Chapter 34: Reality and Illusion
Madam Cao tried the sixth key before she managed to pry open the iron cell door: "Come out quickly, come out quickly."
The people imprisoned inside had become frightened birds. When they saw the stick in his hand, they all shrank back in fear.
The head of the cell, an old man in his sixties, tremblingly bowed and said, "Young General, we are just the Long Arm Division captured by the rebels. We are not following them to rebel. Young General, you must report this to Lord Gu."
Madam Cao quickly put the iron rod behind her back and said, "My master knows that there is still something I need your help with."
So on this inconspicuous little boat, a group of barefoot and disheveled long-arm warriors supported each other and filed out of the cage, jumped into the sea, and swam out in all directions. The sound of their footsteps shook the deck, and the guard was about to wake up with a groan when he was hit in the face with a club.
After finishing the job, Madam Cao put her hands on her hips and looked down at the guard. She found it unbelievable - when a handsome man faints, he must be pitiful like a jade mountain, but when an ugly man faints, why does he roll his eyes to his head?
He shook his head and said, "It's unreasonable."
Then he pinched the man's nose and dragged him into the cage, locked the cage with a "click", and the mission was accomplished. He then ran away.
At this time, in the cabin of the main ship, Gu Yun, who was accompanied by only two young men, stood calmly with his hands behind his back, looking at the group of armored private soldiers in front of him with a half-smile.
The temperament of a person who is fifteen or sixteen years old and just starting out will be very different from that after he has experienced the hardships of fighting on the battlefield. He may not be recognizable at first glance, but as long as his appearance is not disfigured, his facial features will not change much.
Huang Qiao was filled with doubt when he heard Gu Yun speak. He stared at him carefully for a long while, then suddenly took a breath and took a step back: "You, you are..."
Gu Yun held the Japanese samurai sword that he had just casually snatched in his hand, weighed it carelessly, tied the blindfold on his loose hair, and smiled: "It's rare, it seems that Admiral Huang recognized me."
Huang Qiaofang had just been showing off his dignity and respect for others, but in the blink of an eye, he began to tremble uncontrollably as if possessed by a demon: "Gu, Gu..."
Gu Yun responded: "Well, Gu Yun, long time no see."
Before he finished speaking, there was a "clang" sound. It turned out that one of the private soldiers could not hold the weapon in his hand and dropped it in fear. The cabin was silent except for the woman in white playing the piano in the corner, who seemed to have heard nothing. There was not a single sound in her piano. The song "Fishermen's Song at Dusk" from the south of the Yangtze River sounded particularly harsh in such an occasion.
"Impossible!" blurted out the middle-aged man who had just spoken out, "How could the Marquis of Anding be suppressing bandits in the northwest..."
"You need to read more when you rebel," Gu Yun looked at him and said earnestly, "There was no 'eagle' raised in the East China Sea before, but you must have heard of it, right?"
Before he finished speaking, there was a scream outside the cabin. Someone suddenly raised a lantern and saw two or three ghostly black shadows passing by the cabin at a very fast speed. They made contact with the main ship and fled, killing everyone who landed on it.
"Xuan Ying! It's Xuan Ying!"
"No... Impossible! Shut up!" Huang Qiao shouted, "How could there be a Black Iron Camp in the East China Sea? How could there be a Marquis of Anding? Impossible! Shoot! Shoot down these pretenders with white rainbow arrows!"
"My Lord, be careful!"
A black eagle flew over his head, and arrows rained down on him. Those who tried to activate the White Rainbow Arrow were chased by the arrows and fled in panic.
There was chaos all around, but the girl playing the piano in the corner stood still. She stretched out her hand and plucked the strings, and the crackling sound turned into an ambush from all sides, which was particularly appropriate for the scene.
Huang Qiao's eyes widened: "What can Gu Yun do here? I don't believe he can bring the Black Iron Camp far away in the desert with him! Kill him and see who the dog emperor can rely on? Go!"
A group of soldiers drew their weapons and stared murderously at the three people surrounded in the middle.
Fatty Ge was stunned for a moment, and under the cover of the music, he secretly pulled Chang Geng and said, "Brother, you are right! What should we do?"
Before Chang Geng could reply, Gu Yun had already knocked on Fatty Ge's sparsely haired forehead and said with a frank smile, "Yes, I only have these few Black Eagle guards around me. Admiral Huang is brave and wise, well said!"
Fatty Ge blinked his eyes and said, "Brother, that's not right. The Marquis is very confident."
Chang Geng: “…”
A row of soldiers with their weapons drawn took a step forward and I took a step back, forming a wave shape, with the tide rising and falling, and no one dared to move forward.
Fatty Ge was completely dizzy, thinking: "Does he have anyone?"
Although Chang Geng did not dare to boast about his intelligence, he usually thought more than Ge Pangxiao. Unexpectedly, he was just as confused as Ge Pangxiao at this moment. He thought: "Is he deaf or not?"
General Gu, who was puzzling, walked towards Huang Qiao with a smile like a maze of gossip, completely ignoring the soldiers advancing and retreating around him: "If I remember correctly, Admiral Huang's teacher is Chang Zhilu, who seems to be the great uncle of King Wei? How come, when the previous emperor passed away, King Wei couldn't use the imperial guards, and now he wants to go by water?"
Chang Geng suddenly remembered that when Gu Yun brought him back to the capital, he brought half of the Black Iron Camp with him, leaving the Black Iron Camp outside the capital and heading towards the capital. When the two of them hurried to the palace, they met the King of Wei and the Crown Prince - now the Emperor - who were kneeling outside the Palace of the Late Emperor. Gu Yun even stopped to say hello.
Thinking about it now, that greeting was extremely meaningful.
So the King of Wei wanted to rebel at that time, but was suppressed by Gu Yun who was driven back to the capital?
When Huang Qiao heard this, he was struck by lightning and immediately thought that his conspiracy had been exposed.
Was it that the Emperor had already noticed the Prince of Wei's treason, that something had happened in the capital, or that there was a traitor among the people in Liangjiang? It didn't matter anymore. He only knew that now that Gu Yun was here, he was doomed.
Of course, Huang Qiao would never have guessed that Gu Yun was just lying because he had a vague impression of the masters of some generals in the court.
Fatty Ge was stunned and thought: "What? It turns out that the Marquis knew that the King of Wei was going to rebel!"
Chang Geng placed his hand on the sword at his waist.
Huang Qiao knew that his death was imminent, so he had no choice but to fight. He became terrified and immediately roared, rushing towards Gu Yun with a ferocious face.
In the corner of the cabin, several iron golems that were originally used for decoration roared at the same time, growling and raising their weapons.
Chang Geng suddenly passed behind Gu Yun, blocked Huang Qiao's sword before Gu Yun could make a move, and said in a deep voice: "I will teach you your martial arts skills."
The commander had already led the way, and no matter how scared the soldiers behind him were, they could not retreat. They immediately rushed forward and rushed into the small cabin.
Fat Ge hurriedly felt around his body, but couldn't find anything that could save his life, so he quickly followed Gu Yun.
Gu Yun held the Japanese sword horizontally, and with the narrow blade horizontally, he casually pushed away a knife that was slashing towards him, and said with a smile: "Hush, didn't you hear it?"
His skill in pretending to be a ghost was even more amazing than his real kung fu, and everyone couldn't help but listen attentively.
The long sword in Chang Geng's hand passed through Huang Qiao's blade, making a sharp sound. With a "buzz", the young man kicked Huang Qiao hard in the waist with an expressionless face. Huang Qiao screamed and fell onto the foot of an iron puppet.
The iron monster didn't distinguish between friend and foe and would chop anyone it saw. Huang Qiao had to hide in a very awkward position.
There was the sound of a piano in the cabin - I don't know what the woman was thinking, she changed from being surrounded by enemies to seeking the harem.
The waves outside were faintly visible, and a black eagle was whizzing by. Gradually, everyone's face changed.
They heard shouts, whistles, and drums!
It was as if thousands of troops were surrounding us from all directions.
Huang Qiao was horrified. At that moment, he couldn't help but think of the terrible legend of the Black Iron Camp -
Back then, outside the northern border, the sky was filled with white winds and the endless man-eating grasslands. Wolves and sheep trembled together. The strong winds brought in the ghost soldiers. They were dressed in black iron armor, with white mist rolling behind them. They broke through the wind and frightened the gods and ghosts...
At this moment, suddenly, the lights of the large sea dragons in the dark night gradually dimmed, and more and more ships were cut off from power. There seemed to be an invincible monster in the dark, swallowing the sea dragons that had no power to fight back. The soldiers on the ship and the Japanese warriors were in chaos. Suddenly, a huge firework exploded in the air, lighting up half of the sky. Someone with sharp eyes screamed, "Black Iron Camp!"
In the fading light of the fireworks, a team of soldiers in heavy black armor seemed to have boarded the ship. The leader turned around with a gleam of lightning in his eyes.
Chang Geng suddenly stepped forward and slashed at Huang Qiao from above. Fatty Ge rolled his eyes, took out a pill-sized iron ball from his arms, and threw it at Huang Qiao's feet: "Brother, I'll give you a helping hand!"
The iron ball seemed to accelerate on its own, and rushed towards Huang Qiao's feet with a "swoosh". Admiral Huang's steps suddenly became disordered. He blocked a few swords at random, but was stabbed in the wrist by Chang Geng's sword. He fell to the ground with a scream.
The small iron ball flew directly out from the crowd, jumped out of the deck, whizzed up, and exploded in the air, causing a huge applause.
Chang Geng thrust the scabbard in his hand into the chest of the iron puppet that was approaching him. He twisted and pressed it, and the iron puppet choked and coughed a few times on the spot and stopped moving.
Chang Geng: "Father, the leader of the bandits has been captured."
Gu Yun laughed and said, "The leader of the thieves is still in the court."
After saying this, he walked out of the cabin as if no one was around, and no one dared to stop him.
A black eagle was circling on the deck. Gu Yun took out a palm-sized iron plate from his arms and threw it up. A black eagle caught it with his hands. Standing on the tall mast, he took down the bronze roar on the sea dragon and said loudly: "The leader of the rebels has been captured. Here is the black iron tiger talisman. If there are any Jiangnan navy officers and soldiers who see this order, they will abandon the dark and join the light. The past will be forgiven. Those who disobey the order will be executed on the spot!"
The Black Iron Tiger Talisman was bestowed by Emperor Wu to Marquis Anding. It can command the seven major military branches in the world in times of crisis. There are three in total, one in Gu Yun's hand, one in the custody of the court, and one in the hands of the emperor.
More than thirty imprisoned long-arm divisions cut off most of the sea dragon's power in the water, and no one could contact each other. More than half of the private soldiers in the rebels were the navy brought by Huang Qiao, and a small number were recruited miscellaneous troops. Upon hearing Xuan Ying's call, they immediately became a mess. Some insisted on resisting stubbornly, some turned against them on the spot, and more were at a loss. They were attacked by the frightened Japanese and inexplicably fought with their own people.
The lights on the main ship were turned on, and Chang Geng pushed out the tied-up Huang Qiao. The rebels on the main ship saw that the situation was hopeless and dropped their weapons one after another.
The heartless musician girl was still playing the piano, changing countless songs, and she played them all very well.
Gu Yun's face looked calm in the dim light. Chang Geng looked at him in confusion. He thought that he must have seen many such scenes before, but he couldn't help wondering where those black iron soldiers came from.
Two or three Black Eagles are easy to hide, but can the Black Iron Soldiers also hide?
Besides, how did he bring the Black Iron Soldiers from the northwest desert?
Was he pretending to be deaf or not just now?
For a moment, even Chang Geng couldn't help but feel that Gu Yun had known for a long time that the King of Wei had set his sights on the East China Sea Navy, and was just waiting for them to get their ships and guns ready so that he could take them all in one fell swoop.
A familiar rumbling sound was heard in the distance. Yao Zhen finally mobilized the Jiangnan navy. A giant dragon went out to sea, and a long kite had already appeared in the sky.
Gu Yun communicated with the black eagle in the sky with simple hand gestures. A black eagle carrying a black iron tiger talisman flew up to Changyuan and took over the navy brought by Yao Zhen.
Huang Qiao closed his eyes tightly - the game was over.
The endless music finally stopped. The female musician in white walked out of the cabin calmly with her zither in her arms and glanced at Huang Qiao who was tied up.
Huang Qiao stared at her fiercely and hissed, "Chen Qingxu, are you going to betray me too?"
Chen Qingxu looked at him in confusion and walked past him expressionlessly. Her face was like a painted skin. She had no expression when she toasted, played the piano, heard about fighting, and was still expressionless when questioned.
She walked slowly in front of Gu Yun and said, "My Lord."
Gu Yun quickly suppressed his previous arrogance: "Thank you for your help, young lady. I wonder if you and Mr. Chen Zhuo are..."
Chen Zhuo is the old miracle doctor who prescribed medicine for him many years ago.
"That's my grandfather," Chen Qingxu said meaningfully, "The wind is strong on the sea, it's better for you to sit in the cabin."
Gu Yun heard that she was here to remind him of the headache-inducing side effect of the medicine, so he smiled slightly and said nothing.
Seeing that he didn't want to listen, Chen Qingxu didn't waste any words and just bowed his head and said, "May the prosperous world be peaceful and prosperous, and may you all live a long life."
Gu Yun said again: "Thank you."
Chen Qingxu turned around and got off the boat. Perhaps she was tired from playing the piano, and she didn't even look at the rebels who were fighting in a mess.
Fat Ge: "Hey, there were a lot of people fighting over there on the ropeway, why did that sister leave like that?"
Gu Yun frowned and was about to call her when he saw a Japanese man rushing out of the cable car and shooting a hidden arrow at her.
The black eagle in the high place immediately shot an arrow over there, and the Japanese man fell into the sea. Chen Qingxu moved lightly, as if she was dancing to the rhythm of the swaying cableway. The Japanese man's hidden arrow hit the cableway with a "bang" and passed by her. She didn't even raise her eyes, and still floated away like a female ghost.
Fatty Ge: "..."
As expected, all the freaks in the world come from Linyuan Pavilion.
When the giant kite and the dragon arrived, the rebels had already been in chaos. The black eagle took care of the prisoners on the main ship, and the regular army began to clean up the mess.
A black-armored soldier then rushed onto the main ship, his mask flipped up, and Chang Geng was shocked to find that this man was actually Master Liao Ran.
It seemed that Master Liaoran was not as familiar with heavy armor as the northern barbarians who raided the town of Yanhui. Although he was extremely powerful with the help of machinery, he walked with his legs turned sideways and had poor power control while running. He jumped up and down like a brave and clumsy big rabbit. He barely managed to stand still by grabbing the mast and almost fell to his knees.
Looking closely, the "black armor" on his body was actually a little faded, revealing the pale metallic color inside, and there was an intoxicating fishy smell on his body.
So the "Black Iron Camp" that just scared the rebels was exactly this bunch of bastards!
Where did the shouting and killing sound come from? Is it ventriloquism?
Chang Geng gritted his teeth calmly, feeling that he had been tricked by Gu Yun again.
Monk Liaoran struggled to hold up two robotic arms and tried to sign a few words, but he couldn't control the robotic arms well. His ten fingers couldn't open apart, and they trembled like seaweed. No one could understand.
Sweat broke out on his forehead as he gesticulated, and he struggled hard in the heavy armor.
Fatty Ge said blankly, "My Lord, the Master seems to have urgent military information."
Gu Yun turned his head slightly to take a look and said, "It's okay, that idiot can't come out, you help him remove his armor from the outside."
Fatty Ge: "..."
The monk was trapped in the heavy armor and looked at him innocently. Fatty Ge took a breath and said, "Master, aren't you proficient in all kinds of steel armor lighters?"
The monk couldn't say it or gesture, so he used his unusually lively eyes to try to convey a message: proficiency does not mean knowing how to wear it, and monks are not meant to go to the battlefield.
Fatty Ge and Chang Geng had no choice but to dismantle the heavy armor from the outside. Master Liangran rolled out of the heavy armor, and without having time to tidy up his appearance, he walked in front of Gu Yun and said solemnly: "General, the Jiangnan navy has arrived, and Lord Yao is on the kite. In any case, you should go to the cabin and rest first."
Chang Geng was stunned, sensing something from these words, and suddenly turned his head to look at Gu Yun who acted as if nothing had happened.
Gu Yun did not insist, but responded, playing with the Japanese sword he had confiscated halfway and slowly walked back, and Chang Geng hurriedly followed. At this moment, the snake-like Japanese man quietly came closer along the shadows on the deck, and the silk on his wrist revealed a faint light.
The snake man showed a twisted smile, and when he saw that Gu Yun was about to enter the cabin, his pair of iron cuffs attacked at the same time, and six silk threads shot towards Gu Yun.
The black eagle roared down.
Chang Geng was startled and instinctively rushed forward to protect him, but the sea breeze from the sharp weapon had already reached Gu Yun first.
He stretched out his hand to embrace Chang Geng, and took a few wrong steps with him. The Dongying sword in his hand bounced away, and three silk threads hit the sword at the same time, breaking it into three pieces. Gu Yun turned his hand and swung his robe sleeves, and rolled out swiftly holding Chang Geng. The silk threads in his sleeves broke the black cloth that tied his hair, and the snake man was shot dead by an arrow from the black eagle on high.
Gu Yun didn't take this little episode seriously. He patted Chang Geng and said indifferently, "It's just a fish that slipped through the net. It's okay."
After saying that, he supported Chang Geng's shoulder and tried to stand up, but he stumbled.
Chang Geng caught him with a terrified look on his face, and accidentally touched his back, discovering that Gu Yun's clothes looked like they had just been fished out of the water - his back was already soaked with cold sweat.