What's the difference between having killed or never having killed?
For the young men in the Dock Fortress, killing was something extremely terrifying. Even though they had been in fights and brawls, and even caused others broken bones, they rarely reached the point of true murder.
Killing is a crime, killing leads to capture, killing demands a life in return.
That's why when Yang Sanlang led them, they respected him, at least Yang Sanlang was truly daring enough to kill. How could they possibly lose with such a ruthless leader beside them?
And now, it was their turn to be ruthless. Imagining Yang Sanlang's demeanor, these young men silently steeled themselves. Killing might not be so frightening; killing enemies didn't require any repercussions, and they might even be rewarded. They had already formed ranks, they already held their spears and guns; they only needed to thrust them out as the Hu people charged, just as they had trained...
"Whizz, whizz, whizz—"
Just as these young men held their spears and guns, ready to pierce through the Hu people charging at them, what met them were flying arrows.
In an instant, blood splattered.
Less than twenty paces away, combined with densely packed ranks, the bow-wielding Hu people scarcely needed to aim—most of the young men standing in the front row were already shot dead.
Immediately after, the Hu light cavalry who had dismounted followed the armored, axe-wielding Hu general, launching an assault.
The bodies of fallen comrades blocked the young men's spears; the fallen comrades disrupted their ranks. It was only then they realized the chasm between themselves and the Hu people in front of them.
For these blood-innocent young men, killing was hard, it was something difficult to accomplish, requiring a lot of thought to carry out.
But for those blood-hardened, brutal Hu people, killing was merely… killing.
"Schwing—"
A young man's body was split in two by an axe, blood covering the ground.
"Kill—aaahhh—"
The heavy axe swung in circles, the cold shine severing all heads it touched.
Some young men eventually regained their calm and reason from the bloody slaughter. With nowhere to retreat, they even mustered a bit of desperate courage. Instinctively, they raised their spear guns, intending to thrust at the Hu people before them—but this reaction was still too slow. Those Hu people, holding scimitars and maces, had already charged within three feet of them in their moment of hesitation.
This was a place where spears could not reach, yet perfect for close weapons to hack and smash.
Blood splattered, brains burst.
Rather than a battle, it was more like a one-sided massacre. Faced with these Hu people accustomed to a life of plunder, blooded in combat, the young men who had never fought a battle couldn't put up any effective resistance.
Instead, the Hu people, after drawing blood, fought even more ferociously.
The Evil Qi, which Li Carpenter and the Yang clan members avoided like a plague, was to the Hu people as sweet as candy.
"Kill, kill, kill... kill!"
A young Hu man, his eyes blood-red, wholly immersed in slaughter, swung his blade indiscriminately. Finding no one left from Yang Family Village to chop at, he simply turned his scimitar towards his own comrades.
But at this moment, the blood-stained armored Hu general grabbed him as if lifting a chick.
"Steady your convictions; remember why we are here."
Then, the Hu general pointed a finger deeper into the Dock Fortress.
"There are more people inside. Kill them all, and everything in this Dock Fortress—treasures, food—will be ours."
"Kill… kill!"
After a brief confusion, the young Hu swiftly changed direction, lifting his scimitar to charge further inside the Dock Fortress with the other Hu cavalry.
The armored Hu general only stood there with an axe, shaking his head lightly.
The breaking of the Dock Fortress had been easier than he anticipated. He had originally thought that, after acquiring the Dock Fortress, Yang Family Village would become as hard to crack as a military camp. After all, from past experience, the ever-evolving fortifications of the Chen people in conflicts with the northern nomads had caused many proud warriors of the grasslands to fall and die.
Who would have thought that with the fortress's protection, the people of Yang Family Village became even more feeble than before.
This might be important information: perhaps these southern Chen people were not as strong as the leaders imagined. Even if some of the older leaders might retain a bit of valor and grit from past clashes, still willing to fight to the death, lifestyles under tall city walls and years of peace without warfare inevitably change people.
"I must quickly report this to my elder brother. He will surely have more answers... hmm?"
The armored Hu general's pupils suddenly contracted.
In the midst, he heard a hum.
The humming came from deep within the Dock Fortress; the armored Hu general was certain he hadn't misheard, for when he raised his gaze, he saw bodies flying out from the fortress depths.
These were the young men he had just sent in—a group of fine lads hardened by the northern winds, transformed into resolute warriors. In this war, they had drawn blood, becoming true warriors of the north.
Warriors of such caliber should have had no problem disposing of a group of weaklings who dared not show themselves within the fortress.
"The situation has changed."
Stopping his subordinates from charging further in, the armored Hu general advanced alone.
This had transcended into a battle ordinary soldiers could no longer partake in, confirmed by certain presences he identified there.
Icy Evil Qi coursed through his arms, the Hu general's eyes growing redder.
At that moment, another pair of blood-red eyes appeared in his sight.
Those crimson eyes held a grand blade.
"Is it you who killed Li Carpenter?"
"...Who?"
The armored Hu general was perplexed.
"Who is Li Carpenter?"
"Buzz—"
At that moment, the heavy blade rose, striding over the bodies of Hu cavalry, heading straight for him.
"Bring it on!"
The armored Hu general swung the great axe, creating a fluent, powerful arc—enough to cleave the Dock Fortress gate in one swing. No one could withstand this blow, not to mention mere flesh and blood!
"Schwing—"
The sound of a blade slicing through flesh vanished instantly.
The two non-human figures passed by each other.
Drawing a deep breath, the armored Hu general abruptly turned his head.
Crushing the Dock Fortress so easily had caught him by surprise, but the existence of such fierce Southerners was even more unexpected.
Besides, it was obvious the host was lending strength to that blade.
He had heard about this blade before coming here. Supposedly, it was the last ace of Yang Family Fortress, capable of killing a hundred warriors with one swing. It was no surprise someone wielding such a treasure dared to contend against him.
But even under the possession of the blade's qi, where the possessor had lost all reason, the courage to brandish the blade against him was indeed commendable.
Regrettably, despite such valiant effort, it could not stop the power of his mighty axe...
"What?"
The armored Hu general suddenly sensed something amiss.
His hold on the axe—why couldn't he see his hand?
The strange occurrence compelled him to glance down.
This lowered his viewpoint with a crash.
"I..."
The armored Hu general opened his mouth, yet no sound emerged.
It was at this moment he realized that the noise of the blade slicing through flesh was not from his axe cleaving a body.
Rather, it was the sound of the blade severing a neck.