Translator: Myuu Editor: Myuu
By dawn, Yan Liqiang, Gu Zexuan, and Zhao Huipeng’s exhausted bodies had trudged through the devastated roads, making their way past the collapsed buildings and ruins. Surrounded by the anguished howls and cries along the way, they returned to the depot where the Four Seas Escort Agency’s party stayed last night to meet up with the rest first.
During a great catastrophe like this, the trio’s strength was akin to that of an ant in the torrent — insignificant.
The three of them worked the entire night and only managed to barely rescue about a dozen survivors from the ruins and the river. A few of them actually lost their lives not long after they were rescued due to severe injuries. The remaining survivors were more or less injured. The three of them could only rummage among the ruins of a collapsed medicine store to find some medicinal supplies. They distributed them to the wounded and helped bandage them. After doing their part, they left. At this point in time, this was the best Yan Liqiang and the other two were capable of doing.
Chaos was present everywhere along the way. Many places were still on fire. Plumes of smoke rose to the sky. The area surrounding Jinling City was in complete disorder. Yan Liqiang didn’t see any bailiffs from the Law Enforcement Office nor any soldiers. The survivors were all lost and grieving. The sight before his eyes looked as though it was an apocalypse.
Yan Liqiang’s mind was also greatly affected and shocked last night. The total number of dead bodies he’d seen over his two lifetimes hardly amounted to the number he saw last night. After dawn, corpses could be seen along the Qinhuai River, submerged in the water. There were men and women, both young and old. The scenery was hellish.
When the three of them returned to the depot, it was equally chaotic there. All the buildings in the depot had also collapsed. Two courtyards were ablaze and the fire had also consumed the goods in a few warehouses.
“God, why are you doing this to me…?!” The owner of the depot was kneeling before the collapsed buildings, wailing while beating his chest. In front of him laid a few distorted dead bodies. Among those corpses were the depot owner’s wife, two sons, and daughter. The once happy and beautiful family was destroyed overnight, leaving only one person behind alive in this world.
The three of them saw similar tragedies on their way back to the depot.
…..
The walls of the courtyard that the Four Seas Escort Agency reserved had similarly collapsed along with the two rows of houses in there. More than thirty people from the Four Seas Escort Agency were gathered in the courtyard, cleaning up the mess and moving the goods out from the collapsed warehouse.
The escorts were extremely vigilant. When they heard the first commotion outside last night, a few of them who stayed in the depot ran out from their rooms to investigate. Due to this, none of them were trapped when the buildings in the rear courtyard collapsed. As for the steeds in the stables, most of them were still safe and sound in there since it was a thatched shed, except for a few that had run away from being startled when the stable collapsed.
However, not many of the escorts who went out last night returned at the agreed-upon time.
“Have you three seen Escort Leader Feng?” One of the escorts from the Four Seas Escort Agency immediately approached them upon their return and questioned them with an extremely anxious look on his face.
Yan Liqiang and the other two knew this escort too. His name was Wang Hui. Like Chen Hu, he was also a capable subordinate of Escort Leader Feng. Wang Hui happened to be one of the people who had stayed behind last night.
Yan Liqiang shook his head. “We didn’t see Escort Leader Feng.”
A look of disappointment immediately flashed across Wang Hui’s face. “What about our other brothers from the escort agency? Have you seen them?”
“The three of us weren’t with the rest from the escort agency last night, so…”
Wang Hui waved his hand impatiently before Yan Liqiang could even finish his sentence, showing no interest in further conversing with three of them. “Stop dawdling about then, get over there and help clear out the goods from the warehouse…”
Yan Liqiang and the other two were merely insignificant figures in the escort party. During such a catastrophe, Wang Hui didn’t even bother to know where the three of them went last night or if they were injured. He probably didn’t even care if they were alive or dead…
Yan Liqiang calmly cast a glance at Wang Hui and remained stood in the same spot. Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng were going to make a move, but both of them stood still when they saw that Yan Liqiang didn’t move.
“WHAT IS IT? DID YOU ALL NOT HEAR ME?” Wang Hui immediately flew into rage at Yan Liqiang’s defiance. He pointed at Yan Liqiang right in front of his nose and shouted, “ARE YOU ALL LOOKING FOR TROUBLE? GET GOING!”
As soon as Wang Hui started yelling, the others from the Four Seas Escort Agency stopped working immediately, throwing curious glances in their direction.
Yan Liqiang’s gaze toward Wang Hui turned sympathetic. Wang Hui might be a competent escort, yet he couldn’t cope with the situation before him. It was obvious that Wang Hui wasn’t too bright and couldn’t get a clear view of the overall situation.
Yan Liqiang swept his gaze across the people in the courtyard who had stopped working. Terror and hopelessness were written on all of their faces at this moment. In the face of such a plight and suddenly losing their leader, these people who were so used to following orders were at a loss. Therefore, they just followed whatever Wang Hui ordered them to do.
“I feel that we shouldn’t be in such a hurry to move those goods out from the ruins at this moment. Our top priority should be deploying our resources to Jinling City to gather information on the current situation. We should find out if the bureaucracy and Law Enforcement Office there are still operating, the number of survivors among the guards in the city, and see if we can cope with the current situation.” Yan Liqiang commented with composure.
Wang Hui started laughing out of anger. “Oho, a brat like you dares to teach me how to go about my work?”
Yan Liqiang wasn’t upset. “Escort Leader Feng is the leader of this party with rich experience. He has always been self-disciplined and very thorough in handling affairs. When Escort Leader Feng left the depot yesterday, he brought a few people with him, saying that he was going to visit a few friends in Jinling City. Now that a calamity has befallen us at Jinling, Escort Leader Feng would have definitely returned to the depot last night to handle the situation here if he were safe, or at least sent someone to inform us so that we wouldn’t be worried instead of not showing up and leaving us in the dark. Although I wish that Escort Leader Feng will return to us safe and sound, the current situation is telling me that something happened to Escort Leader Feng last night and he couldn’t return. It is very likely that he has perished. I am afraid we have no choice but to prepare for the worst…”
“NONSENSE…!” Wang Hui lashed out furiously. “How dare you curse Escort Leader Feng?! I will cut off your tongue…!”
“Escort Wang. I’m afraid you don’t have the seniority to cut off my tongue yet.” By now, Yan Liqiang had completely calmed down.
“What did you say?” Wang Hui’s face instantly contorted. Pressing down on the clip at his waist, Wang Hui’s Yanling Saber [1] was unsheathed from its scabbard with a whoosh. Its sharp and snow-white blade was stark against Yan Liqiang’s neck, threatening to slice it. “I, your father, will cut your pretty face up today…!”
Yan Liqiang was still smiling without an ounce of fear on his face. He used his eyes to warn Gu Zexuan and Zhao Huipeng not to act recklessly. The gaze he held on Wang Hui promptly turned bitingly cold. “You’re right about my pretty face. However, you need to be clear that I am neither a pretty face from the Four Seas Escort Agency nor the Four Seas Courtyard for that matter. I am an official disciple of the Divine Sword Sect. Back then, I went to the sect with the key to the Lock of Requital from Elder Shi from the Divine Sword Sect. The person who admitted me into the Divine Sword Sect was none other than Elder Jiang from the sect, and I am the servant disciple who has been personally promoted and assigned to Tianqiao Peak by Hall Master Su himself. According to the rules of the Divine Sword Sect, other than the Commandment Courtyard, who has the rights to punish me, cut off my tongue, or behead me? When can a mere escort from the Four Seas Escort Agency under the commandment of the Four Seas Courtyard possibly overrule the Divine Sword Sect’s Commandment Courtyard, ignore the rules of the Divine Sword Sect, and punish a servant of Tianqiao Peak? Are you aware of the consequences you will face if you lay a finger on me today? Even if you can go into exile and have no fear of being chased after your life by the Divine Sword Sect’s Commandment Courtyard, do you not worry about endangering your family and children?”
The expression on Wang Hui’s face contorted as he listened to Yan Liqiang’s words. Cold sweat immediately rolled down his forehead…
