1315 - 1321
Chapter 1315: Fuma
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
It was already the next early morning when Zhang Tie woke up.
After that, Zhang Tie found that he was lying on the bed of a luxurious bedroom which covered over 100 square meters. He then realized that he was still in the airboat of Lord Guangnan's Mansion.
Zhang Tie drank the most amount of alcohol since he was born yesterday. Zhang Tie didn't remember how much he had drunk. He only remembered that it was very fervent at that time. He matched the drinking capability of those knights of Lord Guangnan's Mansion. After defeating 5 people, Zhang Tie finally became dizzy. Closely after that, Bai Suxian accompanied him here.
After sobering up, Zhang Tie checked himself and found that he was very clear-minded. Therefore, he became reassured. Meanwhile, he had not imagined that he had such a great drinking capability.
Although drinking would cause mistakes. Honestly, after having a "cool" drink last night, Zhang Tie found that he was relaxed all over. The bit tiredness that was caused by the 3 days' escort and those upside-down things seemingly had disappeared. 'But I shouldn't drink so much in the future. Otherwise, it might really incur troubles. People say that they would not feel comfortable after sobering up. But I don't have such a feeling. I wonder whether it's because that Lord Guangnan Mansion's liquor is good or that I'm a knight or it's related to my medium recovery body…'
As he thought about it, Zhang Tie got up and cleansed himself up. After that, he put on his clothes, opening the hatch door and walking out.
The moment Zhang Tie exited his berth, two maids hurriedly lowered their bodies sideways towards Zhang Tie as they greeted him, "Fuma!"
As the two maids greeted him, they stealthily glanced at Zhang Tie out of curiosity. The crew of the entire airboat was talking about that the Fuma had infinite power. Even Meng Chao the one with the greatest strength in Lord Guangnan's Mansion was defeated by him. Not only that, but the drinking capability of the princess' husband was also superb. It was said that the princess' husband himself defeated 5 knights who had the greatest drinking capabilities in Lord Guangnan's Mansion. After hearing such gossip, the two maids even thought that Zhang Tie was a tough man. However, they had not imagined that Zhang Tie was only a handsome youngster who looked even younger than them.
'Fuma?' Zhang Tie couldn't help but laugh. He had not imagined that his identity as the princess' husband had been fixed since he came to the airboat of Lord Guangnan's Mansion yesterday. Zhang Tie didn't know whether this appellation was fixed by Bai Suxian's 2nd uncle or these maids, he didn't mind it. No matter what, he would win this appellation sooner or later. He only felt that appellation was a bit fresh. Zhang Tie then replied, "Hmm, get up!"
After recovering their standing posture, the two maids stealthily glanced at Zhang Tie for a couple of times with blushes. If the princess really married Zhang Tie, these maids would be her dowry and belong to Zhang Tie too. That was to say, they would warm up the bed and serve Zhang Tie to go to bed in the future for sure. However, it was already a lot for them to meet such a good princess' husband.
"Fuma, do you need inducing resuscitation dew?" A maid asked tenderly.
"Inducing resuscitation dew? What's that?"
"Inducing resuscitation dew is the specialty in our southern border. It has a marvelous effect on sobering people. No matter how drunk one is, he would be sobered up only with one drop of inducing resuscitation dew. With it, people won't cause any mistakes. Last night, princess told us to stay here. If there's an emergency, princess told us to wake Fuma up!" Another maid with almond eyes and rosy cheeks said straightforwardly.
"Hehe, no need. You've worked hard…"
"It's our pleasure…" The two maids hurriedly lowered their bodies at once.
When they talked, Bai Suxian had already come over here from the aisle. At the sight of Zhang Tie, Bai Suxian's eyes turned bright at once as she said, "Ahh, you've sobered up. My 2nd uncle has just sobered up too. He wants me to call you for a breakfast together…"
Yesterday, Bai Suxian's 2nd uncle was the first one becoming drunk.
…
5 minutes later, in the dining hall where they had a banquet yesterday, Zhang Tie, Bai Suxian and Bai Suxian's 2nd uncle were eating breakfast together in a quiet and graceful room of the airboat.
All the items on the airboat of Lord Guangnan's Mansion were carried here from Lord Guangnan's Mansion. It was said that various supplies would be sent here by airboat every month. Therefore, the breakfast on this airboat was pretty bumper.
Through the competition on strength and drinking capability with Bai Suxian's 2nd uncle and the myrmidons of Lord Guangnan's Mansion, it seemed that Zhang Tie had become the real Fuma of Lord Guangnan's Mansion. When the family members had breakfast together, all of them became relaxed and started to chat about the affairs in the western theater of operations and the south border of Taixia Country as if they had already accepted Zhang Tie as their family member.
"Oh, Zhang Tie, what kind of weapon do you use? After the battle strength competition, yesterday, Meng Chao and the other guys have been wondering what sort of weapon do you use given your superhuman strength. If you have no proper weapon, I could have people in Lord Guangnan's Mansion bring here some superhuman weapons that the Mansion collected these years for your selection!" Bai Ruicheng, also Bai Suxian's 2nd uncle suddenly asked.
Soon after Bai Ruicheng opened his mouth, all the surrounding knights had moved their eyes onto Zhang Tie.
After cleaning up his mouth by a piece of napkin, Zhang Tie immediately took out his Thor's Hammer.
The handle of Thor's Hammer was almost 2 m in length. The huge, grim head of Thor's Hammer was like an oil drum. However, the grunge and mysterious grains on Thor's Hammer and the shimmering light that flashed by the surface of the swarthy body of the hammer reminded the onlookers that it was a precious silver secret item.
Soon after Thor's Hammer was taken out, everybody had been dumbfounded.
"How heavy is this hammer?" Bai Runcheng asked Zhang Tie after looking at it carefully.
"6,800 kg!"
"Silver secret item?"
"Silver secret item!"
Zhang Tie held Thor's Hammer weighing 6,800 kg like holding a straw. All the others at present were conquered by Zhang Tie's great strength.
"Let me have a try…" At the sight of Zhang Tie's Thor's Hammer, Meng Chao the silly guy who compared strength with Zhang Tie yesterday immediately sprung up from his seat as he wanted to try its weight. Zhang Tie directly passed it to him.
After taking the Thor's Hammer, Meng Chao immediately revealed a solemn look. He couldn't carry it easily. Only after brandishing it for a few times in the lobby, the others at present had felt a strong wind blowing over their faces.
"That's powerful; that's too powerful!" Meng Chao screamed as he added, "It's fine using it on the ground; however, it would be too hard to use it in the sky for me; additionally, my moving speed would be reduced. If I want to beat others by this weapon, my opponents could torture me to death only by striking me with battle qi instead of having close combat with me. Additionally, even though in close combat, I could at most stand 1 hour with this weapon…"
"Let me have a try…" The other earth knights hurriedly swarm up to have a try as it was their first time to see such a heavy silver secret item. Like Meng Chao, although these earth knights could lift and brandish this hammer, they moved much slower than Zhang Tie.
All of them at present had tried the Thor's Hammer, including Bai Runcheng. Finally, it was passed back to Zhang Tie. Closely after that, Zhang Tie teleported it into his portable space-teleportation equipment.
"How do you feel about this hammer?" Bai Runcheng asked Zhang Tie.
"It's proper before. However, it feels lighter and lighter lately. I'm almost not accustomed to it." Zhang Tie said honestly.
'A 6,800 kg silver secret item feels light!' All of the knights at present would spurt out a mouth of saliva towards that person if it was told by someone else; however, they all believed in it when it was told by Zhang Tie; because they had already seen Zhang Tie's performance yesterday.
Bai Runcheng revealed a bitter smile as he shook his head, "After seeing your hammer, I realize that I've been overconfident just now. Among all the superhuman weapons collected by the Lord Guangnan's Mansion, the largest and heaviest one is a silver secret item-level long spear weighing only 4,900 kg. We couldn't even provide any weapon heavier than this one. Now that you could take this heavy hammer as your weapon, no wonder you could survive the trap of Gao Tianzhao…"
"2nd uncle, do you know where could I get a heavier weapon than my Thor's Hammer in Taixia Country?"
"How heavy do you need? Do you have any request on the category?"
After thinking for a short while, Zhang Tie replied, "At least 10 tons, over 20 tons is also acceptable. Saber, spear, hammer and sword, each of them works!"
After hearing Zhang Tie's words, the others at present became speechless. Commoners' weapons were measured in terms of kilograms; however, Zhang Tie's weapons were measured in tons. The Thor's Hammer was already frightening, they really couldn't imagine how it felt after being hit by a 10-20 ton weapon. Actually, Zhang Tie was telling truth as the Thor's Hammer was really too light for him. As for Zhang Tie, the Thor's Hammer couldn't completely exert the power of his kinetic strike in close combat; because 10 ton was just the most conservative estimation given the constant fruits of redemption from the gratitude of golden uangs and the surging strength after promoting to a shadow knight.
"It's easy for us to make heavier weapons using abyss iron, mithril and alloys of all kinds. However, their destructive strength could never match that of this silver secret item. Only a silver secret item could match your request. You could find silver secret items only in two places, "First, Earth-element Realm; second, Taiyi City. You might not find a silver secret item heavier than Thor's Hammer for hundreds of years; therefore, I'm afraid that you could only find it in Taiyi City."
"Taiyi City?"
"Right, Taiyi City is the largest trading center of secret item pearls among humans. In Taiyi City, there're numerous secret item pearls. Most of the secret item pearls that major sects and clans and individual knights of Taixia Country gain from other continents and subcontinents are finally gathered in Taiyi City for sale. I remember that a powerful heavy sword weighing 8,800 kg was opened from a secret item pearl in Taiyi City 140 years ago. Later on, this heavy sword was bought by Taiyi Fantasy Sect. They even named it as Immortal Taiyi Sword. As a trump card of Taiyi Fantasy Sect, it's preserved by Immortal Xuanyuan, the head of Taiyi Fantasy Sect. The 4,900 kg long spear collected by Lord Guangnan's Mansion was also gained from Taiyi City. Someone would find something special from a secret item pearl in each decade. Therefore, there might be a heavier silver secret item there. However, it depends on your luck if you want to gain a proper silver secret item from Taiyi City besides your own ability…"
"Thanks for your suggestion, 2nd uncle. If so, I should try my luck in Taiyi City…" Zhang Tie smiled.
"All the secret item pearls in Taiyi City are traded in terms of element crystals. You'd better invite some doctors who were proficient in the learning of secret items for a higher possibility. Lord Guangnan's Mansion has a store in Taiyi City. If you go there, you could go for the boss of Lord Guangnan's Treasures Pavilion with this plate if you meet some inconvenience. After seeing this plate, the boss would definitely try his best to help you!" As Bai Runcheng told Zhang Tie, he took out a crystal token and had a person on his side pass it to Zhang Tie.
In this case, Zhang Tie didn't decline it; instead, he took that token straightforwardly. After looking at it, he teleported it into his portable space-teleportation equipment…
As for Zhang Tie, he didn't lack element crystals. However, the so-called learning of secret items was just a joke in his eyes. The learning of secret items might be useful for others; however, the learning of secret items that made numerous knights scramble for was nothing but sh*t in Zhang Tie's eyes.
"It's said that Taiyi City has not been opened until now. The trade of secret item pearls have been suspended!"
Bai Runcheng replied with a casual smile, "It's for the time being. The turmoil in Xuanyuan Hill shocked the entire world. It was just a stance of Taiyi City, which was like flying a flag at half-mast. Each holy war would last 100-200 years. How could they suspend their business for 100-200 years? As Taiyi Fantasy Sect have land, they could receive too much rent. Taiyi City is a major source of income of Taiyi Fantasy Sect, which has long been making the others jealous. Only after a few days, if Taiyi Fantasy Sect doesn't open their market in Taiyi City, their business might be grabbed away by Xuanyuan Hill and the other sects. I'm afraid that Taiyi City will open its market soon after the battle situation facing Western Theater of Operations becomes stable…"
"2nd uncle, do you think that the Western Theater of Operations could be stabilized?"
"Of course, no matter how powerful demons are, they could never defeat Taixia Country only by one round. Each holy war would last over 100 years, including this holy war. Now that the lords in Xuanyuan Hill are confident to curb the aggressiveness of demons in Helan Mountain Range and Weishui River, they must have reasons. Additionally, according to my intelligence, something unusual was happening in the regions occupied by demons over past days; demons are becoming smarter…"
When Zhang Tie was going to ask Bai Runcheng what happened in the regions occupied by demons, he suddenly received a message through his remote-sensing finger.
"What happened?" Bai Suxian knew that something was going to happen as she had been fixing her eyes onto Zhang Tie.
Zhang Tie looked at Bai Suxian as he also felt it strange. He then told her, "I've just received a message, the commander-in-chief Zuoqiu Mingyue wants to see me…"
"Commander-in-chief wants to see you?" Bai Suxian became stunned too. Closely after that, she moved her eyes onto her 2nd uncle.
Stroking his beard and watching Zhang Tie for a few seconds, Bai Runcheng suddenly burst out into laughter, "It must be a good thing if you're called in by one of the top 3 counselors…"
Chapter 1316: Being Hostile Openly
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
A knight subordinate of Zuoqiu Mingyue was waiting for Zhang Tie in Blackwater Base. After seeing Zhang Tie in a bit more than 10 minutes, the subordinate was very satisfied. After confirming Zhang Tie's identity, that knight subordinate only said, "Follow me…" before leaving Blackwater Base for Xuanyuan Fortress.
Although Zhang Tie had just covered over here from the airboat of Lord Guangnan's Mansion, after hearing that the commander-in-chief was waiting for him in Blackwater Base, Zhang Tie could only go back to Blackwater Base first before following that knight subordinate to Xuanyuan Fortress.
On the way, Zhang Tie was wondering why Zuoqiu Mingyue wanted to see him.
The knight subordinate was silent with an inflexible look and behaved in a rigid way without even greeting Zhang Tie. Therefore, Zhang Tie gave up inquiring something from this man. No matter what, he would know it after a short while.
Xuanyuan Fortress was similar to Lion Fortress in structure and staffing. They were both super large war fortresses. Over half of passers-by on the roads in the war fortresses were knights. Additionally, there were various metal towers on both sides of the roads, which could serve as people's residences. Of course, there were also bars and stores where knights could become relaxed and exchange materials. As Zhang Tie had stayed in Lion Fortress for a few days, he didn't feel too amazed about Xuanyuan Fortress. There was also a no-fly air territory and a marvelous energy cover above this fortress. Most of the knights couldn't fly in the fortress except for heavenly knights.
"Zhang Tie…" a thunder-like voice sounded the moment Zhang Tie entered the fortress and walked with that knight on the road. Zhang Tie turned around as he saw Feng Yexiao, one of the top 4 grand elders of Taiyi Fantasy Sect who once lost a bet with him. Additionally, there were some knights on Feng Yexiao's side. Given their looks, they should be Taiyi Fantasy Sect's disciples. Soon after they walked out of a high roadside tower, they had caught sight of Zhang Tie.
Like how he looked when Zhang Tie saw him for the first time, Feng Yexiao also wore an extremely ordinary plain-colored linen robe. Of course, after seeing the luxurious configuration inside Taiyi Fantasy Sect's airboat, Zhang Tie would not consider that Feng Yexiao pursued frugality or diligence. Ladies in nightclubs didn't wear a lot less because they were born to be coquettish, but because of demand for work and livelihood. Similarly, grand elders of Taiyi Fantasy Sect didn't dress in this way to save some gold coins for the sect or they couldn't afford a boa silk robe; but for pretending to be frugal in order to catch outsiders' attention.
At the sight of Feng Yexiao, Zhang Tie stopped as he said calmly with a glassy-eyed look, "Elder Feng!"
The knight subordinate in front of Zhang Tie also stopped as he turned around and looked at Feng Yexiao and Zhang Tie silently.
Compared to Zhang Tie's calmness, Feng Yexiao widely opened his eyes as he questioned Zhang Tie strictly, "Zhang Tie, as an earth knight, why do you hurt my disciple the moment you came back yesterday?"
"Grand elder Feng, what do you mean?" Zhang Tie said with a distant look, "Since I came back yesterday, I've not fought anybody at all. Additionally, I only greeted some familiar ones. I've never talked with any disciple of Taiyi Fantasy Sect at all. Grand elder Feng's words really made me feel puzzled. I wonder how did I hurt your disciple. Could you explain me about the causes and effects?"
"You…" Feng Yexiao was so angry that his face was red. Nobody else across Xuanyuan Fortress would sympathize his disciple if he told them what happened yesterday. However, his disciple suffered a loss from Zhang Tie; additionally, this event was related to his own face. After recalling that his face was slapped by Zhang Tie for a couple times, he lost a bet with Zhang Tie which almost made him a laughingstock in Taiyi Fantasy Sect. This time, his disciple was driven infuriated so much by Zhang Tie that he even spurted out a mouth of blood. Therefore, Feng Yexiao finally lost his temper.
"My junior fellow apprentice Wen was once out of control when in cultivation; as a result, his heart meridian was injured. After being insulted and stimulated, his disease relapsed as he had a pain in the heart and spurted out blood. Qianji Hermit understood what happened yesterday, why do you pretend to be innocent here?" A disciple younger than 30 years old behind Feng Yexiao opened his mouth.
Zhang Tie glanced at that disciple of Taiyi Fantasy Sect. Given his long and narrow eyes, he looked very scheming. Additionally, his slightly thinner lips and sunken eye sockets looked a bit gloomy. At this moment, that person was gazing at Zhang Tie with narrow eyes dauntlessly. The moment he opened his mouth, he had attributed the responsibility to Zhang Tie.
"As a Hua sage said, one should not impose on others what he himself does not desire. Now that he couldn't stand being stimulated or humiliated, why did he always want to stimulate and humiliate others? Because he's the disciple of Taiyi Fantasy Sect, the others have to grasp the ability to have his saliva dry itself on their faces?" Zhang Tie sneered.
"Taiyi Fantasy Sect is the first sect in Taixia Country. Standing in the opposite of Taiyi Fantasy Sect, it's not strange even if you grasp the ability to have one's saliva dry itself on your face." Feng Yexiao said with a faint sneer.
"Elder Feng, I got up early this morning. I've not even cleaned my teeth. However, you told me about this. I really have no preparation mentally…" Zhang Tie looked at Feng Yexiao with a smile as he continued, "As I have something to deal with, I have to go. If Elder Feng wants to grasp the ability to have one's saliva dry itself on your face, I suggest Elder Feng have a try at a high place by spitting your saliva towards the strong wind. When Elder Feng promotes to sage realm one day and could match Emperor Xuanyuan, you might have already grasped this top skill. See you!"
After saying that, Zhang Tie directly told that knight subordinate of commander-in-chief without looking at Feng Yexiao before saying, "Let's go!"
After throwing a glance at Zhang Tie and the members of Taiyi Fantasy Sect, the knight subordinate continued to walk forward in front of Zhang Tie silently.
Soon after Zhang Tie moved less than 5 footsteps, he had heard a sound. The one who spoke secretly was the young earth knight of Taiyi Fantasy Sect who talked to Zhang Tie just now, "It's said that Qianji Hermit has a senior fellow apprentice called Lan Yunxi in Taiyi Fantasy Sect. She's already a black iron knight and looks good. Hehheh, after seeing Qianji Hermit, I realize that I've cared about junior fellow apprentice Lan too less before…"
Zhang Tie stopped at once as he slowly looked around. At the same time, he raised his arm and pointed at that earth knight of Taiyi Fantasy Sect who was watching him with a sneer and said straightforwardly, "Bear it in mind, from now on, as long as Lan Yunxi encounter any accident or misfortune in Taiyi Fantasy Sect, even if she broke one finger in cultivation, I will kill you for sure regardless of the reason. If you want to see whether I dare do that or not, just have a try. This is the price that you will pay for using the member of Huaiyuan Palace to threaten me. Wen Qingkong the son of a b*tch dared swear me in front of me; however, you the b*stard only dared threaten me secretly…You couldn't even match Wen Qingkong"
"Zhang Tie, you're too presumptuous…" The earth knight instantly changed his face. Feng Yexiao was also driven mad as he roared and grabbed the chance to punch towards Zhang Tie.
Zhang Tie narrowed his eyes at once; at the same time, he punched against Feng Yexiao's palm. With such a loud boom, Zhang Tie remained still; however, Feng Yexiao was sent back to his original place.
This round of combat was as fast as a lightning bolt. Zhang Tie and Feng Yexiao had finished their combat before the onlookers' response. However, the loud boom attracted the attention of all the passers-by within 100 m.
Zhang Tie threw a glance at Feng Yexiao. Closely after that, he flicked his sleeves and turned around. Watching Zhang Tie's back, Feng Yexiao's facial expression turned mysterious. Only Feng Yexiao himself knew that his hand which punched against Zhang Tie's palm was slightly quivering inside his sleeve…
'What a terrifying strength!' Feng Yexiao was shocked inside.
'F*ck, I finally became hostile against Taiyi Fantasy Sect!' Zhang Tie swore inside. However, after punching against Feng Yexiao openly just now, Zhang Tie had a feeling of exaltation upon fulfillment. He wouldn't feel suppressed anymore. After becoming hostile against Taiyi Fantasy Sect, Zhang Tie found that he didn't have anything to fear about from then on. Therefore, he felt as broad as sea and sky inside at once…
Chapter 1317: Heavens Reaching Empire
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
Zhang Tie saw Zuoqiu Mingyue and Ye Qingcheng in a room at the top of the huge pyramid-shaped building in the middle of Xuanyuan Fortress. It seemed that the 2 people were waiting for Zhang Tie.
Through this room at the greatest altitude, Zuoqiu Mingyue and Ye Qingcheng could overlook all the 11 advanced bases in the entire Xuanyuan Fortress through the huge crystal French windows which carried the strong alchemical qi.
White clouds arrived outside the windows leisurely at their foot. Ye Qingcheng and Zuoqiu Mingyue had been fixing their eyes onto Zhang Tie since Zhang Tie entered the room.
"Commander-in-chief, commander…" Zhang Tie instantly made a military salute to the two people soon after he entered the room after glancing over the room. The two people were respectable from both cultivation base and military exploits. Although Zhang Tie didn't know about their moral standings, he felt they should be better than Feng Yexiao at least.
When Zhang Tie gave a military salute to them, he especially paid attention to Zuoqiu Mingyue who was known as the Military God in Taixia Country. Given his look, Zuoqiu Mingyue was just an elegant, hale old man like an immortal being. His qi as a whole was calm. If not the special uniform that was specially designed for top 3 counselors of the state, nobody could believe that this person was the Military God of Taixia Country, the commander-in-chief of numerous soldiers in Taixia Country next to Emperor Xuanyuan.
Of course, Zhang Tie knew that was just his superficial look or a supreme realm of simplicity. However, if anyone felt that commander-in-chief was such a calm and plain old man, that would be totally wrong. When Zhang Tie caught sight of the wall behind Zuoqiu Mingyue and Ye Qingcheng, his eye light suddenly froze.
There was a specimen on the wall behind the two people, which was the head of an ox horn demon. The change of demon knight's cultivation base would be reflected on their own bodies. After promoting to a heavenly knight, ox horn demon would have one more horn in the middle of their forehead. The head belonged to a 3-horn heavenly demon knight.
There was even a faintly grim and painful look before his death on its face.
It was Zhang Tie's first time to see a specimen of a heavenly demon knight's head in an office. Therefore, he was shocked more or less.
"It's a demon prince. It was brutal and killed so many human knights in the 2nd holy war; additionally, it liked to chop off human knights' heads and hang them on the wall for collection and appreciation. Therefore, I chopped its head and hung it on my wall. Only in this way could we frighten demons!" Zuoqiu Mingyue opened his mouth as he pointed at a location in the room as if he had sensed that Zhang Tie was gazing at the head of the heavenly demon knight on the wall, "Take a seat…"
"Commander-in-chief is really mighty and admirable. This really raise people's morale!" Zhang Tie cupped his hands towards Zuoqiu Mingyue as he took a seat frankly.
"Blackwater Base have already figured out why you were ambushed by Gao Tianzhao. Among the knights from Northeast Military Region in this base, You Dazhong the clan head of You Clan in Mozhou Province is a mole of Heavens Reaching Church. He leaked the intelligence that you have a mount and your traces to the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church after you came to the Western Theater of Operations. You Dazhong has been cleared secretly. You Clan in Mozhou has been confiscated. As we don't want to make people in the base flurried, we won't make any notice to the public. Now that you've come back, I should be responsible for you!" Ye Qingcheng said.
"Thanks, Commander Ye, Heavens Reaching Church has penetrated into our party so deeply that we could barely defend them!"
"Therefore, most of the military exploits for clearing moles in the base should owe to you this time. If you're not meticulous and don't provide us the clues, I'm afraid that bigger troubles would be aroused in the future if You Dazhong continued to lurk in Blackwater Base!" Ye Qingcheng let out a sigh too, "Oh, how did you discover that Go Tianzhao would ambush you in the underground space and survive his ambush?"
After hearing Ye Qingcheng's question, Zhang Tie started to depict what he experienced at that time. In front of Ye Qingcheng and Zuoqiu Mingyue, Zhang Tie admitted that he had grasped animal controlling skills. However, he didn't tell them that he had lotus-flower eyes. Through meticulous probe, Zhang Tie discovered the traces of Gao Tianzhao. Alchemist's bomb was also a method that Zhang Tie adopted to keep himself safe in a hopeless situation. After getting injured and leaving the mountain cave, Zhang Tie flew off Helan Mountain with the help of thunder hawk. After that, he started to recover his injuries in a hidden place. Although Zhang Tie didn't tell them where did he recover his injuries, now that he appeared in Xiangshan Prefecture, Wuzhou Province for the first time lately, the listeners must think that Zhang Tie didn't have the thunder hawk fly back to Huanzhou Province, but have it fly to a mountain region in Xiangshan Prefecture, Wuzhou Province out of the imagination of Gao Tianzhao and those demon knights.
Zhang Tie was telling the truth in details. Nobody could find any fault in his words. Even though those demon knights and Gao Tianzhao were here, it was hard to say Zhang Tie's depiction was wrong. Because Zhang Tie was telling true. However, nobody could imagine that Zhang Tie had body separation skill. His secret skills were also amazing. Finally, he could defeat Gao Tianzhao easily by the secret skill of King Roc Sutra.
After hearing Zhang Tie's words, Ye Qingcheng and Zuoqiu Mingyue exchanged a glance with each other before nodding inside at the same time. Zhang Tie's depiction was completely consistent with the information that they got through investigation later on. Although nobody else saw Gao Tianzhao chasing Zhang Tie out of the mountain cave and Zhang Tie escaping away by thunder hawk, like how Zhang Tie could find that mountain cave by animal controlling skill, the tracing professionals assigned by Blackwater Base and Xuanyuan Fortress could also restore what happened at that time using animal controlling skill too.
"Did you see Gao Tianzhao any more from then on?"
"At that time, Gao Tianzhao chased after me very hurriedly; however, he didn't catch up with me in the end. After that day, I've not seen Gao Tianzhao in the western theater of operations for over 2 months!" Zhang Tie was telling the truth. Zhang Tie spoke very carefully facing two powerful figures because high-level knights might grasp some unpredictable lie testing skills. If he told a lie in front of them, they might be able to sense it. In fact, Zhang Tie's reply was true. If he didn't add "in the western theater of operations", he was telling a lie; if he added "in the western theater of operations", he wasn't telling a lie. Zhang Tie saw Gao Tianzhao in his Castle of Black Iron since then instead of in the western theater of operations. "Why do you ask me about this? Commander Ye?"
"The knights in Xuanyuan Fortress and the 11 bases might not have known that for the time being. But we've got the concrete information. The remnants of Heavens Reaching Church being wanted by Taixia Country have long escaped to Yezhou Province, a barren province in the west of Taixia Country. They were hiding in secret places over there. Soon after demon's vanguard arrived, those remnants of Heavens Reaching Church had jumped out and started to coordinate with demons to occupy cities and land. A couple of days ago, the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church have already established a puppet regime in the region occupied by demons called Heavens Reaching Empire. Strangely, as Gao Tianzhao had the supreme position among the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church, he should definitely be selected as the puppet emperor; however, it was Gao Zeji the son of Gao Tianzhao who ascended to the throne. Gao Tianzhao didn't show up at all…"
After hearing this news, Zhang Tie became dumbfounded. It was not strange that the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church hid in a barren province in the west of Taixia Country. Even Lancang Palace of Bloody Soul Temple could be discovered in the volcano being so close to Xuanyuan Hill, not to mention the western border of Taixia Country. If the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church really wanted to hide here, it was really hard to find them.
Actually, Zhang Tie had guessed that the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church being wanted might be hiding in some hidden place of Peacewest Military Region 2 months ago when he caught sight of Gao Tianzhao. However, it was really out of Zhang Tie's imagination that Heavens Reaching Church could found a puppet regime openly and select an emperor. Because such a situation didn't happen in the former 2 holy wars at all.
However, after thinking about it carefully, it was reasonable. Because Heavens Reaching Church which inherited the doctrine of Bloody Soul Temple excelled at confusing people, controlling and enslaving commoners. The remnants of Heavens Reaching Church needed power, liquors and beauties; demons wanted to consume the strength of Taixia Country and Hua people and have Hua people fall apart into pieces by killing each other. Therefore, the remnants of Heavens Reaching Church and demons made cooperation.
The same tactic had been used in the history of Hua people for many times. In the history of Taixia Country, all the invaders would finally play off one group of Hua people against the other by means such as differentiation, bribery and threat, assisting traitors, cultivating various ambitious people and agents and having Hua people separate from inside through mutual animosity and carnage for the purpose of ruling, enslaving and eliminating Hua people. Given the large population and land area, if they attacked Hua people blindly, they could only make Hua people more consolidated; however, if they cultivated some agents and puppet lackeys, they could realize the maximal destruction at the lowest price. It was similar to the tactic of leaving one exit while surrounding the other 3 exits of a city.
There had not been such cunning and delusive guys among Hua people for many years. Now that Heavens Reaching Church founded Heavens Reaching Church with the assistance of demons, it meant that the entire Heavens Reaching Church had completely abandoned the bound and foundation of Bloody Soul Temple and stood on the opposite of Hua people and Taixia Country. No matter what Bloody Soul Temple did at that time, it was still one of the top sects in Taixia Country and didn't separate Taixia Country openly and deteriorate to the lackeys of demons.
"Heavens Reaching Church's traitors are seeking for death…" Zhang Tie said resentfully while gritting his teeth…
Chapter 1318: Weiji General
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
"It's true that the cunning rebels of Heavens Reaching Church are seeking for death. However, if the greater part of the land in Yezhou Province which has been completely occupied by demons, Wuzhou Province, Zhuzhou Province and Yinzhou Province which are being attacked by demons are included, almost half of Peacewest Military Region have been occupied. Over 12 people of Taixia Country have been captured by demons in that territory."
"Over 12 billion commoners?" Zhang Tie was startled by this figure. He knew that many people were in the region of the 3 provinces which were occupied by demons; however, he had not imagined about such a terrifying figure.
"This figure is on the premise that Taixia Country has tried its best to evacuate people from Wuzhou Province, Zhuzhou Province and Yinzhou Province over the past half a year. Of course, you've also made a contribution to it!" Zuoqiu Mingyue said as he looked at Zhang Tie with a favorable expression, "Although it's a commercial means for major clans across Taixia Country to join in the team of evacuating people from the western theater of operations with the profit of Fiery Oil, it has a great effect. In many cases, by commanding people to do something with the concept of righteousness is not as effective as alluring people by profits. Although the royal court could also order major clans to do this, the major clans might not be as enthusiastic as they're now!"
"I'm overpraised, commander-in-chief. I've just done what I could!" Zhang Tie didn't feel proud at all; instead, he behaved in a very sincere way, "When I was in Waii Subcontinent, I've seen many people's miserable lives in the region under the rule of demons. Most of the people would rather die. All of them were lingering on with their last breath of life. Many people deteriorated to the edible slaves of demons like domestic animals being bred in captivity. More people turned into lifeless walking dead. Therefore, I think it's my compelling obligation to save my countrymen in my power!"
"What a compelling obligation! If everyone in Taixia Country could behave like you. Even though demons are powerful, our Hua people are destined to be the winner in the end!" Ye Qingcheng nodded as he said, "Do you know why demons allowed Heavens Reaching Church to establish a regime in the region which was occupied by them?"
"Won't it be beneficial to both demons and Heavens Reaching Church through this cooperation?"
"Yes, it's indeed beneficial to both parties. However, given demons' temperaments, how could living people be better than walking deads like demonized puppets? Because they're afraid of mutated moons miasma. Mutated moons miasma could break out among all the people in the 3 provinces after they are completely turned to demonized puppets. If so, demons' line of attack would be blocked; demons' plan on attacking Taixia Country would be completely disrupted. Even the main forces of demons would be involved. It's nothing different than lifting a rock only to drop it on their own feet. At this moment, less than 20% of over 12 billion people in Taixia Country being captured by demons might still be living…" Ye Qingcheng said in a low voice.
'Mutated moons miasma?' Zhang Tie wondered whether the fact that Gorath was his incarnation had been known by Zuoqiu Mingyue and Ye Qingcheng. 'As I could use mutated moons miasma, therefore, they called me here? That's impossible. Who else except me knows that I'm Gorath?'
"Commander Ye, you mean…" Zhang Tie asked after being silent for a second.
"I was told that you got acquainted with Gorath."
"I met him in Waii Subcontinent, but we're not familiar with each other because we barely saw each other…" Zhang Tie said carefully.
"Taiyi Country has assigned professionals to collect samples of mutated moons miasma in Waii Subcontinent. The conclusion is that Gorath's mutated moons miasma is the destroyer of demonized puppets, which also does great harm to LV 9 demon fighters. I believe that demons and Three-eye Association have carried out the same study and got the same conclusion. Therefore, after Waii Subcontinent was completely collapsed by demons; although all the subcontinents were covered with roaring battle flames, not a single demon disaster being involved with more than 100 million people have ever happened since then. Because of Gorath's mutated moons miasma, parent puppet worm which is an effective weapon of mass destruction that demons prepare in this holy war is greatly restricted. Demons dare never turn people into demonized puppets on a large scale. It could be said that Gorath's mutated moons miasma destroyed one trump card of demons. We've already received an intelligence. In order to kill Gorath and eliminate this threat, demons and Three-eye Association have already assigned some hunting groups composed of shadow knights to look for Gorath's traces across the world. As long as they killed Gorath, the trump card of puppet worm would play its role once again. If you could contact Gorath, please notice him this intelligence and tell him that Taixia Country could provide protection for him at any time. If he wishes to serve Taixia Country, all of his conditions could be met by Taixia Country, including cultivation methods, resources, wealth, land, etc.. Taixia Country could even spare efforts to support him in the research of voodoo pills on the premise of sharing the study results with him…"
Zhang Tie understood it at once. 'It turns out that my mutated moons miasma has posed a great threat to demons' use of parent puppet worms. Therefore, demons and Three-eye Association want to kill "Gorath". However, mutated moons miasma is Taixia Country's magic key. If Taixia Country could take control of Gorath and mutated moons miasma, Taixia Country would be able to balance off the threat from demons' parent puppet worms and ensure that demons and those b*stards of Heavens Reaching Church wouldn't turn people into demonized puppets casually. Because "Gorath" has shown up at my rotating charka ceremony as if he got acquainted with me; therefore, the senior officials of Taixia Country thought about having me contact Gorath and take control of the trump card mutated moons miasma.'
At this moment, Zhang Tie felt lucky about his foresight by having Gorath appear in his rotating chakra ceremony so as to end up people's doubt that he was Gorath. 'In this world, nobody else would feel that I am Gorath; otherwise, as long as the fact that I own the body-changing bloodline was exposed, someone would doubt that I'm Gorath. Take this case as an instance, demons and Three-eye Association assigned some hunting teams composed of shadow knights to deal with Gorath. If I've not confirmed that I'm not Gorath, I'm afraid that such hunting teams would bring great trouble to my family members even if I don't feel that such hunting teams could hurt me.'
"Although I have a history with Gorath, I have no remote-sensing device to contact him. If I saw him, I would definitely tell him about the message. However, I'm afraid that I could not see him in the theater of operations in a short period. When he appeared in my rotating chakra ceremony, he had expressed that he was going to leave Taixia Country. I'm not clear where he was going to, either."
"Oh, I see. Just bear it in mind. As Gorath's traces are too mysterious, Taixia Country couldn't get any message about him even at our full efforts. I'm deeply convinced that demons and Three-eye Association couldn't find him easily either…" Ye Qingcheng opened his mouth once again after being silent for a second, "There's another thing about you!"
"About me?"
"Yes. From today on, your command and relationship of administrative subordination will be transferred to Xuanyuan Fortress from Blackwater Base. You will be responsible for me directly…" Zuoqiu Mingyue opened his mouth.
Zhang Tie was shocked for the 2nd time today. He had not imagined that Zuoqiu Mingyue could transfer him here from Blackwater Base. 'What does he want to do?'
"As you were voluntary to become the scout of Blackwater Base at the beginning, you were very brave and could be a good model of all the knights from Northeast Military Region. Given your ability, I think that you could complete your task as a scout safely; therefore, I assigned you to Helan Mountain Region. However, the fact that you were ambushed by Gao Tianzhao reminded me and commander-in-chief that your ability and strength might not be limited to combat on the battlefield. If you're just an earth knight only with great battle strength, demons and Heavens Reaching Church wouldn't assign a shadow knight to kill you. We realize that we might have put fine timber to petty use…" Ye Qingcheng explained.
"Commander-in-chief, what do you want me to do then?' Zhang Tie put it straightforwardly.
"I will use you because of the same reason that makes demons and Heavens Reaching Church being anxious about killing you!" Zuoqiu Mingyue watched Zhang Tie calmly as he added, "The war between Taixia Country and demons is destined to last long. Demons couldn't devour Taixia Country at once. Taixia Country couldn't drive all the demons out of Eastern Continent either; especially after Heavens Reaching Empire is founded, the entire Western Theater of Operations will confront with demons and Heavens Reaching Empire for a long term. In the future, Helan Mountain Range and Weishui River will be a barrier that demons could barely break through in a short period. There's one position in the theater of operations that is most suitable for you. Therefore, I transferred you here from Commander Ye's Blackwater Base!"
"It's Fiery Oil!" Zhang Tie understood it at once.
"Fiery Oil and grains!" Zuoqiu Mingyue replied with a smile, "Given the current situation facing Fire-Dragon Bounty Territory, we've known that you must have a good plan in your heart. You're qualified as Qianji Hermit. If the rear end of Western Theater of Operations could be as same as Fiery-Dragon Bounty Territory, Taixia's defense line in Helan Mountain Range and Weishui River would be safer. By then, it would cost demons more to break through it. I wonder whether you wish to leave the battlefield?"
After being silent for a second, Zhang Tie replied in a low voice, "It's fine for me as long as I could serve Taixia Country in the holy war!"
"Great!" Zuoqiu Mingyue then clapped his hands before saying, "From today on, I will entrust you as the assistant of commander-in-chief and Weiji General of Xuanyuan Fortress. You will be responsible for the affairs of grains and weapons of the troops in Huanzhou Province, Kangzhou Province, Ningzhou Province and Bingzhou Province. Class III. You have the right to make an arbitrary decision…"
Zhang Tie was stunned by Zuoqiu Mingyue's words. As the assistant and secretary of Zuoqiu Mingyue, he could contact Zuoqiu Mingyue at any time. Weiji General was responsible for logistics and supplies in troops, which was equal to the minister of logistics and weapons department…
"Yes, sir…" Zhang Tie stood up and replied solemnly only after being dumbfounded for a few seconds…
Chapter 1319: A Bet Between Zhang Tie and Feng Cangwu
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
The new year's eve of the 905th year of Black Iron Calendar arrived too early. After returning to Blackwater Base for 3 days, the last day of the 904th year of Black Iron Calendar had slid away unconsciously…
After heavy snow overnight, many provinces in Peacewest Military Region had been covered with snow. The east side and the west side of Helan Mountain Range were both covered in heavy snow. Even the flowing Weishui River had been frozen with thick ice.
Due to the dull weather, people couldn't see the Faerie-Dragon Star that rose from the east. However, the loud drumbeats that drifted from Xuanyuan Fortress last night cheered these Hua knights up and reminded them of the arrival of a new year.
Besides knights who executed routine inspection and performed tasks, all the knights in Xuanyuan Fortress and the other bases welcomed a rare 2-day leave since they entered the Western Theater of Operations.
Both scholars and fighters should be relaxed. During this period when demons slowed down their attack, knights in Taixia Country also welcomed their first new year in the theater of operations. All the knights finally had a chance to relax themselves.
Because they were forbidden to leave Xuanyuan Fortress and the other bases too far away, all the bars and likewise places across Xuanyuan Fortress were filled to capacity at once.
…
"Weiji General? Commander-in-Chief appointed you as Weiji General?"
After hearing Zhang Tie's words, Feng Cangwu stopped drinking immediately as he tilted his head and watched Zhang Tie with widely opened eyes who was looking at the scenery outside the crystal French window in an interesting way.
Feng Cangwu and Zhang Tie were in the Brilliance Tower inside Xuanyuan Fortress. This tower was the most boisterous place in Xuanyuan Fortress. Like that brilliance tower in Lion Fortress, this brilliance tower also had a lot of functional areas. Knights inside this theater of operations could exchange for element crystals with their booties here. The 81-storey tower was also matched with the largest knights' bar and dining hall across Xuanyuan Fortress, where knights could consume and relax themselves. Of course, as for many people, the most attractive place in the entire Brilliance Tower were two huge military exploits rankings in the lobby of the Brilliance Tower.
The military exploits of top 1,000 knights could be manifested on the rankings. The entire rankings were divided into rankings for black iron knights' military exploits; rankings for earth knights' military exploits and rankings for shadow knights' military exploits. The 3 rankings could cover over 99% of fighters joining the battle in the Western Theater of Operations. Their military exploits would be confirmed as long as they were confirmed and counted.
As for heavenly knights' military exploits, it was hard to manifest them on the rankings simply. In fact, as long as a heavenly knight was in the base or the fortress, he would shock demons greatly. Additionally, as heavenly knights had supreme positions, every movement of them might be related to the confidential affairs. It was evidently irreverent to rank heavenly knights here. Additionally, confidential affairs might be leaked by ranking heavenly knights' military exploits. Therefore, there were no rankings of heavenly knights' military exploits in all the Brilliance Towers.
The accumulated points of military exploits indicated one's battle strength and honor. Besides, they could also exchange for anything they wanted with these accumulated points inside Xuanyuan Fortress such as element crystals, wealth, land even various advanced cultivation methods and battle skills collected by the royal households of Taixia Country which were very practical and enticing.
The highest cultivation method which could be exchanged by these accumulated points were duke-level classics. Of course, those knights couldn't cultivate another cultivation method. However, if possible, that knight could designate one of his posterities or disciples to accept the enlightenment of the duke-level cultivation method. So many knights and major clans exerted their full efforts to fight demons for this reward.
Additionally, such rankings were almost a rehearsal on the Heavens Fortune Rankings later on, through which people who ranked top would be conferred with dukedom. As long as they left their names on the rankings, most of them on the rankings might become noblemen and benefit their offsprings; even be conferred as dukes. All the people on the rankings would be the pillars of Taixia Country in the future.
The square of the Brilliance Tower was always crowded with knights who were here to observe the rankings. Of course, the figures on the rankings became the focus of the public too.
In each holy war, Taixia Country would set the military exploits rankings in the theater of operations. Such a method was simple, direct and effective. Even the figures among the top 7 sects would like to compete in front of the rankings. No matter what they were pursuing for, fame, benefits, face or vanity, they could always find a reason to pay attention to this military exploits rankings.
Watching those knights commenting the figures on the rankings, Zhang Tie finally knew that the copycat military exploits that he saw in crystal fortress originated from here…
Zhang Tie might be interested in such rankings before; however, he didn't have any interest in it now. Even though his name also appeared on the rankings about military exploits of earth knights, Zhang Tie still didn't feel thrilled about it.
Zhang Tie's name appeared on the rankings 2 days ago. Xu Baoan the Cheji General of Wuzhou Province reported Zhang Tie's military exploits of killing 2 earth knights and 2 black iron knights to Xuanyuan Fortress. Besides Xu Baoan, there were other witnesses at present when Zhang Tie killed those demon knights. Therefore, after Xuanyuan Fortress approved it, Zhang Tie's name and his military exploits appeared on the rankings.
Additionally, if Zhang Tie could present other demon knights' heads, his rank would be higher on the rankings. However, Zhang Tie didn't feel like doing that at all.
In different realms, people would have different thoughts and demands. Someone might feel pleased with the rankings; however, Zhang Tie didn't think such rankings was meaningful to him. He didn't even want to catch people's attention.
However, after his name and military exploits appeared on the rankings, Taiyi Fantasy Sect's face was slapped forcefully in an indirect way too. Feng Yexiao couldn't even find a reason to find Zhang Tie trouble for Wen Qingkong anymore.
…
After hearing Feng Cangwu's words, Zhang Tie moved his eyes onto Feng Cangwu as he asked with a smile, "Are you surprised?"
"Of course surprised. If you leave the theater of operations, even though this position looks supreme, you've lost the chance to make more military exploits in the theater of operations. What will you use to compete with others if knights are requested to drop their blood on the tester to manifest their military exploits on Heavens Fortune Rankings for dukedom in the future? You should know that the only condition for conferring people with dukedom is the number of demons they kill. It doesn't work no matter how well you serve as Weiji General. Even if Taixia Country win this holy war by driving demons back to the underground world, whose name do you think will be remembered by people, Zuoqiu Mingyue or your name as Weiji General? Don't tell me that you don't want to be conferred with a dukedom or strive for a noble dukedom for your sons…" Feng Cangwu said while frowning.
As the private room of the bar on the 28th floor of Brilliance Tower was installed with a special device for the sake of rest, drinking and chat for knights, Feng Cangwu and Zhang Tie didn't need to worry about leaking the information to the public.
Feng Cangwu's attitude made Zhang Tie's heart pound as he recalled the event that Taiyi Fantasy Sect had already been preparing for the "doomsday grain seeds" secretly which was told by Lan Yunxi. 'However, it seems that the talented apprentice of Heavens Fortune Sect is still thinking about the affairs after humans win the holy war. Do the 2 top sects of Taixia Country have an utterly different judgment on the consequence of this holy war?'
"Do Heavens Fortune Sect feel that humans could still win the holy war in the end?" Zhang Tie asked Feng Cangwu straightforwardly.
"Have you heard other judgments?" Feng Cangwu also asked Zhang Tie straightforwardly. Given their bosom relationship, they indeed didn't need to talk in a roundabout way.
After considering it for a second, Zhang Tie said, "Someone among the top 7 sects might not think that humans could win this holy war!"
After hearing Zhang Tie's words, Feng Cangwu revealed a faint sneer at his mouth corners as he said, "Starting from the Catastrophe, in each holy war, there would be someone who felt that they had already seen the doomsday. However, Taixia finally survived all the doomsday fears. In each holy war, demons would be more powerful than last time; similarly, Taixia would also be more powerful. All the sects have their own strengths. However, speaking of heavens fortune, who else could match our Heavens Fortune Sect? As long as over 2 decades ago when this holy war broke out, some elders in our Heavens Fortune Sect had run the Heavens Fortune Rankings to only get one sentence——Hua people and Taixia Country would be vigorous forever. Therefore, we're confident to defeat demons in the end!"
"Hua people and Taixia Country would be vigorous forever. Is this the heavens fortune that Heavens Fortune Sect got?"
"Of course!" Feng Cangwu bottomed up his drink and made another cup for himself. Closely after that, he said, "According to elders of Heavens Fortune Sect, humans' heart has endless and mysterious strength; although humans would exhaust their strength physically, they would always have endless spiritual strength; heavens fortune is humans' heart. when humans' heart changes, the heavens fortune would change. If humans' heart is vigorous, humans would be vigorous forever; if humans' heart is lifeless, humans would lose the battle in the end. If humans' heart doesn't die, Hua people would not be exterminated. If demons want to exterminate humans, they have to kill humans spiritually. If demons want to subjugate Taixia Country, they have to wipe out their history."
"If demons want to exterminate humans, they have to kill humans spiritually…" After pondering this sentence for a few seconds, Zhang Tie finally felt being clear-minded as he said, "Thanks, I see…"
"See what?"
"I understand the most important thing that I should do after being appointed as Weiji General!" Zhang Tie smirked.
"Doesn't commander-in-chief favor your ability to produce Fiery Oil and do farming work? As an earth knight, it's amazing that you invented Fiery Oil; however, you're also good at farming work which would make people envy you pretty much. What else do you want to do in that title?" Feng Cangwu asked as he sighed with a feeling.
"I want to invent something that could enable commoners or low-level fighters to kill knights; at least common cities could resist knight-level demon knights…" Zhang Tie said seriously.
"Do you want to deal knights with Fiery Oil? But Fiery Oil is not too destructive to demons even if you use too much of it. Do you want to make alchemist's bombs? Do you know how difficult it is to make an alchemist's bomb?" Feng Cangwu thought about alchemist's bombs at once.
"No!" Zhang Tie shook his head as he said, "But I feel that I should have other methods except for alchemist's bombs…"
Feng Cangwu looked at Zhang Tie for a few seconds. Then, he suddenly burst out into laughter as he pointed at the square outside and said, "If you could really make such a thing, I will marry that woman…"
Zhang Tie looked over there along Feng Cangwu's finger. He then saw a "female knight" standing in front of the rankings about military exploits of black iron knights in an imposing manner. With scarlet lipstick over her lips, jewelry and a big red flower on her head, the woman was even stronger than men. Watching the names on the rankings, she was grinning like a rotten pear.
This woman was followed by some knight bodyguards. At the sight of this "female knight", all the male knights hurriedly gave way to her. Wherever this female knight's eye light reached, those male knights would instantly become mandarin ducks as they would slide away while covering their faces by hand.
"Boring. How could these people always want to catch my attention in this way? Why not something fresh? This lady will not come here anymore…" The female knight stomped her foot as she twisted her body. Zhang Tie couldn't hear what she said due to the sound isolator in this room; however, any knights who had acquired lipreading skill knew what the female knight was talking about through the shape of her mouth. At the sight of that female knight, Zhang Tie immediately felt like vomiting. It felt more afflictive than seeing a tough man with whisker twisting his butt with orchid fingers.
"Who's she?" Zhang Tie hurriedly turned around and asked Feng Cangwu.
"The princess of Lord Jingtian's Mansion. The only daughter of Lord Jingtian's Mansion. It's strange that Lord Jingtian has dozens of sons and only one daughter. Therefore, he treasures her very much. This time, the princess of Lord Jingtian's Mansion is especially here to select her husband. Lord Jingtian has long released the notice that he would at least use 10 Class A cities as his daughter's dowry…"
"Well, I've borne it in mind!" Zhang Tie nodded forcefully as he watched Feng Cangwu with a malicious eye light and said, "If this girl doesn't find her Mr. Right, I really want to be the matchmaker for you and her. As the handsome, talented apprentice of Heavens Fortune Sect, you would definitely be her dish!"
Feng Cangwu changed his face as he asked Zhang Tie, "Wait, are you serious?"
"Of course, I'm serious!"
"How could you have such an insane thought?"
Zhang Tie let out a sigh before saying, "After taking the ancient-well bean curds in Xiangshan City a few days ago, I couldn't help but think about it…"
"After taking the ancient-well bean curds in Xiangshan City, you want commoners and common cities to kill demon knights?" Feng Cangwu was shocked by Zhang Tie's words so much that he fixed his eyes onto Zhang Tie's face.
"Yes, is it a bit insane?" Zhang Tie replied with a smile as he asked in a casual tone, "Do you want to regret? It's still not late if you regret what you've promised now. I will just treat it as nonsense!"
"That's a deal!" Feng Cangwu raised his head proudly after being silent for a half second, "If you could really invent such a thing, I will not even be afraid of feeding tigers with myself!"
"Ahh…" Zhang Tie suddenly recalled something else as he asked, "Do you know why the general being responsible for logistics in the theater of operations is called Weiji General?"
After throwing a serious glance at Zhang Tie, Feng Cangwu replied to Zhang Tie which sounded a bit familiar, "You should read more books…"
Zhang Tie became silent…
Chapter 1320: Going to His Post
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
On January 11th, the 905th year of Black Iron Calendar, Zhang Tie ended the 2 weeks' union with Bai Suxian and officially left Xuanyuan Fortress to go to his post.
Soon after the news of Zhang Tie's appointment by the commander-in-chief was released to the public, all the people across Xuanyuan Fortress had been shocked. The treatment of becoming a Class III officer of Taixia Country at such a young age was definitely rare in the history of Taixia Country. At least nobody else among all the Class III officers of Taixia Country was as young as Zhang Tie.
The official rank of the provincial governors of lower provinces in Taixia Country was subordinate Class IV; the official rank of the provincial governors of upper provinces in Taixia Country was Class IV; the official rank of the provincial governors of major provinces in Taixia Country was subordinate Class III; the official rank of the provincial governors of immortal provinces in Taixia Country was Class III; the official rank of Cheji Generals of each province was as same as that of their provincial governors; the official ranks of commanders of military regions including 4 ranks from subordinate Class II to Class I. The official rank of the 9 ministers and the generals of the top 4 armies of Taixia Country was Class I; the official rank of the top 3 counselors was immortal class.
At such a young age, Zhang Tie had won the favor of commander-in-chief and was appointed as the assistant of commander-in-chief and Weiji General of the Western Theater of Operations in Taixia Country. His rank was already closely under that of commanders of military regions. Across Peacewest Military Region, Zhang Tie's official rank was just one class inferior to that of the commander of Peacewest Military Region. If Zhang Tie made further progress, he would be promoted to the commander of a military region. How amazing it was!
If it were in peaceful time, such an appointment would definitely arouse a great shock across Taixia Country. People would definitely wonder how could Zhang Tie be appointed to such a high post at such a young age. However, there were not so many stereotypes in the theater of operations, where military regulations were more useful than background and seniority and anything that could help humans defeat demons would prioritize. The commander-in-chief's words had to be strictly followed in the theater of operations.
When the fact that Zhang Tie was appointed as Weiji General and the assistant of the commander-in-chief aroused a shock and disputes among Xuanyuan Fortress and the other 11 bases, Zuoqiu Mingyue's words made all the disputes disappear——Fiery Oil and grains are the dominating factors of our theater of operations. They're concerned about the morale of the soldiers in the theater of operations and the consolidation of the defensive line. If anyone dares make a military pledge that he could do better than Zhang Tie on the two things, I could also appoint him in the same post.
Grain supply could be guaranteed in the Western Theater of Operations as long as they were determined to make it. Even Qianji Hermit didn't go to the fields himself in Fire-Dragon Bounty Territory. As long as they wanted to guarantee the grain supply in the theater of operations, they could copy the set of measures adopted by Fire-Dragon Bounty Territory for fertilizing the soil and increasing the yield.
However, without Zhang Tie's consent, they couldn't make even one drop of Fiery Oil, not to mention a ton of it. Without Fiery Oil, many things would be empty talk.
Besides Fiery Oil, Qianji Hermit also manufactured airplanes and invented dual-drive engines. Additionally, he even produced some powerful weapons using Fiery Oil.
What was more, the role of all-purpose medicament was growing increasingly important after the holy war broke out. In the theater of operations, the all-purpose medicament had already become one of the most important materials in the logistics supply of the ground force. All-purpose medicaments also belonged to the Zhang family. The others might not get all-purpose medicaments easily; however, Zhang Tie could get as many as he desired.
If they considered it carefully, they would find that Qianji Hermit was really the only one across the theater of operations who was suitable to be the Weiji General despite his age; besides being familiar with farming, Zhang Tie could also invent Fiery oil and make waste profitable. Additionally, he could provide a lot of all-purpose medicament and be proficient in manufacturing various mechanized equipment and weapons.
Additionally, Zhang Tie could guarantee the stability of the rear end with his great battle strength. As long as Zhang Tie was there, he could easily deal with it even if some demon knights broke through the defense line and raided the rear end. It was said that Zhang Tie killed 2 earth demon knights and 2 black iron demon knights in the same combat. The entire process was like breaking a dead branch of a tree. Many people witnessed how he fought those demon knights. It was the Cheji General of Wuzhou province who reported Zhang Tie's military exploits. Additionally, if one wanted to know how many demon knights had Zhang Tie killed when he served as a scout of Blackwater Base, they'd better ask Zhang Tie himself. However, Zhang Tie didn't feel like revealing it to the public; neither did he prove any certificates of that. Therefore, there weren't any corresponding records of his military exploits during the process when he served as the scout of Blackwater Base.
After thinking through it, who dared make a military pledge to the commander-in-chief? Everybody just showed their reverence to Zuoqiu Mingyue inside——What a Military God of Taixia Country! He could make full use of one's abilities.
Of course, after hearing that Zhang Tie was leaving the frontline, many people who treated Zhang Tie as a powerful opponent on the Military Exploits Rankings also felt delighted about it. Because it meant that Zhang Tie could barely accumulate any more military exploits by killing demons since he took the office of Weiji General. At this moment, although Zhang Tie looked to be in a high position being paid high, Zhang Tie's name might not appear on the Heavens Fortune Rankings and be conferred as a duke in the future. Those people of Taiyi Fantasy Sect had such a thought. As they had been totally hostile against Zhang Tie openly, of course, they didn't want to make Zhang Tie outstanding once more. Besides being jealous of the fact that Zhang Tie became the Weiji General, Feng Yexiao the grand elder of Taiyi Fantasy Sect also let out a sigh inside.
…
When Zhang Tie was going to leave Blackwater Base on the morning of the 11th day of the month, Bai Suxian, Bai Runcheng, Feng Cangwu, Mountain Lifting Hermit who had just come back after carrying out his mission, the knights of Lord Guangnan's Mansion, the knight elders of Zhu Clan and Qian Clan who were familiar with Zhang Tie in Northeast Military Region and whose disciples were learning from Iron-Dragon Sect, the clan head of Lu Clan, the elders of Gu Clan, all of these people above came to bid a farewell to Zhang Tie. Loitering in the sky nearby Xuanyuan Fortress, they bade farewell to Zhang Tie. Even so, the group of people who came here to see Zhang Tie off was still not as eye-catching as an official airboat on their side.
"When an awl is placed in the bag, how could it not pierce the bag? When serving as the chief justice of Youzhou Province, he had already inflicted a heavy loss to Heavens Reaching Church and shocked so many people. Later on, although being framed by cunning traitors and experiencing a lot of troubles, Qianji Hermit still remained loyal to the country and stepped forward bravely and shouldered the heavy burden when Taixia Country was in trouble. What you did greatly rose the morale of knights within Northeast Military Region. We're really ennobled by you. Qianji Hermit, bon voyage, wish you have a bright future…"
Although Qian elder's words sounded a bit flattering, it indeed was what many people among Zhang Tie's team thought about at this moment.
The news that Zhang Tie was appointed as Weiji General and the assistant of commander-in-chief was shocking to others; especially to those people who were familiar with him, such as the elders of Zhu Clan and Qian Clan and Lu Dingzhi who once served as the finance director in a small country of Waii Subcontinent. Only these people who came from real official and major clans could sense the importance and influence of Zhang Tie's position.
Class III official rank was really something. The official rank of the provincial governor of Tongzhou Province, a medium-sized province was only subordinate Class IV; the official rank of the provincial governor of Yanzhou Province, a major province was only subordinate Class III; Lu Dingzhi as the finance minister of a small country in Waii Subcontinent was just a subordinate Class V official, so was Zhang Tie when he served as the chief justice of Youzhou Province. A Class V chief justice of a lower province was suddenly appointed as a Class III official of Taixia Country after resigning for so many years. That was definitely a miracle. As long as Zhang Tie was ambitious of being a high official, he could definitely be promoted to higher positions if he didn't make any big mistake. Of course, Zhang Tie's experience was admirable. Across Northeast Military Region, the Class II Cheng Honglie might be the only one whose official rank was higher than that of Zhang Tie. The commander of Peacewest Military Region's official rank was subordinate Class II, which was only a bit higher than that of Zhang Tie. To a certain extent, Zhang Tie's another identity as the assistant of commander-in-chief meant that he could act on behalf of Zuoqiu Mingyue. That was to say, Zhang Tie could almost be arbitrary in the Western Theater of Operations.
At such a young age, Zhang Tie had won the favor of commander-in-chief and Lord Guangnan's Mansion. Additionally, he had a powerful and terrifying battle strength and had grasped so many secret skills and immortal bloodlines. He would definitely have a bright future. After coming to the theater of operations for less than half a year, Zhang Tie had already made tremendous progress while others had just made bit achievements. How could it not make others enviable? Therefore, Qian elder and Zhu elder both showed their reverence to Zhang Tie much more than before.
"Thank you for your blessing!"
Zhang Tie revealed a smile towards Qian elder politely without any arrogance and complacency. The Class III official rank might be very enviable to others; however, Zhang Tie didn't care about it too much as he was neither ambitious nor did he value official ranks and meritorious deeds. Additionally, he had other pursuits. The reason that he took over this position mainly lay in that he felt nobody else could do it better than him. As long as he worked hard, he might save a lot of soldiers, families and commoners and protect more cities of Taixia Country from being destroyed by demons; that's all…
Those knights bade a brief farewell to Zhang Tie one after another.
As for the elders of Qian Clan, Zhu Clan and Lu Clan, Zhang Tie's current official rank could win more respect from people; however, as for many knights, Zhang Tie's military exploits of killing two earth demon knights and two black iron demon knights in one combat was mostly overwhelming. How many earth knights and black iron knights were there in Youzhou Province in total?
All the knights in Youzhou Province who were free today had come here out of etiquette, including Guo Hongyi.
Soon after talking to the humble Li elder of Miyun Prefecture, Zhang Tie had seen Guo Hongyi.
Outsiders couldn't see Guo Hongyi's change; however, the moment Zhang Tie caught sight of Guo Hongyi, he had known that she had dressed up, although it was just a light make-up.
Guo Hongyi wore a festive red dress while her face was slightly daubed with rouge; her eyes were as clear as autumn water; her cheeks were rosy; he red lips were like fiery flames; additionally, she wore a beautiful lily-shaped bun. Being matched with Guo Hongyi's clearly-shaped and brilliant facial features, Guo Hongyi's make-up was both elegant and enticing. The lily-shaped bun on her head suddenly reminded Zhang Tie of the language of lily, namely, success, treasure and being closely attached to each other.
Soon after coming to Guo Hongyi's side, Zhang Tie had sniffed the mellow fragrance of rose essence dew. Such a fragrance was very attractive to men; therefore, Zhang Tie couldn't help but be excited inside.
Not only did Zhang Tie have not seen Guo Hongyi dressing up like this before; even the other knights from Youzhou Province might have not seen her like this before. The moment Guo Hongyi came here today, those knights from Youzhou province had started to glance at her stealthily. Not until Guo Hongyi glared at them like a tigress did those men hurriedly move their eyes away from her.
At the sight of the beauty, of course, Zhang Tie felt tempted. After being attracted by Guo Hongyi's qi, Zhang Tie couldn't help but glance at Guo Hongyi for a few more times. Guo Hongyi was even 3 cm higher than Bai Suxian. She was a tall Hua female. Perhaps because she always exercised her body, her figure was not only hot but also plump like all the other mature women. Actually, her figure was even nicer than his foreign wives such as Linda and Sabrina.
"Don't mind what my master said that day. She didn't mean to offend you. She treats every man in that way…" Guo Hongyi said while slightly opening her red lips. At the same time, she looked into Zhang Tie's eyes; coincidentally, she saw Zhang Tie's eye light falling onto her breasts. Closely after that, her rosy cheeks became more appealing. At the same time, she lowered her eyes in a bashful way.
After looking straight into Guo Hongyi's eyes, being caught by Guo Hongyi like a thief and seeing Guo Hongyi's bashful look, Zhang Tie instantly felt his heart racing. Bashful women were the most beautiful ones, not to mention Guo Hongyi.
Zhang Tie also inquired from others these days about Guo Hongyi's master. However, he was really startled by what he was told.
Guo Hongyi's master was called Yan Feiqing, the head of Fantasy Women Palace in Cloudydream Mountain in Wuzhou Province of Taixia Country. She was a famous shadow knight. Zhang Tie soon acquired two events related to the woman: first, when a promising male knight of Heavens Fortune Sect met Yan Feiqing in a peach woods of Xuanyuan Hill in the most beautiful season when they were black iron knights at a young age. Being surrounded by peach flowers, it was as fantastic as a dream. When the male talent met such a beauty, it should be where the love story started; however, when the male knight of Heavens Fortune Sect saw Yan Feiqing who was as beautiful as a fairy and couldn't stand teasing her, he was hung over a peach tree and beaten by Yan Feiqing for a whole day. Finally, when Yan Feiqing felt tired of beating him, she flew away as if nothing had happened.
The male knight of Heavens Fortune Sect who was hung over the peach tree and beaten by Yan Feiqing was Deyang Immortal the Freshwind Elder of Heavens Fortune Sect. This event once aroused a shock across Xuanyuan Hill and became the negative textbook of many playboys and romantic knights. Since then, Freshwind Elder determined to cultivate his battle skills seriously so as to avenge himself on Yan Feiqing. Dozens of years later, Freshwind Elder promoted to an earth knight and grasped the powerful secret method and battle skills of Heavens Fortune Sect. After hearing that Yan Feiqing had established a sect in Cloudydream Mountain, he decided to "seek for his dignity as a man" in Cloudydream Mountain. As for the process, nobody knew. However, the final result was that Freshwind Elder soon entered closed cultivation for another one decade soon after he returned to Heavens Fortune Sect. However, even though he exited his cultivation room 10 years later, the moment he heard the name of Yan Feiqing, he would escape at once. In Heavens Fortune Sect, the name of Yan Feiqing almost became a taboo.
The second event was that Yan Feiqing killed Black Mountain Ancestor, a shadow knight who ranked 2nd on the wanted list of criminals in the supreme court of Taixia Country. The reason lay in that Black Mountain Ancestor killed a female disciple of Yan Feiqing who went down the hill by mistake. However, Yan Feiqing spent 11 years to kill all the 1178 disciples of Black Mountain Ancestor who kept hiding here and there during that period. Finally, she chased Black Mountain Ancestor all the way from Taixia Country to Yinyue Subcontinent and brought his head back.
Yan Feiqing the head of Fantasy Women Palace killed Black Mountain Ancestor 50 years ago. From then on, none of Fantasy Women Palace's female disciples were killed when they went off the mountain. All the female disciples of Fantasy Women Palace were also like Yan Feiqing. Besides being powerful in battle strength, they all despised men. Although Fantasy Women Palace's overall strength was not as brilliant as that of the top 7 sects of Taixia Country, nobody across Taixia Country dared offend Fantasy Women Palace.
After hearing about Yan Feiqing's "splendid experiences", Zhang Tie shrugged as he finally understood why that woman had such a strong qi field and dared educate Guo Hongyi in front of him. The aggressive qi was too fierce that all the grasses would die wherever she passed by. If Guo Hongyi was a tigress in Youzhou Province, Yan Feiqing the master of Guo Hongyi was a female tyrannosaur from far-ancient times.
"Ahem…ahem, I don't mind it. Leave it. Thank you for seeing me off…"
"Take care of yourself, bon voyage!"
"Take care of yourself too!"
Under the gaze of the public, Zhang Tie and Guo Hongyi talked to each other normally. Not until Zhang Tie turned around and was about to leave Guo Hongyi, he suddenly recalled Yan Feiqing's "warning" to Guo Hongyi that day; perhaps out of reverse psychology or that Guo Hongyi was pretty beautiful and enticing today, Zhang Tie felt like conquering her suddenly. Therefore, Zhang Tie couldn't stand teasing her in a secret way, "Your lily-shaped bun looks nice today…"
After hearing Zhang Tie's comment, Guo Hongyi's face turned especially adorable after being slightly stunned.
Soon after Zhang Tie came to the front of Feng Cangwu, he immediately heard Guo Hongyi's voice and a gloomy sigh. "If you know my heart, Hongyi will never feel regretful!"
If not in the sky, Zhang Tie almost tumbled.
No matter what, Feng Cangwu was a favorite student of Heavens Fortune Sect, he had noticed something special when Zhang Tie was talking to Guo Hongyi by secret means. After glancing at Zhang Tie's face and Guo Hongyi's face with a puzzled look, he was instantly embraced by Zhang Tie before he uttered any word. At the same time, Zhang Tie told Feng Cangwu by secret means, "Lord Jingtian might appreciate me for finding a good son-in-law for him in a few years…"
Feng Cangwu's face turned pale at once…
…
Bai Suxian bade farewell to Zhang Tie with tearful eyes in the end.
"Don't cry. Think about the positive side. I'm taking the office of Weiji General in the rear end; instead of being a scout in the frontline. There're fewer dangers over there. I would be safe, right?" Zhang Tie comforted Bai Suxian.
Bai Suxian nodded. As she pulled Zhang Tie's hands, she couldn't stand dropping tears as she said, "I could also go there with you, but you're not taking me with you on purpose. I could be your assistant…"
Zhang Tie revealed a bitter smile. It seemed that Bai Suxian still thought that the theater of operations was as same as Youzhou Province. As he was serving as a military officer; and the relationship between him and Bai Suxian had been opened to the public. If he took Bai Suxian over there and made love with her whenever he wanted, it would weaken the morale of the army. If so, commander-in-chief might even chop off his head after being offended.
Zhang Tie understood it. So did all the others of Lord Guangnan's Mansion. Therefore, they all prevented Bai Suxian from following Zhang Tie over there at this moment…
Chapter 1321: The Solution
Translator: WQL Editor: Aleem
Bai Suxian understood it too. However, she was just disgruntled. After having Bai Suxian come down to have a brief chat with Bai Runcheng, Zhang Tie turned around and boarded the airboat.
"The green mountains would remain still and the clear water would flow forever. Take care of yourselves. When we meet each other in the future, we will talk and drink merrily…" Zhang Tie told the others as he cupped his hands toward them. Finally, he looked at Bai Suxian and Guo Hongyi silently.
Even in this case, women were still exceptionally sensitive. Bai Suxian and Guo Hongyi still sensed Zhang Tie's last gaze at them. After exchanging a glance with each other, Bai Suxian and Guo Hongyi turned their face at the same time. Given this special occasion, they should pay attention to their demeanors; otherwise, the two women would definitely have responded with a cold harrumph respectively.
Zhang Tie became helpless. Bai Suxian and Guo Hongyi were born to be enemies as their qi fields were completely out of harmony. 'No romantic affairs have yet happened between Guo Hongyi and me. If I married the two tricky ones in the future, they might fight each other every day. If so, won't my family be never peaceful?'
'Well, whatever, it will be left to the God's mercy!'
After putting aside this thought, Zhang Tie boarded the airboat. Soon after the hatch door of the airboat was closed, the airship had slowly moved toward the east. Through a crystal window, Zhang Tie saw that those who came here to see him off also left in different directions——Guo Hongyi was going back to Blackwater Base; Bai Suxian was going back to the airship of Lord Guangnan's Mansion.
Zhang Tie then let out a sigh.
"General, where are we heading for?" A 40-year-old armored chief guard with purple face asked Zhang Tie respectfully.
This chief guard was called Long Tao, the chief guard of Zhang Tie's bodyguards. Before Zhang Tie left Xuanyuan Fortress, commander-in-chief Zuoqiu Mingyue allocated 800 honor soldiers to Zhang Tie, an exclusive airboat which represented the authority of Weiji General, a suit of official uniforms, a seal and a remote-sensing communications device which could be used to contact commander-in-chief. Zhang Tie was going to his post with these items.
"Take me to Kangzhou City!" Zhang Tie ordered, "I will enter cultivation for a while in my room. Don't call me until we arrive at Kangzhou City!"
"Yes, sir!", the chief guard gave a military salute to Zhang Tie before leaving. Zhang Tie then returned to his own berth.
This airboat was exclusive to Zhang Tie. Zhang Tie's room in the airboat was also much larger than that in Blackdragon Airboat. The room covering over 200 square meters was two-storeyed. The lower storey was Zhang Tie's office while the upper storey was Zhang Tie's bedroom and cultivation room.
Out of curiosity, Zhang Tie started to check the furnishings in the room as he nodded inside. There weren't any hidden doors or mechanism inside the room. It was safe here. Because it was especially for Taixia officials, its furnishings were less luxurious than that of those top sects. However, the furnishings here were also considerate, magnificent and comfortable; especially the sound-isolation effect and the confidentiality of berth was even better than that of Taiyi Fantasy Sect's airboat.
Nobody else was in Zhang Tie's office. Zhang Tie had not recruited an assistant and waiters yet. After looking around the lower storey, Zhang Tie went upstairs and entered his bedroom and cultivation room.
Of course, the furnishings in the bedroom were high-end. A piece of advanced quality "crystal generator" with double shadows of pyramids filled the bedroom with special reiki. It was worth mentioning that a medium-level elements gathering matrix was placed in the cultivation room. Soon after he entered the cultivation room, Zhang Tie had sensed the high concentration of the 4 elements in the cultivation room. If he captured element crystals in such an environment, it would be more efficient than doing that in a common environment.
Zhang Tie was very satisfied with everything here. Although the officials of Taixia Country didn't pursue grandness and entertainment, they paid special attention to cultivation.
"Castle Lord, do you want to digest those fruits? The small tree has borne some more fruits these days. There's almost no vacancy for more fruits!" Heller's voice sounded in Zhang Tie's mind when Zhang Tie was looking around the cultivation room.
Zhang Tie revealed a smile. Closely after that, he entered Castle of Black Iron.
After about 20 days, there were 188 more fruits of redemption from the gratitude of golden uangs.
"Ahh, so many!"
"We could only admit that Paul's group is setting free golden uangs at such a high efficiency…" Heller replied with a smile, "When there's sufficient source of golden uangs, a team is much more efficient than Castle Lord in setting them free!"
Zhang Tie touched his head as he thought, 'That's not good! When I had no fruits to eat previously, I always thought about having fruits; however, there're too many fruits now and they're produced too fast. Only after a few days, the small tree would be filled with fruits. It would take me at least 2 days to digest all the fruits. However, as Weiji General, I can't just disappear for a couple of days. Even 2 hours' disappearance would cause trouble when we're raided by demon knights, not to mention two days.'
'Additionally, if I ate too many fruits at once, I would not adapt to my surging strength. For instance, if I took all the 188 fruits, I would increase almost 13 tons of strength. With such a great strength, I might hurt those people on my side. When I shake hands with others, I might pinch their hands into pieces; when I pat others' shoulders, I might severely wound them…'
"Castle Lord, are you worried that it would take you too long to digest so many fruits?" Heller asked Zhang Tie.
"Yup, do you have any solution?"
"Hoho, Castle Lord, you're confused. Given your ability, you could access to Castle of Black Iron as fast as a lightning bolt; so could you take food at such a fast speed. Additionally, the fruits are not large. Although you could not take them away from Castle of Black Iron, as long as you pick them up and eat them rapidly. You could leave out of there before you digest them. It might take you less than 1 second to complete the process. What on earth are you worried about, Castle Lord? You could seize the chance to enter Castle of Black Iron and leave with fruits in stomach rapidly whenever you want. It won't take you too long!"
After hearing Heller's suggestion, Zhang Tie became stunned for a second. Closely after that, he patted his head. The inertia caused by habit was too great. Since he gained the small tree, he had been digesting those fruits in Castle of Black Iron. He didn't realize that there was such a feasible solution——enter Castle of Black Iron rapidly; eat the fruit quickly and leave right away. Just digest fruit outside Castle of Black Iron.
After thinking it through, Zhang Tie immediately put it into practice.
Closely after that, Zhang Tie flashed to the front of the small tree. After picking off a fruit of redemption from the gratitude of golden uangs and putting it into his mouth, Zhang Tie instantly chewed it up and swallowed it. Before the juice of the fruit turned into a bizarre strength that could flow across his full body, Zhang Tie had reappeared in the cultivation room of his airboat.
Sitting in the cultivation room with crossed legs, Zhang Tie was quietly digesting the fruit of redemption from golden uangs with eyes closed.
About 15 minutes later, Zhang Tie opened his eyes in the cultivation room. Closely after that, he disappeared once again. 3 seconds later, Zhang Tie reappeared in the cultivation room still with crossed legs. After about another 15 minutes, Zhang Tie disappeared once again. This time, it only took Zhang Tie 2 seconds to reappear in the cultivation room…
3 hours later, it only took Zhang Tie less than 0.5 seconds to complete the 11th "pilferage". When he reappeared in the cultivation room, Zhang Tie was still chewing the fruit. He didn't fully swallow it until 2 seconds later.
"Interesting, interesting…" Zhang Tie burst out into laughter in the cultivation room as he felt like a monkey who stole away fruits from an orchard rapidly.
Through constant tests, Zhang Tie finally fixed the shortest period for the entire process of "pilferage"——approximately less than 0.5 seconds. Soon after chewing up the fruit could he exit Castle of Black Iron without even fully swallowing the fruit.
Even if someone was watching him disappear and reappear in such a split second, they would doubt that they were giddy or might believe that Zhang Tie was cultivating a mysterious battle skill, which could cause an elusive visual effect of physical disappearance in a short period.
'Like what Heller told me. After grasping this method, I could rapidly steal fruits from Castle of Black Iron and digest it and intensify my overall strength whenever I want without causing any trouble. Additionally, by taking fruits at different moments in my daily life would also be beneficial for me to adapt to the changes in my physical strength and the other aspects brought by these fruits.'
When Zhang Tie started to take the 13th fruit of redemption from the gratitude of golden uangs, he held 3 walnuts that were produced in Castle of Black Iron.
The walnuts in Castle of Black Iron were delicious and big with a thin shell. Zhang Tie intended to adjust his rapidly growing strength by fiddling with the 3 walnuts…
As long as one was arduous and diligent, he could always find the solution to the problem facing his cultivation.
…
10 hours later, Zhang Tie's airboat landed in Kangzhou City at dusk. The moment the hatch door of the airboat was opened, the group of officials who were waiting for the arrival of the new Weiji General had seen a 17-year old handsome teenager in boa silk robe getting off the airboat calmly while fiddling with 3 walnuts in hand, followed by 2 teams of armored bodyguards…
Everybody then became stunned. Closely after that, they realized who was this young man.
"Welcome to Kangzhou City, Weiji General…" All the officials bowed deeply towards Zhang Tie at the same time…