trembling:

"Brother, let's talk this out. My men are all around us, if you alarm them, you'll die too."

"Hey, threatening me? I wonder what happens if I kill you?"

Luo Yu looked at him with amusement. The mighty Qiang hundred-man commander had become a lamb awaiting slaughter.

Seeing Luo Yu appear, Shen Li's weak body slumped against the tree roots, feeling inexplicably safe.

"Don't, don't!"

The slight pressure of the blade frightened Walig, who quickly said:

"Aren't soldiers just fighting for food? I can give you silver, lots and lots! If you can tell me where one person is, I'll give you more silver than you could earn in a lifetime!"

Walig had taken Luo Yu for an ordinary soldier.

"Oh? Who's worth so much?"

"Luo Yu, have you heard of him? He's a border soldier who retreated from Jiming Fort. He killed my brother. If you can tell me where he is, I'll give you a hundred taels!"

"A hundred taels, that's a lot!"

Luo Yu looked tempted, loosening his grip on the hilt: "I really do know where he is. I hope your leader keeps his word."

"Don't worry, I always keep my word. The silver is on my horse, I'll take you to get it later."

The blade moved away, Walig moved his neck, his hand sneaking towards his waist, a savage look in his eyes.

Luo Yu's lips curled up:

"I can not only tell you where Luo Yu is, but help you with one more thing."

"Help me? What else?"

Luo Yu's gaze suddenly turned cold, his curved saber slashing out:

"Send you to reunite with your brother!"

"Thud!"

Walig's hand had just touched the hilt when Luo Yu's reverse slash cut into his neck, blood spraying out.

Just as a glimmer of hope had ignited, it was extinguished by a single slash. Walig clutched his throat, reaching out in despair:

"You, you're Luo Yu!"

The body collapsed limply.

The bloody scene made Shen Li's face pale, tears glistening in her eyes. The perilous situation had truly frightened her, and the night's chill made her shiver.

Luo Yu didn't know how to comfort her, could only take off his outer robe and drape it over her:

"Stay here, don't move. I'll go kill some more!"

Silent night began to echo with screams, sending chills down one's spine.

The women who seemed to be fleeing in panic were actually luring Qiang soldiers into an ambush. The border soldiers hiding in the darkness moved like ghosts.

The night attack began!

Some Qiang soldiers stepped into pre-dug pits, impaled by spikes below; some got lost in the forest, hit in the throat by arrows flying out of the darkness; rocks would suddenly fall from trees, smashing Qiang soldiers' brains…

The Qian soldiers fought in groups of three, their first real combat application of the Three-Three System!

Xiao Wu and two new recruits faced two Qiang soldiers. The screams initially made the Qiang soldiers panic, but when they saw only three opponents, they sneered:

"Just three people? Not even enough to fill our teeth."

Qiang soldiers were used to fighting outnumbered.

Xiao Wu gripped his curved saber, serving as the offensive edge. The other two new recruits held bamboo shields tightly on his flanks. All three were breathing deeply, trying to calm their nervousness.

Though they had trained for a while, facing Qiang soldiers still made them uneasy.

"Kill!"

The former coward Xiao Wu was the first to attack, charging at a Qiang soldier with a roar, his companions following closely.

The Qiang soldiers weren't amateurs either, attacking the three-man team from both sides. The right-side Qiang soldier's saber struck the bamboo shield heavily, but despite the powerful blow, it failed to kill anyone. Instead, he was pushed by the shield and stumbled.

Taking advantage of the Qiang soldiers' disarray, Xiao Wu lunged forward, stabbing his saber into the left Qiang soldier's chest, blood splattering his face.

One hit succeeded, the other Qiang soldier was stunned. When had the cowardly Qian soldiers become so brave?

The blood reduced their panic, replaced by a touch of ferocity:

"Kill!"

Another slash, another corpse!

Such small-scale skirmishes continued throughout the black forest. A few days of training couldn't make them masters of swordsmanship, but it could make their teamwork in threes flawless.

The three-man teams fought together, lived and died together!

"Ah ah."

"The Qian army has an ambush, an ambush! Everyone be careful!"

The screams grew more shrill, Qiang soldiers' shouts echoing through the forest. Battles raged everywhere, no one knew how many Qian soldiers were hiding in the darkness.

The dozen or so cavalry guarding the horses were stunned. The squad leader cursed:

"What's going on? How could there be an ambush! Where's the hundred-man commander?"

"Don't, don't know."

"Useless! Quickly send two men into the mountains to check how many enemy soldiers there are!"

The Qiang soldiers looked at each other, none willing to move. The screams made them uneasy, with the enemy situation unclear, who dared enter the mountains to find death?

"Damn cowards!"

Amidst the curses, dark shadows crept above them.

Meng Hu poked his head out of the darkness, several brothers following behind. The Qiang soldiers' horses were directly below their hiding spot, they could clearly hear the Qiang soldiers talking.

The task Luo Yu gave him was simple - drive away the Qiang horses. Without horses, the Qiang soldiers would be toothless tigers, nothing to fear.

A soldier whispered:

"Brother Hu, how do we drive away the horse herd? I see a dozen Qiang cavalry guarding them, we probably can't beat them with just a few of us."

"Ah, no need to fight. Brother Yu gave me something good."

Meng Hu lecherously brought out a barrel of fire oil, the opening sealed with oilskin, exposing a length of thin rope.

"Huh? Fire oil? What's it for? And what's with the rope?"

"Brother Yu said this is called a fuse, I don't understand what it means either, but he told me to light the fuse and throw it."

Meng Hu gesticulated wildly:

"He said when the fire oil explodes, the horses will panic and scatter."

"What! Throw it?"

The soldiers almost dropped their jaws. Such a large barrel of fire oil looked like it weighed twenty or thirty pounds. Any man could lift it, but throwing it so far was a joke.

They couldn't do it anyway.

"Zzzt."

Meng Hu moved quickly, lighting the fuse with a fire flint. The flame crackled.

He lifted the fire oil barrel in one hand without moving, his arm muscles bulging as if gathering strength. Luo Yu had told him to count to ten in his head before throwing it.

His companions' scalps tingled, holding their breath, not daring to move. If the barrel exploded now, they'd all be burned alive.

"Be careful, someone above!"

The Qiang soldiers weren't blind. The sudden light made them wary, several fumbling for their bows.

"Roar!"

Meng Hu roared, throwing the heavy fire oil barrel far in the shocked gazes of everyone. It flew perfectly to the Qiang soldiers' heads.

The Qiang soldiers looked up blankly, dumbfounded. What was flying out?

"Boom!"

The fire oil barrel exploded mid-air, flames splashing everywhere, like a sea of fire descending, instantly engulfing the horse herd.

"Damn!"

Meng Hu's voice came from the forest:

"Scared me shitless!"