Chapter 73
Phil's Ambition
Horus looked at the crippled rancher and asked incredulously, "You're not from Caesar's Ranch?"
"I, I really... didn't!" The rancher was beaten black and blue, one side of his cheek was swollen high, and saliva was drooling uncontrollably.
He doesn't understand.
Why was I beaten so badly just for delivering a message?
Horus was silent for a moment, then let out a long sigh. He had thought he could get some revenge.
Surprisingly, Caesar Ranch didn't use its own people to deliver the message.
Horus closed his eyes, his deep voice ringing out: "Dispose of him. I don't want to see him again."
Before the rancher could even beg for mercy, he was cornered and dragged away.
When Horus was alone in the room, he took an envelope out of the drawer.
The envelope was exactly the same as the one Caesar received; it was from old man Leon.
……
Two days later, the sun shone brightly in the morning, and a gentle breeze was blowing.
Caesar looked up at the sky. "The weather is nice today."
Amy replied softly, "It's a pity you have to go to work and can't stay home with me."
Seeing Amy's girlish demeanor, Caesar lowered his head and gave her a light kiss. "I'll be back tonight."
Amy wrapped her arms around Caesar's waist, buried her head in Caesar's chest, and muffled sounds came out.
"You need to be as careful as possible today, and make sure you don't get hurt."
Amy's voice was trembling with tears; she was a little scared but pretending to be strong.
"Don't worry, I will ensure my safety."
After bidding farewell to Amy, Caesar and his men arrived at the designated location.
Daryl and his men had scouted the area well in advance but found no evidence of any tampering by old man Leon.
Caesar gave Daryl several bulletproof vests and told him and his men to put them on quickly.
Caesar provided every person involved in the battle with body armor, as well as ample ammunition and weapons, in an effort to save their lives as much as possible.
After Caesar and his entourage had been waiting for a while, Phil slowly appeared on horseback.
When I saw Phil again, his facial injuries had healed, and he once again wore an arrogant expression.
Caesar thought to himself, "He really is that fool."
When Phil saw Caesar coming in person, he pulled on the reins, slowing his horse down a little, and looked at Caesar with evasive eyes.
Clearly, he hadn't forgotten the time he was beaten up by Caesar.
Phil rode up to Caesar, looked down at him, and felt a sense of satisfaction.
"Caesar, you're here so early?"
Caesar tilted his head and said coldly, "Are you sure you want to talk to me like this?"
His expressionless face carried an indescribable sense of oppression.
Phil immediately dismounted. He didn't want to be pulled off his horse and beaten up by Caesar in front of all his underlings.
He turned to look at the group of mounted henchmen behind him and shouted angrily, "Dismount and get your gear ready!"
After saying that, Phil looked at Caesar.
Caesar turned around and walked straight toward a secluded spot in the woods.
At the same time, Caesar winked at Daryl, signaling him to take notes on the equipment and such of the people Phil brought.
Phil followed Caesar around like a puppy.
The two walked into a secluded spot and chatted casually.
Both sides quickly organized their equipment. Each person on Phil's side had a gun, but they weren't equipped much. They were dressed in casual clothes, just like usual, and rode horses.
There were no heavy firepower, automatic rifles, or sniper rifles.
These were all bought by the people in the valley for self-protection, so naturally they couldn't buy high-powered firearms.
Caesar's side, on the other hand, only had automatic rifles, since they were all taken from the CDC, which is equivalent to taking them from the military.
Everyone has a bulletproof vest, and wearing them makes them look very protective. They are also more uniform, which makes them look much stronger.
Caesar also equipped one person with a sniper rifle and even two others with grenade launchers.
Each person also had a pistol, so they were armed to the teeth. Although they couldn't compare to a regular army, they were much better than the makeshift force Phil had assembled.
Both sides had a dozen or so people each; they didn't mobilize all the staff from the ranch.
Phil brought all his men with him. At Leon Ranch, the remaining cowboys all obeyed old man Leon.
Once everything was in order, we set off.
Along the way, there were no unexpected events or incidents, and we arrived smoothly at the front of Horus Ranch.
Phil had a lingering look of joy on his face, like someone popping champagne at halftime.
Caesar glanced at Phil, his eyes filled with a hint of pity.
Caesar's plan was to play it as defensively as possible, since his main objective was to get the two sides fighting while minimizing his own presence.
And coincidentally, Phil was filled with fighting spirit towards Horus's side. He raised his rifle high and shouted:
"attack!"
Phil's men also shouted, using the sound to embolden themselves, and rode their horses toward Horus Ranch.
Caesar raised his hand. Moore had given his teammates instructions beforehand, and soon, Caesar's team and Phil's team separated.
Caesar looked out and saw that Horus Ranch looked the same as always, with patrols standing at the gate fortifications and some cowboys who looked like cattle herders, not much different from usual.
However, the herdsmen only had a few cattle, while the cowboys numbered more than a dozen, and the patrol team seemed to consist of only a few people.
But Caesar had already discovered Horus's men from some relatively hidden locations.
Phil rode his horse but did not head towards the gate. He wasn't stupid; there were many people and fortifications there. How could he possibly charge in on horseback?
The wooden fence with its wide border wasn't high; the horse easily jumped over it with a little effort.
Phil led his men into Horus Ranch, whereupon Phil burst into maniacal laughter and fired his gun.
They ran head-on into a dozen or so cowboys, who were also on horseback and had taken out their prepared guns from their saddlebags.
He raised his gun and began exchanging fire with Phil and the others.
Phil did fight fiercely, charging ahead, and he was lucky; no one hit him.
He approached the cowboys, raised his gun, and fired. In one shot, two or three of them fell down.
Following Phil's men, their morale soared, and they charged with even greater vigor, wiping out the opposing cowboys in the blink of an eye.
Our side only suffered minor injuries to three or four people.
Phil turned his head to look at his accomplishment, burst into laughter, glanced at Caesar and his group who hadn't even entered the ranch yet, and felt disdain.
A bunch of cowards.
Once I've razed Horus Ranch to the ground, I won't give you any livestock, or even your land.
The bloodlust from the killing intensified Phil's greed, and he no longer took Caesar seriously.
Caesar watched from afar, offering no comment, only remarking that Phil's fighting prowess was indeed quite impressive.