Chapter 263: Siege (Five)

Alternate History

"What did you say!?"

The city night was heavy, tinged with a restless unease. Due to the recent warnings from the people in Taiping Alley, the alarm had already spread through the streets to the distance. The gongs echoed far and wide. The army might still take some time to arrive, but for now, Taiping Alley was quiet, and the atmosphere was grim. Aside from the standoff that had formed, few dared to speak for a moment.

The two sides of the standoff were, naturally, extremely uneven. On one side was only Ning Yi, the scholar, while on the other, led by Shi Bao and others, were all martial arts experts. Their skill was formidable, evident by their deployment by Fang La to cause havoc throughout the city. Although their numbers weren't large, the earlier display by the girl named Liu Xigua, combined with Shi Bao and his men's casual brutality, meant that the combined strength of Taiping Alley now had no resistance against them. At this moment, Ning Yi had effectively drawn the attention of this entire group onto himself with a single sentence.

He had already established considerable prestige in Taiping Alley. On the other hand, his secret manipulations and setups were also known to everyone. In this brief moment, seeing him standing there in scholarly robes, unarmed, with a serious expression, everyone instinctively felt he was dangerous. Especially the residents of Taiping Alley, who might have been expecting this son-in-law of the Su family to suddenly make a move and quell these bandits.

"What I mean is, since you're already here, perhaps you won't be going back..."

Ning Yi took a deep breath, his expression grim. He sighed as he spoke, then lifted his head, gave a slight bow, and smiled. "Everyone in Taiping Alley..."

His voice resonated in the night.

Even for Ning Yi, the current situation was truly unexpected, genuinely frustrating and disheartening.

All along, his assistance to Hangzhou in dealing with the current crisis was based on the principle of self-preservation in such circumstances – if he could do more, he would. He was sincerely offering this help. Of course, not being part of officialdom, he wouldn't meddle much in its internal workings. But even so, to be the first one betrayed felt truly absurd. He had to admit, he hadn't anticipated such a situation.

However, he did have contingency measures prepared for the current situation, though he had originally hoped not to use them unless absolutely necessary.

"I haven't lived here long, but... I'm very grateful for everyone's care all this time. It's rare to live in such harmony with everyone. If possible, I'd hoped to always maintain a good image in your eyes. However, tonight's events were not something I foresaw. Therefore, what happens next... might be a bit extreme..."

As he stood in the standoff, surrounded, Ning Yi slowly uttered these words with a smile. On the other side, the Su family members began trying to withdraw, naturally drawing the attention of Shi Bao's group. Some exchanged glances, wanting to intercept them. However, as Ning Yi's words progressed, an ominous, oppressive aura began to coalesce. The reason for this was simply that Ning Yi's demeanor at this moment was incredibly convincing. In this regard, whether it was genuine or not, Ning Yi was absolutely the most persuasive actor.

As Ning Yi finished speaking, a subtle stir rippled through the crowd. The girl named Liu Xigua, not far away, gazed in their direction. Shi Bao and the others also frowned. Ning Yi bowed slightly, offering a salute.

"I'm very sorry about this, but there's no other way. Everyone, run quickly... and good luck."

"Seize him!"

As Ning Yi's words fell, Shi Bao on the other side roared and charged forward. Regardless of why Ning Yi had said those words, the priority was to capture him first. At the same moment, several figures in front, behind, and on the rooftops suddenly moved. The girl named Liu Xigua also swung her blade fiercely, sweeping in like a storm!

On that side, in the direction closer to the Su family members, two more figures suddenly burst forward. In the night, figures in several courtyards sprang from stillness, sprinting furiously, converging and intertwining!

Not many people had come from Fang La's side, but they were all masters. They were only about ten to twenty meters apart; once they started running, they would arrive in an instant. Ning Yi naturally didn't sit idly by and wait for death. He drew his sword with a backhand motion and ran to the side. After only two or three meters, he changed direction. Then, a tremendous explosion boomed, rattling everyone's eardrums.

The ground exploded with a massive roar. It was an area on one side of the courtyard, relatively far from everyone, but the light and vibrations caused by the explosion immediately caught everyone's attention, like a colossal firework bursting.

This "firework" was still scattering debris when two more "boom" sounds were heard, followed by a continuous series of explosions that began to spread.

The locations of the explosions were not fixed. Some were in this courtyard, some a few courtyards away, and some even erupted on the street. But this was just the beginning. Caught in it, a tremendous impact enveloped one's entire body in an instant. Flames, dirt, and debris filled the eyes, and sounds rattled the eardrums. The person closest to Ning Yi was flung away by an explosion just a few meters from him. The blast rippled Ning Yi's robes. A flash of light filled Shi Bao's vision, and he couldn't even make a sound. He saw the scholar casually wave his hand towards them, and almost instinctively stopped as flames erupted not far in front of him.

The Liu family's young lady's massive blade swept towards Ning Yi. Its power seemed less like a human wielding a weapon and more like a berserk greatsword whirling the girl through momentum. She closed in immediately. Ning Yi had already rushed into a nearby thatched shed. The moment the girl sliced through the shed's side wall, flames shot out from within. Ning Yi, meanwhile, leaped out of a window on the other side...

"Watch—out—"

Though the bursting fireworks seemed to almost slow time in that moment, making the spread of shouts sluggish, the streets were already filled with screams and chaos. Several of Fang La's subordinates attempting to approach the Su family members began to retreat.

Honestly, the entire area of explosions, though starting from here, had in moments spread to cover almost the entire long street. From Ning Yi's perspective, these explosions weren't particularly powerful, certainly incomparable to later generations' minefields or artillery barrages. But for people of this era, these sudden bursts of light and flame blossomed in the night into a symphony of death. They were powerful and seemed random in their placement, but they were, of course, part of Ning Yi's prior plan. The areas around Ning Yi and the Su family's retreat route were where the explosions were most concentrated. They occurred one after another; without prior knowledge of the general area, anyone charging recklessly wouldn't know when a flash of light might erupt from beneath their feet or from a pile of debris beside them.

Even battle-hardened martial arts heroes were momentarily stunned. Some stopped in their tracks, some instinctively wanted to flee, and others still charged towards Ning Yi. Although there were fewer explosions on the outer roads, they were still affected for a moment. Just moments ago, a bandit charged towards them, thinking he could escape by following the local residents, only to be blown away along with two or three other inhabitants in an explosion.

Had it not been for tonight's awful situation, Ning Yi would never have wanted to use this hidden stratagem. He had set up these ambushes not to prevent his identity from being exposed, but as a fallback plan in case Fang La's forces breached the city. In this era, few were keen on setting up large-scale gunpowder ambushes like him. If others were to handle such matters, they would certainly have more conventional methods. However, Ning Yi's recent assistance to Qian Haiping had made it much easier to access gunpowder resources than before. He had simply set up a few incidentally, never expecting them to be useful at this moment.

Using such a large amount of gunpowder, sprinkled almost along the entire street just to deal with a few individuals, was certainly not economical. But Shi Bao himself was one of Fang La's top masters. Even among the people he led, Ning Yi probably couldn't defeat a single one in a direct fight. If he didn't act now, his entire family would likely be wiped out today.

As a modern man, Ning Yi naturally had compassion. He couldn't bear to see the poor suffer and would frown at the sight of the starving. If given the chance, he was willing to help save some people and do what he could. But he was, after all, a formidable figure who had endured brutal struggles. When it came down to making choices, the residents of Taiping Alley were no longer his top priority. Of course, the most gunpowder was laid in the courtyards they traversed and along their escape route; the outer streets were somewhat better. But there were inevitably casualties in the current chaos.

Shi Bao was now surrounded by a blaze of light. His side had already taken the impact of an explosion, leaving it bloodied. Not far away, Ning Yi walked through the dangerous fireworks. He turned back and glanced at Shi Bao, but his gaze was as cold as ice, contemptuous and inhuman. Normally, this would be the most extreme provocation, but at this moment, even Shi Bao was somewhat bewildered.

A figure, injured by an explosion, stumbled near Ning Yi's side. It was Gou Zheng, who had come with Shi Bao. He was also a highly regarded master under Fang La, skilled in martial arts, but his luck wasn't as good as Shi Bao's. His chest and back had been blasted twice by explosions, leaving him severely mangled. His weapon was gone, but he seemed still conscious. Seeing Ning Yi approach, he raised a fist to charge. Ning Yi grabbed his chest with his left hand, pulled him closer, and then casually pushed him to the other side.

"Over there... stand firm!"

Amidst the explosions, a cold, indifferent voice seemed to emerge.

"Squat down!"

Ning Yi casually chopped down on the opponent's thigh. Blood spurted, and Gou Zheng stumbled to the ground. Ning Yi continued walking past him without pause. Then, in everyone's sight, Gou Zheng's body fell. The instant his chest was about to hit the ground, light swelled from beneath, blasting his body into pieces.

"Ning Liheng—" Shi Bao's eyes were bloodshot, and he gnashed his teeth. "I'll kill your entire family—"

Amidst the surging flames, Ning Yi forcefully waved his hand from the other side and clearly shouted, "Then come on—"