Human-Skin Masks

"High mountains, long roads, deep pits. The army gallops across the land. Who dares to stand against me with sword drawn? Only I..." Shi Wenguang smacked his lips, his eyes instantly turning fierce. Scenes of leading his army into battle flashed before his eyes, perfectly matching the verses he was savoring.

Yue Qianchou sensed the aura of war emanating from him, and coupled with his military uniform, he was filled with admiration for this Great General's military history.

Shi Wenguang let out a deep breath and sighed, "Sir, could you tell me who that great man is? I, Shi Wenguang, am willing to go and pay him a visit!"

"General, please don't bring this up again. I won't tell you. Instead, think about what I said!" Yue Qianchou said somewhat awkwardly. He thought to himself, "Even I can only admire Chairman Mao from afar. Telling you won't make it possible for me to meet him."

"Do I have a choice?" Shi Wenguang looked at Yue Qianchou.

"Yes, of course there is a choice," Yue Qianchou said meekly. "I never force others to do things they don't like."

Shi Wenguang shook his head slightly. "You've told me something like this, which means you've cut off all my escape routes. If I don't agree, with your ruthless nature, it would be a miracle if you let me go."

"With your abilities in the Cultivation World, wouldn't it be better to be a carefree immortal? Why are you so interested in worldly affairs?" Shi Wenguang asked.

Yue Qianchou remained silent for a long time after this question, pacing slowly alone in the tent. After a while, he said as he walked, "One day I had a dream, a very real dream. In the dream, I died helplessly, without even a chance to resist. The desolation and helplessness I State of Mind were something no outsider could understand. After waking up, I worried that such a thing would happen to me again, so I made a vow that no matter what, I would never let anyone force me to die again. I will kill anyone who gets in my way, and I will kill even gods if they get in my way. I don't want any more ties; I want to truly live a carefree and unrestrained life."

"Uh... Sir, you are indeed an extraordinary person, making a vow after waking from a dream." Shi Wenguang was speechless. A madman is a madman. Just because of a dream, he actually wants to wage war against the world. After a pause, he asked with some doubt, "If you can stand out in the Cultivation World, presumably the things you are worried about will not happen. How can ordinary people force you?"

Yue Qianchou stopped in his tracks, turned around abruptly, and said, word by word, "I still have my family in this world, and I will not allow anyone in this world to force my family to die. No one!"

The determination in his words left no room for doubt, and Shi Wenguang suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. After a moment of hesitation, he replied perfunctorily, "Sir, you are indeed a man of great loyalty and righteousness."

"Great General Shi, I'm not joking with you." Yue Qianchou walked up to him and said indifferently, "I can do everything in my power to help you conquer the world, but the price your Shi family must pay is to ensure the wealth and peace of my Yue Family for ten generations. After that, we will be even. That is my purpose. You don't need to have any doubts."

He pointed to the Dao of Alchemy, "This elixir in your hand is a treasure that Cultivation World dream of, and mortals have even less of a chance to obtain. I will use this elixir to extend your life by at least fifty years in exchange for your Shi family's promise to ensure my Yue Family's wealth and peace for ten generations. Is this request too much?"

Shi Wenguang quickly calculated in his mind: exchanging the world for ten generations of wealth and peace for a Lineage —this was a sure-fire deal. His eyes immediately lit up as he asked, "Sir, is what you say true?"

"Does the general think that what we are talking about now is just playing house, something for children to do?" Yue Qianchou said expressionlessly.

"In that case, sir, would you dare to make a vow with me?" Shi Wenguang raised a large, calloused hand.

Yue Qianchou smiled at him. It seemed this guy knew that cultivators couldn't make oaths casually, and actually wanted to use that to restrain himself. He nodded and said, "Why wouldn't I dare? But I have something to say upfront: before the Great General seizes the world, he still needs to follow my arrangements."

Shi Wenguang replied without hesitation, "Of course. Although I have millions of men under my command, I am only in a small corner and cannot take care of the overall situation. You, sir, have a broad view of the world and must have a well-thought- Shi Wenguang plan. You will definitely make proper arrangements. I have absolute faith in your abilities."

"Excellent! You understand me, General!" Yue Qianchou clapped his hands together, their fingers interlaced. Shi Wenguang said in a deep voice, "If you can help my Shi family control the Divine Artifact of the world, my Shi family will guarantee the Yue Family wealth and peace for ten generations. If you break this oath, may my entire Shi family suffer a terrible end."

"I, Yue Qianchou, helped the Shi family ascend to the top of the world, only to ensure the wealth and peace of the Yue Family's descendants for ten generations. If I break this oath, I will surely be punished by heaven!" Yue Qianchou smiled faintly, "General, are you relieved now?"

After the two released each other, Shi Wenguang, without a word, stuffed the elixir in his other hand into his mouth and swallowed it, demonstrating with his actions that he had no more doubts. He then laughed loudly, "Bring wine and food!" Yue Qianchou had originally intended to help him fully activate the medicinal properties of the elixir, but was interrupted by his shout. He then changed his mind, muttering to himself, "Too much of a good thing!"

After waiting for a while, there was no response from outside. The two looked at each other in surprise, then walked to the door and lifted the curtain. They saw that everyone within 30 meters had retreated completely. Shi Wenguang smiled wryly and said, "Sir's men are indeed well-trained."

Upon hearing this, Yue Qianchou immediately understood. His subordinates knew he was about to speak privately and, fearing overhearing, had even cleared out the nearby guards. They were very efficient! He awkwardly smiled and said, "It's good that no one's around. I have something I need the general's help with."

The two looked around outside, then simultaneously lowered the curtain and walked back side by side. All previous misunderstandings vanished, and harmony reigned. Shi Wenguang asked, "Is there anything you need me to do, sir?"

"I've heard that the general has many skilled disguise experts under his command. I have a group of men who want to use this technique to change their appearance," Yue Qianchou said.

Shi Wenguang asked in surprise, "With your Divine Ability, sir, wouldn't it be easy to change your appearance?"

Yue Qianchou rolled his eyes and said, "Does the general really think that people in the Cultivation World are living immortals who can change their appearance at any time?"

"Hehe! That's easy. I can't speak for other things, but when it comes to disguise, that's no problem at all. I've been fighting here for many years, and disguise is the most commonly used method for spying on the enemy." Shi Wenguang asked with a smile, "I wonder if you want to directly disguise yourself with makeup, or use a human skin mask to change your appearance?"

"You even have human skin masks here?" Yue Qianchou was slightly surprised. He had never encountered such a thing before, and it felt a bit eerie.

"When two armies clash, death is commonplace, and human skin is naturally plentiful," Shi Wenguang said dismissively.

"Uh..." Yue Qianchou swallowed hard and asked, "Which one is more convenient to use?" Although he was not afraid, he was still somewhat repulsed by it. Who would like to stick a dead man's skin on their face?

"Naturally, a human skin mask is more convenient to use. You can take it off when you don't want to use it anymore and put it back on when you want to. Unlike makeup, once you take it off, if you want to change your appearance again, you have to bring someone who knows how to change appearances with you if you don't know how. And it's time-consuming," Shi Wenguang explained.

Damn it! Looks like we really have to use that disgusting stuff! Yue Qianchou coughed and said, "Then I'll trouble the general to prepare a few reliable disguise experts for me. Be careful to keep it a secret and don't let the news leak out."

The next day, a large tent suddenly appeared in the western military camp, where more than sixty people sat cross-legged. These were the thirty Special Forces Team members each led by Hong Qi and Gu Qingyun. A dozen or so soldiers skilled in disguise were meticulously taking their measurements. If the size of a human skin mask wasn't right, it would be a serious problem; anyone could immediately tell that someone was in disguise.

Zhang Peng hadn't uttered a single word since arriving here. Yue Qianchou ignored him, knowing he was simply moved by the scene, and instead pulled aside an old soldier to ask him questions.

"Master, you have to make it look good for me... Hmm, the nose should be like this, a little higher... Yes, yes, just like this..." After continuous revisions, Yue Qianchou picked up a drawing, shook his head, and exclaimed in admiration, "He really is a dashing and handsome man... Uh, why does he look a little familiar?"

Shi Wenguang, standing to the side, was speechless. The purpose of a human skin mask was simply to conceal one's original appearance; as long as it didn't give away the disguise, that was enough. Why were there so many requirements? Normally, people would try to be as inconspicuous as possible; who would deliberately make themselves so conspicuous? This guy was truly different.

"Who does this look like?" Yue Qianchou muttered to himself, clutching the drawing. Suddenly, his expression froze, and he exclaimed, "Damn it! It's that old bastard Nong Zhu!" He'd been so focused on making himself look handsome that he'd unwittingly chosen the most handsome guy he'd ever seen, inadvertently stealing Nong Zhu's natural charm. Although it only looked about 70-80% like him, it was still handsome enough.

"How about we make some more changes, make it a little uglier?" the old sergeant asked in a questioning tone.

"Uh... there's no need to make it ugly, just use it as is! Changing it is too much trouble, just make a few more copies of this design." Yue Qianchou shoved the pattern into the old soldier's hands. The old soldier verbally accepted the order, but inwardly he was grumbling, "So you do know how to avoid trouble? I thought you were going to spend days revising it!"

The sizes for the masks for Hong Qi and the other two were already prepared; all that was left was for the actual masks to be made. Yue Qianchou looked at the three people in front of him, took out two jade tablets, and handed them to Hong Qi and Gu Qingyun respectively, saying, "These contain information about people who can help you in critical moments. Remember! Rely on yourself in everything, and don't bother others unless absolutely necessary."

"Yes!" The two readily accepted the order. Yue Qianchou turned to Zhang Peng and said, "You have no experience with the Cultivation World, so you'll follow me!" Zhang Peng bowed and accepted the order. Yue Qianchou nodded to the three of them, signaling them to wait, then pulled Shi Wenguang along, and the two walked out of the tent, talking as they went...

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