Chapter 275: Only by Preserving Great Wu Can I Keep My Greedy Territory!
The Great Xia Crown Prince, Xia Tianqiong, had tried his best to overestimate Lin Beifan, yet he still greatly underestimated him!
Thinking back to the past, when he led an army of 800,000 to Hulao Pass, how confident and satisfied he was!
Then, he guessed the beginning, but failed to foresee the ending.
In just two or three days, he was defeated by Lin Beifan, a complete and utter defeat!
200,000 troops bathed in blood, 600,000 were captured!
The 35 Innate experts he brought were all killed!
Even he himself had become a prisoner, a bargaining chip in negotiations with Great Wu!
On the other hand, Lin Beifan, relying on this monumental achievement, was promoted in rank and granted a noble title.
In subsequent negotiations between the two countries, the other side skillfully maneuvered, yielding advantages on all sides, completely exploiting Great Xia and leaving behind immense potential hazards for its future!
It could be said that with his own strength, Lin Beifan not only saved Great Wu but also dragged Great Xia into a quagmire!
Thinking again about what he had done for Great Wu over the past year and more.
He did it. He achieved what he had said at the beginning!
“When the sky falls on Great Wu, I will support it! When the backbone of Great Wu breaks, I will carry it! When the fate of Great Wu comes to an end, I will continue it! As long as I’m in Great Wu, I will do my utmost to extend its glory!”
Thinking back, these words were still resonating loudly!
At this point, Xia Tianqiong’s expression became complex, “Mr. Lin, I wanted to kill you, but I admire you even more! Without you, Great Wu would have been in chaos long ago! With you, what more could Great Wu ask for?”
“Thank you for your praise, Your Highness. I am not worthy!” Lin Beifan bowed with a smile.
“To be honest, I still can’t figure out why you have given so much for Great Wu, so dedicated and meticulous. Could it be just for greed, as you said before, that because of greed, you are loyal?” Xia Tianqiong asked with confusion, “Otherwise, what else could it be?”
Lin Beifan smiled, his eyes narrowed, “Your Highness, you should understand that I’ve done quite a bit of treason for the sake of wealth! Just pull out one of these instances, and it could implicate nine generations!”
Xia Tianqiong smiled and shook his head, “Indeed, you’re both loyal and corrupt! For the sake of wealth, you could betray Great Wu! But to preserve Great Wu, you put forth all your efforts and talents, saving the collapsing building! This is the first time I’ve seen someone as complex and enigmatic as you.”
“Greed is my nature, so I’ll go to any lengths to satisfy my desires! But I also have to be sincere because only by protecting Great Wu can I safeguard my greedy territory!” Lin Beifan chuckled.
“It seems that’s the only way to understand it!” Xia Tianqiong laughed with insight, “However, what you’re doing is extremely dangerous, like walking on a tightrope. Moving forward is difficult, and stepping back is even harder! Right now, you’re useful to Great Wu, so the people can tolerate you, both civil and military officials can tolerate you, and even your monarch can tolerate you!”
“But, as your power grows and your rank rises, once Great Wu can no longer satisfy your appetite, and your authority threatens the imperial power, where will you go then?”
“Have you… considered this question?”
Lin Beifan smiled slightly; he had thought it through long ago!
His answer was always ready: be prepared to flee at any time!
With his Grandmaster-level strength, there was nowhere he couldn’t escape to.
Besides that terrifying woman, who else could hold him back?
Unfortunately, that woman was on his side!
So, he had long stopped worrying about this matter!
At this moment, as he looked at Lin Beifan’s calm and composed smile, Xia Tianqiong was puzzled!
Ordinary officials would be restless and anxious in such situations, filled with fear!
Why couldn’t he see a trace of panic on Lin Beifan’s face?
Why was he so fearless?
Was it that he cared more about money than his life?
Or was there something else he relied on?
“You don’t need to worry about this, Your Highness!” Lin Beifan grinned, “I have matters to attend to now. I’ll take my leave. I’ll visit you again next time. Please take care of yourself, Your Highness, and don’t do anything foolish!”
Xia Tianqiong’s face turned solemn, “Rest assured! For the sake of Great Xia, I will never do anything foolish!”
“I’m relieved to hear that!” Lin Beifan left the dungeon.
Walking along the road, he unexpectedly encountered Night Fragrance rushing frantically.
This was the first time Lin Beifan had seen such a situation, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Night Fragrance, what’s causing such panic?”
Night Fragrance exclaimed, “My master has come to see me, so I’m going to hide!”
Lin Beifan was even more confused, “Your master coming to see you isn’t a good thing?”
Night Fragrance cried out again, “But my master is out for blood!”
In just a couple of exchanges, Night Fragrance had disappeared without a trace.
At that moment, a violent and overpowering aura emanated from a distance.
A white-haired yet spirited old man appeared. He resembled a majestic eagle soaring from a distance, holding a spear in his hand. He landed on a rooftop and, from his high vantage point, asked, “Have you seen my unruly disciple Night Fragrance?”
His eagle-like gaze scanned the entire scene, finally landing on Lin Beifan.
Because Lin Beifan was standing out so conspicuously and didn’t appear to be afraid of his aura.
Lin Beifan pointed in a direction, “He ran that way!”
“Thank you, young hero. I’m going then!” The old man shouted and continued his pursuit.
“Whoosh, whoosh…”
All the strong individuals within the city followed him in pursuit.
Lin Beifan also followed to watch the spectacle.
Outside the capital, the old man had already caught up with Night Fragrance, and the two were engaged in a fierce battle.
The old man held a long spear and his laughter was hearty and bold, “Clever disciple, I heard you killed two Grandmasters? Hahaha… You’ve made progress in these two years! Quickly show it to your master!”
While dodging, Night Fragrance shouted, “Master, those are all distorted rumors from outside. They can’t be true!”
“Quit the chatter and face my spear!”
“Boom, boom…”
The two fought fiercely, turning day into night!
In reality, it was all one-sided torment inflicted on Night Fragrance, like a sandbag being tossed around!
In less than a moment, his once handsome face was so battered that it looked inhuman, truly a pitiful sight!
Despite this, he could still react swiftly, evading attacks to minimize damage!
Lin Beifan clicked his tongue, “So, Night Fragrance’s light footwork was cultivated like this! This was forced upon him. If you want to hit others, you must first learn to take hits!”
At this moment, Night Fragrance felt incredibly aggrieved!
You should know that he was currently the idol of the entire city, a hero protecting Great Wu, also known as the Grand Heroic Cat!
His current battered appearance was a huge loss of face!
So he shouted, “Enough, Master! If you continue like this, I won’t hold back!”
The old man was extremely pleased upon hearing this, “Good disciple, you should have acted like this long ago. Witness my Dominant King Spear!”
He struck even more forcefully, thudding sounds echoing…
Night Fragrance’s teeth scattered on the ground. He pulled out a small knife and cried out, “Master, you’ve pushed me to this!”
Lin Beifan smiled oddly, “Hehe…”
“Master, watch the knife!” Like a thunderbolt, Night Fragrance swiftly dodged the spear rain, closing in on the old man. He thrust his knife toward the old man’s chest, slightly off-center.
The old man unexpectedly didn’t dodge or evade.
Night Fragrance’s knife landed on the old man’s chest.
Then, a metallic clang sounded, as if the knife had struck steel, and it couldn’t penetrate at all.
Night Fragrance was dumbfounded, “Why didn’t it work? This can’t be… this can’t be…”
So, he stabbed twice in a row, but still couldn’t breach the defense!
The old man was speechless, “My disciple, what are you doing? With such an ordinary little knife, you think you can injure me? Have you lost your mind?”
“Master, just wait a bit more, let me stab two more times…”
The old man raised his spear, “Disciple, it seems your mind is indeed messed up. I’ll knock some sense into you!”
“Master, please… please no…”
“Thud, thud”…
“Ah!!!”
The battle ended quickly, with the old man emerging as the clear victor and Night Fragrance defeated miserably.
The old man held his spear and stood in front of the bruised and swollen Night Fragrance with a disappointed expression, shaking his head, “Originally, I heard you killed two Grandmasters and your strength had greatly improved, so I traveled far to verify your progress. I didn’t expect that you’ve made no progress at all and your mind is still troubled. Sigh… you’ve disappointed your teacher so much!”
Night Fragrance coughed up a mouthful of blood, his face full of despair.
It was happening again!
He was being burdened by this “false reputation” once more!
Even though it was impossible, it spread like wildfire, leading to him being beaten by Grandmasters multiple times!
Even his own master traveled a great distance just to give him a beating!
Oh, he was so miserable!
At this moment, Lin Beifan walked over with a smile, bowing, “Senior, you are Night Fragrance’s master, the supreme Grandmaster known as the Spear God?”
The old man raised his head high, his voice like a resonating bell, “Indeed, I am the Spear God. And who might you be?”
Lin Beifan smiled, “I am Lin Beifan, the Prefect of the Dedian Prefecture in the capital, and also the immediate superior of Night Fragrance.”
“So, it’s you. I’ve heard about you!” The old man laughed, “You’re the one who caught my disciple Night Fragrance and also turned him from a common thief into a national hero, promoting him to a third-ranking official in the court. Haha, you’ve taken care of my disciple these days!”
“Oh, not at all, Senior exaggerates. I haven’t done much!” Lin Beifan modestly replied.
The old man shook his head and chuckled, “You’ve done quite a bit! My disciple has always been unruly, there are few who can restrain him. You are one of them, it seems you’ve put in quite an effort!”
“Senior, please don’t overpraise. Since you’ve come to the capital, why not come to my mansion for a visit? I have fine wine and delicacies to entertain you.”
The old man readily agreed, “That sounds good! Lead the way.”
“Senior, please!” Lin Beifan stepped aside to let the old man take the lead and guided the way.
At the same time, he waved at the surrounding people, “We are all on the same side, no need to worry. Everyone can disperse!”
