Chapter 178 Dark Night (Third Update)
Hearing Manna's words, the female archer sighed, "So... you've got your eye on the big one?"
"It's useless," Wu Youren was not far away, said sullenly, "The strange objects that the barbarians collect are all under unified management."
"Wow!" Kenpa glanced at him sideways, his eyes strange. "You even know that?"
The boy remained silent. He had only encountered those two Barbarian Tribe as scouts, so the Knight had some supplies on hand.
Now that the barbarians have arrived in large numbers, it's estimated that most of the spoils will be in the hands of the Great Knight.
However, he couldn't explain the difference between them, so he decided to keep quiet.
Manna knew a little about the situation, and upon hearing this, she was immediately disappointed. "We can't possibly attack the Great Knight."
They had already exerted all their strength to annihilate that barbarian group, but they had not yet completely wiped them out.
Even if we invite Kelvin this time, it's impossible to annihilate a team led by a Great Knight.
That person may be quite strong, but if they offer their services for free, why would they use their full strength?
"You're not thinking of asking for more money, are you?" The female archer gave her a wary look. "I object!"
"That would defeat the purpose," Kenpa nodded in agreement. "Our goal is revenge, and acquiring some weapons will guarantee we don't lose money!"
"Now you're thinking about ghost items, even considering paying more... Young man, don't be so impatient!"
"I was just saying," Manna replied defiantly, then paused and added, "Look at the quality of the Kelvin, it's not bad!"
The other three remained silent for a long time before Kenpa finally said, "At most, we'll find a slightly larger team."
At that moment, Wu Youren raised an eyebrow and whispered, "Someone's coming!"
Any noise in the rainy night was definitely not a good sign, so Kenpa raised his hand and extinguished the campfire.
The good news is that they camped here for several days, the campsite was well-maintained, and they were very familiar with the surrounding terrain.
The bad news is that staying in one place for an extended period makes you an easy target for surveillance, without you even realizing it.
Fortunately, the other party was very careful and did not have a wide range of awareness of their surroundings. They passed by from hundreds of meters away without noticing them.
There were quite a few people passing by, at least several hundred.
The four people hiding in the camp looked at each other, not daring to breathe. What the hell was going on?
Suddenly a figure flashed, and another person appeared in the camp, yet no alarm was triggered.
"It's me," a hoarse, smoky voice whispered. "I don't know what the barbarians are up to. Anyone want to come with me and take a look?"
Hong Da knew the camp was here and was familiar with the mechanisms, so there was really nothing to worry about—after all, Manna was in the group.
The boy shrank back into the corner and lowered his head.
Visibility in the camp was almost zero, but Instructor Hong still felt it.
"Forget about Little Wu, what about the three of you?"
"I'll listen to my master," Manna replied without hesitation.
The female archer and Kenpa simply nodded without saying a word—the two might not want to go, but they certainly didn't have the guts to refuse.
Previously, they were quick to call for the destruction of barbarians, but now that there's something important to do, they're not participating. What does the Hong Da think?
"Get ready to provide backup," Instructor Hong said, and quietly led the three away.
The four of them quietly followed the barbarian group for quite some time before Manna whispered, "Master, why didn't you call him?"
In her mind, the boy's combat strength was somewhat lacking, but his perception...
Even if I can't catch up with my master, I won't be too far behind. In terms of sensing the threat of the Weird Race, I might even be a little stronger.
A deep, husky voice came through, "He has the right not to participate in the human battlefield."
"But..." Manna felt a little unwilling. That guy was clearly very enthusiastic when he was killing barbarians.
"I knew it," Kenpa chuckled softly, "It's you who wants to kill the Barbarian Tribe!"
At the same moment, Wu Youren was also talking to Chen Quanxu, "Could that puppeteer take down a Great Knight?"
"I don't know," the Little Snake replied casually, "But even if the people of the Far West could kill the Great Knight, they wouldn't do it."
"Why?"
"Because you pay them," the Little Snake replied. "They only care about money... Why are you so concerned about killing barbarians? Don't you have anything better to do?"
"Uh," the boy hesitated for a moment, then realized, "The people in the ' Life and Death Knot' might also be following this team?"
"At least that's a legitimate matter, isn't it?" Chen Quanxu's attitude was clear: you're killing barbarians, isn't that just to create trouble for the Court of State Ceremonial?
Why bother with all those trivial matters when we can deal with the main issue right now?
Wu Youren could only accept the criticism, sheepishly retorting, "Being watched by them every day, I've gotten used to taking roundabout approaches."
"You have so many important things to do," Chen Quanxu bluntly, "Don't be so petty!"
The boy quietly left the camp, but after taking only two steps, the Little Snake called out to him, "Where are you going?"
Wu Youren was stunned again. "Chase after them, follow them!"
"What's there to 'adorn'?" Chen Quanxu said matter-of-factly. "I know where Dark Night is. Follow my orders."
"Wow!" Wu Youren exclaimed, bewildered. This guy really was a man of action. "Thank you, senior. I really didn't know, but..."
"Would it be... well, a bit too confident of me to go alone?"
He knew the other party was very strong, but it seemed... they had some unspeakable difficulty.
Going into battle alone is not just being arrogant, it's downright suicide!
"Let's go take a look first," Chen Quanxu, but he hadn't actually agreed to join the war.
He stated matter-of-factly, "I only know roughly where they are; I haven't been there in the last few days, so I don't know if anything has changed."
"Then let's go! "Wu Youren didn't refuse and followed the other party's instructions.
He longed to fight them head-on, but unfortunately, the conditions weren't right before.
But after walking for a while, he couldn't help but ask, "Senior, would it be convenient for you to lend a hand?"
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"You want me to deal with a few small fry?" The snake may be small, but it has quite the big mouth.
"This is your own grudge. I can cooperate with you, but there's no need to fuss over such a trivial matter!"
"Did you really go to great lengths to ask Hong Yan for help? Don't just casually ask high-level cultivators for their help."
"The fact that I can tell you my location is already an indication of cooperation... Even if I die one day, you don't need to seek revenge!"
Wu Youren remained silent for a long time before finally replying, "If you die for your country, I will avenge you!"
"Don't you dare talk to me about state affairs!" The Little Snake reacted extremely violently, as if someone had stepped on its tail.
"We're from the same hometown. If you find you can't win, we can just retreat."
Fellow villagers cheating each other will be without mercy! The young man didn't want to delve into this phrase.
Since the other party wasn't being rigid, he boldly made a request, "If we can't win, we'll definitely retreat. Senior, could you help me remember their aura?"
"I told you, don't speak lightly," Chen Quanxu was indeed a meticulous person.
"Helping you remember people is a small matter, but... let's see what happens today first."
The location of the Dark Night Execution Team left Wu Youren speechless: it was only about ten kilometers away from Red Pine's quarantine point.
"We're barely outside the Martial Academy!"
"Why do you think I look down on them?" Chen Quanxu said dismissively.
"Trash is trash. It can only disgust you a little. Sending them to the battlefield? If they don't pee their pants, they're just not drinking enough water!"
Wu Youren remained silent for a while before speaking, "This bunch of trash has bullied me for eight whole years!"
He was deliberately cultivating his killing intent—he would act if he could, and try his best not to let his seniors underestimate him.
"They have the entire Liang behind them!" Chen Quanxu seemed to enjoy arguing. "You're in the thick of it, so you should just bear with it!"
This time, however, Wu Youren wasn't going to hold back. "Senior, you were in the thick of it back then, didn't you?"
"I'm not like you," Chen Quanxu, neither angry nor offering an explanation.
After a while, he sighed, "How the hell do I have your luck?"
Wu Youren rushed over, tiptoeing, and with the added drizzle, it took him more than three hours.
The camp where Dark Night was located was actually quite large, resembling a shelter.
However, Chen Quanxu that this was the headquarters of the entire Court of State Ceremonial, with envoys on duty to mediate disputes and relay information from lower levels to higher levels.
These are the officially registered staff. Dark Night is responsible for protecting the rotating envoys and also for dealing with some ignorant barbarians.
"There are several observation points in the vicinity under the cover of Dark Night," Chen Quanxu finally revealed his true purpose.
"One Knight at each observation point, and two or three Knight Apprentice... You don't actually lack that much courage, do you?"
"This... we still need to be careful," the boy said, a smile already appearing on his face, but he deliberately tried to appear calm.
"Then what do you mean by pinching the tiger's mouth of your right hand with your left hand?" The Little Snake on the wrist guard on the left hand was clearly visible.
"Uh, Zhuge Youren was cautious Youren whole life. Never mind, let's not talk about this anymore. Time is running out, we need to hurry."
There were multiple observation points set up under cover of Dark Night, the furthest being two kilometers away from the office.
This place is closer to the mountains, and the forces here are quite strong, consisting of one Knight and four apprentices, and they even have two guards on duty at night!
Wu Youren let it go for the time being, not because he lacked courage, but because he wanted to find out where the burly man Salim was first.
Ever since he entered Red Pine, the other party has been trying every means to make things difficult for him, and he cannot let this grudge go unavenged.
If Chen Quanxu hadn't been there before, he wouldn't have known where the other party was; otherwise, he definitely wouldn't have held out until today.
Fortunately, he spotted Salim at the third observation point.
This location is less than one kilometer from the office, and there are three people there.
One Knight Apprentice was on night watch, while Salim and another Knight Apprentice were dozing in the semi-underground shelter.
The shelter is not small; it can accommodate five to six people to rest without feeling crowded.
In other words, the current situation is likely not that the venue is at full capacity.
"It's him," Wu Youren sensed the other person's presence, "He didn't even go out... Heh."
"Let's get him!" the Little Snake declared decisively. "I can help you mask your senses a bit."
"It's too goal-oriented," Wu Youren said, noting that he was able to control his emotions.
"I'd like to take out the observation point of those five people first, and at least kill the two on night duty. Do you have any suggestions, senior?"
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Chapter 179 Why Bother (Fourth Update)
"You..." Chen Quanxu hesitated for a moment upon hearing this, probably because he didn't quite approve of this battle plan.
But in the end, he sighed, "You're more reliable. Take out those two. I'll use hallucination on the other three."
This wasn't because Wu Youren forced him; rather, it was because he had previously explained how he had killed that Namuzha.
He didn't directly participate in the battle at the time; he just used some hallucinogenic techniques.
As a result, Namuzha died two kilometers away, and the battle traces showed that he was indeed killed by the barbarians' self-destruction.
However, Chen Quanxu's explanation was, "If I hadn't affected his perception, how could the broken bone have slashed his throat?"
The boy showed no doubt about his statement, so it would be inappropriate for him not to take action now.
The two Knight Apprentice duty were either drowsy or lacking energy.
It's true that there are two guards, but they both want to have a companion, and the strange situation here... isn't really that serious.
Before they knew it, the two lost consciousness, and didn't even feel a chill on their necks.
Wu Youren carried the two corpses to a distance of 500 meters, raised his hand and made a few gestures, causing the soil on the ground to slowly churn.
"Traditional method," the Little Snake said, showing little surprise this time.
After a pause, it began to nitpick, "It feels a bit lacking; the energy doesn't really resemble that of Ability User."
"He's just Ability User," the young man chuckled softly. "It's all deceptive, let the other side have a headache."
As the two were talking, their bodies were swallowed up by the churning mud.
The boy didn't bury the body too deep, only about seven or eight meters. It's unlikely that Knight- level Weird Race Weird Transformation.
However, this is not the root cause; Wu Youren could not possibly have any manners towards the Liang.
Most importantly: apart from Ability User, very few martial artists would be so bored as to dig such a deep hole.
The three people in the shelter were still fast asleep, completely unaware of what was happening outside.
Chen Quanxu warned, "You have ten to fifteen minutes left, otherwise it will be difficult to get back before dawn!"
"It might go over time... so be it," Wu Youren decided. "Don't rush me, senior. I have my own pace."
"If you're not worried, why should I be?" the Little Snake said, indicating that it was very calm.
The boy tiptoed to Salim's observation post and quietly subdued the night watchman who was dozing off.
This man was probably around thirty years old, but aside from being Knight Apprentice, his vigilance on night duty was really lacking.
Wu Youren truly understood why Chen Quanxu these people in such contempt!
He's really just a master at torturing people; his performance on the battlefield is even worse than that of a raw recruit!
The latter at least knows that they are facing a life-or-death test, while the former will only think, "My workplace has changed today; it's a bit dangerous!"
After subduing the night watchman, the boy spent fifteen minutes silently breaching the shelter's defenses.
To be honest, while the Life and Death Knot isn't particularly strong in combat, they're incredibly adept at using all sorts of hidden traps and mechanisms.
Fortunately, Wu Youren had a clear objective: to enter silently.
Even if he noticed some insidious traps, he simply ignored them as long as they didn't get in his way.
Compared to other Knight Apprentice, Salim was noticeably more alert; it was unclear whether this was due to having done too many bad things or simply a higher level of professionalism.
Wu Youren threw a heavy punch, but just as it was about to hit the burly man, the man suddenly opened his eyes.
Almost at the same moment, he raised his hand and pulled out the kukri from under his pillow.
Unfortunately, that's all he could do.
Although Wu Youren's punch was silent, it was incredibly powerful and carried the vibration of internal energy.
That punch stunned him for at least five or six seconds, leaving only a vague thought in his mind, "Enemy attack!"
He wanted to shout a warning, but alas... his professional habits wouldn't allow it!
For soldiers and ordinary martial artists, issuing a timely warning is an instinctive reaction, but for those engaged in intelligence work, it's something they can't do in the dark.
Before he could react, Wu Youren delivered two more heavy punches and casually inserted two needles into his chest.
Ironically, the poison needle... was something he had just seized; all the members of the Life and Death Knot carried these things with them.
It won't kill you, but it can instantly paralyze your nerves. Even Great Knight could be affected if he's careless.
Wu Youren was already very careful to control the noise, but those three punches, each landing squarely, still made quite a commotion.
Especially in this enclosed space, it's at least a bit louder than snoring.
The Knight Apprentice, who was a light sleeper, was awakened immediately.
What's really funny is that he actually chose to pretend to sleep, while subtly reaching under his pillow.
He didn't realize that his momentary pause in breathing had already betrayed him.
But even if he knew, it didn't matter anymore. The next moment, his head jolted violently, and he lost consciousness.
His last thought in this world was, "Code of Conduct for Intelligence Personnel"... It misled me!
Wu Youren's four punches were incredibly fast.
Although the fourth punch prioritized speed, it inevitably lacked power, but it still killed the opponent.
The Knight Apprentice's head was still intact, but if you cut it open, the inside would be a complete mess.
Wu Youren spent half a minute quickly cleaning up the battlefield.
His main target was the other person's personal belongings; he didn't touch anything else.
Even so, he almost got cut by the blade once, but fortunately he used his internal energy and avoided being cut.
There was some gain, a dozen or so silver dollars... What a damn poor bastard, no wonder he wasn't so eager to squeeze himself dry!
However, it was mostly just complaining; Wu Youren knew very well that these people couldn't possibly be short of money!
People who don't carry money with them are simply looking to freeload; they can keep their own money at home.
Liu Jingming once said that at the Red Pine Martial Academy, the extortion using the Life and Death Knot was not limited to the hostages of the Jin.
They could also secretly stir up trouble for other foreign students if they encountered any problems.
Huh? There's also a Resentment Qi Crystal. This trip... was worth it!
Under the Knight Apprentice's pillow was a crossbow.
Wu Youren initially didn't want to move it because it was so rare, but then he thought it wouldn't be appropriate, so he stomped on it and put it in his backpack.
"Are you stuffed?" the Little Snake muttered. "What a waste of time."
A few seconds later, Wu Youren, carrying a large backpack and Salim in his hand, quietly disappeared into the rainy night.
After running for nearly a kilometer, he relaxed a little and then explained in a low voice.
"If I don't take away this kind of insidious weapon, the investigators will assume that the murderer might not be able to use it conveniently!"
"Holy crap..." Chen Quanxu that sentence.
After a long silence, he muttered, "You're quite the expert now. Back then... I wasn't as good as you!"
He was genuinely moved, thinking back to when he had been so careful; he probably wouldn't have ended up like this.
Wu Youren casually replied, "How could I possibly commit a crime? I've been carefully guarding this for eight years, living such a stifling life... Sigh, I'm not going to talk about it."
He genuinely believed that the Jin Garden guards faced less survival pressure than the hostages, but there was no need to say it aloud.
The real reason he needed to ask for help was, "Senior, is there a secluded spot nearby?"
Chen Quanxu, being a genius after all, quickly composed himself. "You want to interrogate him?"
"You always have to torture him a little," the boy replied calmly. "He said he wanted to make me experience a fate worse than death."
"Torture... Hmm, easy enough," the Little Snake flicked its tongue and quickly identified a spot.
Half an hour later, Wu Youren arrived at a place with a lot of rubble.
The boy first released the two corpses from his backpack, causing the rocks to churn and bring up some sand and soil from the ground.
Only after seeing both corpses sink did he put Salim down and sever his tendons in his hands and feet.
Next, the sand continued to churn, burying the person up to chest height, when the person finally slowly opened their eyes.
Salim had woken up earlier, but his whole body was numb and his head was spinning, so he couldn't muster any strength.
Even now, his gaze was unfocused; he could only hear soft voices speaking.
"What interrogation techniques do you have? I can offer some."
"The interrogation... will probably be quite difficult," Wu Youren replied thoughtfully.
The other party is indeed worth interrogating, for example, about which hostages from the Jin have problems, and what new developments have occurred between the two countries recently.
However, he did not believe that Salim's ability to bully the weak and fear the strong necessarily made him a spineless coward—it's wrong to underestimate intelligence personnel like that.
The key point is that time is of the essence for him now; "let's just torture him a little."
It was that hostage from Jin! Salim finally recognized the voice.
He tried hard to focus his gaze, but he still felt somewhat powerless.
He couldn't even speak; he could only make low gurgling sounds from his throat.
He saw it; he vaguely recognized the other person's shadow—a very familiar figure.
But he couldn't sense where that faint voice was coming from; he could only hear the other person speaking.
"That makes things even easier. There are a few parasitic wasps in the tree a hundred meters away; let them lay their eggs on him."
"Will it be enough time for the eggs to lay?" The boy's voice held a hint of doubt. "Isn't the time too tight?"
"Have you forgotten what I do?" a soft voice said. "Don't worry, ripening crops is also one of my skills."
"But are you really not going to ask?"
"I won't ask anymore," the boy said, disappearing in a flash. "He'll definitely keep it to himself, why waste time?"
"I can answer..." Salim's throat gurgled again!
Unfortunately, he still couldn't speak. Had the dosage of that poison needle ever been this strong before?
The next moment, the boy turned around, squatted down, and revealed his youthful face.
Salim blinked hard, trying to convey a pleading look.
I may have been wrong to make things difficult for you in the past, but that was just my job!
We're all just trying to make a living, supporting our families. Why make things difficult for other humans?
(4 chapters, 12,000 words. Please subscribe, vote with monthly tickets, and recommend this page.)