Chapter 632: Phoenix Gathering Order (4/10, Autumn Subscription)

Mang Liuzi was swinging his sword.

His sword was fast—fast as lightning.

Like a dragonfly skimming the water, every strike of his sword claimed a life beneath its blade.

Mang Liuzi could not see, but he could sense Qi.

The currents of Qi, their fierce surges, and the thick killing intent.

"Young Mistress, does this round of close protection count as a great merit?"

While killing, he still had the leisure to tease the young mistress, unaware that she had long since gone pale, trembling all over, clutching Hai Guanjia's body tightly, her heart in panicked disarray.

"It… it counts! If Dayang Fu still stands after tonight, you shall be the second Supreme Guest of Dayang Fu!"

Dayang Fu's Supreme Guest had always been a single position.

But rules are dead, people are alive.

Ever since the first wave of black-clad men broke into the compound, the entire Dayang Fu had been in a state of tense combat.

At first, against the first wave of black-clad attackers, the hastily organized guards, together with that batch of dead soldiers, could still hold their own, even faintly gaining the upper hand.

But as soon as the second wave of Short-Tail Tribe black-clad men charged in, the situation changed at once.

"Fox Merchant Caravan!"

The young mistress identified the enemy's identity at once, but she hadn't expected them to be even more direct than her—the leader ripped off the black cloth masking his face in one motion.

"Since you've seen through us, I, Hua Zhu, won't pretend to be any gentleman!"

"That's right! It's your granddaddy, the Short-Tail Tribe, here to collect your lives!"

With a vicious laugh, the Short-Tail Tribe leader's eyes lit up as he gazed at the sturdy men of Dayang Fu.

"Short-Tail Tribe? Fox Merchant Caravan people? Get lost! Don't get in the way of our business!"

The first batch of black-clad men roared with ugly expressions.

However…

"Kill them too! Tie up the good-looking ones and the burly ones, leave not a single one of the rest alive!"

The Short-Tail Tribe leader issued the execution order without the slightest hesitation.

The other Short-Tail Tribe companions froze for a moment, then charged in with savage faces.

The first batch of black-clad men had already been struggling to cope with the Dayang Merchant Caravan's defensive forces; now, with the Short-Tail Tribe attacking from behind as well, their casualties immediately became heavy.

A flash of vicious light swept through the eyes of the leading black-clad man.

He had not wished to trouble that lord.

But now it seemed… the contingency specially prepared for Dayang Fu's Supreme Guest would need to be brought out early.

A firework resembling a Gathering Fire Order, mixed in among the flames of battle, shot skyward and bloomed silently in the heavens, forming the shape of a rabbit.

Of those below locked in the crossfire, not many looked up to see this pattern.

But the Short-Tail Tribe leader, who had been watching that black-clad man all along, noticed it at once.

Her face changed instantly.

"Who exactly are you people?! Why do you have a 【Phoenix Gathering Order】!?"

"Oh? You actually know of this thing—some eye on you, as befits the best-developing Fox Merchant Caravan in recent years. Pity, but tonight you are destined to be utterly extinguished here!"

The Short-Tail Tribe leader's face darkened—that was a special token used to request nearby Phoenix Organization experts to come provide support.

Judging purely by visual effect, it resembled a small village's 【Gathering Fire Order】, only without sound, with a single purpose, and only those connected to the Phoenix Organization could understand this signal.

Once this signal went up, Phoenix Organization experts might come to support, but it would also draw more busybodies.

After all, many people were very interested in the mysterious Phoenix Organization; if they knew even a part of the matter, they would surely rush here to watch the excitement.

This place had already become the center of a vortex, because the 【Phoenix Gathering Order】 would evolve into an even greater vortex.

The task had to be completed before the situation spiraled beyond control.

At this moment, both the Short-Tail Tribe leader and the others finally saw it clearly—this batch of black-clad men were also Phoenix Organization people, or perhaps subordinates, or collaborators.

Then their objective must necessarily be the same as theirs.

Whoever could take the young mistress away would receive the Phoenix Organization's reward!

So in essence, they were still in competition!

"Kill!"

At a single command, the Short-Tail Tribe, who had been dealing with Dayang Fu, suddenly united in full force to slaughter the black-clad men.

As the offensive tempo intensified, this batch of black-clad men retreated step by step, and in the end only a handful escaped.

"Seize Yang Hongxia before that unknown lord arrives, or our merit is very likely to be stripped away directly!"

The moment the black-clad men were driven back, the Short-Tail Tribe leader immediately ordered her people to charge at the nearly exhausted Dayang Merchant Caravan guards.

At this point she had no time to fuss over her body either—completing the mission was what mattered, those were solid, tangible rewards.

Only after the mission was done could personal considerations be weighed.

Unlike humans, the 【Exotic Race: Short-Tail Tribe】 was a race where everyone revered martial prowess.

That is to say… every clansman, from birth, was a warrior—a nation where all bore arms!

Whether in physical constitution or overall strength, they surpassed ordinary humans; only their numbers were relatively few.

Divided into tribe after tribe, they basically never formed large clans, living freely and loosely.

As for the Short-Tail Tribe leader's branch, after losing an internal power struggle and being unable to survive in their habitat, they had come to the chaotic and neutral Human Capital to eke out a living.

And the Short-Tail Tribe's overall strength was formidable, and they had won the Phoenix Organization's favor; with the Phoenix Organization's help, they had stabilized their footing.

By now, the Short-Tail Tribe's Fox Merchant Caravan had firmly taken root, and barring any major upheaval, they would not be expelled from 【Chunuan City】; they only needed to consolidate steadily, develop their strength, and one day break into the top hundred of the 【Celestial Merchant Alliance】, fully integrating into 【Chunuan City】's upper echelons.

Matters should have developed along these lines, and Hua Zhu, the Short-Tail Tribe leader, would sooner or later take up Lao Huli's baton of power and become the new ruler of the Fox Merchant Caravan.

Yet now, she had clearly run into trouble.

"【Phoenix Gathering Token】..."

He had no idea which expert from the Phoenix Organization it would draw, or perhaps... someone from another faction would arrive first!

The former would cause the Fox Merchant Caravan tonight's operation to fall apart at the last moment, having the prize snatched from the tiger's mouth, gaining no reward at all; the latter would plunge the Fox Merchant Caravan into an unprecedented crisis.

Either way, it was not good news.

So the Short-Tailed Tribe tomboy was in a great hurry, desperate to seize Miss Yang Hongxia.

Under wave after wave of assaults, the guards of the Great Sun Merchant Caravan soon suffered heavy casualties; only the death warriors still fought to the death, but their numbers were also rapidly dwindling.

The Short-Tailed Tribe tomboy seized the chance, bared her claws, and lunged forward in a flash.

"Miss?!"

"Steward Hai, no!!"

The Short-Tailed Tribe tomboy's attack was aimed straight at the young miss, but Steward Hai, who had sprung up beside her, blocked it with his body — under a single claw strike, a bloody, mangled five-finger gouge was left across his chest, and he collapsed in a shower of fresh blood!

"Steward Hai! Steward Hai!"

The young miss cried out in alarm, but Steward Hai only coughed twice, a great surge of fresh blood welling from his mouth, his face deathly pale — clearly at his last breath.

And the Short-Tailed Tribe tomboy, having missed her strike, paused for a moment, then once again raked a claw toward the helpless young miss.

"Help!!!"

(End of chapter)