170-179

The nightmare hadn't ended yet. It wasn't an easy thing to leave the desert. After Jiang Xiu came out, the entire land began to tremble and the golden giant also sunk under the sand.

Soon, that giant sunk just enough to seal the entrance to the Ancient City with its body. Meanwhile, a storm brewed up in the sky as sand blew all across the land, forming a unique astronomical phenomenon.

This phenomenon lasted late into the night and would settle down after 2 days.

Just as everyone was exclaiming about this phenomenon, two people tried to slip away stealthily.

"You plan to escape?"

Both bandits were survivors of Meng Fei's gang.

"M-Mr. Jiang, please spare our lives…"

Jiang Xiu had blocked them, "I'm not interested in your lives. I just wish to know why you hunted Xie Ting and how did you know about the Ancient City?"

One of the bandits revealed it, "We heard it from the boss."

"Meng Fei, huh?"

"Then, have you seen this stone anywhere?"

That bandit took a careful look at it then shook his head.

The other bandit added in, "I-It looks like the one General Meng had, but that one had a different color. Yours is red while the one General Meng possessed was… blue."

"Who is General Meng?"

"Our boss' elder brother. He established a country in the desert and has ten of thousands of soldiers as well as planes and tanks."

"Hoh, that sounds interesting."

If he had guessed it right, the Meng clan was also the later generation of the Ancient City. Since Xie Sanxian was affected by the Longevity Stone he possessed but General Meng was completely fine, it meant that this General Meng had an affinity towards evolution to become the Divine Race. It was possible he owned a Divinity Cultivation Art.

"Mr. Jiang, please allow me to kill them…" Li Chengzhi and his son dashed over in a fit of fury.

The bandits face turned ashen.

As these bandits had killed so many people, it was impossible that the other party wouldn't take revenge.

The father and son pointed the machine guns towards the bandits. Jiang Xiu had no intentions to protect these bandits as well. Along with an angry roar, the Li father and son pair fired at them, killing both the bandits.

By now, all the bandits were dead.

"Li Lei!"

"Brother!"

"We have taken revenge for you!"

The others who witnessed this at a distance remained silent. This trip to the desert had toppled their worldview entirely. They had personally experienced the bloody, ruthless and primal side of the world as well as seen a God.

"Let's return. This place is no good to stay at."

All of them packed up and hastened on their journey.

After leaving the desert zone of the Ancient City, Jiang Xiu couldn't help but glance back at it. He unfathomably recalled the scene of Xie Ting lying still under the river.

"Goodbye, Mr. Jiang…"

Jiang Xiu felt as if he had heard her farewell at that time.

"Big Brother Jiang, what's up?" Xie Ting noticed that he alone had fallen behind, seemingly reluctant to leave, so she too stopped walking to wait for him. Her seductive brows raised at a beautiful arc, gaze clear and refreshing as if it were drawing one's soul into it.

"Nothing. Nothing at all…"

Xie Ting smiled at him, "We should hurry then. The sun will set soon, and though you can endure it, the others won't be able to last…"

"Mhm!"

Xie Ting seemed quite familiar with the way inside the desert. Having her as the guide, the journey was quite easy as she knew which direction to go and where to find water.

When night fell, Xie Ting actually took them to an oasis which was full of water. The students could refill their canteens, and some of the boys even took baths by jumping into it. Leaving these aside, they had also found two hares at this oasis.

The group impatiently butchered the hares and made barbecue out of them.

After eating and drinking to their fill, the party was quite fatigued, so they fell asleep after laying on the ground.

Roughly around 10 PM, a very late time into the night in the desert, after the group had already slept for 3-4 hours, Xie Ting and Qiu Yinru stealthily sneaked away.

Jiang Xiu hadn't slept at all. He always felt that there was something wrong with Xie Ting. He thought that the current Xie Ting wasn't the same Xie Ting he knew, but the appearance was exactly the same.

That's why he quietly followed after them.

And well, this had ended up something disastrous as well. It almost made our Deity Xiu have a nosebleed after taking a look. These girls had come over to the oasis pool to take a bath.

The boys were there before, so they felt embarrassed about it, but as the boys had all fallen asleep right now, they sneaked away to take a bath.

This couldn't be helped. 10 days had passed since they had taken a bath and this was very difficult to bear for those girls who liked to keep themselves clean.

Moonlight dawned on the pool, making it glow with a silvery luster. The girls waddled their alluring bodies in the water, and this was all in plain view to Jiang Xiu. He enjoyed the view with a clear conscience.

"Feels so good. I felt really unwell these past few days." Qiu Yinru stated.

"Yes. Our hair was full of sand, and it had even reached our undergarments. It felt really weird as the sand chaffed against the body. It feels much better now, but it's a pity that there are no extra clothes to change into." Xie Ting agreed with her.

"Yeah. I really want to leave the desert soon."

Qiu Yinru peeked at Xie Ting's bosom, "Sister, how old are you?"

"Just reached 17."

"A year younger than me then, it didn't look like that though." Campus Queen Qiu revealed envy in her eyes. She had a good figure too, but it was notch lower when compared to Xie Ting's figure.

Jiang Xiu was also surprised. He hadn't expected Xie Ting to possess such an impressive figure. Looks like I had underestimated her, indeed underestimated her a lot. Looks like this girl has a lineage related to foreigners?

The pool water swayed under the still night scene, softly hitting their lovely bodies. It was as if nature was creating an opus artwork depicting beautiful women under the dazzling moonlight.

Those two girls bathed so that they could wash off the fatigue which had piled up, totally oblivious that a person had conveniently benefited on the side.

However, that might've not been a case as Xie Ting made a meaningful grin while raising her head, somewhat brazenly showing off her body while acting coyly.

Qiu Yinru, who was quite confident in her appearance and figure, acted quite intimately with Xie Ting. The counterpart's skin was paler than hers, appearance better-looking than hers, figure sexier than hers, waist slender than hers, legs longer than hers; no matter which aspect was compared, she lost utterly. She couldn't help but feel surprised at the care nature had given Xie Ting, giving her a perfect body with no blemishes. It was her dream model, one each girl possessed in her mind.

"You're beautiful!" She expressed her heartfelt admiration.

"You too."

…

On the next day, all the members of the group were in high spirits, so they moved faster than usual. After three days, with Sage Xie Ting guiding them, they smoothly returned to the town they had set out from.

30 of them had set out, and only 9 of them returned. At the moment the party entered the town, Professor Xu, as well as Specialist Qian, fainted on the scene. They were quite old and somehow steeled themselves through the journey, but after relaxing now, they immediately lost consciousness. The surrounding members supported them and took them to the Medic Station of the garrison.

The garrison had sent two soldiers to accompany them, and both were dead now. They would have to give an explanation regarding this, and this was Professor Xu's job, but as these adults had all lost consciousness, so they had to undertake this responsibility now.

One side of the garrison's entrance had a flag waving in the wind. The grand national emblem hung at the main entrance of the building and soldiers donned in military attire went in and out in formations.

Jiang Xiu didn't go in but instead found a place to recharge his phone then called to his men in Bodhi Gene, "Mr. Jiang!"

"Pinghai Province's, Jin family!"

"Pinghai's Jin family? Do you mean Jin Mu Sen's family? He's a person on the Demigod Ranking, and some of the elders of the family have tread quite far into the Arcana Stage."

"I already killed Mu Sen."

The other party on the other end of the call drew in a cold breath. The man was shocked.

"Those elders are dead as well."

The other side replied, "Alright, I understand, Mr. Jiang."

First, it was Wang Jianzhi, then Li Bodhi and now Jin Mu Sen. Three Demigods had died under Jiang Xiu's hands.

Mr. Jiang's strength was pretty valiant.

Since the Jin family was the money-holder of the Jiang family, Jiang Xiu naturally didn't plan to let them off. After he hung the call, he called Wang Xintong, "Xintong, prepare funds to attack all the listed companies of Pinghai's Jin family."

"Understood!" Wang Xintong answered him.

Any large regime needed vast amounts of capital to thrive. Jiang Xiu wanted to see how the Jiang family will handle him and his father without money.

After hanging the call, Jiang Xiu heard noises from the Medic Station. It seemed that Qiu Yinru and a few students were arguing with the personnel stationed there.

Jiang Xiu went over there to take a look. Qiu Yinru pulled his shirt when he came over, "Jiang Xiu, she's not giving treating Professor Xu, not even willing to give an IV drip."

The other party was a 30-year-old woman who wore a white coat on top of military attire, "Student, I've already explained it to you that something has happened at the front line, so we have a lot of wounded personnel. It happened so suddenly that we don't have much medicine, so we have to first treat the injured soldiers."

Qiu Yinru argued with her, "Naturally, the injured soldiers must be taken care of, but you should give higher priority to the Professor. He's so old, and we were stuck in the desert for several days, so he's in a dangerous condition."

The female officer countered her, "You went into the desert to explore archaeological ruins while our soldiers were injured to defend our country's honor. Moreover, this is the Medic Station of the garrison, so we have to obviously prioritize the soldiers."

Jiang Xiu checked the place out. The Medic Station's corridor was filled with beds and soldiers with injured heads, missing limbs were resting on them. Some even screamed with pain. It appeared as if they had retreated back from a battlefield.

Qiu Yinru didn't listen to the officer and got angry, "Jiang Xiu, tell her…"

"There's no need for me to speak to them." Jiang Xiu interjected.

Qiu Yinru's eyes grew wide open, "You're such a bigshot so why won't they dare to give you face?"

Jiang Xiu broke into laughter, "Does he know who I am?"

The female officer looked towards Jiang Xiu. It seemed like she didn't know who he was.

Qiu Yinru got furious, "Why did those people get scared after hearing your name then? Since you're so powerful, you can surely make the people of a Medic Station do your bidding."

"It's not like I'm a landowner or bureaucrat."

Jiang Xiu turned towards the officer, "What happened? Why are so many soldiers injured?"

The officer replied, "The garrison suffered an attack from unknown monsters. They were two crimson monsters with high defensive as well as offensive abilities. Their saliva was capable of corroding iron. We used a tank, an armored car as well as several soldiers as the price to kill those monsters."

"God knows where those monsters popped out from. Something like them had never appeared here."

Jiang Xiu was stunned, the students too looked at each other. Those monsters sounded like the ones they had encountered at the Ancient City. Jiang Xiu pondered on it. It seemed like his guess was right. "How about this? Those people had collapsed due to dehydration. Why don't you give them a bit of the drip if the medicine isn't enough? That should allow them to last until more medicine arrives."

Jiang Xiu's proposal was very rational. No matter what, if their lives are gone, it won't look good for the Medic Station as well, but this female officer clearly didn't place them in her eyes. She rejected the proposal without any hesitation, "That won't do. I have orders from my superior that the treatment of the soldiers has a higher priority."

Jiang Xiu liked to kill and was vicious as well as merciless towards enemies, but he didn't like to bully good people. That's why he used kind words to persuade the other party but didn't expect he would get refused. It became quite awkward for Deity Xiu this time.

Such a thing was called 'bringing disgrace on one's own head.'

Qiu Yinru, Chen Dewen, and the others looked at him with weirdly. They felt that he had acted quite violently in the desert which was void of rules but acted meek after coming back to society.

"Let me make a call, okay?"

"It won't matter who you call. The orders came from the commander of this zone. The soldiers are the highest priority." Not only the soldiers but many of the local frontier residents were injured as well.

The students all felt dejected. "What should we do then?"

"I recommend taking him to the city. As he's exhausted as well as dehydrated and also quite old in age, it will be dangerous if he stays unconscious." The officer advised them.

"The city is 100 km away from here. The route is quite bumpy as well. Professor Xu might not last the entire journey." Qiu Yinru said.

She knew that the officer didn't wish for them to stay here, but if they moved Professor Xu and the others under such circumstances, the consequences would be terrible.

"We can't do anything else. Let's go to the city."

The students compromised in the end.

"It'll be too late if you go to the city."

"Wait a bit. Let me make a call first."

He took out the cell phone and called Gu Dekang, "I'm at the Western Region's Border Area Garrison's Medic Station. Send a person to cooperate."

"Alright!" Gu Dekang replied.

Gu Dekang felt like he was turning into Jiang Xiu's underling nowadays. Such a leader like him was living the life of a lackey, but he was quite happy with it and lived diligently. Jiang Xiu had already passed the Explosive Punch fist art, and a 100 chosen elite had already begun cultivating it.

It was quite difficult to coordinate with people across another military district. To avoid delaying time, Gu Dekang personally called the commander of the frontier garrison, Wu Guiyong.

"I am Gu Dekang. My military district's supreme advisor, Jiang Luoxia is at your border area's Medic Station. He has wounded people over there who need medical support right now."

"So, it's Commander Gu."

"I'm sorry, but we lack medicine over here so I'm afraid we can't help him." Wu Guiyong replied.

Gu Dekang's relationship with the Western Region's military district was never good, so he hung the call after hearing that then called the HQ.

Wu Guiyong leaped up from his chair after receiving a call from the HQ.

"Y-Yes…"

"I'll arrange it immediately."

Wu Guiyong hung the call then cursed out in a fit of anger, "Motherf*cker! Gu Dekang, do you think this Daddy's people aren't human? Why should I prioritize your men first?"

"Xiao Chu!"

A 20-year-old officer outside the door came inside.

"Take two soldiers with you and go to the Medic Station. See what that person from Jingmen's Military Command needs but there's no need to obey them."

"Yes!"

After the guard captain left the building, he got onto his jeep and made towards the Medic Station. He felt quite pissed. The frontier had suffered an attack from monsters. He was quite busy with work, and now he still had to go play nice with a leader of another command center.

Bullshit!

It usually took 10 minutes to travel, but he made a leisurely 20-minute ride to reach the Medic Station. He got down the jeep, went inside and saw several wounded people there. He scrunched up his brows, "Who is Mr. Jiang?"

"It's me!" Jiang Xiu replied.

Xiao Chu sized him up and down and saw that he looked around 20-years old. Those accompanying him were all students too. He almost cursed out in anger. A guard captain like him had to come to play nice with a bunch of kids. He was filled with contempt towards Jiang Xiu, "What do you need?"

"My professor as well as two experts are fatigued due to the traveling in the desert and are severely dehydrated. They need immediate medical attention as well as an IV drip."

Xiao Chu furrowed his brows tightly after hearing this, "Only that much?"

He shouted loudly, "Who's the person in charge of the Medic Station?"

That female officer quickly ran over. The expression on her face changed after seeing the insignia on Xiao Chu's shoulder, "Reporting to the senior official, our medical supplies are low, so we have prioritized treating the soldiers according to the orders of the superiors."

Xiao Chu finally understood that there wasn't much medicine, "When will the re-supply arrive?"

"In around 3 hours."

Xiao Chu turned towards Jiang Xiu, "You heard that, right? Wait for them to arrive."

Jiang Xiu's face turned grim, "Is this how you plan to coordinate?"

"Without an IV drip, oxygen mask and other treatment, the Professor might die in 3 hours."

Xiao Chu replied, "Don't tell your crap to me. Can't you see that our soldiers also lack medicine?"

Jiang Xiu pointed at a wounded soldier, "Although his leg is wounded, the injury is already treated."

"He just got wounded…"

"You can surely take out a portion of the medical supplies to save to extend the Professor's as well as the other 2 people's lives."

Qiu Yinru agreed with him, "Yes, Jiang Xiu's correct."

Xiao Chu retorted, "Are you a doctor? The doctor is her, and since she has arranged it this way, she must have her reasons. Alright, you either wait for 3 hours or manage something yourself."

"I have an important mission, so I don't have the time to play here with you."

He walked out after saying this.

Booom!

A loud sound came from outside the Medic Station. Those in the army were very familiar with this sound, it was the sound of a grenade exploding. Xiao Chu immediately shouted, "EVERYONE LIE DOWN!"

He rushed out to see flames soaring to the skies. The soldiers beside the jeep yelled towards him, "Captain, it's an enemy attack. It should be Meng Du's army."

The surrounding soldiers were already taken care of by the invading troops. A dozen enemies fired with their guns at the Medic Station as a military jeep drove inside with a sturdy man donned in mercenary-like clothing. He signaled with his hand, following which those dozen troops fired at the jeep behind which Xiao Chu was hiding.

Gunshots flashed all around while only whizzing sounds of bullets were audible.

Though the jeep was quite durable, it couldn't endure this kind of concentrated fire. Xiao Chu, as well as the two other soldiers, couldn't even take a peek outside nor counterattack.

One of the soldiers asked, "Captain, what should we do now?"

Xiao Chu was a first-rate soldier on the frontier, an Inner Strength expert, and a Soldier King, but he too was helpless at the moment. His face turned grim. They could only wait for the enemy fire to weaken right now and look for an opportunity to strike back.

However, a strange spinning sound reached their ears after that. They bowed down and saw a grenade roll under the vehicle.

This scared the wits out of Xiao Chu and the others.

"Run!"

The three of them rolled away, after which the jeep exploded up a meter high then smashed down to the ground in flames due to the explosion.

The fuel tank got ignited due to the flames and thus caused another loud explosion.

The invading troops dashed inside with machine guns in hand. The two soldiers accompanying Xiao Chu were killed in the explosion while Xiao Chu couldn't regain his senses for a while due to feeling dizzy.

Those desert troops rushed in and surrounded the Medic Station.

The troops brought everyone outside.

The person in mercenary clothes gave the order, "Detain them all in the vehicle."

"Nooo!"

"Release me!"

Du-Du-Du!!!

That mercenary fired towards the sky when he saw some of them struggle, "Kill anyone who resists…"

Boom!

A mushroom-shaped dust cloud came into view at a distance.

This wasn't from a grenade, so it was either a rocket or artillery shell.

"Oh my god. That's the Garrison's Command Center."

The troops laughed. Some of them were quite excited, "Looks like it went smoothly."

"Quickly get them into the vehicle!"

It looked like the bad luck of Jiang Xiu's group still hadn't ended. They were placed in the vehicle then taken into the desert once again.

Qiu Yinru asked, "Jiang Xiu, what's happening?"

Jiang Xiu shook his head, expressing that he didn't know anything about it.

"Why didn't you resist them? They shouldn't be a match for you."

"They have guns!"

You damn swindler, giving this excuse again. You said the same last time, but even the golden giant was unable to defeat you, so there's no way you are afraid of guns. She was suspicious as Jiang Xiu could easily escape from the enemy's clutches, yet he got kidnapped willingly.

Xie Ting said, "I believe Big Brother Jiang wants to meet Meng Du, right?"

Jiang Xiu just smiled in response to that.

There were several vehicles behind them. It appeared that many people were caught. By taking a rough look, the numbers were somewhere around a hundred, but the reason they were captured wasn't clear yet.

"Stop speaking!" The soldier in charge of watching over them berated.

"Why did you grab us?" Jiang Xiu asked.

"No reason. The General wishes to make an example out of you…"

"So, it was to show off your strength. But what's the use of catching ordinary people like us?" Her expression was quite calm, void of any worry.

That soldier's gaze wandered on Xie Ting's attractive figure for a while before grunting, "It's not just you, we also grabbed the commander of the garrison, Wu Guiyong."

The explosion which had occurred back then was due to this.

"What?!"

The female military doctor who was in the car too cried out in surprise.

"Hah! Are you scared now?"

…

Soon after, they reached the destination. As the soldiers were driving vehicles, it made sense that the location was near. An ancient desert castle came into view at a distance. Once the vehicles entered inside, armed soldiers led them inside.

It was quite noisy inside.

"This is Meng Du's base?"

After going inside, Jiang Xiu saw a white-haired old man donned in military clothing there. His uniform was full of medals, and several people were guarding him.

"Hahaha…"

"Commander Wu, it's been a while."

A middle-aged man walked out along with a cheerful smile on his face. He too was donned in military attire, but his dress was quite shabby. He carried himself in a domineering manner and looked of mixed descent with an unusually pretty face.

He had a stone in his left hand.

"Longevity Stone!"

Jiang Xiu's gaze brightened after seeing that stone. The stone in that man's hand was releasing a faint blue light resembling river water. It appeared quite magical.

"Meng Du!"

"You have huge guts. You actually dared to capture me?"

"What? You think you are someone amazing? So what if this Daddy captured you? You think you can still act arrogant when you are this Daddy's prisoner? Tone down or I'll blow a hole in you."

Wu Guiyong's face turned ashen. He didn't say anything else.

"Do you want to know why this Daddy grabbed you?"

Wu Guiyong nodded.

"Because of those people from Heaven's Gate came over from overseas. You also know they hate you, Chinese citizens, the most, but they can't do anything. So, I decided to prove to them that I, Meng Du, can do what they can't do."

This region which he was occupying was a plain at the border region. As for the Heaven's Gate, their central area of operation was Europe.

"Come, take a look at the show…"

Inside the camp, a middle-aged man sat there with hands behind his back. He had a grim appearance, and his brows were full of dignity. He furrowed his brows while watching these group of people being escorted inside by the troops.

"Zhou Hao, do you give up now?"

"Hahahaha…"

Meng Du chuckled. He came to his seat and sat down, feeling quite proud of himself.

Many guns were pointing towards the region the captives stood.

When the man called as Zhou Hao saw Wu Guiyong among them, his facial expression turned ugly. He smiled coldly, "General Meng's troops are indeed valiant."

"However, we are here to discuss martial arts today, so we have to battle through it. Your army can't appear in a large city."

The pride on Meng Du's face vanished slowly.

"Who is coming from your Heaven's Gate?"

Zhou Hao shook his head, "I also don't know, but since Heaven's Gate wishes for General Meng to pay allegiance to it, they will definitely send a person who can compare to General Meng."

There was a 60-year-old, eccentric old man at Meng Du's side, "Heaven's Gate talks quite big. However, after seeing the strength of General Meng's army, I'm afraid that person won't dare come here."

The others were puzzled as well. Heaven's Gate had sent a representative, but he hadn't shown up till now.

Zhou Hao got enraged, "You dare to act so disrespectfully towards Heaven's Gate?"

"Just wait till the person comes. We'll see whether you'll still laugh after that."

Jiang Xiu was stunned to discover that they were mere bait for Meng Du to show off.

"Wu Guiyong, you know my rules, right?"

Wu Guiyong shook his head.

"It's quite simple. Your group will send a person to fight against my person. If you lose, I'll kill a person. If you win, I'll let a person go…"

Jiang Xiu couldn't help but shake his head. It was the same stereotype again. Meng Du's little brother, Meng Fei also liked to play like this, considering the lives as a game and got off the pleasure of dominating over the life and death of others.

"Commander, let me go!"

Genuine experts didn't like to stay at the border region, but that didn't mean the army lacked experts. This man looked around 40 and had several gunshot wounds on his body.

"Be careful!" Wu Guiyong warned him.

This man was called Baili Lingfeng, a valiant leader under Wu Guiyong.

"Arhat, come out!"

This Arhat wasn't a real arhat. He had dark skin and seemed like a person from Southeast Asia.

"Please!"

Wu Guiyong's face turned uglier after the match began.

Baili Lingfeng was wounded in the all-army competition and also had gunshot wounds on him. The most repulsive fact was that Arhat was acted shamelessly by attacking Baili Lingfeng's injured left leg again and again.

Arhat's offense became wilder.

Baili Lingfeng did his best to keep his eyes open, but he was bleeding too heavily and couldn't see clearly.

Xie Ting asked Jiang Xiu quietly, "Big Brother Jiang, who do you think will win?"

Jiang Xiu gazed at them, "Both of them are Supreme Stage experts and possess the same levels of power and strength. However, Baili Lingfeng is injured while Arhat is full of energy and also has a mental advantage so he ought to win."

The result came out quickly!

Baili Lingfeng lost!

"Geugh!"

Arhat kicked Baili Lingfeng's chest, causing it to cave in and also result in his clothes getting shredded.

A footprint was left behind there.

Those who witnessed this felt goosebumps all over.

The kick had broken the ribs, so there was no doubt that the man's organs were injured.

Baili Lingfeng fell unconscious.

"Wu Guiyong, how about it? Since you lost, you must pay. Someone's going to die now…" Meng Du was indeed quite a perverted and sinister man. He actually closed his eyes and pointed the gun towards the group, causing them to cry out in alarm as no one would know who would die.

Bang!

The bullet pierced through one of them, leaving behind a pool of blood.

"Alright, next round…"

The group turned silent. They looked at that devil-like man in alarm.

"I'll do it!"

Jiang Xiu stated then slowly walked out of the group.

The gazes of the captives fell on the person who was dying from the gunshot. Wu Guiyong could only watch on as that young life passed away. He felt a heart-wrenching pain. The one who got killed was Ji Yaomi, unparalleled in martial arts as well as fighting. Wu Guiyong's heart howled in grief. Baili Lingfeng was his strongest subordinate who no one could defeat.

Since he was down now, all of them would only get killed after getting played with.

However, someone came out at this moment. Wu Guiyong looked with astonishment as a completely unfamiliar youth walked out and couldn't help but ask his subordinates, "Who is he? Is he from our division?"

The men on the side shook their heads.

That female medic had recognized Jiang Xiu. She wasn't expecting him to volunteer but felt it was useless as he was only walking towards his death.

The guard captain, Xiao Chu, was being supported up by someone. His head had got injured due to the explosion and was dripping with blood. He was surprised to see Jiang Xiu walk out.

On the other hand, Qiu Yinru, as well as the other students, were excited as they had witnessed Jiang Xiu's strength before.

"Big Brother Jiang, be careful!"

Jiang Xiu smiled coolly then walked into the arena. His gaze fell on Meng Du, "If I win, you'll let one person go, right?"

"That's right."

"You won't go back on your word?" He had already seen how unreasonably Meng Fei acted. He hadn't let even a single person go.

"Of course, I won't. Mr. Zhou Hao from Heaven's Gate can stand as the witness."

"Alright!"

Jiang Xiu nodded then waited for this original position. He looked towards Arhat. The message was clear. He was telling Arhat to attack him.

"You're courting death!"

The look on Arhat's face turned ugly. He was short, and his style was similar to Muay Thai, but it wasn't entirely Muay Thai. His body had already surpassed the limits of the human body, so it was probably kind of ancient fist style.

One of the Meng Du's men asked the middle-aged man, "Mr. Zhou, who do you think will win?"

He was Meng Du's subordinate, called as Bai Chongyi. Meng Du trusted him deeply, and he was the No. 2 in the entire army after Meng Du. If it had to be compared to a bandit group, he was the vice-leader.

Usually, the vice-leader has high fighting abilities or wisdom but unfortunately, this man didn't possess both but he was still able to become the vice-leader, and the other subordinates accepted this as well.

"Hmm?"

Zhou Hao smiled and shook his head lightly, feeling somewhat helpless, "I'm not interested in anyone except for General Meng."

"As for this Arhat…"

"3 moves. He'll kill him in 3 moves…"

He revealed a confident expression when saying this. After all, the members of Heaven's Gate were quite keen.

Bai Chongyi laughed in response to that, "Arhat has a cheat."

"He isn't normal."

Zhou Hao retorted, "So what?"

The two of them looked at the confidence in each other's eyes. The bosses have their stage while the lackeys have theirs, no one liked to be on the receiving end.

During the time they were discussing this, Arhat had already started his offense. He jumped up then sent an elbow smash towards Jiang Xiu's head.

With the amount of strength Arhat possessed, he could easily smash a stone into pieces, so there was no difference between a head and tofu to him.

He planned to take Jiang Xiu's life with this hit.

Jiang Xiu's gaze swept across him. He took a step forward which seemed like a short step, but he covered a significant distance with just that single step.

In the next second, it seemed as if a thunderous sound echoed in the arena. Arhat's face suffered a hit from Jiang Xiu's palm, followed by which his face deformed and was then blow away backward.

Everyone was shocked.

The result was out of their expectations.

"H-He won?"

The frontier defenders couldn't believe it. This youth had not only won but also won with such ease. The enemy was someone who even their Sir Baili couldn't defeat.

Wu Guiyong revealed a surprised expression as well and almost jumped up in joy.

"He won!"

The expressions on Meng Du's men turned ugly. They had lost so badly, KO'ed by a single hit and thus lost a lot of face in front of the man from Heaven's Gate.

"This…" Bai Chongyi was stupefied.

Zhou Hao was shocked too. Arhat was at the Supreme Stage. He considered the odds. He could defeat Arhat in 3 moves, but the other side had done it in 1 move.

Jiang Xiu said, "General Meng, as we agreed, since I won this match, you have to release a person. You won't go back on your word now, right?"

Meng Du's face turned ashen, but he still squeezed out a smile, "Of course. I, Meng Du, always honor my words." However, he glared at Jiang Xiu as if looking at prey.

The captives became restless.

"Save the commander first!"

"Yes, save the commander."

Wu Guiyong also looked at Jiang Xiu. He didn't beseech him through his gaze and just sent him a serious gaze. Naturally, it didn't lack in expressing his goodwill.

Brat, let's see if you will act with integrity or not.

"I can request to release anyone, right?"

Meng Du made a gloomy face, "Yes, you can." He knew that Jiang Xiu was asking this for a reason. He also made a hidden move by letting Arhat appear at the beginning so that he could suppress all the challengers, but never expected that this brat would come out and defeat Arhat. Since the person from Heaven's Gate was here, he couldn't dare to renege.

Jiang Xiu asked another question, "If I want you to release Wu Guiyong, will you let him go?"

Meng Du clenched his teeth. If his gaze could kill, he would've stared at Jiang Xiu till he died. He grunted, "My words are as solid as iron. I won't go back on my words."

The captives were overjoyed after hearing this. They revealed a cheerful look on their faces.

Wu Guiyong was the same as well, "Young man, I still don't know your name."

"You don't need to know my name." Jiang Xiu replied.

Wu Guiyong nodded with appreciation. Indeed, a good soldier. You have inherited the fine tradition of my military district of doing a service but not asking for a reward properly.

"Alright, I'll remember you."

"Commander, take care of yourself on the way!"

"I hope you are able to escape safely!"

The captives gave various advice to the man. Over these years, the subordinates had already got used to expressing their concern for the commander. They didn't even care this much about their own parents.

Meng Du said, "Wu Guiyong, looks like you have good luck today but you won't have such good luck next time." He words were full of fury. He had grabbed Wu Guiyong to make an example out of him and show off to the people from Heaven's Gate, but it had resulted in such a messy situation. But no matter what, he had in the end lost reputation.

Wu Guiyong didn't say anything in response to that as he was afraid of infuriating Meng Du and cause him to change his plans. He turned around to leave.

"Wait a second…"

Everyone looked at Jiang Xiu.

"Did I say I'm saving you?"

"What do you mean?" One of the guards asked.

"Of course, the Commander must be saved first. His identity is the most important here."

Xiao Chu and the female military doctor felt a bad premonition when they saw Jiang Xiu swept across them. "I didn't say anything when your military district's medic prioritized your soldiers, but since I won this match, I'm going to save my friends first. What qualifications do you have to call my decision into question?"

Xiao Chu got furious, "Brat, this isn't the time to joke around. Do you know who you are talking to?"

"I wouldn't care even if he was the Emperor himself."

"I'll save whoever I want to first."

The captives became agitated immediately.

Wu Guiyong could make out that something had happened between Jiang Xiu and Xiao Chu. He asked him, "Xiao Chu, what's the matter? Did something happen between this young man and you?"

Xiao Chu's face turned pale, "Sir, didn't you send me to cooperate with the Jingmen area's adviser at the Medic Station? He's that adviser. He wanted us to treat his teacher and students first, but there were too many injured men at the medic station, so the medicine wasn't enough. We naturally prioritized the soldiers." His voice gradually turned lighter as he talked.

Xiao Chu didn't think he had made a mistake, but the situation had become like this now, so he naturally felt terrible since he was to blame.

That female medic also spoke in favor, "Those were the orders. We were just implementing our orders."

One of the other guards who seemed like a leader spoke out as well, "Young man, since you are the adviser of a military district, you should know that this isn't the time to act like this now. The top priority right now is to ensure the commander's safety."

Jiang Xiu sneered at that leader, "He's is your Commander, not mine. His life might be precious to you, but it's worthless to mine. Why should I care whether he lives or dies?"

"You…"

That man's expression turned ashen, but he couldn't retort Jiang Xiu's words. Since Jiang Xiu had won the match, so he had the final say on who he wished to save.

"No one's going to stop you if you want to become someone's dog but don't you block my path." Jiang Xiu commented.

"How dare you!"

The man got outraged, "What rank are you? You think you can speak to me like this? I'm ordering you to let the commander leave first or else you'll have to report to HQ then wait for the law to handle you."

Jiang Xiu turned a blind eye to the man's rage. He couldn't care more about these people.

He came in front of Xie Ting. She looked at him with astonishment in her eyes, making her call out to him seductively, "Big Brother Jiang…"

"Why don't you leave first? I'll be difficult for me to protect you if something happens later on."

Xie Ting's eyes lit up with a luster.

She became the center of focus instantly. Everyone envied her at this moment and wished they could've been in her position, but it after seeing her beautiful looks, they guessed that the youngster might have that kind of relationship with her. After all, no matter which era, beauties have always been popular.

Qiu Yinru's eyes dimmed, making her lowed her head. She flaunted her beauty too, and many boys from the Imperial University were crazy for her, but Jiang Xiu had used this chance to save Xie Ting instead of her. Though she hadn't completely lost, her confidence had taken a hit. A deep sense of grief surged up to her head, making her eyes tear up, the teardrops lingering on her eyes lashes.

"Go!"

Jiang Xiu hinted her to leave. In the end, he was only a single person, so it was impossible for him to protect her when facing these many people with guns. A stray bullet could always be dangerous.

"Big Brother…" Xie Ting nodded. She knew Jiang Xiu could escape easily if he weren't burdened by her. "Take care of yourself."

Saying so, she walked towards the exit of the camp.

"Let her leave!"

Meng Du kept his promise. The gate was opened, and Xie Ting left the camp without a hitch. She turned back to take a look then disappeared at the horizon.

Zhou Hao said, "General Meng, you lost one match, and this little brother looks strong. Are you sure you want to continue playing this game?"

Since Jiang Xiu had defeated Arhat in a single move, it meant his strength was extraordinary. On the other hand, Zhou Hao's words seemed to reveal that he had a low opinion of Meng Du's subordinates.

"Tell Hua Zhang to come out!"

A person on the 2nd floor of the lookout tower answered the call. He had a tall figure and a bald head. He jumped from the 2nd floor and dropped on the ground. The entire land trembled when he landed.

"General!"

"Don't make me lose face." Meng Du told him.

"Yes, General!"

Hua Zhang was 2m tall and muscular with dark skin. He had over a dozen gunshot scars on his body. One look at him was enough to tell that he had lived through dangerous situations as he seemed to release a terrible demonic aura around him.

"Perfect Supreme Stage! Not bad." Zhou Hao praised him, "How far has he come?"

"His body is full of energy!" Meng Du said proudly.

Zhou Hao was very shocked.

Even the members of the military district were shocked as well. They had heard of the legends in the army as well. When someone reaches the perfect energy level, they could use this energy to block the bullet. They had witnessed it personally as well. If someone's entire body were full of perfect energy, that would mean the body was completely invulnerable to bullets.

They couldn't imagine how to defeat such a person.

"Hah!"

Hua Zhong roared while crouching. He brought out his entire power by flexing his muscles, making them as hard as steel. Steam seemed to rise from his body as a faint gloss covered it.

"So frightening. He would definitely shine if he were in the army competition."

"Perfect Energy is hard to handle, especially someone at the Perfect Supreme Stage whose entire body is full of energy. That person is akin to a human-shaped tank, a terrifying existence."

"That brat will lose."

The captive soldiers whispered among themselves. During the first match, they were worried for Jiang Xiu and hoped he would win, but now they were hoping he would lose.

"Die, kid!"

Hua Zhang stamped on the ground then pounced towards Jiang Xiu like a fierce tiger. From his observations, Jiang Xiu concluded that this man was innately talented as it was quite challenging to fill the entire body with energy.

Linking up a hundred channels within the body was too tricky. If a lower art was used, it meant that one would have to use brute force to overcome the barriers of these channels.

To accomplish this, one had to start at the origin to break through the barriers. In the martial arts world, this was called the Energy Gate or the Achilles' Heel. In case the enemy finds out about it, it'd prove very fatal to the expert.

"Are you trying to look for the Energy Gate?" Meng Du laughed. "I used a gun to shoot at him once then used a blade to chop all over his body, even his soles, top of his head as well as his underarms."

"He doesn't have an Achilles' Heel."

"Or if I had to say it, his Achilles' Heel is inside his body."

Those who heard it were stunned. If the Energy Gate was within the body, it meant that this man had no weak point at all. Even tanks had weak points, but this man had none.

This was terrible.

Jiang Xiu remained calm as the man pressed on towards him. His classmates were optimistic of him as he had defeated even a God like the golden giant, but their confidence wavered a bit after hearing Meng Du's words.

Anyone would feel despair when confronting a man with no weaknesses.

Yet Jiang Xiu only had a contempt-filled smile on his face.

It was indeed something extraordinary for an ordinary man to cultivate the body to this degree but the man was in the end still human. It was hard to overcome the disparity between the species called Demigod and Human.

It's was indeed a pity…

Jiang Xiu took another step forward and just like before, it appeared as if it was a simple step, but he had reached in front of Hua Zhang all of a sudden. He struck Hua Zhang's torso with his palm.

A fierce incorporeal energy pulse spurted out from his back.

Hua Zhang's expression changed. His eyes were full of doubt. When he opened his mouth, blood flowed out from it. He used his hand to wipe his mouth and noticed that his fingers were scarlet. The doubt in his eyes gradually changed into fear.

"He vomited blood…"

"This…"

Blood kept flowing out of Hua Zhong's mouth unceasingly, seemingly never-ending.

"H-He won again?"

Qiu Yinru, Chen Dewen, and the others wished they could cheer.

This time, not only the men from the military district but Meng Du and Zhou Hao were both stunned as well. Even they would have to spend some effort to defeat a Perfect Supreme Stage expert without an Achilles' Heel yet Jiang Xiu had done with such ease.

"How did he do it?"

Jiang Xiu wore the same easy-going, calm look on his face as if he had done a trivial thing. He asked, "Since I've won again, according to the rules, General Meng will release another person, right?"

Meng Du reevaluated Jiang Xiu. He nodded, "That's right. As we agreed, you can save one person."

"Save the commander!"

"You must save the commander this time."

They believed that it was possible that the previous girl Jiang Xiu had chosen could've been his girlfriend so it made sense that he saved her as no boyfriend would allow his girlfriend to go through such danger. Therefore, it made sense that the next person should be the commander.

"Save the commander first."

Wu Guiyong looked at Jiang Xiu with fervent hope.

However, Jiang Xiu ignored that fervent hope once again and looked towards his classmates.

Chen Dewen wished to tell Jiang Xiu to save him, but he knew that this wasn't possible, so he stopped that thought at his throat.

Qiu Yinru also looked at Jiang Xiu. She was a perfectionist. She wished to be first in everything, but the reality was cruel so she could only accept the second place.

Jiang Xiu's gaze passed across her body and turned somewhere else. Qiu Yinru felt like head had exploded. She quickly lowered her head, feeling dejected that she didn't hold an important place in his heart. She wasn't even second.

"Qiu Yinru, how about it? Want to leave?"

The girl was already downhearted, so she raised her head in surprise when she heard Jiang Xiu call out her name.

"Don't misunderstand. It's just that among these people, each one is shitter than the other…"

The surviving Chen Dewen and the others had ridiculed him a lot.

Although this reason was quite shitty, the girl could accept it.

"Hmm? Looks like our side's person has come…" Zhou Hao smiled all of a sudden.

Everyone looked at Zhou Hao. The person from Heaven's Gate is here? No one could be bothered about Jiang Xiu at this moment. He could save whoever he wanted. It was just a fight between children and of no consequence to them.

Meng Du's face turned gloomier, "You said you wanted me to surrender and acted so ostentatiously. Let me see which reckless person from Heaven's Gate has come."

Disdain flashed through Zhou Hao's eyes while he replied with a sinister tone, "Meng Du, you are courting death by showing contempt towards Heaven's Gate."

"You'll be scared out of your wits when you see the person."

Saying so, he stepped forward then slightly bowed, "I request Mister to show yourself."

"Please."

The area turned silent. No one was there in front of Zhou Hao.

"What's happening?"

No one could make sense of what was happening. Are you trying to scare us or what? Bowing towards air won't do shit.

Jiang Xiu eyes flickered with a slight glint as a smile rose on his face, "Interesting. Such a power is quite rare. It looks like some immortal arts have been handed down on Earth properly."

He turned towards Qiu Yinru, "Leave fast, and you can maybe catch up with Xie Ting."

Qiu Yinru opened her mouth and thanked him with great difficulty, "Thank you!"

Jiang Xiu had saved her, and thus it was the right thing for her to express gratitude, but for some reason, Qiu Yinru didn't wish to say thank you to him.

No one cared about Qiu Yinru leaving the place as they were focused on that empty space in the arena.

A strange wind blew past that place, causing the paper bits on the ground to fly up.

Meng Du, his subordinates as well as the captive soldiers' eyes grew wide open in shock all of a sudden. They felt a bone-chilling coldness creep up their backs.

"Impossible!"

Many of them were drenched in cold sweat.

They had shocked expressions on their faces.

They couldn't believe what they were seeing.

That empty space began to ripple, and a black shadow appeared there. This shadow turned vivid, and after a few moments, everyone could clearly see a 50-year old man standing there.

He appeared baselessly.

"I-Is he human or something else?"

Some were trembling in shock due to witnessing such a supernatural event. They couldn't understand how this man had appeared, whether he had come from a far away region or was he there all along.

"Heaven's Gate Dao Scripture, Universal Shift."

Bai Chongyi worded it out with great difficulty while feeling something choking down his throat.

"A Demigod!"

That man's appearance turned clearer by the second. It was a demon god-like man with black hair and eyes. He had an ethnic Chinese face, had a sharp look in his eyes and carried himself domineeringly.

His hands were behind him as his clothes fluttered due to the wind. His gaze fell on Meng Du, "Are you Meng Du? My opponent?"

"Yes, are you Buzhi of Heaven's Gate?"

The man nodded, "Buzhi Ming!"

"Meng Du greets Mr. Buzhi." At this moment, Meng Du couldn't help but shiver. It was a real Demigod, one from the Demigod Ranking.

Buzhi Ming said, "If you kneel down and pay allegiance to Heaven's Gate, I'll spare your life."

"Or else… you shall die!"

Meng Du had finally understood the meaning of the words 'There's always a Heaven above the Heavens.' Though he felt shocked and even afraid, he was after all the leader of the bandit army. His nature didn't allow him to cower and instead evoked his valiance.

"I'm honored that Heaven's Gate has given such attention to me. Since Mr. Buzhi has come in person, I, Meng Du, can't let you feel disappointed due to not even having the courage to resist. How about we have a duel?"

A cold glint flashed through Buzhi Ming's eyes, "Those who resist Heaven's Gate will die!"

Meng Du smiled at him, "Do you think only you are a Demigod?"

"GGGGRRRR!"

Meng Du released a beastly roar as the power in his body rushed out. He transformed into a werewolf-like beastly appearance. It looked quite malevolent with veins popping out all over his body. His skin turned green, and his entire figure seemed to have grown a notch larger, changing from a 1.7 m tall man into a giant.

"1st Divine Form!"

Buzhi Ming nodded. It seemed like he was satisfied with this.

The others were frightened, "W-What kind of skill is this? How can a human change so much? I-Is he still human?"

Jiang Xiu also observed all of this. Meng Du's evolution was better than Xie Sanxian's. Besides the figure size and the skin, there weren't any other deformations or changes in him. This meant that he was evolving into a divinity without a hitch.

The increase in figure raised the attack power while the change in skin raised the defense power. Though the skin had changed into a green color as it was a low-leveled one, Meng Du was walking on the right path.

"GGGGRRRRRHHHH!"

Meng Du howled with a beastly voice. This was a low-level Divine Language similar to the one Xie Sanxian was speaking back then. The roar roughly translated to 'Come, let's fight!'.

Meng Du moved, leaving behind only an after-image due to his quick speed. His punch cut across air, releasing a hissing sound as it rushed towards his opponent with an incredible strength enough to collapse a mountain.

The expressions of the captive soldiers changed. Meng Du was a huge bandit on the frontier, and his strength seemed to be on the same level as the Grand Marshal Xiao Zhanbo. This single punch was enough to blow out a tank to smithereens.

The ground cracked under the air pressure as it made its way towards the target.

"Hmph!"

Buzhi Ming stood there like a statue. He neither moved nor tried to block the attack and waited for the punch to arrive. When he felt the fist's energy reach him, he crouched all of a sudden then released the energy from his body, causing the air around him to revolve around him in spirals.

Whhhiiizzzz!

The two energies collided with each other, giving rise to a magnetic twisting sound of blades being crushed.

At the same time, Buzhi Ming's clothes released a gentle, milky light. His entire body turned illusionary as if he was turning to soft light.

"GGGGRRRH!!!"

Meng Du revealed an alarmed expression on his face. As his fist neared Buzhi Ming, the fear on his face grew stronger as the pressure his fist felt kept rising, so much that he couldn't even move it forward anymore.

He had already used up all his strength, but his fist still couldn't reach Buzhi.

Even if he broke through the defense and managed to land a hit, just how much damage could he have dealt?

No one knew.

At this moment, Buzhi Ming acted. He lightly pointed his finger at the fist.

Acting in complete silence.

Ka-cha!

When his finger touched Meng Du's fist, it resulted in a popping sound, followed by which Meng Du flew back as if he was hit by a truck while his arm twisted into a weird direction. It seemed like it got fractured.

But Buzhi Ming had no intentions of stopping. He had already taken a step forward before Meng Du flew back. He stepped to the side then slapped both his palms towards Meng Du. Just the strength from his finger was already so valiant, so the force behind these slaps was quite unimaginable.

BANG!

Meng Du's body twisted into a shrimp-like shape. He howled desperately in pain as blood wafted through the air and flew out with an even faster speed.

He soared up to the skies then dropped down from the sky.

BOOM!

Buzhi Ming stamped on Meng Du while he was in mid-air, causing him to crash into the ground. A depression had occurred on the land due to the crash. Meng Du didn't release a single noise after his crash.

After receiving such an attack, it was pretty difficult to make it out alive.

One finger, two slaps, and a kick. The Meng Army's Leader, Meng Du, who had ruled the desert for over 20 years, met a violent death through just these four moves.

The entire place turned deathly silent.

All of them looked towards the man who had killed Meng Du as if he were the incarnation of the Devil.

"Weak, the 1st Form is too weak."

"If you had reached the 2nd Form, you could have lived through it and maybe even exchanged a few moves with me."

Saying so, he turned around towards the others who were on guard. He placed his hands behind him again with a proud expression on his face, "Your leader is already dead. Are you still going to resist?"

"Better lay down your weapons and surrender."

Zhou Hao swaggered towards Buzhi Ming then bowed respectfully, "Mr. Buzhi is formidable!"

The soldiers of the Meng Army looked at each other.

Their gazes fell on Bai Chongyi. Since the boss had died, they would naturally follow the vice-leader. It was up to Bai Chongyi to decide whether they will resist or pay allegiance to Heaven's Gate.

It took some time for Bai Chongyi to recover from the shock as it was too shocking. General Meng got killed in the blink of an eye. That man was someone whom he viewed the same as a God in his heart.

He didn't even get a chance to escape with his life!

The opponent was strong and also ruthless.

"Mr. Buzhi is formidable!"

Bai Chongyi decided to pay allegiance to Heaven's Gate. He didn't dare to refuse when facing such a powerful Demigod.

Since the vice-leader, Bai Chongyi had surrendered, the Meng Army laid down their guns one after another. They didn't have the slightest intention of resisting when facing such a powerful Demigod.

Buzhi Ming of Heaven's Gate had a grand reputation and well known in many regions of Europe. He was an international shark, someone who could shake the entire world.

The reason Heaven's Gate wished to absorb the Meng Army was to exploit the resources in the desert land of the Western Regions.

"Long live Mr. Buzhi!"

"Long live Heaven's Gate!"

The soldiers who had surrendered all shouted while raising their guns to express their wholehearted support for Buzhi Ming. The scene of several thousand men yelling at the same time, resulting in the waves reaching the skies, was a sight to behold.

Buzhi Ming was used to these kinds of scenes long ago, so he didn't show any changes in his expression.

"I never expected Heaven's Gate would send Buzhi Ming!"

Wu Guiyong's facial expression turned grim. The man had subdued the Meng Army with a single move.

"Sir, is this Buzhi Ming that amazing?"

Everyone saw his strength yet they were unfamiliar with this man's history. However, there was no doubt he was someone extraordinary.

"This man had become famous 40 years ago. I was quite young back then. He had always operated in Europe, but he once made a trip to China and defeated the 13 experts one after another, making all the martial artists in China lower their heads in shame."

"That's really something. What happened after that?"

Wu Guiyong continued speaking, "Afterwards, rumors spread that he lost to Mr. Fei Qing and promised he wouldn't enter China after that. I didn't expect he would make an exception today and come down here to take control of this group."

"Mr. Fei Qing?"

Compared to Buzhi Ming, Fei Qing's reputation was rather well known. That person was like an epic legend within the army. Even the 10 Grand Marshals are respectful when mentioning that name nowadays.

Fei Qing had resisted Heaven's Gate back in the days and thus became famous across the four seas.

"The Meng Army was already a headache, but now that Heaven's Gate has taken control of it, we can't say what will happen to the Western Region's frontier."

Buzhi Ming's gaze swept across the captive soldiers. He was stunned to see Wu Guiyong among them. It wasn't because he knew him but rather that Wu Guiyong was only a novice recruit when Buzhi Ming had oppressed China back in those days, and now, he had reached such a rank.

Zhou Hao smiled beside him, "Mr. Buzhi, Meng Du grabbed the commander of the Western Region's garrison to make an example out of him to intimidate you. It's a pity he didn't know how ruthless you are."

"This subordinate is also very shocked that Mr. Buzhi has arrived this time."

Buzhi Ming's face was the same as before, indifferent to everything, "I have made this trip for two things. First, to absorb the Meng Army and second, to kill a person."

Since this person was able to make Buzhi Ming act, there was no doubt he was someone incredible.

Zhou Hao, as well as the captive troops, were stunned, "Who?"

An ominous glint flashed through Buzhi Ming's eyes, "JIANG LUOXIA!"

"Hmm?"

Chen Dewen and the others couldn't help but look towards Jiang Xiu. He knew Jiang Xiu had another name, Jiang Luoxia. Excitement filled his eyes.

Chen Dewen believed that a powerful man like Jiang Xiu would never have bad luck and only have good luck so he would have to endure for his entire life, but he had never expected that Jiang Xiu would provoke such a fierce enemy.

Only, he was puzzled why Buzhi Ming didn't know how Jiang Luoxia looked since he planned to kill Jiang Xiu.

This was indeed worrisome.

Should I tell him?

Bai Chongyi couldn't help but ask, "Who is this Jiang Luoxia? To think he can make Mr. Buzhi act. Shouldn't it be fine if we send our assassins to assassinate him?"

Buzhi Ming's gaze fell on Bao Chongyi's face as he sneered at him, "This man killed an old friend of mine, Wang family's Wang Jianzhi. Do you think rats like you will be able to do anything to a man who can kill a Demigod?"

Bai Chongyi's eyes grew wide in shock. He felt embarrassed.

Since he was able to become the vice-leader of the Meng Army, he naturally wasn't a stupid person. He knew that the enemy wouldn't be ordinary since Buzhi Ming had personally appeared but if he didn't act silly, how else would it emphasize Mr. Buzhi's intelligence?

Someone in the captive troops discussed, "Is it that Mr. Jiang who has recently soared up in Jiangnan?"

"They say Mr. Jiang had defeated the Wang family's Demigod then subdued the Wang family."

"Isn't that just a rumor to spread the hype? Wang family's Demigod died 60 years ago."

Buzhi Ming smiled coldly.

A clear voice came through at this moment, "You want to kill me?"

Everyone looked towards the source of the voice. It was the young man who had defeated Meng Du's subordinate just before. He crouched beside Meng Du's body then took the Longevity Stone from him.

Buzhi Ming sized up Jiang Xiu up and down. He was a youth who seemed around 20 years old. Where did this impudent brat come from? "You."

"Who are you?"

Jiang Xiu fiddled with Meng Du's Longevity Stone. Its dimensions were the same as the one which he had but the writing on it was different, and its color was blue instead of red. The form of the script was different as well. It looked like it consisted of two letters.

The one he had felt hot while the blue one felt cold, even a bit icy. The energy within his body became orderly and milder. If the stones were held for a long duration of time, it could heal all defects in a human.

He concluded that the red one indicated warm blood while the blue one indicated cold blood.

Both of them went through two different routes. The extraordinary humans might have warm blood while the ordinary humans approached the cold blood category. In fact, the temperature of blood from an average human wasn't that high.

"Didn't you want to take revenge?"

The captive troops all looked at him. The leader who had questioned Jiang Xiu before cried out, "Has that kid gone mad?"

Aren't you just courting death by standing out against Buzhi Ming? Can't you see what kind of existence he is?

The captive troops looked at him as if he were an idiot.

Many of their faces went pale.

They were hoping that Buzhi Ming would let them go since he was in a good mood after taking over the Meng Army, but since this brat had created trouble now, they believed they might die soon.

The members of the Meng Army pointed their guns at Jiang Xiu when they saw him walk over towards Buzhi Ming. Their intent was clear. If he took another step, they would fire at him.

These men were very devoted. They were making an all-out effort just after changing masters.

In fact, these were instincts trained by Meng Du. If anyone threatened their boss, they had to act without any instructions.

This was the most significant difference between ordinary bandits and bandits trained like soldiers.

Bang!

Someone shot at him. They planned to show off in front of their new master.

Followed by a flash, the bullet flew towards Jiang Xiu's head at an astonishing speed.

The bullet almost neared him when an energy ripple undulated in the space before him, causing the bullet to lose power then drop down to the ground.

Jiang Xiu remained indifferent to this. He didn't move an inch and acted as if no one had shot at him.

The people on the side were stunned.

What the…

The bullet stopped mid-air?

If Xie Ting and Qiu Yinru were here, they would say this - Swindler. Didn't you say you were afraid of guns? Is this what you meant?

The bullets can't even reach you!

Zhou Hao was surprised as well. Jiang Xiu had already left a profound impression on him after the two duels which happened just before and already raised his evaluation of him, but he wasn't expecting that he had still underestimated him. He questioned himself. He could use his superhuman reactions to judge the trajectory of the bullet, but he couldn't stop a bullet like how Jiang Xiu had done.

Only those legendary Demigods could achieve something like this.

Is this youth a Demigod?

What's with this day? Demigods keep popping up. None had come out in the past few decades, but three of them had appeared today.

Buzhi Ming was also quite shocked. He could directly observe as well as sense Jiang Xiu's power and thus made a gloomy face, "You. Just who the hell are you?"

"I'm the person you're looking for…"

"JIANG LUOXIA!"

Everyone was shocked that such an unremarkable brat was actually such a bigshot. Moreover, Jiang Xiu was so strong. Xiao Chu, as well as the medic, felt like they were suffocating.

They had offended such an amazing person.

"You are Jiang Luoxia?"

A sharp awn flashed through Buzhi Ming's eyes and under that, rage-fueled up the flames in his heart.

"Descend, the nine mythical arts, cleanse the heavens, a thousand years of karma, an artless heart yet romantic."

Jiang Xiu gently spoke the words as he walked forward as if he was strolling in his garden, like a monarch facing all those under the heavens, passing judgment on everything. Words weren't enough to describe his regal appearance full of elegance.

"100% authentic, the one and only, Jiang Luoxia."

"Your friend Wang Jianzhi was too ordinary. He thought he was brilliant by choosing to live underwater, but in the end, he evolved in the wrong direction and became similar to a monster. It was as easy as lifting a hand for me to take away his life."

Back then, Jiang Xiu's strength was 1/10th of the power he possessed right now. He wouldn't even have to use the Thousand Flying Sword Chain now, just using a finger was enough.

Buzhi Ming said, "I have a debt to pay to Wang Jianzhi."

"If you want to take revenge for him, I will naturally give you this opportunity." Jiang Xiu replied.

Chen Dewen had come to accept this reality now. On the surface, though Jiang Xiu had the identity of an ordinary student of the Imperial Capital, his background was quite complicated.

To these people, things like killing people was a common occurrence.

"He's really Mr. Jiang!"

Some of the troops among the captives knew of Jiang Luoxia's fame. After all, the fact that he had subdued the Wang family had shocked the entire province, and he was right before them.

Jiang Xiu appeared calm while his gaze turned colder gradually. His hair flew up baselessly, and eyes turned pitch black as if they were dyed in darkness.

The amazement on Buzhi Ming's face turned denser after witnessing this.

It was the purest Demigod evolution!

Frankly, Buzhi Ming had never seen such a pure evolution. Except for the change in his eyes, there was no other change at all. This kind of unrealistic evolution gave him a terrible feeling.

"Quite interesting!"

"Well then, I'll bury you here today."

Boom!

Buzhi Ming stamped the ground with his foot, causing the land to crack open with his as the center. A gentle white light covered his entire body with a fiercer intensity than the last time, and the air around him turned indistinct as if it was frozen.

The surface of his body formed a crystal-like gloss yet also appeared quite soft.

"Divine Evolution, 2nd Form!"

Currently, it appeared as if crystal had covered Buzhi Ming's skin, making it look like it was imitating God. A terrifying aura covered the area where he stood, and each of his movements seemed to awe this world.

Whoosh!

He suddenly rushed towards Jiang Xiu. The crystalline radiance looked quite pretty, and his aura seemed to slice through space, giving out a reeling sound.

Though it looked beautiful, it contained a very astonishing amount of destructiveness.

"Heaven's Gate - Secret Skill!"

"Void Call!"

Jiang Xiu nodded, "It does look like an immortal art, but it's a pity that it's messy. Let me show you what's a real immortal art!"

"Cold Night of Crimson Ruin!"

Once he spoke the final word, the entire world changed. Everyone felt as if night had descended as a crimson light flashed past the sky. The night was incomparably cold as it seemed as if the Yin had gathered, yet that crimson ruin brought Yang and seemed to possess immeasurable strength.

Whoosh!

Bang!

The crimson light surged ahead at a rapid speed then disappeared.

"Physical power is limited. Even if you were a genius, even if you have a crystal-like body, if only you are made of matter, there's a limit to the energy."

"On the other hand, incorporeal power is different, it's endless and versatile."

There were many here who understood martial arts. They were stunned after seeing Buzhi Ming's act, but at this moment, they were utterly dumbstruck after seeing Jiang Xiu's move.

He had caused the world to change, turning day and night upside down.

This had already suppressed the martial arts.

This is Jiang Luoxia's strength?

They had denounced Jiang Xiu, didn't treat him with respect, even rebuked him that he didn't know how to differentiate between good and evil, just so that they could make him release the commander, but now, they could only swallow all those words back.

Wu Guiyong, Xiao Chu, and that medic were all stupefied.

Crack!

The sound of glass disintegrating resounded in the area.

A 20-year-old youth had won the first move against a person who had terrorized the nation as well as overseas for several decades.

"I-Impossible!"

However, reality was cruel. That beautiful, crystal-like exterior which the crimson light had smashed into was disintegrating right before their eyes.

Buzhi Ming's expression turned ugly.

This crystal surface was the result of his evolution yet an unknown ray of light had destroyed it, overcoming the defense of a Demigod in a single hit. Moreover, it wasn't physical but rather formless. It wasn't tangible, so it didn't make sense that it broke through his defense.

"Listen to me, you don't understand what Immortal Arts are."

"Such ignorance."

Buzhi Ming grunted in response while shaking his head, "You didn't use martial arts. What you used was a magic spell." Saying so, his figure flickered left and right like a demon.

Jiang Xiu exclaimed, "Oh! You've awakened the Eighteen Movements of the Three Oni and Six Demons."

Before Jiang Xiu could finish speaking, he suddenly appeared behind him then punched towards his back.

This punch was as fierce as an artillery shot as it ripped the air apart with its bright crystalline light. He had concentrated all his power on this punch.

"Stupid and ignorant!"

"That's not the correct way to use the Eighteen Movements of the Three Oni and Six Demons…"

Jiang Xiu turned around. His movements were quite slow, but it seemed as if space-time had lengthened, making it seem as if a century had passed by the time he turned around.

He waved his hand and slapped towards the void.

After that, it seemed as if space-time was flowing backward. It appeared as if all the power of the world or even the universe seemed to gather together in the shape of a hammer. Its strength wasn't something any human could resist.

"Damn it!"

A bad premonition welled up in Buzhi Ming's heart. He wished to stop, but that hammer was already falling.

Everyone looked at this scene with dumbstruck gazes.

BOOM!

It was as if a meteorite from outer space had descended onto Earth. His fist was slapped into the ground by Jiang Xiu, causing the entire land to split open and cave in. The cracks spread around in all directions. The tower which was 10 meters away shook as if an earthquake had passed through it then cracked into two halves. The nearby buildings were no exception and all collapsed.

"W-What the hell is this?"

Buzhi Ming cried out in his heart. This seemed like martial arts yet didn't and also looked like a magic spell yet didn't.

He didn't have any thoughts of gaining the advantage at this moment. He only had one thought in this mind right now.

To escape!

He got up then fled like a rocket.

"I trained for 30 years to learn this move, Ascending Cloud Flash!"

"I thought I'd never use it throughout my entire life but didn't expect I'd have to use it."

When he raised his head, Buzhi Ming almost lost his mind.

Impossible!

Jiang Xiu stood in the sky before him.

He felt as if he had seen a ghost.

Is he that fast?

What's more awful was that Jiang Xiu had already sent an energy blade towards him. Buzhi Ming's eyes hurt a lot, and when he opened them again, they were covered with blood. A line of blood ran down from his forehead to his chin and blood flowed out of it endlessly.

"What did you use?"

Jiang Xiu explained, "Immortal Arts. It uses laws to harmonize the art and the art to support the laws. However, what I used was akin to an Immortal Law. It's law of the world which can prevail over the heavenly law and can destroy the heavens as well as decimate the lands."

"Immortal Arts?"

Buzhi Ming dropped down from the sky slowly. His clothes fluttered due to the wind, and just like a withered dead leaf, he sunk into the sand after falling on the ground, turning into sand.

The energy blade Jiang Xiu had released through his hand possessed a blade awn containing a blade intent in it which had sliced through Buzhi Ming.

An overlord from Heaven's Gate had died just like that.

He made a stunning entrance yet left sorrowfully.

Jiang Xiu floated down to the ground. Yet another Demigod had fallen under his hands. All of them looked at him with silence, not daring to speak a single word.

Jiang Xiu's attacks were rapid-fast, yet they had utterly toppled their cognition of this world. He had turned day into night and used a magical Immortal Law. This had shocked their mind.

This power wasn't human.

They were more terrified because the one who died was the Demigod, Buzhi Ming.

"Do you surrender?"

Bai Chongyi was stupefied, "Long live Mr. Jiang…"

Jiang Xu's eyes were full of pride as they looked down on the world with disdain. He swept his gaze towards Bai Chongyi, "Serve me or die!"

Bai Chongyi rushed to speak, "I wish to serve you!"

After Meng Du's death, the soldiers of the Meng Army had decided to follow Bao Chongyi who had then decided to surrender and pay allegiance to Buzhi Ming, but Jiang Xiu killed him, so they didn't dare to offend him. They yelled out together, "We wish to serve Mr. Jiang."

"Long live Mr. Jiang!"

"Long live Mr. Jiang!"

Zhou Hao's expression turned ugly. He had come this time to coordinate with Buzhi Ming to receive the army, but he wasn't expecting Jiang Luoxia to appear and kill Buzhi Ming.

"Mr. Jiang, you are really ruthless. Don't you know that Mr. Buzhi is an elder of Heaven's Gate? Since you killed him, you have made the entire Heaven's Gate your enemy."

"And now you even dare to take away the army my Heaven's Gate wants."

"Can you bear the consequences?"

Jiang Xiu asked him, "Can you bear the consequences of offending me, Jiang Luoxia?" His tone was ice-cold and murderous. The temperature dropped a few degrees when he said these words.

"Mr. Jiang, let me offer you a piece of advice. Your and Mr. Buzhi's grievances are personal so Heaven's Gate won't pursue it, but we want this Meng Army, so it's better for you to not attempt to incorporate them."

"This will only bring doom to you."

"What if I want to do it?" Jiang Xiu replied.

Zhou Hao's expression turned grim, "You can't even fathom how powerful Heaven's Gate is. If you insist on doing this, Heaven's Gate will not rest until you are dead."

"Hmph! I believe you are an intelligent man, Mr. Jiang. You should make the right choice."

Jiang Xiu curled his lips.

Bai Chongyi added in, "Mr. Jiang, Buzhi Ming killed our General Meng, and you killed him. We brothers wish to follow you as you have taken revenge for General Meng but… Heaven's Gate is really too awful. Although Mr. Jiang is a Demigod with surreal power, I'm afraid it would be difficult to withstand against Heaven's Gate."

He wouldn't have said this to anyone else if he were their subordinate yet he had taken the risk and braved himself to face Jiang Xiu's fury by saying these words. His sincerity was evident from this.

A smile rose up on Zhou Hao's face. He didn't dare to act too arrogant in front of a Demigod like Jiang Xiu, but the pride on his face was in plain view.

Jiang Xiu said, "Oh, is that so?"

He moved towards Zhou Hao after saying this, eyes filled with apathetic killing intent. The smile on Zhou Hao's face gradually vanished.

"Mr. Jiang, you must not…" Bai Chongyi yelled.

"You dare?"

Zhou Hao's eyes opened wide as that merciless palm neared him.

He wasn't someone ordinary. He made a seal using both his hands, causing a fantastic power similar to a Buddhist golden light to radiate from his hands which released an incomparably dignified aura.

This seal of his could stop a Demigod.

The words he had mentioned before were true. Except for Meng Du, no one else in the Meng Army could match him.

This seal could even crush an armored car.

But Jiang Xiu merely slapped on his head with ease.

"Slap!"

An ear-splitting sound boomed in the area.

Zhou Hao's head was slapped down viciously, causing his body to sink into the ground due to the force behind the slap. He disappeared into the ground, leaving behind only a deep hole.

"Aaahh?"

Everyone drew in a cold breath.

The entire place turned deathly still.

Zhou Hao was also a person who was on the path to becoming a Demigod yet he was killed by a single slap and even buried into the ground.

This was too domineering.

The shock had left them all breathless.

"What the…"

The one who got killed was the ambassador of Heaven's Gate. Buzhi Ming was dead, and so was the ambassador. This was equivalent to thoroughly making an enemy out of Heaven's Gate.

Jiang Xiu's ice-cold voice resounded in the entire area, "Those who don't accept will die!"

The soldiers were stupefied after witnessing this. Their throats went dry. They couldn't even yell 'Long live Mr. Jiang' like before.

Bai Chongyi revealed a bitter smile. It seemed like he could only follow after this master of his now.

The captive troops looked at this youth standing in the arena with stupefied expressions. They had mocked Jiang Xiu a few moments ago, and now he had so killed the people from Heaven's Gate so easily and even taken over the army.

Their lives were in his hands now.

"General Meng, how should we handle these Chinese captives?" Bai Chongyi asked him. He had heard them talking and knew that Jiang Xiu was an adviser within the army.

The captives gave a pleading gaze towards Jiang Xiu.

"Release them."

They all relaxed after hearing this.

"Phew!"

Wu Guiyong laughed in his mind. He was terrified, but it turned out that Jiang Xiu was an earnest patriot. Moreover, as he was a high-level adviser in the army and had incorporated these troops into his branch, it was equivalent to pacifying the nation's borders and bringing relief to this frontier which had suffered for 20 years.

This was a huge contribution.

The people of the Western Region's frontier would live in peace after this.

"Send a group to take these people back. The two girls who left must not have reached the base as well, pick them up on the way as well."

"Understood!"

Bao Chongyi arranged a few vehicles to deliver them back.

Jiang Xiu spent the entire day in the army to meet a few significant people among the army consisting of nearly ten thousand people. "Deputy General Bai, you'll lead this group from now on. Your job is to wipe out desert bandits and patrol the Persian, Korean and Japanese frontiers."

From his words, Bai Chongyi understood that Jiang Xiu was planning to leave the troops to him and take his leave.

"Understood!"

Jiang Xiu asked him, "Where do your funds come from?"

"Some of the neighboring states pay a fee for maintaining peace while some of it is seized from traveling merchants. We also work as mercenaries by going to war in Southwest Asia. The main source of the money was General Meng. He had a way to earn money, but this subordinate doesn't know the details."

It took a lot of money to maintain an army of such a scale.

Bai Chongyi continued, "Only, this subordinate heard that there's oil underground at an area nearby our base. The reason Heaven's Gate wished for General Meng to join them was to exploit this land. However, we don't have the technology to extract the oil."

"We can just buy it if we don't have it."

Bai Chongyi shook his head, "We don't have the money. It requires a huge amount of funds to extract oil from underground, and no one will lend money to an army like us which isn't recognized internationally."

"Money is a trivial matter. You don't need to worry about it. Just handle the troops properly as a regular army must look like one."

This army was governed very strictly by Bai Chongyi. If it were Meng Du, these troops which had given a headache to China's frontier would have ended up like a bandit group instead of a proper army.

"Understood, General!"

"Give the materials regarding the location of the oil deposit and everything else related to it to me."

Meng Du had been preparing this for over a decade, so there was extensive data on it. The only problem was the capital as well as the tech. This was no problem to Jiang Xiu. He had money, and as for the tech, he could just buy it.

However, it was best to have the coordination of the government for an oil extraction project. The best way to do that was to meet with the nation's military.

On that day, Jiang Xiu met a few other leaders of squads then set down the rules. After that, he had one of them drive him back to the frontier town.

"Big Brother Jiang!"

When Jiang Xiu returned to the Medic Station, he found Xie Ting waiting for him at the entrance. She had guessed that if he returned, he would come here. Qiu Yinru also stood at the doorway at a distance. She hesitated a bit but didn't welcome him in the end.

On the other hand, that female medic ran over and saluted, "Mr. Jiang, your teacher, and classmates are on IV drips already. Their vitals don't have any problems so they should be fine."

After experiencing so much today, she didn't dare to act recklessly towards Jiang Xiu again.

"Okay!"

Xie Ting revealed a sweet smile, "They told me that Big Brother Jiang was quite amazing after I left. If I had known it, I wouldn't have escaped first. It's such a waste of your reputation."

"Hehe!"

Jiang Xiu said, "It wasn't me who was amazing but rather that they were too weak."

The medic standing on the side couldn't even disagree with his words.

"Mr. Jiang, the commander has arranged a room for you separate from your classmates. It's a guest house not far from here. If you are tired, you can rest there." The medic said politely, "It'll take some time for them to wake up."

"Alright!"

This desert trip had really given them much torment. Jiang Xiu had also made a sweet harvest as he had found another Longevity Stone which he was looking for. His cultivation speed increased by a wide margin due to this.

Additionally, he had also recruited an army, so it was an unexpected gain.

Even if Jiang Xiu possessed high cultivation and wealth, these were rootless objects. He lacked genuine power, but everything was different after taking control of that army. It would allow him to become a real shark.

Possessing an army was on an entirely different level.

This bit was self-evident. On the evening of that day, Wu Guiyong paid a visit to Jiang Xiu at the guest house he was staying in.

A feast was arranged!

Wu Guiyong command center was blown up beyond repair, so it was clear that he valued Jiang Xiu very much as he had come to visit him first. This wasn't due to Jiang Xiu's cultivation or because his life was saved by him.

It was because of the army in Jiang Xiu's hands.

The feast was quite cold and cheerless. Though there were few people, its standard was pretty high and could be considered very luxurious at the border zone. It consisted of Jiang Xiu, Wu Guiyong and a grandiloquent female officer who accompanied him, just these three individuals.

Wu Guiyong raised his cup, "Mr. Jiang, thank you for upholding justice today or else we would have lost our lives there."

"I did it just in passing," Jiang Xiu said faintly.

If it weren't so, the possibility of him acting wasn't high.

"Whatever the case, Mr. Jiang has saved my life and my subordinates' life. I offer this cup to you."

Though the female officer tried to use her beautiful smile to melt Jiang Xiu's ice-cold expression while filling his glass with wine, she had failed in the end.

Jiang Xiu didn't drink the wine while Wu Guiyong downed the entire cup.

It was Wu Guiyong's first time toasting to a 20-year-old youth yet he got ignored by him. There was no dissatisfaction on his face though.

"Old Wu, there's no need to say these pleasantries. Say what you want to."

Wu Guiyong laughed out loudly. He had offered that cup of wine to thank him sincerely as Jiang Xiu has saved his life but the main reason he had arranged this was to talk about something else, "I've already reported this side's matters to the HQ. The superiors value Mr. Jiang very much. Do you really plan to receive that army?"

"Naturally…"

"Mr. Jiang is planning to hold this army for a long time?"

"Old Wu, do you want me to let them go and roam in the desert or let them join Heaven's Gate and disturb our borders continuously so they can blow up your office again?"

"Of course not. I don't mean that. It's just that there has never been a person with such a huge personal army."

"There will always be exceptions." Jiang Xiu replied.

In fact, to guarantee the peace of the borders, every regime has racked its brains. Even princes and princesses were used as pieces to ensure peace. The price for it didn't matter and nor did the age.

As the army had fallen into Jiang Xiu's hands, the border would be peaceful. This was something everyone wanted.

"Yes, there will always be exceptions." Wu Guiyong muttered.

"Mr. Jiang would have done a great service if you are able to ensure the peace of the border."

"I told Bai Chongyi to wipe out the surrounding bandits."

Wu Guiyong's eyes brightened, "T-That's very good."

"You better issue a gag order regarding the matter of me taking over the Meng Army. I'm a Chinese citizen as well as a military adviser. It will create trouble if this news spreads out."

Wu Guiyong nodded solemnly.

He turned aside then whispered in the female officer's ears. That officer bowed towards Jiang Xiu slightly then rushed out. She had gone to report to HQ to pass down the gag order.

Wu Guiyong said, "This will be classified as the highest SSS class secret of the nation. Your classmates, as well as the lady from Pinghai's Xie family, will receive the order as well."

"The army division naturally won't leak it nor will Xie Ting. Those classmates of mine, however, are no good."

"They will get spooked!"

Wu Guiyong couldn't help but smile as it was rare for Jiang Xiu to say something amusing. It looked like this relationship with his classmates wasn't that good.

"Mr. Jiang, let me offer you another cup."

A female secretary came in from outside, "I have a report to make!"

"Come in!"

The secretary took out a document and handed it over to Wu Guiyong, "The Daiyoutai State Guesthouse has sent a message to congratulate us and praised our operation this time. They have commended Mr. Jiang highly and hope they can meet with Mr. Jiang at the capital."

Wu Guiyong was excited, "Mr. Jiang, congratulations. Looks like the big boss has already approved your existence and wishes to receive you with the treatment of a state visitor."

This was all under Jiang Xiu's predictions.

"Mr. Jiang, are you planning to stay here for a while?"

Jiang Xiu shook his head, "I'll leave tomorrow."

"Will there be no problems over there?"

"I've entrusted it to Bai Chongyi." His ambitions didn't lay here so he didn't need to worry about whether those bandits were loyal to him as he would just kill them all if they rebelled against him. Naturally, those men didn't dare to do so as they knew they would get killed.

As for Heaven's Gate, he didn't take them seriously at all.

"Will they remain in the desert?"

Jiang Xiu replied, "I have a project which I need to consult with the military about. I might need Old Wu's cooperation later on. Only, everything will be finalized after I meet the Great Leader."

The nation also had the technology required to extract oil. He planned to hear the Great Leader's thoughts so that suspicion can be avoided.

On the next day, around 10 AM in the morning, Professor Xu had woken up.

He had somehow survived.

"Professor, you've finally woken up."

Professor Xu struggled to sit up. He felt quite dispirited. "How long did I lose consciousness?"

"Not that long, around 20 hours."

Professor Xu relaxed his breath, but sadness floated on to his face immediately after that. Only Jiang Xiu, Qiu Yinru and four other students, plus three of them adults, a total of nine people remained. 18 members had died. He didn't know how to explain this to the university's administrations as well as the families.

"Since Professor Xu has woken up, the army will arrange a plane to deliver us back to the Imperial Capital."

"The army will arrange a plane?"

Professor Xu was astonished, "Do we have the qualifications to ride the plane exclusive to the army?"

Qiu Yinru and Chen Dewen looked towards Jiang Xiu.

It was because of Jiang Xiu.

An officer had already informed them yesterday that matters regarding Jiang Xiu were top-secret and they would be executed with the crime of treason if they leaked it out. Qiu Yinru and Chen Dewen had almost fainted in fear.

"Of course, we can!"

"It's mainly because your body can't endure the fatigue."

Professor Xu said, "I'm fine. We can return after having breakfast. It'll only make us feel unwell if we stay here." What's more lamentable was that they hadn't obtained a single valuable artifact during this trip to the ancient city.

After the air route was decided, Professor Xu and the other two were loaded on the plane with stretchers. They set out towards the Imperial Capital after medical personnel was provided. Xie Ting said goodbye to Jiang Xiu at the airport.

"Big Brother Jiang, take care of yourself."

After the plane took off, Qiu Yinru said to him, "She's very good to you, calling you as 'Big Brother Jiang.' My intuition as a girl tells me that she might like you."

"Your intuition is wrong."

Qiu Yinru continued, "Think over it a bit. She's so pretty, and it seems like her background is pretty good as well…"

Jiang Xiu thought - I'm already under pressure due to having 3 fiancées as well as wife from my previous life. I don't have the time for anything else

Moreover, Xie Ting gave a weird feeling to him. She seemed to have changed into a completely different person after coming out from under the river in the Ancient City.

…

On that day, the plane arrived at the Imperial Capital in the evening. Jiang Xiu immediately went to see the big boss and as this was related to a classified secret, very few people knew about this.

They consulted regarding the frontiers as well as the extraction of oil. That region didn't belong to the country, so Jiang Xiu had to undertake it alone. The nation could provide some of the technology but to avoid suspicion, it would be better for Jiang Xiu to leave for Europe and America to purchase the corresponding equipment and technology.

These things weren't something that could be bought just with money.

It needed an intermediary, and the nation could offer that.

Jiang Xiu spent the night at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse and was given the treatment of a state visitor. On the next day, he returned back to the Imperial University and resumed his campus life formally.

"Jiang Xiu, you've finally come back. A girl came to look for you."

His three roommates swarmed around him after seeing he had returned.

"Jiang Xiu, who was that girl?"

Jiang Xiu was puzzled as well, "How will I know? She didn't leave her name?