Chapter 572: Old Bastard, Are You Manipulating Me?

Don’t say it, you really shouldn’t say it!

Though it sounds like the Empire is constantly at war, with fighting everywhere, their bones are hard!

As a ruler himself, Odin had a broader perspective than ordinary men and could keenly sense that the Empire in Alvin’s words possessed extraordinary depth.

If the Asgardian divine realm’s army were to engage in battles of the same scale as last time, just two or three such engagements could reduce Asgard to ashes!

He feared that if he asked Jin Luo this, even the little kindness Jin Luo had granted him would vanish.

Mu Xian pulled over a stool and sat beside Jin Luo, who, while scooping porridge into a bowl, listened to Mu Xian and Meng Yu’s study report.

After drinking some water, Gu Qinglong’s emotions calmed, the blood-tears disappeared, and after a deep breath, he continued speaking.

“Alright, no problem! When’s convenient for you? I’ll come to your place.” Qi Dawei hurriedly agreed.

Lu Lin saw that Siming had boldly moved forward, so he said nothing more and followed him into the depths of the mist.

“You just went by gut feeling and caused us to lose so much silver!” Han Qingdong pounded his chest and cried out, “Lost! Lost!”

Liang Yan felt her anger was pointless—the old man must have lost his mind; otherwise, a businessman constantly scheming wouldn’t think so chaotically.

Lü Shuo nodded; his current gear was terrible—he wouldn’t have even glanced at it back in Village One.

In her words, she subtly hinted that when she became prosperous, she’d remember to offer her better mid-grade fine wine as tribute.

Jin Luo spoke as she pulled out a handkerchief, stood on tiptoe, and wiped the sweat from Mu Xian’s cheek.

But Shang Yi knew the real assault by the bandits hadn’t begun—they were merely filling the moat to prepare for the final siege. Still, he didn’t stop the soldiers’ cheers, for such celebration greatly boosted morale and eased their fear of the bandits.

Chen Liang looked up and recognized him—he’d seen him before. Oh, right! It was him who captured the bandits a month ago—he was a Battalion Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

Qin Yang thought this might be because the Blood Ghost Sect had learned his range of movement and then posted this information on Snow Mussel Island.

But considering how long it’s been, even if he hasn’t fully digested it, he must have absorbed at least seven or eight tenths by now.

Most infuriating was that, by this calculation, she had expended immense manpower and resources to teach destitute people self-reliance and useful skills, ensuring they could support themselves and their families—yet after fifteen years of effort, the number of people she saved was fewer than those saved by her casual words.

Defensive fortifications surrounded this courtyard, and those coming and going were all trained professional soldiers—clearly, the owner wasn’t a merchant but a political figure.

For a moment, everyone fell silent, but eventually accepted reality and walked out of the training room together. Wang Hu and Xuanlü tried to liven the mood, but the atmosphere remained far from cheerful.

The big black dog lowered its front paws, glaring fiercely at the Wolf Principal, poised to attack. Liu Mei, standing beside Lang Mo, saw this stance and immediately trembled, shrinking back behind Lang Mo.

“Alright, alright, you didn’t force me—I volunteered. So now, shall we set off? Yang the Hero, Wenwen, go home—don’t make your father worry by not finding you.” The Wolf Principal didn’t want to argue with Zi Mei.

“Avoiding lock-on—does that mean avoiding visual lock-on, or avoiding lock-on via psychic fluctuations?” Wang Hu suddenly asked.

Among those present, several men cast their gazes toward Lady Yao Qin, finding her quite appealing.

Yet his spending to repair the temple and print Buddhist scriptures won strong support from the monks; the temple’s property and land were preserved, and new land was even allocated, allowing the temple to hire many impoverished farmers to till it, solving their food and livelihood problems.