NOVPUB"The term ’Undying Monster’ means that Zhou Youping has extremely robust vitality; you basically can’t kill him," Chen Xi said with a helpless shrug. "Unless you take his head off on the spot, even if you beat him to within an inch of his life, the next time you see him, he’ll still be hopping around lively."
"You’re kidding, right?" Gan Ning tugged at the corner of his mouth, incredulous as he asked while using his Inner Qi to heal internal injuries, "I’ve never heard of such a person."
"But that’s the reality. Zhou Tai is exactly that kind of rare character," Chen Xi shrugged again. He now understood that the traits these historical figures had left behind hadn’t changed; instead, as the world grew stronger, their traits strengthened as well. The undying Zhou Tai became even tougher.
""
Gan Ning didn’t say much more, but he took Chen Xi’s words to heart. After all, if Zhou Tai really possessed that Trait, killing him would be extremely difficult. To kill someone who could only be killed by beheading—Inner Qi Manifestation—Gan Ning felt that was something only Lyu Bu could do.
"It seems Sunx Bofu didn’t follow us," Chen Xi said as he pulled on the reins to slow down and look back. "However, what happened today was quite strange. Someone like Zhou Yu didn’t even react, and what’s more, there was no Rear Army to cover us, and no pursuing attack. It all seems a bit off."
"If Sunx Ce is considered an independent power, then the strongest under his command aren’t these immature Land Forces, but Sunx Ce’s Navy that was captured in Jiangxia and retrained. They probably don’t want to hurl themselves against stone, so our retreat will likely require some effort," Gan Ning’s mind worked fast, and he quickly figured out this simplest yet most practical plan.
"Hmm, perhaps we arrived at just the right time. As for avoiding a Naval Battle on the Yangtze River, I had never thought about dodging it—I also need to see what the gap is between us and the strongest Navy in the world," Chen Xi said after thinking for a moment.
"The strongest in the world, hahahaha, I, Gan Xingba, have never claimed to be the strongest Navy, who’s being so arrogant?" Gan Ning raised an eyebrow. Although he already knew whom Chen Xi was referring to, he would never agree to something that would boost someone’s morale at the expense of his own reputation.
"Hmm, maybe you can win," Chen Xi said as he stroked his chin.
"Hehehe, I knew it, I, Gan Xingba, haven’t spoken up, what are they considered?" Gan Ning’s face lit up with joy but then darkened as he remembered the Lu Family’s situation. He sighed and said, "Our mission this time is botched. The Lu Family is gone. Sigh, if only we had been a bit faster, looking at the situation before, Lujiang City would’ve fallen within an hour or so."
"It’s not that simple. Even if Lujiang City has fallen, it doesn’t necessarily mean the Lu Family is in trouble. It’s true that some noble families are devastated by wars, but most of them would have prepared beforehand for a war, at least leaving some hope and bloodline for resurgence," Chen Xi shook his head. "While Sunx Bofu isn’t paying attention to us, we should quickly look for the Lu Family; there might still be some gains."
"I hope so," Gan Ning sighed, "I wonder if Gan Luoo has found anything."
Meanwhile, Sunx Ce carried Zhou Tai to Lujiang City, and after a series of treatments—whether it was due to high medical skill or Zhou Tai’s resilient body—Zhou Tai’s severe injuries soon stabilized, and he regained consciousness after an hour.
"Uh, it hurts..." Before Zhou Tai could express his pain, Pang Tong, who had just woken up, already began to painfully scream. He was the unluckiest, first struck badly by Chen Xi so that his mind was fuzzy, then brought by Sunx Ce to the frontlines; during Chen Xi’s Spiritual Shock, Pang Tong habitually bore the brunt of it and naturally went down again.
"Are you okay, Shiyuan?" Sunx Ce asked with some concern at Pang Tong, who was holding his head.
"Chen Zichuan, I must make sure you enjoy this too. Ouch, ouch, ouch..." Pang Tong hadn’t even finished his harsh words when he started to scream again.
"Enough, stop screaming," Zhou Yu, sitting on the side, said to the still screaming Pang Tong.
"My head is about to burst, how come you’re fine?" Pang Tong turned towards Zhou Yu with as much calm as he could muster; he certainly didn’t want to lose face in front of Zhou Yu.
"I was just caught off guard. Forget it, I’ll play a piece on the zither for you, it might make you feel better faster." Saying this, Zhou Yu placed his Green Silk Zither across his laps and began to play slowly. An indescribable fluctuation wafted from the strings, and Pang Tong, who had been feeling severe pain in his head, felt a refreshing coolness.
When the piece had ended, Pang Tong couldn’t help but move his body a little, his head didn’t seem to hurt as much as before, and even his spiritual power had recovered some.
Pang Tong looked at Zhou Yu with a complex expression. For the first time, he felt jealous of someone. Zhou Yu seemed to have taken all the good things under the sky for himself: spiritual talent, special abilities, legion talent, music, chess, calligraphy, painting, strategy, good looks, and even lately the charming Little Qiao whom no words could describe her allure. Are you the Lord of Heaven’s own son? How come every good thing involves you?
"Shiyuan, feeling better?" The lingering notes faded away, and Zhou Yu’s gentle voice reached Pang Tong’s ears.
"Thanks, Gongjin," grunted Zhou Tai, who was wrapped in bandages. He sat up, swung his arms around, and then did a chest expansion exercise. Although feeling slightly uncomfortable, he seemed as if he’d been resting well for several days.
"Mind your own business!" Pang Tong said with irritation. In his opinion, Zhou Yu was just too detestable. How could he be so good at everything?
"..." Zhou Yu looked at Pang Tong speechlessly. He rarely played the zither for others, let alone the Green Silk Zither, and Pang Tong even appeared ungrateful. "Forget it, later we’ll go together to the Yangtze River to deal with Chen Zichuan. Do you want to come? Youping, it seems you’ve recovered quite well, your physical quality is indeed excellent."
"Hmph, even if you didn’t mention it, I would still go. After suffering such a loss, I have to reclaim my dignity. But this isn’t like you at all!" Pang Tong looked at Zhou Yu. No matter how irritating he found Zhou Yu, as a comrade-in-arms, Zhou Yu seemed to him to be the most reliable figure under Sunx Ce’s command.
Zhou Tai wanted to add a word, but Sunx Ce held him back. Matters of strategy were best left to Zhou Yu; they were the type who were good at leading soldiers into battle and excelling in the heat of combat, not in pre-battle plotting.
"Whether the Yangtze Natural Barrier is really a formidable barrier is up for debate; similarly, our side’s strength needs to be evaluated by the opponent," Zhou Yu said with a smile, "Our Navy is the strongest, the North’s most important are their cavalry, and in the South, what’s most crucial is our Navy. Whether or not we can succeed at the Yangtze Natural Barrier depends on whether our Navy is sharp enough!"
"Hmph, same as my thoughts, but I’m not just going to see if our Navy is sharp enough; what I have to do is defeat them on the waters of the Yangtze River. Only in this way can I calm the hatred in my heart!" Pang Tong said with arrogant pride.
Zhou Yu glanced at Pang Tong and turned his head silently, [Shiyuan, you still need to be tempered. At most we can only probe; we cannot possibly capture them, Chen Zichuan is Liu Xuande’s right-hand man!] (To be continued. If you like this work, welcome to Qidian (qidian.com) to cast your recommendation vote, monthly vote. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
