"You think I'm asking you for your opinion?"
"This is an order!"
"Military orders are ironclad. If you disobey, I can have you all executed!"
Li Gang barked in a low voice, clearly unwilling to make a scene in front of the Centurion and Sub-Centurions.
At his words, the few Inspectors who had been complaining immediately fell silent. But the looks in their eyes clearly showed what they thought.
"Three Legs, Big Mouth—haven't you two always wanted to learn my martial arts? When we return, I'll teach you!"
"As for the rest of you, I won't treat you unfairly. If you want to learn martial arts, I'll teach you. If not, I'll give each of you thirty taels of silver!"
After threatening them, Li Gang offered a sweetener. Then he turned to Chu Mu and the others:
"You lot—if you're willing to follow me, I'll make sure you're rewarded too."
A glimmer flickered in Chu Mu's eyes. He was indeed tempted. The martial arts he'd dreamed of… could they really be within reach?
But when he looked at Li Gang's grim face, Chu Mu forcibly suppressed his excitement.
As Li Gang himself had said, those other Inspectors had flattered him endlessly, followed him for who knows how long—and still, he had never taught them his true skills.
This time, he was only making promises under duress.
Would he truly keep his word?
And if he turned on them later, what could they do?
Of course, what worried Chu Mu most was the danger of this mission—still an unknown.
After all, of more than a dozen Inspectors, only one had escaped.
It was clear this was a premeditated operation. If it had been spontaneous, there was no way an entire squad of Inspectors could have been nearly wiped out.
Premeditation meant organization. Organization meant the risk was high.
Weighing the risks and rewards, the danger clearly outweighed the potential gains.
"All right, you few—come with me!"
Li Gang didn't press them further. With a shout, he strode off.
Chu Mu watched Li Gang's departing figure, filled with fighting spirit—and an idea suddenly struck him.
What if Li Gang didn't come back? The position of Squad Leader would be vacant.
And if he managed to earn a bit of merit this time, might he have a shot at claiming it?
Being Squad Leader would be far freer than his current slot-in-a-hole life. He'd have much more leeway to do what he wanted.
Just as Chu Mu's thoughts were running wild—disaster struck.
With sharp, ear-piercing sounds, volleys of arrows suddenly shot from the dense forest like rain.
At the very front of the formation was the eager Li Gang, followed by a few dejected Inspectors.
"Ambush!"
Li Gang, skilled in martial arts, was unfazed—in fact, a bit delighted. After all, the Centurion was right behind him.
With a loud shout, Li Gang leapt in front of the Centurion. His large saber whirled into an impenetrable shield, deflecting the arrows aimed at the Centurion.
But the Inspectors following Li Gang weren't so lucky. Without Li Gang's true skills, they were quickly shot down like porcupines and collapsed to the ground, fate unknown.
Seeing this, Li Jinghong's expression turned ice-cold. Narrowing his eyes toward the forest, he raised a hand to stop He Ping from charging in.
"We don't know the terrain. No reckless advance!"
"Pass the order—each unit maintain formation. Fall back five hundred paces!"
Chu Mu was fully tensed. In both his past and present life, this was the first time he had witnessed such a scene.
Long blade already in hand, he kept his eyes fixed on the forest ahead. Luckily, it was still far enough that the arrows couldn't reach him.
Still, this kind of ambush clearly signaled a total breakdown of the situation.
Seven Li Village had surely fallen into rebel hands. Otherwise, how could they have set up an ambush here?
What Chu Mu couldn't fathom was the rebels' sheer audacity.
They had killed Inspectors and not fled. They were even trying to use the terrain to ambush and kill government troops!
But there was no time to think. Even though the arrows couldn't yet reach him, Chu Mu wasn't about to bet his life on that.
Before the retreat order was even given, Chu Mu had already fallen back a fair distance. Once the order came, he wasted no time retreating all the way to the rear.
Fortunately, many of the Inspectors were equally terrified. Blending in with them, Chu Mu didn't stand out—in fact, his alert demeanor even made him seem a bit heroic.
"The arrows are poisoned!"
"Be careful—poisoned arrows!"
After retreating several hundred paces, chaos still reigned. An unfortunate Inspector hit by an arrow now lay foaming at the mouth, drawing gasps of horror.
Looking along the road, they had already left a trail of a dozen Inspector corpses behind them. Faint groans could still be heard from the not-yet-dead.
After that barrage of arrows, the forest fell eerily silent. If not for the bloody scene before them, it could almost have seemed a dream.
Especially those familiar comrades at the very front—now lying perfectly still in pools of blood.
Snapping out of his alert state, Chu Mu found his face deathly pale.
Fear. Relief. A swirl of emotions churned within him.
The earlier thrill he had felt had completely vanished in this bloody aftermath.
Life and death had never felt so close.
How could he not be shaken?
"M-Mu-ge…"
Xu Yuan collapsed onto the ground, shaking like a leaf.
"D-Don't be afraid!"
Chu Mu swallowed hard, offering what little comfort he could. He honestly didn't know what else to say.
He was scared too—truly scared.
The only advantage he had over Xu Yuan was his decades of experience from his past life, which allowed him to barely stay calm.
But that was about it.
You couldn't expect a bottom-tier office worker from a past life to face this kind of crisis with unshakable composure, could you?
"It's all right. We have the numbers—they won't dare come out."
Chu Mu's words tumbled out awkwardly. He wasn't sure if he was trying to reassure Xu Yuan or himself.
"On your feet—all of you!"
"Up—get up!"
He Ping and several Squad Leaders were restoring order amid the chaos, shouting ceaselessly. Slowly, the confusion began to subside.
Chu Mu struggled to calm himself, constantly glancing toward the forest—and toward the Centurion, Li Jinghong, surrounded by Inspectors.
The situation was clear: no matter what was happening in Seven Li Village, the villagers had definitely organized and seized control of the surrounding terrain.
On their side, morale was low. Fear ran rampant. But one thing was certain—they still had the numerical advantage.
Otherwise, after that arrow barrage, if the rebels had the strength, they would have followed up with an attack.
Right now, the most crucial figure was undoubtedly the Centurion, Li Jinghong.
A single inept commander could doom an entire force.
At this moment, their every move hung on Li Jinghong's decisions.
Their fate rested in the Centurion's hands.
Though Chu Mu had never been one to believe in gods or spirits, he couldn't help but silently pray.
He sincerely hoped this Centurion would prove wise and capable...
*(End of chapter)*