A Way to Defeat the Monster

Although the general's banner was somewhat unwilling, after Du Chengfeng gave it a thorough polishing, it quieted down for the time being.

"Still, the weapons in the arsenal need regular maintenance."

After leaving the passageway, Du Chengfeng found Commander Liu and explained the precautions.

"The banner itself has no Sha Qi, but if the weapons around it go unpolished for days... it's like seeing your soldiers go without training for a long time. You'd definitely want to drill them, wouldn't you?"

"I see..."

After hearing the whole story from Du Chengfeng, Commander Liu finally set his mind at ease. But soon afterward, his interest in that general's banner was piqued.

Just as weapons infused with Sha Qi could grant martial artists inhuman strength, this banner was clearly an incomparable treasure for a commander who led troops.

If it could be used to unite the Sha Qi of an entire army, what kind of terrifying combat power would it unleash?

With that thought, Commander Liu entered the storeroom and seized the banner.

The moment the banner touched his hand, Commander Liu's eyes turned a glaring blood red.

"Yo!"

Startled, Du Chengfeng hurriedly snatched the banner away. Then he swung his arm and gave Commander Liu two hard slaps across the face.

"Wake up!"

"You rebel scum, how dare you usurp—hm?"

Commander Liu had only just begun muttering something when the two slaps landed squarely on his face. The blood-red glare in his eyes immediately faded, and he regained his senses.

"I... My apologies."

Though Commander Liu was still somewhat dazed from those two slaps, one look at the banner in Du Chengfeng's hand told him what horrifying ordeal he had just gone through.

Yet because of that touch, the reason behind the fall of the Youzhou Governor's Office now had an answer.

So the Youzhou quartermaster had indeed been wrongly accused. The moment the Youzhou Governor touched the general's banner, he had fallen under its influence and believed himself to be a former Chu general. A Chu general inside a Great Chen Governor's Office would naturally see everyone around him as enemy troops. As a fierce warrior who charged into enemy lines, trapped within an enemy camp, of course he would strike down the rebels and slaughter in every direction.

However, this raised another question.

The Phoenix General's Banner in the Jizhou Arsenal had been brought back when the previous dynasty recovered Yuyang Commandery.

But where had the Phoenix General's Banner in the Youzhou arsenal come from?

"I have a feeling there's something wrong here..."

Commander Liu frowned, but he knew this was not the time to dwell on such matters.

He clasped his hands and bowed deeply to Du Chengfeng.

"Thank you for saving me, Mister Du. Otherwise, Jizhou might have become like Youzhou today, with the people plunged into misery and devastation."

"It's nothing, really. Just don't blame me for slapping you twice."

Du Chengfeng did not care much about it. He had kept watch the entire time; even if Commander Liu had truly been driven mad by the Phoenix General's Banner, at that distance, he would have had more than enough time to bury all seventeen knives on his person in the man.

Still, Commander Liu was a forthright fellow. Du Chengfeng had entered the Governor's Office with a body full of knives, yet no one had even searched him.

"That is because I, too, have attained success in martial arts."

Hearing Du Chengfeng's question, Commander Liu simply raised a hand and slashed it through the air.

A deep gouge appeared in the bluestone wall of the passageway, carved by nothing but the force of his fingers.

"In Great Chen, the most important requirement for a governor who commands a region is the ability to wield vicious, Baleful weapons through immense force of will. I, Liu Yanran, have trained in martial arts for over twenty years..."

"Then what was that just now?"

Du Chengfeng scratched his head.

"It's fine if you got the position through some connection. You don't have to say it. I understand."

"...That was an accident."

Commander Liu could not help flushing with embarrassment.

"The Sha Qi of weapons and war within that banner happened to align perfectly with what I had in mind. With our intentions in accord, it naturally found an opening to exploit... As for the sort of governors you mentioned, who gained their posts through connections, perhaps there are some if you head south. But in a crucial borderland like this, there definitely would not be people passing fish eyes off as pearls."

"...What did you just say?"

Du Chengfeng was still scratching his head.

"I didn't catch that. Could you say it again?"

"I said, a crucial borderland..."

"Not that part. Earlier."

"Earlier? I, Liu Yanran, have trained in martial arts for over twenty years..."

"Yes, that part."

Du Chengfeng nodded, quietly committing Commander Liu's name to memory.

Liu Yanran. Those two characters, Yanran, clearly referred to the place where the Northern Desert Royal Court stood, deep in the grasslands.

Born in Northern Ji yet named Yanran—Commander Liu's ambitions were plain to see.

"So you were asking for my name."

Hearing this, Commander Liu finally understood.

"My name is Liu Yanran—the Yanran from 'inscribing a stone at Yanran.' Of course, in daily life, you should still address me by my official title. Just call me Commander Liu."

"Got it."

Having remembered the name, Du Chengfeng took out the general's banner.

"As for this..."

"This thing... forget it."

Commander Liu cast the banner one last reluctant look, but in the end, he sighed.

The treasure was good, but it was not something he could wield.

"Besides, as you said earlier, the Chu method of commanding troops may spread like a prairie fire, but it still has some practical flaws. This general's banner has ultimately fallen somewhat behind the times. We should simply seal it back in the arsenal... No."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Commander Liu shook his head.

It truly could not be sealed back in the arsenal yet. Du Chengfeng had just explained why the arsenal was filled with Sha Qi. If they simply sealed the banner away again, and it got bored and drilled its troops in the arsenal a few more times, would the Governor's Office even survive?

Thus, when Du Chengfeng returned to Yang Family Fort that evening, he had gained a warhorse and a battle banner wrapped in thick cloth.

The warhorse was a gift from Commander Liu—strictly speaking, it still counted as property of the Governor's Office—but it made it easier for Du Chengfeng to travel back and forth. After all, the draft horse borrowed from Carpenter Li's family truly could not run very fast. As for that battle banner... it could only be said that it was needed for work. Du Chengfeng had not deliberately wanted to bring the thing back.

After all, compared with the battle banner itself, Du Chengfeng had already obtained something more important.

That was the experience of the battlefield he had sensed while polishing the banner.

"So even fierce generals aren't truly invincible..."

Riding atop the horse, Du Chengfeng felt as though he had vaguely grasped a certain method.

That naturally monstrous being named Hexi Qing might not be as terrifying as he had imagined.

Even if the other man possessed inhuman strength, commanded a band of grassland elite cavalry as fierce as wolves and tigers, and held an advantage that would be magnified many times over in this world of weapons and Sha Qi.

At the end of the day, he was only on the level of Great Chu's valiant general, Long Yan.

Even one whose courage surpassed the three armies could die upon the battlefield. Hexi Qing could as well.

Thanks to E Yi for the monthly ticket. Thanks to xiaoxyy, Book Friend 20190426231242790, Book Friend 20190227122020529, Haishi, Book Friend 20180504180718505, Wangfeiran, Book Friend 20220723200722526, and Dreaming of Writing for their recommendation votes. Everyone's support is what drives me forward. Thank you all for the encouragement. Also, if you spot any typos, please mention them in the chapter comments, and I'll correct them right away.