The Debt Collectors Arrived

"Before completely conceding defeat, I don't think the opposing Demon Race commander would give up a powerful air force for nothing. Unless they are on the verge of defeat and see no chance of turning the tide, they would not issue a disbandment order with the intention of not letting the enemy have an easy time."

"What if it really comes to that?"

Pu Yi was silent for a moment, then exhaled and said, "War always results in death."

Chapter 682 The Debt Collectors Have Arrived

After leaving the Yi State line, Si Ming followed the list provided by Xing Daozhuang to rescue people and kill Demon General on various battlefields. The people on the list had different identities: some were commanders of a large army, some were fierce generals in the army, some were unknown but talented young talents, and some were simply local minor nobles who had formed militias. So far, no common characteristics were found among these people.

In addition, the list provided by Xing Daozhuang was inaccurate. Some people were indeed targeted by the Demon Race, while others hid safely in the rear and did not even go to the front line.

Si Ming was overwhelmed and couldn't save that many people. Moreover, Xing Daozhuang had asked him to keep the matter a secret, and he couldn't ask anyone else for help. So he simply acted according to distance, saving whoever was closest first. In total, he actually saved about a third of the people on the list.

A month after the Demon Race launched a full-scale war, Si Ming's name finally resounded throughout the entire Northern Continent, making him one of the rising stars who became famous overnight in this war, and the most dazzling one at that. However, his fame did not come from saving people, but from assassinating Demon General.

Whenever a three-person squad joins the battle and silently ambushes Demon General, the Demon Race's situation deteriorates rapidly. Once a large number of Demon General are killed, how to command the Demon Beast beasts becomes a major problem.

With Si Ming's strength, even in a fair fight, few Demon General could escape from him, let alone when he uses a sneak attack and gang up on them. His divine strength, which is arguably the greatest in the world, is enough to ensure that when the first sneak attack succeeds, it will inflict enough serious damage on the enemy. Not to mention Demon General, even Demon King would be in trouble if he took a solid punch from him.

Even a Nascent Spirit Transformation Grandmaster wouldn't do something like this. They all value their status, but Si Ming, relying on his seniority as a rising star, acted recklessly. The Demon Race had no right to criticize him, and the Human Race naturally wouldn't be so idle as to criticize their own hero. Making a fortune in silence was the best approach. Besides, there was no internet these days, so it was impossible to pretend to be a rational, objective, and neutral keyboard warrior. At most, you could send a letter or place an ad in the newspaper, but if you actually did that, people would come knocking on your door to investigate.

Imagine a battlefield where Demon General and Human Race experts are locked in fierce combat, and suddenly a powerful being two or three levels stronger than them intervenes. The outcome is predictable.

This is like two armies locked in fierce battle, when one side is suddenly attacked by an unexpected heavy cavalry force, easily leading to a crushing defeat. The same applies to battles between equally powerful individuals; once their formation is disrupted, victory or defeat, life or death, can often be decided in an instant.

The Demon Race tried to fight fire with fire, but unfortunately they couldn't find a powerful figure like Si Ming who possessed peak Nascent Spirit Transformation strength, knew how to hide and stealth, and was willing to set aside his pride. If their strength was insufficient, there was a high possibility that they would end up losing more than they gained.

The Demon Race had also tried to lure Si Ming into a trap and then kill him. However, Si Ming did not resort to ambush and assassination because he was weak. He was equally capable in a head-on confrontation, just not as efficient as a sneak attack. He was happy to let his opponent die willingly. In this situation, unless the Demon King personally intervened, they would all be easy prey.

The Demon Race may not care about the death of Demon Beast, regarding them as cannon fodder, but they cannot be indifferent to the life and death of Demon Generals. After Demon Marshal, a single demon commander cannot control the entire Demon Beast army; orders must be issued through Demon General, just as they are passed down level by level in human armies.

The difference between the two lies in the fact that the command authority of human armies can be refined down to the squad Ghost Rank, while the command authority of Demon Race can only be down to the ghost-rank demon soldier. Below that are the mindless Demon Beast. A Ghost Rank demon soldier can command a thousand Demon Beast, which would be equivalent to a centurion in a human army, or at least a general. However, in the Demon Race's army, he would be the lowest-ranking commander.

As Si Ming fought his way across the land and went to various battlefields, his fame grew. Later, whenever the Demon Race discovered that he had appeared on the battlefield, they would order their Demon General to assemble and protect each other to avoid being defeated one by one, or they would simply withdraw their troops and wait for Si Ming to leave before launching another attack.

In the process of gaining fame, Si Ming intentionally corrected his mistakes and gave himself a respectable and resounding name, such as "World-Forgotten Mohist Luminary" in the previous case. So he shamelessly called himself World-Forgotten Mohist Luminary to everyone he met.

Unfortunately, titles are not determined by the individuals involved, but rather by the common perception of the public. This is different from ambushing Demon General; no matter how shameless you are, it's useless. A bunch of titles such as "Demon-Exterminating Madman" and "Demon-World Mad Demon" were thrown at him, and even the original "World-Ending Mad Demon" was used by some. However, no one recognized "World-Forgotten Mohist Luminary," leaving Si Ming helpless.

"Why doesn't everyone agree with the title 'World-Forgotten Mohist Luminary'? Isn't it much better to be elegant and otherworldly than 'madman' or 'mad demon'?" Si Ming asked, puzzled.

Yu Shuying glanced at her and said, "A name isn't about who comes up with the best-sounding one; it's about whether it matches the impression you give. You've been slaughtering demons like dogs lately, and the smell of blood on your hands is so strong it won't dissipate. And you still want to 'forget the world'? Where have you forgotten it? If you really want to forget the world, you should hide in the mountains, close your ears, and not care about the affairs of the world."

Si Ming was speechless. His recent rise to fame was indeed inseparable from his performance on the battlefield. When others mentioned him, they would definitely talk about how easily he killed Demon General. Based on this, the most suitable title for him should be "professional demon slayer".

Ying Zhou said, "Isn't the Demon-World Mad Demon quite impressive? If you don't like getting too entangled with the Demon Race, you can always change it to 'World-Destroying Demon King'."

"Wouldn't that make me the main villain?" Si Ming wasn't going to fall for it. He squinted and said, "You seem quite happy about it. What 'Young Saber Master of Condemnation'? It sounds like a cool and upright newcomer, very popular with naive girls. Tch, it's all thanks to me."

"I admit I benefited from your success, but I earned it through my own abilities, and I deserve it."

Because they acted alongside Si Ming, Ying Zhou and Si Huaruo's fame naturally rose as well. The former earned the title of "Young Saber Master of Condemnation," probably because he often delivered the finishing blow, always relying on the sharpness of his demonic blade to kill heavily wounded Demon General in one fell swoop. Hence, he was known as "Slaying Blade Master." The title "Slaying Blade Master" indicated that he was a swordsman and also that he was still very young and a promising young man.

Although Ying Zhou outwardly remained noncommittal about the title, seemingly finding it beneath his notice, Si Ming, having spent considerable time with him, could tell that the young man was actually quite pleased. After all, the title "Young Saber Master of Condemnation" perfectly suited the tastes of a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) teenager—cool, handsome, and powerful. Ying Zhou would probably be laughing out loud in his dreams.

Si Ming had already outgrown his teenage phase, so he didn't envy Ying Zhou. He envied Si Huaruo more.

Si Huaruo's title is "A Thousand Tides Dot the Snow," which perfectly describes the scene when she takes action.

When she uses the ultimate move from the "Heavenly One River Diagram," ripples spread through the air, binding the enemy's movements—this is "Thousand Tides." When she uses ice-attribute Divine Arts or Swordsmanship, she always prefers to break through at a single point, hitting the mark in one strike—this is "Snowflake Point."

In addition, "tide" refers to the gushing water at dusk. The water splash at this time will show a golden reflection and sparkle under the setting sun. This is a disguised description of the most eye-catching aspect of Si Huanuo's appearance - her blond hair.

Even if you put aside the actual correspondence and just look at the text itself, "Qianxi Dianxue" has a strong sense of picture, as if you are looking at a winter scenery covered in silver, and "thousand" represents a lot, and "dot" represents very little. From more to less, it also gives people a dynamic impact and is full of beauty.

Putting "A Thousand Tides Dot the Snow" and "Young Saber Master of Condemnation" together is the difference between classical literature and light novels, making the latter seem both lacking in literary merit and substance.

However, when Si Ming thought of his still undetermined title, he lost interest in mocking Ying Zhou. No matter how superficial "Young Saber Master of Condemnation" was, it was much better than "World-Destroying Madman". If he really took this title back, his master Yan Jinghong would probably make him reflect on his mistakes.

"It seems I need to find the person who gave Huaruo her nickname and ask them to give me a name that is both elegant and popular, and that captures both form and meaning."

Yu Shuying glanced at Si Ming, suppressing a laugh, and said, "Don't you know?"

"What do you know?"

"The person who gave Si Huaruo her title was the Daoist School director Beneath the Eastern Fence. It is said that after seeing Si Huaruo's figure in battle, he suddenly had a creative inspiration and wanted to make a movie about her."

"Beneath the Eastern Fence, that name sounds familiar... I feel like I've heard it somewhere before... Oh right! Wasn't he the director of that TV series 'The Female Divine Constable's Tale of Woe'?"

Si Ming remembered. Wasn't this guy the weird director who turned a small royal film into a commercial film? He could have just done it with real guns and straight shots, but he insisted on creating suspense and making it full of twists and turns, putting the cart before the horse. And he especially liked to have the female lead sing "The Song of the Rear Courtyard".

How can a minor film director have such good writing skills? Why doesn't he write "The Golden Lotus"?

But what does this guy mean by claiming to have gained inspiration? Does he want to make a movie about a young girl fighting against Demon Race army, only to be captured and humiliated?

The thought that the film was based on Si Huaruo made Si Ming feel particularly uncomfortable, and he decided to give it a good critique once it was made.

Just then, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

After receiving Si Ming's permission, a guard entered the room with a respectful expression and said, "Master Si, two Nation of Valor wish to see you."

Finally, he'd gone from a young hero to a great hero, Si Ming thought to himself with a secret sense of satisfaction. He said expressionlessly, "Let them in."

"Here."

Not long after the guards left, two men, full of energy, with piercing eyes and a powerful stride, walked in. They were clearly martial arts experts and had a distinct military bearing.