Volume 1, Chapter 156 – The Old Man

The sky quickly darkened.

Once the wine had gone to her head about thirty percent, Shi Lan set down the jar in her hand and rose to leave the camp. A light drink could lift the mood; getting drunk only dulled the spirit.

Besides, she was in no mood to drink herself senseless right now.

Just as she stepped out of the camp, Shi Lan caught sight of Lü Anqing standing at the entrance to the women’s corps camp.

Lü Anqing leaned sideways against a stone post. The black mask covering half her face looked even more eerie in the distant firelight. A chill aura that kept others a thousand li away radiated from her whole body, as if the bonfires and laughter behind her had all been shut out.

“Ten-Thousand-Man Commander.”

Shi Lan hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward to greet her.

“……”

Lü Anqing was silent for a while before she slowly gave a small nod.

Shi Lan felt a bit awkward. She was not someone who talked a lot, and for some reason she was very good at killing conversations. Lü Anqing’s cold response left her with nothing to say.

For a while, the atmosphere was a bit quiet.

Lü Anqing lowered her gaze. Her eyelashes cast a shadow that hid the peach blossom eye exposed outside the mask, making her seem a little desolate.

Glancing at the lively camp behind Lü Anqing, a trace of understanding flashed in Shi Lan’s eyes.

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“Commander, you don’t like noisy places?”

“No.” Lü Anqing shook her head, then shot a look at the camp across the way. A note of displeasure crept into her voice and she started to talk more.

“I have to keep an eye on the people over there. If they drink too much of that horse piss and their brains short-circuit, things will get ugly for everyone. When men are being led around by what’s below the waist, they don’t have a brain.”

Martial artists, especially those below the Innate Realm, had vigorous blood and qi and stronger-than-normal needs in that regard. Add in insufficient cultivation and poor self-control, and once strong liquor hit them, it was only normal for them to do a few outrageous things.

Seeing the clear dissatisfaction on Lü Anqing’s face, Shi Lan felt embarrassed. She had misunderstood again.

“Stay on this side tonight. Over there is definitely not suitable. Last time, before General Bai set out, he held a banquet, and a few with bad drinking habits stripped off their armor and clothes right in front of everyone. Their faces are thicker than the city walls and they don’t care in the least. No need for your eyes to be dirtied.”

Lü Anqing stepped aside and jerked her chin, signaling Shi Lan to go in.

Hearing Lü Anqing’s words, Shi Lan gave up on going back. As she stepped past Lü Anqing, she paused, hesitating a little.

“Commander, you’re not going in?”

“No.”

Lü Anqing waved a hand and gave her a light push.

As soon as Shi Lan stepped into the camp, she smelled a thick reek of wine and heard the noisy sounds of laughter and chatter.

There were fewer than three thousand in the women’s corps aboard the warship, and Lü Anqing was already the highest-ranking officer among these women.

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Dozens of large tents were scattered through the camp. Not far from them burned bonfires, with many graceful figures sitting around the flames. At a glance, Shi Lan saw many familiar faces.

Once they shed their battle armor, the Demon-Suppressing soldiers looked no different from ordinary women, just a bit more forthright in their mannerisms.

Seeing Gu Rongyue’s embarrassed expression as another woman pulled her into her arms and tried to make her drink, the corner of Shi Lan’s mouth twitched. She looked away and thought to find a quiet corner to get through the night.

“Shi Lan!”

Shi Lan had barely taken a few steps when she ran into Wu Lingkong, reeking of wine.

Wu Lingkong’s cheeks were slightly flushed and her eyes hazy, though her mind was still mostly clear. When she reached Shi Lan’s side, she pulled her straight over to a bonfire and sat her down without so much as a by-your-leave.

Everyone around this particular fire was someone who had been with Wu Lingkong back when Shi Lan had first met her.

No sooner had Shi Lan sat down than the toasts started going around. Unconsciously, though she had planned to just sip lightly, she found herself clinking cups and drinking in earnest.

By the time Shi Lan’s thoughts started to blur, people lay scattered all around the fire. Wu Lingkong had slumped against her shoulder, dead drunk. If even Shi Lan was having trouble handling the strength of this liquor, there was no need to mention these women whose cultivation was far below the Earth Fiend Realm.

Shi Lan helped Wu Lingkong to her feet and lifted her around the waist, staggering as she searched for an empty tent.

After settling Wu Lingkong inside, Shi Lan tottered back out and carried the women who had collapsed around the fire into the tent one by one. Traces of dried tears could be seen on many faces.

Roaming in a world thrown into chaos, these women each had their own unspoken grief.

By the time Shi Lan had carried all the women into the tents, the aftereffects of the alcohol were surging up.

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She rubbed her forehead, but did not circulate her true qi to dispel the drunkenness. Instead, she found an empty spot, took off her battle armor, and lay down without undressing further.

Right now, she just wanted a good sleep.

……

Shi Lan kept her eyes closed as she rubbed her forehead, easing some of the fuzziness in her mind. She felt something heavy pressing on her body, reached out to move it aside, and her hand brushed over smooth, soft skin.

She sat up and opened her eyes to look around. Nearly a hundred women lay sprawled all over the tent, limbs flung everywhere, clothes half undone and exposing large expanses of skin. Four or five of them lay beside her, with one draped over her legs. Some faces she recognized, others were unfamiliar.

What she had just pushed away was that woman’s thigh.

Looking at everyone’s utterly unselfconscious sleeping postures, Shi Lan could not help giving a small shake of her head. She stepped lightly down from the pallet.

In a few quick motions she straightened her wrinkled clothes and smoothed her slightly messy hair, then put on her armor and stepped out of the tent.

Dawn was just breaking. A strand of morning light shone from the east, driving back the darkness. A thin mist veiled the camp, refracting the morning rays into faint rainbows.

With her true qi circulating, the lingering alcohol evaporated quickly, leaving her feeling refreshed from head to toe.

Shi Lan strolled out of the camp. Lü Anqing was still standing at the entrance, not having moved an inch all night.

When she saw Shi Lan come out, Lü Anqing nodded in greeting.

“You’ve worked hard, Commander.” Shi Lan nodded back.

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Shi Lan had originally planned to return to her own unit, but as she lifted her foot, Lü Anqing’s earlier words came to mind. She silently changed direction and walked outward instead.

The fortress stretched across an entire mountain range, and so within it there were many small streams and ravines.

Not long after leaving the camp, Shi Lan saw a small river trickling by. An old man of about seventy in white robes sat on the bank with his eyes closed, fishing. His aura was ethereal and distant, somewhat unfathomable.

“This man is very strong, and he is here for you.”

Before Shi Lan could approach, Samsara’s voice suddenly sounded.

“How strong, roughly?” Shi Lan asked silently, without changing her expression.

“By this world’s standards, above the third stage of the Heaven-Man Realm. With the energy I have right now, it would be a bit difficult to take him down.”

“How do you know he’s here for me?” Shi Lan asked, puzzled.

“His divine sense was circling around you just now. His strength is too great and yours is not enough, so of course you couldn’t sense it. And he only posed like he was fishing when he saw you coming over.”

“What does he want?”

“If nothing unexpected happens, he probably wants to take you as a disciple or something like that. I’ve seen this routine plenty of times.”