Unlimited employment

Chapter 166, Page 165: The Pledge of Allegiance

I think I understand.

After Qin destroyed the six states, you remaining nobles of the six states formed a secret anti-Qin association.

While having children and procreating to restore their severely damaged strength, they also secretly accumulated power by absorbing ambitious people from the populace who were dissatisfied with the Qin Dynasty.

Three days ago, you led your men to raid a pill-refining furnace in Shangdang County, hoping to seize some earth vein pills. However, you inadvertently fell into a trap set by the imperial court and suffered heavy losses. You then split into several groups and fled.

Your team was accidentally exposed yesterday while passing through Yangcheng County. Most of the people in the team were killed in battle, and you escaped alone thanks to your uncle's desperate protection.

You conclude that your friend, because he possesses the pure bloodline of the Crimson Dragon, must not be dead yet, but has been captured and imprisoned in the Yangcheng County jail.

"I have a question about that. How can you be so sure she was imprisoned in Yangcheng, and not in Yingchuan County, which is a higher-level city?"

The flickering light from the cow dung campfire shone on Chen Sheng, casting indistinct shadows on his face.

And in his vertical pupils, the figure of Bai Longniang wolfing down her food was also reflected.

The dead wolf riders would never have imagined that their fabricated excuse would actually lead them to correctly guess Xiang Yu's identity.

"The officials of the tyrannical Qin Dynasty fought fiercely among themselves for credit."

The magistrate of Yangcheng County, having already secured the capture of nobles from the six former states, would certainly not obediently hand them over to his superiors. Instead, he would report directly to Xianyang, obtain the First Emperor's approval, and then forward the report to Xianyang, thus securing his own promotion and wealth.

While answering Chen Sheng's questions, Xiang Yu tore at the charred roasted meat in his hand and ate heartily by the campfire, using the cool water from the melting ice formed by his icy breath.

Chen Sheng looked at the pitiful and weak little girl, who had instantly recovered to her energetic self, and couldn't help but marvel at the amazing regenerative ability of the dragon bloodline.

The flames in Xiang Yu's wound had only been extinguished for half an hour, but his internal organs had already healed, and he was now able to eat normally.

As the food was quickly digested, her strength was rapidly recovering.

Chen Sheng sat to the side, his [Mysterious Mind Eye] penetrating into Bai Longniang's body, observing the entire process of her wounds healing, and also seeing her astonishingly strong physique and the sharp, solid metallic true energy in her meridians.

For a mere fourteen or fifteen-year-old girl to possess a peak second-tier cultivation level in the Dao of Fate, the potential of the pure-blooded dragon race is indeed remarkable.

After examining Xiang Yu's muscles, bones, and internal organs, Chen Sheng quickly shifted his gaze from the inside out, carefully observing her skin.

Her platinum-gold hair cascaded down her shoulders, and a pair of rounded dragon horns with only one fork emerged from her forehead. Her upright platinum-gold dragon eyes, which would appear rather fierce on an ordinary person's face, were quite adorable when set in the dragon girl's delicate features.

Even though she was wearing a rather unflattering brown robe, the curves of her waist and long legs could still be vaguely seen.

The bare feet peeking out from under the long robe revealed slender ankles, smooth soles, and ten white, tender toes that faintly reflected a red glow in the firelight.

She was like a meticulously crafted work of art.

Just then, Xiang Yu, having finished eating and drinking, looked at Chen Sheng with a burp and noticed the other man's gaze fixed on his jade feet, and couldn't help but laugh.

"Is your benefactor looking at this?"

As she spoke, she reached out and touched her ankle, causing a previously invisible golden anklet to appear out of thin air.

Then, she stretched her toes out in front of Chen Sheng so that her benefactor could see them more clearly.

Chen Sheng quickly grabbed Long Niang's ankle and examined it closely. His [Mysterious Mind's Eye] instantly revealed that the anklet had a double-layered mechanism.

He reached out and opened the outer clasp, revealing that the inner layer of the anklet was inlaid with sesame-seed-sized crystals that resembled rubies.

Within the tiny crystals, wisps of dark red flames trickled down, somewhat resembling the flames from her wound.

"This is a fire pill crystal extracted from the earth's veins by the alchemy furnace. When I was besieged earlier, I originally intended to use it to commit suicide."

Before Chen Sheng could get a clearer view, Xiang Yu chuckled and pulled his leg back.

She pried a small piece off her anklet, flicked it with her finger, and struck a nearby rock, where it exploded into a ball of bright red, high-temperature flame the size of a walnut.

"Fire Elixir is an unstable substance extracted from the earth's veins by the alchemy furnace. When subjected to a heavy blow, it will burn violently, igniting a high-temperature flame that melts gold and iron."

All of the earth vein weapons of the tyrannical Qin Dynasty used it as their energy source.

With just a simple pull of the trigger, the fireball will ignite in the barrel and then be compressed into a high-temperature jet through a narrow steel pipe, injuring people dozens of miles away.

However, fire pills that haven't been accelerated are unlikely to hit enemies who have practiced martial arts; they're barely enough for suicide.

If my benefactor had arrived even a moment later, he would have seen this fire ignite from beneath my feet, burning me to ashes.

That's what they said, but Xiang Yu, with his two thin legs, kept swaying in front of Chen Sheng, seemingly not worried at all that the fire pills would collide and ignite.

Chen Sheng could only reach out and grab her ankle, fasten the anklet back on, and ask the question he had been preparing for a long time.

"Since the First Emperor had already pacified the world and there was no large-scale war in the country, why did he insist on building so many alchemy furnaces?"

Producing so many fire pills is pointless.

"To remain unmoved by beauty before him shows that my benefactor is indeed not a lecher."

Chen Sheng's performance just now seemed to have reassured Xiang Yu slightly, and he answered his question seriously.

"This is not a secret. Given the life-saving grace of my benefactor, I should tell you frankly."

It is said that before the First Emperor unified the six kingdoms, all the kings of those kingdoms wanted to do the same thing as him, seemingly with the aim of weakening the world so that they could become the masters of the world.

I don't know if this widely circulated claim is true or false, but even if this method were to succeed, it would only allow one to rule a lifeless world—truly foolish.

The answer Chen Sheng received from Xiang Yu made him think.

Seeing his thoughtful expression, Xiang Yu suddenly changed the subject.

"We've been chatting for so long, and we still don't know where our benefactor is from, or if they have any relatives."

Chen Sheng casually made up a story: "I am just a person who has been forced into homelessness by the world. Let bygones be bygones."

The wasteland was full of people whose families had been destroyed and who had nothing but their lives. Xiang Yu did not doubt that Chen Sheng was lying and quickly seized the opportunity to build the iron road.

"The First Emperor built alchemy furnaces throughout the country, and the land veins, which had already been ravaged by the seven kingdoms for hundreds of years, could no longer withstand it."

In a few years, ordinary people will be unable to survive on the land. For the continuation of their race, someone must rebel against the tyrannical Qin Dynasty and shut down all the alchemy furnaces.

"My benefactor, you said before that you also wanted to rebel, were you serious?"

"More real than gold and silver." "My benefactor saved my life; even if I were to be shattered to pieces, I could never repay him. But joining our anti-Qin society is a serious matter; your hands are not stained with the blood of officials or soldiers..."

Chen Sheng immediately understood that this was Xiang Yu's little dragon mother wanting him to pledge his loyalty, and he said with a smile.

“We will break into the prison tonight, both to rescue your friend and to show my anti-Qin sentiments.”

The moment Chen Sheng learned that Xiang Yu belonged to an anti-Qin organization, he decided that he must join them.

In this way, he can obtain the pure bloodline of the red dragon and seize someone else's territory. How could he not do such a win-win thing?

Meanwhile, Xiang Yu, who had received Chen Sheng's promise, was secretly delighted.

“Uncle is right. As long as the people are still suffering and the world looks like the end of the world, our anti-Qin cause will have a continuous source of soldiers.”

I used to think it wasn't difficult when I saw my uncle recruiting people, and now that I've tried it myself, it's just as smooth!
Although we suffered a crushing defeat and heavy losses this time, given time, we will surely be able to regroup and recover.

The conversation between the two ended up being a pleasant one for both host and guest.

After chatting for a while, Xiang Yu, having eaten and drunk his fill, stood up, wrapped his head tightly with a headscarf, and gazed at the glowing night sky.

"It's getting dark. We'll use the fluorescent lights to cover our tracks and make it difficult for anyone with ulterior motives in the Gobi Desert to spot us."

At this moment, Chen Sheng suddenly frowned, looked up at the sky, and said.

"I'm afraid that won't work. We've been delayed here for so long, and it seems the pursuers have already caught up."

His gaze spanned hundreds of feet, and he saw several birds flying high in the sky.

In this cruel world, even large predators struggle to survive, and birds of this size are not common animals.

Xiang Yu followed his gaze and his expression immediately changed.

"It's a weather bird kept by the soldiers. Let's hurry."

At that moment, a small airship flew in from the distant sky and made a sound from afar.

“Those in front, stay where you are and do not move. Yangcheng County is conducting a full-scale search for traitors. All people of unknown identity will be questioned.”

Xiang Yu, his head wrapped in a turban, shook his head at Chen Sheng and transmitted his voice to him using his inner energy.

"This is the smallest type of airship in the Qin Dynasty. It is not equipped with weapons, is extremely fast, and can only carry three people. However, it is still very difficult to deal with."

Adult warriors typically awaken two supernatural abilities, one of which is called [Dragon Scale Invisibility], which can distort light and become invisible.

A technique called [Dragon Manipulation] can control small animals with low intelligence for surveillance purposes.

Although the warriors' supernatural abilities are all geared towards support, these two abilities are like wings to a tiger because the earth vein weapons can help them kill enemies of higher ranks.

Finally, they must have seen my portrait; a simple questioning would expose them.

As expected of someone from a military family, Xiang Yu's rapid report was completely concise and to the point.

After saying that, she wanted to ride a horse, but Chen Sheng grabbed her waist and used the wind to lift them both up into the air.

"I have the enemy's intelligence. Let's move on to another battlefield and annihilate them."

"Wait a minute, I'm afraid of heights..."

Xiang Yu's shouts were left in the wind, while the two of them soared into the sky at breakneck speed. During their ascent, they casually used ice spikes to kill the small birds that were watching them, and their bodies merged into the fluorescent river in the sky, escaping into the distance.

"They actually escaped. Looks like we're going to make a name for ourselves this time."

From the airship behind, several barely suppressed growls could be heard.

Then, the airship suddenly accelerated, gained altitude, and plunged into the sea of ​​fluorescent light, closely following Chen Sheng.

The soldiers inside the cabin raised their guns and fired continuously at the shadowy figures ahead, but due to the interference of the dense fluorescent light, none of their shots hit their targets.

Most of the scorching jets were lost in the vast expanse of fluorescent light, but there was one dangerous moment when a jet seemed to have stumbled upon a dead mouse, almost grazing Chen Sheng's scalp as it passed over their heads.

Seeing the red light shooting around him, Xiang Yu, who was afraid of heights, clung tightly to Chen Sheng like an octopus, his heart pounding and he soon broke out in a cold sweat.

That's the kind of attack it is.

A few days ago, during the siege of the alchemy furnace, hundreds of such attacks were launched from the ambush, instantly taking the lives of most of the people around.

Whether it was the strong dragon body he had cultivated for many years or the divine power he was so proud of, it was all as fragile as paper and was torn into pieces.

That kind of frustration, helplessness, and fear can make one feel disheartened and that all their years of spiritual practice have been meaningless.

Noticing the soft body in his arms stiffen, Chen Sheng lowered his head and smiled gently, covering her eyes with his hand.

"Don't be afraid, they're just a few soldiers who are showing off their weapons. Watch me give you a beautiful pledge of loyalty."

As he spoke, to Xiang Yu's astonishment, he descended from the fluorescent layer and landed on the ground in a forest of mushroom-shaped stone pillars weathered by the elements.

As soon as it left the cover of the fluorescent layer, a dense stream of jets followed closely behind.

He lay face down, facing the attack from behind, and exhaled a thick, icy blue breath, creating a circular ice shield.

The jet struck the ice cover, and the condensed, high-temperature flames instantly pierced through the ice layer, shattering it into pieces. However, the trajectory of the jet also deviated slightly in the process.

Most of the jets were dodged by Chen Sheng, who was moving at high speed. Only a few hit his body, but none of them caused any vital injuries.

Carrying the dark red flames burning from his wounds, he accelerated and crashed into the forest of stone pillars, disappearing from sight.

The second jet followed him into the forest of stone pillars. In the area swept by the compressed, scorching flames, dozens of stone pillars were cut into smooth surfaces and collapsed with a rumble.

Seeing that the enemy had hidden, the three soldiers on the airship exchanged glances, and the pilot then controlled the airship to hover in the sky. He then pulled his arm out of the fleshy groove that controlled the vehicle.

The three men, each wielding a massive weapon, leaped from the cabin, unfurled their bat wings, and hovered in a triangular formation above the stone pillars.

Then, he aimed the heavy weapons in his arms downwards and began a barrage of fire.

The crimson jet of water slashed across the earth inch by inch, cutting through rocks that obstructed the view, causing continuous collapses, rapidly rising temperatures, and even generating howling hot winds...

(End of this chapter)