Mountain Patrol Military Officer
Chapter 191 - 173: My Name is Benbo Erba (Request for Monthly Ticket)

Chapter 191: Chapter 173: My Name is Benbo Erba (Request for Monthly Ticket)

"Colonel Chen, you have finally arrived, the Overseers have sent someone."

When Chen Yuan’s figure landed in front of the Colonel Palace in Guang’an Prefecture, the local Colonel Gou Zhi personally came out to greet him, smiling and lowering his posture as if last night’s incident had never happened, the stuck-on sideburns on his face had been reattached.

"What did the person say?" Chen Yuan didn’t make it awkward and asked as he walked forward.

"He didn’t say; he mentioned he would wait until you arrived," Gou Zhi spoke, and they entered the palace together.

Inside the palace, as soon as the Orderly Officer from the Overseers saw Chen Yuan, he quickly stepped forward and went down on one knee, "Nine Colonels, this is a letter from Commander Pei for you to review."

Saying this, the Orderly Officer handed him a palm-sized scroll with both hands.

Chen Yuan took the scroll with one hand, glanced aside where Gou Zhi, who was eagerly looking this way, coughed and naturally turned his eyes away.

After opening the lacquered letter with a prohibition, Chen Yuan glanced over it and casually looked up, "Tell Lord Pei on your return that I will do my utmost."

"Yes!"

The Orderly Officer held the letter over his head in a salute, stood up, and left the room cleanly. Shortly after, a hawk’s cry followed by the sound of flapping wings echoed from outside the palace.

At that moment, some noise came from below by Gou Zhi’s side, who then seemed to exhale in relief, rose slightly from his feet, trying to be on an equal stance with Chen Yuan, cautiously smiling as he probed,

"Colonel Chen, the Overseers... what message did they relay?"

"Colonel Gou need not be so cautious, this message was indeed meant to be shared with you," Chen Yuan slightly raised his brows, his expression normal, "The Devil Race has breached the defenses, the Overseers have summoned the major Family Sects of Shu to unite and resist the enemy. Several forces have already dispatched their sect disciples, among them are some Heavenly Pass Experts leading the support teams. With this, our pressure is greatly reduced, Brother Gou can temporarily stop contemplating retreat." Chen Yuan’s eyes and brows relaxed as he said this.

Vice Commander Pei summoning the Family Sects to join hands was something he was slightly aware of but had not been involved in. He didn’t know the subsequent details or how many forces had responded, but it was comforting to have the support, or else, given the current situation understood, hope was slim.

Gou Zhi, hearing that several sects would come to offer support, lit up, a hint of joy flashing in his eyes. However, hearing Chen Yuan’s last sentence, his face almost couldn’t maintain its composure, awkwardly tensing up his body, slightly moving away from Chen Yuan. Just yesterday, it was this Colonel Chen who had abruptly lashed out, causing him great distress.

He gave a bitter smile, "Colonel Chen, please don’t blame me. Ever since my practice of Divine Skills went awry, reducing my divine powers, though my courage diminishes day by day, I am certainly not cowardly..."

This Colonel of the Heavenly Pass used to not be like this; he once stood nine feet tall, brave and imposing, a mighty man of Great Han. However, due to making a mistake while practicing a certain Divine Skill, his body started to undergo reverse growth. In just a few years, he had changed to his current state where, if he were to wear ordinary clothes, others might think he was a seven or eight year old child. Even his temperament had changed, no longer as brave and progressive as before.

To maintain that little bit of majesty he had left, he usually resorted to sticking on sideburns, which was quite troublesome.

Chen Yuan raised his eyebrows and interrupted with a gesture, "Brother Gou, there’s no need to say more. I have somewhat understood your situation already. Chen is no saint with the authority to judge your merits and faults. I merely hope that at this time, no one stabs me in the back." His tone grew colder as he spoke.

Chen Yuan had known since yesterday that this local Colonel harbored thoughts of fleeing and had initially intimidated him, followed by overnight usage of the Dream Transference ability to pull some people from the Sky Patrol Department into dreams for questioning, erasing corresponding memories thereafter. He found out this man wasn’t bad, otherwise, Chen Yuan would definitely not have allowed him to stay nor be speaking with him here, risking instability.

His words were meant to reassure this Colonel while also serving as a warning.

"There’s absolutely no way; even if I, Gou Zhi, am subpar, I would never stoop so low. Colonel Chen, do not underestimate me." Gou Zhi’s face hardened, understanding Chen Yuan’s implication, his voice carrying a hint of anger.

Yet his appearance failed to command any authority.

Chen Yuan then chuckled and offered an apologetic bow, "Then, I apologize for any misunderstanding."

"Ha ha, I have other matters to attend to now, so I will take my leave first. When these forces arrive at Guang’an Prefecture, I will trouble Colonel Gou to extend hospitality to them."

After finishing, Chen Yuan turned and left the Colonel Palace.

Only leaving Gou Zhi behind, watching as this Nine Colonels departed, he touched his sideburns, his little face filled with sorrow, sighing deeply, "That was close, this Nine Colonels is truly tough to handle."

After leaving the Colonel Palace, Chen Yuan went straight to a separate courtyard; by this time, the sun had risen quite high. He instructed one of his subordinate guards,

"Call Military Officer Xie here!"

Knowing that reinforcements were soon arriving at Guang’an Prefecture, Chen Yuan felt somewhat relieved, considering to boldly try some ideas of his own.

"Yes!"

A guard promptly acknowledged and hurriedly went to fetch the person.

Half a cup of tea time later, Xie Tianhao, who had been rescued the day before, hurriedly strode into the grand hall of the separate courtyard, bowing to Chen Yuan who was already seated at the main seat,

"My subordinate greets Nine Colonels, may I know what instructions you have for me?"

"How is your injury?" Chen Yuan asked with concern about his condition.

"Lord Xie has found someone to treat my injuries, and they are significantly better now, though full recovery may still be challenging," Xie Tianhao replied, looking up.

At that moment, Chen Yuan flicked his sleeve, and from the cuff, a bowl-sized cluster of golden light flew out towards Xie Tianhao.

Xie Tianhao caught it with both hands, looked down, and was first greeted by a strange and rich fragrance that entered his nose, invigorating his spirit and bringing a rosy hue to his blood-deficient face.

In his hands, he was holding a piece of glimmering golden flesh, from which a rich essence qi rushed forth.

"This is a piece of flesh from a Heavenly Pass Demon, it should be enough to heal your injuries," Chen Yuan’s voice sounded at this moment.

Upon hearing this, Xie Tianhao was visibly shaken, looked at the demon flesh in his hands, then at Chen Yuan, his eyes filled with emotion. He then knelt down and bowed deeply, his voice resonating with unparalleled determination:

"Being merely a defeated soldier, I have no way to repay your great kindness, Lord. Once my injuries heal, I am determined to aid you in slaying demons and submitting to your command."

Hearing this, Chen Yuan smiled slightly, "Rest assured, I have use for you right now."

"You may rise and speak. I would ask you, during the great battle at Guang’an Prefecture, which six mountains came from the Ten Thousand Mountains?" Chen Yuan leaned on the chair slightly, propping his body up, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

...

Time passed swiftly, and night fell, with the moon rising to the mid-heaven, though clouds covered half of it, casting the forests outside Jiang’an County in eerie, deep shadows.

"Gah"

"Gah"

The grating cries of night birds tore through the night.

At this moment, two hundred li outside the East County City of Jiang’an, there was a mountain called Amon Mountain.

In a ravine on this mountain, lived a group of demons.

Currently, within a pitch-black cave amidst flowing waterfalls, a dim light flickered, casting menacing animal shadows on the cave’s walls.

Some had horns on their heads, others coiled, hissing...

Sparse chattering noises could be heard from inside.

"King, it seems like it’s almost... no good anymore."

"Shall we flee? Those... people don’t treat us as their kind."

"Guh.. Guh..."

"Where can we run to? We must... obey, otherwise, those people will devour us."

"Do you want to become snake soup?"

Just then,

"Wait, I smell demonic energy that doesn’t belong to our area, two beings, coming towards our cave."

A deep, hoarse voice suddenly erupted.

Quickly, from within the cave, amidst the flickering of the firelight, a pair of eerie green eyes appeared from around the corner—it was a black wolf about three meters long!

Following the black wolf, rustling noises ensued as several small demons emerged.

Among them was a large python with blue and green scales that was about six to nine meters long, flicking its tongue,

and a golden-furred, red-faced large monkey with bare teeth;

...

Seven or eight small demons quietly watched the long tunnel entrance of the cave.

Under the sparse moonlight, two pagoda-like figures appeared at the cave mouth, each standing five to six feet tall, the tips of their hairs shimmering with a faint golden glow under the moonlight.

"Who are you?" the black wolf asked.

The two shadows backed against the moonlight responded, exposing a pair of snow-white large fangs,

"I am called Benbo Erba!"

"He is called Babo Erben!"