Chapter 754
Chapter 754
“Attack the fortress! All of you, attack!”
The three thousand men of the disciplinary corps, clad in top-tier armor and mounted on warhorses, felt less fear toward these Berserkers. They drew their whips, driving the Berserkers to attack the fortress.
“Attack the fortress! Quickly, quickly!”
Crack, crack, crack.
The whips lashed furiously against the Berserkers, but they remained motionless. It almost seemed as if they were enjoying the flogging.
The three thousand men of the Zhong Clan's disciplinary corps were utterly stunned by the sight, unable to comprehend what was happening.
'What in the world is going on? What's hidden in this fragrance? We smelled it just like they did. Sure, it's exhilarating and makes you feel hot, almost like being drunk, but we didn't have a major reaction.'
The ten thousand Berserkers still hadn't moved; most of them even had their eyes closed. The leader of the disciplinary corps, Zhong Ji, son of Zhong E, was young and hot-blooded. Enraged by the scene before him, he instantly drew his war saber and shouted.
“Attack the fortress immediately! Anyone who disobeys will be executed without mercy!”
This was the tradition of the disciplinary corps. Order on the battlefield had to be maintained. Unless the gongs sounded for a retreat, anyone who dared to fall back would be cut down without hesitation.
“What are you all standing around for? Attack the fortress now!”
The ten thousand Berserkers paid Zhong Ji's command no mind, remaining rooted to the spot as they desperately inhaled the strange fragrance in the air. At the same time, a maddening desire for slaughter was building within them.
“Kill them! Kill them!”
At Zhong Ji's command, the swords of the disciplinary corps fell, beheading dozens of men. Zhong E cried out in alarm.
“Don't kill them! Stop!”
But it was too late. The disciplinary corps' actions were like a lit match dropped into a mountain of oil, triggering a violent explosion. The Berserkers, most of whom had their eyes closed, snapped them open in that instant. Their gazes were identical to those of wild beasts.
“Graaaah!”
Soon, an army of ten thousand beasts charged ferociously at the three thousand men of the disciplinary corps. Zhong Ji, their leader, was shocked but still tried to control the situation.
“What do you think you're doing? Are you trying to rebel? All of you, back to the battle! Disobey, and you will die! I'll kill you!”
The disciplinary corps raised their war sabers and mercilessly struck the Berserkers with the flats of their blades.
“Aaargh!”
Then, an utterly terrifying scene unfolded. The beast-like Berserkers leaped from the ground, pouncing on the mounted knights of the disciplinary corps and dragging them down. They then began to slaughter the knights in every way imaginable—slashing with blades, tearing with their hands, and biting with their teeth. The dreadful scene of allies fighting one another had finally erupted.
“Disciplinary corps, retreat!”
Zhong E bellowed the order. Trembling with fear, Zhong Ji led his three thousand cavalrymen in a desperate retreat. But the ten thousand Berserkers, having lost all reason, pursued them madly. The Berserkers' speed was astonishing. Though the disciplinary corps was mounted, their warhorses couldn't accelerate instantly and were soon overtaken.
Thud, thud, thud.
Having forgotten swordsmanship and all other knowledge, the Berserkers were left with only the instinct to slaughter. They immediately lunged at the cavalrymen, pulling them from their horses and tearing into them like madmen.
Squelch.
The warriors of the disciplinary corps who fell to the ground were trampled by countless warhorses, their bones crushed.
'Faster, faster.'
Zhong Ji's disciplinary corps frantically spurred their horses on.
“Father, we have to fall back now! The Berserkers have gone mad! They're completely out of control! We have to escape!”
After suffering fifty percent casualties, the three thousand cavalrymen of the disciplinary corps finally managed to pick up speed and escape the clutches of the frenzied Berserkers. Mounted on his horse, Zhong E watched the Berserkers swarm forward like a tidal wave. Each one of them was driven solely by the beastly instinct to kill. In an instant, his entire body turned ice-cold.
“Main army, retreat! Run!”
At his command, the Zhong Clan's thirty-thousand-strong army immediately changed direction, abandoning the assault on Gunan Fortress and fleeing for their lives. But they couldn't escape. The cavalry could flee on their warhorses, but no matter how fast the infantry ran, they were no match for the enhanced Berserkers. Looking down from the sky, it truly seemed as if a pack of beasts was chasing a herd of humans. The vast plain was densely covered in black shadows. The Berserkers were so fast that they easily caught up to the Zhong Clan's thirty-thousand-man army.
A one-sided slaughter ensued. The Berserkers' lust for blood, which had been building for two full days and nights, finally exploded. Though they had lost their reason, the ten thousand Berserkers of the Zhong Clan felt a thrilling sense of catharsis. As they slaughtered with abandon, the bodies of warriors piled up like mountains, blood flowed like rivers, and severed heads rolled everywhere. It was like wolves unleashed upon a flock of sheep. The ground for dozens of li around was soaked in crimson blood, and corpses littered the landscape.
***
From Gunan Fortress, the Nirvana Army watched the scene in silence. Mulan's beautiful body trembled slightly. The spectacle unfolding before her was too shocking. Could this be called playing with fire and getting burned? In truth, the peculiar, fragrant concoction her husband had prepared was marvelous, but not lethal. Mulan had smelled it herself; it was certainly exhilarating and made her feel flushed, enough to make her want to find that scoundrel of a husband and devour him whole, but that was the extent of it.
The Nirvana Army all wore special masks, so they hadn't inhaled the substance. But if a normal person were to smell it, they would at most enter a state of excitement and daze, as if drunk; they wouldn't transform into beasts like that. The truly terrifying thing was the Fudao Mountain's Nirvana Reagent. When a house is filled with kindling, a single spark is enough to set it ablaze; the true culprit isn't the spark, but the kindling itself. The enemy's secret weapon was indeed formidable, but if one wasn't strong enough or clever enough, recklessly using such a powerful and mysterious weapon could lead to one's own destruction.
***
Zhong E led his clan's direct-line knights to the top of a small hill and looked down upon the battlefield. The scene was beyond gruesome. The thirty thousand soldiers of the Zhong Clan were being slaughtered like sheep, their numbers dwindling rapidly, on the verge of annihilation. What's more, after killing every soldier in sight, the Berserkers, now even more deranged, unexpectedly turned on each other. The ground was slick with pools of crimson blood, and the piles of corpses were a sight too ghastly to behold. Zhong E felt the warmth drain from his body. He was going numb—a numbness born of extreme anguish.
'How did it come to this? When Shen Lang modified his guards with Golden Dragon's blood, there were no problems. Why did this happen when our Zhong Clan modified our army with the Nirvana Reagent? How many casualties are there this time? Thirty thousand? Forty thousand? Fifty thousand? Has our Zhong Clan's hard-won army of one hundred thousand been wiped out just like that? This is a complete rout.
Shen Lang, you madman. We thought you had ambushes set up everywhere. We thought you would march on Pingnan Pass and Baiye Prefecture, that you would bring Bian Wu's grand army south. But you... you actually left the entire battlefield to Jin Mulan and the Nirvana Army? You truly faced our hundred-thousand-strong army with just four thousand men? You predicted we would seek help from Fudao Mountain and were just waiting for this moment. You orchestrated this from the start, setting us up to kill each other.
If we had fought a conventional battle, the Zhong Clan's hundred-thousand-strong army would have eventually won. Even if we had just surrounded them without attacking, we would have won in half a year. But the power of the ancient civilization was just too tempting. Shen Lang, just as you couldn't resist the temptation to use that power, neither could the Zhong Clan. In the end, Shen Lang, you used that power to achieve a great victory, while our Zhong Clan met with a fatal disaster because of it. Shen Lang, you are vicious. Truly vicious.'
At that moment, Zhong E could almost see Shen Lang laughing malevolently from the depths of hell.
“Marshal, it's a disaster! A disaster! A group of our soldiers fled toward Zhenxi City, and those crazed beasts have followed them there!”
Hearing this, Zhong E was shocked. He looked closely at the battlefield and saw that, indeed, the beastly Berserkers, having completely lost their minds, were instinctively charging toward Zhenxi City like a pack of wolves that had caught the scent of blood.
'This... this is a catastrophe. Zhenxi City is the Zhong Clan's ancestral home, and there are less than ten thousand defenders inside. Shen Lang, you despicable bastard! You not only used these beasts to wipe out my army, but you're now using them to attack my city?'
***
Inside Zhenxi City.
Zhong Yao couldn't hide his excitement. He was eagerly awaiting news of their victory. This battle was a guaranteed win. Fudao Mountain's Nirvana Reagent was too powerful, and the fifteen thousand Berserkers were also incredibly strong; they would surely annihilate the Nirvana Army. And once the Nirvana Army was eliminated, the battle would be over. The Zhong Clan could then secure its existing foundation, quietly wait for the political situation to evolve, and await their enfeoffment by the Empire.
'The Duchy of Tianxi! I, Zhong Yao, will become the ruler of a nation. The dream our Zhong Clan has cherished for generations is finally about to be realized.'
Just then, the sound of urgent footsteps came from outside.
'What's happened? Why do those footsteps sound so panicked?'
“My Lord, it's a disaster! A disaster! We don't know what trick Shen Lang pulled, but he made our Berserkers completely lose their minds. They went on a rampage and slaughtered our own army! Lord Zhong E's force of thirty-seven thousand is almost completely wiped out. Afterward, the ten thousand Berserkers started killing each other, and now less than half remain. And they're heading for Zhenxi City! Our main force of fifty thousand has been nearly annihilated!”
Hearing this, Zhong Yao was completely stunned. Was this feeling similar to what Ning Qi had once felt? The feeling of being struck by a massive thunderbolt, your soul scattered to the winds.
'We lost the battle at Gunan Fortress completely? And in such a way? Out of the Zhong Clan's army of nearly one hundred thousand, over eighty thousand are dead...? Is this what they mean when they say extreme joy is followed by sorrow? Just moments ago, I was imagining myself on the throne of the Duchy of Tianxi, leading the centuries-old Zhong Clan to its apex... And now, I've been cast straight into hell?'
Zhong Yao's vision went black, and he felt dizzy. He staggered and collapsed into his chair.
“My Lord, those beasts are rushing toward Zhenxi City like madmen. What should we do?”
After a long moment, Zhong Yao answered in a trembling voice.
“Seal Zhenxi City!”
***
A day and a half later, the remaining five thousand Berserkers finally reached the walls of Zhenxi City. The city gates were firmly shut, but by now, the Berserkers had come to their senses. In fact, their minds had cleared yesterday. They had some memory of what they had done, but it was hazy. They were overcome by a profound emptiness and bewilderment, as well as endless despair. These aftereffects were identical to what the guards had felt after the effects of the Golden Dragon's blood wore off. They had run to Zhenxi City because they wanted to go home.
Looking at the sealed gates of Zhenxi City, one of the Berserkers shouted.
“Open the gates and let us in!”
To that, Zhong Ji immediately shouted back.
“Don't open the gates! They're beasts! They'll kill anyone they see!”
“Lord Zhong E, please open the gates! We've returned to normal!”
A defender on the wall shouted.
“Don't open the gates! We can't!”
What had happened two days ago was a terrifying ordeal for Zhong E's army. Those beasts had slaughtered over thirty thousand of their brothers-in-arms. They had killed them in the most brutal ways, and of the thirty-seven thousand, fewer than three thousand had managed to escape to Zhenxi City. To them, it was like a nightmare.
“Marshal, we've returned to normal. We still have great strength and speed. We can still fight for you!”
They were telling the truth. Most of the reagent's effects had worn off, but some still lingered. Their strength and speed were still greater than normal. However, their morale had plummeted, and their psychological state was one of despair and gloom—not good at all. But when Zhong E looked closely into the Berserkers' eyes, he saw they were still bloodshot, making them look utterly ferocious and terrifying.