Chapter 138 The Fear of the Northern Rong

Chapter 138 The Fear of the Northern Rong

The north wind howled, swirling snowflakes that shrouded the Northern Rong camp in a deathly gloom.

There were no celebratory bonfires here, only a suffocatingly oppressive atmosphere.

"Bang!"

The curtain of the commander's tent was violently flung open.

Several blood-soaked, disarmed Northern Rong soldiers scrambled in.

Their faces were deathly pale, their pupils unfocused, like lost souls who had just escaped from the deepest hell.

"Great Khan! Great Khan, save me!"

The leading centurion knelt down on the tiger-skin rug with a thud, his teeth chattering uncontrollably.

In the very center of the large tent sat a man as imposing as an iron tower.

He was draped in a heavy gray wolf fur cloak, his bare chest covered with hideous scars, and he held a wine cup made from a skull in his hand.

It was none other than Tuoba Xiao, the king of the Northern Rong.

"What's the panic?"

Tuoba Xiao put down his wine cup, his voice rough and thunderous, carrying an imposing aura of authority:

"Where's Huyan Lie? Where's that beast tamer? Why are only you bunch of good-for-nothings back?"

Upon hearing these two names, the remaining soldiers kneeling on the ground trembled even more violently.

"They're all...dead..."

The centurion buried his head in the ground, his voice filled with utter fear and despair:

"That beast tamer... was pinned to a tree by a single sword strike! From a hundred paces away! It pierced right through his throat!"

"And Huyan Lie... his head was smashed! It was smashed by his bare hands!"

"impossible!"

Tuoba Xiao suddenly stood up, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes:

"Pei Yunjing is suffering from fire poison and his five senses are overloaded. In this blizzard, he shouldn't even be able to stand properly! How could he possibly kill someone from a hundred paces away?!"

This was intelligence that their spies, who had been infiltrating Dasheng for many years, risked their lives to send back.

Pei Yunjing is a madman, a cripple who could explode at any moment, which is why they dared to launch a large-scale southward expedition at this time.

"They're not human...they're not human at all!"

The centurion abruptly raised his head, his bloodshot eyes filled with fear of the unknown:

"That Pei Yunjing is a devil! His eyes are bloodshot when he kills people! He's not afraid of noise at all!"

"And that woman... the woman in red who was always by his side!"

When the pear tree was mentioned, the centurion's voice became sharp and distorted:

"She's a witch! She's a real witch!"

“Our wolf pack… those were mad wolves that had taken drugs and only obeyed the commands of the bone flute! But that woman only glanced at us… just one glance! The wolves ran away like they’d seen their ancestor, tails between their legs! They even turned around and bit us!”

"Great Khan! The Great Sheng is aided by sorcery! This battle... this battle cannot be fought!"

The tent was deathly silent.

Only the centurion's heavy breathing and the howling wind and snow outside the tent could be heard.

Tuoba Xiao remained silent. His hawk-like, sinister eyes narrowed slightly, and his fingers tapped the hilt of his sword absently.

A devil? A sorceress?

He doesn't believe in ghosts or gods, but he believes in intelligence.

Pei Yunjing's weakness was real, as was the pain of sensory overload.

So, the only variable is that woman.

"The woman in red..."

Tuoba Xiao muttered to himself, the image of the scouts' report flashing through his mind—a seemingly delicate and harmless regent's wife.

Previously, everyone thought she was Pei Yunjing's weakness, a burden who would only hold him back.

He even mocked Pei Yunjing for being short-sighted, sentimental, and needing to bring a woman with him to war.

But now it seems... he was wrong, terribly wrong.

"I see."

Tuoba Xiao let out a chilling chuckle, his eyes flashing with an all-knowing glint:

"She is not a burden."

He stepped down from his command seat, went to the trembling centurion, and kicked him to the ground.

"Useless! You can't even understand this?"

Tuoba Xiao turned around, looking at the map of the Great Sheng Dynasty hanging on the wall, his gaze fixed on the location of Yanmen Pass:

"Pei Yunjing is an extremely sharp knife, but it can break at any moment."

"And that woman..."

His eyes turned greedy and dangerous.

"She is the scabbard."

"She can not only soothe that mad beast, but also be his eyes, his ears, and even help him control all the beasts."

Because of her, Pei Yunjing was no longer tormented by sensory overload.

Because of her, the knife that was on the verge of going out of control became precise, calm, and flawless.

The so-called "sorcery" was nothing more than that woman possessing some special ability that was difficult for ordinary people to understand.

"What a regent's wife... what a beautiful pear blossom."

Tuoba Xiao licked his dry lips, a burning desire for conquest igniting in his eyes:

"I'm becoming more and more interested in you."

He suddenly drew the curved sword from his waist and chopped the table in front of him in half.

"Pass down the order!"

"Change tactics!"

"Keep an eye on that woman at all costs!"

Tuoba Xiao raised his scimitar, the blade pointing straight south:

"To break Pei Yunjing's sword..."

"We must first destroy his sheath!"