Chapter 21: Innate Divine Strength
"If any of you dare utter another word, I'll kill every one of you!" The giant man turned to the prison guards with bloodshot eyes, the murderous intent in his gaze almost tangible.
Seeing him so angry, the guards felt their scalps tingle and their legs go weak.
"Old Huang, I came in here by myself. They had nothing to do with it." Fang Chen smiled and tried to calm him down.
This former subordinate of his looked the same as he did back then, five years ago. His years in prison didn’t seem to have left any mark on him; he had not lost any weight, and instead, appeared to have become a bit more muscular than before.
He was Huang Sihai—a mortal who didn’t even have a day’s worth of martial arts practice under his belt and instead possessed innate divine strength comparable to a Qi Manipulation expert. He had once been one of the four Dragon Generals under Fang Chen's command.
During the devastating battle five years ago, three of the four Dragon Generals had died, while Huang Sihai suffered severe injuries. He managed to survive against all odds and made a full recovery in less than half a year. And that wasn’t all; there were actually no signs of any hidden injuries on his body at all. It was simply unbelievable.
"Marshall, I—"
Fang Chen cut him off, saying, "I'm no longer your Marshall. Just call me ‘Lord’ from now on."
"My lord, they promised me that as long as I stay here and behave myself, they will leave you alone! They lied to me!" Huang Sihai stared at Fang Chen, unable to suppress the anger in his eyes.
"What?!”
"That’s why General Huang stayed here all these years?"
The inmates were dumbfounded. While they knew that it would be impossible to contain Huang Sihai and lock him up against his will, they still did not expect that the reason for his obedience was due to such a deal.
"They didn't deceive you. No one has bothered me for the past five years," Fang Chen pointed out, smiling. Countless people have had to endure pain and suffering in the past five years because of him. Tie Ma had been one of them, and Huang Sihai was another. Now, he intended to shatter everything that had once shackled them.
"My lord, if that's the case, why did you come here? Is this Li Huafeng’s doing? Damn that bastard, I’ll kill him!” Huang Sihai roared as he clenched his fists tightly.
The prison guards felt a chill run down their spines.
As it turned out, in the eyes of Huang Sihai, the deputy head of the Grand Brilliance Bureau didn’t amount to much; he was a little chicken that could be slaughtered at any time.
"In the past few days, I've killed quite a number of martial artists from the Qingsong Empire. So, they decided to lock me up while they figure out how to deal with the situation,” Fang Chen said. "I thought that since we hadn’t seen each other in five years, I might as well take this chance and visit you."
Hearing his words, the inmates were bemused. Killed a number of martial artists from the Qingsong Kingdom? Wasn’t Fang Chen blinded and crippled after the battle at Three World Mountain?
"My lord, your cultivation..." Finally, Huang Sihai started to calm down, and he observed Fang Chen closely.
"Yes, my cultivation has recovered.” Fang Chen nodded with a smile.
Huang Sihai froze for a moment, surprised, then he burst into laughter, his face filled with pure joy. “Hahahaha!” What news! He didn’t have to stay here much longer!
"Divine General Fang’s cultivation has recovered?"
“No wonder these guys from the bureau have been completely out of sorts these past few days!”
"The Heavens are about to change!"
Discussion broke out in the prison, with whisperers and murmurs filling the building.
"I’m planning not to involve myself with the court any further. If you wish to continue following me when you leave this place, I won’t be able to offer you the position of a general," Fang Chen said.
"My lord, what's so good about being a general? Even if you sell pancakes in the future, I’ll knead the dough for you!" Huang Sihai said and laughed heartily.
Hearing such bizarre words come out of the general’s mouth, everyone looked at Huang Sihai, their expressions shifting repeatedly.
He, Huang Sihai; a Qi Manipulation Stage expert; a man who has been imprisoned willingly for five whole years; a man that didn’t seem to give a flying fuck about the warden, the deputy head, or even the bureau as a whole, was willingly offering to knead dough for Fang Chen on his hypothetical pancake stall!
The expressions on everyone’s faces turned stranger by the second.
"General Huang, I've treated you respectfully and provided you with good food and drinks over the past few years. The least you could do is give me some face," said the warden, who rushed back after hearing the commotion.
He looked at Huang Sihai with a complex expression.
"Old He, it's not that I’m trying to embarrass you. But shouldn’t you at least let me know in advance if you were going to throw my lord in here? If it weren't for my lord’s explanation, I would have crushed your skull just now," Huang Sihai said to the warden seriously.
The warden’s expression flickered; he hadn’t thought that even after five whole years, Huang Sihai would still be so hell bent on following Fang Chen so zealously.
"Since your lord has already explained the situation, can you return to your cell?" the warden asked politely.
"Wait. Get me my stuff and arrange a single room for me," Fang Chen interjected, the usual smile hung on his lips.
"Did you hear what my lord just said?" scowled Huang Sihai.
The warden fell silent for a brief moment, and then he nodded.
He looked at Fang Chen and asked, "Are your men outside the bureau?"
Fang Chen nodded.
"Wait for a moment." The warden turned around and left.
*
Outside the Grand Brilliance Bureau.
Xu Ge held a bundle and stood outside quietly. Even though he appeared to be lost in reverie, he was secretly assessing the layout of the place. “If I had ten Qi Detonation martial artists and another fifty Qi Condensation martial artists, I could probably raze this entire Grand Brilliance Bureau to the ground. It could be done in about an hour, give or take. Then, I would be able to reach the prison, and with that—”
Suddenly, a surprised cry interrupted his thoughts. “Huh! The Windy Cloud Swordsman! Xu Ge!”
The warden wore an incredulous expression.
The Windy Cloud Swordsman, Xu Ge, who had gained fame in the capital in recent years, was also Fang Chen’s subordinate!
Moreover, he overheard Xu Ge talking to himself just now!
This... Is this guy thinking of attacking the Grand Brilliance Bureau?! Wait... Is this what Divine General Fang wants? The warden felt his scalp tingle, his legs weakening at the thought.
"Are you from the Grand Brilliance Bureau? Did my lord send you?" Xu Ge frowned as he looked at him. What's with this guy? Why does he look like he's seen a ghost? Are all the people from the Grand Brilliance Bureau this timid?
"Yes.” The prison warden nodded slightly.
"Well, hand this over to the lord," Xu Ge said and gave the warden the bundle he had.
“I'm already breaking the rules by doing this. I have to inspect the contents at the very least," the warden explained.
"Feel free to look." Xu Ge nodded.
Opening the package, the warden found a wolf-hair brush, cinnabar, and some yellow talisman papers.
He was puzzled. What could Fang Chen possibly need these for in prison?
"Go. Deliver these items to my lord. And don’t try to play any tricks on me. If I find out that he didn’t receive them, you better start watching your back when you walk down the street," Xu Ge said indifferently.
“You dare to threaten me even after knowing that I’m the prison warden of the Grand Brilliance Bureau?" The warden asked, clearly annoyed.
“So what if you are the prison warden of the Grand Brilliance Bureau? Do you think I have anything to lose?" retorted Xu Ge with a glare.
Without saying another word, the warden turned around and walked away.
Before long, he returned to the prison and handed the items to Fang Chen.
"Ol' Huang, you can return now," Fang Chen said.
"My lord, let me escort you to your private room." Huang Sihai grinned.
Without any delay, the warden then arranged a single room for Fang Chen.
Seeing that his lord finally got what he asked for, Huang Sihai returned to his own cell.
"Divine General Fang, attacking the Grand Brilliance Bureau is not a wise decision. I hope you reconsider.” The warden left with a complicated expression after giving Fang Chen a good reminder.
Attacking the Grand Brilliance Bureau?
Despite himself, Fang Chen was momentarily stunned. However, he chose to ignore the warden’s confusing words and began arranging his tools. He was prepared to create a few more Purple Lighting Talismans. He also wanted to use this period to condense his second Immortal Vein.
If he could achieve a breakthrough, the power of the talisman would probably increase accordingly as well.
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