168 Torrent of terror (1/2)
Since the first volley of those concealed weapons had been focused on the palanquin, Jun Mo Xie had clearly understood that he was the intended target of the attackers; and now that the upper part of the palanquin had been smashed to pieces, he was certain that the assassins were simply waiting to see their reaction. If these assassins were to realize that their target has already died, then he was sure that these people would immediately turn around and leave without even coming out in the open!
”We'll make our way to that corner ten feet away, and then we'll take the road which leads to the Jun residence.” Jun Hu, the head of the guards immediately whispered his command.
”Good! Now listen to my orders; and you're not allowed to oppose me! Else you'll be removed from the Jun Family's command, understood?!” even though Jun Mo Xie's voice was barely audible, the severity of his command was evident from his tone.
The eight guards looked rather stumped by his words, but quickly realized that this wasn't the time to argue and hastily nodded.
Jun Mo Xie had been able to spot that most of the concealed weapons had been issued at the back of golden colored lights, while another five or six had originated from green colored sources. But the most surprising thing was that the number of golden colored sources was almost thrice as many as the green colored ones!
[Who is trying to get me killed? Who's capable of organizing such an expensive line-up?]
Jun Mo Xie couldn't resist drawing a comparison: [even the assassination attempt on the princess wasn't half as strong as this one! Am I an even bigger target than the princess now?]
”You will immediately abandon the palanquin; and then you'll move forward in full speed. I'm their target! You don't need to worry about me; I'll make my escape once you're gone!” Jun Mo Xie calmly instructed.
Jun Hu shook his head as he blankly stared in his master's direction, [we will not abandon the young master under any circumstances…] ”This is our only duty! We will not abandon you young master… we'll defend you till our deaths! We cannot obey that command young master!”
”Nonsense! I'm your master, and as long as I'm alive, you will listen to every word of mine! Now obey the command!” Jun Mo Xie patiently replied: ”It was obvious from their attacks that they are much stronger than you guys are, so you won't be able to do much even if you stay here and fight. However, you will end up becoming a burden for me if you stay! You have to get out now so I can get out of here with ease!”
”We'll be waiting for you up ahead in that case young master! And we'll try to attract as many troops as possible towards us!” Jun Hu didn't hesitate one bit while making up his mind, [if the young master dies, then I will not wait for the martial judgement… I will immediately put a knife to my throat, and I'll kill myself.[
He ordered his men, and the eight silhouettes immediately rushed out.
”I don't care who you are, nor will I care about your instigator… since you've come to kill me, you should've come prepared to face the consequences!”
As Jun Mo Xie watched his eight guards reaching the corner, the long-lost glimmer of a familiar glory shone in his eyes: ”It seems that it's unavoidable to divulge from the ways of my past today! So…..It's time to kill!”
A monstrous smile surfaced on his face as his body sunk deeper into his seat. Like a snowflake in the summer sun, his body disappeared into the ground below without a trace, leaving the palanquin completely empty.....
The movement of the bodyguards had left the assassins baffled! They had been spying for several days now, and had even gone to the lengths of bribing local peddlers for gathering reliable information about Jun Mo Xie's activities. They were absolutely convinced that Jun Mo Xie was sitting inside the palanquin!
[But why are those guards abandoning the palanquin? Are they just trying to distract our attention?]
[But that just doesn't make any sense, ah, they didn't even peek into the palanquin to see if their master is alive or dead…. They just fled! How could such irresponsible guards exist under this sun? But my sources were sure that these guards are most loyal to the Jun Family, and weren't even afraid of sacrificing their lives for the sake of their masters!]
[This is really weird! Could it be that the palanquin…. Is really….. empty?]
[No that can't be! Just the elevation of the palanquin was enough to indicate that someone was inside the palanquin! Therefore, someone must still be in there!]
[But there must be a reason why they are abandoning the palanquin and fleeing!]
Even though his head was swarming with several different possibilities, the leader of the assassins immediately issued his orders: ”Two teams will go and stop those eight guards, but make sure that you don't kill them all! At least one man must be taken captive! One team will follow after me, and we'll personally go and kill that evil bastard!”
A dozen silhouettes emerged from within the shadows of the surrounding area, and swiftly made their way towards the escaping guards. A few more assassins, who were already positioned in the direction of their escape, had already started engaging them in combat.
Several more assassins came out of their hiding spots almost simultaneously, and then dispersed into four groups as they completely surrounded the palanquin. They quickly blocked every possible and imaginable exit route of the palanquin while their gleaming swords flickered and reflected their black masks.
”Young son of the Jun Family, you can come out now….. There are no loopholes in our plan, so it's pointless to struggle.” The leader of the assassins slowly stated in a cold voice as he unsheathed his golden sword.