Chapter 1148 – Infiltrating Xuelao City (2/2)

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Xuelao City was very large, and when one added to it the ten-some citadels and the tents set up by the warriors from the various tribes, it occupied a massive area. By the time the southern part of the city was welcoming a chilly and somber wind, the plains to the north of the city were already beginning to accumulate snow. And yet nowhere could one find a trace of the human armies.

Zhexiu was sure that he was the first human—if he counted as a human—to reach these plains. It wasn't because he was more courageous than the soldiers, or more skilled at taking risks. It was because reaching these plains to the north of Xuelao City had utterly no meaning to the war the human armies were engaged in at this time.

But it was extremely meaningful to his war.

Seven days ago, he had encountered a small troop of demon soldiers in the ruins of an ancient colosseum one hundred and twenty li to the west of Xuelao City.

He had been battling with demons since he was a child, and his understanding of demons far surpassed that of an ordinary person. A few details made him notice that the leader of this small troop was special. The leader was very young and extremely tall. From the style of the clan crest on his accessories, he probably belonged to a clan rather close to the Imperial clan, and he was probably highly ranked in this clan.

Why would a young noble appear on this dangerous battlefield? This was out of line with Zhexiu's understanding of upper-class demon society. A thousand years ago, the demon aristocracy would have still maintained a reverence for martial process, regarding heroism and military achievements as the source of glory. But they had degenerated ages ago.

Zhexiu continued to track this small troop of demons, ultimately reaching one conclusion.

This young noble had left the city under the protection of his clan's experts to gain some military merit, but he didn't want to encounter any danger. Thus, this small troop had only paused at the ruins of the ancient colosseum for less than an hour before veering north. Everyone knew that the human armies could not possibly circle around to the north of Xuelao City in the short term.

As for how that young noble would gain any military merit upon returning to Xuelao City… Zhexiu was confident that this was an extremely simple matter. Perhaps the heads of several dozen human warriors had already been prepared, just waiting for him to put them on that large carriage once he got back to the city.

Xuelao City was already in an extremely precarious situation. For the nobles in the city to still be thinking about fabricating themselves some military merit, Zhexiu didn't know if they were going senile or were excessively greedy. But someone who dared to play tricks at this hour was unquestionably a powerful person in the Demon race, and that young noble probably had a very special status.

Upon reaching this conclusion, Zhexiu was overtaken by a fierce impulse, and this impulse laid out an extremely risky plan.

He decided to infiltrate Xuelao City.

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A pack of monsters from somewhere began to attack the small troop of demons. With the experts of his clan protecting him, the young noble was unconcerned about his safety. He was even in the mood to watch as the necks of those violent monsters were cut open. His pale white cheeks blushed in excitement as if they had been daubed with actual blood.

The monsters were all killed, but the demon troop inevitably paid some price. The three bravest warriors had suffered significant wounds. Most troublesome of all was that the snow and mud on the ground had been crushed into a slurry that was hard to traverse. The troop decided to camp in the forest for the night, using a blood pigeon to communicate this news to Xuelao City.

Unbeknownst to the demon warriors and young noble of this small troop, this night would be the most terrifying night of their lives.

The scent of blood spread through the forest and some sort of strange beast seemed to be moving through the mud. The clouds in the sky gradually parted, but the stark light of the Moon offered them no courage. They could only hear the sounds of their breathing, could only feel their weapons get colder and colder. Gradually, the sounds of breathing ceased and they could no longer feel the chill of their weapons, as their own bodies were beginning to gradually turn ice-cold.

It turned out that this had also been the very last night of their lives.

The soldiers of this small troop died in silence. There were no sounds of warning, no screams, no struggle, and certainly no fighting. The entire process played out like some bizarre mime show, but there was no audience. Only the sparse stars to the south and the white Moon bore witness.

Early on the next morning, a group of cavalry from Xuelao City rode into the forest according to an earlier agreement.

The ten-some cavalrymen completely clad in armor were escorting three large carriages, the compartments containing the corpses of human soldiers they had gone through great pains to collect from the south. When they thought about the coming reward from their young master, these cavalrymen found it hard to maintain their stern and cold expressions, as the sweetest of smiles crept onto their lips.

But when they entered the forest, they did not see that tall figure, only an absolute tragedy.

The sounds of weeping filled the air as the demon cavalry waved their weapons at the sky. They vented their unease and fear, lamented their sorrows, and swore to take revenge for 'Gruel', though it was hard to say if Gruel was the young noble's name or a prefix for his entire clan. After this, they placed the bodies of their comrades on a carriage and began to make their way back to Xuelao City. They did not dare pause for too long. Of course, their nominal reason was to warn the city as quickly as possible that the human armies had circled around to the north…

On their return journey, the demon cavalry broke into a fierce quarrel. It was probably about how they would deal with the inquiries from the clan elders and how much gold they would need to pay off their guilt. They became even more dejected, so much so that when passing through the needle forest, they forgot that they had originally planned to hunt some deer.

Xuelao City got closer and closer, and more and more shabby buildings began to appear. The majority of the buildings were barely held together with wood and cloth, and seemed extremely fragile. Holes could be found all over them and there was certainly nothing beautiful about them. If not for the fact that lower-class demons could endure bitter cold, they wouldn't have been able to survive.

Upon hearing the cavalry coming, the lower-class demons who were in the midst of cutting wood and working hurriedly kneeled on the sides of the road, not even daring to raise their heads.

Normally, these cavalry might have been in the mood to let these lower-class demons enjoy the lash of the whip, but they didn't have the slightest inclination today. They wanted nothing more than to immediately return to Xuelao City. Of course, if they could, they wanted nothing more than to never return to Xuelao City.