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Chapter 436: 428: High-Level Showdown_1
Chapter 436: 428: High-Level Showdown_1
Chapter 436: Chapter 428: High-Level Showdown_1
“Seventeen warriors unfortunately got venom in their eyes and were blinded on the spot. After being poisoned, taking Detoxification Pills was completely ineffective. I specifically inquired with Chairman Li and Master He Shan about what kind of insects these were, with such powerful venom. It turns out that these insects had absorbed toxic miasma in the Valley of Wronged Spirits, no wonder the Detoxification Pills were ineffective.”
The Valley of Wronged Spirits is known to be an extremely dangerous place; almost all the senior members of the gang are aware of it.
They are even more aware of the terror of the toxic miasma in the valley.
“Now the number of those stealth-winged insects is not many, and the damage caused to our army is not significant. But if there were tens of thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of them, our soldiers would lose their fighting capacity in an instant. Master Qin discovered the gathering point of those insects, and there’s no time to lose—we must immediately dispatch troops to the Valley of Wronged Spirits to exterminate those poisonous insects.”
Vice Gang Leader Bai is very afraid that those stealth-winged insects will increase in number.
“Hehe, Gang Leader Bai, rest assured! Master Qin has already dealt with all those stealth-winged insects. There weren’t just tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of them but two to three hundred million.”
Ye Ji actually laughed out loud in such a serious military discussion, which was quite inappropriate.
Yet, every high-ranking member of the Black Tiger Gang did not blame her; instead, they all heaved sighs of relief and smiled with a sense of fortunate triumph.
“Is this true? There were actually two to three hundred million of them? The Nine Insect Gang is too powerful, far too powerful. If so many stealth-winged insects were to fly in the sky simultaneously, spraying venom, our Black Tiger Gang would be doomed. Gang Leader, you were wise to call Master Qin Niu out of retirement, and you did so just in time.”
Gongsun Jin took the opportunity to flatter the Black Tiger Gang Leader.
Being able to become a confidant of the Gang Leader naturally means he has special abilities.
“I can’t imagine, the Nine Insect Gang can control two to three hundred million stealth-winged insects, their Insect Masters are not ordinary in strength.”
Vice Gang Leader Bai followed with a relieved mutter to himself.
“Good, very good! Master Qin is young and promising, and as soon as he emerged from retirement, he has made a tremendous contribution to our gang, averting a crisis invisibly. Clerk, mark down the merits for Master Qin, and we will discuss rewards after the war is over.”
The Black Tiger Gang Leader was very pleased when he heard this.
His gaze toward Qin Niu softened even more.
Compared to such a significant feat, what does it matter that Qin Niu killed a few people on the street?
“One man’s success is built on the skeleton of many others.”
In the eyes of these higher-ups, they only value interests.
“He Shan, hurry and introduce the specific details of the insect battle to Master Qin!”
“Very well!”
Master He Shan was envious in his heart—this Brother Qin Niu, he didn’t know how he entered the Valley of Wronged Spirits.
The toxic miasma in the valley is said to be overwhelmingly dominant, to the extent that even Immortal Masters dared not easily venture in. It was said that once an Immortal Master from the Hundred-Tempering Immortal Sect came down for an inspection, and after just coming into contact with the miasma in the valley, he had to recuperate on-site for half a month.
Qin Niu was able to enter the valley and exterminate hundreds of millions of stealth-winged insects, a feat which he himself felt unequal to.
He carefully introduced the specifics of the battlefield to Qin Niu and also discussed where the Black Tiger Gang’s insect masters were falling short.
Qin Niu listened quietly throughout.
At that moment, dull drumbeats and the sound of bugles resonated from the battlefield.
The expressions of the high-ranking members in the tent changed slightly, “This is bad, the enemy has sounded the charge once more; they are launching the sixth attack. We must immediately go out and command the army to resist the enemy.”
After the Black Tiger Gang Leader spoke, he raised his eyes to look at Qin Niu.
“True heroes are often young, Master Qin, show your abilities to the fullest. Iron Tiger, Ye Ji, from now on, you are to stay close and ensure Master Qin’s safety, ready for his command, and leniency will not be tolerated.”
“By your command!”
Ye Ji and Iron Tiger responded in unison.
“Thank you for your concern, Gang Leader!”
Qin Niu bowed in thanks.
Being a first-class noble, things like kneeling in gratitude were unnecessary.
“He Shan, Qin Niu, join me in battle!”
Bai Xuezhu called out to the two, put on his helmet, and left the central military tent.
Qin Niu followed out of the tent, only to see the battlefield was already filled with dust and the earth-shattering cries of combat. The sheer murderous aura of armored warfare is hard to comprehend without being on the battlefield.
To the front left of the battlefield, one beast after another let out piercing screams, and the defensive forces of the Black Tiger Gang showed clear signs of collapse.
Vice Gang Leader Bai’s eyes sharpened. “The Nine Insect Gang’s main insect masters have made another move; let’s hurry over.”
Qin Niu and He Shan swiftly followed behind him.
“Bring a fine horse for Master Qin Niu.”
Bai Xuezhu issued an order.
His personal guards immediately brought a Black Mare Horse to Qin Niu and respectfully handed it over to him.
“These warhorses have all been trained, Master Qin can rest assured in their use.”
Qin Niu had intended to refuse, since his mount was the Green Ox, which was much stronger than these Black Mare Horses.
Thinking that this was Bai Xuezhu’s kindness, he accepted it.
Having the Green Ox follow behind to support in battle would be good.
Charging into the fray was extremely dangerous.
Iron Tiger’s ferocious tiger had been slain by Qin Niu, who had now also switched to a Black Mare Horse.
On the battlefield, the most practical weren’t ferocious beasts, but warhorses.
Because warhorses are easier to breed in large numbers and easier to train as well.
Another point is that with army sizes reaching hundreds of thousands, even if only twenty thousand mounts needed to be fed meat, there’s no gang that could afford it.
The more formidable the beast, the more terrifying its appetite.
A ferocious tiger might need to consume fifty or sixty pounds of meat in one meal. Only army generals or those of high status could afford such creatures.
For every ordinary soldier to have a beast mount is simply unthinkable.
Warhorses mainly eat grass and grains; their maintenance costs are significantly lower than those of beasts.
Hence, warhorses will always be the mainstream on the battlefield.
Wolf Cavalry, elephant troops, and Ferocious Tiger Soldiers have all made appearances, but only on a small scale. There’s never been such an absurd scene as one hundred thousand elephant cavalry.
Qin Niu, riding on the back of the Black Mare Horse, discovered that the horse was not only vigorous and strong but also easily understood his commands.
With a light squeeze of his legs, it immediately ran forward.
To make it speed up, a mere flick of the reins was needed. To stop it, he simply had to pull back on the reins.
Riding it was extremely comfortable.
“Bai Xuezhu, today is the day you die.”
Across from him, a sinister-looking old man with a sharp and long nose, dressed in a black robe, had a hat on his head that was quite distinctive. At first glance, it seemed like a fine hat, but up close it turned out to be made of long wriggling insects.
Raising their heads, they revealed their fine sharp legs and frightening mouthparts, making one’s scalp tingle.
Qin Niu recognized at a glance that those insects resembled centipedes.
A rough estimate suggested that at least two to three hundred centipedes were needed to make such a large hat.
The experts of the Nine Insect Gang were truly disgusting; not only were the centipedes poisonous, but they also emitted a foul smell. For that old man to coil so many centipedes on his head as a hat, it was hard to fathom what he was thinking.
“Seeking death!”
Deputy Gang Leader Bai practiced body-hardening techniques, his defensive strength was astonishing.
In combat, he always charged forward, brave and fierce.
He drew his sword and went straight to kill.
The sinister old man dared not be careless, immediately releasing bugs to attack Bai Xuezhu, wielding a snake-shaped cane as his weapon.
Through the sensing of qi, this disgusting old man was also a strong practitioner in the Spirit Qi Realm.
Qin Niu’s gaze swept over and he saw that there were as many as six strong practitioners in the Spirit Qi Realm concentrated in that area.
On the side of the Black Tiger Gang, they were equally unyielding.
Besides Deputy Gang Leader Bai, there were several other strong practitioners in the Spirit Qi Realm whom Qin Niu did not recognize. These people were generally older in age.
It was likely that after the ordinary soldiers had mostly been killed, these old fellows finally made their move.
“Not good, Gang Leader Bai is in danger!”
Master He Shan’s complexion changed slightly, appearing very anxious.
Qin Niu followed his gaze and saw a woman wearing a cloak and a large black robe standing on the back of a giant spider.
The spider was as large as a water buffalo, its body covered in patterns, somewhat resembling a variety from the garden spider family.