Chapter 480: “An Opportunist (3)”
Although the Battle Spirits Forest bordered the Qi Kingdom on one side, Long Qi and his group did not know much about the inside of the Battle Spirits Forest. They had gotten themselves lost when they entered the Battle Spirits Forest and had been attacked several times by Spirit Beasts. Long Qi and his team’s journey into the Battle Spirits Forest could be said to have trodden through blood.
The Lin Palace was not in need of spirit stones and within the Qi Kingdom, after Mo Qian Yuan ascended the throne to become the Emperor, he placed great trust on the Lin Palace and he allocated most of the kingdom’s supplies to the Rui Lin Army, giving them first priority. Long Qi had intended to hand the spirit stones he had gained on this journey to Jun Qing and have him decide what to do with them.
But now, in order to gain the location of the Spirit Moon Lake, he had no choice but to agree to Ning Xin’s unreasonable demand.
“General Long, we’ve really brought you much trouble.” Rong Heng said between gasps, as he struggled to keep up with the team. He had followed Mu Chen to the Lin Palace and they had started from learning to adapt to a new environment to having established a rather good relationship with the Rui Lin Army now.
The disciples who had come from the Cloud Treading Peak did not possess strong spiritual powers. Besides their proficiency at treating and developing people’s veins and arteries, they were not much different from the commoners. The current situation called for them to traverse across this dangerous and dense forest and it was getting to be a rather difficult task for them. If not for Lord Lin’s good foresight to have arranged Long Qi and his men to escort them, they might very well have been reduced to a pile of bones before they could even see the Spirit Moon Lake.
“You men are here seeking herbs to produce medicine for the Rui Lin Army, this is the least we must do.” Long Qi replied stoically, his tone flat which would usually make people feel unusually stern. But after having associated with them for some time, Rong Heng and the other disciples knew that that was just how these stalwart men who lived by the sword were.
“I hope we would be able to find enough Aqua Spirit Grass to produce sufficient elixirs.” Rong Heng said, barely managing a smile with the pace.
Long Qi nodded slightly and he signalled to the six Rui Lin Army soldiers. The other six men immediately split themselves into pairs and moved to come beside the Rong Heng and the other two disciples. They suddenly grabbed the panting disciples and continued the pace, lifting the disciples off their feet.
“Thank you so much.” Rong Heng thanked the soldiers again.
Ning Xin who had been leading the group observed the situation behind her silently. Lu Wei Jie picked up his pace and caught up with Ning Xin, asking her softly: “Little Xin, those guys do not look like herb merchants with their armed escorts.” He wasn’t completely certain about other things, but just picking on Escort Long’s overwhelming air, he knew that he was no ordinary guard. Lu Wei Jie had been able to achieve second place in the Zephyr Academy’s Spirit Tournament and he at least knew power when he saw it.
And just by standing before Long Qi, Lu Wei Jie had been awed by Long Qi’s oppressive presence and that oppression had not just been the disparity between their spiritual power and ring spirit but had come from the man’s aura that surrounded him.
That man’s presence inspired both respect and fear and his sharp eyes made one turn away, unable to look at him straight.
“Would an ordinary herb merchant come all the way into the Battle Spirits Forest? That would just be seeking their own doom. If my guess is not wrong, if these people are not from one of the countries, they must belong to one of the mighty powers throughout the lands.” Ning Xin narrowed her eyes, “Look at those men who are taller and well built, their bodies are ramrod straight and their faces hardy. They must have undergone some form of rigorous training. They might be dressed in plain clothes but the weapons hanging from their hips are no ordinary swords. But no matter what they are seeking for, we know one thing for sure, they are strong and powerful enough.”
Ning Xin trusted that her own foresight, and she knew the men were definitely more than they appeared to be.
“Why then did you ask for five high grade spirit stones?” Lu Wu Jie asked, puzzled. If they were truly extraordinarily powerful, wouldn’t it be better to try to win them over? But Ning Xin had asked for such an astounding repayment from them instead.