Chapter 702: Section 489: We Ended Up Arguing While Talking
Confronted with Bao Ligen’s declaration of war, the response from the spirits within the tombstones of the Holy Fighters was meager.
Even Gudong, with his status as one of their own, did not approve of Bao Ligen’s attack and vengeance.
This was far too reckless.
Gudong thought for a moment, he didn’t directly refute Bao Ligen, but instead talked about something else, “Although Jia Bing, Lin, and the Axe Gang Leader have all fallen in battle, their corpses remain well-preserved, judging by the state of their tombstones. We need to retrieve their bodies and lay them to rest in Anqiu, so that they may rest in peace and we can minimize the losses of the duel sect.”
Unlike Bao Ligen’s proclamation, his words sparked a chorus of agreement.
“The Axe Gang Leader, Lin, and most importantly, Jia Bing, their life experiences should not go to waste.”
“The more powerful individuals are buried in Anqiu, the more battle experience Anqiu will have. The stronger Anqiu becomes, the better it is for us.”
“Since their bodies haven’t been desecrated, we should recover them if possible. That is not only an honor for a Holy Fighter of the God of Duels but also their true resting place.”
Snow Ball spoke timidly, “But from the current intelligence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are very strong. Is it possible they have Holy Domain Level combat power? On the surface, Long Fu is Silver Level, but in reality, he could be even stronger than Gold Level!”
The spirits of the crowd were agitated.
Gudong hesitantly analyzed, “I think that possibility is quite small.”
“If the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps were just arms smugglers or a mercenary group, they would never have Holy Domain Level strength.”
“If the people of the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are advance forces sent by enemy nations, they wouldn’t send Holy Domain Level power to act as scouts in the first wave either.”
“I’m more inclined to believe they have some unusual special methods that allow them to form such an irrational great advantage in combat.”
Bao Ligen snorted coldly, “So what if they have Holy Domain Level combat power?!”
“We in the Kingdom also have Holy Domain Level power, and not just one, but three.”
“If we expose the enemy’s Holy Domain Level, he’s definitely finished, the Kingdom will surely hunt him down.”
“Even if it’s Legendary Level, there’s nothing to be afraid of. Doesn’t our Kingdom’s history have its own Legends? The Royal Family must have a way to deal with Legends!”
There was another silence among them.
Bao Ligen was a fearless warrior in the military, unafraid of death.
But the prevailing thought in everyone’s minds was: If the enemy had Holy Domain Level presence, wouldn’t those who confront the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps be sending themselves to their deaths?
As Holy Fighters of the God of Duels, they were not afraid to make adjustments and could face death head-on, but this did not mean they were willing to throw their lives away.
Mei Lin’s spirit was calm and stable, “No matter how strong they are, as long as they are the enemy, we must find ways to deal with them, not to avoid the confrontation.”
“If Holy Domain Level enemies storm our homeland and plunder our relatives, we have no second choice but to defend our country and protect our homes!”
“However, given that their current combat power is indeed strangely strong, what we need most now is reconnaissance. I believe that as long as we obtain key intelligence, we can greatly increase our chances of winning.”
Mei Lin had a military background and her personal strength was widely recognized.
Among those involved in this discussion, she was likely the strongest. Furthermore, among Anqiu’s 38 Gold Holy Fighters, Mei Lin was perhaps second in combat power only to Long Meng.
Below one but above all.
Thus, no one challenged her view, and Bao Ligen ceased his clamoring.
Seeing no objections from the crowd, Mei Lin asked, “Who can undertake the task of gathering intelligence? Who is interested? If you want to take action, I can offer more intelligence, equipment, and a reward.”
The spirit fluctuations from each tombstone fell silent.
No one volunteered.
People like Bao Ligen and Gudong did indeed have a strong motivation to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, but they were fighters of direct confrontation and were not like Thieves.
Suddenly, He Gaitou spoke up, “According to intelligence, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps are currently in Snow Rabbit City. To my knowledge, the closest to Snow Rabbit City right now should be Snow Ball.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Snow Ball responded with a slightly urgent tone, “But I have to do alchemy. Since the end of last year, I’ve been preparing for this year’s Warm Snow Cup.”
“Besides, this mission obviously doesn’t suit me. It should be someone with the right expertise,” added Snow Ball.
He Gaitou immediately agreed, “Snow Ball is right. The person most suited for this among us is Yijiu.”
Yijiu, being called out, had no choice but to express his view, “I’m an assassin, not a Thief. My expertise is in killing, not in gathering intelligence.”
“Of course, if the pay is sufficient, I can take on the role temporarily. However, I cannot guarantee the mission will be a success.”
He Gaitou then said, “Apart from Yijiu, Zhu Gan, you could also do it. After all, you are a Ranger.”
But Zhu Gan flatly refused, “I’m not from the Ice Kingdom. I won’t get involved in this kind of thing. I’ve never been interested in such operations. However, I am interested in going fishing at Ice Pillar Lake again. Is anyone interested in joining me?”
Gudong’s eye twitched at the corner.
We’re talking about avenging profound national and personal hatreds, and you’re here inviting friends to fish?
Unfortunately, Zhu Gan was also a Holy Fighter of the God of Duels, and participating in such a discussion was his right.
No one was willing to take on the task of espionage.
Although everyone was of Gold Level, most were adept at frontal combat. There were very few Thieves in proportion.
Gudong couldn’t help but lament inwardly, “What a pity, Hua Tang is not here!”
The composition of Holy Fighters present was quite complex. Although they were all believers of the God of Duels and thus related as fellow sect members, the connections among them were not close.
The majority of the Holy Fighters present had military backgrounds, such as Teng Donglang, Gang Leader of the Axe Gang, Gudong, Mei Lin, and others. A small part had diverse origins, such as Snow Ball from the Alchemy Guild, the Ranger Zhu Gan from a foreign country, and Yijiu from the Thief Guild. To ask them to take action, there would be an additional cost.
Mei Lin was feeling regretful: without Long Meng here, her personal authority was not enough to mobilize these forces.
Long Meng’s prestige was the highest.
He was widely recognized as the top duelist in the entire Ice Sculpture Kingdom, having sparred with many present and spared their lives on multiple occasions. Therefore, he had their gratitude. Moreover, Long Meng was known for his straightforward and generous personality, and his charismatic nature had earned him much respect.
Mei Lin sighed inwardly, “If he were here, he could command a response with a single call.”
“Although I hold a high position and considerable power, I cannot directly mobilize the Gold Level from the military to contend with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
There were many excellent Scouts in the military, and espionage was their specialty.
But Mei Lin could not do this.
For the same reason that the Gang Leader of the Axe Gang never publicly mobilized the Axe Gang’s forces to confront the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps head-on.
They were Holy Fighters of the God of Duels, an organization that operates in the shadows and cannot reveal this aspect of their identity.
To some extent, whoever exposed this layer of identity would have lost.
After waiting awhile and seeing that no one was taking the espionage task, Mei Lin had to step back, “The espionage is critical, and we need to wait for the right person to carry it out; we can’t be hasty.”
“In the short term, we can weaken the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps from another angle.”
“The Long Fu folks are currently traveling through the major towns of the Kingdom, setting up shops, and selling their Magic Potions in large quantities. Obviously, they intend to enter our Magic Potion Market.”
“No matter what their true intentions are or what their plans may be, as long as it’s something the enemy wants to do, disrupting them is never wrong.”
“This task doesn’t require prior intelligence, as we only need to intercept their transport team along the way.”
“We don’t need to succeed every time. A few heavy blows will be enough to cause them significant losses, forcing them to reveal more strength to protect their caravans, diverting more of their resources and manpower.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Bao Ligen loudly voiced his approval.
Gudong frowned slightly, and after some thought, also believed that it was a good idea.
But Devil Muscle sneered, “How interesting that a commander from the Kingdom Navy would take on the role of a bandit.”
“Of course, I understand.”
“After all, you are soldiers! War is about using whatever means necessary.”
“But don’t always be so self-righteous. I’ve never considered the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps as an enemy.”
“If they were the enemy, I would rather invite them to a noble duel, a fair fight, even if it means losing or dying with honor!”
Devil Muscle openly disrupted the plan, causing Bao Ligen to shout angrily, “You want to duel? Fine, then! Come and fight me, let’s decide life or death.”
Devil Muscle, undaunted and provocative, retorted, “You think I’m afraid of you? Come on, I’m waiting for you in Aurora City!!”
Bao Ligen roared, “Aurora City, is it? Fine, I’m coming. You just wait!”
The two of them bickered incessantly, giving everyone else a headache.
Zhu Gan said, “How amusing. Perhaps I could change my itinerary and go to Aurora City to witness the duel between the two of you.”
Though he was a Ranger, fighting was his second passion, second only to fishing. Otherwise, he would not have recognized the God of Duels and become one of his Holy Fighters.
“I am also interested!”
“Well then, count me in.”
Suddenly, several Gold Holy Fighters emitted waves of Spirit.
They had not participated in the previous discussion and had remained silent until now.
Gudong took a deep breath.
Very speechless.
Hadn’t they come to discuss how to deal with the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps?
How did the topic shift so strangely?
Gudong, accustomed to military discipline and strict orders, felt utterly helpless with the independent behavior of the Holy Fighters.