Death… and me

"Torches, light up this area! Archers, don't slack off. Fighters, be ready and surround the area by ten layers." Chu Yang gave out one order after the other, "Block here, here, here and here. Don't let the water flow out and escape."

"Boss, even if there are people hiding inside, why can't you wait till morning to catch them? Isn't it a bit too much of a rush to do it right now?" Ji Mo frowned.

"If there are actually people hiding inside, they are King level masters!" Chu Yang said casually, "Moreover, they are currently injured. Nevertheless, King level masters are able to recover at a very quick pace. I am sure you are already aware of this. Through this one night, if the King level masters recover even a slight bit more of their fighting strength, our side would lose significantly more soldiers! Being unable to avoid such a large loss of more unnecessary deaths of our soldiers, it would be the failure of the person in command!"

Chu Yan continued, "We must never allow our enemies a single opportunity to catch a breather! Their chance for a reprieve can be our irreparable misfortune!"

Ji Mo sighed at looked at Chu Yang, "Oh I see, that's how it is."

He also thought to himself: He is considerate of the lives of soldiers whom he doesn't even know. How could he do wrong by his martial brothers?

As he stood there thinking, there were already people who were running forward with buckets of water. More and more people rushed in after them…

While there were many, many of them didn't have enough tools. It seemed as though they needed time and patience in order to achieve this goal.

At that very moment, four to five people started to dig, creating a ditch along the path. Afterwards, a stream of water ran into the court. As it turned out, there was also a well on the other side with a built-in pulley as well.

Thus, the water flowed continuously to the side and people shouted in a lively manner. Gradually, as people began to get their tools, someone somehow managed to get their hands on a large metal drum which was usually used by the military and used a horse drawn wagon to bring it over. This made things much more efficient as each trip was equivalent to bring fifty to sixty buckets of water at once…\

Several commanders jumped up and yelled fiercely, "Faster! Faster!"

Time slowly passed as the official's manor was turned into a swamp.

As for the cellars which they had found, they filled those first with water…

The manpower employed was massive as people began to carry water brought up from the well, blocking up any cracks which were around. In the distance, there were people who continued to relay the water over from one individual to another, forming a human chain.

Some twenty wells in the nearby area were all being used by the military at the same time.

The water began to flood over more than an acre of land…

Countless soldiers were watching: archers, fighters, and spear throwers… were all ready for the enemies! They were all holding their weapons tightly with their gleaming eyes!

Below, Kong Shang Xin, Yin Wu Fa, and the others made eight total and all of them were feeling very anxious.

At first, they did not hear any movements and thought that the enemy's army had withdrawn. However, the moment that they heaved a sigh of relief, they heard a loud commotion above them…

As they were hidden far below the surface, they were unable to make out what they were saying. All they heard was loud yelling every now and then. They began to feel more and more uneasy as their mind wandered.

What are the enemies doing?

The air in the secret chamber gradually grew more and more humid, and the temperature also started to dip. Kong Shang Xin frowned seeming to be thinking about something as his countenance progressively grew colder…

A while later, water started to drip from the ceiling of the secret chamber.

"Water! Water is seeping in." Yin Wu Fa's eyes opened up wide as he looked at the water! Everyone's expression simultaneously paled as they realised that King of Hell Chu's plan was to flood them out! This was terrible news!

While there was virtually no entrance or exit, they were still underground. And with such a large space, as long as there was water on the ground surface, it was only a matter of time before this place would be entirely flooded! Or worse still, it might collapse completely!

If they did not die from drowning, they would die from the collapse.

As they looked at each drop of water which slowly turned into small streams, they were petrified. However, what scared them, even more, was when mud started to drop down from the ceiling in large chunks.

Their current situation was truly abysmal!

If they were to head out, it would mean that they would have to face a large army. Even though they had no idea how many people were outside, they knew that it was not a small number. This was evident from the sounds that echoed from the outside. Both of the King level leaders were severely injured and were not certain that they would be able to break out from within the blockade. However, if they remained where they were, they would eventually be buried alive.

They were stuck between a rock and a hard place!

More mud fell down, and the water on the floor was starting to soak through their shoes.

The two King level leaders could not even cry out tears.

King of Hell Chu, how cruel are you?

Such an unforgiving scheme and you are still able to think of it?

"Sirs, please make a decision right away. This place… will soon collapse!" A Revered Martial Artist hastily said. Before he was even done speaking, more mud began to fall from above them…

Kong Shang Xin let out an angry roar, and said with eyes filled with determination, "We will break out!"

Before he was done speaking those words, the three Revered Martial Artists, two Martial Great Masters and the Iron Horse Rider Martial Master's faces had a tragic look on them.

Everyone knew what breaking out meant. Especially with the two King level leaders injured, they did not even have a slim chance of succeeding!

Their enemies had overwhelmed them with their sheer numbers and without martial experts, these ordinary soldiers would have been sufficient to deal with them. Fighting against them would only mean dying in battle whereas remaining where they were would mean death by drowning! The least they could do was to gain some ground by dying in battle and also because drowning… was too much of a waste.

"Brothers, before we break out, I want to say a few words." Kong Shang Xin weakly straightened his body as he solemnly looked the streams of water pouring down.

All of the others stood straight and listened quietly with anticipation.

"This situation is very dangerous; even I am not sure if I would be able to escape. Therefore, this battle… might be the last time we fight side by side with each other!" Kong Shang Xin was on the verge of tears. After a second, he regained his composure and looked over his subordinates.

He spoke with a low voice, "This time, I, Kong Shang Xin, have dragged everyone down! The reason for everything that is happening now is because I have acted on my own which has resulted in these serious consequences. I have caused all of you to be caught in this desperate situation!"

"Sir, please don't talk like that. We shall fight and die together. We are all people of Jian Hu and view death as it is."

"Thank you for your understanding. If there is another life, I, Kong Shang Xin, hope we will be able to fight together in Jiang Hu and take over the world. In the next life, we will use all of our power to unite it!"

Kong Shang Xin's voice grew more solemn. This Sad Saber King had a premonition that this was where his life was going to end. With every word, he mustered up all of his emotions and spoke with deep sincerity.

"Second brother! It is not as if we don't stand a chance. Why must you talk so pessimistically?" Yin Wu Fa felt as though his chest was about to explode with pressure as he glared at him and spoke angrily.

"Listen to me!" Kong Shang Xin smiled and walked in front of Yin Wu Fa; he gently patted his shoulder and said, "Third brother, if you could return to Great Zhao this time, don't think about revenge."

Then he turned his head and bowed deeply to the six subordinates.

"Sir! What are you doing?" The Command Horse Rider that had survived knelt to the ground and cried tearfully, "All of us brothers will die together! Sir, why… why…" When he got to these words, his voice choked and was unable to finish his sentence.

"No! You three! There is a great chance of you all not getting injured and successfully escaping." Kong Shang Xin said sincerely, "I am only asking for one thing from you; if possible… try to make sure that my third brother makes it out!"

Yin Wu Fa yelled in anger, "Second brother if you aren't leaving, how can I? When we became sworn brothers, we swore that we would die together and not leave anyone behind! Do you want me to become a heartless individual? Just as things are, it is alright if we all die together at the same place!"

"That is a given! If we must die, we shall die together!" Kong Shang Xin looked at Yin Wu Fa and thought: Third brother, I owe you my life. Therefore, even if I get chopped to pieces today, I will get you out safely.

He did not argue any further and only quietly looked at his martial brothers. After a moment, he said, "Remember what I said."

After he said these words, he calmly looked at the Command Horse Rider and said sincerely, "Old friend, we have known each other for a long time; this shall be my last command! It is also my last request in life!"

The Command Horse Rider knelt down; his whole body trembled as tears began to fall down like rain and nodded repeatedly.

Kong Shang Xin looked at Yin Wu Fa nostalgically and said softly, "Brothers, I would very much like to… ride through Jiang Hu with you once more…" He spoke in such a soft voice that his words were almost inaudible.

After he finished, he immediately turned and went out without turning back.

"Break out!" Yin Wu Fa roared. However, he looked back and inconspicuously pulled that Command Horse Ride to the side. He said hastily, "Old Sa if things go wrong… you must absolutely bring Second King level leader out! Please!"

Before old Sa could reply, Yin Wu Fa followed behind Kong Shang Xin and went out.

Old Sa was shocked. When they faced a moment which decided whether they would live or die, the two King level leaders who were famous for being ruthless had displayed an exemplary example of the word brotherhood!

I can sacrifice myself, but my brother must live!

Mud splattered everywhere as Kong Shang Xin and Yin Wu Fa both walked out from the dark chamber. Their broad shoulders made it look as if they had held up the passageway for each other! A sharp aura slowly emitted from these two like a tsunami within the narrow passageway!

Mud fell like rain as the realised that the water had risen past their knees.

Kong Shang Xin stood in the middle with his body upright. He closed his eyes and, without turning around, he said, "Brothers, take care!"