Chapter 959: Greetings General Ling

"

Hehe... Hehe...

"

Zhao Dabiao's lips twitched slightly as he held the bag of elemental crystals in both hands. He said with an awkward chuckle, "Y-Young Master, you must be joking. I really can't accept this!"

He wasn't a fool. He knew very well who could be provoked and who absolutely could not.

Letting greed blind you to danger could only end one way. Death!

"

Oh?

Isn't this just standard procedure in the barracks?"

Ling Feng gave a slight grin. These seasoned old hands always tried to squeeze what they could out of new recruits fresh from the academy. But Ling Feng was not someone who would be taken advantage of so easily.

He had resources, that was true. The question was, did they have the nerve to reach for them?

A soft chuckle came from behind him.

Lin Xian'er and Mu Qianxue could not help but laugh, and even Tuoba Yan, usually cold as frost, showed a faint smile at the corners of her lips.

"

Ahem...

" Zhao Dabiao's face flushed crimson. "What regulation? I, Zhao Dabiao, have always been firmly against this kind of hostile behavior toward fresh recruits. Once I find out which bastard made such a rule, I'll whip him a hundred times myself!"

As he spoke, Zhao Dabiao forced a grin and moved closer to Ling Feng. "And what may I call you, young master?"

"Ling Feng," he replied with a raised brow, his tone calm and detached.

"

Ah,

so it's Mr. Ling."

Zhao Dabiao gave a friendly chuckle. "Please, allow me to lead the way. I'll take you to Deputy General Ding. Normally, new recruits from the academies are assigned by the deputy general himself."

"Then I'll trouble you, Commander Zhao."

Ling Feng glanced at him with a faint, unreadable smile.

"

Hehe...

"

Zhao Dabiao wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. "Not at all. Right this way."

Ling Feng and his companions exchanged a glance, then followed Zhao Dabiao to meet the so-called Deputy General Ding.

After they left, the patrolling soldiers left behind finally let out the breaths they had been holding, eyes still wide with disbelief.

"Did you see that? Elemental crystals! A whole bag of them! Even if we served our entire lives, we wouldn't make that much."

"That's the world of the wealthy for you!"

"Still, I never thought "Zhao Bapi[1]" would back off like that. There's even money he doesn't dare accept, hah!"

One of the soldiers burst out laughing. Everyone knew who "Zhao Bapi" was. Though he treated the brothers fairly well, there was one thing about him. Greedy!

"Funny, isn't he the one who came up with that rule about fleecing new recruits? I'd love to see how he plans to whip himself a hundred times!"

"

Hahaha!

"

The soldiers roared with laughter. Seeing "Zhao Bapi" get put in his place was pure satisfaction!

...

Soon after, Ling Feng and his group followed Zhao Dabiao into Tianmang Fortress. With the demon army camped just beyond the front lines, the entire atmosphere inside the military camp felt tense and heavy.

"Deputy General Ding's tent is just up ahead."

Zhao Dabiao walked with a forced smile plastered across his face. The entire way, he barely dared to breathe too loudly. After years of preying on others, he had finally met someone he couldn't push around. This wasn't just iron, he had kicked solid steel.

"

Mm.

Thank you."

Ling Feng rubbed his nose and gave him a slight nod.

He didn't mind greedy people. As long as they were smart, they often had their uses.

He casually tossed a small pouch of elemental crystals to Zhao Dabiao and said, "Commander Zhao, take this."

"Thank you, Mr. Ling!"

Zhao Dabiao licked his dry lips and gave Ling Feng a careful look before finally accepting the pouch. Smiling broadly, he said, "Mr. Ling, I owe you a favor!"

Ling Feng shrugged. People like this always came in handy eventually. And even if they didn't, buying him off with a small bag of elemental crystals was hardly a loss.

After walking a few hundred more li, Zhao Dabiao stopped outside a large command tent. He bowed toward the entrance and called out, "Vice-Commander Zhao Dabiao of the patrol camp requests an audience with Deputy General Ding!"

"Come in."

A lazy voice answered from inside. Zhao Dabiao nodded, lifted the tent flap, and waited for Ling Feng and the others to enter before stepping in himself.

Inside the tent, rows of shelves were packed with bamboo scrolls. Each scroll held the roster of officers from the Southern Army.

An elderly man in civilian clothes stood within. He held a back-scratcher in one hand, occasionally tapping the shelves or brushing dust from the scrolls. He looked utterly at ease.

"So it's Vice-Commander Zhao."

The old man gave Zhao Dabiao a glance from the corner of his eye. "Which academy's young master is reporting today?"

"Reporting to you, my lord. These are Mr. Ling and his classmates from Tianwei Academy."

"Mr. Ling?"

The old man turned to look at Ling Feng. Zhao Dabiao wasn't normally this courteous. Clearly, this group was not to be taken lightly.

"

Mm

."

He slid the back-scratcher into his sleeve and walked briskly over to inspect the newcomers.

"Greetings, Deputy General!"

Ling Feng gave a fist-and-palm salute. Li Bufan and the others followed suit, bowing politely.

"

Mm

."

Deputy Commander Ding gave a small nod, then sat down behind his desk and said, "Let me see the recommendation letter."

"Yes, sir."

Zhao Dabiao respectfully handed over the sealed envelope. It was still intact. A mere commander like him would never dare open it.

Deputy General Ding tore the seal and scanned the contents. His expression changed at once.

He looked Ling Feng up and down again and again, then suddenly stood and dropped to his knees with a thud.

"Subordinate Ding Ruhai pays his respects to General Ling!"

"G-General?"

Zhao Dabiao stood frozen, stunned. What kind of new recruit came in with the rank of general?

Still, he reacted quickly enough. He immediately knelt down as well. Good heavens, this wasn't just a steel plate! This was a slab of diamond!

Thankfully, General Ling didn't seem inclined to pursue the earlier incident. Otherwise, even ten heads wouldn't have been enough to save him.

Ling Feng touched the bridge of his nose. It seemed Tong Chengtai's recommendation letter had mentioned his identity as General Weiyuan.

That made sense. While he held no actual authority, he did bear a general's title. In any military district, that was more than enough to command respect.

"You may rise."

Ling Feng waved a hand, signaling them to stand.

Deputy General Ding slowly got to his feet and looked at Ling Feng. "General Ling, with your rank, I'm afraid I'm not qualified to assign your post. Only the Commander-in-Chief can make that decision."

Ling Feng raised an eyebrow and said calmly, "Then take me to the Commander-in-Chief."

1. A twist of the name Zhou Ba Pi. Used to describe a stingy person, Zhou Ba Pi mimicked the sound of a rooster thereby deceiving his workers to wake up earlier than they are supposed to to start work early. ☜