144. Slaughter in the Dark Night (Part II)

Standing at the entrance, Yuwen Chengdu and Yang Hu watched as figures rushed toward them. "Yuwen, guard the gate well. Do not let anyone slip past. I have no intention of letting these inhumane wretches escape under our watch." Without a word, Yuwen Chengdu picked up a sturdy wooden club from the side and stepped toward the doorway, his eyes fixed on the men charging toward the front gate. Yang Hu cracked his neck, loosened his limbs, and tightened his grip on his blade, waiting for the group to reach them.

Seeing the stature of Yang Hu and Yuwen Chengdu, the human traffickers sneered, though they did not forget the two demons still hunting them from behind. "Little brats, open the gate, or you'll regret it!" When the two boys at the gate remained unmoved, one trafficker snarled, "Death wish!" and charged. Having dealt with countless children before, he did not for a moment believe these two boys could stop them. He would soon realize how laughable his assumption truly was.

As the traffickers reached Yang Hu, the boy moved. With a sudden lunge, he slammed his body into the leader, knocking him to the ground before gesturing defiantly for the others to come on. These traffickers, accustomed to seeing children weep, beg, and grovel at their feet, had never been scorned by such youngsters. Without hesitation, several threw punches at Yang Hu, while others rushed toward Yuwen Chengdu.

Yang Hu noticed those heading for Yuwen Chengdu but was too occupied to intervene. After parrying a blow aimed at him, he shouted, "Yuwen, be careful! I'll finish this as quickly as I can!"

Yuwen Chengdu felt a surge of excitement as the men approached him. He had feared Yang Hu would take them all on, leaving nothing for him. Did they take him for a soft target? "Brother Hu, don't worry! I was just hoping for some action!" With that, he brandished his wooden club and met the oncoming traffickers head-on.

Near the prison cells where Zhang Xuan and Yang Zaixing were stationed, not a single trafficker had ventured. The two leaned against the cell door, occasionally intercepting the stray trafficker who stumbled their way. With coordinated strikes, they made short work of them, drawing cheers from the children inside. Yet, the lack of activity made them uneasy.

"Brother, why are they avoiding this area? Is this place so insignificant to them?" Zhang Xuan watched as traffickers fled from the wooden huts; some ran toward the front gate, though their view was obscured, while others disappeared into the shadows. The fact that none sought the cells puzzled him—surely, they should have checked on the children, if only to seize a hostage? He could not fathom the twisted logic of these criminals.

Yang Zaixing had no answer, but neither dared to leave their post. Should they abandon the gate, a trafficker might slip in and use the children as leverage, rendering all their efforts futile. They kept a mental note of the positions of those hiding in the shadows, intending to drag them out and force them to answer for their crimes against the children.

Meanwhile, Old Master Tong scoured the camp, hunting down the fleeing traffickers. He showed no mercy; many of the children here were the same age as his grandson, Tong Fei—an age when they should have been safe in their parents' arms, yet some here had already said their final goodbyes to the world. Uncle Yang, having finished clearing the remaining stragglers from the wooden huts, reached the center of the camp. Seeing that Zhang Xuan and Yang Zaixing were secure and that Yang Hu and Yuwen Chengdu were locked in a fierce battle at the gate, he rushed to assist them.

Yang Hu had fought intensely, felling all the traffickers before him—some of whom would never see another sunrise. He had sustained several wounds from clubs, though none were critical. He immediately ran to Yuwen Chengdu’s side. Yuwen Chengdu had fared worse; his wooden club had snapped from the force of his own blows, yet he was wielding the two broken pieces with lethal efficiency, preventing anyone from breaching the gate. With Yang Hu’s arrival, they combined their strength and quickly subdued the remaining attackers. By the time Uncle Yang arrived, the fight was over. He looked at the groaning figures writhing on the ground, realizing they were effectively neutralized, and found no heart to strike them further.

However, just as Uncle Yang hesitated to deliver the final blow to the men groveling on the earth, a figure emerged from the shadows of the camp.