The world is like a prison, my body is holy

Chapter 66: Group Opening (Happy Lantern Festival)

sunset.

Wang Wen stood outside the bloody den, looking at the bright clouds in the sky that seemed to be dripping with blood, feeling a little uneasy.

He turned his head, stretched his shoulders and neck, and said to the two Si Tianwei on his left and right: "Put another layer of armor on me!"

The two exchanged glances, and one whispered, "Lord Wang, you're already wearing two layers of armor. If you add another layer of plate armor, your entire body will weigh nearly 100 kilograms. Add to that your steel spear, and even an ordinary person would have difficulty walking..."

"He knows what he's doing."

The one who spoke was Cheng Xian, who was also wearing double armor: "You just need to put armor on him."

The two Sitian Guards clasped their fists and said yes.

Wang Wen spread his arms to make it easier for them to put on their armor: "Are you all ready?"

Cheng Xian: "Everything is ready. A total of 500 bundles of dry firewood, 50 barrels of kerosene, and 800 kilograms of gunpowder... When I was in the Western Army, I never fought a battle with such abundant supplies!"

Wang Wen: "That should be enough. Is it arranged as I said?"

Cheng Xian: "Are you still not confident in my ability to do things?"

Wang Wen: "I'm not worried about you, I'm worried about kerosene and gunpowder. Put these two things together, don't wait until the evil ghost is blown up, first... you know!"

Cheng Xian: "Don't worry, the people guarding these things are all my personal soldiers brought from the Western Army. They are all very capable and can keep a close watch on them."

As he spoke, he put on a heavy set of armor. Wang Wen tightened his waist and stretched out his hand: "Gun!"

Immediately, a Si Tianwei held Wang Wen's fine steel silver spear and handed it to him with both hands.

Wang Wen grabbed the steel spear, bent his knees, took a deep breath, and leaped up to a height of two meters, sending a cloud of spear shadows flying into the air...

"Boom."

He landed heavily on the ground, stretched his shoulders and neck, and said with satisfaction: "Movement is a little restricted, but it's not a big problem!"

"Good marksmanship!"

"Lord Wang is mighty!"

"With Lord Wang's physique, if he went to the Western Army, he could single-handedly kill a thousand Qiang soldiers!"

"A thousand men? As long as the horsepower can keep up, even tens of thousands of Qiang soldiers, Lord Wang, can kill him in a heartbeat..."

Seeing this, the Sitian Guards around all cheered loudly.

Cheng Xian was also convinced and said, "If I see a fierce man like you on the battlefield, I will definitely turn my horse and run away..."

"It's useless!"

Wang Wen's mind was clear, and he wasn't distracted by their praise at all. "Our opponents aren't Qiang soldiers. Even if they wear two more heavy armors, they'll only be able to withstand a little more blows... Ergou, Xu Ergou, you bastard, haven't you come back yet?"

"I'm coming……"

A burst of rapid horse hoof sounds came quickly from afar, and a strong horse carrying Xu Ergou rushed to a place not far in front of Wang Wen.

Xu Ergou jumped off his horse, panting heavily and clasping his fists, saying, "Sir, I've checked again and confirmed that there's not a single civilian left at home within a three-mile radius, not even a dog!"

Wang Wen patted his shoulder and said, "Alright, take this time to rest for a while, put on your double armor, and prepare for battle... Where's Lord Zhao? Lord Zhao hasn't returned yet?"

"I'm coming……"

Zhao Zhiling's speechless voice came from the crowd, and a group of Sitianwei made way for him to come in.

Wang Wen hurried forward and said, "Sir, I'm not trying to rush you. Time waits for no one. If you delay any longer, it will be completely dark..."

"Yes, yes, you have your reasons!"

Zhao Zhiling was speechless: "Should I thank you for holding back and not calling me a bastard?"

Wang Wen laughed awkwardly, "How could that be possible... Sir Zhao, have you settled that?"

Zhao Zhiling looked at him in shock: "You're not even willing to say a few more words to me?"

He stroked his beard and panted heavily, repeating over and over in his mind several times: 'Don't be angry, don't be angry, this guy is just like that', 'Don't be angry, don't be angry, it's a blessing for this guy to meet a superior like you', 'Don't be angry, don't be angry, I'll deal with him after this is over', and only then did he suppress the resentment in his heart.

"I have already persuaded the city officials to agree with my plan to burn down the ghost den in the government office."

He said solemnly, "Give it your all, and if anything goes wrong, I will take full responsibility!"

This matter went more smoothly than he had imagined. No matter which government office he went to, as soon as he mentioned this matter, the other party would immediately put on an enthusiastic look and agree without even pushing him.

It wasn't until the way back that he gradually figured out something: 'If this devil appeared in other places in this city, I'm afraid that even if he talked his mouth off, those masters wouldn't even raise their eyelids to look at him.'

"But this evil den has appeared in the Yangzhou government office. Isn't this putting hundreds of officials in Yangzhou government office in front of the whole world and making them work like crazy?"

"At a time like this, they, the Imperial Astronomical Bureau, were willing to step forward and take over this mess, and even set fire to the government office to destroy the bodies and the evidence. They were simply like living Bodhisattvas who rescued them from the cesspool!"

"He shouldn't be begging them. He should just sit back and wait for them to come and beg him, Zhao Zhiling!"

'It's a pity, he has more conscience than these people.'

"People with a conscience deserve this kind of loss!"

The more he thought about this, the more angry he became: "Those people, I'm afraid they will wake up laughing even when they fall asleep tonight, right?"

"That's good!"

Wang Wen nodded in relief, but the next second he realized his blind spot: "Hey, that's not right. Since you've already dealt with those officials, where are the soldiers? How come there are thousands of soldiers, and not a single one has arrived?"

Zhao Zhiling was stunned for two seconds, then suddenly he yelled with a red face and white hair: "Fuck it!"

When Wang Wen heard him cursing, he was stunned for two seconds, and then he also cursed: "Fuck you, you bastard official!"

Zhao Zhiling: ...

Cheng Xian:......

"Forget it, it's better if those idiots who are in the way don't come. Let's do it ourselves!"

Wang Wen didn't have time to pay attention to their thoughts at the moment. He turned around and shouted at the top of his lungs, "The last half quarter of an hour. Everyone, hurry up and check your equipment. The heavily armored warriors who wield swords, spears, swords, and halberds, stand in the front. The lightly armored archers who use spells, talismans, and bows and arrows, stand in the back. Everyone, please spread out. Otherwise, the evil spirit will rush out and wipe us all out with one big move. Don't be reluctant to use the Three Yang Talismans that have been given to everyone. Your life is more important than the talisman..."

Hundreds of people at the scene followed his shouts and no one was stupid enough to question his command authority.

Everyone, including Zhao Zhiling and Cheng Xian, was diligently organizing the Si Tian Guards they had brought with them from the Western Army, positioning themselves according to Wang Wen's instructions. They were all crossing the river by feeling the stones, and it was a good thing that someone was willing to step forward...

Just as Wang Wen was running around dragging the strange people who couldn't find their seats to where they should be, he suddenly saw a person in the crowd who shouldn't be there.

"What are you here for?"

He stared at Huang Xingde, who was hiding in the crowd, with his eyes wide open and his head as big as a bucket. "Didn't I tell you to preside over the temple fair? Why are you running over here to join in the fun?"

He had a loud voice, attracting countless glances.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Huang Xingde felt a bit embarrassed. With his face flushed, he clutched a thick-backed machete and shouted angrily, "Listen carefully, what nonsense are you saying? How can a son fight in the front while a father hides in the back and lives a miserable life?"

As soon as these words came out, more people came to look over.

Time was of the essence, and Wang Wen really didn't have the time to argue with the old man, so he simply took the opportunity to say loudly: "Come on, you're quite skilled in martial arts anyway. But when the fight starts, be smart. If you see the situation is not right, retreat immediately. Don't try some stupid 'if you don't leave, I won't leave either' act. If you really can't stop me, I'll run faster than you!"

After a pause, he looked around and shouted with all his might, "Men, the people in the city have all evacuated. Now we are the only ones left in the city. So if we really can't defeat that evil spirit after trying everything, you all need to evacuate immediately. Don't hesitate."

"This isn't a border crossing, and that evil spirit isn't a grassland cavalryman. We don't need to fight it to the death for every inch of land. If we can't stop it, it doesn't matter if we leave this empty city to it. As long as we're all still alive, we can always find a way to fight back, kill that evil spirit, and recapture Yangzhou City."

"But if all of us men were to die here, the people outside the city would have no hope. Even if the imperial court sent experts to retake the city, it wouldn't have anything to do with us..."

"So everyone, be extremely alert. If there's a fight, we'll all go in together and hack that bastard to death. But if we can't fight, then we'll just run away!"

After he finished his nonsensical remarks, Zhao Zhiling and Cheng Xian couldn't even look at him... Is it okay to talk about such a thing?
On the contrary, those strange people who were attracted by Xu Ergou's recruitment notice, after hearing his nonsensical words, seemed to have put down a heavy burden and felt relaxed.

"light and spacious!"

"Since you, Wang Lao Hu, have called me, I'll just leave here today and not bother you, Wang Lao Hu!"

"I've been dealing with the authorities for so many years, but this is the first time I've met someone as open-minded as you. No doubt about it, I'm going to teach that evil spirit a lesson about the power of my Five Tigers Breaking Door Knife!"

After a round of noisy cheers, the morale at the scene did not fall to a low point because of Wang Wen’s “cowardly” words, but instead reached an unprecedented climax.

Wang Wen bowed his hands and strode to the front of the crowd. He stopped five feet away from the government office gate and inserted the fine steel silver spear into the bluestone slab with a "clang".

He shouted solemnly, "Young and old men, be careful!"

With just one word, he silenced all the noise at the scene. Everyone tightly grasped their weapons and stared at his back.

Cheng Xian came up to him with the loaded rocket in hand and whispered, "Brother, why don't you let me shoot this arrow?"

Wang Wen knew Cheng Xian meant well, but he still smiled and extended his hand: "I've worked so hard to organize this big play. Brother Xian, you shouldn't steal my starring role, right?"

Cheng Xian took a deep breath and said in a muffled voice, "Have you thought it through? Once the arrow is shot... there's no turning back!"

Wang Wen just laughed: "If I take off my official uniform, I can still go back to the Cao Gang and continue to be my incense master, and still eat delicious food and drink spicy drinks, without any delays. If you take off your official uniform, can you still go back to the Western Army and continue to be your thousand-man general?"

After saying that, he took the bow and arrow from Cheng Xian's hand without question, raised the arrow, pulled the bowstring, aimed at the location of the prison behind the government office gate, and stretched out his five fingers...

"Whoosh."

Hundreds of people followed the rocket, which swayed in a smooth arc under the fiery red setting sun and disappeared into the bloody ghost den.

Wang Wen handed the longbow to Si Tianwei behind him, and with his other hand, he picked up the fine steel silver spear and asked in a slightly uneasy voice, "Did I miss the target?"

Cheng Xian replied in a low voice: "No, ten barrels of kerosene and fifty bundles of straw are right there..."

After receiving his affirmative answer, Wang Wen felt a little relieved. He looked up at the bloody light and waited quietly.

After only a few breaths, a puff of green smoke rose from the sky above the blood-red light...

"Boom."

There was only a loud explosion, and the raging flames tore through the shimmering blood light, rushing up to the height of five or six stories, emitting billowing thick smoke, which was out of control!
The raging flames, which most of the time represent disaster and danger, now have an indescribable charm and festive feeling in the eyes of the hundreds of people outside the government office.

"It's done!"

Wang Wen thrust his fine steel silver spear, his heart at ease: "Brother Xian, go and get ready, the evil spirit inside should be coming out soon."

Cheng Xian: "Can you bear it?"

Wang Wen: "I can't handle it anymore, you come?"

Cheng Xian compared the thickness of the armor and said decisively: "Then I'd better go prepare..."

He turned around and trotted away quickly.

Only Wang Wen was left, standing at the front of the team with one hand holding the fine steel silver spear, looking up at the raging flames... At this moment, his resolute and burly back was still praised in Yangzhou City many years later.

On the roof of a two-story building behind him, Jiang Jin looked down at Wang Wen's back and said with deep sorrow, "Junior brother, you are so confused!"

Huang Xingde felt wronged, but he couldn't argue. He could only mutter, "This rascal wasn't like this before. He only became smart after he went to the Imperial Observatory. If I had known he would change so much, I wouldn't have sent him to the government office no matter what..."

"Hey!"

Jiang Jin sighed heavily, then said in an unquestionable tone: "It all depends on this time. Will the government tolerate this little monkey? If the government can't judge people, you must send him to the Law Enforcement Hall for me. It's a waste of his talent to keep him in your branch hall!"

Huang Xingde said nothing, only muttering in his heart: "Wishful thinking!"

While the two were talking, the fire in the government office had spread out of control. Wherever the flames reached, the blood and light disappeared into smoke, revealing large areas of houses.

"The fire attack really works!"

Seeing this, Wang Wen felt relieved and was replaced by a huge feeling of joy.

I must be crazy to go to your home court to challenge you in a one-on-one duel!
If you have been in school for a few years, you should have heard the famous saying: If you are poor, use tactics to infiltrate; if you are rich, blow it up for me!
The government office is your home ground!
But Yangzhou City is my home ground!

"Roar!"

As if in response to Wang Wen's gloating mentality, a roar that pierced the clouds and split the rocks was heard, and a billowing black gas suddenly rushed out from the former government office prison, suppressing the raging flames like sand covering a flame.

In the black air, a ferocious figure as tall as three or four stories rose slowly into the air. It opened a pair of lantern-like blood-red eyes in the rolling black air and looked down at the hundreds of people outside the government office... There were only these hundreds of people left within a radius of several miles. It was difficult for it not to pay attention to them.

"Clang."

Faced with such a horrifying scene, countless people were frightened to the point of turning pale, and could barely hold their swords.

Just when morale was plummeting and about to reach freezing point...

Wang Wen, who was standing at the front of the crowd, suddenly stepped forward, pointed his gun at the terrifying figure, and shouted at the top of his lungs, "Your grandfather Wang is here, you thief, come here!"

(End of this chapter)