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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 16: Explosion
In Prince Huixin's mind, as he took control of Qingyang City, he began to envision a city he had always dreamed of—a Qingyang City that was even greater and more prosperous than it was now. In this city, everyone would respect him immensely. Whenever Prince Huixin thought of this, he would become utterly enchanted, confident that he could achieve his revenge.
If he had been able to take over Qingyang City sooner, it could have already changed; it wouldn't be in its current state. But that didn't matter now.
Prince Huixin firmly believed that as soon as the Seventh Prince arrived, he would surely drive the Cult of the Hall of Malevolence away. His face was filled with confidence, the very expression a prince should have.
Although Prince Huixin displayed confidence, the situation might be like that of Wei Deputy; his elder brother should have arrived by now.
Pigeons delivered messages at intervals, and although each message contained updates, they all informed Prince Huixin that there was still no sign of the Seventh Prince's forces. Such news was terrifying for him.
Regardless, it was not yet time to abandon the city. Prince Huixin believed that every general under his command was fighting hard. Additionally, he had gathered information about the Hall of Malevolence; their Cult was not numerous. The main forces of the Hall were concentrated here, and as long as he could hold on, he could turn danger into safety.
The guard he sent out for help returned; this was the third letter he had dispatched. In that letter, he had informed his Seventh Prince about their current situation. Prince Huixin hoped the Seventh Prince would understand the gravity of the matter. The guard brought back news that left him almost unable to stand; his armor was shattered and bloodied all over. He swayed before Prince Huixin but forced himself to kneel on one knee.
Prince Huixin realized that for the guard to return so quickly, he must not have eaten anything. "Did anyone give him food or drink?" Prince Huixin asked.
No one in the hall answered. Frowning, Prince Huixin glared at the guards standing by the door. After a moment, someone brought water and food.
"Can you speak now?" Prince Huixin asked as the guard ate some food and drank half a jug of water, showing concern.
The guard felt deeply moved by Prince Huixin's care despite being just a messenger. He replied excitedly, "Your Highness... I can speak."
Prince Huixin smiled slightly at the guard. "I’m glad you made it back alive; you’ve worked hard on your journey."
The guard said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Highness. I thought I wouldn’t make it back safely." He coughed several times. "Your Highness, I delivered your message, but the Seventh Prince drove me away."
The guard's tone was filled with anger, which only intensified the ominous atmosphere in the room; silence enveloped them.
Prince Huixin looked greatly disappointed. "He drove you away..."
He gestured for the guard to rise and began pacing back and forth in the room with his hands clasped behind his back. "It seems the Seventh Prince is determined to watch me die."
"Which city is closest to us?" Prince Huixin pondered for a moment before asking a nearby Commander.
The Commander cupped his hands and replied, "It is Lin Yun City."
The messenger soldier swallowed hard and said, "Your Highness, I have actually been to Lin Yun City; I just returned from there."
"You've been to Lin Yun City?" Prince Huixin asked. "What were you doing there?"
"The Seventh Prince drove me out. I thought the Seventh Prince wouldn't send troops for rescue, so I took the initiative to go to Lin Yun City for help," the soldier's gaze dimmed as he spoke. He looked at Prince Huixin and continued, "I explained the situation to the Lin Yun City Lord, hoping they could provide us with some assistance. But before I received a response from the Lin Yun City Lord, I heard reports that someone had invaded Lin Yun City."
Prince Huixin was taken aback. "Who attacked Lin Yun City?"
The soldier replied, "It was people from the Hall of Malevolence. By the time I escaped, Lin Yun City was already engulfed in flames."
Hearing about the attack on Lin Yun City from the soldier felt like a thunderclap to Prince Huixin. He had originally planned to seek help from Lin Yun City, but now it seemed that the Hall of Malevolence had already breached the city. It appeared that the Arbitrator wanted to leave Prince Huixin isolated and helpless.
At that moment, a large group of soldiers surged into the room. They were all injured but none had life-threatening wounds. These were not soldiers from Qingyang City or Lin Yun City; they were soldiers from Kuo Kou City, located west of Qingyang City.
"Prince Huixin, please save our city lord! Those cultists from the Hall of Malevolence are terrifying! Even the strongest warriors couldn't hold out for long; those people are like demons, tormenting and tearing apart any isolated soldiers," one trembling soldier from Kuo Kou City conveyed his message.
Suddenly, Prince Huixin felt an urge to laugh out loud; even Kuo Kou City had fallen. It seemed there was no turning back for him now.
Prince Huixin's expression changed drastically as he sarcastically retorted to the Kuo Kou City soldier, "Soldier! Are your eyes blind? Can't you see what kind of situation Qingyang City is in right now?"
Of course, these soldiers from Kuo Kou City were not blind. The situation in Qingyang City was undoubtedly no different from that in Kuo Kou City. However, they had been ordered to come here and could not return empty-handed.
As Prince Huixin berated the soldiers from Kuo Kou City, his frustration only grew. He tried to calm himself down; perhaps both Lin Yun City and Kuo Kou City's suffering was also due to his own actions.
At that moment, a soldier from Qingyang City approached with urgent news. "Not good! Prince Huixin, the northern gate of the inner city has been breached! Deputy Wei has been injured but is still alive. I took some time to find a horse before I could rush here."
"The northern gate has been breached!" The restraint that Prince Huixin had maintained for so long finally shattered his hope completely. "Has everyone been killed?"
"Your Highness, Deputy Wei has been injured. He refused to leave despite our warnings and is trying to hold off the Cult of the Hall of Malevolence with the remaining soldiers. He asked me to inform you to leave the city quickly," said one of the soldiers from Qingyang City.
"All guards and any soldiers still able to fight must assemble immediately! Relay this order to everyone; every commander must organize a resistance! We need to control the chaos!" Prince Huixin declared, resolute in his decision not to flee.
The Commander faced Prince Huixin and said, "Your Highness, although many from the Crimson Rhino Battalion have fallen, some remain. It would be best to disperse them throughout the city to assist the other soldiers in fighting back. We cannot rely solely on our weapons against those monsters!"
Prince Huixin nodded. "That works too. Don't lose heart; we have not lost yet! We still have armed forces, don't we?"
A soldier from Kuo Kou City suddenly spoke up, "Your Highness, let us join as well! Though we are few, we might be able to help! We still have some high-explosive devices."
Prince Huixin's face lit up with joy. "That's wonderful! I appreciate your willingness to help! If I survive this night, Kuo Kou City will forever be my ally."
The morale of the crowd surged as they recalled the atrocities committed by the Hall of Malevolence. Rather than waiting for death, they chose to fight back fiercely.
Confidence surged within them; such determination could make any weapon effective.
"Kuo Kou City soldiers!" one called out.
Prince Huixin looked over, clearly unsure of what he wanted. "What else do you wish to say?"
"I need you to give me some men; I can make the explosions more powerful."
Prince Huixin nodded. "I will provide you with some personnel. How many do you need?"
"Twenty should suffice. We need to set up a massive explosion zone and attract the Cult of the Hall of Malevolence into it. If we can manage that, we should be able to deal them a heavy blow!"
Upon hearing this, Prince Huixin felt a weight in his heart. Luring the Cult into an explosion zone meant that those soldiers would likely perish alongside them. However, victory was urgently needed. "Where do you want to set up this explosion zone?"
The soldier from Kuo Kou City hesitated for a moment but then stepped forward decisively. "I wish to set it up here!"
The Commander from Qingyang City suddenly shouted, "You want to blow up the prince's palace!"
In Kuo Kou City, the soldiers remained silent, waiting for Prince Huixin's response. After a moment, Prince Huixin smiled and said, "You have quite the audacity to speak like that. However, I agree! If we can weaken their forces and create an opportunity for a counterattack, what harm is there in blowing up the palace?"
The soldiers of Kuo Kou City secretly admired Prince Huixin's unusual decision. One soldier remarked, "Only by making them believe the Crown Prince has surrendered will they come here."
The Commander from Qingyang City wanted to urge Prince Huixin to reconsider, but Prince Huixin replied, "There’s no need to hesitate. If the city cannot be defended, what use is the palace?"
Prince Huixin raised his hand and commanded, "Everyone unrelated must leave the palace area immediately."
Turning to the soldier who had come to report, he instructed, "Go inform Wei Deputy of our arrangements here. We are heading to Qingyang Heights."
"Yes!" The soldier withdrew.
As everyone exited the palace, the Commander followed closely behind Prince Huixin and asked, "Your Highness, what do we intend to do at Qingyang Heights? It is not a good place to hide."
Prince Huixin replied, "I am not looking for a hiding place. I want to be up high and watch as the Hall of Malevolence Cult is blown to pieces!"
The soldiers of Kuo Kou City and those from Qingyang City worked together to set up an explosive circle. Once completed, everyone appeared quite satisfied. The explosive circle was essentially an explosive formation; as long as they calculated the detonation distance correctly, they would not be affected by the blast's shockwave. If this explosion succeeded, it would significantly undermine the confidence of the Hall of Malevolence Cult.
They successfully expanded and shaped the explosive circle within a short span of time. They estimated that at least five hundred members of the Cult could be dealt with here. Now it was time to select volunteers to lure in the Cult members. Participation could lead to death; although the explosive magic circle was proposed by Kuo Kou City's soldiers, they had once found this idea terrifying.
But now there was no turning back. The soldiers from Qingyang City also agreed with this method; killing members of the Hall of Malevolence Cult was an honorable mission. Thus, many soldiers were fearless and eager to join in. They had been oppressed by the Hall of Malevolence Cult all night and could not show any signs of cowardice in front of Kuo Kou City's soldiers.
Soon enough, they had selected fifteen Qingyang City soldiers to lure the enemy while the rest waited outside the explosion path.
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