Chapter 2072: Subduing the Enemy's Army Without Fighting

Lu Qinglin couldn't help but ask, "What about He Xiao?"

"How would I know?" Fu Shanlie scratched the back of his head, unconcerned. "He can roll off wherever he wants. The Yangshan Archipelago has already changed hands; it's no longer surnamed He. Even if he returns to Yangshan now, he'd still have to pay me a toll!"

Qi Chuanqing said sternly, "King Chiyan, you are recklessly provoking war! This is a grave matter; please think thrice."

Fu Shanlie crossed his arms and looked at him. "You've talked for half a day, but who the hell are you?"

Lu Qinglin said, "This is Qi Chuanqing, the newly appointed Hall Scholar of the Futai Pavilion!"

"Oh, a fill-in."

Fu Shanyue stood in the back row of the crowd, silently touching his nose. How did the old man manage to humiliate someone to the absolute extreme using just a flat, ordinary tone and three flat, ordinary words?

He still hasn't learned how to do it.

Qi Chuanqing had excellent self-restraint; his expression didn't change, only the muscles of his jaw silently tightening.

"In any case, the Yangshan Archipelago is now surnamed Fu. You can only blame yourselves for arriving too late." The moment Fu Shanlie spoke these words, Lu Qinglin knew he had seen through his purpose:

To seize back the Yangshan Archipelago.

Lu Qinglin's reasoning was that He Xiao had used deceptive means back then to trick Does Bailie into signing an unequal agreement; therefore, that scrap of paper was void, and the Lu family wanted to reclaim their real estate.

King Chiyan's approach was actually no different from his — just sending troops to forcibly seize the Yangshan Archipelago.

However, Lu Qinglin still needed to find a pretext; King Chiyan was more crude and uncivilized, too lazy to even find a reason, directly planting his flag and acting as the Mountain Island King.

"Now I'll give you two choices. One: we fight directly. Bring it on. As long as you beat the fleet behind me, you can seize back the Yangshan Archipelago." Fu Shanlie raised two fingers. "Two: you obediently go back and report. Whatever line the Mou Emperor wants to draw, Beijia will certainly accompany him to the end!"

Lu Qinglin immediately looked at Qi Chuanqing.

This was no longer a private grudge between the Does Bailie Lu family and He Xiao, but a conflict between the two great powers of the current era! What standing did he have, what qualification did he have, to overstep his authority?

Qi Chuanqing obviously didn't have that qualification either.

Lu Qinglin said softly to Qi Chuanqing, "Lord Qi, King Chiyan possesses the ability of dual earth-water evasion."

This old Ba is just as formidable in water as on land.

Water combat is completely different from land combat; setting aside the other great powers and monsters on the enemy fleet, both Fu Shanlie and King Yinhui are natural-born masters of water manipulation.

Fu Shanlie across the way raised his head, sniffed a few times into the wind, and suddenly laughed. "Lu Dongxian, you old goods, did you think hiding in the crowd meant I wouldn't detect you?"

As soon as his voice fell, someone behind Qi Chuanqing threw off their hooded robe. Their beard and hair were completely white, a wound running from the left eye to the right cheek — a gruesome sight.

His one good eye glared at Fu Shanlie. "Old walking corpse, your face is full of death qi; you won't stay imposing for long!"

"I'm a dead man to begin with; you think I fear your curse?" Fu Shanlie looked at his left hand, admiring claws longer than nails. "All these years, you still like the hairstyle I gave you."

Lu Dongxian's single eye narrowed, killing intent erupting.

Qi Chuanqing hurriedly turned sideways and bowed slightly. "Lord Lu, don't fall for the enemy's goading."

At this moment the troops on the Chiyan ship parted, and several people walked up behind Fu Shanlie. Lu Qinglin recognized two familiar faces — both were King Chiyan's capable lieutenants. Besides them, there were also a fierce tiger, a giant wild boar, and other great yaoguai, all eyeing them covetously.

Qi Chuanqing said in a loud voice, "King Chiyan, on a whim you want to plunge the relations between Beijia and the Mou Empire into irreparable disaster! This karmic debt, Chiyan may not be able to bear!"

Fu Shanlie chuckled. "Then I won't trouble you to worry about it."

Starting a war now would be rashly opening hostilities behind the Mou Empire's back; Qi Chuanqing couldn't shoulder this responsibility, so he cupped his fists at him in salute. "We'll meet again!"

Then he turned and ordered Lu Qinglin. "Turn around and return to port."

If only the Chiyan army were on the island, Lu Qinglin could still launch an attack on the pretext of "not knowing"; but with King Chiyan present, the situation instantly escalated. Once Lu Qinglin attacked him, this sea battle would immediately upgrade to a war between nations!

Without a doubt, this had already exceeded the scope Lu Qinglin and Qi Chuanqing could handle. This battle couldn't be fought; they had to immediately report to the Mou Emperor.

This fleet turned and left, soon disappearing into the haze.

The grand formation on the bow also dispersed. King Siwen hummed twice. "Disperse, disperse. Back to the island for food!"

Fu Shanyue shaded his eyes with his hand, watching the enemy ships' silhouettes vanish with reluctance, so angry he kept slamming the deck.

"Dead old man, you stole my scene, stole my limelight!"

He and He Lingchuan had secretly prepared for so long; all this glory on the field should have been his!

The lines he'd prepared beforehand were awesome — far more imposing than the old man's!

Who knew the old man would actually come with the army, and instantly snatch control of the confrontation into his own hands.

And this dead old man quietly hid in the ranks, didn't tell him beforehand, and popped out to steal the show right before battle! The moment Fu Shanyue saw him, his feet slipped in fright; he nearly fell flat on his back.

That traitor Peach, laughing heartlessly on the side.

His meticulously prepared lines — not a single sentence was spoken. This matter is over, finished!

Fu Shanlie withdrew his momentum; though his back remained straight, the imposing founding Yaowang instantly turned back into a man of sixty.

He coughed several times, cleared his throat, then said, "Could you have deterred them? You've never even fought a real battle!"

Fu Shanyue pouted, struck at his fatal weakness.

His cultivation was formidable, but he indeed had never been on a real battlefield, only led troops in drills a few times.

But for today's battle, he had planned for a long time, and He Lingchuan had given him many pointers.

How could Fu Shanlie not know what his son was thinking? "That surnamed He daring to entrust Yangshan to you to guard — he really ate a bear's heart and leopard's gall!"

Young people these days, how is each one bolder than the last?

His son was already utterly shameless, and that He Xiao was even more audacious, acting recklessly!

Most amazing of all: one dares to give, the other dares to take!

Such a huge Yangshan Archipelago, a superb strategic location — how would the Mou Empire give it up easily?

"Turn around and return to the island." At Fu Shanlie's command, the fleet slowly turned, heading back to the Yangshan Archipelago. "For a short time, the Mou Empire won't dare send troops again."

Both Fu Shanlie and his son knew very well that although the army behind Lu Qinglin wore Does Bailie armor, they were actually Mou Empire soldiers!

Don't think just because they changed shells, they wouldn't recognize them.

Fu Shanyue laughed. "Having eaten this loss, the Mou Empire will be furious enough to jump."

"That old thing Mou Emperor is still as insidious as ever." Fu Shanlie instructed him. "Since He Xiao has already yielded this archipelago, after returning to the island, have people replace all of Yangshan's flags with Chiyan's, formally announcing the change of ownership. The Mou Empire won't give up; they'll definitely send people to investigate the island."

Fu Shanyue agreed with a hum, then added, "Hey old man, did you really have to make this trip?"