Chapter 2704: Where Did This Old Man Come From?

Facing the Elder Clan Chief's coaxing and deceitful persuasion, San Shu Gong gave him no face at all.

Today, to deal with the Fire Spirit Tribe and rescue Ye Zhangqing, this old bones of his will go no matter what; how could he just wait idly in the rear?

And as San Shu Gong's words fell, the three elderly men beside him also chimed in agreement.

Their seniority is not as great as San Shu Gong's; they are one generation younger than him, yet still higher than the Elder Clan Chief.

"Yes, on the battlefield we will protect San Ye."

Seeing the three men thump their chests in guarantee, the Elder Clan Chief went numb, his mouth twitching uncontrollably.

"I say, who are you three protecting? You're already arrogant enough yourselves."

To put it bluntly, the three of them are probably not as strong as San Shu Gong.

San Shu Gong is just old; that doesn't mean he's useless. To have lived this long, he must have some skill.

If he had no skill, he would have been done away with long ago.

Before the three could reply, San Shu Gong slammed his cane into the ground, speaking impatiently.

"Who needs protecting me? It's decided—we set out now, I'll take the vanguard."

"Huh???"

Seeing San Shu Gong's trembling, tottering figure, the Elder Clan Chief was completely dumbfounded.

Earlier you didn't even dare agree to go to the battlefield, and now you're being even more reckless—how did you end up taking the vanguard?

Such an outrageous demand, the Elder Clan Chief could never agree to it—how could he let San Shu Gong take the vanguard?

But without the Elder Clan Chief speaking, the Flame Martial Tribe members present all burst into cheers on their own.

Evidently, San Shu Gong's words boosted the morale of many tribesmen even higher.

Look, even San Shu Gong is personally going onto the field—how could this battle possibly end in defeat?

"Victory, victory, victory."

I don't know who started it, but soon a loud chant rose from the crowd.

"Can't stop it," facing this scene, the Elder Clan Chief felt like crying but had no tears.

By now, there's nothing else to do but let Old Man San Shu Gong go up.

After finally waiting for the crowd to quiet down a bit, the Elder Clan Chief finally got a chance to speak.

"Then let's set out."

He said helplessly, "Sometimes morale being too high isn't necessarily a good thing."

At the Clan Chief's order, the Flame Martial Tribe members surged out of their tribal lands in a dark mass, rushing toward the direction of Ye Zhangqing and his group.

San Shu Gong led the charge; though leaning on his cane and his steps trembling, his speed was not slow at all.

Behind him, the Elder Clan Chief kept calling out reminders.

"San Shu Gong, ancestor, take it easy."

"Nonsense, this old man crawled out of a pile of corpses—would I fear such small scenes?"

As for these people of the Fire Spirit Tribe now, San Shu Gong didn't even glance at them—they're just a bunch of baby rabbits whose fur hasn't even grown in.

Seeing San Shu Gong's vigor soaring, the Elder Clan Chief was utterly helpless.

At his age, how can he still be so eager to fight?

Moreover, back when you clashed with the Fire Spirit Tribe, I never saw you this worked up, old man.

You're probably doing this not for the tribe, but for Ye Zhangqing.

I can't even be bothered to expose you.

San Shu Gong became the vanguard general in earnest, and under his leadership the Flame Martial Tribe members set forth with mighty vigor.

As for the Elder Clan Chief, he helplessly blended into the crowd, no one paying him any attention, while all the tribesmen's gazes were now focused on San Shu Gong.

As the saying goes, "An old warhorse may stall, yet its ambition reaches a thousand miles"—San Shu Gong is just such a case.

For a moment, the stooped figure at the very front of the troop appeared in everyone's eyes to have grown tall and imposing.

Having San Shu Gong with them is a blessing for the Flame Martial Tribe.

Over in the Black Mist Forest, the Fire Spirit Tribe members still didn't know that reinforcements from the Flame Martial Tribe had already set out and were on their way.

Under Huoming's unwilling leadership, the Fire Spirit Tribe members kept moving alongside the Black Mist Forest.

Yet after all this marching, Huoming still couldn't think of a single plan.

As they saw the distance to the Flame Martial Tribe shrinking, the Fire Spirit Tribe members also began to have different thoughts.

Some still firmly supported their young clan chief, after all they'd come this far—giving up now would be a shame.

Thus, even as the distance to the Flame Martial Tribe narrowed and they felt danger looming ever more, they still steadfastly supported Huoming, their young clan chief.

But another group had quite a few complaints about Huoming's decision.

They had already chased all the way from their own homes nearly into the enemy's territory.

Since the initial encirclement and pursuit failed, everyone had sensed something was off.

They had pursued all the way, and the Flame Martial Tribe members had also been running all the way, yet after so long they hadn't killed a single person.

Now, after calming down and thinking it over, these people all found it absurd.

The Fire Spirit Tribe had gathered so many strongmen to encircle and kill just a few Flame Martial Tribe members, yet they kept failing time and again—one could only say these guys are truly hard to kill.

And now, after fighting this long without killing them, the young clan chief still insists on pursuing—isn't he playing with everyone's lives?

If they really kept chasing all the way, upon encountering the Flame Martial Tribe they wouldn't even know how they'd die; by now everyone is already exhausted, both people and horses.

Therefore, those leading this faction have long had grievances against Huoming.

The further they went, the greater the split between the two factions grew, to the point that even Huoming and his son could hardly keep things balanced.

The troop is getting hard to move.

Even so, Huoming still doesn't want to give up, and he's desperately trying to keep the whole unit stable.

But now everyone's thoughts diverge; it's no longer something Huoming can simply stabilize by wishing.

Young Clan Chief, we're already not far from the Flame Martial Tribe; we can't keep approaching any further.

Yeah, since there's no other way, the best course now is to retreat first and then figure things out.

Someone spoke up to advise, but Huoming remained silent, not responding at all.

But this silence now is clearly meaningless.

To make matters worse, just as Huoming was torn between sides, a dark mass of people suddenly came charging from ahead.

This sudden group of people turned out to be none other than the Flame Martial Tribe.

The leaders were several elders, and the one at the very front was even more outrageous—an old man leaning on a cane.

That old man trembled and swayed, looking as if he were about to be buried in loess, yet when he charged he was full of vigor.

Seeing Third Granduncle, Huoming asked, bewildered.

"Who is this old guy?"

But Third Granduncle didn't waste words on him; in a few steps he rushed to the Fire Spirit Tribe crowd, raised his cane high, and brought it down with a crash, shouting loudly.

"You scum of the Fire Spirit Tribe, take this old man's cane!"

Huh???

"You old thing, you're asking for death."

After a moment's stupor, the leading Fire Spirit Tribe member snapped back, shouting angrily.

Where did this old coot come from? He's practically on his deathbed, yet he dares to show off his might here—he really doesn't take anyone seriously.