The Demon Lords

Chapter 536 45 There's a Bit of a Problem_1

Zheng Fan rose to his feet, glaring bitterly at Miss Su.

Honestly, it just goes to show, it takes all sorts to make a world; this woman, obviously, wasn't very smart.

However, perhaps it was because she was undertaking an "overt" mission that her professional skills weren't particularly strong. As far as Zheng Fan knew, when the Qian State court sent "wives and concubines" to high officials and dignitaries, both sides operated with a tacit understanding.

Still, he wasn't sure if the blind man had previously used his psychic abilities to slightly influence Miss Su's mood.

According to the blind man's caution, he wouldn't act at this time because Gesang's strength was obviously daunting. Any small move might attract his attention.

Upon standing up, Zheng Fan adjusted his belt with his left hand, making a gesture that all men would understand, and then proceeded towards the direction Mr. Chen had previously left.

To an outsider, this would look like Zheng Fan simply couldn't bear to look at Miss Su any longer.

At this moment, Yao Zizhan intervened, saying, "In my hometown dialect, the least capable of the Silver Armored Guard are sent out to be brides for others. Don't mind her foolishness, Brother Gesang."

Gesang, respecting Yao Zizhan, returned to his seat and began meditating in a cross-legged position.

Ah Tong and Ah Mu sensibly withdrew to patrol the periphery for the night.

The blind man and others congregated around Helian Baozhu, maintaining a neat separation from Yao Zizhan's group with an unspoken agreement to leave each other alone.

「Meanwhile,」

Zheng Fan had walked quite a distance before he saw Mr. Chen standing there.

One of Mr. Chen's shoulders was higher than his right.

"Once we're out of the mountains and head to Shengle City, I will have San'er make a new prosthetic for you," said Zheng Fan.

Mr. Chen turned to look at Zheng Fan and, with a frown, asked, "Have you been promoted?"

"Yes, I'm no longer living in a dump. Now I'm the defender of a city, with several thousand troops under my command."

Mr. Chen nodded and said, "Congratulations."

"You're too kind. We're friends, after all."

"Did you achieve your rank in the Qian State?"

"Yes."

"Ah." Mr. Chen sighed.

"Aren't you going to ask why I'm here?"

Mr. Chen shook his head. "I don't want to know."

"That's unlike you."

"Should I revert to my old ways? Should I kill you with a single sword strike right now?"

"Heh." Zheng Fan took out his small iron box, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it with a tinderbox.

He took a puff, blew out a smoke ring, hesitated for a moment, and said, "I came for the Helian family treasury."

"You're here for the Jin people's property. That has nothing to do with me. I'm only here to ensure Master Yao's safety."

"He's a great literary figure, isn't he? I won't do anything to him. I'm just here for money. You know, feeding several thousand men costs a fortune, and I'm short on cash."

"You don't need to spell it out for me. I once promised to help you kill three people. Since you've brought it up, helping conceal your identity this time counts as one. You still have two left."

Zheng Fan casually slung an arm over Mr. Chen's shoulder.

Mr. Chen glanced at it. "Take it off."

Zheng Fan awkwardly removed his arm. "Why so serious?"

"The Yan and Qian are enemies."

"Narrow-minded. See? That's narrow-minded. You need to look at things from a different perspective. For example, perhaps hundreds of years from now, a new unified dynasty, like the Xia back then, will be established. Do you know how the people of that time will view the wars between Yan, Qian, and Jin?"

"How?"

"As a great ethnic fusion. As communication and understanding between the peoples of the Yan and Qian lands, and the Yan and Jin lands."

The corner of Mr. Chen's mouth twitched. He spat out two words: "Bullshit."

Zheng Fan laughed, flicking ash from his cigarette. "Actually, when I first saw you appear, I was pleasantly surprised."

"Pleasantly surprised, you say?"

"Yes, it's been quite a while since we last met, and I really missed you."

Mr. Chen sighed.

"Why are you sighing?"

"You've been in Jin land for too long."

"…" Zheng Fan.

"Hey, I didn't realize you could joke."

"I've been with Master Yao for a while, and it seems I'm a little more articulate than before."

"That's good, keep it up. Look at that old fellow. When he was young, he could probably charm his way through an entire street of courtesans for free. Heck, the ladies might have even paid him for the privilege."

Mr. Chen remained silent.

"Okay, we'll leave it at that," Zheng Fan said, throwing his cigarette butt onto the ground.

"There are still two people for you to kill. Who's next?"

"Kill who?"

"Perhaps, Gesang."

"Could you beat him?" Zheng Fan asked curiously.

"His rank should be similar to mine, but I'm a swordsman. In a one-on-one fight, it wouldn't be much of a problem."

Zheng Fan shook his head immediately, saying, "The Sword Saint of the Jin State also thought so."

"Tian Wujing is different. Besides, how many Tian Wujings are there in this world?"

"Well, it sounds like you're a fan of Tian Wujing."

"Fan? Like the one in soup?"

"Close enough. Anyway, don't take it to heart. The only reason I made that deal with you back then was because I felt a bit unbalanced. You came out of nowhere, flailing about, and nearly hacked me to pieces. Then I had to grit my teeth and save you. You were also going on about killing yourself, weren't you? If I hadn't given you a condition, you wouldn't have felt right about it either, would you? This time, just pretend you don't know us, and we'll call it even. After all, as you said, you're a Qian person and I'm a Yan person. Our states just fought a war, so it wouldn't be right to trouble you any further. Just remember to go to Shengle City after you leave these mountains to get a new prosthetic. We'll have a meal and some drinks. After that, whether you want to return to the Qian State or roam the world is up to you."

Mr. Chen nodded upon hearing this.

He's easy to coax, so easy. Zheng Fan thought to himself. I really do like making friends with honest people. The world would be a much better place if everyone were honest.

"Alright, let's go back. You go first; I'll follow. We'll return separately."

Mr. Chen turned and made his way back. However, after only a few steps, he unexpectedly halted and looked towards the mountain in the north… Geda Mountain.

Zheng Fan also looked in that direction, noticing a string of flames emerging from the mountainside.

"Are they celebrating some kind of torch festival?" Zheng Fan muttered to himself. The flames then began to grow larger and spread wider, gradually showing a clear trend of engulfing large patches of the mountainside.

The mountain… was on fire! Geda Mountain was under attack, and someone had set it ablaze!

Mr. Chen immediately turned his head to look at Zheng Fan and asked directly, "Did you bring troops?"

"Huh, if I had brought troops, would I still need to use the excuse of needing to pee in the middle of the night to come here and reminisce with you?" If my troops were here, regardless of your Silver Armored Guard, Gesang, or those Ah Tong and Ah Mu characters, we'd have rounded you all up. There'd be no need for this charade.

By the time Zheng Fan and Mr. Chen returned to the bonfire, they found that the campfire had been extinguished. Fanli had Helian Baozhu perched on his shoulders.

Gesang clenched his fists and gritted his teeth, saying, "We withdraw! Let's head south!"

Geda Mountain was to the north, yet Gesang wanted to head south. His meaning was clear. Judging by the fire's intensity, the Geda Mountain stronghold had obviously been breached. Who knew how many enemies were up there? Calling for reinforcements now would be the most foolish move; it would likely just be offering themselves up on a silver platter.

Ah Tong and Ah Mu, though their eyes were red, immediately began packing their belongings as per Gesang's orders. Their parents were also in the stronghold.

"The Young Master's safety is paramount! Retreat!" Gesang ordered again, taking the lead.

This time, even Yao Zizhan didn't ride in the cart but ran alongside everyone else. They ran for what felt like an eternity before Gesang signaled them to stop. He pointed to a cave ahead and said, "We'll stay here for now. Ah Tong, Ah Mu, you two keep watch."

"Yes!"

"Yes!"

Fanli set Helian Baozhu down, who leaned against him. As the night deepened, the child couldn't stay awake and was already dozing off. This prompted Fanli to also begin to close his eyes and doze…

Yao Zizhan squatted on the ground, gasping for breath and coughing occasionally.

The woman looked at Gesang at this moment, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "It was the Yan people."

"It couldn't have been the Yan people," Zheng Fan immediately denied. "We encountered the Yan people's Spy Bureau three days ago and killed them all. Then we immediately met up with Ah Tong and Ah Mu. We've been running almost non-stop for three days to get here, arriving only today. Even if the Yan people dispatched a large force to track us, they could only be behind us. They couldn't possibly have gotten ahead of us to attack the stronghold." Most importantly, I'm the commander of the Yan Army in Shengle City!

Regaining his breath, Yao Zizhan guessed, "If it's not the Yan people, could it be the uncivilized men from around here?"

Gesang immediately shook his head. "We've been managing the nearby settlements of uncivilized men for years and have infiltrated them with many of our own people. It's unlikely they would suddenly gather to attack Geda Mountain. Secondly, even if they did attack, I came down the mountain to meet you this morning. The earliest the enemy could have begun their assault on the stronghold was around noon. They couldn't have breached it in just half a day, unless…"

"Unless what?" Yao Zizhan immediately pressed.

"Unless it was a regular army," Gesang replied.

Anyone who has witnessed the combat effectiveness of the wild people knows it well. It was one thing for the once-unified Jin State to keep them suppressed, but even after the Jin State fractured into three, those successor states continued to dominate them just as easily.

"Was it… the Cheng State Army?" Yao Zizhan asked incredulously.

Zheng Fan was also surprised. What in the world is going on? I thought I'd lucked into this treasury information, but good heavens, now it seems the Yan State, Qian State, and even Cheng State forces have their hands in this?

Just then, the blind man's voice suddenly sounded in Zheng Fan's mind: "My lord, move closer to the cave entrance!"

"What's wrong?" Zheng Fan said, tugging at his sleeve as if he were hot and agitatedly moving towards the cave mouth for some air.

"There are quite a few people approaching from outside, and this Gesang guy seems a bit fishy!"

Just then, Fanli, who had appeared to be dozing, suddenly opened his eyes. He said drowsily, "Oh, this Gesang fellow seems a bit fishy."

"…" the blind man.

"…" Zheng Fan.

"…" Gesang.