Their blades met with a humming sound, and Ye Bu Shou’s waist knife was deflected hard backwards.

Shocked, he thought: How does Dian Deng Zi, that feeble scholar, have such a tough subordinate?

Cheng Xu chuckled and shoved Dian Deng Zi backwards, pushing him far away, leaving only himself and Ye Bu Shou face to face. “A border army Ye Bu Shou, aren’t you? Decent skill, but in the end, just a soldier.”

Ye Bu Shou spat, “Fuck!”

He roared furiously, his knife slashing out again, while bellowing at the top of his lungs, “Fight!”

His squad of subordinates behind him surged forward instantly. Further back, from the distant woods, his one thousand and five hundred troops also charged out with loud yells.

He had been fully prepared to eliminate Dian Deng Zi.

Dian Deng Zi was utterly flabbergasted. He hadn’t expected that despite also being a rebel, also a subordinate of Bu Zhan Ni, Ye Bu Shou would attack without the slightest hesitation. It made Dian Deng Zi seem rather foolish.

Thankfully, though Dian Deng Zi himself was naive, the villagers from Qingjian County under his command were anything but. It was these very villagers who had actively rescued the naive Dian Deng Zi during the battle at Jiejia Valley.

Once again, without needing any instructions from Dian Deng Zi, Village Chief Jie roared, “Villagers, fight! These louts have had bad intentions all along; they just want to steal our ten stones of food!”

The thin, bony old man had a surprisingly loud voice. His single furious shout spurred three thousand Qingjian County villagers into a simultaneous charge.

Qingjian County was no naive place!

During the vast peasant uprisings of the late Ming dynasty, this small county produced three renowned great rebels: Zuo Guazi – who had once attacked Bai Family Fortress (he started his uprising in Yichuan but was originally from Qingjian County, his real name Prince Shun of Qingjian), the second was Dian Deng Zi Zhao Sheng, and the third was the famous Old Nan Feng Ma Shouying, who later became the leader of the Gezuo Five Camps.

Qingjian was full of heroes; its villagers were bold and ready for a fight.

The charge of the three thousand Qingjian County villagers truly possessed a soaring momentum.

As the saying goes, when rogue fighters face rogue fighters, they shed blood in the jianghu, fearless of death. They draw their machetes and fight tooth and nail.

The able-bodied men in the front ranks of both sides immediately clashed violently. In the back ranks, the elderly and weak, women and children began shouting strategically…

Amidst the chaotic melee, Ye Bu Shou slashed his knife again with a whistle, aiming straight for Cheng Xu.

Cheng Xu parried and deflected with his own waist knife, causing Ye Bu Shou’s blade to scrape with a “clang” across the armor plates at his waist. The deflection staggered Ye Bu Shou, nearly making him fall. Simultaneously, Cheng Xu’s knife cut towards Ye Bu Shou’s flank.

This move genuinely startled Ye Bu Shou. Fortunately, years as a scout emphasized agility and adaptability. Frantically, he threw himself flat to the ground, rolling rapidly across the dirt, just barely escaping from under Cheng Xu’s knife.

He leaped to his feet several meters away, his face drastically changed, “You… you’re no ordinary jianghu practitioner.”

Ordinary jianghu practitioners rarely used “armor” to deflect attacks in their exchanges, as they might wear it only once in a lifetime.

Yet this masked man before him intentionally dragged and deflected his blade against the armor! Using this maneuver to nearly make him stumble, while reducing his own dodging movement, seizing a faster opportunity for a counterattack.

“Damn it, which army are you from?” Ye Bu Shou roared, “Yansui border army? Guyuan Town Army? Or elite troops from some garrison?”

Cheng Xu chuckled: I’m a ranked military officer, you idiot keeps thinking I’m just a soldier. Where exactly do I look like a ‘just a soldier’ to your Grandpa?

He wasn’t in a hurry to attack yet. He was waiting for Bai Yuan to arrive with reinforcements. Since the other guy liked to talk, fine, they could talk. Perfect timing to stall. Cheng Xu declared smugly, “My surname is He, given name Jiu! Meeting me is your bad luck! Get ready to see your grandmother!”

This bravado wouldn’t have been so bad, but the moment these words left his mouth, Ye Bu Shou paused, stunned, “Chengcheng’s War God, Cheng Xu? Didn’t the Imperial Guards kill you?”

Cheng Xu: “!!!”

What the hell? How did I give myself away with just one sentence? I’m wearing such a big mask! I even gave a fake name! How did he figure it out with one sentence?

Cheng Xu panicked. A deep, gut-wrenching panic. His name leaking out? That was disastrous! In the blink of an eye, Imperial Guards could surround Gaojia Village. And if the Deity was away visiting other deities for a few days when that happened… he was done for!

He had to be silenced. Couldn’t let him escape.

Cheng Xu had no more patience for talk. He leaped forward in a large stride, swinging his waist knife in a fierce assault aimed at Ye Bu Shou’s face. Ye Bu Shou, startled, hastily raised his own knife to block. Clang, clang, clang! Their blades met several times in rapid succession.

Cheng Xu gained the upper hand instantly.

But Ye Bu Shou was also wearing a set of border army cotton armor, making him frustratingly hard to take down. Several times Cheng Xu seized an opening and landed a solid blow, only to have the armor absorb the impact. Attacks targeting uncovered areas met no success either.

Right then, loud shouts erupted from the hillside. Bai Yuan had finally arrived! He led a contingent of Bai family retainers, Gaojia Village Militia, and Bai Family Fortress militia – over two hundred men, all robust and capable, especially the Gaojia Village Militia who were now all armored.

The moment they crested the rise, they saw a fiercely chaotic battle ahead. The two bandit armies wore identical rough burlap clothing with no distinguishing markings, all tangled together. Who could tell them apart?

The hand crossbows raised by the Gaojia Village Militia lowered reluctantly. Firing into such a melee would risk hitting their own people.

Bai Yuan was anxious, “We can’t tell friend from foe! Which side do we help?”

While he was still perplexed, Zheng Daniu charged forward.

He saw two men fighting. Zheng Daniu reached out with both hands, grabbed the collars of both, lifted them into the air, and boomed, “Which side are you on?”

The one on his left answered, “Second Team!”

The one on his right answered, “Seventh Team!”

Zheng Daniu flung the one in his right hand. Thump! The “Seventh Team” man slammed onto the ground, skull cracking onto a rock. His eyes rolled back, and he knew nothing more.

The man in the left hand sucked in a sharp breath of cold air: Thank goodness I was Second Team…

Bai Yuan and the others broke out in a cold sweat: “That… actually worked?”

Cheng Xu suddenly yelled across the battlefield, “Everyone near that thicket down there, they’re all ‘Seventh Team’. Charge straight towards the thicket! The Qingjian County people won’t attack you! Anyone blocking you is Ye Bu Shou’s men!”

He could shout orders even while fighting Ye Bu Shou, indicating he held considerable advantage. In contrast, Ye Bu Shou was fully occupied with frantic defense, unable to spare breath for speech.

Hmm… Cheng Xu couldn’t let Ye Bu Shou talk anyway, fearing he’d blurt out his identity. He pressed his assault relentlessly, each stroke faster than the last, forcing Ye Bu Shou to dodge, weave, and leap frantically, thoroughly overwhelmed.