Wu Jian dropped Blonde’s heart and rushed over to Zhou Lihua. She couldn’t see past his mask as he knelt beside her, but she could somehow tell he was staring at her leg.

“A-are you okay? That looks really painful…”

“I’m… not fine, but I will be. Can you help me snap my leg back into place?”

“Mmm. It’s gonna hurt, so bite down on this.”

Wu Jian summoned a cloth, twisted it up, and gave it to Zhou Lihua, who stuck it inside of her mouth and clamped down. He reached out and tenderly placed his hand against her leg. He tilted his head. She could see his eyes staring at her through the eyeholes.

“Are you ready?”

Zhou Lihua nodded once and closed her eyes. She couldn’t see it anymore, but she could certainly feel Wu Jian’s hand on her leg and thigh. A second passed. Then two. When was he going to do this? The wait was killing her. Just as she was about to ask if he’d hurry up, excruciating pain lanced through her leg. Her muffled cry still echoed around them as tears stung her eyes.

“It’s done.”

Zhou Lihua opened her eyes to find her leg had been straightened, though her kneecap was still a mess. She summoned a Bone-Mending Pill and popped it into her mouth. She swallowed. Seconds later, the pill activated and healed her broken bones. The kneecap, which had looked like a misshapen lump, once more became smooth.

“Can you stand?”

“Yeah… I think so.”

Wu Jian stood up and offered Zhou Lihua his hand. She took it and allowed him to pull her up, though her legs gave out after she stood.

“Whoa.” Wu Jian caught her in his arms, then lifted her up like she was a princess. “It seems you can’t stand quite yet.”

“Yeah. I guess I’m a bit more shaken than I thought.”

“It’s no problem. This is your first real battle, isn’t it?”

“Yes. I’ve never been in a life or death struggle before.”

As a member of the Zhou Clan, she wasn’t allowed to become involved with the affairs of other nations. When the Wu Clan was being attacked by the combined force of the Ming Clan, Juishi Clan, and Great Tiger Sect, she was forced to remain inside of her mansion. When Hou Jingshu left for the White Tiger Sect Ruins, she wasn’t allowed to go. She had never been put in a situation where her life was truly in jeopardy.

This lack of experience had really come back to bite her. Blonde had almost captured her. Zhou Lihua shuddered to think about what might have happened if she managed that. She would have no doubt used her as a hostage to force Wu Jian into surrendering, and they both would have been hauled off.

She also knew that apologies were meaningless here, and that Wu Jian wouldn’t blame her, which was why she didn’t say sorry.

“Thank you for saving me back there, my hero,” Zhou Lihua said into his ear. She smiled when his ear turned red.

“It… was no trouble,” he muttered.

“No, no. You really saved my life. I have to repay you somehow. What would you like from me? Oh! I know! How about I provide you with some sexual satisfaction? I’m sure you must be frustrated because you haven’t slept with Hou Jingshu in so long. We can’t have sex, but we can still do other things.”

“You’re not even trying to hide your intentions anymore, are you? You used to be much more sly.”

Zhou Lihua had also dropped subtle innuendo when they were younger. He still remembered the first time she offered to “show off” her bed to him.

“Well… I don’t think subtle will work on your anymore. You’re no longer a child. If I want to get a reaction from you, I need to be a bit more obvious.”

“What if I decide to take you up on your offer?”

“That would make me happy too.”

“… Of course it would.” Wu Jian sighed and Zhou Lihua giggled. “Well, I’d actually love to do something with you, but we can’t do anything with Master Wong Jiu around.”

“Ugh, I guess that’s true. I didn’t think about that. Maybe we should ditch him?”

“You want to ditch him in this forest? Isn’t that a little cruel?”

“I’m sure he’ll survive. Maybe.”

Before leaving the clearing, Wu Jian grabbed the storage rings on Black and Blonde’s fingers. He also took the profound spirit weapons. The sword was cracked, but it could sell for a lot of they repaired it, and the blonde woman’s gloves would probably fetch a nice price as well. They left soon after. The magical beasts would take care of the corpses.

Master Wong Jiu was waiting in the burrow. They informed him of their success.

“We should head back to the Shang Kingdom,” Wu Jian said as they sat around a fire.

Zhou Lihua agreed. “Given everything that’s happened, I believe the Zhou Kingdom is going to invade the Shang Kingdom, if they haven’t done so already. The Heavenly Sword Sect is distracted by the magical beasts causing chaos in the south-eastern part of the continent. Now is the perfect time to conquer the Shang Kingdom.”

“I’m still having a hard time comprehending this. Suppose it’s all true and the Zhou Kingdom is attempting to conquer us. Do they really think they’ll get away with it?” asked Wu Jian.

“In most circumstances, they probably wouldn’t… but they can if they play their cards right,” Zhou Lihua said. “For example, if they instilled a puppet on the throne, they can avoid the Heavenly Sword Sect coming down on them so long as said puppet has a legitimate claim to the throne.”

Several long seconds stretched out before Wu Jian spoke up. “You’re talking about the two princes? Do you think they would allow this to happen?”

“I don’t want to think they would… but at this point, I would not be surprised if one or both of them were allied with another nation. You know what they are like, especially Hou Gun. That man is a snake.”

Hou Gun did not strike him as a very good person. He displayed no outward hostility, but something about him made Wu Jian wary.

“But why would they ally themselves with another nation?” asked Wu Jian.

Zhou Lihua shrugged. “For power? This is all supposition. However, there are way too many coincidences happening right now for my liking. The Zhou Kingdom army has left the capital and traveled toward the Shang Kingdom, we were attacked on our way home, and the Heavenly Sword Sect is preoccupied dealing with the outfall of an unprecedented situation. I don’t believe this is all just a coincidence. And even if I’m wrong, it is better to assume the worst and hope for the best. I’ll be happier if I’m wrong, but I’ll be prepared for the fallout if I’m right.”

“That’s fair,” Wu Jian said. “And I do agree with you. It’s all too fishy for my tastes. After we’ve rested up, we should head out. Since the Zhou Kingdom army is near The Great Wall, we won’t be able to enter through there. Is there another way to enter the Shang Kingdom?”

“There is, but it’s quite dangerous,” Master Wong Jiu finally spoke up.

“What is it?” asked Zhou Lihua.

“North-west of here is the Ice Phoenix Mountain Range. There is no pass going through, but if we climb the mountain range, we can reach the Shang Kingdom.”

“Can we not fly over?” asked Wu Jian. Both he and Zhou Lihua could fly now. It wouldn’t be hard to carry Master Wong Jiu and fly over.

Master Wong Jiu shook his head. “I’m afraid not. That land is home to many dangerous flying magical beasts, including a flood dragon. It’s sure to spot us if we attempt to fly. We have no choice but to climb the mountain and hope it doesn’t spot us.”

It sounded dangerous, but it would be less dangerous than attempting to slip past the Zhou Kingdom’s army. That was why they unanymously decided to slip climb the mountain. It was already late, so they would begin their journey tomorrow. Hopefully, they would be able to arrive in the Shang Kingdom before the Zhou Kingdom invaded.

***

Even though Cì Chuān wasn’t needed for the invasion, his father still commanded him to meet up with the army. He was an alchemist of some skill. His role in the army was important, and they could not rely on the Alchemist Association since they did not actually belong to the Zhou Kingdom. This was also why their kingdom had their own alchemists and tried not to rely solely on the association for pills. Since they were a nuetral faction that had spread across the continent, they could not be counted on to act in the kingdom’s best interest.

It took several days to reach The Great Wall. He arrived in a carriage to find the gates opened and their army already on the other side. There was no signs of battle. As they arrived, it soon became clear why this was the case. Several men dressed in the armor of the Shang Kingdom military stood alongside the Zhou Kingdom’s soldiers. While a few Shang Kingdom cultivators looked like they were in the presence of something foul, many did not seem to care.

HIs carriage slowed to a stop, and his servants opened the door for him. Cì Chuān stepped out and several people saluted him.

“Welcome, Your Highness,” said a guard.

“Where is my father?”

“He and the first prince are currently with Yong Mihong.”

“Take me to them.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Cì Chuān followed the guard into The Great Wall’s stronghold. He did not approve of the drab interior. There were no decorations to be had in this place. Just gray stone walls as far as the eye could see. What a bore. However, he guessed that was just how things were in a military fortress. He would be very happy once they left this place.

He was led to a large meeting room, where his father and older brother stood next to a middle-aged man with graying hair, wrinkles around his eyes, and a thick beard. That was Yong Mihong. He was a member of the Yong Clan, who had been charged with guarding The Great Wall to prevent the Zhou Kingdom from invading. Unfortunately for the Shang Kingdom, this man had been in his father’s pocket for a long time. It was Cì Chuān who actually helped convince the man to betray his kingdom. Not that it was hard. Yong Mihong was a man who’s lofty ambitions did not match his strength.

Beside the man was a silky-haired femboy with white skin and girly features. If it wasn’t for his broad shoulders, Cì Chuān would have mistaken him for a woman.

“Father, I have arrived,” Cì Chuān announced himself.

“You are late. Get over here. We are already planning our next move,” his father said.

Cì Chuān walked over and stood beside his father on the opposite side of his stoic brother. He wished he could be somewhere else, anywhere else. Unlike these two fools, Cì Chuān had no desire to conquer nations. All he wanted was to conquer women.

Their group stood around a table, upon which sat a detailed map of the Shang Kingdom. Several xiangqi pieces were arrayed on the board. Xiangqi, also known as elephant chess, was a strategy game that mimicked warfare. It was not unusual for pieces to be used when marking enemy and allied forces. Several black and white pieces were already on the map to indicate the forces at play.

“The Burning Flame, Wind-Lightning, and Martial God Pavilions have already made their move and engaged the Shang Kingdom’s armies. However, they were unable to stop the Shang Kingdom from scorching the farmlands between the Ming Province and Imperial Shang Capital.” Yong Mihong pointed at the black pieces stationed near Biānjiè City. “Because they will not be able to secure provisions within the Shang Kingdom, the three pavilions have decided to secure their supply route first. This has allowed the Shang Kingdom to consolidate most of their forces around the capital.” He pointed at Shang Imperial City, which had a white piece located on it.

“It’s only the area between Biānjiè City and the capital that got scorched, right?” Cì Chuān asked. “Can they not take over villages further out?”

“Fool,” Cì Han spat. “If you studied, you would know they lack the manpower to spread their forces so thin. What’s more, most of their cultivators are only at the Anima Realm.”

Cì Chuān shrugged. He didn’t care much for warfare and strategy.

“If they wanted to take over other villages, they would need to split up their Human Limit Realm cultivators and have each one conquer a village. That would stretch them thin and weaken their forces. The Shang Kingdom would not let such an opportunity slip. One Human Limit Realm cultivator might be worth five hundred Asura Realm cultivators, but the Shang Kingdom has several times more cultivators than they do. If they want to have any hope of conquering the Shang Kingdom before the Heavenly Sword Sect gets involved, they must act quickly. Neither they nor we can afford to stretch our forces thin and prolong the conflict.”

“Fortunately, you won’t need to worry about that,” Yong Mihong said with his chest proudly puffed like a peacock. “The area between here and Mencho City is my territory. We have already secured plenty of provisions for your army.”

“Good. Now let us discuss the method of our attack. Ideally, I would like to wait until the Three Great Pavilions are weakened before launching our assault…”

Cì Chuān stopped listening to the conversation. Why was he even here? They should just tell him what pills they wanted him to make so he could move onto better things. His slaves weren’t with him right now, but he had seen a few cute servants on his way here. He could have been seducing one of them, but no, his asexual father had demanded he attend a meeting in which he had no decision making powers.

He did not say anything, of course. His father scared him. The man had no qualms about severely punishing even his own flesh and blood. Cì Chuān had already been beaten enough to know what speaking out of turn would get him.

Just then, a cracking sound echoed around the room. Everyone stopped talking and turned to Cì Chuān, who stared at his necklace, now short two crystals. Those crystals were soul crystals belonging to his slaves. He kept them on his person at all times.

Someone killed my property…

Cì Chuān’s lips thinned as he struggle to contain his emotions. He had sent those two after Zhou Lihua and Jian Wu, which meant their killer was quite obvious.

Those two shall suffer for this.

He no longer cared about his deal with that woman. Jian Wu was a dead man walking. He would destroy that man. As for Zhou Lihua…

I had planned on making you my woman, but since you’re so resistant, I’ll simply make you my cumdump instead. Zhou Lihua… enjoy what little freedom you have left. Once you are in my grasp, I will break you.