New and dark light years

Chapter 302 The Secret of the Tree Fairy

Upon hearing the soldiers' report, Mu Yi breathed a sigh of relief: "They've finally arrived. I thought the Western Route Army wouldn't be here."

Li Lin asked curiously, "Why do you have this idea?"

"You didn't know?" Mu Yi clicked his tongue. "This has caused quite a stir."

Li Lin shook his head: "I really haven't heard of it."

“That’s true… Yulin County and Zhenxi County are quite far apart. It’s normal that the message didn’t get through.” Mu Yi explained, “The Western Route Army was originally stationed in Lingyun County, but later it had a conflict with the local militia in Lingyun County. They had been attacking each other for a while, and a few days ago the two armies even fought.”

Li Lin couldn't help but be surprised.

After all, such things are really quite...rare.

He asked, "Logically speaking, the position of the Western Route Military Commander should be higher than that of a county lieutenant, right?"

“Theoretically, that’s true, but the county magistrate is actually a civil official.” Mu Yi laughed. “You know that our dynasty likes to govern the army with civil officials. Moreover, the local magistrate and the county magistrate are of one mind. Even though the commander of the western army is of a higher rank, he can only maintain a peaceful coexistence with the two of them until a dozen days ago, when the county magistrate got into a fight with the commander of the western army because of a courtesan.”

Li Lin almost burst out laughing.

This is really too...unbelievable.

If the three of them work together, improve the local area, and make some money legitimately along the way, wouldn't that be great?

You three from Yulin County, you seem to have a very pleasant working relationship.

Why are they fighting over here instead?

Mu Yi stood up and said, "Let's go and meet this Commander of the Western Route Army."

Li Lin also stood up, not to watch the spectacle, but because as a fellow countryman, he naturally had to get to know him.

The army will set off tomorrow. It would be easier for both sides to meet and get acquainted so that they can cooperate more easily on the battlefield in the future.

The two men came out of the tent and came to the open space in the middle of the military camp.

Just then, he saw several people walking towards him, led by a man wearing scale armor but with a red cloak.

The other person had a long beard. His face looked quite young, but the long beard made him look much older.

Upon seeing Mu Yi and Li Lin, the other party immediately approached, clasped their hands in a respectful greeting, and asked with a smile, "May I ask which one of you is Commander Mu?"

There was no way around it... Li Lin had the air of a scholar, and he was also handsome, so the aristocratic air about him was too strong.

Moreover, Li Lin and Mu Yi were walking side by side, so it was normal that the other party couldn't immediately tell who was in charge and who was in charge.

Mu Yi laughed and said, "I am. And you are Zhang Qi, the military commander of the western route?"

"It is indeed your humble servant." Zhang Qi bowed to Mu Yi again and then said, "The western route troops have returned to camp. The authorized strength is three thousand men, and the actual number is three thousand. Due to some unforeseen circumstances, the western route troops arrived half a day late. Please punish us."

Mu Yi stepped forward, took Zhang Qi's arm, and said with a smile, "There's no need for that. Since we're all soldiers from Jin County, we're all brothers and comrades. It's good that you're here. It's good that you're here."

Zhang Qi seemed relieved and smiled, "Thank you, Chief Supervisor."

Then he looked at Li Lin: "Excuse me, who is this...?"

Li Lin clasped his hands and said, "Li Lin, Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Route Army."

"So it's Supervisor Li, I've heard so much about you." Zhang Qi was taken aback for a moment, then bowed to Li Lin again: "So... you're Supervisor Li, you're quite different from what I imagined!"

"Zhang has been listening to my name?" Li Lin asked curiously.

"Born a Spirit Hunter, he possessed formidable strength and was later appreciated by Prefect Huang, becoming the Military Commander." Zhang Qi gently cupped his hands, saying, "A role model for us all."

Li Lin himself was unaware that his career path was quite legendary in the officialdom of Tianjin.

How did a commoner, without ever taking the imperial examinations, manage to rise to the rank of a ninth-grade civil official and an eighth-grade military official? By sheer luck.

If you marry a good wife, you can achieve great things with the support of your father-in-law.

Therefore, Li Lin didn't know what "role model" meant, but he felt that the other person's tone was a bit strange, although it was clearly tinged with envy.

At this moment, Mu Yi said, "Everyone has arrived. You can all go about your business first. When evening comes, we will invite the commanders of the East and North routes to my tent to sit down, have something to eat, and have a good chat to strengthen our camaraderie."

The two naturally agreed.

Li Lin then returned to his own camp.

First, they located three of his commanders.

"I remember there were plenty of supplies in the military. After arriving here, we even received a resupply."

The three commanders nodded.

Li Lin said, "The army will set off tomorrow. In war, anything can happen. Let's have a good meal tonight, with plenty of meat, understand?"

The three commanders understood Li Lin's meaning, and one of them said, "Please rest assured, Commander, we will handle this matter properly."

Li Lin nodded and told the three of them to leave the tent.

Then Liu Shen descended from the sky.

It must be said that her sudden appearance as a True Lord with a dragon's head and a human body is indeed quite frightening.

"Does Lord Shenzhen need something from me?"

"I want to devour your life essence again." Liu Shen's snake eyes were full of anticipation.

Li Lin's blood energy is unusual; she's become somewhat addicted to it.

Li Lin waved his hand: "This blood and qi is the foundation of our living being, how can we just eat it every day?"

"This is not fair. Why can Yan Jing eat it every day?"

“She is naturally different.”

Liu Shen looked at Li Lin unhappily, and then said, "When I see my older sister again someday, she will definitely be the one to complain."

Upon hearing Liu Zhe's name, Li Lin's heart stirred, and he said, "Wait, Mirage True Lord, let's make another deal."

"What kind of deal?" Liu Shen asked curiously.

“I’ll give you another drop of blood essence. Tell me about your eldest sister, Liu Zhe.”

Liu Shen was somewhat tempted, but still shook her head: "No, my older sister is very fierce; she doesn't like us talking about her." Li Lin then asked, "What about those two drops?"

Liu Shen's eyes widened. She pondered for a moment, then floated down from the air and said, "Alright, what do you want to ask!"

"Say whatever you know."

"That's too much, I don't even know what to say!" Liu Shen clicked her tongue and said unhappily.

Li Lin thought for a moment and then asked, "How old is your eldest sister?"

"I don't know!" Liu Shen shook her head and said, "Anyway, when I was old enough to understand, my eldest sister was already like this. She doesn't seem to have gone through the kind of enlightenment we need."

"Enlightenment?"

"correct."

“Look at us now, we don’t even look like humans,” Liu Shen said matter-of-factly. “This is the stage of enlightenment.”

"But Yan Jing doesn't seem to have reached this stage either."

At this moment, Li Yanjing also emerged from the altar.

Liu Shen glanced at Li Yanjing and then said, "She is different from us."

Li Lin had always been clear that there were two types of strange objects.

One type is transformed from a 'person' after death, such as Yan Jing.

Another type is the naturally born spirit or monster.

For example, the so-called "nature" gods of the southern barbarians.

That giant centipede was a natural spirit.

Could Liu Shen be one of them?

Li Lin subconsciously looked her over.

Liu Shen sensed that Li Lin's gaze was strange, so she immediately said, "I don't remember what I used to look like, but my older sister said that none of us were transformed from human beings."

"The Tree Fairy Goddess... isn't she your eldest sister?"

"No, none of the three of us are, that's why our eldest sister made us the three sisters."

Li Lin looked at Li Yanjing and asked, "Have you heard of their situation?"

"I only know about strange creatures that are formed from dead people! I don't know much about nature gods."

Li Lin looked at Liu Shen with some surprise: "So, you're not actually a ghost?"

"I don't know." She shook her head. "Whatever you think we are, that's what we are, and we don't care."

Li Lin cares about it a lot.

Although they are not ghosts transformed from 'humans', the Tree Fairy and this Willow Mirage seem to be like other ghosts, enjoying absorbing human blood and energy.

Li Lin thought for a moment, then asked, "What does Liu Zhe, your eldest sister, like the most?"

"She loves flowers, especially peach blossoms, and her natal image is also a peach tree."

"What does she hate the most?" Li Lin asked.

“It should be a man,” Liu Shen said after thinking for a while. “I remember she warned us a long time ago not to get close to men, especially handsome men, because it could lead to someone’s death.”

"A handsome man?" Li Lin's expression was somewhat strange. "She really said that?"

At this moment, Li Yanjing, standing to the side, covered her mouth and chuckled softly.

Liu Shen nodded vigorously: "That's right. But you're so ugly, not pretty at all, and you don't have smooth scales, so you won't be disliked by your older sister, don't worry."

Upon hearing this, Li Lin's lips twitched slightly.

Li Yanjing laughed so hard she was bent over; she couldn't help it.

Li Lin frowned for a while, wanting to ask again, but Liu Shen was getting impatient.

She snapped, "Are you ever going to stop?! I'm starving and can't wait any longer!"

Li Lin thought for a moment. If he wanted to ask more about the Tree Fairy Goddess, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future. For now, he should leave it at that and not really anger this True Lord, whose temperament was almost like that of a child.

He then held out his hand and said, "It's agreed that it can only be two drops."

Liu Shen immediately came over with a smile and hugged Li Lin's left hand.

She opened her long beak and began to inhale.

A moment later, she flew away, trembling all over.

Li Lin also shivered, then subconsciously patted his kidneys: "Luckily, it's not a big problem."

Li Yanjing smiled, walked over and whispered, "Would you like to cultivate together to help you recover some of your energy?"

"Are you sure it's not... trying to drain more of my life force?"

Li Yanjing playfully slapped Li Lin's hand: "I was just trying to help you, and you're making fun of me."

"Now is not the time. I need to go to the commander's tent soon. The chief commander and the four commanders must all be there."

"Oh..." Li Yanjing was somewhat disappointed.

Li Lin said, "Why don't you go chat with Liu Shen? I've noticed she really enjoys talking to people. See if you can find out anything else."

"Okay, I understand. You want information about the Tree Fairy, right?"

“Yes!” Li Lin admitted without hesitation.

Li Yanjing said helplessly, "I knew it, she's the one you like the most."

Li Lin chuckled twice: "You go find Liu Shen first, I'm also getting ready to go to the commander's tent."

(End of this chapter)