Humanity’s Great Sage

he favor.

Mu Ling looked rather surprised.
“Are you sure, Lu Ye?” She did not expect it to be so easy for Lu Ye to say yes.
She thought that Lu Ye might need some persuading and she had been preparing a litany of reasons and a laundry list of benefits that she hoped would sway him.
His saying yes so readily really was not what she expected.

Lu Ye nodded. 

 

A beaming Mu Ling responded with elation, “I’ll speak to Senior Brother Tang Wu immediately.
He’ll be pleased to hear this!”

 

“Um, but I have a request of my own,” said Lu Ye suddenly. 

 

“Pray tell.”

 

“You said just now that the Conference lasts one entire month? how many days has it been since it began?” 

 

“This is the seventh day.”

 

“I’m afraid that’s too long for me.
I still have errands to run so this is my request: I ask that I’m allowed to leave any time I want to,” said Lu Ye, articulating his condition very clearly.
The last thing he ever wanted in return for participating was to sink or swim with Green Feather Mountain.
If and when something bad were to befall this side, he wanted the freedom to leave whenever he wanted to so as to prevent being involved in any subsequent fallout.
As for his “errands”, it was just a pretense.

 

“Granted,” Mu Ling made the decision herself and she proceeded to make the arrangements with her Battlefield Imprint.

 

Meanwhile, at the great hall where the Ninth-Order Cultivators of the three participating militant orders were keeping watch of the Disc, Tang Wu received word about Lu Ye agreeing to join Green Feather Mountain and he breathed with relief.
Although the addition of such a formidable figure as Lu Ye might not fully turn the tables in Green Feather Mountain’s favor, beyond any doubt, his presence would be a stalwart bulwark that could at least prevent any more slippage.
They could easily plan their comeback in due time.

 

Han Zhe Yue’s fervor had yet to see any signs of diminishing and the enemies were still very much rabid and delirious in their assaults on all Green Feather Mountain’s territories.
Thus, a tactical retreat might be just the reprieve the Green Feather Mountain forces needed while they bid their time for recovery.

“WHAT ARE YOU STARING AT?!” Han Zhe Yue shrieked like a banshee the moment she realized Tang Wu was looking at her.
“ONE MORE GLANCE THIS WAY AND I’LL HAVE YOUR EYEBALLS PLUCKED OUT!”

 

“The two hundred Contribution Points you owe me, when are you gonna pay up?” Tang Wu retorted with deliberate placidity.

 

Han Zhe Yue responded with a snort.
“Who’s to say which side he belongs to yet? At any rate, I will only believe it when I see it!”

 

Unreasonable as she always was, Han Zhe Yue refused to admit that, being that the tiny white dot that was Lu Ye had been inside Green Feather Mountain territory for two days, everyone could guess where his loyalties lied by now.

 

But something happened just as night beckoned that wiped that smug grin off her face –  the white dot turned blue.

 

“Any more excuses?” Tang Wu asked quietly.

 

“Like I said,” Han Zhe Yue averted her gaze, “You can say what you want, but I’m not going to believe it until I see it.”

 

Even to Ninth-Order Cultivators, the sum of two hundred Contribution Points was hardly a measly amount at all.
Han Zhe Yue would never so easily give up her Points.
As a petty termagant on the opposing side, she felt no scruples at all in being deliberately and wilfully petulant.
After all, Heaven had not yet passed judgment on her, so that would mean that she had managed to exploit a loophole.

Tang Wu returned a snort of his own, hardly in a mood for any childish and over-excessive bickering.

But Han Zhe Yue was not yet quite willing to let go.
“Don’t you ever for one second believe that recruiting this man makes you the winner of this Conference! It’s a numbers game after all!”   

 

That made sense.
Every hill that has been occupied by either side required men to guard it.
Without enough men to hold your territories, they would be recaptured easily.
This was why the Qins had only twenty-five hills at first because they were severely lacking in manpower.

“We’ll see then,” Tang Wu replied coldly, not wanting to breathe new life into this argument by continuing it.

 

Inside one of the tents in the glen where the Green Mountain field infirmary was, Xie Jin had come hurrying, bringing with him a contract.
Written in fine print was Lu Ye’s request, saying that he would be allowed to leave any time during his participation in the Conference on Green Feather Mountain’s behalf.

 

The rest of the contents included all provisions about rewards and punishments, all expressed very clearly. 

 

Lu Ye was satisfied with the contract.

 

“So, Junior Brother Yi Ye,” Xie Jin said as he tucked away the signed contract, “Do you prefer to be on Offense or are you more interested in Defense?”

 

“Can you tell me more about both roles?”

 

“If you’re on Offense, we can assign you to either the vanguard or one of the flanking parties to help capture other hills.
That would put you on the front lines in direct confrontation against enemies of the other sides.
It’s hard work and dangerous too.
But if you wish to be on Defense, we’ll send you to one of the hills that needs defending.
You can withdraw too if things get too hairy.”

 

Lu Ye was not surprised by the explanation of the roles.
“Offense,” he replied.

 

There was little to be gained by being on Defense.
He could be there all day and no prey would come.
Only by being on Offense could he slay more enemies and earn more rewards and loot.
That has been his one and only purpose for participating in the first place.

 

“Heh, I expected no less,” Xie Jin grinned.
“I knew you’re an Offense guy.
Anyway, my squad is short one man and I could use someone like you.
Have a good rest tonight.
I’ll come for you tomorrow.”

He lifted his forearm and did something to his Battlefield Imprint.
A blue light rose up from his mark and flew towards Lu Ye, who raised his own forearm too and the bluish glow dropped inside his Imprint.

 

That made Xie Jin the second contact he saved in the Imprint.

 

The first one has been erased.

 

Xie Jin gave him a few more instructions about tomorrow before he took his leave.

 

Yi Yi appeared from inside Amber.
“Are you sure about participating in this Conference, Lu Ye?”

 

“You’re not keen about it?”

 

Yi Yi shook her head.
“We’re going wherever you may go,” she said firmly, her resentment and tantrum towards him a few days ago all but subsided the following day.
In fact, she was rather afraid that Lu Ye would be bitter toward her instead.
Seeing him behaving just like normal breathed relief into her.

 

Lu Ye stroked her hair, saying, “Well, someone’s gotta demand some payback for what they did to Amber.
What goes around comes around.”

 

“I guess you’re right,” Yi Yi nodded.

 

“You’re sure about that?”

 

“Whatever you say! At least we get to knock on some heads!” Yi Yi declared loudly, deciding not to dwell on right or wrong.
It was something she and Lu Ye had never been able to properly see eye to eye about.