Chapter 212: Harvest

Chapter 212 Harvest

Hearing Li Huowang's inquiry, Bai Lingmiao nodded and said softly, "That female general had a token. Previously, Gou Wa thought it was gold, but turned out it was copper. He said it wasn't worth much."

"A token? Bring it over for me to see."

Soon the object appeared before Li Huowang. It was some sort of square copper plaque. From the name and military rank upon it, one could see it was used to prove Peng Longteng's identity.

"There is a tiger head seal on the plaque. This thing should be a military waist token." Li Huowang pressed his hand on the tiger head pattern on the token, then told Bai Lingmiao to put it away.

Better safe than sorry. Perhaps this thing would truly prove useful in the future. Even if it proved useless, it was merely carrying a token. It wouldn't weigh that much.

That so-called Heavenly Book of Dan Yangzi was much heavier than this thing, equally useless all along, yet he still carried it by his side.

"By the way, Senior Brother Li, she also had a book on her. None of us can read, so Gao Zhijian took the book to look at it."

"A book?" Li Huowang, who had just relaxed his vigilance, instantly became alert. "Bring that book over."

Bai Lingmiao immediately lifted the curtain and walked over, but after a moment, she returned somewhat hesitantly.

"Zhijian said that book is just a treatise on military strategy. There is nothing worth seeing."

"He refuses to give it? Call him over. I will speak to him personally." Li Huowang's newly risen suspicion grew heavier. If it was just ordinary military strategy, what was he hiding?

When Gao Zhijian, wrapped in bandages and pale-faced, appeared before him, Li Huowang looked at him seriously and spoke.

"I know regarding Peng Longteng's kind of immense strength, and some of the supernatural abilities she possessed, you might greatly crave them. But some things carry risks. Perhaps improper handling will cost you your life. Do you understand what I mean?"

Li Huowang suspected that the book recorded Peng Longteng's cultivation method, and that Gao Zhijian was secretly cultivating it.

Having experienced so much, he understood long ago that gaining some kind of power through cultivation without paying any price simply did not exist in this mad world.

To gain something, one must pay something. Any cultivation technique was extremely dangerous. He did not want one day for Gao Zhijian to become another Peng Longteng.

"This... is... is... is just military strategy." Gao Zhijian said somewhat aggrieved.

"If it is military strategy, then what are you hiding? Let me see!"

After hesitating for a moment, Gao Zhijian finally handed over the book in his hand.

"Jiang Yuan." This was the name of the book.

Li Huowang used his charred fingers to open the rough paper. The content presented itself before him. "Generally, the method of employing troops involves the general receiving the mandate from the ruler, assembling the army and gathering the masses. Do not lodge in difficult terrain, join forces in intersecting terrain, do not linger in dead-end terrain, devise plans in enclosed terrain, fight in death terrain. There are roads not to traverse, armies not to strike, cities not to besiege, grounds not to contest, commands of the ruler not to obey..."

"Truly military strategy?" Li Huowang felt very surprised. He looked up at Gao Zhijian, then carefully flipped through it once more.

Although the content was obscure and difficult to understand, and towards the end Li Huowang found it very strenuous to read, he flipped through it all and discovered this was indeed just a book on military strategy.

"Snap!" The book closed. Li Huowang looked at Gao Zhijian with puzzlement, "Since it is just an ordinary broken book, why are you so concerned about it?"

"Good... good... looks good..." Gao Zhijian extended his thick hands and took it from Li Huowang's hand.

At this moment Li Huowang saw his wound seeping blood again, and hurriedly said, "Hurry back and lie down. Read it after the injury heals."

Gao Zhijian nodded with a silly smile, hugged the book, and turned to leave.

Seeing him leave, Bai Lingmiao hurriedly picked up a thin quilt from the side and covered Li Huowang with it. "Senior Brother Li, your injuries are so severe. Don't worry about these matters anymore. Health is paramount. Rest first."

Li Huowang also wanted to sleep, but the excruciating pain on his back caused by the Da Qian Lu left him with no sleepiness whatsoever.

He stared blankly at the ceiling above his head, his mind empty, not knowing what to think.

After a while, he spoke opening his mouth, "Miao Miao, help me sit up. I want to look outside."

Bai Lingmiao obviously did not want to do this, but under Li Huowang's urging, ultimately she still complied.

The carriage curtain was lifted. Outside, a patch of green grass that refreshed the heart made Li Huowang's heart feel as comfortable as drinking a large mouthful of cool boiled water in summer. The grass brushed by wisps of gentle breeze undulated like silk.

"Is this Qing Qiu? The scenery is much better than before."

Hearing Li Huowang's words, Bai Lingmiao beside him nodded. "I heard my father say that to the left of Liang Kingdom is Qing Qiu. Also heard the horses here are good, and the sheep are good too."

Li Huowang nodded. "Green I have seen. Where is the Hill?"

This question, Bai Lingmiao who had never traveled far obviously could not answer.

"Which people among us are locals of Qing Qiu?" Li Huowang asked.

"Sun Baolu is. Also... one junior brother, two Daoist acolytes. But they are all dead."

Li Huowang sighed. "Find out their addresses. We will send them back to their roots to rest like falling leaves."

Along this journey, there had been too many deaths and injuries.

"Mm, but I heard people here in Qing Qiu do not bury the deceased in the earth. We can ask Sun Baolu later."

Bai Lingmiao spoke for a long time, but discovered Li Huowang did not respond to her. She looked with puzzlement, discovering the other party frozen in place, eyes widened greatly.

He seemed to have seen something shocking, but outside besides grass clearly there was nothing!

"Senior Brother Li, how are you--" These words were only half spoken, when she saw Li Huowang, covered in wounds, suddenly grab the long sword and jump out of the window, falling onto the ground.

Under this impact, his charred left leg like a withered tree branch, "Snap" shattered, and cracks appeared all over his body.

Li Huowang paid no heed to these, holding the sword single-handedly aimed at his left arm, looking ready to chop down at any moment.

Gou Wa, the closest, rushed up quickly, hugging Li Huowang's sword-holding arm. Anxiously he shouted at the companions beside him, "Quick, bring chains! Senior Brother Li is having an episode again!!"

Li Huowang turned his neck stiffly towards Gou Wa beside him. "Can you not see it?"

"Ah?" Gou Wa looked blank. "See what?"

Hearing the other party say this, Li Huowang's body softened, directly collapsing powerlessly onto the soft grass.

Head resting on the ground, Li Huowang's single eye moved upward. The headless Peng Longteng, visible only to him, stood there like a statue. A huge shadow covered his entire person.

The battle armor on Peng Longteng seemed burned dark red by fire. Some blood flowed out from the gaps in the armor. It looked completely like she had come from the battlefield where she fought Li Huowang previously.

"Why has she become my hallucination? Why?" Li Huowang constantly pondered this question.

At this time, he suddenly saw something moving behind Peng Longteng.

It was Jin Shan Zhao. Jin Shan Zhao with only an upper body. Rotten internal organs flowed out from his abdominal cavity, dragging on the ground for a very, very long distance.

Just as Li Huowang was being tied up with chains by other senior and junior brothers in a flurry of activity, and lifted towards the ox cart, he saw Jin Shan Zhao open his mouth, seeming to want to say something to him.

"What exactly do you want to say?"

Jin Shan Zhao's stiff jaw constantly opened and closed, but from his mouth no sound could be emitted.

(End of Chapter)