BXBX NOVEL Chapter 158 - An Explosion
... He pulls out a shoot of bamboo and pulling a string a flare shoots out of it. However those on the ramparts, before even seeing the flare, just seeing the commander maneuver in such a way, turn around and quickly knock their arrows.
With their arrows knocked, the soldiers on the ramparts immediately release their arrows in a coordinated square shape, so that even if the enemy moved they would be hit at least a bit. As this occurs, the soldiers below draw their swords and immediately take a defensive formation with every other one of them in an attack position. Also due to their current spacing they are less likely to hit each other by accident.
The assassin still running forward ignores the arrow, and keeps his focus. Pulling out one short short and one dagger, the assassin closes in on his target. Although only a short distance from the princess, the person is covered in arrows yet not ceasing to move nor even bleeding.
Seeing this those and the ramparts and those below worry it is a technique rather than an actual person, in which case it will take a lot more effort to take down.. Thus the soldiers on the ground take one step at a time forward to advance closer.
With the assassin only a meter away, the soldiers in front on the ground thrust their swords forward, except the defensive ones, who maintain the defensive stance. Meanwhile the ones in the middle raise their swords up so as to make their opponent think twice about going over them. The ones on the sides each pointing in their own direction.
However the assassin dashes to the side and tries to go around them, and waiting a moment before taking action the soldiers then dash forward and impale the assassin before leaping back. Then using their chi they pull the swords back to them.
With his torso severed from his body, the assassin still crawls towards his target with extreme speed, but seeing no guts but wires and other circuitry, they realize why their attacks did not work as well as normal. Well, realize to an extent, considering none of them are very well versed in such technology.
Either way, as the top half is crawling with its bottom half dragging along behind it, the commander swiftly appears before it and shoves his sword through its head and into the ground before leaving it there. This because he does not know if it will keep moving but seeing a few darts flying towards the princess, he immediately sends his chi at the princess to lifter her into the air.
Barely saving the princess, Ai Lan then floats in mid air while still flying upward from the force the commander used and figuring there must be a reason the commander did such a thing to her. But looking down she immediately sees the reason as three darts swiftly pass where she was just standing. Then understanding she thinks to herself. \'I feel that I should reward the commander some how, he has already saved me a few times. Then again he is just doing his job so maybe just thanking him should be fine?\'
With such thoughts she maneuvers her body in mid air and then dropping back to the ground, she lands gracefully on the ground out of the firing line of the robot assassin. Then walking forward, she says. "Commander, I just want to say ... *BOOOM"
The princess is blown back before she can finish and the soldiers on the ground are either dead or seriously injured due to the explosion, which came from the robot the moment she came into range. The ground around it so hot that if it were just a little hotter it would be flowing like Basaltic magma around the first 50 meters of the explosion. (For those who did not take geology, it is the hottest kind of magma currently known that flows fastest and is over 1000 degrees Celsius.)
Many minutes later, Ai Lan hears a muffled voice asking. "Princess, princess, are you alright?"
Hearing this she sits up and looking around all she sees is destruction for a 500 meter radius, even part of the castle wall has been blown to bits. Seeing this, she wonders. \'Did anyone live, how am I alive? Father! Is he okay.\' However quickly recalling the voice she looks to her right and sees a guard missing most of his right arm kneeling beside her with a worried yet relieved expression. Worried that she is harmed, but relieved that she is alive.
The soldier then asks. "Princess, are you alright? If so please take my hand, I must take you to your father."
Opening her mouth to respond, she realizes she cannot speak. However not having time to worry, she just nods in reply and gets up by herself. The soldier doing the same then quickly leads her to the castle. But before he can move too far, she grabs his shoulder.
Wondering why she is wasting time, he asks. "Is something wrong princess? We must hurry."
Although while he is speaking she pulls out a talisman from her storage bracelet, and seeing this he can only respond with. "Oh."
Swiftly activating it, she shifts the two of them to the throne room. Where the two quickly bow before the emperor, who is reading as if nothing happened. Regardless, the moment they bow he places down the information he received, and already knowing what has transpired, he snaps his fingers. Thus healing both Ai Lan, as well as the soldier before saying. "Soldier you did well, when you get a little stronger come to me, and I will make allow you a chance to become a royal guard. My little Ai, I am glad you are alright, it seems the pill did its job well."
Not surprised by her fathers calmness, as she knows how far his divine sense reaches to a degree anyway. She then looks up and asks with a sense of urgency. "Father, what is goin on? Are you alright? Also, are we in the middle of war? There was this odd assassin who came after me after all."
"Calm down my daughter. It is just a small newish world that has been made a few tens of thousands of years ago. They live similar to Yueliangs\' old world, filled with science and technology but little to no cultivators. Anyways, it will be fine, it just takes a little while to find and get rid of all their robots. Once we clean up here, I will send an envoy to take care of the situation. They are looking for another world to cultivate after all. So I figure why not move them to a near by planet and try to make them allies." Emperor Rin goes on to explain.
Ai Lan then comments. "As expected of father, you are very skilled and talented. I guess this means I should start paying out their death clauses to the families right?"
The Emperor smiles, and gets back to reading. Thus the two bow and leave the room, although Ai Lan starts thinking. \'I really need to find that commanders wife. She is likely the only other one who knows of what I am trying to figure out that I know of. But first, the payments to the families must be made.\' Thus once she leaves the throne room, her first destination is the barracks, same as the soldier.
However not long after, the two arrive that the barracks with people swiftly yet organizedly moving from place to place to get things done. That being moving weapons, armor, charts, and much more, such as letting others in the barracks know what the new orders are.
Having arrived, the soldier, and Ai Lan head for different places, him to an officers tent to report the situation, and her to the Head Commander. Once in the small building, she says. "Head Commander, I need the information on the commander as well as troops that went with me before, as well as a list of which ones died. This is so I can go pay their families, as well as an important piece of information is needed from one of them. So please get it to me when you have time."
The head commander then says. "Hello young princess. It is nice to see you doing this for our forces, it will certainly raise moral. Regardless, in anticipation of such a request, I have already prepared the information you want. While I would like to talk more with you princess, we are in the middle of a crisis, so I must get back to work." Then he bows to the princess before getting back to planning.
However before Ai Lan leaves, she says. "Thank you for your hard work, I will be going now." Then she turns around and leaves as the commander looks up.
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