Chapter 470: Soldiers Sharing One Helm
A starved camel was still larger than a horse.
Mu Lan’s claim about the residual foundation of her Grand General’s Mansion—Ning Zhuo absolutely believed it.
But that didn’t stop Ning Zhuo from mercilessly rejecting her once again.
Frustrated once more, Mu Lan couldn’t help but retort coldly, “Then, Strategist Ning, go back and tell General Liu Er this: I would never be interested in him, so he’d best give up that vain hope.”
Ning Zhuo let out a sigh, gave a respectful bow, and took his leave.
Upon returning to the Three Generals Camp, he conveyed Mu Lan’s refusal to Liu Er as gently and tactfully as possible.
Liu Er clenched his fists, declaring that he would not give up just because of her rejection.
He still intended to persevere.
“Liu Er has too much confidence in himself. Clearly, he’s still hiding some cards,” Ning Zhuo gained further clarity in his mind.
Afterward, he no longer acted as a go-between for Liu Er and Mu Lan, and instead said, “Lord Liu, I must request a few days of leave.”
“Recently, a messenger from my clan arrived with the latest command from the ancestor.”
“I need to leave the camp to receive them.”
Liu Er immediately responded, “Strategist, there’s no need to go to such lengths. This Three Generals Camp is your second home! You’ve funded it, and your tireless dedication remains within it. Why not invite your noble clan’s messenger to the camp? We’ll treat them with the utmost hospitality!”
He was eager to use this opportunity to draw closer ties with the Ning Family.
From the repeated instances where Ning Zhuo produced precious materials, Liu Er judged that the Ning Family was exceedingly wealthy and wished to secure more support from them—for both the camp and himself.
But Ning Zhuo shook his head. “I already suggested that in my letter.”
“However, the clan is concerned. After all, this is the Liangzhu Kingdom. My current participation as a strategist is already slightly overstepping boundaries.”
“If the clan’s messenger were to enter the Three Generals Camp openly and bring support, it would be hard to explain to the outside world.”
“And, Lord Liu, we must also consider the current situation of our camp.”
“Now that you’re pursuing General Mu Lan, you’ll definitely be seen as a thorn in the side by Shuangjing and Sun Gan. If our family’s messenger enters the camp publicly under such conditions, it’ll surely become a handle for them to use against us!”
Liu Er’s heart skipped a beat. “Strategist, your considerations are remarkably thorough. That makes perfect sense.”
Only then did he give up on the idea of entertaining the Ning Family’s messenger.
Ning Zhuo quietly breathed a sigh of relief, then slipped out of the camp under Liu Er’s watchful gaze.
He first regrouped with Sun Lingtong, then used the Wanli Dragon to traverse the void, covering a vast distance to re-enter the Thousand Peaks Forest.
In a predetermined woodland location, Ning Zhuo, Sun Lingtong, and the stone sphere once again merged to form the guise of the “Stone Dwelling Old Monster,” and secretly met with the Grand Cave Lord of the Six Caves Sect, Lu Hongtu.
“Daoist Friend Stonezhong.”
“Daoist Friend Lu.”
The two exchanged greetings.
Lu Hongtu smiled, “Daoist Friend Stonezhong venturing deep behind enemy lines and braving peril—truly a model for all of us…”
He hadn’t finished when Ning Zhuo cut him off bluntly.
“Save the flattery.”
“I’m here to do business.”
“All these spoils of war—I’m selling them to you!”
As he spoke, Ning Zhuo brought out a complete Earth Milk Pure Spirit Mana Reservoir, three Sage Light Illumination Towers, hundreds of White-Plume Gentle Dust mounts, as well as various military gear like the Jade Armor, Glare Lance, and Moon Phase Shield—all laid out upon the mountain terrain.
The Mana Reservoir was intact, but all three Sage Light Illumination Towers were damaged. The hundreds of White-Plume Gentle Dusts were all noticeably thinner.
As for the Jade Armor, Glare Lance, and Moon Phase Shield, they were all in excellent condition.
Lu Hongtu’s expression turned serious and cautious. He immediately activated his spiritual sense to sweep the area and carefully examine everything.
A Nascent Soul-level spiritual sense—extremely powerful.
Lu Hongtu, skilled in the arts of painting, had long honed his spiritual sense to both survey the broader scene and hone in on minute details.
Very quickly, he completed his count and confirmed the quality.
He then took out a storage bag and handed it to the “Stone Dwelling Old Monster.” “Inside are Spirit Stones of lower, medium, and high grade, along with a small amount of top-grade stones. The total value is thirty-one million medium-grade Spirit Stones. Please verify.”
Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong likewise activated their spiritual senses and inspected the contents. Upon confirming its accuracy, both were very satisfied.
“Daoist Friend Lu, straightforward as always! Maintaining this kind of partnership will benefit us both,” Ning Zhuo replied.
The total value of Ning Zhuo’s spoils was roughly thirty million five hundred and forty thousand medium-grade Spirit Stones. On the surface, Lu Hongtu had overpaid by nearly half a million.
But in truth, if Ning Zhuo tried to offload this many spoils quickly, he would definitely be forced to sell at a discount.
So in practical terms, his actual profit would have been greatly reduced.
Working with Lu Hongtu—time-saving, cost-effective. Most crucially, he could avoid a direct meeting with the Dragon Ginseng King. If this wasn’t a win on all fronts, what was?
Just as the “Stone Dwelling Old Monster” was about to leave, Lu Hongtu, while storing away the spoils scattered across the ground, quickly called out, “Daoist Friend Stonezhong, hold on a moment.”
“I wonder, would you consider selling the Gao Sheng’s Testament in your possession?”
Ning Zhuo rejected him outright, “Ever since that ambush battle, I’ve become quite interested in Military Manuals.”
“Even if I can’t practice them myself, I can still study and understand formations and tactics, preparing for the coming wars.”
As Military Advisor and Sacrificial Wine, Ning Zhuo witnessed daily training by the three generals—Liu, Guan, and Zhang. After participating in the ambush battle, he not only observed with his own eyes but experienced firsthand the effectiveness of battle formations.
Thus, his curiosity for such power only deepened, and his desire for research grew stronger.
Even if he couldn’t master it now, gaining more knowledge about formations could very well increase his survival chances on the battlefield—definitely worth it.
Therefore, even though Ning Zhuo knew Gao Sheng’s Testament could fetch a high price, he still wished to keep it for himself.
Lu Hongtu wasn’t surprised by this and found it very reasonable.
“What Daoist Friend Stonezhong says is quite true.”
“I was well aware you wouldn’t easily part with Gao Sheng’s Testament.”
“However, Thousand Peaks Forest’s greatest disadvantage against Liangzhu Kingdom lies in our lack of talented commanders. We urgently need high-quality Military Manuals to close the gap.”
“Otherwise, if a grand war breaks out, our chances of winning would be far lower than Liangzhu Kingdom’s.”
Here, Lu Hongtu smiled faintly—clearly, he’d already planned this conversation.
“How about this, Daoist Friend Stonezhong, let’s change the method of transaction.”
“Since you won’t sell, and we wouldn’t dare force a sale either…”
“Why not collaborate instead?”
“We’ll lend you Soldiers Sharing One Helm to assist you in your study of Gao Sheng’s Testament. In exchange, when the time comes, we ask that both Gao Sheng’s Testament and Soldiers Sharing One Helm be handed over to us—for use in critical combat operations!”
“Soldiers Sharing One Helm?” Ning Zhuo immediately recalled a certain passage in a book, and his interest surged.
Lu Hongtu threw his head back and laughed. “The real deal, guaranteed!”