Tufang's Predicament

Thanks to 'Cao a Cao a Cao', 'Chen Chen Chen Chen Chen Yan', and 'Qiansha Weini' for the tips. Thank you for your support!

Ahhhhh, my shoulders are so sore. Writing while holding a laptop is truly exhausting; I'll go buy a heated desk tomorrow...

Five days later.

Nearly five hundred ragged people gathered outside the dojo, terror etched onto every face. Directly opposite the crowd, Zongcilang and Hijikata Yoshitoyo watched them with icy expressions.

These people were the survivors of the Terminal Gray fire.

Over the past few days, Zongcilang and Hijikata had tracked down the survivors scattered across various locations and brought them all here. Anyone who refused to submit had already... died.

Under such iron-fisted methods, these thugs were forced into this position, though they couldn't stop cursing the two madmen in their hearts.

Zongcilang walked straight forward, his expression cold to the extreme, showing none of his former laziness. "Split into two groups and follow me!" His voice was cold and hollow, as if his heart had died.

His command caused an immediate panic in the crowd. It took a long time for them to finally split into two groups, and the inefficiency caused a surge of killing intent on Zongcilang's face, though he suppressed it in an instant.

"You lot, follow me. From now on, you are my subordinates. You will be under my training, preparing to overthrow the nobles of the Goa Kingdom. Your current training objective is to wipe out the mountain bandits..." With that, Zongcilang marched toward Mt. Colubo.

The two hundred or so people left standing there exchanged glances, their expressions full of hesitation. They knew that Mt. Colubo wasn't just home to one or two bands of thieves, but was crawling with them.

There was no way their group of two hundred could contend with the number of bandits up there.

"The last ten to arrive—die!"

At that moment, Zongcilang's cold voice reached their ears, causing their faces to change instantly. The crowd, which had previously shared a sense of camaraderie in their misery, was suddenly filled with murderous intent. Everyone took off running, sprinting as if their lives depended on it.

Seeing this, Hijikata Yoshitoyo sighed internally. Even he felt Zongcilang's methods were too extreme, but he was powerless to stop him. Both he and Zongcilang needed an outlet—a frantic, desperate outlet.

And the Goa Kingdom, which had brought the CP9 upon them, was their shared target for that release.

"The two hundred or so of you remaining here will be my subordinates. The name of this unit is the 'Guard Unit'. As for the objective, Zongcilang has already stated it, so I won't repeat it."

Hijikata Yoshitoyo slowly scanned the faces of the remaining crowd, the power of his physique surging forth, causing the two hundred people to tremble.

"I know none of you are staying here out of genuine loyalty, but I hope none of you try to play any tricks. While I don't particularly care for Zongcilang's brutal methods, that doesn't mean I won't use them, so I hope you don't force me to that point."

Having said that, Hijikata's tone shifted, becoming highly seductive. "Besides, you ended up in this state because of the nobles behind those high walls. Now, you have a chance for revenge and a chance to get rich. Once the Goa Kingdom is destroyed, you can leave whenever you want, and you will have a large sum of money to boot."

These words immediately piqued everyone's interest, and greed and killing intent flickered in every eye. Under Hijikata Yoshitoyo's words, they all found a common goal.

That goal was revenge and plunder...

Watching their reactions, Hijikata Yoshitoyo nodded in satisfaction.

"I will be training you in the coming days. For now, set up camp outside the dojo. Once the first batch of supplies arrives from the Revolutionary Army headquarters, there will be tents for you to use."

"Next, I am going to issue some regulations. After all, we are a unit."

Hijikata Yoshitoyo then read out the laws he had written overnight. Each mention of the word 'death' sent a chill through everyone's hearts, and they listened with rapt attention, terrified that missing a single word would lead to their own demise...

After arranging the training schedule, Hijikata Yoshitoyo let out a heavy breath. Not being a man of many words, speaking so much had left him mentally exhausted.

As he turned to head back into the dojo, he saw Bai Ina, supported by Loxi, watching him from within the courtyard.

"Bai... Yina..."

Hijikata walked up slowly, not knowing what to say, especially when he saw Bai Ina's pale hair, which made his heart ache. For the past few days, neither he nor Zongcilang had returned to the dojo much.

Even when they did, they avoided Bai Ina's quarters.

Whenever they remembered waking up over a week ago to see Bai Ina on the verge of death, they felt endless guilt. After all, if not for their stubbornness, Bai Ina would never have been so severely injured.

"Your body hasn't recovered yet; you shouldn't be walking around," Hijikata said softly after a long silence.

Bai Ina replied quietly, "I am fine now!" He looked up at Hijikata and shook his head. "Stop avoiding me. The reason I ended up like this is simply because I was too weak; it has nothing to do with you or Zongcilang!"

"But if not for our stubbornness, you wouldn't have nearly lost your life!" Hijikata gave a bitter smile, turned his head toward Mt. Colubo, and continued, "Besides, Zongcilang is the one who least wants to face you. In his heart, he believes that because he used Loxi to block you, this was the result. That is why he left, and I don't think he will ever return here."

Bai Ina fell silent. How could he not know what Zongcilang was thinking? He claimed he was using the Mt. Colubo bandits to train the men, but perhaps even Zongcilang didn't realize it—he just... didn't know how to face Bai Ina, which was why he chose to leave.

"He will return, because this is his home."

Bai Ina shook his head slightly and asked, "How do you plan to train these people? And with the current numbers, there is no way to contend with the nearly one hundred thousand soldiers of the Kingdom. Do you have a plan?"

"Heh, to be honest, I know nothing about leading troops or warfare. Training is fine, but I'm completely out of my depth when it comes to command." The bitter smile on Hijikata Yoshitoyo's face deepened.

"Indeed, Zongcilang is much better at this than you," Bai Ina noted mercilessly.

Hijikata Yoshitoyo was immediately displeased. "How is he better than me? He's just a brute who only knows how to use killing to train people."

"You don't think he went to Mt. Colubo just to wipe out bandits, do you?" Bai Ina shook his head in disappointment and sighed at Hijikata. "There are nearly ten thousand bandits on Mt. Colubo. If he can bring that force under his command, it will be a formidable power."

"So, his purpose in going there, aside from training his men in combat, is to recruit the bandits. That is why I said you are far inferior to Zongcilang."

Hearing Bai Ina's explanation, Hijikata gasped, his expression turning dejected.

"And as for you, you've done a good job of winning hearts and establishing laws, but this kind of meaningless training is useless. Do you really intend to fight the hundred-thousand-strong Kingdom army with just these two hundred people?"

With every word Bai Ina spoke, Hijikata Yoshitoyo's head bowed lower, his face burning with embarrassment. He hadn't even considered these things.

"Sigh!" Bai Ina let out a heavy breath. "Forget it, I will help you. Zongcilang is fine; letting him go out and forge his own path is good, but you..." Bai Ina didn't finish, but Hijikata's face flushed red.

When it finally registered, he looked shocked. "You're going to help me?" Although he admitted Bai Ina was smart, war wasn't just about being clever.

Bai Ina smiled confidently. "Don't worry, I have plenty of confidence in these matters."

Regardless, he was once a man with an IQ of 200. Although he had rarely needed to think in recent years due to possessing the power to control the life and death of others, that did not mean his brain had atrophied!

Having said that, Bai Ina ignored the stunned Hijikata and signaled for Loxi to help him back to his room. However, after taking two steps, he paused and looked back, saying, "Remember to send word to Zongcilang. Tell him to avoid conflict with the 'Dadan Family' bandits on Mt. Colubo as much as possible. Also, do not disturb Windmill Village unless he is certain he can wipe out everyone there without a single whisper of news leaking out."

"The powerhouses behind those two places are far beyond what we can contend with right now. If that person wanted to, they wouldn't even need to mobilize anyone else; they could annihilate all of us alone." After finishing, Bai Ina left without looking back.

Hijikata Yoshitoyo's expression changed instantly upon hearing this. He knew Bai Ina was not the type to exaggerate. Since he had spoken so solemnly, then provoking that unknown powerhouse must be far more terrifying than Bai Ina had described.

Thinking of this, Hijikata hurriedly ran out of the dojo, chasing after Zongcilang in a flash.

He couldn't help but be this anxious; if Zongcilang were to be blind enough to directly provoke that group of bandits called the 'Dadan Family', the consequences would be dire...