Chapter 297: Choice and True Heart

Chen Yuanzhi tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep.

He didn’t know what to do. If he fled with his father and uncle, he was certain to survive. Given their resourcefulness, they would quickly establish themselves elsewhere, ensuring his lifelong comfort.

But…

How could he simply abandon his brothers?

Lying awake, Chen Yuanzhi stared at the ceiling beams, his mind filled with the faces of his comrades. He remembered Old Tou, who often teased them for their naivety in the streets, and the scrawny Monkey he had once pinned to the ground, who had glared up at him and snarled, “Why aren’t you out fighting the Xiongnu?”

If I run, what will my brothers think of me?!

The chaos erupted sooner than expected. Before Magistrate Tan’s “bandit suppression force” could even leave the city, his subordinates spotted roaming Xiongnu scouts outside the walls. Upon hearing this news, Magistrate Tan didn’t hesitate. Before dawn, he abandoned the city with his staff, fleeing ahead of the masses.

As an official of the Holy Dynasty, he had a high chance of escape. Skilled allies dispatched by his peers awaited him beyond the city walls, ready to escort him to safety.

Any thoughts of bringing others along were now irrelevant. In this life-or-death situation, his own survival came first.

Dawn broke.

By the time the major clans had assembled their “bandit suppression force,” the vanguard of the Xiongnu army had already arrived.

“We’re trapped! The countryside is swarming with Xiongnu cavalry. Leaving the city now would be suicide!”

The clan leaders rushed to the County Magistrate’s Office, only to discover that Magistrate Tan had already fled. Enraged by this betrayal, the crowd erupted in curses.

“Don’t panic,” Chen Luo said, calming the panicked crowd. “Our main defensive line hasn’t been breached. These are just a few cavalry scouts.” He quickly took command and began issuing orders.

Chen Yuanzhi, the “son” who had previously faced a difficult choice, now felt a strange sense of relief. Following his father’s arrangements, he assumed the position of County Commandant, leading his brothers in fortifying the city’s defenses and rooting out spies who had infiltrated the city.

They worked late into the night every day, relentlessly patrolling the walls and conducting investigations.

Thanks to their rigorous inspections, they captured several Xiongnu scouts. The brothers bound the spies hand and foot, dragged them to the marketplace, and, amidst their curses, beheaded them with a single stroke.

The blood-stained ground filled Chen Yuanzhi with a sense of true manhood.

Ten days later…

Chen Yuanzhi led the city’s militia out on patrol and encountered a small detachment of Xiongnu cavalry. This direct confrontation was nothing like their previous skirmishes with spies. In the ensuing battle, the ten Xiongnu warriors slaughtered over twenty militiamen and severely wounded more than a dozen others. Chen Yuanzhi, clutching his trembling sword, stared at the mangled body of a brother who had shared drinks with him just the night before. An unprecedented emotion welled up within him.

Is this what the Xiongnu are like?

They’re nothing like the local thugs we’re used to dealing with!

“Big Brother, Lazy Donkey’s dead,” Wang Dacai stammered, his voice shaking. He pointed to a comrade lying in a pool of blood, the same man who had joined them for wine and entertainment the previous night.

Now, his lower body was gone, his wide eyes staring fixedly at the muddy ground, his face frozen in a mask of mortal terror.

“Aren’t these Xiongnu afraid of death?”

The militiamen had only ever engaged in village brawls and bullying local ruffians. They had never faced such ruthless Xiongnu warriors before. The Xiongnu’s fearless, wolf-like gazes still made Wang Dacai’s heart pound.

Can we really withstand enemies like this?

Maybe… maybe we should run.

Chen Yuanzhi, sword in hand, ordered Wang Dacai and the others to carry their wounded brothers back to the city. Hearing the moans of pain from the men on their backs, his resolve to survive grew stronger.

I have a father and mother to protect, and my little sister.

He kept making excuses for himself.

Night.

The Chen family study.

The Chen father and son were once again discussing the family’s future. This time, Chen Luo did most of the talking, while his “son,” Chen Yuanzhi, listened quietly, no longer as agitated as before.

”…Our rescuers will arrive in three days. Your maternal uncle, the County Magistrate, paid a heavy price to save you.”

Magistrate Tan had ultimately chosen to rescue them. After escaping with his life, he sent a letter through trusted channels, clearly outlining their escape opportunity. If they seized this chance, the entire Chen family could escape certain doom and live comfortably as wealthy landowners in the south.

“Do you have any objections?” Chen Luo asked his “son,” as he always did.

Chen Yuanzhi stood motionless, the gruesome scenes from the day flashing through his mind. After a long silence, he finally uttered a single word.

“Alright.”

He was no hero after all.

He feared death.

He wanted to live.

Relying on his family connections and his maternal uncle’s influence, he was certain he could escape with his life. With this thought, the heavy burden on Chen Yuanzhi’s heart seemed to vanish instantly, leaving him feeling much lighter. In Chen Luo’s eyes, the Tribulation Qi surrounding Chen Yuanzhi intensified dramatically. Thread-like wisps of this aura were drawn out by the Demonic Heart Art and absorbed into Chen Luo’s body, further enhancing his Pseudo Core.

“Did he choose the wrong path?” A flicker of regret flashed in Chen Luo’s eyes.

He had hoped this ‘son’ would remain true to his principles, but when faced with life and death, he had ultimately abandoned his convictions. From the moment he made his choice, the Tribulation Qi naturally intensified. Had he possessed a physical body in the outside world, it would have been corroded by the Tribulation Qi, causing his cultivation to regress. An ordinary person would surely have fallen ill.

Dawn broke.

Chen Yuanzhi rode his large horse through the streets, his spirits lifted by the thought that in three days he would escape with his life and no longer face the brutal Xiongnu. His posture on horseback improved considerably, and he carried himself with renewed vigor.

The city was desolate.

A group of riders made their way through the streets, past the usual residents of Clearwater County and the many refugees who had fled from neighboring regions. These refugees were ragged and worn, their eyes still haunted by terror.

They were among the people Chen Yuanzhi and his brothers had rescued from the Xiongnu just days earlier when they ventured beyond the city walls. At the time, Chen Yuanzhi had felt only pride in his daring feat, oblivious to the refugees’ suffering. Now, seeing them again, he felt a strange pang of guilt.

In three days, he would abandon the city and flee with the wealthy landowners.

“General, please, have a bite,” a trembling voice called out.

Chen Yuanzhi reined in his horse. An elderly woman stood before him, offering a coarse cornbread bun with shaking hands. Her eyes were filled with gratitude and a glimmer of desperate hope.

Food was scarce in the besieged city. To conserve supplies for the defense against the Xiongnu, rations had been tightened, leaving the refugees with only one meager meal a day. The cornbread she held was her entire daily ration.

“You need strength to fight,” she insisted.

“Big Brother…”

Wang Dacai and the other brothers also stopped their horses. Chen Yuanzhi stared at the old woman, the memory of their bloody battle rising in his mind. He recognized her—she was one of the people he had personally saved from the Xiongnu’s blades. He had saved her with his own hands!

“Granny, please, you eat it yourself. Here.”

Chen Yuanzhi dismounted and pushed the cornbread back towards her. Her hopeful gaze pierced him like a sharp knife, making him deeply uncomfortable.

He didn’t understand why.

“I’m not a general, just a militiaman,” he said.

“This old woman isn’t good for much anyway. Skipping a meal won’t kill me. General, you need strength to fight the Xiongnu. My whole family was slaughtered by them—you helped me avenge them!” The old woman rambled on. Chen Yuanzhi clutched the cold, hard cornbread, suddenly feeling utterly useless.

He couldn’t save anyone.

Unlike the starving refugees, he had eaten breakfast that morning and even enjoyed a bowl of meat porridge. His mind had been consumed with thoughts of escaping south to find a better life, yet these refugees saw him as their only hope!

After bidding farewell to the old woman, Chen Yuanzhi remounted his horse. At that moment, silence fell not just on him, but on everyone around him. No one spoke. They no longer swaggered as before, but quietly rode through the streets, performing their daily patrol duties.

“Big Brother, have we become heroes?”

A young man who had followed Chen Yuanzhi for many years couldn’t help but ask, “Big Brother, are we heroes now?” He had never imagined that one day he would be praised by his fellow villagers and become a hero in their eyes.

“You are,” Chen Yuanzhi replied quietly. “I’m not.”

He fell silent. These men were different from him. Most came from ordinary families, following him out of loyalty alone. Many didn’t even know why they were fighting the Xiongnu; they simply knew that their leader had charged into battle, and they had followed suit, standing shoulder to shoulder with him.

“Without you, Big Brother, where would we be!”

“That’s right!”

The men responded habitually, their voices rising in unison, a tradition they had maintained for years.

“General, take care!” Another voice called out from the street. Chen Yuanzhi turned to see an old acquaintance—the elderly man who had once scolded them for brawling in the streets and warned them not to harass the people.

“General, it’s getting cold. Put on more clothes.”

“General…”

By the time Chen Yuanzhi returned to the County Magistrate’s Office, he reined in his horse and gazed at the distant, fiery clouds on the horizon, a burning weight pressing down on his heart.

Can we really escape?

If I flee, what will become of them?

The three days passed in a blur.

Chen Luo led the Chen family and the town’s wealthy elite out of the city.

Their excuse remained the same: they were leaving to quell bandits outside the city walls. Whether the common people believed it no longer mattered. In this chaotic world, they were mere roadside weeds, unworthy of a second glance. The starving refugees, lacking any organized strength, posed no immediate threat.

“Father, I entrust Mother and my younger sister to your care,” Chen Yuanzhi said, reining in his horse at the city gate. His band of brothers, the same street toughs they’d always been, halted beside him.

“I want to stay.”

He produced a handwritten document from Magistrate Tan, detailing arrangements for their southward journey—a safety net the family had paid to secure. He handed the document to Chen Luo.

“What madness is this? What good can you possibly do by staying?” The First Madam’s face paled as she instinctively reached for her son, but failed to grasp him.

“If that’s what you want to do, then do it,” Chen Luo said, stopping the First Madam and taking the document. He gazed at his “son” on horseback, a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes. The Tribulation Qi clinging to the young man’s aura began to dissipate, replaced by a faint, nascent energy.

So, life offers more than one path after all, Chen Luo mused. As long as one rediscovers their true purpose, it’s never too late.

The Xiongnu arrived sooner than expected.

Five days later, the second defensive line officially collapsed.

Large numbers of Xiongnu troops surged southward, with a small detachment veering toward Clearwater County. The thunder of hooves reached the town long before the warriors approached.

The deafening roar threatened to shake the city walls to their foundations.

One charge.