Chapter 70: Subordinates

Wei Liang stared wide-eyed at the scene before him. So powerful… When would he ever reach such a level?

Wu Ming glanced at the awe in Wei Liang’s eyes and knew he had succeeded; this kid would definitely not try to run.

“How about it? Want to become this strong? Come with me.”

Wei Liang replied, “I need to return to the settlement first, gather my things, and then I’ll go with you.”

Wu Ming wasn’t surprised. He stowed away the giant eagle. “Alright, you have one hour.”

“Oh, and put on some clothes first.”

Wei Liang: …

His clothes had been shredded after using Ape King Transformation. Fortunately, he had brought spares ever since he acquired that ability. He always carried an extra set with him.

…

Back at the settlement, Shi Jiu and the others had already made it back and reported everything to Lu Sheng.

Lu Sheng’s heart surged with murderous intent. Why were these people always so eager for internal conflict? Wouldn’t it be better to direct that energy toward fighting monsters?

“Let’s go. Take me there. Today, we’ll slaughter them all.”

“Alright!”

Just as everyone was about to rush to rescue Wei Liang, three figures descended rapidly.

Wu Ming had brought Wei Liang over, carrying him by the hand.

“Go on. I’ll wait here for one hour,” Wu Ming said, releasing Wei Liang to join the others.

Wei Liang quickly explained the situation to everyone.

They were all filled with envy that Wei Liang was about to set off for a broader world.

Wei Liang’s gaze burned as he looked at Lu Sheng. “Lu Sheng, will you come with me? I believe you can do it, right?”

He trusted that Lu Sheng understood what he meant. One of the main reasons Wei Liang had returned was to ask if Lu Sheng would join him in heading to the Dawn Legion.

In his eyes, Lu Sheng’s talent was extraordinary; the speed of his rise was proof enough. He hadn’t spoken to Wu Ming directly because he wanted to hear Lu Sheng’s answer first.

Lu Sheng shook his head. “I won’t go. Work hard out there, and I’ll be waiting for your triumphant return.”

Wei Liang looked at him seriously. “The Dawn Legion has far richer resources. Are you sure you don’t want to go?”

“I don’t need to.”

Lu Sheng declined calmly. Here, he could quietly become invincible. There was no need to wander the world.

Wei Liang felt a twinge of disappointment, thinking Lu Sheng lacked ambition. No matter how gifted, staying here with no resources was pointless. If you have potential, you should pursue a broader world—a true dragon shouldn’t stay in shallow waters. Lu Sheng would only bury his talent this way.

Yet for the moment, he didn’t know how to persuade him. He could see the determination in Lu Sheng’s eyes and could only sigh.

“Alright, I’ll come back again in the future.”

Since Lu Sheng’s mind couldn’t be changed now, time would be his best teacher.

“Mm.”

Lu Sheng hadn’t thought much about it. He was busy cultivating his Water Spirit Fruit Tree. As long as he provided enough flesh energy, the tree could yield ten third-tier Water Spirit Fruits a day. Others might find cultivation difficult—monsters weren’t easy to kill, and even those who could would have to spend time searching them out. Cultivation like this would consume resources that not even an entire faction could sustain.

But Lu Sheng was different. Ten third-tier Water Spirit Fruits a day was a stable yield for him. Spirit fruits were the easiest resource to turn into strength; so long as he had enough, his power would soar.

…

Soon, Wei Liang bid farewell to everyone, packed a few clothes, and left.

Within the settlement, Li Kuang was gathering his forces: Lei Yan, Ding Yang, Wang Buer—three captains and three hundred subordinates.

Lei Yan asked curiously, “Chief, what are we up to?”

Li Kuang shot him a look. “We’re going to kill.”

Lei Yan was even more puzzled. “Kill who…”

Ding Yang and Wang Buer also looked at Li Kuang, full of curiosity.

“We’re going to kill the people of the Bright Moon Settlement. Their leader is dead, and they’ll definitely suspect our Gale Settlement. The Bright Moon Settlement may seem weak now, but plenty of settlements have perished from disaster drawn to their door. When you cut the weeds, you must pull up the roots. Even though Lord Lu Sheng is with us, we can’t rely on him for everything. Otherwise, what’s the difference between us and parasites?”

“If a problem can be solved, then we must solve it ourselves.”

Lei Yan and the others suddenly understood. “Chief, you really think ahead. We’d never have thought of all this.”

Lei Yan then raised another question. “But… Chief, are we really going to kill all their old and young?”

Li Kuang scolded him for being slow. “There’s no need for that trouble. Just wipe out Qiu Ming’s core troops and destroy the Bright Moon Settlement. Break them up so they scatter and join other settlements. No matter how much prestige Qiu Ming had, there will be few willing to avenge him after his death. In these troubled times, people only care about themselves.”

“It’s like if I died—would you risk your life for revenge?”

Lei Yan replied without hesitation, “Of course I would!”

Whether or not he meant it, Lei Yan had to say so—Li Kuang wasn’t dead yet.

…

Soon, Li Kuang and his group arrived at the Bright Moon Settlement.

Originally, Li Kuang had only planned to subdue the residents. Unexpectedly, they resisted—simply because they didn’t know their leader was dead. They still had some backbone.

That left no room for mercy. Anyone who dared resist was killed on the spot.

With third-tier Li Kuang present, no one could stand against them.

The fierce battle was brief. With Li Kuang going all out, it was utterly one-sided. In no time, everyone who had resisted was slaughtered.

“Chief, what about the old and young…”

“Kill them. You know the logic of rooting out the problem completely.”

Seeing the conflict in their eyes, Li Kuang barked, “Or do you want them growing up to seek revenge? Mercy to your enemies is cruelty to your own. Do you want to see your own people die at their hands in the future?”

Mercy… Li Kuang wanted it too, but as chief, he had to think of everyone.

Lei Yan and the others snapped out of it, suppressing their reluctance. “Kill!”

“Kill!”

…

Cao Bin swung his blade, felling the last bizarre creature before him.

These monsters were humanoid in shape, with black, glossy skin, moving on all fours, claws razor-sharp, and two pronounced fangs jutting from their mouths.

The only way to kill them was to behead them; wounds elsewhere—even to the heart—did nothing.

He had never seen such monsters before.

“Regroup! Return to Niutaurus City!”

With the monsters dealt with, Cao Bin led his team back as usual.

Hundreds of corpses from the massacre lay strewn about the settlement. Normally, they would disappear after twenty-four hours.

Since the arrival of the monsters, any corpse left untouched for twenty-four hours would dissolve into energy and vanish from the world.