Chapter 145: Chapter 138: A Forceful Move-in

The Knight captain stared dumbfounded at Ling Wu, finally becoming completely enraged. He roared, "We are the Knight Brigade of Penzes City, official soldiers of the Empire! What right do you have to do this!"

"From now on, this city belongs to my young master! Your regular army ain’t worth a damn. Keep yapping..." Ling Wu suddenly pulled a sharp dagger from his trouser leg. The blade was as bright as snow, glinting with a cold light as he pressed it against the Knight captain’s fair cheek. "And I’ll kill you!"

The foul stench on the man’s breath made the Knight wrinkle his nose in disgust. The feeling of the cold blade against his cheek was deeply unsettling, but what he felt most was a terror welling up from deep inside. He came from a good family. While not a great noble, his father held the title of Baron, and it was hereditary. That meant one day, he, this very Knight captain, would inherit his father’s title and become a nobleman himself. He would live a rich and noble life on his small family fiefdom, admired by all the locals!

So...

’I’m doing this for my men! There’s a Demon Sword Master here! If we make a Demon Sword Master go berserk, our cavalry unit will be annihilated!’

The Knight captain desperately tried to convince himself: ’These people are crude, barbaric, and savage. I’m a nobleman. How could I submit to their tyranny... If I don’t agree, they’ll kill me on the spot. Wake up, future Baron! If you die, your younger brother will inherit the title that should have been yours and enjoy everything in your place!’

"Still acting tough, huh?" Ling Wu chuckled coldly, his patience gone. He grabbed the Knight captain’s hair, yanking him up from the ground, and roared at the stunned cavalrymen on their horses, "You see this?! This... is your leader. I’ll count to three. If you don’t dismount and surrender... I’ll kill him! One... two..."

Ling Wu hadn’t even reached "three" when the Knights across from him began to dismount, one after another. At the same time, the young, showboating Knight captain let out a hysterical scream: "AHHHH...! Don’t kill me!!"

Ling Wu curled his lip, releasing the Knight captain with a look of utter disdain. The captain collapsed to the ground like a boneless heap, wailing with snot and tears, muttering something under his breath.

The warriors of the Tiger Roar Assault Team all sneered in contempt. ’What a disgrace. A total coward! If he’d just held on a moment longer, those cavalrymen would have surrendered anyway. Now they must feel so ashamed. Sighing about what a spineless leader they have, right?’

"Go! Disarm them, take their armor, and lead away their warhorses!" Ling Wu commanded with a heroic flair. He suddenly found himself really liking Ling Xiao. The young man seemed gentle and calm, not as open and hearty as Lingzhi, but he was just as much of a rogue at heart! ’They really are brothers!’ Ling Wu praised internally. ’Looks like I didn’t follow the wrong person!’

...

In the center of Penzes City was a sprawling courtyard complex: the Penzes City Lord’s Mansion. City Lord Li Houlin was currently sitting in his room, leisurely sipping tea and waiting for good news.

Li Houlin was in his fifties. In terms of seniority, he was technically a younger brother to the current His Majesty the King. Of course, the blood relation wasn’t close. Otherwise, City Lord Li Houlin’s youngest son, Li Qiang, would have known that Li Tianluo, another member of the Royal Family, was studying at the Imperial Academy.

However, Li Houlin had always maintained a good relationship with the Southern King, Li Wutong. In fact, back in the day, when Li Houlin’s ancestor was made a king, his fiefdom included Penzes City! But after several generations, each one less capable than the last, the title had been successively downgraded. By the time it reached Li Houlin, only the status of a Count remained, and the fiefdom had shrunk to the single city of Penzes.

When the Second Prince was sent south to guard the Penzes border, Li Houlin did everything he could to curry favor with him. Over the years, the funds he had given Prince Li Wutong amounted to tens of millions of Gold Coins! If converted into the copper coins circulating among the people of the Lanyue Empire, that would be well over ten billion!

Naturally, Li Wutong accepted all of this "tribute." Plus, Li Houlin was relatively low-key and quite clever, so Li Wutong gradually came to see Penzes City as an important supply base. Of course, he was decent enough to Li Houlin in return, taking good care of him over the years.

But a while ago, when His Majesty the King’s order arrived, Li Houlin had gone crying to Prince Li Wutong—who, by relation, was his nephew—to complain. At the time, Li Wutong had been furious and told him not to worry, promising he would definitely handle the matter.

Who would have known that just a few days later, Li Wutong would send people to start moving things, clearing out nearly all the supplies stored in Penzes City, including the Gold Coins in the treasury!

Li Houlin was instantly dumbfounded. The Second Prince’s actions clearly showed that he either didn’t want to deal with the matter or couldn’t! Whatever the reason, it meant only one thing: his time as City Lord was over. The fiefdom his family had passed down for hundreds of years was gone!

Then, His Majesty the King’s decree arrived. He was to hand over the city when Ling Xiao arrived at his fiefdom. His title of Count would remain, and it would even become hereditary. He was also granted a mansion in the Imperial Capital of Yalan. After the handover, he was to move his entire family to the capital.

That night, Li Houlin knelt before his ancestral tablets, weeping bitterly. At the very top was the tablet of the Lanyue Empire’s founding emperor, His Majesty Aslan, who was also his ancestor. Li Houlin cursed His Majesty the King for disregarding their kinship as Royal Family Members and taking back the last piece of land belonging to his branch of the Royal Family.

What came next was even worse. News arrived that his beloved youngest son, Li Qiang, had been injured at the Imperial Academy. This finally enraged the Lord City Lord, who had kept a low profile for so many years. This was the second time his son had been bullied, and both times... it was related to that bastard kid who had stolen his fiefdom. How could Li Houlin not hate Ling Xiao?

’Since you won’t let me live in peace, you can forget about getting Penzes City so easily!’

Li Houlin thought viciously. The Southern King’s ambiguous attitude also infuriated him. ’All those countless Gold Coins I gave him over the years were fed to a dog, and an ungrateful one at that! The moment trouble started, he was the first to run, and he even took two-thirds of Penzes City’s wealth with him! That was a fortune accumulated over twenty years!’

’Every time I think about it, my heart aches as if it’s being sliced by a knife!’

’Once that kid’s guards are all killed, I’d like to see how arrogant he can be! I heard that woman who hurt my precious son is also with that bastard Ling Xiao... Excellent. I will make her understand the consequences of hurting my son!’

Just then, a flurry of panicked footsteps sounded from outside. The steward’s voice rang out.

"My Lord, it’s... it’s bad! The Knight brigade... they’ve all been captured! They... they’re about to enter the city!" the steward’s voice trembled as he spoke from outside. He was clearly terrified. The hot sun beat down on him, yet he couldn’t stop shivering, the fat on his face jiggling comically.

"What...!" Li Houlin cried out. "Impossible! That kid’s guards only number five hundred. A light cavalry unit of one thousand was defeated by five hundred infantrymen? That’s absolutely impossible!"

"My Lord, the cavalry captain, Fei Bai, was captured. The others... were all disarmed. The enemy... the enemy has a Demon Sword Master."

After the steward finished speaking, it was as if all the strength had been drained from his body, and his portly frame trembled even more violently.

Li Houlin slumped back into his chair. He accidentally knocked over the teacup on the table, and the exquisite, expensive porcelain shattered on the floor, but he didn’t react at all. He just muttered, "How is this possible? How is this possible?"

...

Outside the city, one hundred of the five hundred elite soldiers stayed behind to guard the prisoners, who were tied together in a line, and the spoils of war.

The other four hundred men followed Ling Xiao into the city. Just as they entered, a young man in black clothes in his thirties darted out from a corner, leaped, and landed on the carriage. Ling Wu, who was beside the carriage, was startled and instinctively about to shout, but he saw that Uncle Fu had no reaction at all. He immediately clamped his mouth shut. He couldn’t help but marvel, ’The Third Young Master... he actually sent someone ahead? Heavens, he... he seems even more cunning than the Boss!’

Meng Li smiled at Uncle Fu, then spoke softly from outside the carriage, through the door: "Those Knights belong to the regular army. You can choose to keep them or let them go. The City Lord here has been shipping supplies to one location recently, probably preparing to take them when he leaves. Penzes City is still relatively stable for now, but a while ago he suddenly raised taxes on various industries, causing a lot of complaints. However, under the City Lord’s high-pressure tactics, everyone chose to submit."

"Have we found a place to stay?" Ling Xiao asked calmly.

"I’ve already found one," said Meng Li. "I bought a very large house with about forty rooms. It’s not quite enough to house everyone, but if we kick out the City Lord, it will be."

Inside the carriage, Ling Xiao tilted his head in thought for a moment, then said, "Alright, to the City Lord’s Mansion!"

Penzes City was also very prosperous, but there weren’t many Adventurers here. Most of the people were merchants!

This was because one of the Empire’s most important ports was located here—Penzes Port. It was a major hub for maritime trade with Fez, Mendira, and the Zichuan Empire.

Therefore, there were also quite a lot of wealthy people in Penzes!

The streets were bustling with people, who looked curiously at Ling Xiao’s group. Although merchant caravans were often protected by large groups of Mercenaries, one could still tell the difference between a Mercenary and a real soldier.

But in this day and age, there was never a shortage of well-informed people. A moment later, everyone in Penzes City knew: Penzes was about to undergo a great change!

After Ling Xiao gave Meng Li some more instructions, he led the large contingent straight for the City Lord’s Mansion. A white falcon circled continuously in the sky, its sharp eyes scanning the area for miles around. Throughout the journey, Clown had been serving as their lookout.

At the entrance of the City Lord’s Mansion, Ling Wu stared at the tall, luxurious main gate and couldn’t help but mutter, "Damn, the south really is a rich place!"

Most of the four hundred elite soldiers were practically drooling, thinking: ’From now on, this will be our turf!’