Chapter 480: Chapter 369: Disaster is Coming
Dandi approached from behind, watching the two slowly walking away, confusion clouding his face.
"I don’t understand. Wesley’s face is screaming ’I need help’, so why can’t he just say it out loud? And Brother Long clearly noticed that he needs help, so why doesn’t he offer it himself? Isn’t Brother Long always eager to help others?"
Ai Lin answered, "That’s what being a man is all about."
Dandi looked even more perplexed.
Ai Lin turned and chuckled, "What being a man means is that one can forfeit life, but never dignity."
"So basically, it’s tough for them to swallow their pride even if it means suffering." Isrile, bagging a weighty trash bin single-handedly, moved past them to leave it at a designated spot in the courtyard, where someone would collect it daily.
Like someone who got the concept, Dandi nodded, "Even though we already knew about this, seeing it firsthand is still rather unbelievable."
Meanwhile, Long Yi and Wesley were now in a tavern. In a small room there, Wesley remained silent for a while before grabbing his drink and chugging several in one go. Long Yi didn’t say a word. Wesley drank one, Long Yi matched. Wesley downed two, Long Yi followed suit. They savored their drinks without touching their food.
Afterward, Wesley, his eyes bloodshot, finally spoke up.
"Brother Long! I need your help!"
Maybe emboldened by alcohol, Wesley didn’t beat around the bush and spoke directly.
"What happened?" Long Yi knew that Wesley may seem fun and playful, but deep down, he was a proud man. He wouldn’t have come to him unless there was huge trouble.
The Observation Dragon on his shoulder flew out to stand guard.
Long Yi promptly cast a silence spell and added a layer of magic block.
"What is it, out with it."
"Brother Long! Our family seems to be in big trouble this time."
Not unlike how a genius’s offspring may not necessarily be geniuses, not every member of Wesley’s family likes the sound of coins filling their pockets. Wesley has a cousin named Roslein who is five years older than him. Lacking entrepreneurial skills but spending money like water, he is one of the wealthiest spendthrifts in the Imperial City. And his wealth was spent pointlessly—he was simply an easy mark.
Roslein lacked a knack for money-making, but he knew better than to meddle with the family’s business. The family thus allocated him an exorbitant amount of pocket money each month for him to squander. After all, every family has their useless spenders. It’s quite common.
As a prodigal son, no girl of matching status would pick him; those of lower status didn’t suit his taste, thus, he often found himself spending most nights in pleasure houses. Some time ago, he met a woman whom he became infatuated with. All his sizable pocket money went on her and he even vowed to set her free.
But freedom required a huge sum of money. Though Roslein had hefty pocket cash, it was, after all, just pocket cash.
Asking his family for more was not an option.
So, he came up with a solution.
He gambled.
This proved to be an incredibly stupid idea. In less than a week, Roslein racked up a debt so great that it frightened even himself. The amount was enough to buy the girl’s freedom twice over.
Paying off the debt was something Roslein couldn’t do.
So, the debt collectors gave him an alternative.
There were five coffins left outside the Imperial City. As long as Roslein could sneak them into the city without anyone’s knowledge, not only would his debts be written off but also his lady-love would be set free.
Roslein, although wasteful, was not a fool. He understood that something was off, even the safety of the Imperial City could be compromised. However, if he refused, the debt collectors would come to his family. If his family paid off his debts, they would beat him to death. But if his family refused to pay, the collectors would kill him anyway.
"So, he agreed to it?"
Long Yi asked.
"Yes, that idiot agreed," Wesley sighed heavily, "That fool ordered our family’s trade caravan using his status, leveraging our good credibility in the Imperial City to bypass the inspection and sneak those five coffins in."
"And then? They just brought them in?" Long Yi inquired.
"Of course not, the elders in our house got wind of it immediately. They gave Roslein a thorough beating and found out the location of the coffins. But when they reached that underground warehouse, to their fright, all the coffins were empty with blood all over the floor. My father immediately messaged me to return home instantly. I’ve just been back in the army for a few days, but I knew if it wasn’t a crisis, he wouldn’t have asked for me. I requested a leave from the group leader and rushed back home. As I entered the secret room, the room was filled with a strong Hellish aura."
At this point, Wesley no longer had anything to say. The situation was already very clear— if anyone from any family was found to collude with the Black Dragon Empire during this crucial moment, the family’s reputation would be tainted no matter what the Emperor decides to do.
So, that’s why Wesley came to search for Long Yi.
Because for this matter, Long Yi is the only one who can help.
"Let’s go. Show me what’s going on." Long Yi immediately pulled Wesley up onto his feet.
There were many large houses on the outskirts of the Imperial City. These were generally uninhabited and were used by merchants as storehouses. The Wesley family owned a row of properties here, and the house where the coffins were kept was currently guarded by family members, with no one allowed to enter or leave. As Long Yi arrived with another one, the middle-aged man at the warehouse’s entrance revealed an awkward smile. He was Eisenhoven, the current de facto leader of the family.
"Thank you for coming," Eisenhoven extended his hand.
"No problem, we’re all in this together." Long Yi shook Eisenhoven’s trembling hand. He could feel his nervousness, as the matter was now related to the survival of the family.
Coming to the basement, before the door was even pushed open, the smell of hellish power already crawled into Long Yi’s nose. Pushing open the door revealed a row of five massive coffins, each three meters high.
To smuggle five such large coffins into the Imperial City either meant the Wesley family had quite a good reputation in the imperial city or there was a problem with the people responsible for checking.
Long Yi was more inclined to believe the latter.
Three-meter-high coffins, what could be inside them couldn’t be Yaksha, could it be some novelties?
Long Yi scratched his head and turned to look at Wesley.
Seeing Long Yi scratching his head, Wesley immediately knew that Long Yi wanted to say something but was also feeling somewhat embarrassed.
"Brother Long, feel free to tell us anything. At this time, we can agree to anything!" Even though Eisenhoven was nearby, Wesley’s words represented his thoughts too. After all, if this matter could not be resolved properly, the whole family would be ruined!
"It’s nothing too serious; I’ll help investigate this matter, but I can’t guarantee to save your family."
Long Yi’s words were rather tactful.
"Rest assured, we understand," Wesley spoke.
"Good, if you understand that’s fine."
Long Yi nodded and called, "Dandi."
Almost simultaneously, a girl with blood red wings appeared by Long Yi’s side.
"What do you need from me? Eh? This hellish power — so strong! Is it a Black Knight?" Dandi immediately noticed the abnormality in their surroundings.
The so-called Black Knights, they are powerful warriors formed by transforming deceased powerhouses by using mud from hell. Black Knights inherit the combat skills of the Dragon Riders and no longer need other energy sources; their existence will be sustained by the power of hell. Usually, Black Knights have strong combat power and are very tough opponents.
"No, something’s off. If they’re Black Knights, they are too weak. They seem like Black Knights but are not strong enough," Dandi comments.
"Can you track them?" Long Yi asked.
"Of course, I can! Do you need me to track them?" Excitement lit up in Dandi’s face.
"I will need your tracking abilities... but, you seem a bit too conspicuous," Long Yi looked at Dandi and said. Indeed, with Dandi’s appearance, it’s hard not to get noticed.
"No problem, I can transform." As she spoke, Dandi mysteriously turned into a small Blood Raven within a cloud of bloody mist.
"Is this less conspicuous now?"
"Yes, that’s much better." Long Yi nodded, although red ravens were rare, they were small in size. As long as she remained covert, she probably wouldn’t be noticed. Furthermore, Blood Ravens were cunning; they should have ways to remain inconspicuous.
The Blood Raven flew out, Long Yi turned to Wesley.
"Dandi is looking for the Black Knights, let’s start with your cousin." Long Yi says.
It wasn’t Long Yi’s first time visiting Wesley’s home, but this time, almost every person that saw Long Yi gave a sigh of relief. Because everyone knew the weight Long Yi held in this nation, if he intervened, even if things get worse, maybe the losses wouldn’t be too bad?
Wesley’s cousin Roslein was confined in his room. As Long Yi arrived at the door and pushed it open, he saw Roslein sitting on the edge of his bed with a vacant look in his eyes. Seeing Long Yi appear, he immediately shouted, "None of you can hurt my lover! No one!" And with that, he charged straight at Long Yi.
"Bang!"
With one kick, Wesley sent Roslein flying onto the bed. But even as he lay there, he was cursing and swearing, utterly agitated.
"Little Zi!"
Upon hearing Long Yi’s call, Little Zi, who was preparing lunch at home, immediately handed over her tasks to Ai Lin and disappeared.
"Brother Long?"
Little Zi looked at the current situation in confusion. Generally, Long Yi really disliked employing the power of the contract unless it was really necessary.
"I need you to extract the memory I want from his brain," Long Yi stated. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it at qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile phone users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
