“Hateful!” the motorcycle rider muttered. At this moment, he genuinely detested that Jin hostage to the bone.
“He clearly had so many supplies!”
The officer found that rather odd. The boy was just a lowly apprentice knight. “What supplies?”
“Not convenient to say,” Sister Hua answered evasively.
The Guizu possessed intelligence, and high-tier Guizu were far from stupid.
She naturally couldn't say aloud that the Jin youth had vast quantities of explosives, let alone ghost-destroying mines.
Normally, the Intelligence Bureau didn't lack such equipment either, but the three of them had deployed this time not to investigate the Guizu situation, but to capture the youth.
Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined that Wu Youren would dare run into the mountains on his own initiative!
Sister Hua had spoken vaguely, but the soldier understood—if it wasn't convenient to say in front of the Guizu, what else could it be but those items?
Then his brow furrowed. “You didn't carry any on you?”
“Only a few!” the motorcycle rider replied.
Swinging his saber several times, he asked impatiently, “Doesn't your military have any either?”
“The army strictly forbids us from using them!” the soldier answered expressionlessly. “Our mission is to contain the situation!”
The military had no shortage of heavy-hitting weapons like ghost-destroying mines, but they had to be used where they belonged.
His mission here was to monitor the Guizu situation and maintain the status quo, ensuring that the Guizu aura did not seep outward any further.
Equipping soldiers with ghost-destroying mines en masse could easily cause the situation to spiral out of control—who wouldn't want to use such good stuff if they had it?
It was similar to border guards usually not being equipped with excessively lethal weapons; harboring a sharp blade in one's bosom might awaken the impulse to kill.
Did it feel frustrating? Naturally, a little, but as a soldier, one had to submit to the overall tactical situation and obey military orders.
“What the hell kind of nonsense is that?” The motorcycle rider couldn't take it anymore. “If the Guizu aura erupts, how are you supposed to suppress it without lethal means?”
“It's not what you think,” the soldier said, shaking his head. “Slaughtering Guizu can yield extra income, so military supplies have to be controlled!”
“Holy shit,” the motorcycle rider finally understood this time. “In other words, military supplies belong to the military?”
“What else?” The soldier uttered just two words and said no more.
Even Wu Youren understood: the military worried that ordinary soldiers would stir up trouble out of greed, so they simply restricted overly powerful weaponry.
It sounded somewhat absurd, but really... they understood human nature all too well!
Yet on second thought, Wu Youren felt like laughing.
The military had no weapons of mass destruction here, and the Intelligence Bureau agents sent to capture him hadn't brought much either.
So, in the end, a Martial Academy student like him, a mere apprentice knight, was the one most amply equipped with anti-Guizu supplies?
Wasn't that a bit fucking ironic?
Still, since their resources were so strained, his options had expanded slightly.
The motorcycle rider scoffed. “If that's the case, all I can say is you people are pathetic.”
“Serve in the army before saying that,” the soldier replied, hardly bothering to entertain him. Then he gave a soft sigh. “You’d best shut up now, unless you want to draw over a Guizu grand knight!”
The motorcycle rider promptly shut his mouth. A grand knight-level Guizu was truly not something he could afford to provoke.
“The military really does keep a cool head,” Sister Hua remarked mildly. “I suspect a Guizu grand knight has already arrived.”
“Right, Little Wu?”
Once again, she wasn't certain of anything around them, but bluffing even when nothing was wrong was her standard operating procedure.
Yet in the next moment, a voice abruptly spoke: “The grand knight is right beneath your feet.”
The voice was ethereal and airy, impossible to pinpoint from any direction.
“Holy shit...” The soldier, who had remained calm all along, was thoroughly stunned for once. “The kid's actually still fucking alive?”
He was truly shocked. An ability master was dead, yet a mere apprentice knight still lived?
“Then what are you waiting for?” the motorcycle rider snapped in anger. “If I hadn't come short on supplies—”
“I'm genuinely beginning to wonder how you survived to adulthood,” Wu Youren said, utterly speechless.
He knew people from Liang were blunt, but to be blunt to this extent... Well, the man wasn't that old either, around thirty or so.
Being young excused a lot.
Still, he was a young man too, wasn't he? “I'm waiting to watch you die. Can you feel the chill beneath the ground?”
“The grand knight is already in position. Feigning weakness... is useless. None of you are getting away.”
The motorcycle rider instantly fell silent. He sensed that the boy harbored deep malice toward him.
Sister Hua, however, glanced sideways—right in Wu Youren's direction.
A veteran knight was different from a newly minted one after all; through whatever means she had employed, she had actually locked onto his position.
She spoke slowly, “Hmm. Sounds like you can get away?”
“I'll watch how you run first,” Wu Youren replied unhurriedly. “Won't trailing behind you do just fine?”
“Using us as spearheads?” The soldier's brow furrowed. He knew this script all too well!
Wu Youren didn't respond. *I don't know you at all, damn it!*
Sister Hua, however, grasped the deeper meaning. “And if we can't break through?”
Wu Youren replied placidly, “Then I'll find another way.”
“Understood,” the soldier said, truly comprehending now. He glanced at Sister Hua and slashed a Guizu shadow apart with two strikes. “Quite confident.”
Sister Hua, however, considered further. “Since you spoke up... name your demands!”
It was simple logic: he had remained silent earlier, and could easily have stayed silent to wait for them to charge ahead.
Since he had spoken up now, he had to have a motive.
“There is a grand knight Guizu,” Wu Youren said offhandedly. “I just didn't want you dying too quickly!”
“Whether there is or not is hard to say,” Sister Hua laughed.
Even as she struck out repeatedly, she maintained an unhurried demeanor. “Playing psychological warfare with me? You're a bit too green!”
“Oh,” Wu Youren grunted dismissively, not even bothering to engage.
*Don't you have any idea how panicked you really are?*
Half a minute later, the Guizu unleashed a ferocious assault.
The three were thrown into a bit of disarray, but they held their ground—there was a hint of an act to it, as if they had yet to reveal their full strength.
They weathered this wave rather clumsily. Throughout the entire ordeal, Wu Youren had not only refrained from intervening, but hadn't even uttered a word.
Sister Hua panted for a while. Once her breathing had somewhat steadied, she let out a cold grunt and muttered resentfully:
“All that talk about having no interest in wars between humans and preferring to fight the Guizu? Heh, people from Jin truly can't be trusted!”
Was she... trying to make an audio recording or something? Wu Youren wasn't certain what kind of gear the Intelligence Bureau carried on them.
He had originally been waiting quietly, merely enjoying the spectacle.
Hearing those words, he pondered for a moment, then chuckled softly. “Heh, they're testing your weak spots too.”
“Bastard!” the soldier roared in fury. “Are you coaching the enemy?”
With the youth openly discussing tactics in front of the Guizu, his reaction was completely understandable.
“Tch.” Wu Youren merely let out a cold snort, not even bothering to argue: *Do you think they wouldn't realize it if I didn't say it?*
With just that single syllable, silence fell again, leaving all three knights to deeply feel his utter disdain.
Sister Hua's eyes darted around. “You're trying to use us to pave a way out for yourself, aren't you? Don't force my hand. I'm well-versed in shifting the blame!”
“Hmph,” Wu Youren's mocking voice drifted over. “Even at a time like this, are threats still all you've got?”
He merely disdained bickering with her, having no worry that speaking too much would slip him up.
Still, since she was so eager to talk, he didn't mind exchanging a few words. It helped stall for time, allowing the Guizu to make further preparations.
Panting heavily, the motorcycle rider cast a glance at Sister Hua, hatred mingled with eager anticipation: *Attack?*
Although it was inconvenient for him to act alone right now, pulling off a long-range attack to lure the Guizu toward the boy wouldn't be difficult.
Sister Hua gave a slight shake of her head, unable to openly say that their target had already shifted positions.
Yet looking at it from this angle, since the Jin youth could move without alerting the Guizu, he genuinely possessed the ability to escape on his own.
In that case, why hadn't he seized the opportunity to slip away while they were busy battling the Guizu?
Most people in the Intelligence Bureau were reasonably intelligent, and she realized the answer in a flash.
The Jin youth hated them so intensely that he would only leave after witnessing the three of them die in the Guizu aura with his own eyes.
She let out a soft sigh. “Name your terms. What will it take for you to lend a hand?”
As soon as the words left her mouth, the other two knights shot her astonished looks: *Have you lost your mind?*
Not only was the other party a Jin hostage, he was clearly at odds with them. Under such circumstances, she was asking him for help?
Besides, a mere apprentice knight was fortunate enough just to keep himself safe. Did she really expect him to save the three of them?
For a long time, there was no response.
After waiting for a good while, Sister Hua looked back at the soldier and asked calmly, “Do you have a good way to escape?”
“No,” the soldier answered bluntly. “My mission is to prevent the Guizu situation from spilling over. How to get out... is another matter.”
His expression was cold. In the military of Liang, military orders carried tremendous weight; disobeying them could lead to a fate worse than death.
Sister Hua paid him no further heed and called out again, “Name whatever terms you want—my word on it!”
“I'd have to believe you first,” Wu Youren chuckled again. “Do you think... even you people of Great Liang believe the word of the Intelligence Bureau?”
In their line of work, gaining someone's trust without cause was virtually impossible.
Going back on one's word had nothing to do with personal morals; it was practically part of their professional training!
Their job relied primarily on schemes and deceit. Even people from Liang wouldn't necessarily believe them, let alone someone from Jin.
“Why beg him?” The motorcycle rider's face turned somewhat pale. “Just drag him into this!”
This time, it was the soldier who couldn't tolerate it anymore, stating flatly, “He's constantly shifting positions!”
*Acknowledge when you're out of your depth! Making reckless suggestions will get everyone killed!*
Sister Hua didn't even bother acknowledging her companion. A newcomer to the Intelligence Bureau, the young man had made far too many mistakes today.
She stated impassively, “The three of us came out here to capture you. Do you think our colleagues outside... wouldn't know?”
This might be true, or it might be false. Truth mixed with falsehood, illusion blending with reality—that was precisely the forte of Intelligence Bureau operatives.
Wu Youren, however, didn't buy it at all, wresting the conversation firmly into his own rhythm.
“Tsk, here we go again... In your line of work, can't you accomplish anything without throwing your weight around?”
Chapter 98