Chapter 19

Eagle Yang Guard has always been a place of high danger. This high danger is not only directed at martial artists like those from the Maitreya Sect but also at the Eagle Yang Guard itself. Therefore, many members of the Eagle Yang Guard do not have long lifespans, such as Wu Fan's father or Qian Rui's father. Qian Rui has been in the Eagle Yang Guard for twenty years, and he took over his father's position at the age of fifteen.

Over these twenty years, Qian Rui has strived and worked hard, but in the end, he only became a Chief Flag. Originally, he thought there was no hope for further advancement in his remaining life, but Wu Fan gave him a chance! Wu Fan killed the Hundred-Man Commander Chen Yu, leaving the position vacant, and Qian Rui at least saw some hope. Of course, it was just a glimmer of hope. After all, the position of Hundred-Man Commander was also coveted by Guo Ye and Wu Fan. In terms of seniority, Qian Rui was not as experienced as Guo Ye, who had been waiting longer. In terms of achievements, Qian Rui was not as impressive as Wu Fan, who had just achieved a great feat by wiping out over five hundred members of the Maitreya Sect. Qian Rui thought he was just meant to participate, but the opportunity came again!

When he heard the news in the early morning that Wu Fan had killed Guo Ye, Qian Rui almost burst with joy and wanted to set off fireworks to celebrate his impending promotion to Hundred-Man Commander. However, he never expected this! Commander Wu Yuanhao directly appointed a new Hundred-Man Commander, completely cutting off Qian Rui's hopes for advancement. The extreme joy and sorrow almost drove Qian Rui to the brink of collapse, especially since the new Hundred-Man Commander was a notorious hot-tempered man!

Zhong Xiu's name sounds like that of a young noble, but in reality, he is a wild man with a full beard, curly light brown hair, and a chest covered in hair. This man has an exceptionally bad temper and is well-known in the Thousand-Man Commandery of Luoyang, to the point where everyone knows about him.

Wu Fan's impression of Zhong Xiu was from about ten days ago, when he heard that Zhong Xiu had beaten a subordinate to death while drunk, and was then severely punished and ordered to reflect on his actions by Commander Wu Yuanhao... Wu Yuanhao's dispatch of Zhong Xiu was clearly aimed at him. Zhong Xiu's bad temper and mistreatment of subordinates are well-known, and his martial arts skills are also famously formidable. It is said that he has already opened all 365 acupoints in his body, passed the "Internal Body Breathing" stage, and reached the "Gathering Qi into the Sea" stage, making him one of the top few experts in the Thousand-Man Commandery of Luoyang.

Each of the ten Hundred-Man Commanders under the Thousand-Man Commandery has their own training ground, known as a Hundred-Man Commandery. They usually gather here, except for major events, which require them to go to the Thousand-Man Commandery. Wu Fan's Hundred-Man Commandery is located in the western part of the city, sometimes referred to as the Western Commandery.

As Wu Fan hurried to the Hundred-Man Commandery, he pondered how to deal with Zhong Xiu. He had already openly pledged allegiance to Deputy Thousand-Man Commander Zhao Xi. Would Wu Yuanhao be lenient with him, a traitor? Definitely not! Moreover, since his Hundred-Man Commandery was still under Wu Yuanhao's jurisdiction, even if Deputy Thousand-Man Commander Zhao Xi wanted to help him, he would be powerless. In other words, at least for now, Wu Fan could only rely on himself.

Just as he stepped into the Hundred-Man Commandery, Wu Fan saw Zhong Xiu, whom the Eagle Yang Guard members secretly called "the Wild Man." He was sitting under a large tree, drinking wine and occasionally rubbing his back against the rough bark, behaving like a wild boar in the forest.

Seeing Wu Fan and Qian Rui approach, Zhong Xiu's rough eyes narrowed, and he beckoned them over, laughing loudly, "From today on, I am the Hundred-Man Commander of the Western Commandery!" His tone then changed, and he stared intently at Wu Fan and Qian Rui, asking, "Are you convinced? Huh?"

Wu Fan, being a shameless person, immediately grinned and said, "How could we not be convinced? Who doesn't know the might of Commander Zhong? It's an honor to serve under you, and we are delighted to do so. How could we have any resentment?"

Seeing Wu Fan's stance, Qian Rui quickly added, "I am willing to follow Commander Zhong!"

"Ha ha..."

A laugh like that of a night owl came from Zhong Xiu's mouth, sharp and piercing.

It was hard to imagine that a man with a normal voice and a rough appearance could laugh in such an... indescribable and unpleasant way.

Stroking his beard, Zhong Xiu, with his sleepy, drunken eyes, slowly said, "In recent days, the Western Commandery has been active, suffering the most casualties. We need to quickly replenish our ranks. However, these new recruits are of mixed quality and cannot be considered combat-ready. Do you two Chief Flags have any good ideas? We can't let the Western Commandery fall behind the other Hundred-Man Commanderies, can we?"

Wu Fan's eyes twinkled, and he said with a smile, "Chief Flag Qian is experienced and skilled in this area. I recommend that Chief Flag Qian take charge of this task!"

"Oh! Chief Flag Qian has another important mission!" Zhong Xiu said casually, "So, Chief Flag Wu, you will take charge of this task! By the way, here is your promotion order."

"Damn it! Why did you even say that? Are you just playing with me? Why didn't you just name me directly? Damn it!" Wu Fan cursed inwardly.

As he spoke, Zhong Xiu pulled out a crumpled piece of paper from his chest and gestured for Wu Fan to take it.

Wu Fan smiled and reached out, but... he missed.

Zhong Xiu again presented the promotion order to Wu Fan.

Wu Fan missed again.

Zhong Xiu's hand was very fast, indicating his high martial arts skills. He held the promotion order with two fingers, looking playful, "Chief Flag Wu, you need to be careful! If this paper is damaged... it will be very troublesome."

"Damn it! You're playing with me?" Wu Fan's smile remained, but he harbored murderous thoughts.

Squinting his eyes, Wu Fan said slowly, "Of course! Commander, you are absolutely right."

"Ha ha..."

Laughing loudly, Zhong Xiu slapped the promotion order into Wu Fan's hand and, with a swaying, drunken gait, walked towards the main hall of the Hundred-Man Commandery.

"Is this a show of power?" Wu Fan clenched his fists to ease the pain. Zhong Xiu had used hidden strength, intentionally making Wu Fan look bad.

Turning around, Wu Fan began to think about the recruitment of new Eagle Yang Guard members. This was not an easy task, otherwise, he wouldn't have passed it to Qian Rui, and Zhong Xiu wouldn't have passed it to him. It was indeed a hot potato.

"Congratulations, Chief Flag Wu!" Qian Rui, who had not left, smiled and congratulated Wu Fan, "Just promoted to Chief Flag and immediately entrusted with such an important task by the Hundred-Man Commander, it's a double joy!"

Wu Fan's lips twitched: "Who said Qian Rui is a straightforward person? Step forward! I promise not to cut you! Look at this subtle criticism, is it not perfectly executed?"

Sighing deeply, Wu Fan forced a smile and said, "Congratulations! Congratulations!"

Then, without caring whether Qian Rui was willing, Wu Fan shamelessly put his arm around him and said, "Brother! You have to help me..."

...

PS1: Request for recommendations and collections.

PS2: Thank you to Panda Can't Sing and Rifleman for their generous support of 500 coins each. Thank you.

[Page break for ads]

[End of page break for ads]