Chapter 103: Chapter 25 Pu Yan’s Hostility_2
Five hundred warriors stopped at a small hill in front of the Yan Tribe. They might have received the news in advance; when Ah Dai and the others got off the horse-drawn carriage, nearly a thousand brightly-armored Pu Yan Tribe warriors came to meet them from the tribe. They were all light cavalry, wearing leather armor and holding long spears. The spear tips were pointed diagonally to the ground, shimmering under the sunlight, indeed a formidable sight. The aura of solemnity and death spread across the entire team. The Yan Tribe was much larger than the tribe Yan Shi was from; full of various stone houses of different sizes and shapes, it was as big as a large city. There were some impressive stone buildings as well, and the area occupied by the tribe was so huge that even from the hill, it was hard to see its full extent.
The thousand soldiers from Yan Tribe spread their wings like geese and stood in front of Ah Dai and his troops. Yan Ju ordered all warriors to halt and then, dismounting from his horse, called out loudly, "I am Yan Ju, which brother is leading this troop?"
"Ah, Brother Yan Ju! Heard there was trouble? Our Clan Leader sent me to welcome you." A deep voice rang out, and a horseman dashed out from the ranks of the enemy’s light cavalry. This man’s riding skills were superb; his powerful black horse, like a bolt of black lightning, arrived swiftly. Yan Ju was not startled by the speed of the other party, but his face hinted a faint smile.
The knight on the black horse seemed unified with the horse; his body slightly leaned forward, gently rocking with the gallop. In the blink of an eye, he appeared in front of Yan Ju. When the black horse was about five meters away from Yan Ju’s towering horse, the knight on the black horse yelled, yanked the rein sharply, and the black horse reared up, emitting a long, shrill cry, then settled down under the knight’s control.
Yan Ju laughed, "Brother Yan Li, your horsemanship skills are increasingly impressive!"
The warrior Yan Ju addressed as Yan Li was not tall, yet robust. He appeared to be in his early twenties, his face brimming with fearlessness. His naked arms were full of muscular bulges with visible veins, clearly indicating that he was a strength-type warrior. The black horse he rode was extraordinarily majestic. Its black fur shimmered like satin under the sunlight. Even after its rapid sprint and sudden stop, it panted only lightly, seemingly unaffected. "Brother Yan Ju, what exactly happened? Where’s Brother Yan Shi? I heard from the man you sent that something happened to Yun Er..."
Yan Ju’s face darkened, "It’s awful what happened to Xiao Yun, let’s not talk about it for now. The bodies of Yan Shi and Xiao Yun are in the carriage behind us. Let’s get to the tribe first, the Clan Leader will make the decisions."
Yan Li’s eyes flashed with fury, he grumbled loudly, "Whoever the bastard responsible for this, if I find out, I will grind his bones to dust. Let’s go, Brother Yan Ju, lead me to Yan Shi. He must have been devastated by the loss of his deeply loved wife."
Yan Ju sighed, "Yan Shi has been deeply affected; with Xiao Yun’s death, it seemed he lost his heart as well. Since we set off, he has not spoken a word or eaten. He has lost a lot of weight, and seems to be in a daze. Let’s go, I’ll bring you to him." Saying this, he turned his horse around and led Yan Li towards the carriage. The carriage carrying Yan Shi was in the back, Yan Ju and Yan Li had to pass Ah Dai and his group to get there. When Yan Li saw Ah Dai and the others, he frowned and asked, "Brother Yan Ju, who are these people? Why are they in your group?"
Yan Ju replied, "These foreigners were brought back by Yan Shi on the day of the incident. I think they were Yan Shi’s guests. When they returned to the tribe, Xiao Yun was already dead. I feared they might be suspects, so I brought them here for the Clan Leader to decide."
A chilly light flashed in Yan Li’s eyes, he dismounted from his horse and strided decisively towards Ah Dai and his group. Seeing how close he was, Ah Dai noticed two short-handled battle axes crossed on Yan Li’s back. The handles were very short, less than a foot, yet the blades were exceptionally large, the two crossed axes nearly completely covered Yan Li’s broad back.
Without any courtesy, Yan Li said, "Who are you people? Did you harm Yun Er?"
Moon Scar frowned; his fear had been realized. The bias of the Pu Yan Tribe against outsiders was bound to cause misunderstanding! He quickly explained, "We are mercenaries, planning to go to the Tian Yuan Clan to complete a task. On the way through the Noble Domain, we ran into Brother Yan Shi. We had a fight with him, then eventually became friends. Brother Yan Shi invited us to the tribe, and who knew that such a thing would happen. We certainly mean no harm to the Pu Yan Tribe, and we have been with Yan Shi all along, how could we have killed his wife?"
Yan Ju dismounted from his horse, "Don’t be too quick to clear yourselves. When you arrived at the tribe, Xiao Yun had been dead for several hours. Whether you did it or not, we’ll let the Clan Leader decide. Although I believe you too, as the deputy leader of the Yan Shi Tribe, I can’t let any suspect get away. It’s regrettable to have you here, sorry about that. I believe truth will out, and the Clan Leader will investigate thoroughly."
With a flash of cold light, two large axes from Yan Li’s back were already in his hands, he roared and charged at Moon Scar. The two dark blades arrived in front of Moon Scar in a blink of an eye. This sudden change startled Moon Scar; there was no time to draw his sword, he could only dodge to the side using his agile movement technique. Yan Li, relentless, roared and launched another attack with his axes. Seemingly weightless in Yan Li’s hand, the threatening axes whirled with an astonishing momentum.
