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In the eighth month of the twenty-second year of the Zhenguan era, the people of Chang'an were preparing to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival, while outside the city, a group of black-clad riders galloped southward like a whirlwind.
Leaning against the immortal residence, surrounded by green towers, the palace clock was silent in the autumn night; in Chang'an, every household gazed at the moon, with some places filled with music and others steeped in sorrow.
The Five Hundred Riders behind the Xu Zhen were as silent as black rocks, not even making a sound when wielding their whips. They wore dark iron armor, distinct from the Tang army's standard armor, resembling the Black Armored Army created by the Sovereign. However, their armor was more fitted and streamlined, as if it grew on the warriors themselves—close-fitting and without any excess weight. On their heads were Demon Masks, revealing only fierce eyes and half a chin.
Their steeds were warhorses from Yanqi—tall and robust with long necks raised high, extremely responsive to the reins. There was no need to crack the whip; with their superb riding skills, even loosening the reins allowed them to control these fierce horses solely with their legs.
Ordinary Tang soldiers typically carried a Hu Lu (quiver) that held thirty arrows, but each rider in this group had one Hu Lu and two more on their saddles. Large burlap bags revealed crossbow tips.
Additionally, they had spears wrapped in long strips of cloth secured on their saddles. The riders wore deerskin boots with short knives strapped to them and carried two Tang Dao (swords) at their waists—one long for combat and one short for self-defense. A round shield rested on their backs, and a Black Horn Flag fluttered in the wind!
The Tang Relay Road was extensive and efficient for transmitting information across the empire quickly; however, its width could not maintain a proper formation for a hundred cavalrymen, forcing them to ride three abreast in a long line.
The Xu Zhen donned red armor and a black iron Demon Mask that stood out conspicuously—not because he intended to draw attention but because news of his leading the Five Hundred Riders out of the city could not be concealed. Thus, there was no need for disguise.
His Demon Mask bore a sinister grin while those of his Five Hundred Riders displayed mournful expressions.
His eyes remained extremely alert and vigilant; after leaving the capital region, their hands never strayed far from their sword hilts.
Suddenly!
Raindrops fell without warning onto the black iron armor, followed by a steady patter that echoed like a small person banging on a drum inside his head.
The Xu Zhen squinted slightly; through the misty rain ahead, a Black Spot gradually approached. The shadow transformed into a courier riding a fast horse with a red relay flag—indicating an urgent message from eight hundred miles away.
Along their journey, they had encountered many such couriers, yet the riders did not relax their vigilance; they gripped their sword hilts tightly as before.
The courier seemed somewhat startled and quickly reined in his horse. The Xu Zhen raised his hand lightly, slowing down his Riding Team. The courier regained his composure and urged his horse past the Xu Zhen, clearly aware that this Riding Team would not yield space and had to go around.
The Xu Zhen glanced over; this courier carried nothing but a rainproof bag loaded with documents on his back and a knife at his waist—no different from other couriers they had encountered along the way.
However, at that moment of passing by, an icy chill ran up the back of Xu Zhen's neck!
Suddenly turning around, Xu Zhen saw the Courier spring up like a startled hawk. With a powerful push, he leaped high from the saddle, and the eight-hundred-mile divine steed was kicked off the path by the force of the Courier's push, rolling onto the ground. The horse's leg cracked, bones piercing through thick muscle, revealing a ghastly sight!
"Control!"
Xu Zhen let out a low roar, and the Five Hundred Riders all pressed down on their blades. Xu Zhen drew her long sword and swung it back in a crescent arc. The Courier's short dagger came rushing in, clanging against her blade!
The clash occurred in the blink of an eye. Xu Zhen felt her arm go numb, and her palm throbbed painfully, yet the Courier's short dagger did not break. This was already Xu Zhen's full-powered strike!
Since practicing Li Jing's Enhanced I Ching Cleansing Inner Power Manual, Xu Zhen had learned to use her inner energy to enhance her external force. Her brute strength should not be underestimated, especially with Yin Kaishan's razor-sharp treasure blade; ordinary swords would have long been severed in such a clash!
However, this seemingly unremarkable short dagger in the Courier's hand was surprisingly resilient!
What was even more astonishing was that this Courier, without any armor, dared to infiltrate and attempt to assassinate Xu Zhen with such a formidable Riding Team behind him. Compared to his short dagger, this Courier was truly the real deal!
After a brief exchange with Xu Zhen, the Courier used the rebound force from her long sword to crash into the Riding Team!
A knight suddenly drew his sword; however, just as the murderous intent ignited in his eyes, it extinguished instantly because a short dagger pierced through the gap between his faceplate and chest armor, cutting his throat!
The Courier's strikes were fast, precise, and ruthless. It was evident he had studied the armor of the Riding Team beforehand. Xu Zhen couldn't help but suspect that perhaps all those previous encounters with Couriers were merely distractions for gathering intelligence on the Five Hundred Riders!
This Courier charged fearlessly into the Riding Team. After killing one knight, he kicked the body aside and seized the warhorse, drawing a spear from its back. With a flick of his wrist, he sent water splattering everywhere, blinding the knights' eyes. He then thrust his spear and knocked another knight off his horse!
When fighting Xu Zhen, he acted like a venomous snake assassin; now with a spear in hand, he transformed into a fierce lion warrior!
If one were to say this man was merely an ordinary rogue from the rivers and lakes, Xu Zhen would never believe it!
As the assassin plunged into the crowd, using crossbows became difficult; his presence disrupted their formation. However, Xu Zhen's focus was not on this assassin because she knew that without support, he would never dare to come alone for an assassination attempt!
Sure enough, after the Riding Team's formation fell into chaos, a sharp whistle suddenly echoed from both sides of the mountains. Black-clad bandits on black horses surged down like a tide!
Although their formation initially appeared disorganized, they actually moved with precision and clarity between each other—definitely not like common bandits!
Xu Zhen could be certain that this group was definitely the elite of the army. Now that the struggle had moved to the surface, only the final veil remained unbroken!
"Kill!"
Xu Zhen roared like a beast king, swinging the long knife to cut through the raindrops, aiming for the back of Courier's neck. The latter did not turn around, as if having eyes on the back of their head, bending down to dodge. However, Spear struck back like a dragon emerging from the sea!
Xu Zhen was furious. It was one thing for this person to disrupt their formation, but they had actually killed two knights in the blink of an eye. For Five Hundred Riders, there were no reinforcements on the road; every loss meant one less person. These individuals were the cream of the crop, and training such an elite member of Five Hundred Riders was akin to crafting a life-sized statue out of gold and silver!
The long knife clashed with Spear, and with a step on the stirrup, Xu Zhen leaped up, knocking Courier off their horse and pinning them down. With both hands gripping the long knife upside down, they were about to stab the opponent to death!
The Courier used their knee to push against Xu Zhen's chest and abdomen while gripping Xu Zhen's wrist, forcing them down onto the ground. But Xu Zhen suddenly unleashed immense strength; with a fierce thrust of the long knife, it pierced through the opponent's hand and impaled them through the head!
Blood mixed with rainwater sprayed onto Xu Zhen's armor as they kicked aside the Courier, beheading them and tossing their head away. The first Cavalry charging down the hillside was struck by that head and fell from their horse unexpectedly!
Xu Zhen mounted again, and behind them, the Five Hundred Riders, enraged by the deaths of two comrades, drew their swords and readied their crossbows. Pointing with their long knife, Xu Zhen spat out four words through clenched teeth: "Leave not one alive!"
The heavy rain poured down, shrouding everything in a thick curtain, reducing visibility to almost nothing. The road was already piled high with corpses; blood mingled with rainwater soaked into the ground, leaving one to wonder if peach blossoms would bloom along the roadside next year.
Aside from the sounds of metal clashing and blades piercing flesh, only the wind and rain could be heard. The Five Hundred Riders made no battle cries; not even a grunt or moan from those injured escaped their lips because they were elite warriors who conserved every ounce of strength solely for killing—every breath calculated precisely!
Their opponents also remained silent because they too were elite. Yet when fear of death gripped their hearts, they wished to wail and scream—but it was already too late!
Both sides formed a silent meat grinder; lives swiftly vanished amidst the sound of rain and wind, leaving behind only a field strewn with corpses and rivers of blood!
This was the first battle for Xu Zhen and Five Hundred Riders. Previously, Xu Zhen had worried that these elite riders might feign loyalty while secretly opposing them. However, after this deadly struggle, he and his subordinates were tightly bonded together.
Even if two individuals harbored old grudges against each other, after such life-and-death combat, they would inevitably develop a bond of shared survival. Moreover, although young, Xu Zhen was already a seasoned veteran who had fought in countless battles!
The camaraderie forged through bloodshed and blades was hard to erase by fame or wealth. Aside from those two brothers who had been killed by that Courier, no other members of Five Hundred Riders witnessed their comrades fall.
In this battle, they annihilated five hundred thirty-four enemies while suffering twenty-six serious injuries and over thirty minor ones. Aside from those two killed by the Courier, no one else died!
Xu Zhen did not even glance at these people, nor did he search the bodies for anything that could prove the enemy's identity, because he knew that the other side would definitely leave no trace that could be investigated.
He also had no time to investigate the enemy's identity, as he knew that on the journey ahead, there would likely be more enemies like this one—many more!
Xu Zhen slowly dismounted, feeling as if his thigh had fused with the Azure Steed, a long period of combat on horseback made him feel that the warhorse beneath him had become a part of his body, as if he were born to be a centaur warrior from Western Mythology!
He quietly moved his legs to get the blood circulating, walking through the sea of corpses in the rain, his boots picking up blood-red mud, as if he were walking through purgatory.
The Courier was buried among the mountain of corpses, with only the red relay flag visible from behind. Though it was dirty and soaked in blood, it resembled his brave medal.
Xu Zhen silently bowed his head and saluted this Courier, followed by ninety-eight Brothers who also quietly paid their respects.
They all understood in their hearts that this was a worthy opponent; whether it was this nameless Courier or those lying on the ground, they were all soldiers—just on different sides. If it weren't for this battle, they might have become friends within the army.
And this battle was neither initiated by them nor could it be prevented by them.
Setting aside the bloody conflict and the conspiracies behind it, whether standing or lying down, whether still breathing or gasping for breath, or having already passed away.
When the great battle concluded, they would all return to their truest essence: they were the passionate sons of the Tang Dynasty, soldiers, the most respectable enemies, and at the same time, the most mourned Comrades!
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