Chapter 132: I, Qin Shi Huang! v50!

Listening to Swallow’s speculation, a relatively short and plump young man among the crowd couldn’t help but affirm.

“Indeed, if it’s a garrison mission, the Black Scale Army has no reason to mobilize in large numbers against a bunch of passerby. Even if the preceding battle alarmed them, sending just a few scouts to check would suffice. But that general…”

“Yeah, he seemed as if he wanted to encircle some utterly vicious bandits, bringing out so many people and strongly labeling us as rioters. It’s almost like he was looking for an excuse for his own bizarre behavior.”

Swallow naturally picked up the conversation.

“That’s why I said the real problem lies with that Black Scale Army officer. To put it bluntly, he’s just looking for trouble, or rather, picking a fight on purpose.”

The somewhat subtle term “picking a fight” made everyone frown slightly, and Shangguan Yao, who had completely recovered from the blinding effect, spoke coldly.

“Why is he doing this?”

“…I don’t know. The above are just my inferences based on observations. If we really want to figure this out, we might need to come into contact with him again.”

The girl pondered for a moment, seemingly organizing her following words, and soon Swallow added.

“But honestly, even though he’s being unreasonable and looking for trouble, it’s clear that he’s not specifically targeting us. He probably didn’t care about us or Miss Hen at all at the beginning. He’s just… simply looking for something to do, to pass the time.”

Then, she modified her description.

“No… maybe saying he’s trying to stall for time is more appropriate?”

“Stall for time? What time are we stalling?”

In response to a companion’s follow-up question, the girl with the braided hair just shook her head slightly.

“I already said it’s just speculation. I’m not a deity; without any clues or basis, I can’t just see through the true nature of all events…”

As if to conclude and end the discussion, Swallow turned her gaze to the middle-aged man who had been quietly listening throughout.

“Teacher Mu, what do you think?”

The other party seemed satisfied, nodding and smiling.

“Although I’m the supervising teacher, according to regulations, I’ll only provide assistance if enemies surpass your capabilities significantly. What happened just now was already an exception.”

“So, unless necessary, I won’t provide any opinions. Just like you decided to challenge those few earlier.”

“Since there’s about two days before the Endless Ruins Sea opens, you can take this time to recuperate and wait quietly, or do something of interest on your own. It’s entirely up to you to discuss internally.”

The young people exchanged glances, and Shangguan Hong didn’t immediately express an opinion, just shaking his head regretfully.

“It’s all that Black Scale Army’s fault for suddenly causing trouble. We didn’t even get to truly compete with those few. The promise to share information about the Endless Ruins Sea is probably also hard to keep now. What a bummer. I wonder how they’re doing…”

Swallow consoled him.

“Senior Brother doesn’t need to worry. Those few have their own hidden methods, and the mere Black Scale Army shouldn’t be able to handle them. Since everyone’s goal is the Endless Ruins Sea, we’ll meet again by fate. It’s not too late to discuss then.”

“Ah… I hope so.”

……

Soon after, night fell.

In the western part of Xinchuan County in Dongyuanzhi Kingdom, in the Black Scale Army camp in the Wangxi Basin.

“What? Didn’t catch them? Useless! All of you are useless! Over a thousand Black Scale Iron Riders on this official road, and you can’t even catch a mere ten foot-moving rioters? What good are you?!”

Inside the main tent, the Black Scale Army’s cavalry captain, who clashed with the Divine Cult and Miss Vilyric earlier and tried to capture them, was angrily berating his subordinates who returned empty-handed. It seemed that even after all this time, his anger had yet to subside.

Within the tent, several soldiers from the Black Scale Army looked down silently, not saying a word.

Though they harbored many grievances, this person was the temporary commander of the camp, and it would be unwise to clash with him. Even if they intended to report him later, they’d need to wait until the higher-ups emerged.

After a barrage of expletives, the general finally seemed to calm down somewhat, no longer fixating on the now-vanished “rioters”, and shifted to another topic.

“Any movements at the tomb?”

The Black Scale soldiers exchanged glances, and after a while, one finally shook his head.

“No, the general has been inside the tomb for two whole days now, with no news. None of the brothers have come out to deliver messages. Do we need to send out reinforcements, Commander Cheng?”

The man called Commander Cheng immediately scolded.

“Nonsense! The ancient tomb that has existed for at least a thousand years contains dangers beyond your imagination. Charging in blindly would be like sending yourselves to death!”

“The general instructed before leaving that this should take at least two or three days at the quickest and no more than ten days. If they haven’t returned in ten days, then we can request assistance from the Holy Cult. We’re not even at the shortest deadline yet, so how can we act recklessly?”

“Yes…”

After scolding his subordinates, Commander Cheng impatiently waved his hand.

“Alright, you may all leave. Remind the troops to stay on alert and ensure that no unauthorized personnel enter the ancient tomb. Report immediately if there are any developments. Understood?”

“Yes!”

Several soldiers turned to leave, their footsteps gradually fading.

“…”

Commander Cheng surveyed the now-empty tent for a moment, then retrieved something from an inconspicuous corner.

It was an ancient and broken stone tablet.

It looked like this tablet had broken off from some larger whole; although the material was unclear, a barely perceptible, unusual vibration slowly seeped out from it, giving a deep, unfathomable feeling.

He placed his finger on the tablet, lowering his voice to speak carefully with a reverence completely different from when facing the soldiers.

“My lord… according to your instruction, I found a random excuse today to temporarily take most of the Black Scale Army out of the camp, and delayed as much as possible outside. I wonder if you’ve made any progress?”

After a moment, a response that was impossible to discern gender or age, completely neutral, slowly rippled up from the stone tablet.

“You’ve done well. Taking advantage of today’s weak defense, I’ve successfully contacted some old friends. Once they hear the news, they’re sure to come to support, providing me a way out.”

“Rest assured, I keep my word. I will not break promises. As long as I can unlock that wench’s seal and reclaim all my power, not only will I secure your position as a mere cavalry captain, but replacing that general as the overall commander of the Black Scale Army will be a piece of cake!”

Reassured again by the presence within the stone tablet, Commander Cheng’s anxiety seemed to lessen considerably, and he immediately nodded respectfully.

“Yes, yes… I will certainly do my utmost to assist you, serving you to the best of my abilities. However, today when I went out, there was a strange kid who was hard to deal with. A few words nearly caught me off guard, and I might have revealed some flaws, though I managed to dodge it…”

As he spoke, worry appeared on Commander Cheng’s face.

“But will these Black Scale soldiers discover that I am not the original Cheng Zhenwu? After all, I look nothing like him. Though your powers are indeed formidable, enabling them to believe my fake identity, if there’s a noticeable difference in behavior over time…”

“…”

The will within the tablet paused for a moment but did not immediately respond.

   

---