Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Chapter 244: Chapter 225 Hu Clan Master

Yang Zhenshan was not aware of Kolcha’s movements; he was standing in the ruins of the He She Tribe settlement.

The He She Tribe settlement was the Northern barbarian Tribe that they had attacked the day before yesterday. In a span of seven days, they had attacked seven Northern barbarian Tribes, and now they were less than fifty miles from Kolcha.

Yang Zhenshan decided to halt their campaign temporarily to rest and reorganize.

The continuous attacks had exhausted the soldiers, and all the Northern barbarian Tribe settlements between Songyuan River to the north and Kolcha to the south had been cleared, leaving them with no more targets.

Wang Sheng and Yuan Wanli arrived at the dwelling place of the He She Tribe and looked at the mess and ruins all around them, feeling completely numb.

However, when they saw the garrison soldiers, both of them couldn’t help but stop in their tracks.

They both watched, pupils constricting at the sight of the group that seemed like demons from hell.

They really looked like demons.

Their bodies were a dark crimson, with dried blood obscuring their faces, and their eyes were bright but cold and indifferent.

What was key was the murderous aura about them, or rather, the aura of bloodthirst.

Intense, terrifying, enough to send shivers down one’s spine.

For seven days the soldiers had been through the elements, unbathed, yet bathed daily in fresh blood.

One could easily imagine what they must look like now.

Not to mention them, even Yang Zhenshan at this moment looked like a ghost; his golden armor with mountain patterns had turned a dark crimson, his once flowing long hair was clumped together, and his beard that used to flutter in the wind had hardened into a stick-like stubble, all of which emanated a pungent stench.

Wang Sheng and Yuan Wanli had been following their footsteps these days but had never seen the garrison soldiers, or rather, the garrison itself.

After each battle ended, Yang Zhenshan would arrange to send them messages, but by the time they arrived at the battlefield, Yang Zhenshan had already left with the garrison.

So today was the first time in these days that they had seen Yang Zhenshan and the garrison.

The garrison they saw now was completely different from the one they had seen before.

The garrison before, though also filled with a murderous aura, was never this intense, this terrifying.

”You’ve arrived!” Yang Zhenshan saw Wang Sheng and Yuan Wanli and strode over with a large step.

”Sir, sir, sir!” Yuan Wanli stared in disbelief at the blood-stained face of Yang Zhenshan.

Wang Sheng’s eyes flickered as he clenched his fists in a salute, ”Greetings, Sir!”

Yang Zhenshan grinned a smile, but that blood-smudged face made his smile particularly unsightly.

”Clean up; today we head back to the southern bank of Songyuan River!”

The battle was temporarily over, and they needed to retire back to the camp on the southern bank of Songyuan River for a rest.

”Don’t worry, Sir, we will get to it right away!”

Wang Sheng didn’t waste any more words, and immediately arranged for men to start clearing the ruins of the He She Tribe.

In the past several days, he had called for an additional group of laborers from Jia City, because there was no choice—the garrison was attacking a Northern barbarian Tribe settlement every day, so they had to clean up after one every day.

The laborers he brought before were simply not enough, so they had to temporarily gather another batch.

These laborers were now familiar with the process and quickly moved all the goods onto the horse carts and ox carts.

As for the severed heads, Yuan Wanli also followed suit in counting them, confirming their numbers.

As dusk neared, the garrison and the laborers who came to transport war trophies began heading south.

But they did not go far, just over ten miles out, and found a flat area to prepare to spend the night.

At that moment, they were over one hundred and fifty miles away from the camp on the southern bank of Songyuan River. It would take at least a day’s journey to return, so they would definitely not make it back today.

At night, Yang Zhenshan found a carriage to lean against, closing his eyes halfway, and resting with a serene expression.

”Sir, many scouts from Kolcha have come!” Yang Mingzhen spoke, unable to conceal his fatigue.

These past days, probably no one was busier than Yang Mingzhen.

Yang Mingzhen was responsible for arranging Scout patrols and security. Although he didn’t need to do it personally, he had to remain vigilant at all times, never sleeping too deeply.

”How far are they from us?” asked Yang Zhenshan.

”They have been following behind us, consistently maintaining a distance of about four or five miles,” replied Yang Mingzhen.

Yang Zhenshan opened his eyes slightly and nodded, ”You should get a good night’s sleep tonight; I’ll keep watch myself!”

”Sir, there’s no need, I can handle it,” said Yang Mingzhen.

Yang Zhenshan stood up and patted his shoulder, ”Get some rest.”

The night sky was particularly cold. A silvery crescent moon hung in the quiet night sky, casting a hazy moonlight.

Yang Zhenshan rode Red Cloud to a spot four or five miles north of the temporary camp; he could see several figures in the distance.

Four or five miles was neither close nor far; standing there, one could see the campfires of the temporary camp.

These people likely only wished to keep an eye on them. As for launching an attack, their vigilance had never been lax, with over a hundred Cavalry always on guard around them.

Yang Zhenshan did not drive away the Northern barbarian scouts; instead, he sat down on a patch of grass.

Though it was late at night, Red Cloud was still very spirited.

This fellow had enjoyed himself thoroughly these past few days. The soldiers were all significantly weary, with a fatigue in their spirits and bodies that couldn’t be shaken off in the short term, but this one still appeared lively and spirited.

Red Cloud emitted a soft whinny toward Yang Zhenshan.

Yang Zhenshan, reluctantly getting out a few peaches for it and took one for himself to nibble on.

Such good things he couldn’t share with the soldiers, Yang Zhenshan muttered to himself with some dissatisfaction, ”It’s not that I don’t want to share, it’s just not suitable to bring out!”

He did want to distribute some to the soldiers, but how could he explain the origins of these things?

The Spiritual Spring Water can be mixed into the regular water, but fresh fruit really can’t be explained.

At the end of April, still in the Northern territories, it’s simply not possible to have fresh fruit.

As Yang Zhenshan was eating a peach, Red Cloud by his side suddenly let out a soft whinny.

Hrrr-hrrr~~

Yang Zhenshan’s expression changed subtly, and he quickly perked up his ears.

In terms of alertness, Red Cloud had the instincts of an animal, and its hearing was better than a human’s, even better than Yang Zhenshan’s.

The faint sound of the wind brushing through the grass made a swishing noise.

But there were other sounds mixed in as well.

Being watched?

And by just one person?

”Eat quickly!”

Yang Zhenshan whispered.

Red Cloud quickly swallowed the peaches on the ground, and after it finished eating, Yang Zhenshan picked up the peach pits and threw them into the Spiritual Spring Space.

He couldn’t explain the fresh peaches, and he couldn’t explain the fresh pits either. To avoid trouble, Yang Zhenshan always threw the pits into the Spiritual Spring Space after eating.

That person was getting closer, their movements very slight, almost inaudible. If not for Red Cloud’s alert, it would have taken Yang Zhenshan a while to notice.

An expert!

What a coincidence!

If other soldiers encountered this person, it would likely be more bad than good.

Yang Zhenshan observed his surroundings as usual, without deliberately trying to pinpoint the other person’s location.

Seconds and minutes passed, the opponent was very cautious, always crawling close to the ground.

In this dim moonlight, it was hard for most people to notice his presence.

About fifteen minutes passed, and the person was less than thirty feet away from Yang Zhenshan.

Yang Zhenshan still made no move, just quietly gripping the spear beside him.

The night breeze blew gently, and suddenly the person sprang up from the ground like a cheetah, pouncing towards Yang Zhenshan’s position.

Hrrr-hrrr!!

Red Cloud let out a loud neigh, leaping up at the front, with both hooves striking towards the figure that was pouncing.

At the same time, a glint of lance light emerged from beneath Red Cloud, with a low rumble of thunder that was barely audible.

The coordination between horse and man had nearly reached its limit.

The newcomer clearly hadn’t anticipated this, but his own strength was remarkable.

As the hooves were about to land on his body, and the glint of the lance was about to stab into his abdomen, his body twisted and rolled in the air, evading both the hooves and Yang Zhenshan’s spear.

But although he dodged, he did so in a very embarrassed manner, rolling over a distance before stabilizing his form.

At this moment, Yang Zhenshan saw the other person’s face clearly—a man in his forties, well-built but not particularly tall, with rough features that had distinct Hu Clan characteristics.

Yang Zhenshan did not ask who the man was. In an instant, he moved beneath Red Cloud’s belly, and his spear thrust towards the other like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

The man’s expression changed slightly, and he retreated continuously while swinging his saber to block Yang Zhenshan’s spear.

Feeling the force transmitted through the spear shaft, Yang Zhenshan’s heart became somewhat heavier.

An expert!

A true expert.

At least a Postnatal Eighth Layer expert!

Definitely not an Innate Realm expert.

Moving swiftly, the spear danced, and its fierce point persistently closed in.

The opponent was not to be outdone, wielding a pallid scimitar that formed a barrage of light, actually managing to block all of Yang Zhenshan’s spear thrusts.

The ding-ding-dong-dong of the collision sounded like rapid rainfall, and the two figures under the curved moonlight interweaved ceaselessly.

After dozens of exchanges, they were equally matched, with neither gaining an advantage.

Both were quite surprised by this outcome.

Now Yang Zhenshan’s cultivation was at the Postnatal Seventh Layer, not far from the Eighth Layer. Adding his physical advantage to the mix, he dared say that he could suppress a warrior of the Postnatal Eighth Layer, and even if it was the Ninth Layer, he still had the strength to fight.

But facing this Northern barbarian, he couldn’t form an overwhelming presence.

Could the opponent be at the Postnatal Ninth Layer?

Just then, a series of horse hooves sounded.

Some came from the North, others from the South—the ones from the South were naturally the soldiers from the garrison responsible for the patrol, while those from the North were Kolcha’s scouts.

Both parties noticed their approaching comrades, and after another collision, they broke apart.

Hrrr-hrrr!!

Red Cloud ran behind Yang Zhenshan.

Its hooves were mighty, capable of kicking a man and his horse flying, but against a powerful warrior, it wasn’t much help. That’s why Red Cloud had stood quietly to the side during Yang Zhenshan’s fight, watching.

If Yang Zhenshan couldn’t win, it could carry him and run.

Red Cloud was quite clever, not just smart but also understanding of human nature.

After years of companionship between horse and man, they shared many unspoken understandings, as well as deep affection.