I Have Medicine

Chapter 540 - (Whispers) Black Waves Rising.

Warning: This chapter contains scenes of violence that may be disturbing to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.

Eight Desolations City.

Just after a wave of beast tide had passed, the enormous stone walls were piled high with the bodies of both humans and beasts, and the fresh stench of blood spread through the air, sharp and pungent.

On the towers of the city walls stood several armored warriors, exuding a menacing aura as they issued orders to those around them:

“Collect the bodies of the fallen warriors and burn them as usual.”

“Prepare the corpses of the wild beasts and elemental beasts for dissection and utilization.”

“Ensure that the families of the deceased warriors are well compensated; no one is to embezzle a single gold coin! Anyone who dares to bully the families of the fallen will be executed without mercy!”

The blood-soaked warriors wiped the blood from their faces and shouted back, “Yes! Deputy Commander!”

After that, they quickly left the city walls, directing the surviving soldiers to plunge into the mountain of corpses. The deputy commanders who had issued the orders were also busy; they needed to assess the situation, especially how many warriors had fallen in this battle, how much compensation was needed, how much food and supplies remained, and whether the city’s defense force was still sufficient, all of which could not be overlooked.

At this moment, their mood was far from good—despite having survived the beast tide once again, they had lost countless capable soldiers.

Such losses weighed heavily on their hearts.

As the deputy commanders were descending from the city walls, a fully armored warrior suddenly rode in on a wild horse, skidding to a stop in front of several of them.

The armored warrior leaped down, saluted, and said, “Reporting to the deputy commanders, news has arrived from Ten Ultimates City that the next guardian will be arriving soon.”

At these words, the expressions of the deputy commanders turned somewhat grim.

Eight Desolations City constantly faced threats from foreign tribes and beast tides. Almost all able-bodied young adults lived on the edge of life and death. Even though this entire continent operated on the principle of survival of the fittest, with lives constantly at stake, the people of this borderland acted quite differently from those in most other cities.

In other words, they were inherently somewhat insular, and yet they could not prevent the appointed guardians from being on the same level of authority as the city lord.

Moreover, it would be acceptable if the appointed individuals were competent; at least they would be an asset, adding strength to their forces. However, the current situation was not like that at all.

Warriors of the Ascendant Realm who had grown up in Eight Desolations City were generally capable individuals, but those nurtured by sects were of mixed quality.

This “mixed quality” referred not to their aptitude but to their adaptability.

Eight Desolations City had stood here for countless years. Perhaps, in ancient times, the appointed guardians were quite capable, or there were some outstanding individuals during certain periods. However, the last four or five appointed guardians had proven to be quite useless.

In what way were they deemed useless?

This was reflected in the following aspects:

First, while individual strength might be decent, their ability to engage in group battles was lacking, making them easily reliant on others for rescue during a beast tide;

Second, the guardians brought many concubines and beautiful women with them when they arrived. Although they initially had some ambition, after the people of the city found ways to sideline them, they became dispirited and indulged in pleasure and idleness, ultimately leaving them vulnerable to being taken advantage of by foreign tribes.

Third, they were solely focused on martial training. Despite their decent combat abilities, they could only act as mere enforcers, which again allowed foreign tribes to take advantage.

Fourth, they had an inflated sense of self-worth, lacked sufficient ability, yet still liked to dictate terms and issue orders.

Fifth…

In summary, the last four or five guardians all fell into one or several of these categories, exhausting the patience of the warriors of Eight Desolations City.

In particular, the last one left the worst impression on the warriors.

This guardian was at the early stage of the Ascendant Realm and had decent qualifications, making him considered an elite. However, due to his personality and various reasons, he had offended some people within his sect. When he became available and Eight Desolations City happened to have a vacancy for a guardian, he was hastily kicked over.

The result was predictable. While this guardian had decent combat strength, he insisted on doing things his own way and refused to listen to any advice. Moreover, having been sent here in anger, he wanted to achieve something significant immediately to slap his detractors in the face—this was not a wrong thought in itself, but he became overly ambitious and reckless because of it.

Before anything could be organized, without even taking the time to gather intelligence seriously, he intended to directly attack the foreign tribes, which predictably led him into an encirclement by them. In the end, to rescue this guardian, not only did all his subordinates perish, but the reinforcements sent by Eight Desolations City also suffered heavy casualties.

Finally, they managed to bring him back, but he still did not learn from his mistakes. He thought it was just bad luck and refused to admit his own incompetence. Later on, he continued to act, and whenever he could not contribute, he often hindered others instead, which made the city lord of Eight Desolations City reach his breaking point and have him put under watch.

However… how should one put it? Even someone with a problematic character might still have a friend.

Because this guardian had been kicked over, his only friend, worried about him, came to visit. Upon discovering that the guardian was under watch, and after a few vague explanations from him, this friend believed the problem lay with Eight Desolations City. He decided to help the guardian achieve merit and got him released.

The result was naturally…

At that moment, a wave of beasts, even larger than usual, had just begun. Everyone was bravely fighting against those ferocious beasts. The guardian and his friend appeared directly on the battlefield, causing quite a commotion.

Many of the elemental beasts possessed intelligence, especially since they were primarily driven by the Bule-Eyed Clan. They quickly discovered that the Eight Desolations City, which had become a killing machine, had a flaw and used the existence of the guardian as a breakthrough point.

The people of Eight Desolations City initially didn’t want to involve themselves with the guardian, but he was still a figurehead. In a public crisis, how could they ignore him?

Thus, not only did the beast tide become much more difficult to handle, but the guardian also failed to save his life… As for the guardian’s friend, in such circumstances, he was also implicated and met his end.

To be killed in less than a year, this guardian had truly set a record.

However, after the death of this guardian, the beast tide had not yet been fully repelled, and Eight Desolations City had not enjoyed a moment of peace. Soon, they received the brief information about the new guardian.

The newcomer had just broken through to the Ascendant Realm, which was merely an entry-level stage. It’s important to note that the tasks in Eight Desolations City had a very high mortality rate, and to see someone sent over so urgently was too reminiscent of the previous guardian!

Initially, the deputy commanders had been quite pleased with the death of the previous guardian, hoping that the new one would not be too burdensome. But to their dismay, this new guardian was even weaker and perhaps even had a worse personality, making it impossible for them to feel happy about it.

Unfortunately… they still had no choice but to accept it.

With this thought in mind, the deputy commanders felt increasingly frustrated.

After a hard-fought battle, the beast tide had finally passed, and the new guardian was soon to arrive. They were bracing themselves for another spell of hellish days ahead.

They could only hope that this one would die soon as well.

Ideally, he would die even faster, so they wouldn’t suffer the same enormous losses as last time.

However…

Frustration aside, they knew they had to welcome the new guardian since he was coming. As deputy commanders, they had to put on a facade and adjust their expressions to avoid showing their true feelings.

It had to be said that although most people in Eight Desolations City were tough as nails, they weren’t completely unreasonable.

Indeed, after defeating the foreign tribes and dealing with the beast tide, they could reap some rewards, but their expenses were also substantial. To defend the city, ensure the safety of ordinary citizens, and survive the oppression from foreign tribes, the support from the Ten Ultimates Sect was essential. Many times, they relied on the resources allocated by the sect to sustain their continuous consumption.

Given this, Eight Desolations City certainly had to show respect to the Ten Ultimates Sect and could not refuse the presence of the guardian.

After all, every three years when these guardians arrived, it also meant they brought a batch of resources with them. It wouldn’t do to take their supplies and then act ungratefully!

After exchanging glances, the deputy commanders hurried back to freshen up.

Once they finished bathing and tidying themselves, they headed to the city gate to wait, ensuring they wouldn’t be absent when the new guardian arrived.

About half an hour later, all the deputy commanders were ready and gathered at the city lord’s residence.

At this moment, a tall, burly man stepped out of the mansion. Clad in heavy armor and exuding a fierce aura, his originally upright features appeared even more intimidating in this context.

He was the city lord of Eight Desolations City, named Wu Zhenhuang.

Once the deputy commanders stood in position, they saw a few people following behind the city lord. Among them were some with elegant appearances, some with stern expressions, and some who were lean but resolute. These were the city lord’s advisors and guests, each possessing unique skills and a deep understanding of various foreign tribes’ habits. They had often provided the city lord with valuable insights based on these habits, helping Eight Desolations City avoid numerous dangers. Moreover, they not only offered advice but also fought bravely on the battlefield, mercilessly slaying those vicious beasts and foreign tribes. Their combination of intelligence and martial prowess earned the admiration of the deputy commanders.

However, now they had to join the city lord in welcoming the new guardian, who, to them, might very well turn out to be useless. They could not afford to show any signs of negligence.

The deputy commanders held great respect for the city lord and his associates, but they couldn’t help feeling a twinge of frustration as they contemplated the situation.

Then the city lord spoke: “Everyone, let us head to the city gate to welcome the guardian!”

The deputy commanders and the advisors responded in unison:

“Understood!”

“Yes! City Lord!”

Soon, everyone mounted the unique Two-horned Chinese Unicorn Horses of Eight Desolations City, charging toward the city gate like a flash of fire.

As they sat atop their steeds, they gazed into the distance, waiting in silence.

Time passed slowly…

Two hours, four hours, six hours.

As midday approached, the sun blazed overhead, and a gentle breeze barely stirred.

Suddenly, the Two-horned Chinese Unicorn Horses became restless; if they hadn’t been seasoned veterans of battle, they might have been startled and raised their hooves due to the tremors beneath them!

Indeed, the ground was shaking violently.

The rhythmic sound of hooves echoed from afar, steadily drawing nearer, and when they looked up, they saw a black tide approaching.

It surged forward.