Chapter 168 Avoiding the Storm (First Update)
Wu Youren only found out on the fifth day that the administrator had changed.
The new administrator was in his thirties, had a kind face, and seemed to smile before he even spoke, a trait rarely seen among the Liang.
He came to inspect the site, introduced himself, and said that he would be in charge of this area from now on, and that construction should be carried out in accordance with regulations.
He didn't say much more, but he seemed easy to get along with.
However, Wu Youren wasn't naive enough to think that way—couldn't there be smiling tigers among the Liang?
Fortunately, he had no intention of getting to know the other party better, and it was best for them to keep to themselves.
He even asked, intentionally or unintentionally, where the previous man was, who still owed him eight silver dollars.
As expected, the person smiled and said that he was unaware of the matter, and did not respond to the topic of owing money.
The boy looked dejected and muttered softly, "They owe me money and won't pay it back. I'm short of cash too."
Upon hearing this, the new administrator glanced at the scene, smiled, and took his leave.
You can afford such a big greenhouse, and you say you're short on money? Haha.
In the end, glass was chosen for the greenhouse because it's fragile and can be divided into many small compartments.
Plastic film is cheap, but hard to find; it's hard to buy. It seems the chemical industry here isn't very advanced.
When the glass was being installed, Liu Jingming came again; he had finally found out about Chen Quanxu.
No one in the Hostage Prince Corps wanted to talk about this person, but someone did mention him briefly, saying that he seemed to be quite strong.
Although he was just a Knight, the captain of the guard treated him very politely.
No wonder the son of the son-in-law thought this person might be Great Knight; subconsciously, he had a feeling that this person's strength was not to be underestimated.
No one knew the news of Guo's removal, but it was certain that Chen Quanxu was very reclusive in Jin Garden and rarely had contact with others.
Liu Jingming didn't mention anything about Ability User or similar things, clearly indicating that this was outside his area of knowledge.
There are many different opinions about whether Chen Quanxu alive or dead. After he escaped, Jin Garden kept him under strict control for half a year.
This person escaped six years ago, when the original owner was less than ten years old and not very sensitive to this information.
The most crucial claim of treason... no one had heard of it; the Liang's defense was the only piece of evidence.
In closing, Liu Jingming joked, "Now I feel like you really do resemble him."
"They're both solitary individuals, and quite capable; no wonder you wanted to find out his motives for treason."
He's Ability User; he has to secretly train all the time! Wu Youren ignored him.
"Take a look at this greenhouse, offer some suggestions and opinions, and let's think about what to plant."
"Such a generous gesture! I can come help with the farming later," Liu Jingming said with a smile, "I'll just take care of the meat!"
He is less than two years older than Wu Youren, and will be eighteen soon.
They're at the age where they can eat a lot, and once they turn eighteen, they can start aiming for the Knight, so their nutrition is on point.
His household income was more than that of the lord's grandson, but his earning ability was far inferior.
After ceasing his business in Spring Mood Is Good, he still hadn't finished paying off his loans for cold weapons, and life was indeed tight for him.
"If you're not afraid of danger, then it doesn't matter," Wu Youren replied calmly. "You only see the thief eating meat, but you don't see the thief getting beaten."
He didn't intend to explain further; a hint would suffice—saying less was actually a way of protecting the other person.
"I'm not afraid of anything except poverty!" Liu Jingming declared earnestly. "So it's settled then?"
uuɡu. First update, no typos. You won't see the pinyin suffix in the address input. You can then access the first update site.
"That's all the ambition you've got," Wu Youren rolled his eyes at him. "How much can a bite of food be worth?"
To put it simply, Little Ha's daily meals are enough for Liu Jingming to cultivate at full strength for half a month—and that's just the consumption of Resentment Qi Crystal.
Thinking about it, he felt he couldn't let the other person enjoy it for nothing; what if a great kindness turned into enmity? "Could you help me contact my family?"
The son-in-law's son's reply surprised him somewhat, "You think I didn't try anything?"
Liu Jingming looked helpless. "I've been trying to find a way to repay you, to give you a surprise... The Liu family never accepts favors for nothing."
"But it's easy for me to contact my own family, but asking around about yours... is really inconvenient."
"I understand, it's not proper to ask questions without a proper name," Wu Youren nodded slightly. "I was just asking casually."
"You should ask the head guard or His Highness about this," Liu Jingming said seriously.
"They are closely monitored, but they have high authority."
He paused for a moment before adding, "By the way, the Life and Death Knot is a bit unhappy with you; I heard they're trying to get you transferred back to Jin Garden."
"Back to Jin Garden?" A cold glint flashed in Wu Youren's eyes, but his face remained smiling. "Is it Salim?"
"I don't know who you're talking about," Liu Jingming shook his head blankly.
The person who contacted him wasn't Salim; he was very young and liked to wait for him at the cafeteria entrance while he ate.
He would squat down and freeload off others, and when other trainees saw this, they just assumed it was bullying and no one wanted to get involved.
But Liu Jingming really did it; he managed to become "friends" with the other party!
The young man recently told him not to have too much contact with Wu Youren, because that guy was too tactless, and the higher-ups were considering taking Jin Garden back.
The key point is that His Highness and the head guard are also somewhat expectant, and might even be willing to cooperate!
Fortunately, Liu Jingming knew that he and that guy were just friends (in quotes), so he wouldn't care about such things.
"Wait for me at the cafeteria entrance?" Wu Youren thought for a moment and nodded. There are pros and cons; living in the dormitory still has its advantages!
Salim always came to see him in the middle of the night or early morning, because he really didn't have any roommates!
Sure enough, the monsters you encounter are different depending on the map of the starting village. "Do you know where they gather?"
"A gathering place?" Liu Jingming's eyes lit up immediately upon hearing this, and his voice lowered, "You mean...?"
"Of course we should avoid them," Wu Youren said, giving him a disapproving look. "Do you think I'm going to provoke them?"
"I think you have the ability," Liu Jingming muttered at first, then smiled.
"A month ago, I really had no idea where they were, but now... what a coincidence!"
He certainly didn't dare to inquire casually, but he was very keen to seize opportunities.
More than a month ago, the Barbarian Tribe caused trouble and made a big fuss.
The Court of State Ceremonial of Liang intervened to coordinate – in addition to handling international disputes, they were also responsible for communication with vassal states.
The Bureau of Life and Death Knot is a subordinate agency of the Court of State Ceremonial, and has the responsibility to find out what happened inside.
They hadn't bothered Wu Youren for a while, most likely because they were preoccupied with this matter.
When things get busy, more mistakes are naturally made.
Liu Jingming watched helplessly as the other side gathered and shifted their focus away from the Martial Academy.
Therefore, the main gathering place for the Life and Death Knot is now on the outskirts of Red Pine, rather than Martial Academy.
The protons felt they were being closely monitored, but in reality, there were only five protons in the entire Red Pine!
How many Barbarian Tribe are outside the Red Pine forest? Over ten thousand!
People feel there aren't many Barbarian Tribe because that's only what you can see from the direction of Red Pine!
"The good news is, we're not that important," Liu Jingming said with a smile. "The bad news is, we really aren't that important."
"It wasn't important anyway," Wu Youren rolled his eyes at him. "Stop with the tongue twisters, go do your own thing."
"Let me give you a general idea of the location," Liu Jingming said cautiously, looking at him.
"Whether you can use it or not is your problem. The main focus is on information sharing, and they have four important gathering places..."
He won't ask the other person if they need it; he'll just proactively provide the information and won't care about anything else.
Do good deeds and don't worry about the future -- well, actually I do have some good intentions.
However, the bird on Little Wu's shoulder was really a nuisance, sticking to him and not letting go, going in and out of the Red Pine, making it very easy to spot.
Plus, it lets out a few shouts every now and then... making it difficult to launch a sneak attack.
To his surprise, Wu Youren's first instinctive reaction upon hearing the news was: Is it reliable?
He didn't want to consider the son-in-law's intentions or credibility; too clear a water has no fish, and too discerning a person has no followers.
He was wondering: if someone really wanted to bring him back to Jin Garden, how feasible would that be?
He wasn't sure about the Hostage Prince Corps's stance, but those disgusting people at the Life and Death Knot might indeed try to push things along.
After cleaning up in front of his house, it wasn't over yet... Thinking about this, he felt a little helpless.
However, disgusting people do disgusting things; you'll get used to it.
However, this news still had some impact on his life plans.
He had to do something—he couldn't let others lead him astray, but it was still necessary to plan ahead.
On this day, Manna came to the hut to watch the construction of the greenhouse.
The greenhouse, spanning over 900 square meters, still attracted the attention of some trainees and instructors, with people coming over to take a look every now and then.
She feigned goodwill, blending in among them without standing out.
Besides feeding the Little Ha, she had another reason for coming: to cash in the profits from the Bellflower Mountain harvest.
Wu Youren's share in the team was not high, especially after entering the Weird Domain for the second time, he was at the lowest level.
The boy's role is undeniable, but it's also an indisputable fact that he basically slacked off the whole time and didn't participate in the battle.
Even the Chief Instructor Hong joined the battle, and several members of the team were injured.
As a hostage of the Jin state, the fact that he could still gain something is already an affirmation of his abilities.
The profit was a little over seven thousand silver dollars, Manna explained, adding that the Instructor Hong's expenses were very high, and this was only the first batch.
Some of the offers received did not meet Hong Da's target price, and he would need to wait a while before he could cash out.
However, Instructor Hong was quite considerate, giving him three thousand silver dollars in cash and a Resentment Qi Crystal to feed Little Ha.
Wu Youren expressed his gratitude and also told Manna that he wanted to leave the Martial Academy for a while.
The female instructor was a little surprised. "Weren't you just focused on coming back? What are you doing going out now?"
The boy seemed a bit helpless, "After building the greenhouse, we don't have much money left, and we also have to raise Little Ha. We'll just have to go out and try our luck."
He didn't say the Instructor Hong paid too little, but surely it wouldn't be a problem to complain about being poor, right?
"There are so many Barbarian Tribe outside," Manna thought, a headache forming in her Barbarian Tribe. " The Bone Glue hasn't been sold yet!"
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Chapter 169 Taking Advantage of the Fun (Second Update)
The Bone Glue is estimated to be worth at least 100,000. It was obtained when Wu Youren and his three companions first entered the Weird Domain, so they will definitely get a considerable share.
" Barbarian Tribe? Just avoid them," the boy replied, consistent with his stoic nature.
"If I encounter Fallen Knight or Ability User again, I'll come back and contact you."
" The Fallen One don't come to the Weird Domain very often," Manna said, speaking with great authority on the topic.
"Their methods are wrong, and they pose a high risk of Weird Transformation. They're very difficult to control in places like this."
"I'm just trying my luck," Wu Youren chuckled. "Besides, there's much less Weird Qi on the outskirts. Fortune favors the bold."
"Wealth and fortune..." Manna was clearly tempted. "Don't rush into anything. I'll go ask Master."
It's been over twenty days since the team returned from Tianjing. The annual monster-hunting mission is complete, and we have a lot more freedom now.
"No need, I can manage on my own," the boy said stubbornly. "If I find any relevant information, I'll come back and let you know."
Manna had no doubt about this; she had heard her master say that the other party had entered the mountain pass alone many times to kill monsters.
But while waiting in Red Pine, she felt that the situation was not quite under control, so she told her to wait two days.
In the end, the Chief Instructor Hong decided to send instructors who knew the situation to take turns going out with the boy.
The first group to go out were Manna, Namuzha, the middle-aged Knight Kenpa, and the female archer.
Wu Youren's Little Ha on his shoulder is so eye-catching that it's impossible to hide it.
So, these four had no choice but to make do, disguise themselves, and try to avoid attracting attention.
They were driving a modified off-road vehicle, capable of traversing the wilderness, heading towards the mountain pass.
Barbarian Tribe could be seen everywhere, along with numerous military checkpoints.
After driving for more than two hours, they noticed an Weird Qi emanating from the vehicle.
The Weird Qi wasn't particularly strong, only at the Knight level. The group stopped the car and killed it instantly.
Somewhat surprisingly, there were two Weird Transformation Knight inside. After killing them, no monsters dropped; instead, they were incinerated.
If it were just Wu Youren alone, he really wouldn't have the time to do this kind of thing—he was just out hunting in the wild, not staking out a spot.
But the other four were all instructors at Red Pine, and they couldn't stand idly by and watch this happen.
There's no need to preach any grand principles; once Red Pine falls, they'll lose their homes.
Namuzha couldn't help but curse, "It must have been those Barbarian Tribe who did it! They only know how to drop strange items, but they don't clean up the mess at all!"
This is no exaggeration; the quality of the Barbarian Tribe is exceptionally poor.
The middle-aged Knight, Kenpa, had other concerns. "Keep a close eye on them; there might be Corpse Weird."
The incineration process couldn't be abandoned halfway, so they took a three-hour break.
The five's main objective this time was to clear out the Weird Race outside the mountain, loot monster artifacts, and incidentally try to find the Fallen One.
This isn't an urgent task, and we're not far from Red Pine, so there's no need to rely too much on supplies; the Knight can rely on their own strength.
After the incineration was completed, everyone got up and continued searching for the Weird Qi.
It wasn't until the afternoon that they encountered another wave, but this time there were more than a dozen Barbarian Tribe attacking them.
The instructors disdained to compete with them and ignored them.
Wu Youren felt as if his side was hunting, with the search for prey taking longer than the battle itself, and they couldn't even steal the prey from others.
"Let's head towards the mountain pass," Kenpa said, somewhat dissatisfied. "There should be more Weird Race there."
He was old and pragmatic, and felt the chances of encountering Fallen One were too slim, so he decided to try and find some valuable, mysterious items.
However, for the rest of the day, no one encountered any Weird Qi; it was a day of bad luck for everyone.
As darkness fell, the five men did not turn back. Instead, they found a gentle slope and set up a temporary campsite around the off-road vehicle.
In the wilderness, many people do this, and you can even see more than one campfire, all belonging to martial artists who have stayed in the wild.
After all, this is still a human-dominated area. The Weird Race has infiltrated to some extent, but they are not the mainstream.
The five members of Red Pine were quite relaxed—the boy had even set up quite a few warning mechanisms, so there was really nothing to worry about.
Everyone even sat around the campfire chatting for a long time before going to rest.
The next day was the same; they extinguished three Weird Qi, but still gained nothing.
That night, the place where we rested was not far from the mountain ridge, less than 20 kilometers away as the crow flies, and there was no campfire in sight.
"I've been spoiled by the Bellflower Mountain," Manna sighed, sitting around the campfire. "After two days without catching any monsters, I've become restless."
The female archer had a good attitude, saying, "I didn't put in much effort, it just took some physical exertion."
At that moment, Wu Youren suddenly stood up and looked into the distance.
It was already night, and visibility was not very high. The boy's reaction made everyone stand up at once.
"What's going on?" Manna hooked her foot and pulled the backpack off the ground into her hand.
This time, the Chief Instructor Hong helped prepare a lot of combat supplies. We didn't use them much during the day, but we couldn't save them at night.
"It can't be that much of a coincidence, can it?" Namuzha muttered, picking up his large-caliber shotgun and glancing at Little Ha.
Everyone knows the chances of encountering Fallen One are low, but who doesn't harbor a little bit of wishful thinking?
The female archer's eyes slowly bulged outwards, looking somewhat like a toad's stare.
This method of enhancing vision is extremely harmful to the eyes, but at this point, she couldn't hold back anymore.
Then she sneered, "Someone's rushing over, and there's a powerful Weird Qi behind them!"
"Damn it!" Kenpa cursed, "What a load of crap!"
We've fought against the Weird Race many times, and the most disgusting thing is encountering this kind of thing.
"Get in the car," Namuzha put away his gun and jumped into the SUV. "Let's run."
"You drive alone for now," the female archer said, her figure flashing as she took off running. "This is the wasteland; acceleration is slow here."
These men were all quite experienced, and the other three followed suit, rushing out as well. It was only the Namuzha who hesitated for a moment before quickly starting a fire.
My companion runs much faster than the car, but that doesn't mean I'm abandoning him; it's just to reduce the car's weight when accelerating.
"Damn it..." Namuzha's lips twitched, and he couldn't help but mutter under his breath.
The figure running frantically noticed that the people by the campfire were quickly leaving.
"Speed up!" someone shouted. "Can the car outrun us?"
On the wilderness, in the short term, the movement speed of a typical off-road vehicle is really not as fast as that of Knight; some Knight Apprentice are even faster than vehicles.
Upon hearing this, the dozen or so people suddenly accelerated and rushed forward desperately.
Namuzha drove the off-road vehicle, and two minutes later, the speed reached its limit—any faster and it could overturn at any moment.
However, they were still about 300 meters away from their four companions, and there was no sign of them closing the distance.
He couldn't help but shout, "Stop! Wait for me!"
"Hurry up!" Manna replied, adding, "Slow down a bit, hey... isn't there a campfire ahead?"
"Don't charge," Kenpa said without hesitation. "Let's run, or the whole wasteland will descend into chaos!"
The people behind them want to frame them. If they then shift the blame to others, the consequences could be dire if a chain reaction occurs.
The key point is that all five of them come from Red Pine. Others might not care about this, but they can't!
"If we really do that, what will others think of Red Pine?" The female archer shouted as she ran, reloading her pistol. "We need to warn them!"
The next moment, three red signal flares exploded in the air, alerting any martial artists in the vicinity that danger was approaching.
A signal flare shot into the sky, and Namuzha's vehicle arrived. The four men jumped onto it.
Everyone has agreed that they cannot blame others, so the off-road vehicle can only drive around in circles in the wilderness.
The campfire in the distance was also alert, and went out within ten seconds.
From the running figures behind came fierce gunshots and screams—someone had been caught up by the Weird Qi.
A figure roared angrily, "Warn them? Chase them down!"
If the other side doesn't warn them, even if they can't catch up in the short term, they can still run to other campfires.
During their escape, the group suffered heavy losses, with three Knight Apprentice already killed by the Weird Qi.
It's now much more difficult to frame someone else.
Enraged, even if it was just to vent their anger, they were determined to fight to the death against the group in front of them!
After circling around for more than ten minutes, Kenpa realized the pursuers' intentions. "Damn it... are they going to kill us?"
"Taking responsibility inevitably comes with consequences," the female archer said calmly, her eyes still bulging as she surveyed the area behind her.
She casually remarked, "Less than 800 meters."
"We can prepare to retaliate," Namuzha said as he drove. "It's too dangerous to go less than 500 meters."
Knight's rapid acceleration can overwhelm the speed of an off-road vehicle, reaching a dangerous distance in just 500 meters.
The other party was relentlessly pursuing them, determined to frame them. Faced with such overwhelming malice, nothing they did was excessive.
"The gunshots will attract other Weird Qi," Manna expressed her concern, which was why everyone had hesitated to take action.
"Don't look at me," the female archer said defiantly, "I won't waste my arrows on something like this."
"We can't exactly use Weird-Exterminating Grenade, can we?" Manna hesitated.
They were well-prepared and had many ways to deal with this situation.
What pained her was, "Two days have passed, and we haven't gotten anything."
The female archer retorted sullenly, "Letting these Barbarian Tribe participate in the war is utter nonsense!"
" Barbarian Tribe?" Namuzha gritted his teeth. "Get grenades ready!"
Being chased like this was already frustrating enough, but when he heard they were Barbarian Tribe, he couldn't hold back his anger any longer.
"Then, Little Wu..." Manna looked at the boy, "Do you have any objections?"
The two sides were about 700 or 800 meters apart. Among the five people, only the one skilled in mechanisms was the most suitable to make a move.
"Use explosives, I'll make the delayed fuse," Wu Youren replied without hesitation. "Should we add Weird-Dispelling Powder?"
The explosive charge was meant to be a trap; adding the ingredient was just a convenient way to eliminate this Weird Qi.
"How dangerous is it?" Kenpa asked, there was no other way but for the boy to answer this question.
"Be careful, it shouldn't be too serious," Wu Youren replied thoughtfully, "Not Great Knight level."