"Five people? The five of us again?"
Even with his impulsive nature, Shen San understood that stopping the Tamu Eldest Prince from leaving Northern Barbarians territory and entering Great Qian was simply beyond the five of them.
After all, the Tamu Eldest Prince was nothing like the Third Prince of Falling Cloud.
One was the future heir to a major tribe, its next king.
The other was merely one unremarkable child among a tribal king's many offspring. The gulf between them was enormous, and naturally, so was the treatment they received.
If the Third Prince of Falling Cloud's guard captain was at the second grade of the Acquired Realm,
then the Tamu Eldest Prince's guard captain would at least be a Xiantian Martial Artist.
Although Li Dao could kill a half-step Innate Martial Artist, that was still only a half-step Innate Martial Artist.
And that remaining half-step marked a qualitative transformation.
Simply put, that half-step meant at least a tenfold difference in strength.
Unless Li Dao could take on ten half-step Innate Martial Artists by himself, he could not possibly handle that Xiantian Martial Artist.
But could he do that?
As far as they were concerned, killing a half-step Innate Martial Artist through physical strength alone was already an extraordinary miracle.
Taking on a true Xiantian Martial Artist was beyond what human strength could accomplish.
Thus, none of them pinned their hopes on Li Dao.
Wei Yun raised a hand to settle them down. "Relax. Of course we won't send just the five of you to intercept the Tamu Eldest Prince's party. This time, you'll only be responsible for assisting them."
"Who are they?"
"The Embroidered Uniform Guard!"
The men present froze at those words.
Especially Shen San, who had been arrested and sent to the Death Row Camp by the Embroidered Uniform Guard himself.
Just hearing the name brought his shameful past back to mind.
On one side was a chance to help the woman of his dreams out of her predicament; on the other were his old enemies. He could not help finding himself caught between the two.
In the end, Shen San gritted his teeth and decided to set aside his hatred for now.
After all, this concerned not only the woman of his dreams, but also his freedom.
Li Dao had not expected the Embroidered Uniform Guard to oversee this matter personally either.
It seemed the Great Qian Emperor was determined to keep the Tamu Eldest Prince outside the nation's gates.
That was fine by him. He approved of the decision too.
"Commander Wei, when do we leave for the mission?"
Li Dao looked up and asked.
"Because this came up so suddenly, the men from the Embroidered Uniform Guard are still on their way. They'll need about a day to arrive, so you have one day to rest."
Wei Yun explained.
Back inside his tent.
Li Dao sat on the rug and turned his hand over to inspect it. The wound on his palm from the half-step Innate Realm warrior's staff strike had already healed completely, leaving a layer of charred-black scab.
He rubbed his hands together, cracking away the scab to reveal perfectly healed skin beneath.
"Half-step Innate... the Innate Realm, huh."
Li Dao murmured to himself.
Judging by his current strength, a half-step Innate warrior was no match for him in terms of raw physical power. He simply did not know whether he could handle someone in the Innate Realm.
Still, in terms of destructive power alone, a Xiantian Martial Artist should possess enough killing power to end his life.
That alone made Li Dao feel that his strength was still somewhat lacking. He needed to keep improving his physique.
After all, this was only the Innate Realm. Beyond it were warriors in the Grandmaster Realm and the Great Grandmaster Realm.
He had originally thought his physique was improving very quickly, but now it seemed it still was not fast enough.
With a thought, Li Dao opened his panel.
[Master: Li Dao] [Physique: 31.06] [Available attribute points: 9.68]
After killing that half-step Innate warrior last time, he had taken advantage of the plummeting morale among the Tamu Tribe and Blazing Fire Tribe warriors to harvest quite a few more attribute points.
Since attribute points could currently only improve his physique, Li Dao saw no reason to save them. If he could spend them, he would.
"System, add the points."
The instant he spoke, the familiar warmth flowed through his body.
Perhaps because he had added nearly a third of his total attributes at once, the effects were exceptionally pronounced.
He could visibly see his skin changing, becoming tougher and more resistant.
A dozen or so breaths later, the enhancement was complete.
[Master: Li Dao] [Physique: 40.74] [Available attribute points: 0]
Forty times an ordinary person's physique?
What did that mean?
If an ordinary person had the strength to lift a hundred jin, then forty times that would be four thousand jin.
Against four thousand jin of force, an ordinary person would be injured by a graze and killed by a touch.
Four thousand jin of strength alone was not the key. The key was that, along with that strength, he possessed mobility that ordinary people could scarcely comprehend.
He also had forty times an ordinary person's stamina and endurance, as well as far superior reflexes.
More importantly, four thousand jin was only his base strength.
By incorporating speed or techniques for exerting force, he could deliver power beyond his base strength.
For example, someone with a physique of one could lift a hundred jin, but if that person was a boxer, speed and technique could allow them to throw a punch with two hundred jin of force.
In short, with all these aspects combined, he was a weapon in human form.
And his transformed skin now gave him formidable defensive power as well.
On an ancient battlefield, he would be a meat grinder-and one with a will of its own.
After the enhancement, Li Dao began eating the food on the table.
At the same time, he began considering something else.
After all, if he completed the third mission and Wei Yun kept his promise, he would soon be a free man. Where would he go then?
"Forget it. I'll think about that once I'm truly free."
A day passed quickly.
At Wei Yun's summons, Li Dao and the other four arrived at the main command tent.
Upon entering, they found not only Wei Yun, but also two men in distinctive uniforms, with sabers hanging at their waists.
As a former count of the imperial capital, Li Dao recognized at a glance that both wore the full equipment of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
"You're here!"
Wei Yun introduced them to Li Dao and the others. "These are the two men you'll be assisting on this mission."
One of the two guards looked up at the five men and frowned. "Commander Wei, these are the men you selected for us? This isn't just making fools of us-you're making a fool of His Majesty."
"Well..."
Wei Yun glanced at Li Dao and the other four, then slapped his forehead.
He knew the five men and understood their abilities, so he did not mind their appearance. But to an outsider, with their filthy, disheveled clothes, it was a wonder they were not mistaken for beggars. No wonder there had been a misunderstanding.
He explained, "Please rest assured, both of you. I have no intention of deceiving His Majesty. These five truly have the ability to help you."
"Help us?"
The guard smiled faintly, then vanished from where he stood.
"Then let me see whether they really have what it takes."
When the guard reappeared, he was already in front of Li Dao, who stood at the head of the group. A cold gleam flashed as his saber swept straight toward Li Dao's right ear.
To an ordinary person, the guard's speed would have been astonishing.
But to Li Dao, his movements were still a little slow.
He had tracked everything, from the guard's disappearance to his reappearance.
And he saw the saber strike just as clearly.
Without a change in expression, Li Dao raised his right hand and reached straight for the descending blade.
By the time everyone else reacted, this was all they saw.
The guard's saber was held beside Li Dao's right side, its blade clamped firmly in one of his hands.
A flicker of surprise crossed the guard's eyes. Clearly, he had not expected his strike to be stopped.
Only when he tried to pull the saber back did he realize that his strength was not enough to wrench it from the other man's hand.
"You..."
Before the guard could finish, the blade suddenly came free. Carried by his own momentum, he involuntarily stumbled back several steps.
Once he recovered, the guard showed no anger. Instead, he asked with mild interest, "Born with superhuman strength?"
"Yes."
"Impressive."
The guard nodded.
He did not take their earlier clash to heart either. It had merely been a probe.
If he had truly meant to hurt someone, he would not have used so little of his strength.
With that, he turned back to Wei Yun. "Commander Wei, it seems you were telling the truth."
Wei Yun smiled faintly. If even a talent like Li Dao failed to earn their recognition, then the only presentable fighter in the entire Mighty Camp would probably be Wei Yun himself, a Xiantian Martial Artist.
"Have you told them about the mission?"
The guard who had attacked asked.
"I've explained it."
Wei Yun answered.
The guard then turned back to Li Dao and the other four. "Because this mission is unusual, His Majesty has sent only the two of us. We'll need the cooperation of all five of you."
"Our specific mission is to prevent the Tamu Tribe's eldest prince from entering the Great Qian Border. After all, if something goes wrong in Northern Barbarians territory, it's their problem. If something goes wrong within Great Qian, we'll have to take responsibility."
"And I hope you all remember one thing clearly: this mission is to obstruct him, not ambush and kill him. We only need to cause trouble."
"According to our scouts on the front lines, the eldest prince of the Tamu Tribe has brought a special tribal treasure as a betrothal gift for this marriage alliance. That treasure is our target. If we steal it, given how much he cares about saving face, he'll inevitably abandon the marriage arrangements for the time being."
"Once this drags on into winter, we won't need to worry about it anymore."
Looking puzzled, Shen San asked Li Dao beside him, "Boss, why won't we need to worry once winter comes?"
After a moment's thought, Li Dao understood the reasoning and explained, "Why is the Tamu Tribe constantly probing and invading Great Qian while also seeking a marriage alliance? Mainly because they lack the grain to survive the winter."
"Once winter actually arrives, these efforts will lose their purpose, so naturally, they won't continue."
Since Li Dao had made no effort to lower his voice, Wei Yun and the guards beside them heard him clearly.
The guard who had not attacked suddenly spoke. "Commander Wei, I never expected you to have such talent under your command. Keeping him in a frontier camp seems rather a waste."
Wei Yun gave an awkward smile and did not respond.
After all, he could hardly tell the guards before him that all five men were condemned prisoners from the Death Row Camp.
If these two guards discovered that the five were condemned prisoners, who knew what they would think.
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