Chapter 24: Collusion

Zu An had been paying attention to that carriage in the middle of the scuffle. Its extravagant and imposing construction naturally drew attention.

Is it a Rolls Royce? Appearance-wise, the carriage bore no similarity, but the overall impression it gave made Zu An draw the connection. 

Regardless of which world one was in, the aesthetics of humans were quite uniform, and this carriage was a masterpiece from every angle. Every single contour embodied the blood, sweat, and tears of a master craftsman. It was drawn by four handsome steeds, all with a muscular build and lustrous coats that conveyed impeccable majesty.

The carriage wheels and even the hooves of the horses were cloaked in blue light. It was an extremely delicate formation that allowed the carriage to maneuver through difficult terrain without causing the passengers seated inside the carriage the slightest disturbance.

Zu An had ridden in the Chu clan’s carriage before, but it paled in comparison to the one right before his eyes.

A charming female voice came from within the carriage. “Go? Where can I go?” Her tone of voice seemed both coy and languid at the same time, but was colored with more than a hint of confusion. 

“What a melodious voice!” Ji Xiaoxi muttered to herself in a daze. Zu An, on the other hand, thought nothing of it. In his modern, digital world, there were plenty of people who made a living using their voices, be it voice actors, vtubers, and other content creators. He had heard far too many beautiful voices to know that a good voice didn’t equate to good looks. Countless pitiful souls had been fooled by the false allure of a beautiful voice.

The black-clothed attackers seemed to lose their senses for a moment, then burst into concerted laughter. “Just as we thought, Madam Yu is indeed in there! Brother, let’s push on! Soon, we’ll be able to have a taste of the previous number one beauty of the capital!”

This drew a chorus of cheers from those in black, spurring them on. 

The eyes of the white-clothed guards reddened at these words, but there was only so much they could do against overwhelming numbers. No matter how much they tapped into the hidden potential in their bodies, they could not stand against this onslaught.

“Ah! So it’s her!” Ji Xiaoxi exclaimed in astonishment.

Zu An was intrigued. “Why? Do you recognize the person in the carriage?”

Ji Xiaoxi shook her head and replied, “I don’t know her in person, but I have heard of her. Cloudmidst’s Yu clan deals in ki stones, and they are the most renowned tycoons in the world. Back in those days, the matriarch of the Yu clan, Yu Yanluo, awed the entire capital with her grace and beauty, and countless men still pine for her to this day.”

As she mentioned this, Ji Xiaoxi suddenly recalled how her father often proclaimed himself to be Yu Yanluo’s number one fan, and her face flushed with embarrassment.

Zu An frowned in confusion. “Judging by what you just said, the Yu clan should be pretty formidable. It doesn’t make sense that they can’t handle a group of bandits.”

Ji Xiaoxi corrected Zu An. “The Blackwind Stockade isn’t any ordinary band of bandits. They are an incredibly powerful gang that even Duke Chu is—”

Before she could finish, Zu An cut in, “No matter how formidable they are, bandits are still bandits. Besides, just as you said, the Yu clan is one of the richest clans in the country, and their matriarch is a known beauty. They are bound to attract attention from enemies and other major powers. If this is the standard of the guards they have, how in the world did she manage to survive to this day without any major incidents?”

“Ahh…” Ji Xiaoxi hadn’t expected such a strong reaction from Zu An. She pondered for a while before responding, “Her husband, the Cloudmidst Duke, passed away recently in an accident. That could have caused some internal turmoil within the Yu clan, and consequently affected the quality of guards she brings around with her.”

“Politics inside major clans sure are messy,” Zu An remarked with a sigh. It had only been two days since he joined the Chu clan, and he had already suffered so many near death encounters. Someone like Yu Yanluo was likely to have faced far more of such run-ins than him.

“Is the one leading the bandits down there Great Bandit Chen Xuan?” Zu An asked, pointing to the leader of the black-clothed attackers.

Ji Xiaoxi shook her head and replied, “It doesn’t seem to be him. Chen Xuan is a sixth rank cultivator, possibly even reaching the seventh rank. None of those below have even reached the fifth rank.”

“Ah, that reminds me of a question I have been wanting to ask you for a long time. How do you discern the cultivation level of a person?” Zu An asked. It was not as if this were a game, where enemy levels were displayed above their heads. His inability to discern the cultivation level of his enemies would make it hard to deal with any future threats.

After all, not everyone was like Plum Blossom Twelve, foolishly giving away their cultivation level.

“You don’t even know that?” Ji Xiaoxi asked in surprise. Nevertheless, she still explained the matter patiently. “In the first rank, a cultivator learns to sense raw ki. In the second rank, a cultivator’s skin hardens, allowing them to deal with ordinary swords barehanded. In the third rank, a cultivator gains the ability to release ki in a radius of three chi around his body to form barriers to block against enemy attacks. 

“In the fourth rank, a cultivator is able to project ki away from their body, allowing for long-distance attacks. In the fifth rank, a cultivator awakens their ability to control the elements and imbue them into their attacks. In the sixth rank, a cultivator can form an elemental barrier to defend against elemental-type attacks.

“In the seventh rank, a cultivator’s regeneration is significantly boosted, such that the attacks of low-level enemies wouldn’t be able to keep up with their rate of recovery. In the eighth rank, a cultivator becomes able to communicate with raw ki, allowing him to tap into a far greater reserve of power. I’m not familiar with levels beyond that, but it seems that even flight is possible once one reaches a certain level.

“Those bandits below are incapable of using elemental attacks, which means none of them have reached the fifth rank. I believe that the leader of this group is the Blackwind Stockade’s Third Master, Bao Gang.”

“I see!” Zu An nodded, grateful for her explanation. His new-found knowledge helped him to process the battle more clearly, and he was able to roughly grasp the fighting prowess of the combatants. 

Most of the black-clothed bandits below were at the second rank, though a couple of them had reached the third rank. Only the leader of the bandits was at the fourth rank.

According to what he knew, a fourth rank cultivator was eligible to be named the lord of a smaller city whereas a third rank cultivator could serve as a magistrate of a smaller city. It seemed that comparing the Blackwind Stockade to ordinary ruffians was indeed unwise. 

The guard captain of the Yu clan was at the fourth rank too, and his subordinates were all at the third rank. Their strength had allowed some of them to survive so far. Unfortunately, their numbers were too small to matter. Their defeat was already sealed. 

“Who’s there?” The leader of the black-clothed bandits suddenly turned around. Zu An and Ji Xiaoxi had spoken too loudly, and had inadvertently revealed their presence. 

“You should leave, quickly!” Ji Xiaoxi hissed at Zu An. She was the one who proposed coming here to help the wounded. She wouldn’t allow Zu An to get hurt because of her.

She had nearly used up all of the medicine she’d brought with her, and was not confident in dealing with the bandits.

“What about you?” Zu An was surprised. Was this lass really intending to stay behind to hold back the enemies?

“Don’t worry, I can protect myself. Besides, my father is Ji Dengtu. They dare not to touch me,” Ji Xiaoxi said hurriedly.

Zu An shook his head. “Those bandits dared to accost the renowned Yu clan! There’s no way they’ll respect the mere daughter of a divine physician.”

Ji Xiaoxi was taken aback by Zu An’s words. She was about to inform him that her father was actually a really formidable figure, but Zu An instructed anxiously, “Hide yourself well and don’t come out!”

He leaped out of cover and bellowed, “Oho! You dare to commit such atrocities in public, in the middle of the day, under the glorious rays of the sun?”

Ji Xiaoxi’s mouth widened in shock. Was Zu An out of his mind? Revealing his presence to the bandits was one thing, but provoking them on top of that?

As expected, the bandits hollered back, “Where did this nasty brat come from? Are you planning on interfering in the affairs of our Blackwind Stockade?”

Zu An froze. “You’re from the Blackwind Stockade?”

“Of course! Who are you?” The bandit leader stared at Zu An warily. This brat had suddenly leaped out of nowhere, and there was nothing he could use to identify him. It made sense to first do some probing to determine who they were dealing with.

At this sudden development, the battle between the bandits and the guards came to an uncertain halt. 

Zu An clasped his fist and introduced himself. “I am Cheng Shouping. Those in the pugilistic world know me as someone with lips as tight as a cork on a bottle!”

Over in the bushes, Ji Xiaoxi blinked in bewilderment. Who is Cheng Shouping?

The black-clothed bandits shared her confusion. They had never heard of such a figure in the pugilistic world before. Nevertheless, they treated him as a formidable expert.  No one else would dare to stand before them so calmly.

The guards of the Yu clan grew nervous at this exchange. The guard captain shouted out loud, “That hero over there, we’re from the Cloudmidst’s Yu clan! If you’re willing to lend us a helping hand, the Yu clan will surely repay the favor generously!”

Bao Gang’s face darkened immediately. He gestured to his subordinates to go around the forest and seal off this ‘Cheng Shouping’s’ escape route. They could not allow anyone to know that it was the Blackwind Stockade that had carried out the attack on the Yu clan’s carriage.

“Generously?” Zu An repeated contemplatively. “How generous?”

Those of the Yu clan were flabbergasted by this response. This man isn’t playing by the norms! Shouldn’t he say something along the lines of ‘a true hero doesn’t expect any rewards’ and lend us a helping hand? 

Despite this, the guard captain replied straight away, “I dare not say the wealth of our Yu clan can truly rival that of the country, but be it gold, silver, legendary weapons, ki stones, or even conferment of nobility, regardless of what it is that you need, our Yu clan will surely satisfy your demands!”

Zu An nodded in response. “That sounds like a fair offer, but I’m a man of culture who appreciates fine art. I heard that your matriarch used to be the number one beauty in the capital. Could I ask for her instead?”

Bao Gang was dumbfounded. He had feared the intruder would come to the aid of the Yu clan, but he definitely hadn’t expected such a crude remark! It was all he could do not to rebuke him. In any case, it seemed the intruder was not an immediate threat. He pulled his subordinates back, and ordered them to stay vigilant. 

The face of the guard captain darkened. “Please do not joke around.”

Zu An shrugged casually. “I’m not joking around. As long as your matriarch is willing to accompany me for one night, I’ll settle these men from the Blackwind Stockade for you.”

Behind the bushes, Ji Xiaoxi felt heat rising from her face. That man is obviously… yet he still puts on such a licentious act!

But while she was privy to Zu An’s circumstances, the Yu clan guards were not. They glared daggers at him.

You have successfully trolled Yu Bin for 99 Rage points!

You have successfully trolled Yu Jun for 99 Rage points!

You have successfully trolled Yu Meng for 99 Rage points!

…

Seeing the huge inflow of Rage points, Zu An marveled at how compatible the Rage system was with him. For him, earning Rage points was almost as easy as breathing. The only regret he had was obtaining this Rage system so late in life. With his skills on the internet forums, he would have earned enough to ascend to godhood by now!

He was surprised that no points had come from Madam Yu. Was she perfectly okay with his rude remarks?

Disregarding the murderous gazes of the guards, Zu An turned to Bao Gang and said, “I have a deep respect for the Blackwind Stockade, especially after hearing of the great deeds you have pulled off. The only regret I have in my life is not having the opportunity to join your ranks. Since fate has brought us together today, may I humbly ask you to take me in? I don’t need anything at all. I just hope that you can share Madam Yu with me once you’re done here.”

You have successfully trolled Yu Bin for 99 Rage points!

You have successfully trolled Yu Jun for 99 Rage points!

You have successfully trolled Yu Meng for 99 Rage points!

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