Under One Person: One Person Goes

Chapter 423 Clone
The Japanese army approached Nanjing from three sides: east, south and west.

Because of the failure of the Battle of Shanghai, most of the land transportation routes out of the city were cut off or controlled by the Japanese army.

The old Japanese soldier Matsui Iwane, who planned this military operation, had already learned clearly about Wang Yi's actions of rescuing people in the city through reconnaissance aircraft, and also received the news sent back by Wang Yi through spies.

Naturally, a large number of refugees from the surrounding areas were driven into the city from the east, south and west sides.

The influx of a large number of refugees directly drained the city's already stretched resources, forcing Wang Yi to not only suffer from the torment of his conscience but also to devote a lot of energy to dealing with the refugees in the city.

Even Wang Yi took the initiative to cooperate with the Safety Zone Committee headed by John Rabe, an international friend.

This international friend with a German background would approach the government to buy grain and medicine. He would be responsible for informing Wang Yi and determining the location of the granaries and medicines. He would then send out Quan Xing to kill people and rob them. They would snatch these materials that were being hoarded by government officials and unscrupulous businessmen and plunder the people's wealth, and then he and Rabe would carry out disaster relief.

However, facing the large number of refugees and poor people in the city, these resources are still a drop in the bucket.

What’s more important is that it was already December 1, 1937, and the Japanese army had arrived!

The first to be attacked was the first outer line set up outside the city.

There were bursts of artillery fire, the air raid sirens in the city kept blaring, and Japanese planes kept circling over the city, putting constant pressure on the defenders and civilians.

Thanks to Wang Yi's previous performance in the Battle of Songhu, the enemy planes hovering over the city did not launch an air strike. It was obvious that they had received orders from their superiors and knew that there was such a single-person humanoid anti-aircraft weapon in the city.

As long as we don't take the initiative to attack, the other party will not dare to act rashly due to the situation.

All they had to do was hover over the city for a while, exert pressure, and then fly away in a swagger to bomb the garrison's first line of defense outside the city, striving to break through the outer line in the shortest time possible and get closer to Jinling.

"Don't push! Don't push! Let the elderly, women and children go first!"

"I told you not to push! If you push again, I'll shoot you!!!"

Xiaguan Wharf is the only way to escape from the city that has not been surrounded by the main attack of the Japanese army.

The place was already overcrowded with people before the Japanese army arrived. Now that they began to attack, the order that had been maintained with great difficulty through force and rules collapsed in an instant under the pressure.

People kept scrambling to get on board, whether it was a ferry or a small sampan, they were all their first choice.

Stampedes occurred frequently, and women, children and the elderly were often pushed into the river. Firing gunshots into the air was no longer enough to deter the crowd.

What's worse, they have shifted their targets to the gold and silver jewelry stored in the warehouses and started to attack the warehouses, ready to grab the money and indulge themselves.

The scene I saw at this moment was like the end of the world.

"boom!"

Gunshots rang out again, and the thugs who attacked the warehouse fell in a pool of blood, dead.

"Everyone, calm down! The Japanese haven't invaded yet! Are you so eager to die? Everyone, line up and get on the ship. Those who can't get on, wait for Boss Wang to arrange it! If anyone dares to make trouble again, I'll shoot him!"

The smoke from the machine gun in Zhou Weiguo's hand had not yet dissipated, but the blood of the thugs who attacked the warehouse and tried to steal money and food on the ground calmed the people at the dock and they no longer dared to attack.

"Boss Wang, I'll have to leave this to you. I have to go to the battle."

"Captain Zhou...thank you!"

"There's nothing to thank or not. Your people are good people. They wouldn't do something like shooting at civilians. It's more appropriate for me to be the bad guy. I'm counting on you."

Zhou Weiguo looked at the dock. Although those people belonging to the ship captains were holding sharp weapons, none of them attacked the civilians. There was envy and emotion on his face.

He envied such an army. Even when the city was about to fall, they still did not choose to abandon the city and flee, and still did not shoot at the headless flies and the people who rushed to the dock.

If the national government’s army were all like these people before us, how could they have been defeated today?

Then, he also looked at the captain beside Wang Yi. Although he already knew the other party's identity, there was no need for him to expose it at this time. He just saluted him, then left the dock with his men and rushed to the position, ready to meet the enemy at any time.

After watching Zhou Weiguo lead his troops away, the captain also looked at Wang Yi and the people at the dock who were making a commotion again.

Before he could open his mouth, Wang Yi was already standing on the platform, circulating his true Qi, striving to ensure that every word he said next could be heard by the people at the dock.

"Everyone, I know you are all very scared now. The Japanese are coming, and the planes are circling over our heads. We don't know when they will drop bombs on us. We may die at any time. But the Japanese haven't entered the city yet. You are all crowded here in a mess. No one can get on the ship, and no one can leave the city. If we all die together, the only ones who will be happy in the city are the Japanese. That can't be allowed.

I also swear to you all here that as long as the Japanese haven't invaded and haven't come here, I still have the final say on this dock. There are still ships out of the city, and you all have the opportunity to board the ship and leave the city. I, Wang Yi, and the guys from the Sitong Company will be the last to leave. I want you all to survive more than anyone else. Even if I die, I will die in the city with the people who stay behind, and I will not die outside the city.

Please think more about yourselves and the elderly and children at home, and decide for yourselves who will board the ship first and who will stay until the end. If you really don't trust me, Wang Yi, there is a safe zone between the fourth and fifth districts. It was set up by a German named John Rabe. He is a good man and a real foreigner, a real Li Kui. Even if the Japanese broke into the city, they dared not do anything to him. He is much more useful than a Li Kui like me. You can hide there, and my people will send you there.

The Japanese are coming, and now the situation is urgent. Everyone, please stop making trouble, otherwise I, Wang Yi, will not be a good person, but a bad person who kills people. This is better than everyone dying in the city in the end, don’t you agree? "

Zhou Weiguo had already used thunderous means before he led his troops away. What Wang Yi is doing now is to calm people's hearts with his gentle and persuasive actions.

Invisible spiritual fluctuations were released with Wang Yi as the center, covering the entire dock, and combined with his words to soothe the anxious emotions of the people in the dock.

The blood on the bodies of the rioters was still wet, and everyone had seen what Wang Yi had done at the dock in the past few days. Especially while Wang Yi was speaking, the people on the captain's side jumped into the river and rescued the people who were squeezed into the river one by one. Only then did the people at the dock slowly calm down.

There was no repetition of the previous panic, and the bodies of the rioters were dragged away, wrapped in turf, and placed aside.

"This is not the way to go."

"At this time, the safest way out of the city is by water. If we don't defend this place and keep it stable, once the army and civilians come here, the situation will only get worse."

"I'm just worried that something might happen to the refugees that have flooded into the city these days."

"Are you saying there are spies among the refugees waiting to cause trouble?"

"If I were a Japanese, I would definitely do this. The city is surrounded on three sides and people are in a panic. Officials have to act in a pretense and appease the people, saying nice things like swearing to live and die with this city. If there is a riot, assassination, or internal and external cooperation at this time, the city will be in chaos and the city will be destroyed.

We have capable people like you taking the lead in rescuing people in the city, but the Japanese don't have capable people sneaking into the city to cause trouble? The city is so big, and you are not a god, how can you know everything? "

Wang Yi also understood the captain's concerns and knew that this was very likely to happen.

"Of course I know what you're worried about. I'll tell you the truth. In the past two days, all those who came to help are here with me. The rest have been divided into four groups. Using the Wang family's methods, they are hiding in the gathering places of refugees and poor people in the city. We are also investigating. Sooner or later, they will be exposed. These guys will not starve and freeze like the real refugees and poor people.

Compared to this, what I am most worried about now is the situation on the other side of the river. Now the only part of the city that has not been successfully encircled is the northern waterway. If the Japanese fleet downstream of the river comes up and blocks the river, then this only way out will become a matter of life and death. They must at least hold on until the day when the city is broken to receive the last batch of people leaving the city to evacuate. "

Looking at the endless yet relatively calm Yangtze River behind him, Wang Yi's expression never looked good.

"Do you need me to go over there? If things don't work out, I'll watch over here. Even if it means exposing my identity to that guy, I still have to defend this place."

"That's not necessary. I'm not the only one saving people this time. There's another top expert on the other side and a group of veterans preparing. This is a good opportunity for those Japanese guys to open their eyes and get to know the second best in the world besides me."

"Zhang Zhiwei? The Special Envoy Zhang who came from the northwest? I know he is an alien like you, but is it that exaggerated?"

"Ha, in this world, including those abroad, there are no more than ten people who can make this guy do something serious, except me. If neither he nor I die in this catastrophe, then no one else can make him do something serious except me. We just need to do what we should do here. As for Jiangbei, I trust him."

Wang Yi could also understand the captain's doubts.

Although he escaped death and did not part with his wife because of himself, he was forced to hide due to the infighting and broken cooperation at that time. He changed his name and identity and did not keep up with what happened later. Naturally, he was not very clear about what Zhang Zhiwei, who was tricked by him to be a bodyguard for his husband, had done over the years.

But seeing that Wang Yi trusted Zhang Zhiwei so much, who had brought in support from Longhu Mountain, Maoshan Mountain, and Sanyi Sect, the captain had no choice but to choose to believe him.

At the same time, let us shift our focus to the Japanese Central China Front Command, which is responsible for this military operation, where the old devil Matsui Iwane is located.

As the old imperial army gradually completed the siege of Nanjing City, the old devils naturally moved away from Songhu and built a temporary command post outside Nanjing City to shorten the communication distance with the front-line troops.

And these spies and insiders have already figured out the situation in the city. As the supreme commander, he only needs to stabilize the morale of the troops.

When the reconnaissance plane that had been investigating the situation in the city flew back and brought first-hand intelligence about what Wang Yi had done at the dock, the old Japanese soldier also laughed out loud.

"It's a futile struggle. He actually thinks he can stop the progress of our imperial warriors by himself? Haha."

"Reporting to the commander, we have detected signs of an unknown radio station active in Jiangbei."

"It seems that this is his support force. Order! The Third Fleet must break through the downstream fortress as planned and complete the blockade of the Yangtze River! All escape routes of the target must be completely cut off from both land and water. In addition, send the Joint Air Force to search for traces of suspicious radio stations in Jiangbei and destroy all buildings that may hide radio stations!"

"Hi!"

As the telegram was sent, the Third Fleet of the old Imperial Navy, which had already broken through the Jiangyin Fortress downstream and almost completely destroyed the main force of the National Government Navy, also responded:

'Because the enemy sank their ships and destroyed them, blocking the waterway, we need to clear the waterway before we can move forward as planned. We have now sent the First Joint Air Force to conduct reconnaissance!'

Along with this telegram, a reconnaissance plane from the First Combined Air Force of the Third Fleet of the former Imperial Navy flew towards Jiangbei.
-
Jiangbei is the northern bank of the Yangtze River where the Yangtze River passes through Jinling City and divides the city into two.

The main urban area is in the south of the Yangtze River, and the north of the Yangtze River has not been developed much. It only serves as a transportation hub connecting North China, Northern Jiangsu and Jinling.

Before preparing for the Japanese attack, the garrison did not set up more defenses in Jiangbei. They only dispatched a small number of troops to garrison and concentrated all their forces and resources on the Jiangnan side of the main urban area.

As the city fell, Jiangbei, which was the only direction of retreat, had no defense and fell almost at the same time as Jiangnan, the main urban area. In addition, the Japanese navy's blockade of the Yangtze River was an indirect cause of the subsequent tragedy.

However, it was precisely because the National Government had not set up defenses in the north of the Yangtze River at all that the troops led by Lao Chen in the south took advantage of the situation and established a temporary stronghold here to accommodate the people crossing the river.

This is why Wang Yi said that he only knows how to practice and is not good at military affairs.

When he went south to find Zhang Zhiwei and Lao Chen for contact, he only considered bringing Maoshan in and asking the Maoshan disciples who were good at drawing talismans to provide talisman blessings so that Lao Chen could lead the team across the blockade of the Japanese Navy and Jiangyin. However, he did not think about where to meet and how to meet after crossing the blockade.

Old Chen saw the trick and found that the Japanese navy was strong on the water, but their marines were just so-so. The quality of the soldiers was high, but the number of personnel was small. The focus was on how to break through the Jiangyin land fortress from the land. They suffered heavy casualties and would not notice their small moves at all. So he waved his hand and ordered the troops to march lightly and quickly, easily crossing the blockade, and set up a temporary base in Jiangbei, an area under the government's rule, to help the people evacuate.

It also reduced the burden of drawing talismans for the disciples of Maoshan and Longhushan.

Afterwards, Lao Chen led his troops to the Laoshan area in Jiangbei and a group of disciples from Longhu Mountain, Maoshan and Sanyi Sect to take root in the Laoshan Mountains in Jiangbei area.

Here we have to talk about the strategic value of the Laoshan Mountains. The Laoshan Mountains stretch across Jiangbei, with a total length of about 35 kilometers and a width of about 10-15 kilometers. It can be said to be a natural barrier for Jiangbei.

When Lao Chen led his troops to Jiangbei, he could see at a glance the strategic value of the Laoshan Mountains. It had commanding heights, terrain barriers, water systems, and a forest coverage rate of 80%. It had basically not been developed and was a natural good area for guerrilla warfare.

This is indeed the case. In the later period of the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, the New Fourth Army used Laoshan as a guerrilla zone and conducted operations behind enemy lines.

It is only because of Wang Yi that this strategic value has been discovered in advance.

At this time in a temporary stronghold in the Laoshan area, disciples from Longhu Mountain and Maoshan were drawing talismans day and night.

From time to time, someone would faint due to exhaustion and depletion of vital energy, and would be helped to the side to rest and drink medicine, while another disciple who had just rested would immediately take up the vacancy.

Drawing talismans has never been an easy job. After all, Tongtian Talisman, one of the Eight Great Skills, has not yet been born.

Generally speaking, the time it takes for a Taoist disciple to practice from the beginning to the time he is able to draw his first talisman can be counted in years.

Moreover, it is not up to the disciple to decide what kind of talismans he can draw. It is arranged by the elders of the sect based on the disciple's mentality in cultivation.

Those with a good character will naturally learn the Hercules Talisman, the Five Thunder Talisman, which are more oriented towards combat, or the Dean Dai Talisman, which is more functional.

Those who have bad character and need to be tempered can only draw the Heart Purification Talisman.

Moreover, the effect of the talisman varies greatly depending on the level of cultivation of the person who draws the talisman and how profound his research is.

Under normal circumstances, a maximum of five Hercules Talismans can be drawn in a day, and the effect is one-time only and will disappear after use.

It can be said that since accepting the arrangement of their master and following the troops here, these disciples from Longhu Mountain and Maoshan have only done the activity of drawing talismans besides eating, drinking and sleeping.

At first they were still resistant and confused, but as they received battle reports and saw more and more people crossing the river and talking about the situation in the city across the river, they finally understood why they were here.

They are saving people!
The more talismans there are, the more people can be saved.

This is the good thing about Mingmen Zhengdao. No matter how Quan Xing criticizes Mingmen Zhengdao for being hypocritical or something else, the roots of Mingmen Zhengdao are there.

He entered the Xuanmen to practice, followed the way of heaven, and like many of his ancestors, sought the vague road to heaven.

They should keep a low profile and help those who are injustice. This is the true nature of a disciple of Xuanmen.

Of course, there are also hypocrites among them as Quan Xing said, and some can be as conscienceless as Quan Xing when they are bad, but most of them have the most simple concepts of good and evil, and right and wrong.

Therefore, the disciples of Longhu Mountain and Maoshan Mountain changed from resistance in the beginning to hardworking and willing to do things without complaint.

However, among the two major Taoist sects, Longhushan and Maoshan, there are only so many disciples who can draw five talismans in a day.

It was still easy at first. Working in shifts day and night, they could draw nearly a thousand Hercules Talismans every day, which was barely enough to support the consumption of hundreds of small sampan boatmen on the other side of the river.

However, as the Japanese army drove a large number of refugees into the city and began to launch an attack, the transportation capacity suddenly increased, causing the Longhushan and Maoshan disciples here to almost collapse.

I can’t draw enough, I simply can’t draw enough!
"Three brothers, if this continues, none of us will be able to hold on."

Tian Jinzhong looked at his fellow disciples who were working in shifts day and night, and his fellow Maoshan disciples, all of whom looked as if their strength was gradually fading, and he couldn't help but start to panic.

There was still a normal amount of time for breathing before, but now the breathing time was shortened, and drawing talismans was completely energy-sapping. Even Tian Jinzhong felt that he could not bear it anymore.

As a last resort, he could only ask Zhang Huaiyi, who led the disciples down the mountain with him, and Maoshan's senior brothers Lin Jian and Zheng Zibu.

But when Tian Jinzhong turned around, he only saw Zhang Huaiyi, Lin Jian and Zheng Zibu, who were all sweating like him. They ignored him completely and just kept drawing talismans.

"puff!"

At this moment, a disciple had exhausted too much physical and mental energy and had not completed the drawing of the talisman. He was attacked back and spat out a mouthful of blood. His face turned pale and he was about to faint.

Because of distraction, Tian Jinzhong also destroyed the talisman he was drawing, and he spat out blood and his eyes went black.

Before Tian Jinzhong fell down, he felt someone supporting his back, and he was able to stand firmly. At the same time, the disciple was also supported by a golden light like him, and Zhang Zhiwei's voice came to his ears.

"Jinzhong, you and this junior brother go to the side and rest, I will take over."

"Senior brother..."

Tian Jinzhong looked at Zhang Zhiwei who was holding him up, and felt extremely ashamed.

Because at this moment in this stronghold, the most tired person was not them, but Zhang Zhiwei who was putting out fires everywhere.

Zhang Zhiwei was seen sitting in front of a stone table, his whole body covered with golden light, using his fingers as a pen to draw the talismans on the table.

At the same time, he was multitasking and paying attention to everyone's situation.

Once a disciple was exhausted and unable to continue, a part of the golden light from Zhang Zhiwei's body would be separated and injected into the disciple's body to help him replenish the depleted true Qi in his body and complete the drawing of the talisman.

Looking around, among the hundreds of disciples from Longhu Mountain and Maoshan in this stronghold, nearly half of them had the golden light differentiated by Zhang Zhiwei.

"Junior Brother, you and Junior Brother Huaiyi from the Tianshi Mansion should withdraw together, and you and Junior Brother Tian should go and rest and regulate your breathing."

"Brother!"

"I'm not competing with Zhang Zhiwei, nor do I have the ability to compete with him, but the three of you still have some strength left. If you use it up like this, it will only get worse. Take a rest first. I can't beat Zhang Zhiwei, but I can focus on four things at once, so I should have no problem painting your parts."

After hearing what his senior brother Lin Jian said, Zheng Zibu no longer insisted. After he and Zhang Huaiyi finished drawing the talisman in their hands, they retreated to take care of those disciples whose true energy had been exhausted.

Lin Jian waved his sleeves, took the talisman papers on the tables of Zhang Huaiyi, Tian Jinzhong and Zheng Zibu, and continued drawing.

But while drawing, he also glanced at Zhang Zhiwei with an extremely complicated expression.

He also recalled what he had said when he was invited by Zhang Enpu, a disciple of Tianshi Mansion, to go to Longhu Mountain to stop Wang Yishi and was knocked to the ground by Wang Yishi in just ten breaths.

"I am different from Zhang Zhiwei. He practices cultivation by eating, drinking, defecating, urinating and sleeping. When fighting with others, he never considers the trivial matters..."

Thinking of this, Lin Jian laughed at himself.

"What Wang Yi said is true. I have always thought that I lost to you because I got married and neglected my cultivation. I just need to be pure-hearted and concentrate on cultivation. If I fight you again in the future, even if I am defeated, I will not be defeated in one move. But now it seems that the gap between you and me may have been destined from the moment we met.

Zhang Enpu, it is unwise for you to compete with this guy for the position of Heavenly Master. Zhang Zhiwei, I lose and I accept it sincerely. "

"Brother Lin, you and I are both Chinese people, and we are both disciples of the Dao Sect. We came down the mountain this time to save the country and the people. With this in mind, how can you and I talk about success or failure? Moreover, once the knot in your heart is untied, I have to congratulate you on making further progress."

Without Zhang Zhiwei's reminder, Lin Jian didn't notice that he seemed to be doing five things at once, and the speed of drawing talismans in his hand also increased a bit.

"Oh no! Brothers, the Japanese, the Japanese planes are coming!"

At this moment, the disciple who was watching from the commanding heights also hurried over and informed of the situation.

Hearing this, Zhang Zhiwei also looked at Lin Jian, whose cultivation had reached a higher level. He also withdrew the golden light that he had injected into the bodies of other disciples whose true Qi had been exhausted, and spoke to Lin Jian.

"Brother Lin, please relax."

Lin Jian had no suspicion and let Zhang Zhiwei do what he wanted.

Then he felt that the almost depleted true Qi in his body was being quickly replenished by Zhang Zhiwei's true Qi.

"Zhang Zhiwei! What are you doing?"

"The Japanese planes came at this time, not earlier or later. It seems that they have noticed our little tricks, so they came to check it out first. If we don't shoot down the planes in the sky now, when the bombs fall, it will be hard to say what will happen here. I will now inject 70% of my true energy into your body, Senior Brother Lin, and ask Senior Brother Lin to take over the heavy work of drawing the talisman for me."

"Seventy percent of true Qi? Are you crazy? I can't eat that much!"

"Brother Lin, don't be afraid. This is an external force. It will not enter your three elixirs. It will just stay in your body and you can extract it at will."

Lin Jian wanted to ask again about the storage and withdrawal method, but he saw that the true Qi that Zhang Zhiwei had poured into his body was overflowing from his body, passing through his limbs and bones, and then in front of Lin Jian and Zhang Huaiyi, it took the shape of Lin Jian, like an incarnation of the golden light spell.

After looking at Lin Jian very spiritually, he merged into Lin Jian's body again.

"This...is this a clone?"

"The true Qi transforms things, the golden light condenses into shape, it is just a small trick, not worth mentioning."

"Then what are you going to do? I don't believe you didn't use up any of your energy all day. You're taking out 70% of your limited energy and giving it to me. You're only left with 30%. What can you do?"

"This 30% is enough."

Zhang Zhiwei stood up slowly, brushed off the dust on his Taoist robe, and thunder magic surged around him.

He turned into an arrow and rushed to the commanding heights of the mountains, ready to open the eyes of the Japanese enemy planes that came to conduct reconnaissance!
(End of this chapter)