Chapter 160: Burial Ground

Shen Yinglong’s banquet was intended as a preliminary probe, while his engineered trap was designed to eliminate future troubles.

Facing the wolf-like Northern Yan prisoners of war, Jiang Chen’s mind suddenly cleared, and everything fell into place.

Prior to this, he and Shen Yinglong had no prior interactions; the sole point of conflict between them lay in their differing stances on the current situation in the northern frontier.

Shen Yinglong’s desire to get rid of Jiang Chen indicated that the Shen family he represented, and indeed the entire faction of northern gentry and powerful clans, had no interest in the war.

They did not want to make an enemy of Northern Yan!

Such an attitude stemmed entirely from their own self-interest—whether harboring illusions of retaining a corner of peace for themselves, or hoping to avoid the flames of war through peace talks. In short, Jiang Chen’s appearance had disrupted their expectations.

Everyone possessed different attitudes and stances, and there was no absolute right or wrong to it. However, this clearly demonstrated that the faction of northern gentry eagerly desired the imperial court to abandon all futile resistance.

Whether this could be considered an act of treason was hard to say, but would humiliation and compromise truly secure peace for the region?

From this perspective, Jiang Chen—who had beheaded a Northern Yan general and displayed his head to the public—along with Qishan, who coordinated with him to continue fighting the formidable Northern Yan enemy, were thorns in the sides of the northern factions.

Shen Yinglong wanted to remove Jiang Chen, yet wished to avoid the infamy of murdering a hero who resisted the enemy. Therefore, he intended to use the hands of these Northern Yan prisoners to wipe Jiang Chen completely from the face of the earth.

Ever since he killed Xiao Tong and spearheaded the frontline counterattack against Northern Yan, Jiang Chen’s name had become a rising beacon of hope in the northern frontier.

Faced with the aggressive Northern Yan army, the resistance of Great Qian had appeared weak and feeble, suffering consecutive defeats and showing utter fragility. The people of the northern frontier had been repeatedly ravaged and slaughtered, enduring a humiliation unseen in nearly a century.

Because of this, Jiang Chen’s feat of slaying the Northern Yan General Xiao Tong and displaying his head greatly boosted morale, casting a ray of dawn into the northern frontier that had long been shrouded in gloom.

However, the northern gentry had no use for a ray of dawn, nor did they need this hero.

"Kill him! I will reduce him to ashes and dust to comfort General Xiao’s spirit in heaven!"

Enraged to the extreme, the Northern Yan prisoners charged at Jiang Chen wave after wave. The cramped space quickly filled to capacity, making it difficult even to stretch one's arms and legs.

Jiang Chen raised his arms to block several fists flying straight toward his face, no longer able to tell whose fists belonged to whom.

If this continued, the sheer pressure of the crowd crushing together might trample many to death. Spotting an opportunity, Jiang Chen stepped onto a table, leaped up, and used the heads of the Northern Yan prisoners as stepping stones to run across the top of the crowd.

He successfully broke through the doorway, but along the corridor, numerous prisoners were still waiting to skin him alive and drink his blood to vent their fury.

"Jiang Chen is running out! After him!"

A sharp-eyed prisoner shouted and gave chase. Yet amid the deafening clamor, most people had no idea what he was actually yelling about.

After a chaotic melee, Jiang Chen knocked down several Northern Yan prisoners attempting to close in on him, but the crowd continued to surge toward him like a tide.

"You people are truly persistent."

Jiang Chen failed to clear the corridor entirely; he was soon blocked in place by a fresh influx of people. He knew very well that no matter where he ran in this prison, he would be relentlessly pursued by these men.

This prison had now transformed into a purgatory—a burial ground arranged for him by Shen Yinglong. Since escape was impossible, he had no choice but to bite the bullet and fight it out. In any case, he had no intention of dying in such a wretched place.

"He’s all by himself! Isn't it easy to finish him off?"

"Right! We must avenge General Xiao, avenge him..."

Frustrated by Jiang Chen’s agile dodging and shifting, the Northern Yan prisoners grew irritated. Having assumed that dispatching him would be a simple task, they never expected that after expending so much effort, they hadn't even managed to touch the hem of his garment.

The situation was highly disadvantageous for Jiang Chen. This area was a spacious hall, lacking the narrow bottlenecks of the previous holding cells, allowing the Northern Yan prisoners to attack simultaneously from all directions in a coordinated siege.

"Quick... untie me, and I can help you."

Suddenly, a man’s voice came from behind. Jiang Chen turned around to see that it was the Northern Titan.

"Are you sure you want to wade into these murky waters?" Jiang Chen reminded the man that his own situation was no game and could easily cost him his life.

Yet the Northern Titan replied, "You helped me, and I will help you. What is there to fear about death?"

Jiang Chen glanced down at the piece of wood beneath the Titan’s feet. Earlier, it was he who had kicked that block of wood over so the Titan could stand on it, preventing himself from being strangled to death by the iron chain locked around his throat.

*Clang!*

After a few crisp sounds, the iron chains binding the Northern Titan fell to the ground. The giant stretched his limbs and glared menacingly at the surrounding Northern Yan prisoners.

"Shen Yinglong said you colluded with the enemy and committed treason. Is that true?" Jiang Chen asked.

"To hell with him! The next time I lay eyes on him, I’ll crush his skull!"

A fierce expression crossed the Northern Titan’s face as he lunged ferociously at the Northern Yan prisoners surrounding them. The moment he moved, he resembled a shifting mountain, exuding an unbelievable sense of oppression.

"Ah!"

"Stop him! Damn it..."

Previously standing shoulder-to-shoulder, the Northern Yan prisoners now scattered like a flock of frantic lambs. Not a single one dared to step forward to block the Titan head-on; evasion was their immediate instinct.

Watching this, Jiang Chen thought that the Northern Titan’s combat strength was evidently formidable, and he should have possessed an absolute advantage in strength when fighting Shen Yinglong.

How, then, had he been defeated in a single move?

Perhaps that matter wasn't true either, but rather the result of some unknown method employed by Shen Yinglong. Judging by the battle prowess the Titan currently displayed, it was certainly impossible for Shen Yinglong to have defeated him in one blow.

With Jiang Chen and the Northern Titan fighting side by side, the Northern Yan prisoners quickly collapsed in defeat. Although they held an absolute advantage in numbers, overwhelming strength remained the decisive factor at any given moment.

In stark contrast to the chaotic scene within the prison, outside the dungeons, in a fresh and elegant pavilion, Shen Yinglong was leisurely sipping fine tea.

"How is it going?"

"Everything is proceeding smoothly. However, Jiang Chen’s commotion has disrupted our original deployment, which will require some more time."

Looking slightly displeased, Shen Yinglong turned to a man standing before him and said, "Jibei, I have always trusted you. Do not let me down."

"Of course not," Jibei replied, revealing a sinister smile.