Chapter 98: Chapter 90: The Calamity of Yan Province

After a long while, Du Chengfeng returned on horseback and looked at the massive carcass in the mountains, speechless for a moment.

Earlier, he had ridden away to retrieve the Heavy Great Saber he had flung out and also to leave Xiang Rong behind, hoping the latter and the monster would exhaust each other in a fight.

The monster should have been old Ruan, and even without Xiang Rong’s reminder, he could guess as much. Since old Ruan had transformed into a monster and Xiang Rong had survived, he’d naturally leave Xiang Rong there so that the old classmates could have a good reunion.

But the outcome was far beyond his expectations.

That old Ruan would be ambushed was within his expectations. After all, after honing the Rectangular Sword, he learned about the past between old Ruan and Xiang Rong, and he knew that Xiang Rong had been skilled in using the Dark Sword to harm others since his youth—it’s precisely why he swiftly returned to assess the situation.

After all, whether he could live comfortably in Yanzhou depended entirely on old Ruan’s survival.

Yet, it turned out old Ruan was too alive. The massive body rooted in Ziyang Mountain, the colossal branches that blotted out the sky and sun—no one could handle such a level of monster.

When Ruan Shantao was still human, he could subdue the entire Yanzhou single-handedly. Now turned monster and fully unleashed, how terrifying would Ruan Shantao be?

For Yanzhou City, and even the neighboring several regions, it might be a catastrophe.

So after retrieving his saber, he returned—to see if Xiang Rong was dead and to see what the now monstrous Ruan Shantao looked like.

But who would have thought that upon returning to the mountain academy, he would see Ruan Shantao’s corpse.

"One wound... no, two wounds."

After carefully inspecting the corpse, Du Chengfeng concluded.

Judging by Ruan Shantao’s posture before he fell, he seemed to want to grasp something. This matched Du Chengfeng’s impression of the strange bird He Xixuan; such monsters had the instinct to devour living beings to replenish themselves, so Xiang Rong being captured alive made sense.

Then, Ruan Shantao’s right arm was torn open.

From the wound’s shape, Du Chengfeng couldn’t discern what kind of weapon was used. He had seen Xiang Rong’s Hundred-refined Soft Sword, but its invisible sword light could only barely match his fiery blade, not capable of such massive destruction.

If he had to find a way to describe it, Du Chengfeng thought it resembled some sort of heavy artillery.

But this attack was evidently more vicious and deadly than the artillery he imagined.

In just one strike, Ruan Shantao’s right arm was ripped to shreds, and the second strike shattered most of Ruan Shantao’s body.

With merely two attacks, this monster, transformed from Ruan Shantao, immovably rooted in Ziyang Mountain, was dead.

These were the traces left by that man named Xiang Rong just now.

"So powerful."

Walking forward, Du Chengfeng gently touched the severed edge of the torso.

The enormous wound still seemed to faintly emit the overwhelming Evil Qi from that moment.

"So powerful!"

Just the remnants of Evil Qi at the wound left Du Chengfeng trembling, almost drawing his saber on the spot!

"Calm down, stay calm..."

Taking a deep breath, Du Chengfeng turned his horse and hurried back to Yanzhou City.

The students from the academy had already withdrawn to the city. Many children, whose families were in the city, simply went home directly. A few adults who went to the mountains to learn to read were settled at Du Chengfeng’s house by Liu Bolun along with the two gatekeepers—since it was originally Liu Bolun’s residence, he had arranged it properly, including even finding a place for Cui Yuan, who was hidden in a pot, without anyone else knowing.

Afterwards, Du Chengfeng sought out the now-sober Carpenter Li.

"Old brother, I just hurried into the city and mentioned it in passing to the villagers... Now you, leave the city immediately, Old Yang is preparing the road supplies. After you’re ready, leave at once."

"Alright, I’ll do it immediately."

Carpenter Li nodded.

"What about you? When are you leaving?"

"I..."

Du Chengfeng hesitated.

Yeah, when would he leave?

He probably should leave. After all, this is completely different from being at Yang’s Fort. That monster named He Xiqing would likely chase him to the ends of the earth for revenge—but now there’s no He Xiqing or foe, and Ruan Shantao is down. Leaving to prepare against unforeseen mishaps is quite normal, isn’t it?

Avoiding danger is human nature; everyone would leave a dangerous place.

But why was he thinking about such a standard thing?

"Well, I have something to fetch."

With that, Du Chengfeng mounted his horse and left.

This behavior even made the slowest Carpenter Li realize something was wrong. He was puzzled as to why this brother Du, who said others should flee, wasn’t planning to leave himself—if, back at Ji Bei, he just faintly sensed this, now it was too obvious.

If things were as his brother Du said—a disaster impacting the whole Yanzhou City—what was this brother Du waiting for? To die in the city?

Or did this brother Du truly have such a heroic spirit and selflessness to save tens of thousands in Yanzhou City on his own?

"Didn’t expect he was such a person..."

"Yes, didn’t expect he was such a person."

As Carpenter Li marveled, a voice sounded behind him.

"Originally, when he tricked me in the mountains, trying to have me send away lives, I thought he was just a fraud. But now, this bold spirit actively seeking battle, this fearless courage charging toward death... God knows how many he’ll kill this time! No wonder he has such talent!"

"...Who are you?"

Carpenter Li turned around and saw a man with wide sleeves and a scarred face, standing behind him unnoticed.

"And who are you talking about?"

"I am Cui Yuan, a Swordsman."

The man named Cui Yuan nodded slightly.

"As for whom I’m talking about, it is Mr. Du Chengfeng... "

"Wait a minute?"

Carpenter Li suddenly frowned.

What a joke, he watched Du Chengfeng walk from Yang’s Fort, they already called each other brothers, with a deep bond—and he knew Du Chengfeng’s nature, clearly a kind person at peace with the world.

How come, in Cui Yuan’s words, he turned into some bloodthirsty tyrant?

"A good man? You actually think he’s a good man?"

Cui Yuan looked at Carpenter Li with surprise.

"You’ve claimed to know him well, and you still think he’s a good man?"

"What else?"

Carpenter Li looked bewildered.

From his interactions with brother Du, if this didn’t count as a good man, who could?

"You actually think so..."

Shaking his head, Cui Yuan closed his eyes, recalling memories related to Du Chengfeng.

"If that’s what you think, all I can say is you don’t truly understand your brother."