Chapter Six Hundred and Twenty Seven – The Ming Bandits
The estate that Shu Long and the others lived in was not left unscathed under Lin Qian’s blow and collapsed. But because they had been preparing to leave, all of them were unharmed.
When Zuo Mo’s shout howled out, all of Guard Camp suddenly shot into the air like a drawn bow string. With a few jumps, they appeared next to Zuo Mo.
They had finished forming a battle formation in the air. When they landed next to Zuo Mo, they surrounded him in the middle. The movements was so dazzling that all those who noticed this scene had strange looks on their faces.
“Find A Wen and the others!” Zuo Mo asked gravely, “Is everyone else here?”
“All here!” Shu Long nodded reliably. Behind him, several figures flew out and quickly found A Wen and the others.
Zuo Mo noticed Xiao Guo and Li Ying Feng among the group and Li Ying Feng was carrying Luo Li on her back. His nerves immediately relaxed. When he saw Bie Han and Sin Battalion, his expression eased further.
But his brow quickly furrowed again.
The black dots in the sky became increasingly clear. The battalion that was flying towards them was astoundingly large. From the scale, it probably had more than ten thousand people!
“Bie Han, prepare to fight!” Zuo Mo lost his politeness at this time and briskly ordered.
Bie Han’s cold face remained motionless. He nodded and turned to leave.
“Miss Ceng! Please give the command of the Celestial Planet Guards to me!” Zuo Mo said with a serious expression.
Ceng Lian’er did not waste words and shouted, “Shou Ping!”
“Present!” Shou Ping immediately came out of the ranks. Miss’ battle just now had frightened him half to death and the reveal of Miss’ strength had shocked him.
“From now, you will be under Xiao Mo Ge Daren’s command. Anyone who disobeys will be executed!” Ceng Lian’er swept Shou Ping with a glance and said in a light tone.
Shou Ping’s heart shook and he responded respectfully, “Yes!”
“The Ming Bandits! The Ming Bandits have come!” In the sky, many mo stumbled as they landed. Their faces were ashen and their expressions filled with terror.
“Ming Bandits!”
Great Peace City exploded.
Even Zhu Ke and the others suddenly changed expression.
Zuo Mo saw Tao Xing’s bloodless face. His lips were trembling and he was clearly extremely terrified. Zuo Mo asked, “Who are the Ming Bandits?”
Tao Xing’s throat was dry and his expression as grey as it could be. “We are definitely going to die now! Ming Bandits … … Ming Bandits, they are a group of lawless bandits … …”
“Lawless bandits?” Zuo Mo paused. At his side, some members of the Guard Camp had expressions of scorn. They had killed many bandits on their journey here.
“The strongest bandits!” The one who spoke was Tang Fei. At this moment, this handsome young woman with a ponytail had a trace of fear on her face. “They come like the wind, kill people and are extremely cruel. Their leader is called Ming Hui. This person is an astounding genius. Even though he is young, he is only a step away from marshal level. He has many experts under his command. They are all the elites of the other bandit groups that he has taken over. This person is extremely ambitious and is as sly as a wolf. He is someone no one wants to provoke!”
Zuo Mo understood some of this. After a moment of thought, he said to Tang Fei, “Starting from now, I’m going to command your battalion!”
Tang Fei opened her mouth but did not speak. Tao Xing heard this and his expression relaxed slightly. He nodded repeatedly and said, “Good good good! Tang Fei, listen well to Daren’s orders!”
Tang Fei lowered her head and accepted the order. “Yes!”
At this time, Zuo Mo did not have the attention to spare for Tang Fei’s willingness or the lack thereof. The Ming Bandits were coming quick and a hard battle would not be able to be avoided.
Right now, anything he could get was something that he could use.
———
“Ming Bandits!” The middle-aged attendant’s expression changed slightly. She raised her head to look at the incoming black cloud in the sky and gritted through her teeth, “I will take you and break through.”
“You can escape. With your strength, you should be able to break out on your own. If you take me, you will not be able to escape.” Princess Xia glanced at her.
The middle-aged attendant said lightly, “We have been mistress and servant for so many years. I had my own intentions when I started, but I watched you grow up into a young woman. No matter what, I will not abandon you.”
She looked deeply at Princess Xia and said, “You have done enough for the Anwei Family, you do not owe them anymore. If you want to take the opportunity to go into hiding, this may be a good chance.”
A thread of warmth flashed across Princess Xia’s eyes. With her hand she combed her slightly ruffled hair. “You are giving up?”
“This is probably fate,” the middle-aged attendant said lightly. However, her expression seemed to be relieved of a burden.
“You have given up, but I do not want to surrender like this to fate.” Princess Xia’s smile blossomed and a differently light flashed through her eyes.
The middle-aged attendant showed a hint of shock.
“It is crueler to forget the things that one does not want to forget. Compared to him, I am much luckier.” Princess Xia raised her face and her eyes seemed to be shrouded in mist. She murmured to herself, “In these years, I have muddled through and accepted the arrangements of the family. It was not for the Anwei Family, but for Father. Every time, I would think that the Anwei Family was the blood and tears of my father, and I was unable to refuse their requests. Now, I have thought it through. Since I do not want to forget, I will not forget. In the past, I was struggling in my memories and was moved by others like a puppet. When I think about it now, that me was really lacking.”
Her beautiful face slowly lit up. She stared into the sky and seemed to say to herself, “I have to become brave. The Anwei Family is the work of my father, and the best way to pay respect to him is to inherit his last wishes and make the Anwei Family prosperous. I need to stand up, and not remain down, I will not be a puppet, I want to become the master of the Anwei Family!”
The middle-aged attendant’s gazed softened. She had seen how depressed Princess Xia had become after her father had passed away.
She was silent for a moment before she said, “I will lead you out of here!”
Her tone held determination rare to her.
Princess Xia took her gaze back and smiled mischievously. “I have a way.”
“You have a way?” The middle-aged attendant stilled.
———
“They are surrounding us.” Miao Jun’s expression was grave.
He was a gold battle general and had a broader view than other people. He quickly noticed the Ming Bandit Battalion that appeared at their flanks and rear. The other was trying to corral them in.
This was the first time that he had seen the legendary Ming Bandits. His mood was as dark as his expression was. As expected of the Ming Bandits that were publicly recognized as the strongest bandits. From the initial charge to the maneuver to surround them, the transformation of the formation flowed like water. It was shockingly smooth. The troops looked unorganized but the murderousness that came with battle experience caused Miao Jun’s heart to tremble.
After seeing this group of terrifying bandits with his own eyes, Miao Jun finally understood why no faction was willing to provoke the Ming Bandits.
Zuo Mo grimaced. He could also see what Miao Jun saw. But his strength was completely drained and he had not recovered. He swept a look across Shu Long and the others. Their expression was normal but everyone had been affected by that sword strike that swept through all of Great Peace City. Their offensive capabilities were also affected.
The Ming Bandit did not form a wall to surround them. Instead they were strategically dispersed maintaining appropriate distances between the groups of troops and did not expose any openings.
Seeing this, Zuo Mo knew that the enemy was an expert!
However, the Ming Bandits did not target Lin Qian’s group.
They were those who only bullied the weak!
Zuo Mo cursed them as he threw lingdan into his mouth. He ordered Shu Long and the others to take the time to recover and receive the hard battle that was going to come.
Suddenly, Zuo Mo noticed Princess Xia’s group coming over.
“I know you have a way out so I came to side with you.” Princess Xia had a mischievous smile.
Zuo Mo grimaced. “What way do I have?”
“Then what do we do?” Princess Xia’s brow furrowed as she looked pleadingly at Zuo Mo.
“Even if you look at me, I can’t create a way.” Zuo Mo’s expression was one of helplessness, but the next words that came from his mouth was completely the opposite. “However, no matter if there is a way or not, we have to fight.”
His tone was not resolute, nor arousing but a strong fighting spirit permeated from it.
For some reason, Princess Xia immediately felt reassured. She smiled beautifully. “I will let you take command of my guards. If I really die, it isn’t much. We will live and die together!”
“Cough cough cough!” When Miao Jun heard this, he burst into coughing. Princess Xia was a beauty, and he felt he was unable to withstand her presence in that moment.
Zuo Mo was not affected by the “illusory spell.” His mind was filled with potential ways of breaking through the encirclement.
He did not refuse Princess Xia’s submission. In his mind, Princess Xia was his friend and he also owed her a favor. He thought and then asked, “How many guards do you have?”
“About three hundred.”
“Give their command to me.” Zuo Mo did not waste words.
“Alright!” Princess Xia agreed without another word.
A hint of admiration flashed through Zuo Mo’s eyes at Princess Xia’s decisiveness.
Princess Xia’s guards were quickly gathered and they were put under Zuo Mo’s command. Zuo Mo immediately gave these guards to Miao Jun to lead.
A gold battle general could not be wasted.
The events that occurred after far surpassed Zuo Mo’s expectations. It may have been that Bie Han’s battalion had the advantage of numbers but many other people came to throw their lot in with him.
Given their familiarity Zuo Mo could understand when the Lan Brothers came to him but he didn’t understand why Princess Xin and Princess Wan also came.
But at this time, he needed more manpower and did not refuse any of them. His request to all of them was the same, hand command of their guards to him. The people also knew the urgency of the situation and cooperated.
Zuo Mo had Miao Jun take command of all these guards.
At this time, the Ming Bandits had finished their encirclement. It was strictly enforced and any mo that tried to break through were killed on the spot.
The pressure created by the army circling the city was suffocating.
Zuo Mo felt extremely urgency. If the Ming Bandits attacked the city at this moment, then they wouldn’t have any power to resist. What he could trust the most right now was only Bie Han’s Sin Battalion. There weren’t enough of Guard Camp’s members here. A Wen and the others were lightly wounded and their strength was affected.
Time! They needed time!
Just as Zuo Mo was praying that the Ming Bandits would not attack the city so quickly, woosh, the Ming Bandit battle battalion suddenly pushed forward.
The tangible murderousness filled the air and swept them like an enormous wave. Everyone’s expression changed!
Were they about to attack the city?
At this time, something suddenly happened!
Translator Ramblings: It never ends.