Chapter 6: The Nine-Dragoned General's Last Stand Against the Imperial Army

  Shi Jin was bewildered and didn't know what crime he had committed, but this group of people had already come with overwhelming force. Steel spears, wooden swords, long guns, and fire clubs were densely packed like a forest under the flickering light of the flames. The arrival was rough and clear, obviously not a misunderstanding. Shi Jin's thoughts turned instantly, and his hands didn't show any mercy. This night raid on Shi Family Village happened to be on the most unlucky day of the year. If they wanted to take Grandpa down, they had to ask about the staff in Grandpa's hand first!

  Shi Jin's staff was in his hand, and as soon as the door opened, he struck with a "Mixed Yuan Ton Open". This staff went down, and the several people who were rushing forward at the front were all beaten to death. Shi Jin's hands didn't stop, and he fought his way out, sweeping horizontally and vertically, and the team that was in charge was defeated.

  That dragon-headed staff, under the flickering and shining flames, was even more eerie and illusory. The waves of people were already trembling with fear at first sight, and with Shi Jing's staff technique being exceptionally brilliant, their hearts had already chilled by half. The sound of the dragon's wail, bursting forth with each strike of the staff, pierced through the cries of killing, as if it was the final summons of death, or the mournful cry of a vengeful spirit seeking revenge.

  Shi Jin's killing intent surged, his footwork nimble and unpredictable, as if he had moved a few inches in the blink of an eye. With one staff, he seemed to weave a net that covered heaven and earth, not allowing anyone to approach the courtyard. The intruders fell to the ground, their corpses piling up, and the entrance to the courtyard was thrown into chaos.

  As Shi Jin's stick flew about, his entire body danced in the air, leaving onlookers bewildered. Before one move had ended, another began. Those who continued to charge forward were often left bewildered, with the luckier ones having their limbs broken and crippled on the ground, while the unluckier ones were directly struck by a single stick, their helmets and heads smashed into a bloody pulp.

  Shi Jin fought in the front yard, and more than a dozen servants inside the house also took out knives and clubs, rushing out to assist. With Shi Jin leading the charge at the front, the servants following behind him also killed with great relish.

  At this moment, the old fireman in the yard woke up with a start and was extremely frightened. Without putting on his clothes, he picked up the beam and set up the wooden ladder to climb onto the roof.

  Only the flames outside the courtyard were chaotic, like daylight, the gleam of knives and swords made the old man's heart tremble with fear, and for a moment he didn't even notice that someone had followed him to the house. It was only when he saw his own family's Da Lang and the crowd of villagers being surrounded by thousands of government soldiers that he became flustered.

  The old fireworker hastily shook off the pine bark and shouted at the top of his lungs: "Come quickly, the government soldiers are killing people!"

  The villagers of the Qianzhuang saw the fire and knew that something was amiss, hearing the commotion and shouting. Each of them grasped their weapons tightly, feeling anxious in their hearts. When they heard the loud noise, the villagers instead calmed down, relaxing their grip on their weapons, and comforted each other: "As expected, it didn't go beyond what Master Shi had anticipated, those thieves will surely use Dalang's name to create a disturbance", "The bandits want to lure us out so they can escape. Fortunately, Master Shi made this arrangement, and we happened to stay inside the village. The government troops will definitely capture them", "May heaven bless Shi Dalang to be safe and sound", "What nonsense, of course, Dalang is safe".

  The rest of the villagers, both from Xizhuang and Dongzhuang, were in a similar state. They were extremely worried, like ants on a hot pot, rushing around anxiously within their own courtyards. Some even climbed onto the roofs, standing on tiptoes to gaze into the distance, but it was too far away, and the chaotic shadows of people only added to their anxiety and unease.

  At this time, Shi Jin had been killing with his family for a long time. Even if he was skilled in martial arts, he couldn't gain any advantage in the siege of the crowd. More than a dozen strong men around him were also killed by the government soldiers. When Shi Jin's stick pierced another soldier's chest, a shocking roar exploded beside him.

  Shi Jin didn't have time to look back, and under the remaining light, he saw a short soldier wielding a green-faced big knife, making a horizontal slash that was about to land on Shi Jin's body. Shi Jin's wrist shook, and the Panlong staff suddenly dodged to the side of his body.

  The saber and the club clashed, causing Shi Jing to stumble momentarily, retreating several steps before regaining his footing. With a swift swing of his club, he sent the soldiers who were about to strike him flying. The short soldier was also shaken, nearly dropping his sword, but managed to regain his strength and continue attacking with a buzzing sound from his blade.

  Shi Jin looked at his opponent and immediately made up his mind to shoot the man, shoot the horse, capture the thief and capture the king. He took a swift step forward, arrived in front of the short soldier, feigned a blow with his staff, dodged the horizontal slash of the knife, and struck straight at the top of the head.

  That dwarf saw the momentum coming very quickly, and in a hurry, he cleverly used the lazy donkey to roll on the ground, avoiding it from behind. Then, with both feet borrowing force from the ground, he suddenly sprang into the air, drawing out a knife from bottom to top against the current. This way of fighting goes against the principles of using a knife, but the knife's momentum is fierce, showing that this dwarf has extraordinary strength.

  Shi Jin did not dare to be careless, and was cautious everywhere. On the one hand, he responded to the dwarf, and on the other hand, he killed some soldiers who came forward to launch a sneak attack.

  Shi Jin turned around and used the "Overlord Farewell Concubine" move, sweeping away all the soldiers who were chasing him from behind. He took a quick glance at his own men and saw that they had all been killed or wounded, leaving only one survivor - Guo Er, who was always by his side. Guo Er's body was covered in blood, and he was being pressed against the wall of the courtyard by the surrounding soldiers. His hair was disheveled, and he was frantically stabbing at the soldiers with his wooden sword, splattering blood everywhere, completely losing all semblance of humanity.

  Shi Jin still remembered that just the other day, Guo Er was holding that wooden sword and said, if I had half of Daliang's skills, I would have some face to ask Taigong to propose a marriage for me at Baozhu's house, then I could protect Baozhu from being bullied by Xiaozhuang Ahuang again.

  At that time, Guo Er looked at Pu Dao with a bright smile. But now... Shi Jin felt a pang in his heart. He ignored the dwarf and killed one by one, creating a bloody path all the way to the edge of the courtyard wall.

  At this time, Guo Er was killed by the dense knife shadow around him, and another miserable cry from the official soldier's club in his heart tightened involuntarily. If he didn't pay attention, the hem of his sleeve would be cut open with a "hiss" sound. His left hand's wooden knife was about to unload the incoming force, but his right arm suddenly felt icy cold, and a cold light pierced through his upper arm. The swordsman made another move, taking advantage of the momentum to pin Guo Er against the earthen wall.

  Guo Er's miserable cry had barely faded away when a large knife came slashing towards him.

  "Halt! A light shout, a stick of energy arrived in an instant. The official army's knife momentum slowed down, and they turned to look back. Before Guo Er could recover from his fright, the head of the soldier in front of him had already fallen to the ground, and the pair of eyes that had just turned to one side through the helmet."

  Shi Jin's momentum was unstoppable, sweeping left and right, amidst the chaotic shadows, not a moment's pause, protecting Guo Er, he beheaded two more men. Guo Er gritted his teeth, let out a muffled hum, pulled out his sword, no time to stop the bleeding, dancing with his wooden knife, making a final desperate bid, completely without defense, all-out killing moves, this kind of suicidal fighting actually made the government soldiers momentarily tremble with fear, some taking hesitant steps.

  Just as Shi Jin thought of protecting Guo Er and retreating back to the temple, reducing their vulnerable side. That dwarf somehow had already circled around to his back, raised his knife and chopped down, Shi Jin wanted to save him but was too late, Guo Er was cut in half at the waist. Shi Jin's heart was furiously angry, he swung his staff straight for the dwarf's head.

  The dwarf looked at Shi Jin rushing over, his eyes were bloodshot, and before he could distinguish whether it was the reflection of blood or flames, Shi Jin had already arrived in front of him. The dwarf swung his knife to block the fatal blow, but unexpectedly, Shi Jin suddenly opened up his Dragon Claw fist, drew out a short blade from his boot with one hand, and viciously stabbed it into the dwarf's heart with the other hand.

  The dwarf looked at Shi Jin incredulously, feeling the Qingmian Dadao in his hand getting heavier and heavier, the killing sounds by his ear getting farther and farther away, as if even this world had abandoned him. As the last breath of air dissipated from his body, he fell into the pool of blood and died. The soldiers saw this and immediately became chaotic, turning their weapons upside down and preparing to flee.

  Shi Jin saw the leader die, so he raised his stick and was about to start killing to avenge the miserable death of his family's servant. Just as he was about to start the massacre, suddenly a series of loud horse hooves sounded, accompanied by torches illuminating the rolling dust, a large team of horses and men came rushing towards Shi Jin like a fire dragon. When they arrived at the front of the courtyard, dozens of steps away, they formed a line and stood still.

  Shi Jin looked at the people one by one. One of them caught his eye, and he saw that the man was holding a human head in his hand, apparently having just died, with blood still dripping from the neck...