Chapter 68 : Chapter 68

Chapter 68: The People of My Li Clan Are Not Yours to Touch

He turned to look at the adviser at his side.

The latter gave an embarrassed smile.

“If County Magistrate is going out, the county yamen cannot be left unattended. I suppose I shall remain here and guard it for you.”

Zhao Wude gave him a cold look. Then, with a snort, he flung his sleeves and stalked off.

Fortunately, he had served for many years in another county before coming here, where he had built up some modest wealth and maintained a band of personal retainers. Otherwise, today he truly would have become a commander without even a single soldier to command.

Watching County Magistrate Zhao storm away, the adviser’s smile gradually faded. A look of contempt crossed his face.

“Idiot. I’m one of the Li Clan’s men too.”

Then he turned back into the county yamen, wrote a secret letter, and before long a gray hawk flew toward Qingfeng Valley at astonishing speed.

......

At White River Camp, Zhao Wude arrived in a menacing blaze of fury with several dozen trusted men, only to be stopped outside the camp gates by the soldiers standing guard.

“Halt! This is a military encampment, a restricted area. No idle outsiders may enter without leave. Those who trespass will be killed without mercy!”

At once, dozens of crossbows were leveled at the group.

One of Zhao Wude’s trusted men stepped forward and shouted, “Are you blind? This is our Baihe County’s County Magistrate! If you know what’s good for you, get out of the way!”

The soldiers exchanged glances, then coldly replied, “Without County Lieutenant Li’s military order, no one may enter.”

The man grew furious and was about to strike, but Zhao Wude stopped him from behind.

“I want your County Lieutenant to come out and see this magistrate!”

This time the soldiers did not refuse.

One of them shot a glance to his companion, who immediately understood and sprinted into the camp to report the matter to Li Xingcong.

As Zhao Wude surveyed White River Camp, his heart grew increasingly heavy.

He had not expected the situation to be even more serious than he had imagined. The local great families of Baihe County had stretched their hands so far that a dignified seventh-rank County Magistrate like himself had been reduced to a mere ornament, unable to command even a single common soldier.

Even so, what of it?

In the county where he had previously held office, those same sorts of great families had all been subdued by him until they behaved with perfect obedience and respect. Zhao Wude told himself this with full confidence.

Before long, Li Xingcong emerged from the camp, clad in polished armor and surrounded by a group of personal guards.

Seeing Zhao Wude, Li Xingcong cupped his fists and said blandly, “May I ask why County Magistrate has come to White River Camp today?”

Zhao Wude sneered.

“Li Xingcong, stop putting on this act in front of me. I ask you this: why have you disobeyed my military order?”

“The county city is the heart of Baihe County. Every day, thousands upon thousands enter and leave it. To seal it off rashly would cause unrest among the people.”

Faced with Zhao Wude’s aggressive questioning, Li Xingcong showed not the slightest fear.

Hearing this, Zhao Wude’s old face instantly flushed red.

Pointing at Li Xingcong, he shouted, “This magistrate is Baihe County’s County Magistrate. In Baihe County, this magistrate represents the imperial court. You have disobeyed my order, and that means disobeying the court’s order. That is rebellion. Men, seize this rebel for me!”

The moment Zhao Wude’s words fell, his personal retainers drew their sabers and rushed at Li Xingcong.

Li Xingcong’s soldiers, however, did not hesitate in the least. They all drew their sabers and leveled their spears, blocking the path before Li Xingcong.

Up on the watchtowers, the arms of one crossbow after another were drawn back and aimed at Zhao Wude’s party.

Seeing this, Zhao Wude barked sharply, “What, Li Xingcong dares rebel against the court, and all of you intend to follow him in rebellion as well? This is a crime worthy of exterminating nine generations! Fall back at once!”

Yet the soldiers did not move so much as an inch.

Looking at Zhao Wude hopping around like a ridiculous clown, Li Xingcong sneered repeatedly.

“Brothers, tell Magistrate Zhao whose food you eat!”

Three thousand soldiers raised their weapons in unison and roared, “We eat the Li Clan’s grain!”

Li Xingcong called again, “Whose clothes do you wear?”

The soldiers roared back, “We wear the Li Clan’s clothes!”

“Whose wages do you draw?”

“We draw the Li Clan’s wages!”

“And whom do you serve?”

“We swear loyalty unto death to the Li Clan!”

“We swear loyalty unto death to the Li Clan!”

“We swear loyalty unto death to the Li Clan!”

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

Their roars rose one after another like towering waves, each one louder than the last. The force of that thunderous cry shook heaven and earth. Zhao Wude’s retainers were so frightened by the overwhelming momentum that they dared not take another step.

As for Zhao Wude, the man was utterly dumbfounded.

He had never imagined that the troops of an entire county had become the private army of a single family.

Very quickly, Zhao Wude came back to his senses.

He now found himself riding a tiger he could no longer dismount. If he withdrew today, once the matter spread, not only would his face be utterly lost, he would have no place left to stand in Baihe County.

At that thought, his eyes filled with dense killing intent as he stared at Li Xingcong.

Since the thief’s leader must be seized first, once Li Xingcong was taken down, the greater matter would be settled.

Zhao Wude was a decisive man. And to become the magistrate of an entire county, his strength naturally was not poor.

In an instant, qi and blood burst from Zhao Wude’s body. His fists clenched, wrapped in thick qi-and-blood power, and he lunged toward Li Xingcong with lightning speed.

Li Xingcong’s guards tried to stop him, but the qi-and-blood aura surrounding Zhao Wude blasted them away at once, sending them all flying.

Li Xingcong reacted and attempted to block him, but in the eyes of Zhao Wude, a Qi-Blood Realm cultivator, such resistance was laughable.

Within Li Xingcong’s eyes, that fist grew larger and larger. Just as despair rose in his heart, at the final instant, an arrow formed from qi-and-blood power came howling through the air.

The arrow flashed like a meteor, swift and savage, and shot straight for Zhao Wude’s back.

Sensing the danger behind him, Zhao Wude’s expression changed drastically. He spun around at once, his qi-and-blood power condensing into a great shield.

The arrow met the shield head-on.

Yet it pierced straight through, as though tearing through no more than a thin sheet of paper, and slammed into Zhao Wude’s body.

BOOM!

A heavy blast rang out between heaven and earth.

The arrow exploded, and a wretched figure was blasted backward for hundreds of zhang, only stopping when he smashed into the mountainside and left a web of cracks across it.

Zhao Wude clutched his chest, his face twisted in agony. The whole area there was already a mangled, bloody ruin.

His internal qi and blood were surging wildly. Even his five viscera and six bowels trembled violently.

“Blegh!”

He spat out a mouthful of blood mist, and Zhao Wude’s aura instantly became weak and withered.

“The people of my Li Clan are not yours to touch.”

A light and distant voice drifted from afar, floating closer and closer.

Clutching his chest, Zhao Wude laboriously lifted his head and looked into the distance.

He saw a young man with refined features and narrow eyes, cold and merciless, standing there with his hands behind his back.

He wore a moon-white robe woven of Heavenly Golden Silkworm silk, and in the daylight a faint golden gleam flickered across it.

A jade belt was fastened at his waist, and his thick hair was tied loosely behind his back with a simple band.

In every gesture, the man exuded an indescribable air of nobility, one that brought with it a pressure no words could capture.

In only three breaths, he had arrived before them.

The moment Li Xingcong saw his face, he first froze. Then wild joy flooded his expression, and he bowed with cupped fists.

“Li Xingcong greets the Family Head!”

Seeing their County Lieutenant bow, the three thousand soldiers of White River Camp all planted their spears and dropped to one knee in unison.

The clash of armor plates filled the entire camp with a heavy and suffocating aura of slaughter.