Great Han Arrow God

Chapter 289 Marching in the Snow
Liang Xiao experienced an arduous snow march, the brutality was only comparable to the last time he was chased and killed by King Hunxie for thousands of miles.

For seven or eight days in a row, he climbed the ice and lay in the snow with the mercenaries.During the day, he marched on skis and dragged a sled.Find a leeward place at night, dig a snow cave, and lie down with all your clothes on.Hungry, eat two pieces of jerky.Thirsty, eat two bites of snow.

There is no wine, no tents, no warm bonfires, only the admiring eyes of the mercenaries.

Everyone worked hard, but no one complained.

Liang Xiao couldn't cry out.Although he has a mind full of modern ideas, he is a soft-spoken person, and it is impossible for him to gain official status and live the life he wants just by thinking.He can only start from the bottom.He already feels very lucky to be able to get to this point in two years.He doesn't want to lose this opportunity, he wants to completely defeat Wu Dan and prove that he has the strength to protect Dawan.

The mercenaries can't complain.Firstly, this was voluntary. Only by beheading a few more Huns and getting more rewards can they make their families live more comfortably.Secondly, Liang Xiao, as the envoy of the great Han, can share weal and woe with them, but as a mercenary, what else can they say?
The hardest ones were the Alpha four.They have never suffered so much.However, they did not complain.Not only because they are Liang Xiao's maids, they have no right to complain, but also because they are female Amazon warriors, the dignity of their ancestors makes them have to bear all the pain.

Everyone gritted their teeth and moved forward.

As night fell, Liang Xiao and others stopped in their tracks.Surrounded by endless snowfields, there is no cover or cover, and there is not even a place to block the wind.Today, they will spend the night in the snow cave again.

Without ordering, everyone stopped and found a place to dig a hole.Li Shuyun and Linghu each led some people outside, Tu Niuer and Pang Shuo led eighteen mercenaries inside, Alpha four and Liang Xiao were in the innermost, forming a triple circular formation with Liang Xiao at the center.

With the help of Pang Shuo and others, Alpha and Beta dug three snow caves.The top of the snow cave remains intact, and the interior is connected to each other, just like a cave dwelling.The snow cave is not big, and after laying out the leather mattress, it can only accommodate one or two people curled up to lie down.

Although there was no wind, even though he did not take off any of his thick leather jackets, it was still very cold in the snow cave.There was no firewood on the grassland, so they had to rely on their bodies to carry it.After leaving the mountain, they marched for three days, and seventeen mercenaries froze to death.Every time he saw the frozen smiles on those people's faces, Liang Xiao felt that he was too cruel. For his own merits, he pushed them to the abyss of death, and felt inexplicably grateful.

Fortunately, these people are all strong men he has carefully selected. If they were replaced by ordinary mercenaries, more people would freeze to death.

Stepping on the thick snow, accompanied by Li Shuyun and Linghu, Liang Xiao carefully checked the physical condition of each mercenary.Not a few people had frostbitten hands and feet, and quite a few people had frostbitten faces, with two large black and purple spots on their cheeks, which probably won't disappear in this lifetime.

Seeing Liang Xiao patrolling the camp, the mercenaries cheered up and stood up to salute.Liang Xiao comforted each other and checked them one by one.After the inspection, Liang Xiao sat cross-legged when he returned to his own snow cave.

"Master, jerky." Sigma stretched out his hand from the snow cave next to him, and handed over a piece of jerky.

Looking at the jerky, Liang Xiao felt a sharp pain in his mouth.These jerky meats are hardened by the cold, and they taste like wood when they are bitten. When they are swallowed, they often smell like blood.The mouth was worn out, and every time I ate, it hurt like being tortured, and I spit and blood.

However, it is impossible not to eat in this weather, maybe tomorrow morning, he will sleep forever in this ice and snow with that smile on his face.

Liang Xiao stretched out his hand to take the jerky, and unexpectedly found that the jerky was very soft, and it was still warm in his hands.

"How did you do it?"

"Hee hee, put it close to your body, it can be warm and soft." Sigma retracted her head, and her laughter could be heard across the snow cave. "Master, it smells like sweat, don't blame me."

Liang Xiao sniffed it with his nose, and there was indeed a smell of sweat.Although Sigma is still a virgin, she still smells of sweat after not taking a bath for ten days.However, compared to the cold and hard jerky, although this jerky smells a bit sweaty, it is soft and warm, making it a delicacy.

"Thank you for your hard work." Liang Xiao took a bite of the jerky and chewed it slowly. "How did you come up with that?"

"Those mercenaries taught them. That's what they all do." Sigma poked his head out again, showing a flushed little face. "Is it smelly?"

"Where did you put it?" Liang Xiao frowned deliberately. "Did you put it in your shoe?"

"No, no, I put it on my chest." Sigma said hastily, and patted his chest while speaking.

Liang Xiao laughed and blinked. "No wonder, it smells like milk."

"No, I haven't..." Sigma suddenly realized that Liang Xiao was teasing her, blushed immediately, retreated quickly, and giggled again.Alpha, who lived with her, clung to her ear and muttered a few words, and the two laughed together and huddled together.

Liang Xiao smiled, finished eating the jerky, picked some snow from the wall of the snow cave, and put it in his mouth. After the snow melted and warmed in his mouth, he slowly swallowed it.This is also learned from the mercenaries.If the snow is swallowed directly into the stomach, the internal organs will catch cold.

After eating the jerky and drinking the snow water, Liang Xiao sat cross-legged and began to adjust his breath.

After learning archery for two years, he has long known that meditation can generate heat, and he has taught others, but there are very few people who can persist in meditation like him.Just like he taught many people to practice archery, but there are only a handful of people who can really persist for a long time.For now, only Sigma can hold on every day.

So the fastest progress in archery is only Sigma.She has completed foundation building in a hundred days, and now she can draw a bow weighing eighty catties, shoot sixty steps, and hit seven or eight out of ten.It won't be long before she can exchange for a crossbow.

Liang Xiao quickly entered the state of meditation, everything around him became quiet, and the sound of breathing and heartbeat gradually became clear in his ears.The wind blows snow particles, rustling as they roll across the snow layer overhead.

-

Sitting on the sled, Wu Dan watched helplessly as a knight slowly fell off his horse, fell headfirst into the snow, and never got up again.

There was no expression on his face.He is used to this scene.

Following the advice of the wizard, he led a battalion of more than a thousand personal guards, abandoned the other soldiers, took away the remaining luggage, and hurried all the way regardless of the exhaustion of the troops and horses.After only two days of walking, one-third of the people fell behind, and the rest were exhausted. They often fell off their horses and died by the side of the road while walking.

At the beginning, every time he saw someone fall down, Wu Dan's heart felt like a knife was piercing him.These personal guards are all his own cronies, the power he has accumulated over the years, whether it is loyalty or strength, they are all one in a hundred.When Liang Xiao attacked the camp, it was they who risked their lives to block Liang Xiao and let him escape from death.

They did not fall on the battlefield, but died in the snowstorm.

However, when more people fell down, the pain in Wu Dan's heart gradually weakened.As if he was used to seeing it, his emotions no longer fluctuated in the slightest, as if he was watching the death of a stranger who had nothing to do with him.

As night fell, the team slowly stopped, and Iul, the commander of the Guards Battalion, came over on a camel.He leaned down on the camel's back and carefully looked at Wu Dan's face.

"My lord, are you okay?"

Wu Dan nodded, showing a rare smile.Eul is his confidant and his childhood playmate.Although the two are not brothers, they are closer than brothers.

"I'm fine. How many more?"

"There are still more than 600. There are more than 30 people left behind today. When I wake up tomorrow morning, I don't know how many will be missing. Your Majesty..." Yiul's face was gloomy, and he lowered his voice. "My lord, why do you listen to the wizard? In this weather, you should rest on the spot and conserve your strength."

Wu Dan lowered his face and was about to speak when the wizard walked over on the snow.Although the cold wind was biting, she was still barefoot, and it was not obvious that she was afraid of the cold.Wu Dan frowned, and gave Yiwuer a wink, signaling him not to speak, stood up by himself, stroked his chest and saluted.

"Great wizard?"

"We can't stop." The wizard said sharply: "We haven't escaped from the shadow of the devil yet, we must continue on our way."

Wu Dan was taken aback, and was about to speak when Yiwuer said first, "It's dark, how can we go? The wind is so cold at night that it can blow off people's hands and feet. If we don't find a place to rest, how many people will we die?"

"It doesn't matter how many people die, but the king cannot die." The wizard narrowed his eyes and stared at Eul. "Do you dare to defy the oracle?"

Eul blushed, furious. "The oracle, the oracle, is the oracle telling us to die? We are all dead, even if the king is still alive, can he control the tribe of King Hunxie by himself? If there are no men and horses, we will die if we go back."

"You despise the oracle, and you will be punished by the gods. Your Majesty, if you listen to his bewitching and disobey the oracle, the gods will abandon you again."

Wu Dan hesitated.The wizard glanced at him, turned and left.Eul stared at the wizard's back, panting heavily.He and Wu Dan exchanged a look, but found that Wu Dan's eyes were empty, like a dead person.

"My lord, what's the matter with you?"

Wu Dan didn't move.Yiwuer yelled twice, and Wu Dan just woke up like a dream, and turned to look west, with frightened eyes. "I... feel the danger. Eul, we must listen to the great wizard and continue on our way."

Iul's eyes widened, and he looked viciously at the silent Wu Dan, his thick lips moved, and he spit out a mouthful of bloody saliva. "Your Majesty, you are frightened." After speaking, he flicked the whip in his hand and shouted loudly, "Stop—rest on the spot!"

The north wind stopped for a while, and then it blew harder, and the Huns cursed and scattered in all directions, looking for a place to camp.

The wizard had a sullen face, raised his head to look at the dark night sky, opened his arms, and prayed in a low voice. "God, please don't abandon us."

A few miles away, Liang Xiao in the snow cave suddenly opened his eyes.
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(End of this chapter)