Chapter 124: The Fervent Jingwei Battalion

Jiu Ling knelt on the ground, not daring to rise. The "Furry Ball" before her had not spoken a word; yet, from the cold snort that had just echoed in their spiritual consciousness, both Jiu Ling and Lan Dao could clearly sense that the creature was furious.

Lan Dao bowed his head, looking at the Furry Ball on the floor. Lan Ling'er picked the creature up and watched the two figures, once so composed, now cowering before her. Perhaps in the entire capital, the Furry Ball was the only one capable of striking such fear into the hearts of Lan Dao and Jiu Ling.

"He is coming. Whether he lives or dies is a choice you must make yourself."

The Furry Ball spoke coldly within their minds. Once it had finished, Lan Ling'er cast a worried glance at Lan Dao, then turned and walked out of the palace, carrying the creature with her. Seeing the Furry Ball depart, Lan Dao helped Jiu Ling to her feet. She looked toward the direction the creature had vanished, her eyes filled with concern.

"What did the Ancestor mean by that?"

Lan Dao did not grasp the implication of the words left behind. Jiu Ling gripped his hand, her eyes shimmering with a mixture of affection and pity.

"Lord Chi will always stand by Jiang Pingchuan’s side. He wants you to decide your own fate. If you insist on setting yourself against Jiang Pingchuan, even if Lord Chi does not intervene, Jiang Pingchuan will certainly not let you off."

Jiu Ling whispered, then leaned into Lan Dao’s embrace. She had once been so fond of Hu Mei'er, yet this man before her had somehow found his way into her heart. The Lan Dao of today was no longer the pure-hearted man he once was; he had changed, consumed by his own selfish desires. This transformation left the now-calm Jiu Ling deeply anxious. She feared that if Lan Dao truly insisted on opposing Jiang Pingchuan, he would find little support, for at this moment, Jiang Pingchuan’s utility to the Lan Imperial Dynasty of the Changfeng Continent far outweighed that of Lan Dao.

"Even you think I am no match for Jiang Pingchuan?" Lan Dao looked down at the woman in his arms, his voice cold and questioning.

Jiu Ling looked up at his grim expression. "No one can stop his path. He does not belong here, nor will he fall here. In a sense, until he reaches his true destination, no one can restrain or erase him."

She smiled bitterly. She had asked the Furry Ball about Jiang Pingchuan before; the creature had said that while it could not yet determine Jiang Pingchuan’s true background, it felt a profound sense of familiarity the very first time they met.

"On what grounds? Why is it fated for Jiang Pingchuan to rise in the Changfeng Continent? I must destroy him. I want you all to see that Jiang Pingchuan is no god—that he is not untouchable or beyond reach!"

The aura around Lan Dao shifted violently. Jiu Ling was pushed aside, watching him with brimming worry. Lan Dao seemed to be on the verge of succumbing to a cultivation deviation.

"Lan Dao, you have changed. Wake up! I do not need you to kill Jiang Pingchuan for me, and you do not have the power to do so!"

With reddened eyes and a voice choked with tears, Jiu Ling turned and walked out of the palace. Lan Dao watched her retreating back with a dark expression, then returned to his seat, overturning the table. His eyes were bloodshot, his mouth twitched, and his face appeared truly ferocious.

***

Lan Ling'er carried the Furry Ball out of the palace. The guards bowed their heads hurriedly upon seeing her, and lowered them even further when they caught sight of the creature in her arms. The Furry Ball was now a First-Rank Minister of the Lan Imperial Dynasty. Although it was a cat, no one dared to harbor ulterior motives against it. The creature never concerned itself with imperial affairs, preferring to spend its days sleeping in Lan Ling'er’s bedchamber.

"Furry Ball, Jiang Pingchuan is coming. Will you leave the Changfeng Continent with him?" Lan Ling'er stroked its fur softly. She had been inseparable from the creature during this time; no one dared bully her, for no matter who the offender was, the Furry Ball would always stand up for her. It told her of things she had never heard of and taught her games that were unheard of in this world. Even the capital’s most exquisite breakfasts were dismissed by the creature as things it had grown tired of long ago. Lan Ling'er did not know where the Furry Ball came from; she only knew that the days she had spent with it were the happiest of her life.

"Of course. I still have important business to finish with the Jiang lad," the Furry Ball purred lazily, rubbing against her palm while speaking through their shared consciousness. The creature had opened Lan Ling'er’s spiritual perception—a momentous event for the Lan Imperial Dynasty, as the royal bloodline was so deeply cursed that those of Lan Dao’s generation had lost the ability to cultivate, destined to live as ordinary mortals. The Furry Ball had opened her perception largely to facilitate their communication.

"What important business? Is it very significant?" Lan Ling'er asked hurriedly. The Furry Ball stretched its paw and curled its mouth in a mysterious smile.

"I do not know the specifics, but I can sense that it is vital and must be done."

Lan Ling'er sighed softly as the creature finished speaking, and she carried it out onto the streets. It was rumored that Jiang Pingchuan was arriving soon. For the past two days, the Furry Ball had insisted that Lan Ling'er take it for walks in the street, hoping to catch a glimpse of him as soon as he arrived. However, after two days, they had seen no sign of him. The Furry Ball already knew of the bounty issued by the Barbarian King of the Northwest, but after hearing of Jiang Pingchuan’s actions in Storm City, it had realized something: if Jiang Pingchuan truly possessed no internal energy yet could slay cultivators so easily, he might have become a physical cultivator. It was merely a guess, and it needed to find him to be certain. After all, it had been a long time since they had met, and it did not know if the lad had forgotten the ways of Maoshan Dao or if he had managed to pull himself together.

"Ouch!" Suddenly, Lan Ling'er tossed the creature from her arms. The Furry Ball landed on the ground, looking up with a resentful expression at the blushing girl. Lan Ling'er pursed her lips, glaring at it in annoyance. The Furry Ball awkwardly twitched its whiskers.

"Pervert," Lan Ling'er hissed. The Furry Ball waved a paw, signaling that she was mistaken.

"It was just a touch on the chest, how is that perverted?" the Furry Ball retorted indignantly. Lan Ling'er lunged forward, grabbed the creature, and twisted its ears.

"You’re still saying it! You just want to take advantage of me all day long, hmph!"

Ever since the Furry Ball arrived in the Changfeng Continent and met Lan Ling'er, it had relied on acting cute to take advantage of her. After being named a First-Rank Minister, it had begun to do so quite brazenly. Usually, Lan Ling'er said nothing, but today, she was particularly sensitive. The Furry Ball let her twist its ears to vent her frustration.

"Once the Jiang lad arrives, we will be leaving the Changfeng Continent soon. If I don’t take advantage of these moments now, I’ll only have a pile of skeletons to play with later," the Furry Ball said with a mournful look. Lan Ling'er huffed and turned away, but the creature grinned slyly, slowly reaching its paw out to touch her chest again, wearing an expression of pure bliss.

Feeling the cheeky paw wandering across her chest, Lan Ling'er let out a long, sorrowful sigh. She suddenly wished that Jiang Pingchuan would not arrive so quickly. She wished he could stay in the Changfeng Continent forever, so that the Furry Ball might remain by her side. But she knew this was all an illusion; the creature did not belong here, and sooner or later, it would leave with Jiang Pingchuan.

"Step right up, take a look..."

Suddenly, calls rang out from the street. The Furry Ball patted Lan Ling'er’s face, signaling the distracted girl to go and see what was happening. Lan Ling'er collected her thoughts and followed the sound. On the notice board of the capital, a large white sheet of paper was posted. She ignored the text and focused immediately on the striking seal at the bottom—the Jingwei Battalion.

The Jingwei Battalion was the most promising force in the capital, composed of the finest youths, including many of royal blood. Previously, there had been three factions within the battalion, but for unknown reasons, the leader of one had mysteriously vanished. Since then, only two remained. Their leaders stood before her; at a glance, neither possessed the temperament of a commander—they looked more like hoodlums. The youth with the spiked hair was called Long Heng, and the youth standing beside him, casting a look of disdain, was the other hegemon, Xia Ha. The two had been rivals since childhood, never conceding to the other. Now, as the dual leaders of the Jingwei Battalion, they competed over everything, each desperate to outdo the other.

The notice stated that once Jiang Pingchuan arrived in the capital, he was to report directly to the Jingwei Battalion. If he could prove his worth and make them submit, Long Heng and Xia Ha were willing to follow him into battle. The onlookers stared at the two; no one knew their true strength. The Furry Ball let out a cold snort through its spiritual sense, causing Long Heng and Xia Ha to freeze. They stepped out of the crowd and happened to see Lan Ling'er. Upon spotting the creature in her arms, they hurriedly approached, kissed its paw, and grinned.

"Lord Furry Ball, Princess, you’ve come!" Long Heng said cheerily. He and Xia Ha were the type who could not stop talking; they would speak regardless of the occasion or the company. However, they had learned to restrain themselves in front of the Furry Ball, having been disciplined by it more than once.

"Do you know when Jiang Pingchuan is arriving?" Lan Ling'er asked. Although the Furry Ball remained silent, both men knew her words were the creature's own. To answer dishonestly would be to invite death.

"Princess, of course we know..."

"Shut your mouth, I'll say it first..."

"Get lost, you hack, I’m the one who’s talking..."

Before Long Heng could finish, Xia Ha shoved him. Long Heng’s expression darkened, and he immediately kicked back. Within a second, the two were brawling in the street. Seeing their leaders fight, the elites of their respective factions jumped in as well. The Jingwei Battalion was known as the "Hot-Blooded Battalion," where status was determined by one's fists. They fought daily, and there was never a day without bloodshed. This was why those who emerged from the battalion were not only physically formidable but possessed an iron will. On the battlefield, they were ruthless and never retreated. In their daily bouts, any sign of cowardice meant being beaten by one's own leader, kicked out of the battalion, and shamed for a lifetime.

Seeing the chaos, Lan Ling'er knew she would get no answers. She turned and walked back into the street, aimlessly searching for a glimpse of Jiang Pingchuan. At the same moment, others were quietly waiting for his arrival, where a thumping sound echoed, as if guiding Jiang Pingchuan to that very spot once he reached the capital.