Chapter 18

In the inn, the two woke up, they opened their eyes, looking at this place, Feng Yan got up, Chen Hao also got up.

They could no longer tell what was reality and what was a dream; the NPCs in the game had their own thoughts, dying for their own beliefs. Feng Yan thought: 'I must have gone mad, I can't tell these things apart.'

They followed the guards into the imperial palace hall; the king looked at the two below. One appeared very gentle, with a scholar's demeanor; the other had a very fierce aura, his eyes bright, which reminded him of a general he once knew who was extremely brave. Feng Yan looked around; there was nothing luxurious here, none of the so-called decorations of the rich; everything in the palace was merely necessities. He murmured softly: 'Could this country be a poor place? How is there nothing at all like a palace here?' Chen Hao poked Feng Yan; Feng Yan looked up and realized the king had been staring at him. Feng Yan asked: 'Your Majesty, what is the matter?' 'Oh, nothing special. You two come from the Lilliputian Kingdom; have you heard what the people there say about this place?' 'Yes, they said this place is a group of barbarians, uncivilized, advocating violence to solve problems, a symbol of evil and terror, and they also said your general is the most barbaric general, who killed their nation's scholars.' Feng Yan replied. The king said nothing, closed his eyes for a while, then answered: 'Let me take you to see this country, to see whether it is as evil and as filthy as they say.'

'Let's go,' said the king, his kindly face turning stern, completely different from the previous kindly Santa Claus. The two followed the king along the road; they looked around—the residential area and the Wanggong were not far away. They observed the people here: an old man sat on a chair telling stories to children, the children tilted their heads to listen, occasionally blinking, already completely absorbed in the story. Feng Yan stepped forward and said to the old man: 'Grandfather, what are you talking about? It sounds quite interesting.' The old man said: 'I am telling the story of our Ju Ren Guo and the Lilliputian Kingdom.' Chen Hao shouted: 'Over there, candy has come out, just made!' The children yelled: 'Great!' Immediately they all went to the place where candy was made; they took the candy but did not pay! Feng Yan said: 'Is this how this country treats children who eat candy?' The old man replied: 'This country has no concept of money; people here simply take what they need, using what each requires, and the same goes for families.'

'Then could you repeat the story you just told?' the old man said: 'Sure.'

According to the old man, the Ju Ren Guo war was like this: the continent was all connected, with no strict borders between states; everyone lived together. Later the continent slowly split apart, forming different countries, but they were still relatively close, everyone lived in peace, continuing their usual lives until this day arrived.

The Power State sought to bring all nations under its rule; they began using mineral resources to forge weapons, then distributed them to their own people to launch invasions of other countries' territories. The Lilliputian Kingdom was the first to fall; its king asked our Ju Ren Guo for help. Since Ju Ren Guo is not far from the Lilliputian Kingdom, after the Lilliputian Kingdom fell, the next target would be Ju Ren Guo. We clearly understood this, so we agreed and began preparing to resist the Power State's invasion. At that time, the Lilliputian Kingdom had already become part of the Power State's territory; the Lilliputian Kingdom no longer existed, it was a destroyed nation. Their people, from our nation, looked at the places they once lived, their eyes filled with helplessness and sorrow. At that moment, only one person stared toward the direction of their country and said to their compatriots: 'We will definitely return!' The people looked at him, and there was a faint muttering in the crowd; he then shouted loudly: 'We can definitely return—people do not die, the nation does not perish!' Only then did they look at him; his gaze was firm, his eyes locked straight ahead. The people looked at him, as if they saw hope of returning to their nation.

'Then who is this person?' Feng Yan asked.

'He is someone who loves his country enough to give his life for it; as for his name, I really don't know,' the old man replied.

Feng Yan nodded, indicating the old man should continue, while he already had the answer in his heart.

At that time, the former king attached great importance to this war; he personally led the expedition. Before setting out, they gathered at the gate of the Wanggong; the soldiers formed a square array, wearing coarse cloth and holding simple wooden sticks. The former king addressed everyone: 'We are giants; when we have a moment of fearless heart, we advance against the enemies invading our country and deliver a crushing blow. We have finished this bowl of wine; everyone awaits our triumphant return!'

After he finished, a clear sound rang out, and everyone smashed their bowls on the ground. People watched those marching off to war, silently praying in their hearts, asking the ancient spirits to bless these Ju Ren Guo warriors, carrying their hope for a victorious return. They all wished that their husbands, the fathers of their children, the children of their elderly parents, would not sleep forever on a large bed called the battlefield, never to wake again. War demands sacrifice, yet every family hopes their home remains whole.

On the battlefield, the Power State's soldiers looked at this group; they had no armor and no sharp weapons in their hands, only wooden sticks and stone tools, and they inevitably despised the enemy. The soldiers directly gripped their broadswords and long swords, slashing at the giants. Only a 'peng' sound was heard—the weapons emitted a clear cracking noise. The Power State's soldiers were terrified; they wanted to flee, but were shot to death by arrows from the archers behind them. The giants surged forward, and the Power State's soldiers kept shooting arrows, yet none could injure them in the slightest. Thus, the Power State, without a doubt, lost.

In the tent, the former king was resting when a soldier entered and said to him: 'We have directly crushed the Power State; they have no fighting spirit left!'

'Good!' came a chorus of cheers from below.

The former king said, 'Issue the order, return to the country.' 'But what about the Lilliputian Kingdom over there...' 'It's fine; since the enemy cannot form a proper army, no matter how weak they are, we can naturally crush them as well.' Thus the giants withdrew in droves, and the Lilliputian Kingdom's soldiers launched an attack. Under this offensive, the Power State was already gravely weakened; its troops retreated into the city, using bows and arrows to repel the enemy, until night fell. In the deep silence of night, a gate of the city quietly opened; the Lilliputian Kingdom's soldiers, while the giants slept, drew their swords and slit their throats. Thus the Lilliputian Kingdom returned to its own land, seized the Power State's weapons and bows, repelled the Power State once more, and restored their nation.

'This is a happy thing, why?' Chen Hao asked.

'The "little people" of the Lilliputian Kingdom are not small in stature; they are small-hearted—that is the true meaning of the Lilliputian Kingdom's citizens.' The old man answered, 'This is only half the story.'

'Then what about the other half?' Feng Yan asked.

'The other half—you came from that side, so you should have heard their beautified version,' the old man said.

The other half is the story that Feng Yan and Chen Hao heard from the National Preceptor, except they beautified themselves as the invaders, demonizing the giants as aggressors; they obtained weapons through the Power State to fight the giants, and killed their king with poison arrows.

The former king was gravely ill, lying in the tent; he summoned Hou Fangjie. He slowly rose, Hou Fangjie came to support him, but he was shoved away with a push. Hou Fangjie looked at the former king in confusion. The former king slowly lifted the blanket from beside him, revealing the hilt of a sword; a red cord was tied around the hilt, exposing part of a red blade. He slowly drew the sword from its scabbard, held it in his hand, placed it on the bed, and gently stroked it with his right hand, saying: 'Old comrade, this is our last meeting, but rest assured—I will always be with you.'

He smiled, then burst into a violent cough; a few drops of red blood fell onto the sword, which turned dull and lifeless, as if bidding farewell.

'Fangjie, after I die, you must lead our army to victory,' the former king said.

Hou Fangjie half-kneeled on the ground, he suppressed the tears in his eyes, and promised: 'Alright, I will lead them home!'

The former king, holding the sword with both hands, walked to Hou Fangjie's side and said: 'This is our nation's supreme treasure, said to be a relic left by our ancestors; legend says it is another precious sword forged by Chiyou, but because this sword is too gentle and lacks killing intent, it was given to us. However, this is a red sword, within which a black sword is sealed—I do not know why. If there is a Black Sword, do not use it lightly; remember that. Well, you may go now.' 'But...' 'Nothing more—when you go out and see this sword, they will understand.'

Hou Fangjie held the sword; within its blade lay a faint power, deeply mysterious yet giving a sense of gentleness. When he touched the black part, he felt immense strength and danger, yet it possessed the power people longed for—full of allure, inviting longing—but another force pulled at him, preventing him from moving forward.

He shouted to everyone: 'Today, our king has already returned to our ancestors; we must avenge our king and flatten that nation!' The soldiers cheered, and Hou Fangjie led the troops forward, marching toward the Lilliputian Kingdom. The Lilliputian Kingdom's garrison in the city saw the giants' great army pressing the border; in a moment they panicked, their general ordered a volley of arrows. The giants were struck by several arrows but did not halt their steps, continuing forward. Another wave of attack came; the giants collapsed one after another, still trying to rise, but they were already powerless—these were poison arrows, the same kind that had struck their former king. Seeing them unable to rise, the general's heart felt as if cut by a knife; he gripped his sword tightly and said to it: 'If you possess great power, please lend it to me—even if my soul is sealed within your blade after death, this is my choice.'

The general's sword emitted a red glow; the sky gradually darkened, and a bolt of lightning struck straight down. Hou Fangjie's body was enveloped by two forces—one black, one red—he leapt with his whole life, and in midair he slashed forth a black-red sword aura; the city before him had already become flat ground!

Saying this, the old man sighed and said: 'That general, because of this battle, became our Ju Ren Guo's bravest general; that sword has not appeared since the Lilliputian Kingdom's ceasefire, and when it reappeared it was said to have become the Lilliputian Kingdom's treasure, and now it is said to have been taken by an adventurer.'

'Is the sword you mentioned this one?' Feng Yan waved his hand, and the sword flew over. 'This sword is a fine sword, but its power is too great; I have not been able to unleash its might. If that is the case, then consider it a return to my homeland.'

The old man widened his eyes, looking at this sword, "Exactly, it's it; back then the general used it to directly destroy a city, using just one strike!" "How do you know?" "I was a soldier who followed the general on campaign back then." The old man raised his head, recalling past events, and said, "Back then we were hit by poisoned arrows, and we thought our days were numbered, but our country received a wandering doctor; he came here, looked at our wounds, took out a kind of yellow powder, poured it into the wounds, and the wounds healed quickly. However, later because that medicine was not enough, he used clean water, even maggots, to clean our wounds. Although some could not be saved, we were still grateful to him. He said this wound was not poisoning; that general called the wound 'shangfeng' (I don't know what that is). After returning, he settled here; no one knows where he came from or his name, but we call him the Divine Doctor. No matter what illness, he can diagnose it; as for whether he can cure it, I dare not guarantee, because giants rarely fall ill."

Feng Yan and Chen Hao looked over there; over there, someone was also looking at them. Finally, he stepped forward and said to Feng Yan, "Your sword has already had its seal undone."

At this moment, they woke up.