Chapter 00221: Group Fight
# Group Fight
Chapter 221
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 221: Group Fight
Strangely, he seemed to recognize this woman, yet he could not recall where he had seen her before.
The girl gestured with her hands, and because there were trees blocking the view, Li Zhao squinted for a long while before realizing she was desperately pointing in one direction.
There?
Li Zhao turned his head and saw a great flood rushing from afar, the muddy waves surging with the momentum of a thousand galloping horses.
"The flood is coming, run!"
His companions screamed as they ran towards the riverbank.
However, the Li brothers stood in the center of the river, where the water reached their bellies, and turning back was too slow!
Before they could reach the shore, the raging tide swept them away.
All around was water, pouring into Li Zhao's mouth and nose, along with grass roots, mud, and broken branches.
Occasionally, he was pushed to the surface and could hear the gasps of people on the bank.
He struggled desperately, and suddenly grabbed onto a piece of tree root.
It was a section of dry wood that had been in the river for many years.
This life-saving tree root was much sturdier than straw; Li Zhao clung to it with all his might.
Just then, his brother slid past him and grabbed his leg.
The lives of the two boys hung by this piece of dry wood.
On the bank, the Li family's servants were trying to find a way to rescue the two young masters.
After swallowing a few mouthfuls of water, Li Zhao was horrified to discover that the tree root could not withstand the current and was beginning to bend outward.
It was about to break.
With a "sizzle," a large piece of bark was torn off the tree root.
The two boys screamed in fright.
The bark was still hanging on the branch, but it was already unstable.
Li Zhao turned to his brother and shouted, "Brother, the tree root is going to break!"
But his usually clever brother did not listen at all, only shouting, "Pull me up, quickly pull me up!"
He pulled at Li Zhao's leg with all his strength, and with each tug, the bark broke a little more.
If this continued, both of them would die.
Li Zhao looked at the bark, then back at his brother, and suddenly kicked his brother's hand.
His brother screamed, "What are you doing? Save me!"
He stubbornly clung to Li Zhao's leg, but the latter kicked harder and harder, finally landing a kick on his brother's forehead.
His brother was knocked dizzy, swallowed a couple of mouthfuls of water, and his grip loosened.
His brother was swept away by the water.
Li Zhao cried out in despair, climbing up the bark towards the dry wood.
But he had barely climbed two feet when something tugged at his waist, as if someone was pulling him back with terrifying strength.
He turned around and saw his brother floating in the rapids, desperately tugging at his belt.
His brother's features and body were swollen and pale, his eyes bulging out of their sockets, yet he smiled at him:
"I think of you every day, I can't bear to leave you, I want to take you with me!"
Li Zhao was shocked, and looking down, he discovered that the belt his brother had given him had transformed into a water snake that was flicking its tongue.
Before he could react, the water snake bit into his waist.
Li Zhao cried out in pain and let go.
Just then, a wave crashed over him, pulling him directly into the water.
He wanted to struggle, but his brother held him tightly, dragging him down to the riverbed.
He did not know how much water grass he swallowed; the last image he saw was his brother's swollen, grimacing face.
"I finally waited for you; we are together forever. Are you happy?"
...
As dawn broke, the warm bed maidservants drowsily heard the sound of "coughing" from Old Master Li's throat, but they did not think much of it.
The old man was sleeping; what unusual sounds could there be?
However, this sound suddenly grew louder, and the old man's mouth opened wide but could not draw in air, like a fish out of water.
"Oh no, the old man is choked again."
The two warm bed maidservants played rock-paper-scissors, and the loser pouted, hesitating for a long time before lowering her head to help Old Master Li clear his throat.
But it was useless.
Soon, the entire Li family was in chaos, as the sons saw their father's face turning a deep purple, yet no emergency measures worked.
The doctor had not yet arrived when Old Master Li stretched out his legs and passed away.
He left without any hesitation.
Later, the Li family specifically invited an official from the government to perform an autopsy, and the latter pulled out a lump of vegetables from Old Master Li's throat.
"Old Master was choked to death?" The Li family refused to believe it.
Li Zhao's sixth grandson, sharp-eyed, suddenly noticed something unusual on the gauze curtain in front of his grandfather's bed.
"The talisman has cracked!"
Everyone crowded over to take a look, and indeed, both copper talismans had developed fine cracks.
Although the seams were small, the effectiveness of the talismans had essentially vanished.
"But these two lovebirds are still alive. Isn't it said that when evil spirits come, they will first eat the birds?" The two lovebirds flitted about in their cage, very lively.
At this moment, Old Master Li's eldest son, Li Zhi, took a look at the sachet hanging from the bedpost, and his expression changed dramatically.
He poured the contents onto the table:
The yellow talisman paper had rotted from being soaked in water, and the vermilion characters had blurred into a mess.
In simple terms, this protective talisman had also become ineffective.
"This is a protective talisman personally crafted by Master Zhang, the head of Chuan Yun Pavilion!" Li Zhi gritted his teeth, "Evil spirits cannot approach; someone must have poured water into it and damaged the copper talismans!"
Everyone's gaze focused on the two warm bed maidservants, and the nearby maidservant immediately knelt down: "Last night, before sleeping, Old Master personally checked; both of these were intact."
Old Master Li was cautious and cherished his life; indeed, he checked these two defenses every night before sleeping.
Li Zhi looked at the nearby servant, who nodded vigorously: "That's right, that's right, I saw Old Master check before he went to bed."
"Clearly, someone destroyed the talisman and cast evil spells."
Li Zhi's forehead bulged with veins, "Investigate, investigate immediately!"
"Could it be the Zhan family?" The second brother, Li Rong, also had anger in his eyes, "Their family has been at odds with us; recently, because of low-price acquisitions, they've been cursing us left and right, saying all sorts of nasty things. I heard Zhan Lao Qi curse Old Master, and it was vicious. Besides, the Zhan family has a younger generation who has become a sorcerer and learned some divine abilities; it's very likely they secretly harmed Old Master!"
Other members of the Li family turned their grief into anger, shouting, "Yes, capture the Zhan family and make them pay for Old Master!"
Li Rong hesitated for a moment: "Wait, we need some evidence to convict them."
"What evidence is there? They use evil methods to harm people; how can we catch evidence for that!" Li Zhi sighed, "Then what do you suggest we do?"
Li Rong had no urgency; at this moment, his mind was in a muddle, unable to articulate.
His most valued sixth son was not present in Dunyu today, leaving him without anyone to discuss matters with.
Someone else said, "Half of the Zhan family has fled the city; if we don't pursue them now, it will be too late."
The Zhan family had started moving out yesterday.
They would no longer live in the same city as the Li family, and before leaving, they could take the opportunity to vent years of suppressed resentment, which sounded reasonable.
The Li family was filled with righteous indignation, shouting "Blood debts must be repaid with blood."
Li Rong originally felt that such actions were inappropriate and tried to calm everyone down; however, Li Zhi sneered at him: "Your father was cursed to death, and you want us to remain calm? So everyone is drunk, and you are the only one sober?"
Li Rong was left speechless, and Li Zhi pointed at him and scolded him a few more times.
The clan members were fired up, responding one after another.
Seeing Li Zhi rallying the clan members, even his own subordinates began to follow suit, Li Rong had no choice but to change his stance.
Neither of them had the ability to stand alone, nor did they possess Old Master Li's prestige.
If they dared to hold back or show weakness at this moment, not only would they fail to stop the clan from seeking revenge, but if they uttered "calm down" one more time, they would surely be defeated in the power struggle later on.
The two brothers were each more radical than the other.
In front of the entire clan, Li Zhi and Li Rong wept bitterly, each wanting to show more sorrow and passion than the other.
Thus, they continued to speak over one another, emotions escalating, and ultimately gathered the private soldiers of the guard in a thunderous cry from the Li family.
The commotion they stirred naturally attracted the attention of the government and the citizens of the city.
By the time they arrived, the Li family's private soldiers had already stormed into the Zhan family's residence in the south of the city, capturing women and children, violently beating the men, leaving the once grand Zhan residence in disarray.
Some took advantage of the chaos to rummage through and plunder valuables.
The Zhan family was a well-known noble family in Dunyu, with vast wealth.
Anything the Li family's private soldiers casually took could be sold for personal gain later.
The Li family's private soldiers also sent a contingent to pursue the fleeing members of the Zhan family.
Since the new chief had not yet arrived, the affairs of the governor's office were temporarily overseen by the Zhi Zhong and Bie Jia.
When the two arrived on the scene, their scalps tingled, and they quickly called for the officials to step forward and stop the chaos.
The Li family had long been accustomed to acting recklessly in Dunyu, and now, fueled by anger, they would not listen to reason.
The Zhan family also had guards, but unfortunately, fists could not match four hands.
An inexperienced official stepped forward to pull someone away, only to be punched in the nose by Li Zhi, blood streaming down.
He had only recently taken office, was young, and did not recognize Li Zhi, so how could he not fight back?
After Li Zhi was hit, the Li family's private soldiers surged forward, aiming for the officials' foreheads with a flurry of punches.
Those who were hitting, those who were trying to mediate, and those who were hitting the mediators, the entire south of Dunyu became a chaotic mess.
Surrounding citizens gathered in layers, craning their necks to watch the spectacle.
This was the Li family and the Zhan family, usually high and mighty, yet today they were rolling in the mud, fighting each other?
A dignified noble family, yet when it came to a life-and-death struggle, they fought like dogs.
"Where is Peng Ju'an?" As the situation spiraled out of control, Zhi Zhong was anxiously looking for someone, "In such a situation, where has this military officer gone?"
A subordinate kindly reminded him: "Lord Peng seems to be resting at home today."
"Go to Qing Ping Township and drag him back!" Zhi Zhong was sweating profusely in the cold weather, "And bring back his more than a thousand men to quell the chaos!"
Xia Prefecture had 1,600 soldiers, and until the new chief arrived, they were all under the command of the military officer.
The subordinate took the order and hurried off.
However, they did not return for quite some time.
It was just over ten miles from Dunyu to Qing Ping Township; even if they did not ride horses and ran directly, this much time was enough for several trips.
Zhi Zhong was increasingly anxious:
If Peng Ju'an did not come, and his subordinates went and did not return, could it be that Qing Ping Township was under enemy attack?
The small troop of Yan Zhanli from the north had already infiltrated behind enemy lines to harass the border towns more than once or twice.
Although Qing Ping Township was a bit far from the northern front, this possibility could not be ruled out.
The mobility of the enemy's cavalry was still quite good.
Taking advantage of this interval, the Li family's private soldiers beat the Zhan family until they were bruised and battered, with several lying on the ground, barely able to move.
Inside the Zhan family, women and children were crying in despair, a truly tragic scene.
(End of Chapter)