Chapter 59 - 58: East Shore

Deep within a silent valley of Two-Arm Mountain, a bunker-like structure had appeared at some unknown time. Dozens of figures clad in blood-red robes stood guard on the perimeter.

A graceful figure in black slowly walked into the valley.

Upon seeing her, the blood-robed guards swiftly dropped to one knee.

"Greetings, Lord Jia."

Jia Ying merely gave a slight nod in acknowledgment and continued toward the bunker.

Only after she had walked far away did the guards slowly rise to their feet. This minor detail alone was enough to show that this was an organization with strict rules.

As she advanced, her expression grew increasingly respectful and cautious.

"You’re back."

"Jia Ying greets Ox!"

Like a passing gust of wind, a figure wearing a bamboo hat appeared atop the bunker.

"How is the matter I asked you to investigate?"

Jia Ying trembled slightly. "Regarding Jin Ya’s disappearance, our recent investigations have confirmed his death. His body was found in the Lei Family Ancestral Mansion in Feiyun City, already heavily decomposed. I suspect that during his interrogation of Lei Qian in Suiyang City, he kept some secrets for himself and subsequently fled..."

The figure in the bamboo hat cared little for her explanation and brutally cut her off. "I don’t want to hear this. I only want to know how he died."

Jia Ying trembled even more violently. "I already have some leads. Please give me a little more time, Ox..."

"Hmph!"

Jia Ying shuddered. Remembering the events of the previous night, she hurriedly said, "Yesterday, a massive riot broke out in the Yellow Heaven Sect. A Cultivation Technique suspected to be of the Sensing Profound realm appeared..."

Ox abruptly opened his eyes, his gaze piercing through the bamboo hat. A strange expression then surfaced on his face. With a flip of his palm, a Cultivation Technique manual appeared, looking brand new.

"The Eight Desolates Invincible Scripture?"

Stunned, Jia Ying quickly nodded.

With a peculiar look and a hint of gravity in his eyes, Ox muttered in a low voice, "Heh, it’s the trick of those guys from the Medicine Demon Gang in You State. Could they really have reached this far?"

Jia Ying’s expression shifted slightly. The Medicine Demon Gang was one of the Nine Great Demon Sects in the world, most adept at training Medicine Men. A chill washed over her as she realized she had almost let greed take over for the Eight Desolates Invincible Scripture.

Without waiting for Ox to ask, she hastily recounted everything that had happened the day before, including how a Vajra Scripture Seat Disciple had killed Cheng Shan’s disciple, Pang Hong, in Feiyun City to snatch the Eight Desolates Invincible Scripture.

Finally, as if recalling something, she added, "Right, Ox, I discovered a very strange man yesterday. He seemed to know something about the Eight Desolates Invincible Scripture, and he appears to be connected to Jin Ya’s death!"

Ox’s figure shifted. He stepped forward and pulled Jia Ying into his embrace, his tone carrying a teasing lilt. "Where is he?"

Feeling his large hands roaming over her body, Jia Ying’s breathing grew unsteady. "I am incompetent. I let him get away..."

"Truly incompetent! Allow me to properly punish you..."

"Mmh..."

***

Three Guards Department.

Carrying his long spear on his back, Xu Guang caused a minor stir every time he arrived. However, the Three Guards Department seemed somewhat deserted today.

A female official’s eyes lit up when she saw him.

"Greetings, Lord Xu," she said, her voice carrying a hint of flattery.

Xu Guang was taken aback. "What did you call me?"

Although the people in the Three Guards Department had respected him before, they would never have addressed him as a Lord.

The woman softly explained, "When Master Jinliu Zhao went to the City Guard’s Mansion earlier, I had the honor of listening in from the side."

He realized that she must know what Li Zongkang had said. No wonder she had become so enthusiastic. She was backing a dark horse, betting that he could become a Marshal of Refining Viscera, and wanting to make a good impression.

"There really are many smart people in this world," Xu Guang thought sincerely. But more than that, he felt the profound benefits of formidable strength. He vaguely remembered how arrogant and haughty this woman had been during their first meeting.

"I heard that the Feiyun Guard recently conscripted all Mercenaries into the army. Why haven’t I received any notice?" he asked.

The woman slightly lowered her head. "It was Lord Zhubu’s order."

Xu Guang’s expression stiffened. A flash of unease crossed his face as he thought of the pale-faced Zhubu. He then turned to leave. "Since it is Lord Zhubu’s order, I naturally must obey."

He was just about to walk away when someone called out to stop him.

"Brother Xu, please wait!"

Xu Guang’s face twitched uncontrollably. Turning around, he saw the pale, beardless Wang Zhubu walking toward him. As he approached, Wang Zhubu reached out to grab his hand.

Xu Guang imperceptibly pulled his hand away and cupped his fists in a salute.

"May I ask why Lord Zhubu has called for me?"

"Mr. Xu, don’t keep me at arm’s length. I cherish talent and know of your capabilities. Ever since our last meeting, I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you. It’s great that you’re here today. A residence in the Inner City opened up a few days ago, and I was planning to have it transferred to you."

Wang Zhubu’s expression was passionate, his eyes shining with a light that ordinary people would find hard to understand. The female official, who had originally wanted to curry favor with Xu Guang, couldn’t help but take a half-step back at the sight of him.

Xu Guang only felt profound disgust. Having been thoroughly exposed to internet trends in his past life, he knew that some people had incredibly bizarre fetishes. He just hadn’t expected to encounter such a person in this era.

"I am merely a Mercenary. I wouldn’t dare live in a luxurious mansion," Xu Guang replied hastily. "I am grateful for Marshal Li’s high regard in promising me a Marshal position, and I dare not slack off. Since there is nothing pressing at the Three Guards Department, I shall return to my cultivation."

With that, he turned and fled in a panic.

If Wang Zhubu didn’t hold a high status and have constant bodyguards by his side, Xu Guang would have skewered the damn pervert with his long spear long ago. If he didn’t need these people to prove he had been in the city all along, he wouldn’t have wanted to see this creep at all.

Leaving the Three Guards Department under the watchful eyes of several people, Xu Guang walked into the distance.

Seeing that no one was around, he carefully took a letter from his robe. He wrote down "evidence" of the Vajra Scripture Seat Disciple Lu Ping’s close ties with the Han Family and stuffed it into a crack in a wall.

Without sufficient strength, one had to act with caution.

During a previous mission, he had accidentally befriended an aide from the City Guard’s Mansion. From that man, he learned that this spot was the "tip box" for the City Guard’s Mansion.

Nowadays, whenever he had free time, he would submit reports against the Han Family. Whether it was useful or not, merely sickening his enemies brought him comfort.

***

What Xu Guang miscalculated was that the situation had already been brought under control. The Three Guards did not make a move; instead, they set up camp, as if using this opportunity to station troops on the East Shore.

The imagined grand battle did not break out. A few days passed, and it was as if nothing had happened.

In the shadows, however, the undercurrents were raging.

The Eight Desolates Invincible Scripture that Xu Guang had tossed away changed hands several times. Across a vast expanse of the Hedong Land, corpses littered the ground. That was until one day, under the orders of the hot-tempered Vajra Canon Seat, countless Yellow Heaven Sect disciples concealed their identities and joined the meat-grinder-like Lin Zi.

On that day, a massive conflict erupted between the Yellow Heaven Sect disciples and the Martial World Travelers of Feiyun City.

Three days later, Xu Guang finally received his conscription orders to guard the East Shore and prevent anyone from crossing the river.

Having received Xu Sanduo and Zhao Yong’s letters describing the opposite bank, Xu Guang was already chomping at the bit.

He planned to go all out.

He wondered just how much Essence Blood those people could provide him. The clues for Refining Viscera would be fully explored in ten days, so naturally, the more Essence Blood, the better.

Once he achieved Refining Viscera... he would finally have basic self-preservation capabilities and the qualifications to forcefully kill Han Qing.

His hatred for her ran bone-deep. A massive part of his motivation for cultivating was to kill that woman with his own hands!

Xu Guang dismantled his long spear into four sections and tucked his weapons one by one into the Leather Armor he had forged earlier. Ji Xiaolu and Miss Chun helped him put the Armor on, standing to the side and covering their mouths as they giggled.

"Brother Guang, you look so majestic."

Xu Guang burst into laughter and reached out to rub Ji Xiaolu’s head. He then turned and dragged Hai into a corner. He figured he would be away for a few days this time, so feeding the little creature well would ensure it could properly guard the house.

He fed it a lot—a full dozen or so drops of Essence Blood were casually dripped into Hai’s mouth.

If Qian Cheng were to resurrect and see this scene, he would be utterly horrified. It was well known that the density of Essence Blood varied from person to person. However, even if it were the most inferior quality, a Martial Artist at Bone Forging Perfection would have at most around a hundred drops in their body. Losing too much would result in severe weakness, at the very least.

No one else could squander it as freely as Xu Guang did.

Standing nearby, Miss Chun envied his doting attitude toward Ji Xiaolu. Ever since Ji Xiaolu had invited her to help out at their home a while ago, she knew she had met good people. Both Mrs. Xu and Ji Xiaolu had lived through hard times and never treated her like a servant. Even her daughter, Xing Hua, had grown much plumper these past few days.

Unconsciously, her gaze fell upon Xu Guang in the corner.

Brother Xu was also a good man.

***

East Shore docks.

Xu Sanduo and Zhao Yong looked toward an armor-clad man in the distance, their faces twisted in bitter frustration.

"That son of a bitch is just sending us to our deaths."

"We’ve been here all day without a single break, and he still wants us to keep patrolling!"

"Who asked us to be Mercenaries? It’s fine during peaceful days when they treat us like human beings. But in times like these, right before a war, aren’t we just cannon fodder?"

Zhao Yong, with his towering figure, looked at the wound on Xu Sanduo’s shoulder with eyes full of anger.

"Junior Brother Xu, be careful. A few brothers and I will head over in a bit."

Guarding the East Shore sounded prestigious, but it was actually grueling work. After all, the East Shore was the territory of the Yellow Heaven Sect. Lately, they would frequently disguise themselves as Water Bandits and harass the area.

At times like these, the Mercenaries were usually the ones sent out to resolve the issue. And aside from food rations, there were no rewards!

The Mercenaries had long been harboring deep dissatisfaction. Unfortunately, the current camp commander was an extremist from the Feiyun Guard. He despised all auxiliary troops aside from the Feiyun Guard Main Army and didn’t even treat them as human. To make matters worse, that bastard was incredibly strong and had a Marshal backing him up.

Though Xu Sanduo and the others were furious, there was nothing they could do.

"Just bear with it. I heard they’ve already requested reinforcements from the city. It shouldn’t be long before they arrive."

Xu Sanduo nodded helplessly. "That’s all we can do."

As they were speaking, the sound of projectiles whistling through the air suddenly rang out. SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!

Looking closely, they saw dozens of arrows flying out of the Lin Zi almost simultaneously.

"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"

To their absolute despair, the camp gates remained firmly shut with no reinforcements in sight. Clearly, the commander’s intentions were obvious. He wanted Xu Sanduo’s group of Mercenaries to wipe out the attackers on their own!

"Forget it, they’re already attacking us. Brothers, charge!"

One had to admit that Xu Sanduo possessed a very special kind of charisma. He was like a natural-born grassroots leader, able to rally a group of people with his unique charm.

The dozens of Mercenaries under his command firmly believed in him. At his order, over a dozen of them immediately charged forward.