Chapter 108: It’s Been Five Years
The young man in white snorted in disdain. "Leave my life behind? Haha. You sure talk big. Aren't you afraid of biting your own tongue off?" he said. "If you had the ability to stop me, you wouldn’t have run after me all the way from Qingsong. You really think that with the assistance of these few soldiers you have with you, you’d be a match for me, the third prince of the Grand Xia Empire? Heh! Think again; you haven’t seen my true skill!”
"You're just stalling for time, aren't you?” Marshall Xiao suddenly chuckled. “Did Fang Chen receive your message? Is he on his way here as we speak?"
"What’s the matter?” asked the young man in white casually, “Not planning to run even after learning that Fang Chen is on his way here? I’ve heard that he has recovered his cultivation. You really think you’d be our opponent if we joined hands?” He showed a casual smile.
"I’ve shattered his qi sea; there’s no way his cultivation recovered. I don't know what the Grand Xia Emperor is up to, killing the martial artists of my Qingsong Empire and killing my daughter. Is he provoking me to send my troops over? Is that it?" growled Marshall Xiao.
The young man in white sighed, then said, "I don't know why Big Fang did that, quite honestly. He probably didn't want things to turn out this way either. I guess I'll go back and ask him for clarification. Then, I'll write you a letter with the details. How about that?"
Marshall Xiao chuckled grimly. “Do you take me for a fool?”
“Oh, I wouldn’t dare. You’re the greatest general in the Qingsong Empire.” The white clothed youth laughed. “Even if I took anyone else for a fool, I wouldn’t think that you are one. Since you know that I’m playing for time, why are you allowing me to do as I wish?”
Suddenly, a laughing voice filled the background, and several figures swiftly approached the group from the direction of Tiger Pass.
“He never intended to keep you in the Qingsong Empire.”
"Big Fang!" The young man in white laughed heartily. When Fang Chen reached him, the young man went in for a big hug.
Xu Ge stood there with a foolish smile.
Goddess Xiao looked at Marshall Xiao with a complicated expression.
Shock and confusion filled the faces of the soldiers from the Wolf Army when they saw that Goddess Xiao was alive and well.
Looking at Xia Ji, a strange light flashed in Fang Chen’s eyes and he said, "How has life been in the Qingsong Empire these years?”
"It's been great. I got all the food, drinks, and women I needed!" Xia Ji replied subconsciously, still showing a nostalgic expression. "Unfortunately, I found out a while ago that Marshall Xiao wanted to kill me, so I had to run."
Fang Chen glanced at Marshall Xiao for a second, then said, "Let's talk elsewhere."
Marshall Xiao looked at his gray-white pupils and nodded slightly.
A wolf army commander gasped in astonishment. "Marshall Xiao!"
"Marshall, be careful! This might be a trap!”
Marshall Xiao shook his head, and said, "It doesn't matter." He then spurred his horse forward toward Fang Chen and the rest, who had rode a distance away.
The group came to a stop when they were a distance away from Marshall Xiao’s men.
Xia Ji seemed confused, and he frowned slightly. "What's going on with you guys?" He looked at Fang Chen, Marshall Xiao, then at the hundreds of soldiers not too far away from them.
Marshall Xiao stared at Fang Chen. "Someone in the capital planned to attack your third prince, likely to frame Qingsong. They seem to be people from your Grand Xia Empire. That is why I ‘chased’ him out of the city. Anyway, you owe me one,” he said placidly.
"What are you talking about?” Fang Chen pointed to Goddess Xiao. “I saved your daughter. Isn’t that enough to settle the scores?”
“Heh.” Marshal Xiao snorted. “Of course you saved her; I spared your life back then.”
Xia Ji gasped in astonishment, "You... you, Big Fang, were you in cahoots with Marshall Xiao? He... He allowed me to leave on purpose?” Xia Ji gasped in astonishment.
Goddess Xiao was also quite puzzled; what’s going on here exactly?
"Is the information you’ve relayed to me... true?” Marshall Xiao's tone was serious.
"She knows.” Fang Chen glanced at Goddess Xiao. “You and your daughter can discuss it slowly when you go back. This piece of news offsets that last favor. We're even." Fang Chen smiled.
"So... what about me letting him out of the empire?” Marshall Xiao pointed at Xia Ji. “What are we counting that as?”
"Even if you didn’t ‘escort’ him out, he would’ve been able to escape on his own. The only thing that counts is the fact that you’ve sent someone to inform me about this. But that doesn’t count since the third prince had already sent someone of his own to do that." Fang Chen said with a faint smile.
Xia Ji was starting to get a little angry, and chimed in, "What are you guys playing at?"
Fang Chen smiled. "Let's talk about it when we get back."
"Get back?" Xia Ji's expression changed slightly. A strange look had crept up on his face, and he said, "But, Big Fang, I am not planning to go back to Grand Xia now...."
Fang Chen frowned. "You're not going back? Are you going to let your big brother sit in the position of crown prince forever?"
"He is the legitimate eldest son, he’s obviously qualified to be the crown prince. As for me..." Xia Ji's eyes were reluctant. "I have my own plans,” he said. “Someone should be coming to pick me up soon, and I might not be back for many years. I just wanted to take this chance and bid you farewell.”
Fang Chen fell silent.
Marshall Xiao furrowed his brow slightly. Xia Ji was here because he had chased him all the way here, and Fang Chen's timely arrival was also arranged by him through their secret channel of communication. But why did Xia Ji's words make it seem like it was all intentionally planned by him?
"Junior Brother Xia, it's about time, don’t you think? Master has been waiting for you for five years. It's about time you’ve settled your worldly affairs," a voice suddenly sounded from a large tree nearby.
The other party had been clearly on the tree the whole time! And Marshall Xiao, who was a Qi Core expert, wasn't able to detect him at all! That could only mean that the other party’s cultivation wasn’t low. Moreover, for him to call Xia Ji his ‘junior brother’ also proved that point.
Xiao Ji, who used to be an ordinary mortal, suddenly gained abilities comparable to a Qi Core Stage martial artist. It was probably related to the person who appeared.
Xia Ji seemed a bit disappointed to see him. "Is that you, Senior Brother Liu? Master didn’t send Senior Sister Wu to pick me up?"
"I'm here to pick you up, and you still want Senior Sister Wu to come?" The newcomer’s nose wrinkled in dissatisfaction as he jumped off the tree. He approached the group in a few steps; the ground beneath his feet seemed to shrink whenever he moved. He took a swig from a large gourd in his right hand, and the fragrance of alcohol whiffed over, filling the air.
When the newcomer pulled the gourd away from his mouth, a satisfied burp escaped him. He didn’t seem to care about anyone present and impatiently said to Xia Ji, "Hurry up and get to the point. You said what you needed. It’s time to go. We won’t be able to catch the boat if we’re late.”
Xia Ji nodded helplessly. "Alright, alright."
He gave Fang Chen one last hearty hug, then said, "Big Fang, my good brother, I have to head over to a distant place for some time. I will have to hand over matters in the Grand Xia over to you. Hold the fort, and when I return after completing what I need to do, we’ll sweep away everything in our path!”
Fang Chen’s brow knitted together. "Where exactly are you going?"
"You don’t have to worry about where he’s going. From now on, you and him won’t be on the same level anymore.” Senior Brother Liu sneered at Fang Chen. “If it weren't for you, he wouldn't have stayed here for so long."
He didn’t stand on ceremony and quickly grabbed Xia Ji and, with swift movements, disappeared from their sights.
"Such terrifying agility." Marshall Xiao's brow furrowed deeply. He had never seen such a frightening display of speed. Even the powerful individuals from the eighth-tier empire couldn't compare.
"This kid had found his own opportunity five years ago.” Fang Chen chuckled self-mockingly. “But, he chose to wait for my cultivation to recover before leaving... Five whole years, he waited."
He couldn't discern how strong Senior Brother Liu was, but he had been able to feel a faint spiritual energy from Xia Ji when he had hugged him earlier.
Xia Ji... he... must’ve joined some cultivation sect.
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