A Great Battle Loomed

Si Ming asked, "What should we do?"

"The Demon Beast army is both a scapegoat and a decoy. Without this decoy, the Demon Emperor's actions will be less easily concealed, and we can calmly dispatch experts to pursue and kill him. Therefore, we should target the Demon Beast army for now. We can use a tactic of surrounding them from three sides and leaving one side open to restrict their movement, thereby forcing the Demon Emperor to enter the location we have arranged for a decisive battle."

Where will the final battle take place?

Xing Daozhuang spread his middle and index fingers, pointing to a corner of the map, and said, "The Nation of Beauty, or Russia."

Chapter 828 The Great Battle Is Imminent

The Nation of Beauty. border wall.

"Why haven't the Demon Race appeared yet? Weren't there supposed to be a bunch of famous generals watching the sand table, calculating and predicting when the enemy would arrive at the border?"

"The Prison-Subduing Boulder" Shi Yuan, carrying a hammer half his height, yawned and grumbled.

"War is a delicate matter where one move affects the whole situation; it's normal for there to be some errors. Besides, we are only one of the two targets of the Demon Race; they might also turn around and attack Russia instead."

Despite his appearance as a tyrant and bandit, Zhu Hao, a kind-hearted man, patiently offered his advice.

"Does that mean we might have waited for nothing? Damn it! I traveled all this way by boat across the sea, not just for sightseeing," Shi Yuan cursed, glancing left and right before quickly locking onto someone. "Teng the blacksmith, long time no see. How about we have a little sparring? We both use hammers, it's rare for us to get together, how about we exchange our hammer-swinging tips?"

The person he approached was Teng Baixin, a member of the Heaven's Will Palace and a representative of the Artisan King zodiac. This man had a shiny bald head, no eyebrows, and no beard. It was said that his hair had been scorched from prolonged exposure to the high-temperature furnace. His thin body was wrapped in bandages, and his eyes had deep dark circles, as if he would faint at any moment.

"My hammer is for forging, not for killing." Teng Baixin was like a dull, honest man, unwilling to say much.

"It's all the same, all the same. My hammer is also used for forging, turning things I don't like into something pleasing to the eye. Unfortunately, the materials are often not strong enough, and they all burst open with one blow."

Shi Yuan originally wanted to pat Teng Baixin on the shoulder like a good buddy, but he was too short, only level with Teng Baixin's shoulder. So he could only change the gesture to patting his back instead, thump thump thump, quite forcefully.

At this moment, Tu Wangyue said, "Prison-Subduing Boulder, please be quiet. I know you are nervous, but please do not relieve your stress by bothering others. The enemy may come at any time, and we must be fully prepared. We cannot afford to be distracted and attacked."

"Who says I'm nervous? I've seen plenty of big scenes. How could I be nervous because of some mere Demon Race? Isn't this just boring to wait for?"

"Then please be quiet. Others may not find it as boring as you do. Please don't let your emotions affect them."

Their eyes met, Shi Yuan felt a little uneasy under those clear, ethereal, godlike eyes. He pursed his lips, turned his head away, and said, "Okay, okay, I need to pee. Anyone want to come with me?"

After saying that, he actually walked to the edge of the city wall, loosened his belt, and released water down the wall, leaving some onlookers who had been drawn in speechless.

Suddenly, a strong gust of wind blew in his face, and Shi Yuan, who was urinating in the middle, was caught off guard and cried out in pain.

"Holy crap! The wind blew it back, and it peed on my hands!"

"No way! I can't lose! Watch me gather my strength in my Dantian and pee three feet into the wind!"

"Hahaha, if I want to pee, even God can't stop me! That's what they call 'my bird is in my own hands, not in the heavens'!"

"... I never expected that the Prison-Subduing Boulder would have such a playful, childlike personality."

Si Ming chuckled. He had met Shi Yuan a few times in the past, but the time they had spent together was very short. In addition, due to the difference in their seniority, the other party had never shown this side of himself to him.

He turned to Ying Zhou and said, "You must never become like him in the future. Although such people may not have too bad interpersonal relationships, they are usually not very good either. They find it difficult to have true friends because others are always worried that he will suddenly put on a farce and embarrass them."

"Why are you reminding me? How do I resemble him?" Ying Zhou protested.

Xia Guanxue said, "The same willfulness, the same rudeness, the same belief that power allows one to do whatever one wants."

Speechless, Ying Zhou could only resort to offense. "You talk as if you're very popular?"

"I just don't like you as a person. I'm not unpopular; otherwise, where would I have gotten this sword?"

Xia Guanxue raised the sword in her hand, the newly tied tassel swaying slightly. This weapon, named "Listening to the Rain," was forged by the Artisan King Teng Baixin. Although it could not compare to those top-tier divine weapons that had been passed down through the ages, it was still considered a mid-grade weapon among many divine artifacts.

Si Ming asked, "When did you get involved with the Sword-Forging Manor?"

"It was your master who acted as a bridge between us, and then I met with the Artisan King. After passing his test, he agreed to forge a sword specifically for me."

Xia Guanxue remained calm and composed when mentioning Master Si Ming, showing no emotional fluctuation whatsoever.

Seeing that he had let it go, Si Ming felt a little relieved, but this topic was still somewhat sensitive, so he changed the subject and said, "Listening to the Rain, what a poetic name. It's stillness within movement, creating a vivid image, and it echoes your name."

Xia Guanxue paused for a moment, then slowly said, "My sister's name is 'Listening to the Rain' (Listening to the Rain)."

"Cough cough..."

Feeling he'd made a mistake, Si Ming, to cover his embarrassment, coughed a few times, looked around, and then walked to Tu Wangyue's side, asking, "Senior, if the Demon Race hadn't attacked here but instead had turned to attack Russia, would there be anyone guarding that place?"

Originally, according to the plan, Si Ming was stationed in the Nation of Beauty and Tu Wangyue was stationed in Russia. If the Demon Emperor attacked one side, the one that "won the prize" would be responsible for resisting. However, just two hours ago, Tu Wangyue arrived and said that based on Thunder King's judgment of the escape route of the Demon Beast army, it was more likely that the enemy would attack the Nation of Beauty.

"Lord of Ten Thousand Weapons secretly came to Russia. Only with his replacement could I get away to come here," Tu Wangyue said without hiding anything.

"So it's the Great Grandmaster who's arrived. With him in charge of Russia, there's really nothing to worry about."

Si Ming glanced at the Artisan King Teng Baixin and thought to himself that this man must have come together, but why did the two part ways halfway? Could it be that the father-in-law and son-in-law are not getting along?

They might think about it, but they couldn't possibly ask. The other person had come all this way to help, and they couldn't let their personal matters spoil their mood. That was the bare minimum of respect. Just like how, although everyone thought that Prison-Subduing Boulder was unreliable, he had still come in person. Whether he came out of humanitarianism or simply wanted to spar with a strong person, the people of the Northern Continent had to acknowledge his kindness and recognize him as a chivalrous hero.

Compared to his actual acts of righteousness, Shi Yuan's willfulness was nothing. He was respected not because of his strength, but because he had done many good deeds and eliminated many evil people. So even though he was rude and even used the hammer joke to tease Teng Baixin, which had a tendency to be "professionally insulting", Teng Baixin did not say anything.

As long as one stands on the right side on matters of principle, everything else is just "a great man doesn't concern himself with trifles." After all, no one is perfect, and it's too demanding to expect someone to be without flaws.

"If the Demon Emperor arrives, will you deal with him, senior, or leave it to me, or should we both attack together?"

In Si Ming's view, it would be safer for everyone to go together. Battlefield combat is not the same as ring duel; talking about fair duels is a joke. The example of Duke Xiang of Song tells us that talking about etiquette on the battlefield is tantamount to harming one's own people.

Moreover, the Holy Maiden will definitely use the Mohist School Sacred Sword in the battle against the Demon Emperor, which will give Si Ming the opportunity to observe the sword's power up close.

However, Tu Wangyue said, "If the Demon Emperor arrives, I can handle him alone. I ask Si Ming to hold off the Demon King and the Military God who are traveling with us, especially the Military God, and not let him interfere."