Wu Pifu was somewhat dazed; he did not expect to find himself in a desolate wilderness, and not just any wilderness, but a truly, completely desolate one, devoid of any light source.
Shouldn't he have appeared in a grand mansion? Regardless of whether that mansion had been eroded and surrounded or occupied by numerous horrors, he should at least have materialized in Bianliang City, right?
But then Wu Pifu suddenly recalled something.
His shelter in the Mud Buddha Yaksha World was an event-type shelter, not the special type shelter of Xu Shilan and her companion.
In other words, his shelter's location was not fixed to that mansion.
Once Xu Shilan and her companion perished, their shelter had vanished.
Could it be that because the two shelters had disappeared, and since he was in an event-type shelter, it led to the nightmare that should have appeared not penetrating into Gaia?
In this world, Wu Pifu was already at a Level Four shelter, so he still had a personal information interface in this realm.
He immediately shouted, "Mainframe, does an event-type shelter prevent any nightmares from penetrating?"
"Determining... Determination complete. Answer: No, the penetration entry for an event-type shelter is the location where you last exited the dream world. Until you re-enter, the penetration point will shift to your current location."
Wu Pifu fell into silence, somewhat confused.
If that were the case, then the penetration point for his event-type shelter should be within the mansion in Bianliang City.
Why had no nightmares penetrated for over one hundred sixty days?
Moreover, the place he emerged was a desolate wilderness, completely devoid of any signs of human habitation.
Could this also be a peculiarity of the event-type shelter? But that didn't make sense; the last time he entered and exited, he was around Niujia Village.
Wu Pifu asked again, "Mainframe, what is the principle behind the entry point of an event-type shelter?"
"Determining... Determination complete. The principle of the entry point for an event-type shelter is that it appears at the last location you exited. However, if you do not enter the dream world for more than thirty days, upon re-entry, you will appear in the vicinity of the historical record or the area where historical events have changed most drastically, to facilitate maintenance personnel in upgrading the shelter level and avoiding potential dangers."
Wu Pifu thought carefully again.
He had previously entered around the villages near Bianliang, which was indeed very close to the core of the Song Dynasty.
But... was this desolate wilderness also a historical record or the site of historical events?
As Wu Pifu surveyed his surroundings, he asked once more, "Mainframe, what exactly are you determining?"
"Determining... Determination complete. This determination is divided into two parts. The first part is to determine the information hierarchy of the item that needs to be assessed. The second part is to assess the title level, contribution level, number and level of shelters, and the comprehensive numerical value of the maintenance personnel's strength level. If the information hierarchy is lower than the comprehensive number of the maintenance personnel, the determination result can be disclosed; otherwise, no information will be provided."
Wu Pifu was instantly speechless.
It was only now that he realized there were such rules in the mainframe.
At that moment, Wu Pifu's ears perked up; he immediately focused his attention and indeed heard faint sounds of weapons clashing and shouts of battle, though they were very weak, indicating that the sounds were far away, possibly even several kilometers away.
With his level of transformation, he could only hear a slight murmur.
Without delay, Wu Pifu dashed toward the source of the sound.
According to the mainframe, because he was in an event-type shelter, as long as he had not entered for over thirty days, he would reappear in the vicinity of the historical record or the focal area of historical events.
Clearly, the sounds of weapons were likely the nodes of historical records and events.
At this moment, Wu Pifu did not even unleash his full speed; he was running through the forest, yet his speed reached around two hundred meters per second.
His figure flashed by like a cheetah or tiger in the mountains.
In just a moment, he turned around a bend and saw a group of people on the road ahead, as well as pursuers chasing after them.
The fleeing group was mostly high-ranking officials and nobles, with women and attendants, as well as generals in official attire.
The resistors were also soldiers of the Song Dynasty, clad in leather armor.
On the other hand, the pursuers looked entirely different.
Their hairstyles were very peculiar; some were bald, others had shaved patches with braids left in certain areas, and some wore various strange ornaments.
They were clad in furs, leather armor, and a hodgepodge of defensive gear, wielding an assortment of weapons, all mounted on horses, with some even riding double.
"Barbarians!?"
Wu Pifu did not take the time to examine them closely; he immediately mobilized his qi and blood to accelerate.
With a single step, he covered dozens of meters.
In just ten seconds, he had burst from the forest onto the road, then with a flick of his foot, he sent a large blade lying on the ground flying into his hand.
He charged into the midst of the barbarian cavalry.
The two leading barbarians were using sabers and spears to cut down the fleeing soldiers.
They were met with a figure flashing toward them.
Before they could raise their weapons to attack or defend, the two barbarians found their vision darkening, and both man and horse were cleaved into several pieces.
Wu Pifu did not pause; his hand moved like lightning, and in the blink of an eye, he killed five or six barbarians, shattering them along with their weapons and armor.
Both sides of the battlefield were taken aback, and everyone finally saw an eight-foot-tall young man, wielding a large blade, standing before the barbarians.
The retreating Song soldiers slowed their steps.
At that moment, an injured general suddenly spurred his horse forward, loudly calling to the fleeing soldiers.
Seizing this opportunity, he managed to rally the hundreds of soldiers who had begun to scatter.
Accompanying this injured general were several Song generals, who seemed to have finally regained their senses and moved forward to protect the injured general's side.
At this time, the hundreds of barbarians also came to their senses, shouting loudly.
A bald man, at least two meters tall, with a muscular build and a fierce face, charged out on horseback, wielding two heavy hammers, barreling toward Wu Pifu like a tank.
Yet Wu Pifu did not even move his feet, nor did he defend or dodge.
He swung his long blade directly at the heavy hammers.
At the moment of collision between the blade and the hammers, his palm trembled slightly, and the entire blade vibrated at a speed invisible to the naked eye.
With the burst of transformation energy, the seemingly thinner blade directly cleaved through the heavy hammer, cutting both the barbarian and his horse in half.
Blood splattered, and the surroundings fell silent.
"Good, good man! I am Zong Ze. May I ask this good man to fight alongside us against the enemy!" the injured general roared, ready to spur his horse forward, but was stopped by the surrounding Song generals.
Wu Pifu was taken aback upon hearing the name Zong Ze... the Zong Ze who crossed the river!
But soon, Wu Pifu's expression darkened.
If this was Zong Ze, then the barbarians before him were...
"Jin soldiers?" Wu Pifu whispered.
Zong Ze immediately shouted from behind, "Indeed, those are the Jin thieves!"
Upon hearing this, Wu Pifu's killing intent surged.
He did not wait for the Jin soldiers to charge; he directly brandished his large blade and lunged into the ranks of the Jin soldiers.
With each swing, Jin soldiers were cleaved into pieces.
His speed was astonishing, his movements agile, and even without fully unleashing his power, he wielded around ten tons of strength.
Just a touch would injure, and a hit would kill.
Although the Jin soldiers were fierce, with ten brave warriors among them, they were no match for Wu Pifu at this moment.
In just ten seconds, nearly a hundred Jin soldiers were directly cut into meat chunks.
This was truly shocking.
The remaining Jin soldiers immediately screamed and fled, but how could their speed surpass Wu Pifu's?
Of the more than two hundred remaining Jin soldiers, the furthest one had barely run five hundred meters before Wu Pifu caught up and killed him with a single stroke.
Only then did the Song soldiers' formation begin to stabilize.
Zong Ze's eyes shone with excitement as he muttered about a thousand-man warrior, ready to spur his horse toward Wu Pifu, but was still blocked by the surrounding Song generals.
He roared in anger, "Do you not even listen to my orders!?"
At that moment, a group of people charged in from behind the ranks.
The leader appeared somewhat disheveled, but clearly in a much better state than those around him.
Before he even got close, he shouted loudly, "Immortal Master, save me! Immortal Master, save me!"
Zong Ze was taken aback and then looked at Wu Pifu with a puzzled expression.
Wu Pifu, at this moment, swung his large blade and walked toward the Song soldiers.
Those soldiers dared not obstruct him; without needing an order, they immediately cleared a path.
At this time, the one calling for the Immortal Master reached Zong Ze's side.
Zong Ze immediately asked, "Grand Marshal, who is this?"
The person referred to as the Grand Marshal was none other than Zhao Gou, King of Kang, whom Wu Pifu recognized.
He paid no mind to Zong Ze, almost tumbling off his horse as he bowed from a distance toward Wu Pifu, saying, "Immortal Master, save me, and I will surely repay you!"
Wu Pifu ignored him and simply stepped up to Zhao Gou, then asked a single word: "Jingkang?"
Zhao Gou was taken aback, while Zong Ze spoke gloomily, "It is now the year of Jingkang. Three months ago, the late emperor abdicated, and Your Majesty ascended the throne."
Wu Pifu nodded slightly and then looked at Zhao Gou.
Zhao Gou's expression fluctuated, but he immediately said, "The Jin soldiers invaded before May, and three months ago, my father abdicated to my elder brother. Unexpectedly, my elder brother could not hold out for even three months. Ten days ago, Kaifeng fell, and both my father and elder brother have been captured by the Jin soldiers. Now the Jin soldiers are pursuing us. I implore the Immortal Master to save us for the sake of the common people!"
Wu Pifu felt puzzled.
Although he was not well-versed in history, he remembered that the shame of Jingkang did not occur in the year of Jingkang.
Although the Jin soldiers attacked the Northern Song, it seemed that the Northern Song had resisted for a year or two.
How could they have captured Kaifeng in just four or five months?
Zong Ze seemed to have guessed Wu Pifu's identity and added, "It should not have been so quick, but that traitor Guo Jing!"
"He is a traitor to the Jin soldiers! He is a subordinate of the Northern Giant Demon!!"
(End of Chapter)