Volume 1, Chapter 54: Fainted? So fragile...

The white torrent finally crashed heavily into that black, turbid wave!

There was none of the tragic, ear-splitting clash of metal one might have imagined.

There was not even any semblance of resistance.

The charging formation of the three hundred Northern Mang wandering cavalrymen appeared as fragile as paper before the Snow-Dragon Cavalry.

They were effortlessly shattered at the very first contact!

Splat! Splat! Splat!

The three-zhang-long snow-white lances, driven by an irresistible, colossal force, easily pierced the crude leather armor of the Northern Mang riders, punched straight through their chests, and hurled them—horses and men alike—high up into the air!

Fresh blood burst open in the midair, transforming into clusters of tragically beautiful bloody mists.

Severed limbs and broken arms flew and scattered in all directions.

The front row of the Snow-Dragon Cavalry was like a glowing red branding iron plunging fiercely into a block of lard.

With the momentum of a bamboo splitting in two!

The second row, the third row... followed closely behind!

Maintaining a flawless formation and an identical speed, they trampled right through that chaotic pool of flesh and blood!

Not a single Northern Mang cavalryman could cause them even the slightest shred of hindrance.

Their curved sabers could not even chop through the profound armor worn by the Snow-Dragon Cavalry.

Yet every sweep of the Snow-Dragon Cavalry's lances claimed several vibrant lives.

This was a massacre!

A one-sided massacre devoid of any suspense!

Su Qingxue instinctively covered her mouth to prevent herself from crying out in alarm.

Her beautiful eyes reflected that purgatory on earth.

Bloody and cruel.

Yet within her heart, there was not a shred of pity.

For she knew that if not for Ye Xuan, the ones being slaughtered right now would be them.

And her own fate would be far more agonizing than death itself.

In less than thirty breaths of time.

The battle was already over.

The three hundred Northern Mang wandering cavalrymen were completely annihilated, without a single survivor.

Across the battlefield, nothing remained except a chaotic mess of corpses and... that ten-thousand-strong force of Snow-Dragon Cavalry, whose formation remained completely undisturbed, looking as though they had never even moved.

Their white profound armor was spotless.

As if the massacre that had just taken place was nothing more than crushing a group of ants by the roadside.

Grim, icy, and formidable!

Ye Xuan's gaze swept past the bloody battlefield and landed upon a figure in the distance that was fast shrinking into a tiny black dot.

He slowly raised his hand.

In the distance, the commander of the Snow-Dragon Cavalry seemed to share a tacit understanding and grasped the intention instantly.

With a gesture toward the direction of the fleeing figure, he issued a chilling command.

"First squad, follow me in pursuit!"

"Objective: Execution!"

"Understood!"

One thousand Snow-Dragon Cavalrymen instantly detached from the main army, transforming into a white arrow as they tore through the void in the direction of the scarred leader's escape!

Their speed was more than double that of the scarred leader's warhorse!

A game of cat and mouse had officially begun.

Ye Xuan slowly lowered his hand, turned around, and looked at Su Qingxue, who was still trapped in a state of profound shock.

He smiled faintly, his voice gentle.

"Now, we are safe."

His voice seemed imbued with a certain magical charm, pulling Su Qingxue back from that bloody illusion into reality.

At that very moment, the iron-forged, grim formation of ten thousand men neatly and uniformly split open to create a passageway.

A commander of exceptionally burly stature dismounted from his horse. The heavy profound armor on his body emitted a deep, rhythmic, clanging sound with every step he took.

Every stride he made seemed to tread upon everyone's heartbeats as he walked straight to a spot just three paces away from Ye Xuan.

Then, under the gaze of Su Qingxue's wide-opened, beautiful eyes, he dropped heavily onto a single knee!

"Thud!"

That muffled sound struck like a heavy hammer against Su Qingxue's heart!

"Your subordinate, Zhao Yang, leading ten thousand Snow-Dragon Cavalry, pays respects to the Master!"

The commander's voice was sonorous, steady, and filled with absolute loyalty and fanaticism.

"We pay respects to the Master!"

Behind him, nine thousand iron-blooded riders dismounted in unison. Their synchronized movements culminated in a thunderous roar that shook the heavens!

Ten thousand men kowtowing!

At this moment, heaven and earth seemed to echo with only those four words!

Su Qingxue's body trembled uncontrollably for a moment.

They really were his men!

This invincible army that seemed to have stepped out of mythology truly belonged to him!

Absurd!

Yet it was unfolding before her eyes with undeniable reality!

In her mind, Ye Xuan's image was rapidly restructuring, collapsing, and restructuring once more.

That mysterious "old acquaintance," that precise countdown, that calm demeanor when facing three hundred wandering cavalry...

Everything, absolutely everything, now had an answer!

He had not been putting on airs; he was stating a fact!

A fact that neither she nor the entire world could have previously imagined!

Looking at Zhao Yang kneeling on one knee before him, Ye Xuan felt a surge of heroic spirit within his chest.

With a thought, the Emperor's Qi-Observing Technique quietly activated.

【Name: Zhao Yang】

【Identity: Snow-Dragon Cavalry Commander】

【Cultivation Realm: Fifth Rank of Martial Dao】

【Loyalty: 100 (Absolute Devotion)】

【Remarks: Summoned by the system, possessing absolute loyalty to the host, fearless of death, and will never betray.】

His gaze swept over the dense, kneeling army behind him.

【Army: Snow-Dragon Cavalry】

【Number: 9000/10000 (First squad dispatched)】

【Individual Cultivation Realm: Seventh Rank of Martial Dao】

【Loyalty: 100 (Absolute Devotion)】

【Evaluation: The sharpest blade under heaven, invincible wherever it points!】

One hundred percent absolute devotion!

Ye Xuan took a deep breath, suppressing the soaring ambition in his heart. His voice remained calm, yet carried an unquestionable majesty.

"Rise."

A single word, sounding like an imperial mandate.

"Thank you, Master!"

Zhao Yang and the ten thousand troops behind him rose as one, their movements crisp and decisive without a single surplus sound.

Ye Xuan nodded in satisfaction, then reached out to lead forward a snow-white, extraordinarily spirited warhorse.

With a fluid and graceful motion, he mounted the horse and looked down from above at Su Qingxue, who was still standing dazedly in place.

Without urging her, he merely extended his hand toward her, a subtle, enigmatic smile playing at the corners of his lips.

"Miss Su, what are you still standing there for?"

"Let's go, it's time we head to Northern Town City."

The afterglow of the setting sun fell upon him, enveloping his entire figure in a golden halo. His extended hand looked like an invitation offered by a deity.

Su Qingxue's heartbeat skipped a beat.

She looked at that clean, slender hand, then up into Ye Xuan's deep, starlight-like eyes. An uncontrollable flush crept up her cheeks.

Hesitating no longer, she gently placed her slightly cool, delicate hand into Ye Xuan's palm.

With a slight flick of his wrist, Ye Xuan exerted a gentle yet irresistible force. Su Qingxue felt herself lift lightly into the air, and the next moment, she landed securely in front of him, entirely encircled within his embrace.

The warhorse was tall, and their bodies pressed closely together.

She could clearly feel the warm body heat radiating from his back, as well as his steady and powerful heartbeat. The tip of her nose was filled with a faint, masculine scent that brought her a sense of profound peace.

Su Qingxue's face turned even redder, flushed almost to the point of bleeding.

At that very moment, as if suddenly remembering something, she turned her head anxiously and said, "Ye Xuan! Can we... can we send some men back to Fallen Phoenix Slope?"

Her voice carried a trace of pleading and hope.

"To protect me, Uncle Zhong of the Su family took the guards to lure away another group of pursuers. Judging by the time, they should still be somewhere near Fallen Phoenix Slope... Maybe, just maybe, we can still make it in time!"

Sensing the anxiety of the fair maiden in his arms, Ye Xuan did not ask further; he simply nodded indifferently.

"Very well."

He tilted his head and signaled to Zhao Yang, who was standing at attention nearby.

"Zhao Yang."

"Your subordinate is here!"

"Take a detachment of men to Fallen Phoenix Slope. If you find any survivors, save them no matter who they are. If you encounter enemies, slaughter them no matter who they are."

Ye Xuan's orders were simple, direct, and domineering.

"Understood!"

Without a moment of hesitation, Zhao Yang immediately turned around, selected a thousand cavalrymen, and once again transformed into a white torrent as he galloped back along the path they had come.

Watching that military force depart with such decisive efficiency, the tight string in Su Qingxue's heart finally relaxed.

With such divine troops to assist them, Uncle Zhong and the others would surely be saved...

The rushing, exhaustion, and terror of the past few days, coupled with the extreme mental shock brought by the massacre just moments ago and the kowtowing of ten thousand men, rushed over her like a tidal wave at this very instant.

The moment her tense nerves relaxed, boundless fatigue engulfed her.

Su Qingxue felt the world spin before her eyes. Her head tilted, and she completely lost consciousness, leaning softly against Ye Xuan's broad back.

"Hm?"

Ye Xuan perceived the anomaly in his arms instantly.

Reining in the horse to a halt, he lowered his head to look.

He saw that Su Qingxue's eyes were tightly closed, her complexion as pale as paper without a trace of color, and her breathing had grown faint.

His brows furrowed slightly, and he immediately extended two fingers to rest upon her slender, snow-white wrist.

A trace of genuine Qi probed inward.

A moment later, Ye Xuan's expression darkened.

It was the outbreak of her old illness.

Presumably, the exposure to the elements over the past two days, combined with the drastic emotional ups and downs, grief, and terror, had triggered the deep-seated ailment hidden within her body.

The illness was striking with ferocious intensity; without timely treatment, her life might well be in jeopardy!

"Zhao Yang!"

Ye Xuan's voice carried a trace of unquestionable urgency.

Another lieutenant riding alongside them immediately stepped forward; it was Zhao Yang's second-in-command.

"Master, what are your orders?"

"Order the entire army immediately: advance at full speed!"

Ye Xuan's gaze was as sharp as a blade as he scanned the horizon ahead.

"Find a place within the shortest time possible where we can take shelter from the wind and rain and rest!"

"Hurry!"