Chapter 1157

"Gai Nie, aren't you the number one wanted criminal of Great Qin?

How is it that now you say you're acting on Ying Zheng's orders?

Could it be that you only pretended to betray the Qin court?

This is truly the biggest joke under heaven!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, I suppose you all know that Great Qin's laws are strict.

A traitor not only dies with his entire clan wiped out, even his sect will be erased!"

Gai Nie paid no heed to his mockery, and addressing the assembled experts of the Farmer's family, said,

"The lord of this Despair Shanzhuang whom you all serve is none other than Qin Huang Your Majesty's own brother, Cheng Jiao.

When this man staged his rebellion back then, countless people were already buried with him.

If you turn back now, I believe that with Qin Huang's magnanimity, he can still give all of you, and the Farmer's family, a chance.

But once Great Qin's heavenly troops arrive, and experts from every route come to kill—

By then, the Farmer's family will be utterly destroyed!

You surely don't wish to see the Farmer's family's thousand-year foundation ruined in a single day, do you?"

"What? The lord is Cheng Jiao?"

The assembled experts of the Farmer's family, including Tian Hu, clearly had not expected that this incomparably mysterious lord was none other than Cheng Jiao, whose rebellion had failed back then.

Hearing Gai Nie's words, the more timid among them, such as Tian Mi and Tian Zhong, were already feeling some regret.

In truth, what had allowed Cheng Jiao to subdue so many experts of the Farmer's family was the rumor of the great Zhou treasure appearing out of thin air.

On top of that, he deliberately spread rumors that the Stone of Yuhuo was hidden within this great Zhou treasure.

The assembled experts of the Farmer's family, all eager to become the new Ren Xia, had rushed in one after another to their deaths.

After they had all been laid low by the poison of the Despair Grass, under Cheng Jiao's threats and inducements, they had only reluctantly submitted to his command.

As Cheng Jiao kept revealing his strength, and even privately hinted that an even more terrifying existence stood behind him, showing off a trick or two—

The long-resentful experts of the Farmer's family, whether for fame or for gain, truly threw themselves into the camp of Despair Shanzhuang.

In the thoughts of many of them, although Despair Shanzhuang was built to resemble Xianyanggong,

And the lord would occasionally strike the pose of a sovereign,

Yet this lord had never taken any real action, so for a time these people also felt the lord was merely indulging in idle boasts.

If he truly meant to rebel, that was still a long way off!

Before he actually rebelled, it wouldn't be too late to get off the boat.

Until then, Tian Hu and the others all clung to the idea of scraping whatever cultivation resources they could from Despair Shanzhuang, taking a share here, a share there.

After all, wasn't it under Despair Shanzhuang's cultivation that Tian Ci had entered the Heavenly Being Realm?

If one or two more reached the Heavenly Being Realm, or if Tian Hu himself simply became a Heavenly Being Realm cultivator—

And with the nephew pair Tian Yan and Tian Ci added in, even without the Stone of Yuhuo, couldn't Tian Hu still become the new Ren Xia?

Then afterward, leading the experts of the Farmer's family whose strength had greatly increased, and making a grand appearance in Great Qin—wouldn't that shake the whole world?

Such was the entire scheme of Tian Hu and the others!

Only today did they discover that the problem had grown rather serious.

Qin Huang Ying Zheng appearing in person had already thrown them somewhat off balance.

After all, they were not like Duan Yu, Murong Fu, and others who were not people of Great Qin.

Not only were they people of Great Qin, their very roots were in Great Qin.

But having already boarded the pirate's ship, stepping off at this point was already extremely difficult.

Therefore, after entering this place, Tian Hu and the others put their heads together.

They took the initiative to propose that the assembled experts of the Farmer's family guard this first spot—the palace gate!

First, they did not wish to be involved too deeply in the rebellion, so that they might find a chance to retreat.

Second, it was also a way to wait and see.

Now, hearing Gai Nie expose the lord's identity and learning that the lord was Cheng Jiao—

The assembled experts of the Farmer's family already knew that if they did not retreat now, there truly would be no retreat left.

"Hero Gai, I was deceived; I never truly meant to betray Great Qin."

The first to turn back was precisely Tian Mi, who, though a woman, had the honor of serving as the Hall Master of Kuiwei Hall.

She was seen holding her smoking pipe, walking toward Gai Nie with graceful allure, speaking as she walked, in a pitifully charming manner.

936 Shouldn't I come into your arms and warm myself a little?

Gai Nie, seeing someone turn back, although she was a woman who seemed like a mere ornament,

Still heaved a sigh of relief.

It was not that he truly feared he could not match the Farmer's family's Di Ze Twenty-Four, but that he worried too much time would be wasted here, allowing Cheng Jiao and the others to find the Soldier God.

Watching Tian Mi walk over with graceful allure, looking as if she had been frightened.

Gai Nie was unmoved in his heart, but on his face he warmly said,

"Very good! As long as you turn back, once this matter is settled, I will report to Your Majesty.

I shall say that all of you intended to go undercover in Despair Shanzhuang, to extract the details of the rebel Cheng Jiao for Great Qin."

With the relationship between Gai Nie and Ying Zheng, he could indeed do this much for the Farmer's family.

More crucially, Gai Nie understood Ying Zheng.

In Ying Zheng's heart, the Hundred Schools were all his chess pieces.

As long as one was willing to be a chess piece, he would not casually slaughter them.

Moreover, Ying Zheng had the confidence that with the experts of the Qin court alone, he could sweep through the Hundred Schools.

For a peasant faction, the top expert was only a man-made Heavenly Being Realm — in Hearing Ying Zheng's eyes, this was no threat worth mentioning.

As long as they showed sense, letting them go would be no harm.

"Thank you, thank you, Hero Gai."

Tian Mi, looking utterly grateful, darted behind Hearing Gai Nie.

"And the rest of you?"

Seeing that he had already persuaded one, Hearing Gai Nie figured the others might switch sides just as Tian Mi had.

"Tian Mi, you backstabbing traitor!"

Tian Hu was furious beyond words — he had never imagined Tian Mi would openly betray them.

Seeing Tian Mi defect, Tian Hu pointed at one of the peasant faction's experts,

"Mute Slave, from this day forth, you are the Hall Master of Kuiwei Hall."

That Mute Slave was one of Chiyou Hall's top experts.

His swordsmanship was not only formidable, but his nature was extremely ruthless — he was one of Tian Hu's trusted experts.

Seeing Tian Mi's rebellion, Tian Hu had immediately seized the chance to strip Tian Mi of her position as Hall Master of Kuiwei Hall.

It was rather laughable.

"Hmph! Is Kuiwei Hall something you, Tian Hu, can appoint to at will?"

Just then, a figure streaked in from afar at great speed.

The person had not yet arrived, but his voice already had.

His voice was deep and resonant, carrying an infectious power.

Yet every peasant faction expert present turned pale at the sound.

Tian Mi in particular was trembling all over, her body hunching as she pressed herself tightly behind Hearing Gai Nie.

The words had barely fallen when the man had already reached them.

He was a man nine chi tall, carrying an extremely broad heavy sword on his back, with the character 'qian' branded on his face.

"Hearing Sheng Qi?"

The newcomer happened to be someone Hearing Gai Nie knew well, and he could not help but frown.

This Hearing Sheng Qi was none other than the former Hall Master of Kuiwei Hall of the peasant faction.

Not only had this man cultivated the peasant faction's Wu Gong, he had also trained external-hardening martial arts, reaching a nearly unsurpassable level.

Later, while wandering the jianghu, he obtained the famed sword Ju Que!

Relying on his innate divine strength and this heavy sword Ju Que, he carved out a great name for himself in the jianghu.

No one expected that one day, he would suddenly defect from the peasant faction, wandering the jianghu in a constant spree of killing.