Chapter 243

Tengxiao, as a Luofu general, commands the Yunqi; the two Liaoyuan are the heads of the Suiyang, ordering the myriad demons; the two are like heaven covering and earth bearing, yin and yang interacting, the dragon battle between the two sides is indeed reasonable and proper, in accordance with the rules.

But now, I am the general of the Divine Vessel, while you are no longer Liaoyuan; you are merely a imprisoned convict. If you wish to fight me, you must follow my rules: defeat my army, reach my central command tent, and then I will grant you this opportunity.

Jingyuan's few lighthearted words reversed the offense and defense, full of spirit; even Fuyan could not find a reason to refute for a moment. Helpless, it agreed, and the opponent it needed to defeat was not anyone else but Xing, Huohuo, and two others.

"Eh? Us? No problem……?" Huohuo's voice was weak, answering obviously without confidence.

Xing sighed, originally planning to push the general out as a surprise force, but after going around in circles, the surprise force turned out to be himself……

——

Slay Crimson Red Pupil.

Inside the conference room of the Imperial Hunters Unit.

"Wow……!" Wil widened his eyes, his fist clenching involuntarily, "General Jingyuan is amazing! Not only is his strength formidable, his words are too—just a few sentences and he shut down Fuyan so it couldn't speak!"

"Wil, you're about to write the two characters "admiration" on your face." Hei Tong bit into a cookie, glancing helplessly at Wil. Since General Jingyuan first appeared, he has become Wil's idol…… Whenever the general appears, Wil's gaze locks onto him as if auto‑aimed.

This level of obsession…… will delay training.

"Wil, you can learn his fighting style; don't always charge head‑first into the enemy formation. Even as strong as Jingyuan, when fighting the Illusory Dragon he still needs to coordinate with teammates.

"Oh oh…… okay."

Wil scratched his head embarrassedly, "Besides fighting, I also really want to learn General Jingyuan's speaking skills…… I don't know why, his words have a kind of magic that makes people unable not to be convinced. Is this related to reading? When I was a kid I hardly read any books……

Lan smiled faintly and said gently, "Speaking skills can be learned; when I used to teach in the countryside, I taught many students like you."

Wil's eyes lit up: "Really? Mr. Lan, are you willing to teach me?"

Lan nodded with a smile: "Of course. First, you must learn to control your tone—General Jingyuan convinces people not only because of his strength, but also because of his composure and confidence when he speaks."

Wil nodded seriously, imitating Jingyuan's posture, straightening his back and lowering his voice: "'You must defeat my army, reach my central command tent, and then I will give you this opportunity'—is that right?"

Hei Tong "pfft" laughed out loud, nearly choking on the warm tea in his cup: "Idiot, you're being too deliberate."

Lan couldn't help but chuckle: "Your tone can be a bit more natural; the point is to make the other feel your inner strength, not to put on an act. But, Wil, having this intention is good enough—we'll be fighting NightRaid soon, so we'll continue the next lesson after the battle, okay?"

——

"Although Fuyan still looks down on these few people before him, the general smiled with full confidence: "If you win, I will renew our old duel. If you lose, you must answer them one question—no lying, no quibbling. Deal?""

Fuyan agreed on the spot, eager to start the first battle. However, having lost most of the Suiyang fragments, it was pathetically weak, and Xing easily disposed of it with two sticks.

According to the agreement, it first had to answer Huohuo's question. After informing them of the disappearance of Bailu on the Luofu miscellany, Fuyan truthfully said that this was caused by a Suiyang named A Zhuo Gan who loves to play and only enjoys free frolic.

Bailu too was a child yearning for freedom; the freedom‑loving Suiyang that possessed him likewise loved freedom‑loving Bailu—everything now made sense……

Having obtained important intelligence, Xing set out for Jinren Xiang, but before leaving she still had a doubt, so she sought the general to ask why Fuyan and the others were so obsessed with dueling him.

"From Liaoyuan to Chiyan to Fuyan…… it seems each Suiyang harbors a great obsession."

"The general explained: "According to ancient myth, the Divine Vessel once faced a massive invasion, bringing the whole clan to the brink of annihilation. To this end, a mortal, in order to save the situation, did not hesitate to make a possession‑taking pact with the Suiyang ancestor, the Fire Emperor.""

"The Fire Emperor lent his power to fight, and if the mortals could triumph, they would forever lose their own bodies."

"After that great battle ended, not a single hero survived, and the Fire Emperor also suffered grave wounds; the deal thus came to nothing. People gradually forgot the story, but the Suiyang still remember. They demand repayment of this debt, never to forget."

——

One-Punch Man.

Inside the apartment in Z City.

"Genos stood by the window, his golden mechanical eyes flickering slightly: "Teacher, the Divine Vessel people not only broke the agreement, but also imprisoned the Suiyang ancestor in the Zhu Ming Divine Vessel; do you think…… their actions are reasonable?""

"Reasonable." Saitama said without lifting his head, his finger paused on the supermarket half‑price beef advertisement.

"Such beings as the Suiyang are immortal; they seem to be classified by the Divine Vessel as monsters of the Abundance side. Regardless of any pact, such monsters must surely be kept under control."

"But the Fire Emperor only made a pact with humans, right?" Genos said, his tone carrying an uncommon heaviness.

"Oh, that…… it really is pretty bad." Saitama finally lifted his head, scratching his smooth skull: "Do you know what exactly happened to the Divine Vessel several thousand years ago?"

"Sorry, teacher, I don't know that."

"So then? Nobody knows what really happened in that history; I don't believe that if the Fire Emperor posed no threat, the Divine Vessel people would imprison him. It's like a dragon‑level monster appearing in the city—even if it hasn't killed a single human, the Association would still have to eliminate it."

"……This is a threat, Genos, and whether or not there's a pact hardly matters now. If we don't imprison it, should the Fire Emperor ever regain power…… and erupt in violence, the Divine Vessel would be in danger. In short, no matter how likely this is, the general must certainly consider this possibility."

"I see." Genos's eyes lit up, an admiring expression appearing on his face: "As expected of Teacher, you always see things clearly."