“No, not the Ever-Victorious Army…”

As the troops marched out from the depths of the darkness, everyone was initially surprised and excited. Even the capital garrison was momentarily thrown into disarray.

But amidst the joy, some eyes flickered, suddenly realizing something was amiss.

Many of the reincarnators had already dealt with the Ever-Victorious Army, knowing that they all wore black armor and were well-equipped.

But those now appearing before the capital were wearing dark red armor, dyed that color by the light of the Red Lantern Goddess (Hongdeng Niangniang), who had protected them for many years.

Moreover, the aura of this army was different. The Ever-Victorious Army was known for its unrestrained and arrogant soldiers, plundering like fire, but this army had a deep and somber aura. Everyone had their eyes closed, their faces covered with cloth, yet they charged forward without the slightest confusion.

As they emerged from the night, a blue-clad old woman smoking a pipe, with several strong weasels carrying her sedan, and a village woman in coarse clothes with a cloth headband, stepped forward from the ranks.

They stood beside Erguotou, in harmony with the red lantern planted in the ground, naturally exuding a different kind of presence.

Then, Erguotou in front of the formation, raised his hand and waved.

With a drumbeat, the soldiers on horseback simultaneously opened their eyes, then tore off the black cloth from their horses' eyes, their movements synchronized and forceful.

This display of discipline alone revealed an extraordinary and imposing spirit.

Even the reincarnators, who had just been rejoicing and cheering for the experts, were now taken aback: "What army is this?"

"The Grain Protection Army!"

Erguotou slowly turned his head and said calmly, "I borrowed them from General Yang of the Grain Protection Army in Mingzhou."

Everyone was surprised: "You can borrow troops?"

"Of course."

Erguotou's face revealed a hint of pride, and he said, "However many you want, I can get."

"If that General Yang weren't scheduled to arrive in the capital soon, I'm afraid he would have followed me here himself!"

"..."

"..."

Just one day before, within Mingzhou, General Yang of the Grain Protection Army was also holding a meeting with his officers.

After the Mandate of Heaven was revealed at the beginning of the year, all the rebel leaders rose up, waging war and slaughtering everywhere. Mingzhou was inevitably affected, welcoming many bandits and disturbances.

But General Yang led his troops in all directions, subduing countless unruly villains, and stubbornly withstood this wave of chaos. Not only did he stabilize the situation, but his army grew stronger and his supplies more abundant, ushering in a surge in strength.

Furthermore, General Yang personally entered Lao Yin Mountain to offer sacrifices, drawing out the Tang God’s incense. In all of Mingzhou, no demons or monsters existed, and evil spirits bowed their heads. It was clear that this year would be one of favorable weather, abundant harvests, and sufficient grain, almost as if the Mandate of Heaven was with him, and great fortune was about to arrive.

That day, they were discussing in the tent how to raise an army, who to attack first, and what territory to seize, when they heard that a Jianghu (martial world) stranger was seeking an audience outside.

Thinking it was someone coming to join them, they invited him in.

But upon seeing this person, everyone in the tent was surprised: "Hu Shanchuan, Right Protector of the Red Lantern Society?"

"You..."

"Everyone, I have left the Red Lantern Goddess Society, otherwise this identity will cause confusion, and many things will be difficult to say."

The former Right Protector of the Red Lantern Society smiled and said, "This time, I am here to borrow troops."

"Borrow troops?"

This one sentence made everyone look at each other in dismay.

In the past, General Yang was his subordinate in Jianghu, but times changed. Now Yang was a great general, and the former superior in the Red Lantern Society had become his subordinate administrator.

The Red Lantern Goddess was also the patron saint protected by General Yang. The hierarchical relationship between the two could no longer be mentioned, especially since he had made it clear that he had now left the Red Lantern Society.

Now, a commoner from Jianghu came to the Grain Protection Army camp to borrow troops?

There was no such precedent!

Among the rebel leaders in the world, borrowing troops to fight wars was not uncommon, but what troops could a commoner from Jianghu borrow?

While they hesitated, they heard General Yang say, "How many troops do you want to borrow, and who are you going to fight?"

The Right Protector smiled and said, "The number of troops depends on how many General Yang has."

"I'm not borrowing them to fight anyone, but to save someone."

"I'm asking now to see if General Yang is willing to lend me his elite troops. If you agree, give me the tiger tally and transfer these brave soldiers to the ground in front of the camp."

"They will all listen to my orders. The horses will be blindfolded, and the men will close their eyes. They will only listen to my order and charge forward on horseback. No matter what they hear or encounter along the way, they must not open their eyes. One who opens their eyes will die, and even the gods will have difficulty saving them."

"..."

"A fantasy, a complete fantasy..."

Hearing this, everyone looked at each other, some even frowning.

How could there be such a thing? Not only would they give the tiger tally to this Jianghu sorcerer, but they would also let him mess around?

These elite troops were the lifeblood of General Yang, not some toy to be played with.

But just when everyone felt it was absurd, General Yang slowly frowned and said, "You are an expert in the know, you shouldn't be joking with me. Since you have openly entered my military tent and said such outrageous words..."

"Then tell me, who do you want to save?"

"..."

Erguotou sighed softly and took out an object from his sleeve.

Most people didn't understand what it was, but behind Yang, a lame little ghost stuck out its head and exclaimed in surprise, "Greetings, Master Hu..."

Silence fell all around. Yang looked at the little messenger, patted its head, and smiled at Erguotou, "The truly capable and obedient soldiers I have here are only ten thousand. Is that enough?"

Such straightforwardness stunned Erguotou, who was about to say something else, and he laughed, "So straightforward? Aren't you afraid that I'm deceiving you, or wasting your fortune?"

"You don't understand."

Yang smiled and said, "My brother passed on to me a volume of heavenly scriptures. With this skill, even if I lose my fortune, I can still rebuild it."

"Besides..."

He paused and smiled, "My brother never does anything that makes his friends suffer."

……

……

At this time, seeing an army coming, the reincarnators were somewhat surprised, but they immediately cheered.

They didn't care where this army came from.

They only saw that the capital garrison was sinister, while the Grain Protection Army was steady and imposing, not losing out in terms of momentum.

Troops were living talismans. As long as their momentum wasn't weaker and their numbers weren't too different, they could play a role. They had suffered quite a loss in the previous battle with the Ten Surnames. With this army, another battle would be different.

In their excitement, even before they could make a move, they saw a flurry of gongs and drums in the Grain Protection Army. A brave general rode straight forward, with someone behind him raising a flag with the character "Zhou" on it. It was Zhou Liang of the Grain Protection Army.

Seeing Zhou Liang rushing so fiercely, someone from the capital garrison also rode out to meet him.

Since both sides were armies, they followed different rules than those of Jianghu. If someone came out to challenge, someone on the other side would accept, which was the rule of dueling generals.

Both were fast on horseback and heavily armed. They charged at each other, weapons dancing, and quickly exchanged several blows.

In terms of skill, the commander of the capital garrison was full of evil energy and quite difficult to deal with, but Zhou Liang was now also blessed with magic power from the Erguotou jar, and he fought more and more fiercely.

Spotting an opening, he struck the capital commander on the back. The opponent's bones cracked and his shoulder collapsed, but in the blink of an eye, the evil energy dissipated, and he returned to his original state, still attacking him fiercely.

Seeing this, Zhou Liang suddenly pulled away, grunted, and swept a beam of white light forward.

It was the unique skill that Hu Ma taught him in the mountains, the Nine Netherworld Bull Sound (Jiuyou Gu Niu Yin).

As soon as the unique skill was revealed, the evil-spirited commander on horseback suddenly couldn't sit still and fell off his horse.

Seeing that things were not going well, two beautiful young women, one dressed in black and one dressed in white, who looked exactly alike, chanted incantations in the army formation, and actually summoned the commander from under the horse again, still wanting to fight.

But at this moment, Erguotou, standing on the side of the army formation, snorted coldly, and the light of the red lantern beside him shone forward.

With the red lantern's illumination, the black and white women's magic was broken.

Zhou Liang didn't even wait for the commander to get up before rushing forward, raising his knife and cutting off his head, bringing it back to the formation.

The black and white women in the capital garrison saw this and their faces changed greatly, having lost a move in the spell battle.

"Good!"

A chorus of cheers suddenly rang out, and countless black shadows quickly emerged from the night.

The presence or absence of talismans made such a clear difference in the outcome of the spell battle. Now, seeing that the Grain Protection Army had gained the upper hand, they knew that they wouldn't suffer a loss this time, and they temporarily felt proud.

And Erguotou, who was standing in front by the red lantern, also felt relieved, and with a cold expression, he raised his hand high, ready to give the order.

"Hold on!"

But at this moment, Zhao Sanyi, his face slightly changed, rode out from the capital garrison.

He first bowed remotely to Erguotou and shouted, "Brother, we are old friends, we've met in the underworld."

"You personally lead troops and appear here. Before we fight, there should be a reason!"

"..."

"A reason?"

Hearing his words, Erguotou's eyebrows narrowed slightly. He first cupped his fist lightly, as a sign of respect, and then smiled, "We met in the underworld, and you helped me, so you're not an outsider. I'll answer you properly."

"You ask me what I'm doing here with troops, but I'd like to ask you!"

Saying that, he suddenly shouted sternly, "What do you mean by trapping my Zou Gui Da Zhuodao (Ghost Hunter) in your capital?"

"Huh?"

Upon hearing this, everyone looked bewildered, caught off guard by his question.

"Today, this matter is simple!"

At this moment, Erguotou shouted sternly again, "The Great Luo Dharma Sect was disrespectful first, trapping the chief officer of my sect."

"Today, this young master has brought the Zou Gui sect, to ask for answers, to reason, and to offer incense, along with all the small hall officials, to demand the person from you."

"..."

With an order, in an instant, the army was strong and the horses were powerful. Combined with the shouts of countless reincarnators, excited to the extreme, they surged forward in a mighty torrent.

And at this very moment, inside the capital, Hu Ma seemed to sense something and suddenly opened his eyes.

(End of this chapter)