Plane Supermarket Plane 1: Da Liang Dynasty C29
Before Zhao Changsheng, the darkness was so thick that he couldn’t even see his own hand in front of his face. The sounds of people panting beside him seemed to be right next to his ears. He didn’t dare to get out and clung to the stone wall. But he also knew that if they didn’t push forward, they would only be trapped in here.
What in the world were these smoky tendrils?
Had a real fire broken out, or was it some kind of sorcery at work?
If it was sorcery, why force them out before making a move?
Zhao Changsheng wanted to shout, but as he opened his mouth, the smoke invaded his nostrils and mouth, making him cough uncontrollably. He could only watch helplessly as the people behind him rushed out one by one, only to fall one by one.
The chaos in the tunnel provided the perfect opportunity for the “hunters” outside.
The smoke once again veiled their eyes.
By the time they emerged from the smoke and saw the bodies lying across the ground, it was already too late.
Zhao Changsheng grabbed hold of a person who ran past him from behind. He didn’t know who it was, but he understood that at this moment, every hand they could grab counted.
“Who’s pulling me?” The person who had been grabbed growled in a hoarse voice.
Zhao Changsheng suppressed his urge to cough and raised his voice desperately, “It’s me!”
The person who was grabbed jumped in surprise, “Dawang? What are you doing here? Why haven’t you gone out? It’s all smoke inside. I really don’t know which son of a dog started the fire!”
Zhao Changsheng impatiently listened to the man’s ramblings about things everyone already knew. But he found himself unable to speak, gripping the person’s arm tightly, refusing to let him go outside.
The person being held was starting to get impatient and shouted, “Dawang, we can’t stay here for long. Let’s get out first!”
Zhao Changsheng continued to grab the man’s arm and beckoned him to lean in, whispering by his ear, “There’s a trap outside!”
“A trap?” The person being held looked utterly confused.
Zhao Changsheng felt a desire to cough and curse welling up within him.
Originally, he was just a centurion , and being a centurion sounded good. He had command over a dozen men. But in reality, he was nothing more than a messenger. Above him was a captain, and that captain was stubborn, power-hungry, uneducated, and always spew profanities.
This man had nothing more than good luck, having served in the military longer than Zhao Changsheng. He once saved a higher-ranking officer, but in terms of real skills and knowledge, how could he compare to Zhao Changsheng himself?
Zhao Changsheng had grown accustomed to his arrogant and overbearing behavior, and that resentment continued to build within him.
‘Why can he do it, and I can’t?’
But his talents never earned the captain’s recognition, and he had never risen from centurion to captain.
In these chaotic times, Zhao Changsheng started to harbor thoughts of carving out his own path.
In a world filled with chaos, everyone aspired to become a dragon, not a mere insect.
During times of disorder, heroes emerge. Who’s to say he couldn’t be that hero?
He killed that despised captain and refused to let his soldiers return to their homes. He knew in his heart that if he allowed them to leave, they would never come back. Only by keeping them in this remote, impoverished place could they be forced to work together to put food on the table, thus forming a united front.
With determination in his heart, Zhao Changsheng stood on a stone pillar, suppressing his discomfort with all his might, and roared, “The people from down the mountain are attacking! This smoke is their doing! Anyone who goes out will be shot dead with a single arrow! Everyone, stop! I said, stop right there!”
This time, what he said finally had an impact.
Those who were about to step out of the smoke immediately stopped on their steps.
Even though they couldn’t see each other, they quickly regained their composure and moved towards the direction where Zhao Changsheng stood.
At that very moment, the smoke began to dissipate slowly, finally allowing them to see more than just the reach of their hands.
Zhao Changsheng took a deep breath and said, “There can’t be too many of them, or they wouldn’t resort to such tactics to force us out!”
At that moment, someone asked, “Dawang, if we don’t go out, won’t they have the upper hand?”
Zhao Changsheng was itching to call the person a blockhead, and he continued to shout, “If we don’t go out, where will the food come from? Our provisions are long gone! They have houses down the mountain. They will bring us food!”
“This is a siege! Without reinforcements, we’ll have to fight our way out!”
The bandits were even more confused, “Dawang, didn’t you just say we shouldn’t go out?”
Zhao Changsheng replied, “I told you not to go out alone! If dozens of us charge out together, we’ll have a chance to survive!”
The bandits fell silent. This time, they understood.
Someone whispered, “Who’s going to lead the charge?”
“Of course, it’s whoever used to lead the charge before, still leading the way now.”
“The ones who used to lead the charge are long gone!”
Those individuals were not soldiers. They were referred to as military servants, but in truth, they were military slaves. They carried the military banners during marches and charged at the forefront during battles. The soldiers behind them would use whips to drive them forward. They had no choice but to run ahead, using their own flesh and blood to withstand the enemy’s initial attacks.
When Zhao Changsheng established his own power, these military servants either died or fled. Even if they didn’t die or escape, they ended up as meat in their mouth.
Those left behind are the “Uncle Soldier” in the mouth of the common people.
When no one was in charge, they would kick down a common family’s door, demanding tribute in the form of sons and daughters. Their sons would become military servants, and their daughters would be left to be used at will. They were also required to provide money and supplies.
In the past, Zhao Changsheng had thought this was a great arrangement. These military men had long been accustomed to the life he provided, and after following him for a while, they couldn’t go anywhere else.
Nowadays, he wished he could give each of these people a good beating to clear their minds.
“Now, if we don’t charge, are we just going to wait here to die?!” Zhao Changsheng shouted.
The crowd grew restless, “No way! I can’t die here!”
“Charge ahead! What are we waiting for here?!”
“There can’t be many people outside. what’s there to be afraid of?”
But no matter how they shouted and urged, no one dared to come out.
Zhao Changsheng turned to his confidant standing beside him. Before he became “Dawang,” this man had served as his personal guard. While nurturing a close aide wasn’t easy, he had no other choice but to send this man to his fate.
“Feng Xiang!” Zhao Changsheng called, “You choose the men!”
Feng Xiang clasped his fists and replied, “Yes, Dawang!”
Feng Xiang looked around, pointing out all the people around him. He was a burly man, not particularly sharp-witted, but incredibly loyal. After designating the team, he raised his long knife and declared, “Follow me as we charge out! If anyone dares to retreat, my blade won’t discriminate!”
Zhao Changsheng wasn’t entirely devoid of followers either. Although those who were chosen were far from willing, none of them tried to escape.
“Feng Xiang!” Zhao Changsheng called out to Feng Xiang, who was leading the charge at the forefront. “Be careful!”
Feng Xiang smiled and shook his head as he rushed ahead of Zhao Changsheng. “Dawang, don’t you worry! I’ve got my life money! I still need to get a wife and have some child in the future!”
Zhao Changsheng was momentarily taken aback. Before he could say another word, Feng Xiang had already led the group, roaring loudly, and charged out of the cave.
The smoke and fog dissipated—
The people inside the cave finally saw the scene outside. The ground was covered with bodies on top of each other. In what had been a small area turned into a sea of death and a mountain of corpses. Those who had rushed out couldn’t even catch a glimpse of the faces of those who had taken their lives.
Feng Xiang led more than a hundred people as they charged outside. Zhao Changsheng, who was at the rear, shouted at those who hadn’t made it out, “Charge as well! All together, or none of us will make it out alive!”
The people who remained looked towards Zhao Changsheng, and someone asked, “Dawang, we don’t have any weapons, so why don’t you lead the charge?”
“Dawang, we are all mortals, with frail flesh and blood bodies. Unlike you, who seems to have divine protection. If you lead the way, we might stand a chance to survive.”
Zhao Changsheng stood frozen in place.
All eyes were on him. Their gazes transformed from numbness to indifference, then into fervor.
“Yes! Our lord has divine powers! Lead us in the charge, just like Feng Ge at the forefront!”
“Dawang, we, your brothers, have followed you all along because we believe in your divine protection!”
Their faces broke into smiles. Zhao Changsheng could even make out the yellow teeth inside their mouths.
Just at that moment, a series of intense sounds suddenly echoed from outside the cave, and everyone turned to look in the direction of the noise.
The unrelenting loud noise was something they couldn’t quite identify, but just hearing it sent shivers down their spines.
Each sound felt like something striking them directly.
The people who had just charged outside all fell in response to the thunderous noises. By the time the loud sound subsided, not a single person remained standing outside the cave.
What hung in the air was a fine mist of blood that seemed to be nonexistent.
Inside the cave, there was an eerie silence.
Zhao Changsheng’s body trembled uncontrollably. He had a premonition of what was coming.
But he had no way of escaping, and there was no other Feng Xiang to be found.
“Dawang!”
“Dawang, lead us in the charge!”
All eyes were fixed on him, and those fanatical gazes bore down on him like countless hands reaching out to seize him. He couldn’t evade them, and for a moment, he found himself confused. Why did he rebel? Why had he sought to establish his own power?
If he hadn’t killed the captain, hadn’t gone up the mountain, but had instead led his people southward at that time, how different would things have turned out?
But he didn’t regret, nor did he have time for regrets.
Zhao Changsheng recalled his ambitions. His passionate determination when he had killed the captain, and his unshakeable belief that he would one day stand at the summit.
Zhao Changsheng succumbed to his hazy daydreams and finally jumped off the stone pillar. Just like everyone else present, he beamed with fervent enthusiasm and exclaimed, “My sons! Follow me!”
“Charge!”
“Break through! Leave none of them standing!”
“Charge out with our lord!”
As they stepped out of the mountain cave, they were met with an incessant rain of arrows. Strangely, Zhao Changsheng at the forefront remained standing without being struck. It was as if he had divine assistance. The arrows only fell on the ground after he had passed.
Zhao Changsheng yelled crazily, “I am the one chosen by destiny! The heavens and gods aid me! I, Zhao Changsheng, am invincible! I can do anything!”
He laughed as he beckoned those standing still and shouted, “Follow me!”
Those who remained upright bore witness to the miracle unfolding in Zhao Changsheng. Their eyes were filled with tears. “We are willing to follow Dawang!”
Zhao Changsheng finally reached the hill. Finally, he could see a man standing atop it.
The sun fell on the man’s face. Zhao Changsheng did not notice the strange hair and attire of the other. He simply felt a moment of confusion. Could this seemingly young lad be the one set on slaughtering them all?
This young man appeared to be living a good life. He had clean clothes and a healthy physique.
The lad seemed to be brimming with confidence, much like how he used to be in his own youth.
When he was young, he had always thought he could go anywhere, do anything.
Ye Zhou also gazed at Zhao Changsheng. Although he had never seen him in person, he had heard of Zhao’s distinctive features from Sun Hao. A height of around 1.7 meters, a stout build, and a red mole near the corner of his mouth, resembling a formidable general.
It was Ye Zou who allowed Zou Ming to spare his life. Not out of kindness and not because he couldn’t give the order to kill.
He was the owner of the supermarket, while the other was the leader of the bandits.
They both had responsibilities to their subordinates.
This was their battlefield.
Ye Zhou pursed his lips and raised his gun towards Zhao Changsheng, who had reached the shooting range.
9-10 more chapters before a new plane ~~
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