Knife splashing

Chapter 319: Surprise at the Competition
There were loud sounds of gongs and drums on the dock, and the river was also very lively.

It seems that everyone can participate in dragon boat racing, but if you want to win the competition, everything from boatbuilding to personnel must be carefully selected, which is quite costly.

Ordinary people are busy all year round and only practice together for a few days before the Dragon Boat Festival. They have no chance at all and just want to join in the fun.

Therefore, the twelve dragon boats on the river are all from the major forces in Ezhou. Of course, the royal palace, the guards and other court forces will not participate.

As for Buddhism and Taoism, they were joined by lay disciples' escort companies and merchant caravans, while Confucianism was joined by a group of energetic students.

The rest are the Ezhou Chamber of Commerce, the Northern Mule and Horse Gang, the Five Elements, the Pai Sect, the Craftsmen's Guild and other forces.

In short, each one is richer than the other.

All the dragon boats were lined up neatly on the river. The men participating in the competition wore the same clothes. Each team had a different color, but they were all within the five elements of blue, red, yellow, white and black. The only difference was the matching.

At this moment, everyone held three incense sticks and bowed respectfully.

Led by Chengjue himself, monks from the Law Enforcement Hall came by boat and placed a statue of Guandi on the base in front of each dragon boat.

Of course, the monks will also use various magical powers to inspect each dragon boat.

To be honest, this kind of format is the first time I have seen it. After all, the Dragon Boat Race is to commemorate the Three Lu Doctors. Although the worship of Guandijun in previous years was lively, everyone was basically busy with their own things.

Although the men were curious, they did not dare to ask more questions.

The higher-ups had personally given instructions on this matter. Even if we were behind in the game, nothing must happen to the statue of Guandi, and it was important that it reach the Parrot Island Pier safely.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Boom!
Everything was ready. As the sky-piercing thunder roared, the people on the dock suddenly burst into thunderous cheers.

The men on each dragon boat, following the drumbeats, inserted their oars into the water, exerted their muscles, and paddled backwards in unison.

At the beginning, it is the power-accumulating stage, the dragon boats have not yet accelerated, and the twelve teams are almost in a neat row.

As the sound of gongs and drums quickened, the men also paddled hard, water splashed all around, and the dragon heads cut through the waves, faster and faster.

Before long, the twelve teams became uneven, and when they reached the midpoint of the journey and turned around together, the gap was getting bigger and bigger.

Although each team was selected a few days ago, the gap between them is obvious.

For example, the students of Wenjin Academy, they are just joining in the fun. After all, they study on weekdays and only gather together to practice occasionally, so they are only slightly stronger than ordinary teams.

Regarding the dragon boat race, some old scholars originally opposed it, thinking it was improper, but in order to commemorate Doctor Sanlu, they still preserved this tradition.

So at the beginning, they fell last.

The mule and horse caravans are in the same situation. These guys are big and strong and have been walking in the mountains all year round. The title of the leader on the river is of no use to them, but they just don't want to embarrass themselves.

There are only three forces competing most fiercely.

Ezhou Chamber of Commerce, Wudang Escort Company, and Paijiao.

They all have to make a living, especially the Ezhou Chamber of Commerce and the Paijiao. Although they have to cooperate on weekdays, no one will give in at this time.

However, what is strange is that the teaching team, which was originally the most promising, is now lagging behind and can only be ranked in the middle.

The men from the sect were also furious.

"Push harder, push harder!"

"What the hell is going on?!"

"Can you guys row a boat?"

Some people started shouting and cursing, directing their criticism at the people at the stern.

Those men were arranged to board the boat on a temporary basis.

Just one day before the competition, several people had stomach upsets and were vomiting and having diarrhea. There were backup personnel, but the leader Shi Chen arranged these people on the boat.

He looked strong and healthy, and I thought he was an invited expert, but who knew he would only be a hindrance along the way.

The people of Tiansheng Sect still miscalculated.

The people they planted were all good at gangsterism, but dragon boat racing is not just about strength, it requires unity of purpose and not disrupting the rhythm.

These people could barely keep up with the drum beats, but the rhythm was a mess. It was this difference that made the entire team fall behind.

If it weren't for the help from others, we would have fallen to the bottom long ago.

These men from the Paijiao sect had been holding their breath, wanting to seize the title of the best in the river, but now that things had turned out like this, they were naturally furious and started cursing.

"What are you all yelling about!"

At this moment, the "helmsman" in charge of commanding the ship shouted angrily: "Who dares to fart about the arrangements made by the platoon leader?"

"Everyone, please be alert. If we continue to fight among ourselves, we will definitely fall to the bottom. Try harder!"

There are rules for dragon boat racing, and the words of the "rowman" cannot be questioned.

The men could only shut their mouths, hold their breath, and row hard to barely occupy the middle position.

In fact, the "boatman" was also worried.

He was in charge of steering the ship and knew it like the back of his hand. Now it was obvious that the ship had been tampered with, with a layer of leather covering the outside, and the center of gravity of the ship was a little off...

As the saying goes, every different trade has its own barriers. Although the people of the Tiansheng Sect invited their own skilled craftsmen to do the work, there were still problems.

"Banjiao" secretly looked at the men again and saw that they had gloomy faces and did not talk back even when being insulted by others. He immediately felt something was wrong.

But he remembered the advice from the platoon leader Shi Chen, who said that as long as they could reach the shore safely this time, he would be promoted to "platoon leader", and he immediately stopped thinking about it.

A platoon leader can be in charge of a fleet. Not only can he get rich from the money allocated by the gang, but even the tea and water fees given by the merchants during the transportation can make him rich immediately.

He didn't want to cause any trouble.

However, this matter was eventually noticed.

Martial law has been imposed at the Parrot Island Wharf, and all the people have been driven away, so all the important figures in the three cities of Wuchang are watching the battle at the Wuchang City Wharf.

"Hey, what happened today?"

The leader of the mule and horse gang turned to look at Shi Chen and said jokingly, "Shi Paitou, didn't you vow to take the first place? Why are you so far behind?"

Shi Chen's heart trembled, but his face was expressionless. He cursed, "Several people have stomach problems. It must be one of you who did something to prevent me from becoming the leader in the river."

He is very cunning and knows how to change the subject.

Sure enough, someone immediately said in dissatisfaction: "Shi Paitou, you should be careful with your words. The title of the leader of the river is not enough for me to do something bad to you."

"That's right, only you can use this method!"

"Alright, alright, we are all from the same world, stop arguing..."

Although everyone was talking at once and trying to change the subject, Shi Chen looked at the gloomy-faced officers from the Duwei Division standing in the rain in the distance, especially the magic fire guns on their backs, and his heart was still beating fast for some reason.

He remained calm, turned his head and looked at the crowd below. Seeing the old beggar holding a broken gong, his heart trembled.

That night, he brought the Fu brothers and sisters into the room. Although he had a passionate night, he fell into the trap and was cursed by the two men.

This kind of witchcraft is extremely terrifying. Just a slight activation will cause strange insects to crawl out from all seven orifices, and they are extremely secretive.

He was from Changsha Prefecture. Although he practiced martial arts, he had also been exposed to the Gu technique from western Hunan and knew how powerful it was.

As long as the other party urges him, he will be unable to live or die. Moreover, there are people watching him all the time, so he has no chance to ask for help to remove the poison.

He had no choice but to join the Tiansheng Sect. The Fu brothers and sisters promised that after the task was completed, they would not only remove the poison, but also let him join the rebels and become a leader.

Of course, Shi Chen didn't believe this at all.

All his confidence comes from the Pai Sect. Without these ships, he would be no different from those unfortunate wanderers.

Thinking of this, Shi Chen looked carefully again, and when he saw that the Fu brothers and sisters had disappeared from the crowd, he was completely panicked.

The other party didn't want him to live at all! If anything went wrong, he would become the scapegoat.

I'm afraid that by then, the old man will also activate the poisonous insect to silence him, leaving his family to be tracked down by the court and thrown into prison.

Thinking of this, Shi Chen became more flustered. A fierce light appeared in his eyes and he gritted his teeth and gripped the musket at his waist.

"Shi Pai Tou, what's wrong with you?"

The people around him immediately noticed that something was wrong with him.

Shi Chen didn't waste any words. He burst out with hidden strength under his feet and left the platform in two steps. He suddenly jumped up and leaped over the heads of the people below.

At the same time, he took out his rifle and pointed it at the old beggar.

He had already experimented with the power of the musket.

Even if it wasn't a new type of firearm, it would be enough to kill the old man.

The Fu brothers and sisters have already left. As long as they kill this person and no one activates the poisonous insect to stop the dragon boat, they will have a chance to turn the tide.

If done properly, all the blame can be shifted away.

At worst, I would give away my inheritance in exchange for the lives of my family.

Thinking of this, Shi Chen no longer hesitated and pulled the trigger at the old man's head.

pat!

However, when the hammer fell, the musket did not fire.

Shi Chen's heart suddenly turned cold.

However, the gunpowder compartment had been wet by rain and did not ignite.

Dangdang Dangdang!
The old beggar was also startled and started to beat the broken gong desperately.

"what--!"

Shi Chen screamed in mid-air and fell into the crowd.

He was in extreme pain and tried desperately to tear his skin apart, but densely packed strange centipede-like insects had already drilled out of his five senses and seven orifices, and more had drilled into his internal organs, biting him madly.

This kind of pain was beyond the limits of human endurance, but he would not die in a short time. Shi Chen's shrill screams almost echoed throughout the dock.

Such a horrifying scene frightened the surrounding people and made them retreat one after another.

Whoosh whoosh!
Immediately, several captains and their skilled fighters leaped over, pushed through the crowd, and quickly drew their swords.

The old beggar saw that the situation was not good and wanted to escape, but after he took two steps, a crossbow arrow flew at him and nailed his legs to the ground.

"It's a Gu insect!"

The leaders of various forces also looked up and watched.

Some people also understand this kind of magic, but they just shake their heads after taking a look at it.

"Hopeless!"

Shi Chen, lying on the ground, had his eardrums and eyes bitten by the poisonous insects, blood gushing out of his mouth, and even his vocal cords had been torn apart. He could no longer scream, but could only twist his body wildly.

This scene made everyone feel terrified.

Some people couldn't bear it and wanted to kill Shi Chen, but now that something had obviously happened, if they took action they would probably be suspected of being tried to silence him.

In addition, Shi Chen had offended many people in the past, so they all turned their heads back.

Chengjue was also on the shore. Seeing that no one was paying attention, he immediately stood up and shouted, "Send a message, stop the anti-Christian boats!"

On the high platform on the shore, soldiers from the garrison waved colorful flags.

At this moment, there are not only racing dragon boats on the river, but also garrison warships, guarded by monks from the Law Enforcement Hall.

Although the race will soon be decided, there is still some distance from the Parrot Island Pier, which is enough to stop the Paijiao dragon boat.

Boom boom boom!
As the war drums sounded, the navy warships immediately moved forward, blocking the path of many dragon boats. Several masters jumped up like flying birds, using the momentum between the dragon boats to rush towards the Paijiao dragon boats.

At the Parrot Island Pier, several figures suddenly appeared, dressed in official uniforms, and there were even two old eunuchs, all of them with fierce auras.

They are all masters sent by the palace to guard the place.

"What are you doing!"

On the Paijiao boat, the man also discovered something was wrong.

However, several thugs from the Tiansheng Sect immediately stood up and started punching and kicking, knocking the people around them into the water.

"We've been discovered, take action!"

Several of them were fanatical warriors. Looking at the masters jumping towards them, they immediately pulled away the wooden boards under their feet and lit the fuse with fire sticks.

The fuse is extremely short and burns instantly.

boom!
On the surface of the river, flames suddenly splashed everywhere, like thunder.

The gunpowder on the ship was mixed with "coal essence" and "red saltpeter", both of which were specially made for the new gunpowder formula.

Not only that, a large amount of petroleum phosphite was also placed around.

For a moment, flames shot up into the sky on the surface of the river, and even the people on the shore could see it clearly.

Those masters who leaped over were like ants. They were directly hit by the shock wave of the explosion, and flew backwards with blood spurting from their mouths.

Those evil people from the Tiansheng Sect were naturally smashed to pieces first, but the remaining dragon boats were not in a good situation either.

The violent explosion caused huge waves, and several dragon boats capsized immediately, throwing the men on them into the river.

Moreover, phosphorous fire and grease were splattered everywhere. Although the dragon boat did not sink, it was ignited. Many men were covered in phosphorous fire. They screamed and struggled in the water, but it seemed as if the fire was stuck to their bodies and they could not get rid of it.

The statues of Guandi on the dragon boat also fell into the river one after another and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The scene before him made Chengjue feel a chill in his heart.

On the Parrot Island Pier, a huge altar has been built. Yu Lanshan, with disheveled hair, is fiddling with five huge Yin-Yang Bagua mirrors on the altar, just right for the Four Symbols Feng Shui Bureau.

As the statue of Guandi fell into the water, the Bagua mirror in the center began to rotate slowly, driving several other mirrors along with it.

Yu Lanshan's face turned pale, he bit his tongue and sprayed blood on the mirror, then he pressed the mirror with both hands and shouted angrily: "What's going on? Quick, salvage the statue of Guandijun, and continue the competition. At least half of them must reach Parrot Island!"

The King of Wuchang was also there, his face gloomy, and he said, "Tell them to act quickly!"

He had made many arrangements here, but he didn't expect something to go wrong in the middle.

The news spread immediately. At this moment, Cheng Jue had no time to think about what went wrong. He immediately gathered experts in the water to salvage the fish from the river.

However, the Yangtze River is deep, with silt all underneath and undercurrents surging. Even a person who is a good swimmer would not be able to find it for a while.

The people on the shore were in even greater chaos, and all kinds of rumors spread, quickly spreading into the city.

Naturally, everyone in the courtyard of the Ezhou Chamber of Commerce also knew about it.

"Something's wrong?"

Wang Daoxuan frowned slightly and said immediately: "Brother Lu, go to the dock immediately to find Master Chengjue..."

"Remember, let the King of Wuchang say it himself."

"What?"

"A crocodile is also a dragon..."

(End of this chapter)