Translator: Henyee Translations Editor: Henyee Translations
Seeing Silver Condor approaching from afar, King Shengri felt an ominous omen hang over his heart. The wing guard of the Khan, who had always been calm, was dismissive of the Dragon King’s demands when he left but had returned at high speed as if he had some very urgent news.
The promised two hours had just passed. King Shengri glanced at the cavalry under him and found that all of them were staring at the approaching Silver Condor. He suddenly realized that this army didn’t belong to him at all.
What caused him to hallucinate before? King Shengri felt uneasy. After the hunchbacks of the Essence Pavilion died, his ambition for power had gradually cooled down, and been replaced by a creeping fear in his heart.
“The Khan has given his order.” Silver Condor brought his horse to a halt, raised a flag of order in his left hand, and with an indifferent voice, trying to not reveal any information, through his shock was clear, said, “Release all the conspirators and repatriate all of them. Act on it immediately without any mistakes.”
Although he was prepared, King Shengri still couldn’t help but groan and sigh. What he was going to let go of was not only a group of kung fu practitioners from the Central Plains and Western Regions, but also his dignity, status, right of control as a lord and commander-in-chief, and most importantly, the Khan’s trust.
His sweet dream of inheriting the title of Khan had suddenly shattered into pieces with those two sentences.
In the next short period of time, Gu Shenwei had a chance to appreciate the myriad ways of the world.
Nearly eight or nine hundred kung fu practitioners, who survived after twists and turns, found themselves in a very awkward situation.
Some people, mainly the sabermen from the Western Regions, immediately knelt down to thank the Dragon King for saving their lives, and began calling themselves soldiers of the Dragon Army from that day on. However, very few people actually joined the Dragon Army when they later returned to the Western Regions. Most people only stayed under the banner of the Dragon Army for no more than half a month.
The kung fu practitioners of the Central Plains pretended that they had received the favor of the Khan because they didn’t want to join the Dragon Army, which, if they did, would have meant that they would have to follow the Dragon King to the Western Regions sooner or later. It was no different from being banished from the frontier of the Central Plains.
Some people weighed and considered the decree passed by Silver Condor and found that the Khan had not acknowledged them as the Dragon Army and yet still called them ‘conspirators,’ so they ignored the Dragon Army with their mind set at ease.
Anyhow, most of the people of the Central Plains still took turns bowing to the Dragon King and made many empty promises like how they would serve the Dragon King if he ever came to the Central Plains one day.
Old Man Mu still didn’t understand why the Dragon King would do this. He shook his head and said, “I told you that they can’t be trusted. They will strive to add brilliance to your present splendor but will never send charcoal in snowy weather even if they are dying of heat.”
Fang Wenshi was more skillful at disagreeing and he shook his head several times. “Not really, not really. You only see the ungratefulness of the people of the Central Plains and are neglecting the great impact that the Dragon King’s move has had on the Western Regions.”
Old Man Mu gave the counselor a quick sidelong glance, “Right, you are taller than me so you can naturally see a little further than I can, but can you see the Western Regions from here? I’d say it’s more useful for you to practice staring at your toes.”
Fang Wenshi inhaled and sucked in his stomach sharply. The toes were right in front of his eyes but were soon blocked by his bulging belly again. “You know nothing. The naked eye can only see as far as it can reach, but the mind’s eye can accommodate the whole world. The longer the Dragon King stays away from the Western Regions, the more unstable the morale of the tens of thousands of the Dragon Army. Since these people of the Central Plains survived, especially the people of the Western Regions, the righteous deeds of the Dragon King sacrificing his life to save others, will soon be spread throughout the world. Once the soldiers of the Dragon Army hear of it, they will know that the Dragon King will not forget them, and their morale will last for a long time.”
Old Man Mu knew that the counselor was right but he didn’t have a good impression of this fat, white, fellow. He tutted and said, “Yeah, you have the mind’s eye, but I don’t know how many worlds you can put in your eyes. It’s too dangerous to be a good person, so you’d better not instigate the Dragon King into saving people again. He lost half of his life this time, and next time he might lose all of it.”
The Dragon King’s face seemed pale and gloomy as usual, so Fang Wenshi was unaware that the Dragon King’s life was in danger. “Fighting for hegemony has always been risky, so how can you succeed without taking risks?”
“You are tough enough to keep yourself fat and white while pushing the Dragon King into the fire. He must have lost his mind to hire a counselor like you, humph…”
The two continued bickering with each other, but Gu Shenwei didn’t stop them. He was actually focusing on dealing with the crowd’s farewell. He knew what the ties of the friendship of the martial arts world were all about even without Old Man Mu’s reminder, but he still kept it close at heart and tried to keep it in mind when he found someone who might be trustworthy.
The trip to the Norland had made Gu Shenwei realize how important it was to pave the way in advance. Fang Wenshi had come too late to the Royal Court and he wasn’t a native either, so he didn’t help much this time, leaving the Dragon King in a very unfavorable situation.
Although his aim was to dominate the Western Regions, Gu Shenwei knew that the Central Plains was a barrier that could not be ignored or bypassed. He had to seize every opportunity to win the people’s support. As long as there were several people among the hundreds of people of the Central Plains were willing to help him in the future, everything he did today would be worth it. And as the counselor had said, his act would have an immeasurable impact on the Western Regions.
Gu Shenwei was a bit worried about the situation in the Western Regions because he had not received any information from the Dragon Army ever since he had entered the Prairie. Was Xiaoyao Lake’s situation stable? Was there any progress made in the Shule Kingdom? He didn’t know.
Prime Minister Zhong Heng, the General of the Left Dugu Xian, and the General of the Right Shang Liao should have sent letters to the Dragon King on a regular basis, but Gu Shenwei had not received any.
King Shengri was utterly defeated but he still had to serve out his duty; he appointed officers and soldiers and urged them to move out at once, not wanting to see the Dragon King being revered any longer than he had to.
Silver Condor came over and said, “Dragon King, please take the champion of the warrior contest with you and enter the palace together tomorrow at noon.”
Meanwhile, old Man Mu was still bickering with Fang Wenshi. Hearing this, he paused and interrupted, “The champion of the warrior contest? Shangguan Fei? He actually won?”
“Yes. The old Khan watched the contest himself and appreciated him very much.”
Old Man Mu was surprised, “Heaven is blind.”
Chu Nanping, who was quietly standing beside the Dragon King, suddenly asked, “The old Khan also has the word ‘old’ in his name, so how come you didn’t force him to remove it?”
Just because they had the same word ‘old’ in their names, the Old Immortal Dog Butcher of the Kongdong Sect had been beaten badly by Old Man Mu and subsequently forced to live in seclusion for so many years.
Silver Condor also heard the story so he immediately looked warily at Old Man Mu.
Old Man Mu blushed. “I’ve given up evil and returned to good. Even if someone has the same name as me, I can take it now and will not lay a finger on him. It is the good girl’s purifying influence over me.”
As soon as Silver Condor left, Old Man Mu whispered to Chu Nanping, “You know, when I reigned over the Norland, the Khan was just the Khan, and there was no word ‘old’ in his title. He’s sensible and lucky, too. I’ve changed my temper now, but otherwise…”
Chu Nanping was easy to deal with but Fang Wenshi still had the ability to pick out a bone from an egg, and he shook his head and curled his mouth, saying, “I’m confused. When you were hanging out with Wild Horse the year before last, you still had your old temper and you were at full power. But I’ve never heard of you being dissatisfied with the ‘old’ Khan; you must be afraid of him?”
Old Man Mu’s face became redder as he continued to hum and haw for a long while before returning to normal and seriously saying, “I was a man of the Norland, and of course, I paid special regard to the Khan just like how I respect the Dragon King now. I once swore to join the Dragon Army, and I am loyal and committed to the Dragon King. You will never understand such things as loyalty…”
On the way back to the camp of the Dragon Army, the two kept on fighting until Fang Wenshi finally left to contact the authorities of the Norland about the specifics of the meeting tomorrow.
Inside the camp, Shangguan Fei was about to go mad with excitement. It was the third time he had grabbed the guards of the Dragon King to tell the story of what happened in morning. When he saw the Dragon King, he dashed to him at once. “The Khan spoke to me…”
Shangguan Fei cared little for the title of the champion because he knew that the most powerful masters had not taken part in the contest, but he was still impressed by what the Khan had casually said after the contest and wanted everyone to know about it.
Gu Shenwei had lots of work to do, so Shangguan Fei had no choice but to give up his bragging and bent over to Old Man Mu. Just as he was about to speak, Old Man Mu jumped aside and cried out, “How desperate are you, to grab an old man like me…”
Shangguan Fei was in a good mood today so he laughed Old Man Mu’s sarcasm off. “Do you know what the Khan said to me?”
“He said that you were a good-looking guy and that you were going to sleep in his tent tonight?”
“Heh heh, of course not. He said ‘You play well. Heroes of the world will envy the Dragon King for having a warrior like you.’ Did you hear that? He praised me for ‘playing well.’”
The atmosphere of the whole camp was diametrically opposed to the excitement of Shangguan Fei. The three dead guards of the Dragon King were cremated according to the tradition of the Big Snow Mountain. Gu Shenwei presided over the event himself and felt a genuine sense of grief. He was gathering more and more soldiers under his command but the swordsmen from the Big Snow Mountain who followed him became fewer and fewer.
After the funeral, he sent someone to summon Fan Yongda of the Kongdong Sect.
Fan Yongda was tired of the suffering these days and just wanted to return to the Central Plains as soon as possible. “I know what the Dragon King wants to ask about so I won’t cover it up. Anyway, the plan has failed. We came to the Royal Court on orders of the Imperial Court of the Central Plains. We sought refuge with the kings on the surface but our ultimate goal was to bring back the Khan’s head. It was said that at least one of the kings was an inside man of the Central Plains, but I don’t know who. He was supposed to show up last night. Alas, we were too stupid. The people of the martial arts world should not join the political conflicts of the court. Everyone says that the people of the Norland are simple and easy to deal with, but who would have thought…”
When interests were within reach, even simplicity could become a means. People like Fan Yongda shouldn’t have come to the Royal Court.
“I will never forget the Dragon King’s salvation. The disciples of the Kongdong Sect are all grateful. Please send a letter if the Dragon King has any orders. I will run to complete it without giving excuses no matter how far away it is.”
Gu Shenwei was not interested in the promise of the future, so he perfunctorily said some words of acknowledgement and ordered someone to send Fan Yongda out of the Royal Court.
Fan Yongda wasn’t able to provide much useful information.
The last people that Gu Shenwei met were a group of female soldiers of the Land of Fragrance who were loyal to the Dragon King and had even ‘kidnapped’ several disciples of the Essence Pavilion to help him. They didn’t release the hostages until they heard that the Dragon King had left the forbidden zone.
Dispatching soldiers to take action in the Royal Court could be a serious or trivial matter. King Shengri seemed to have lost interest in making a fuss and hadn’t actually protested. But being ‘bullied’ by a group of women had made him a laughingstock.
The female soldiers left after seeing the Dragon King themselves, leaving only Red Bat behind. She was now the spokeswoman for the Land of Fragrance and was responsible for conveying almost all the ideas of the female soldiers to the Dragon King.
“The sisters are becoming more and more worried about the instructor. It has been so long and there’s still no news of her.”
“Don’t worry. I already know where your instructor is, and she’s not in any danger.”
“Really?”
Gu Shenwei nodded.
Red Bat breathed a sigh of relief, ready to leave. She had retreated two steps but then stopped again. There was something she had wanted to ask for a long time. “Dragon King doesn’t remember me, does he?”
Gu Shenwei was stunned. He didn’t really remember ever seeing Red Bat. There were so many female soldiers of the Land of Fragrance and it was normal for him to have no impression of her. “Sorry…”
Red Bat blushed a bit and said with a smile, “The Dragon King doesn’t have to say sorry, as even I can’t recognize the former self. When the Dragon King first came to the Land of Fragrance, he scared me with a saber.”
Gu Shenwei now remembered. Shili Molo, the real controller of the Land of Fragrance, had sent a flamboyant slave to seduce him but she had been rejected by him.
She was a female slave who knew how to please a man and was as skillful as the famous prostitutes of the Retention Alley. It was hard to imagine that the female slave and the bright and valiant Red Bat in front of him were the same person.
“You’ve… changed a lot.” Gu Shenwei was very surprised.
“It’s all because of the instructor. I’m willing to die for her, and so are all my sisters, so…”
“I will send her back to you safe and sound soon.
Red Bat smiled, revealing a bit of charm of the past, but she didn’t intend to seduce anyone at the moment. Before she respectfully withdrew, she said one last word at the door. “We all believe in the Dragon King and have never wavered in that belief.”
As soon as Red Bat disappeared, Tie Linglong appeared at the door as if she were a replacement for Lotus, but what she said was something that Lotus would never say. “This woman is not good.”
