Demon Emperor

Chapter 13 Yin Soldier
Ruan Hu's imperial carriage and imperial regalia had been put away at some point, and he was now riding a green horse.

He just didn't seem to be used to it, and could barely maintain his balance on horseback while walking slowly.

Ruan Hu pulled on the reins and gripped the horse's back tightly.

He thought to himself, "When will I be able to steal a spirit beast with excellent horsemanship skills?"

The supply wagons were laden with game, and the various battalions slowed their march, sending out scouts to patrol the route ahead.

Even on marches, many people never took off their armor and never loosened their bowstrings.

At first glance.

It felt less like returning to the capital and more like passing through enemy territory.

Ruan Hu, mounted on his horse, asked the guard beside him.

"Has the person been sent back to the capital?"

Ruan Hu has already sent someone back to the capital with an imperial decree, ordering all civil and military officials and imperial guards to travel twenty li (approximately 10 kilometers) from the capital to welcome the emperor tomorrow.

The guard replied, "Your Majesty, they set off in several groups early this morning and should arrive in the capital this afternoon."

Ruan Hu nodded. As for why he sent someone back to the capital, there were several considerations.

First, if an accident occurs on the road, the imperial guards in Xijing will be dispatched, and someone will be there to meet you.

Secondly, if the people behind the trouble are from Xijing, Ruan Hu can take advantage of the situation to capture them when they leave the capital to greet the emperor.

Third, if no one comes out of the capital or there is no one to meet him, it means that something has happened in the capital. He should immediately find a way to deal with it, lest he return to the capital in a daze and be captured.

Of course, there are some other considerations as well.

As for whether the attackers were the imperial guards of Xijing.

Ruan Hu thought it was impossible, and even if it were, he wasn't afraid.

Even if the Imperial Guards were won over, at most only a few dozen or a hundred would be determined to rebel; the others would be mere followers or even completely unaware of what was happening.

If this were within the imperial city, and these people had seized the emperor, isolated the inside from the outside, and then issued an edict in the emperor's name, the entire imperial guards would naturally obey.

However, if he were to send the entire Imperial Guard to the outskirts of the city to kill him, the emperor, all he had to do was show his face and shout, and then his thousands of Imperial Guard soldiers who had come out to hunt would call upon their friends and acquaintances.

These people might turn against each other and mutiny in an instant; at least most of them would be too afraid to move.

The army marched along the main road, without taking any side paths or detours.

It wasn't that Ruan Hu was stubborn, but rather that he wasn't afraid of being ambushed if he took the main road.

"Hoohoo!"

The wind whipped up dust and sand on the main road, making it difficult for people to open their eyes.

Ruan Hu rode his horse across a slope.

Looking up, I saw a horse coming from the opposite direction.

The scout rode up to them but was stopped by the guards. After verifying his identity, he dismounted and reported back.

"His Majesty!"

"General Yuchi!"

"The Chengyuan Ancient Road is just ahead, but we haven't detected any movement."

Yuchi Chongwu glanced at Ruan Hu, and Ruan Hu nodded.

Yuchi Chongwu: "Investigate further, report back!"

As he said this, his eyes sharpened: "You must personally inspect every place. Anyone who dares to deceive or neglect their duties will be dealt with according to military law."

Scout: "Yes, sir!"

He then quickly mounted his horse and rode away without stopping.

On the road.

Everyone was on high alert, watching the slightest movement around them.

Ruan Hu also drew his sword and bow, and even dismounted and walked.

Unexpectedly, everyone walked over peacefully, and there was no further movement until the afternoon.

As dusk approached, it was time to find a place to set up camp.

Yuchi Chongwu stepped forward and said, "Your Majesty, there is a place to set up camp ahead. Although it is not comparable to a city, it is better than a temporary camp."

Ruan Hu asked, "What's that place ahead?"

Yuchi Chongwu replied, "Shiqiaozhuang is the estate of the Chen family of Langfeng."

As night fell, the army rested at a farm called Shiqiaozhuang.

The Chen family members respectfully paid their respects to Ruan Hu, offering him their mansion to rest, providing food and drink for the entire army, and even having Chen family daughters serve him.

Ruan Hu refused, and at the same time ordered the entire army to be on guard at night, especially to keep a close watch on the Chen family members.

On the one hand, there was concern that there might be something wrong with the food and drink; on the other hand, who knew if it was a honey trap?

Although nothing happened in the afternoon, we were still not back in Beijing, so it wasn't time to let our guard down.

Late at night.

Ruan Hu had not yet fallen asleep when he suddenly heard strange noises coming from afar.

The ferocious tiger within Ruan Hu's body was startled and seemed to be trying to break free from his body.

He immediately turned over and picked up his sword, while his men put armor on him. The guards strung up Ruan Hu's longbow and slung the quiver over his waist.

The entire Shiqiao Village was alarmed. When Ruan Hu came out, torches lit up everywhere. Yuchi Chongwu also gave orders and rushed to Ruan Hu's side.

Ruan Hu walked out of the gate and came to the center of the street in the village.

All that could be seen was a large number of soldiers gathered between the walls of the houses on the left and right, holding long shields stuck in the ground.

By the light of the torch, Ruan Hu peered out through the shields that stood like walls.

It was pitch black outside. Not far away, there was a small river, and the stone bridge over it was the Stone Bridge of Shiqiao Village.

It seemed as if countless figures were approaching from the darkness, and the sound of numerous hooves could be clearly heard even across the opposite bank.

However, the sound made by the hooves did not sound like a horse.

"Ugh! Ugh!"

Yuchi Chongwu recognized the sound: "Your Majesty, it's the braying of a donkey."

It's really illogical to hear hundreds or even thousands of donkeys braying outside in the middle of the night.

Whether it was Ruan Hu or the others, they immediately realized something upon hearing the donkey's braying.

"Donkey Army?"

"Ghost soldiers!"

Ruan Hu never expected that he would still run into these ghost soldiers in the end.

At the same time, he realized that he had been wondering where the enemy had come from to send troops to ambush and kill him, the emperor, amidst a vast army.

After much thought, the only force with this capability near Xijing is the Imperial Guard.

Or is there really such a master who can take the head of a general from among thousands of troops single-handedly?
At that moment, he finally understood.

It turned out that the enemy didn't want to summon living soldiers, but rather the ghost soldiers of the donkey army.

pity.

Ruan Hu was not skilled in magic and did not know how to sever the source of these ghost soldiers in the tomb.
-
In the fields.

Beneath the straw altar, a shaman with a long-horned demon mask danced wildly, uttering mad cries.

"Ding-dong... Ding-dong..."

In one of his hands, he held a soul-summoning bell.

And in the other hand.

He was holding a bronze knife with kui patterns.

"Ding-dong..."

As the bells rang incessantly, the shaman chanted his incantations.

A strong wind was blowing all around.

The sound of hooves echoed incessantly in the darkness, accompanied by the maniacal laughter of a vengeful ghost.

"Hehehehe... Hahahaha..."

On the straw altar, one can see a large number of straw figures woven together from human hair.

That wasn't just one person's hair; it was taken from hundreds of people.

After chanting the incantation with a strange cry, the shaman with the long-horned demon mask stretched out a torch and set the altar ablaze.

"coax!"

Flames suddenly rose, and thick smoke billowed into the sky.

The ghostly soldiers and demons seemed to smell the delicacies of the mountains and seas, and one by one they stepped forward to devour the rising smoke.

The smoke was made from burning human hair, and the vengeful ghosts ate the smoke one by one, as if they sensed the presence of these people through some kind of medium.

Then, the densely packed vengeful ghosts instantly dispersed.

They rushed into the surrounding thatched huts and farmhouses.

A scream was heard.

As each door opened, a grotesque and hideous demon emerged.

In just a moment.

The originally timid and untrained farmers and peasants have all been transformed into seasoned and fearless ghost soldiers and generals.

A large number of ghostly soldiers gathered in front of the field, obeying the commands of the horned, ghost-faced shaman.

The shaman blew out a puff of smoke, and thick smoke billowed over the ghost soldiers, covering them all with a layer of armor.

At the same time, the sticks and hoes in his hands transformed into gleaming spears and blades.

"go with!"

"Kill that brat emperor!"

At this moment, whispers came from among the ghost soldiers.

The fragmented sounds gathered together and transformed into calls.

Where's the donkey?

Where's the donkey?

"donkey……"

As soon as these words were spoken, layers upon layers of donkey braying could be heard all around.

The donkey seemed to break through the smoke and run endlessly in the illusion, but it quickly dissipated again.

"Ugh...ugh..."

These ghostly soldiers reappear in the mortal world using human hair as a medium and farmers as carriers.

But this donkey doesn't seem to be up to the task.

The face beneath the shaman's mask seemed to have become quite ugly as he responded.

"The donkey's head was killed by that brat emperor, so the donkey can no longer be summoned."

Thus, the densely packed ghostly soldiers could only summon non-existent donkeys and charge towards Shiqiao Village.

(End of this chapter)