Chapter 309: 309

While gazing at the afterglow of the setting sun, a large group of people suddenly came running toward the public road . The scene stunned Yan Liqiang’s party . The group stopped on the public road as they watched people sprinting across the hill, the vegetable fields, and the wilderness from two li away .

“What’s this? A special welcome ceremony? That’s a little too passionate…” Yan Liqiang squinted his eyes at those people in the distance as he muttered to himself .

No one around him responded because no one in the party knew what was going on . Why did such a huge crowd come rushing out from the wilderness ahead of them?

“Brother Wang, what is up ahead from this area?” Yan Liqiang squinted his eyes and asked Wang Hui . Since he had the best eyesight out of everyone in the party, he was able to see the flying beads of sweat and the terrified expressions on the faces of the people rushing toward them from a few li away . Many of them carried simple bundles with them . Some were looking after the elderly and the young . Many were running and looking behind them in horror, as though there was a tiger chasing them .

“Twenty li ahead of us lies the Shidu County Town of Peiling Prefecture within the Yuan Province . After we pass through Shidu County and Copper Ridge, we will arrive at the southern part of the Great Han Empire…” Wang Hui looked at those running people in the distance with a frown while answering Yan Liqiang’s question mindlessly . These seasoned escorts who traveled extensively were like walking GPS maps . A few of them could probably travel with their eyes closed and still be able to accurately pinpoint their estimated location .

Today was the second day of the tenth lunar month in the 17th year of the Yuanping reign in the Heavenly Realm .

It had almost been twenty days since Yan Liqiang and his party had left Feng Provincial City . Over the course of these twenty days, everyone had only rested a day in Feng Provincial City . After leaving the provincial city, they made their way south and overcame countless obstacles on the road . They traveled a few thousand li and were more than halfway back to the Divine Sword Sect .

“Wait, something must have happened up ahead . Otherwise, these people wouldn’t be running all over the place…” Gong Dequan immediately pointed out .

Of course, Yan Liqiang could tell that something was off . Even if there really was a tiger, such a large crowd wouldn’t be running toward them as if their lives depended on it . There was only one possibility that could make so many people flee for their lives — someone was chasing them . Not just three or five of them, but a large group .

“Get ready, everyone! We will turn back if the situation doesn’t look right!” While Yan Liqiang was announcing this, he had already taken out the warbow he was carrying on his back . “Brother Hui, are there any other routes to bypass Shidu County?”

“Yes, there is . If we were to bypass Shidu County, we will have to make a detour of two days!” Wang Hui replied .

“So be it . If something really happened up ahead, we will have no choice but to take a detour…” Yan Liqiang replied heavily . “Everyone wait here first . I will go over there and ask a few people to find out what’s going on!”

As soon as Yan Liqiang finished speaking, he suddenly flinched because he spotted a man on top of a hill in the distance . The man suddenly leaped out from behind the hill on a rhinodrake steed . He stood there on the hill, riding on his agitated steed as he stared coldly after the fleeing crowd ahead of him .

He was fully dressed in a set of simple leather armor, and a black headband . He carried a warbow on his back and held an ashwood spear . From his attire, he didn’t seem like a soldier from the Great Han Empire . What shocked Yan Liqiang was the white lotus flower he saw on his black headband .

Yan Liqiang thought his eyes were playing tricks on him . After taking another careful look, there was indeed a white lotus flower embroidered on the man’s black headband .

Yan Liqiang had never seen someone in this get-up before . However, the white lotus flower on the man’s black headband instantly caused three words to appear in his mind —’White Lotus Society’ . He had heard that the paladins of the White Lotus Society dressed like this…

After the man’s appearance on the hill, a cavalry of a few hundred men emerged behind him in just the blink of an eye . They were all dressed differently — some wore leather armor, some wore padded armor, and some wore rattan armor . They wielded various types of weapons too . Not only that, only a third of them rode on rhinodrake steeds while the remaining had ordinary horses . The only thing they had in common was the black headband with a white lotus flower on it .

Everyone grew more terrified at their appearance as they continued to flee for their lives . At the same time, black smoke was rising up to the sky in the distance .

“White Lotus Society…!” Wang Hui shouted beside Yan Liqiang .

The paladins from the White Lotus Cavalry that appeared on the hill also noticed Yan Liqiang’s party on the public road . After all, a few dozen people riding on rhinodrake steeds was quite eye-catching . Besides, the distance between both parties wasn’t considered far for mounted troops .

After a brief silence, the first paladin who appeared on the hill waved his hand . Several hundred men immediately rushed downhill and split into two groups . A group of them was riding on rhinodrake steeds . There were about a hundred men rushing straight toward Yan Liqiang’s party . The remaining men further split into two groups, seemingly trying to flank the fleeing crowd so they couldn’t escape .

“GO QUICKLY, I WILL BRING UP THE REAR…!” Yan Liqiang yelled . Everyone in the party quickly turned their steeds around and started galloping in the direction they had come from .

Yan Liqiang stayed behind the party and slowed down the speed of his rhinodrake steed . At the same time, he turned his head around to look at those paladins from White Lotus Society that were rushing downhill .

The paladins from White Lotus Society that had split into two groups when they rushed downhill caught up to the fleeing crowd in just the blink of an eye . Yan Liqiang saw a few of them raise their weapons in the air . The gleaming weapons sent a few heads flying . Some of the fleeing people were beheaded from behind by those paladins that had caught up to them…

Miserable and terrified cries resonated across the hill and wilderness .

“Those who kneel shall be spared! Let this be the example to those who dare to escape and oppose the saints…!” The paladins from the White Lotus Society snarled . Quite a number of people who were initially running away immediately kneeled down at the shock of the bloody scene, not daring to continue their escape . The paladins chased those who were still running for their lives and flanked them . Their weapons danced without discrimination and blood splashed everywhere…

The wind blew from the hill, carrying the scent of blood .

It didn’t take very long for the cavalry that was chasing Yan Liqiang’s party to close in on them until they were only three hundred meters apart . The person leading the group was the first who appeared with his steed on the hill earlier . It looked like he was the leader of these mounted troops .

Yan Liqiang clenched his teeth . He turned around on his rhinodrake steed and drew his bow…

An arrow shot out like a shooting star .

As soon as his bowstring vibrated, the arrow pierced through the forehead of the leader riding in the front, knocking him off his steed…