Mrs. He, who is You Su Yi, sighed softly: "Actually, you might not care about these things—well, you want to know about Chen Jue, so I will tell you everything I know."
Only then did Chen Yan perk up!
"I told you before that I know Chen Jue, and I wasn’t lying. I... do know him, and have dealt with him," Mrs. He’s eyes flickered as if recalling something, "That was about a hundred years ago."
A hundred years ago?!
Chen Yan blinked his eyes.
My father... must be quite old!
"Our Fox Race has been under the rule of the Demon Race Venerables for generations. Qingqiu, Tushan, You Su, and Pure Fox, these four great surnames all serve the Domain Realm Venerables. According to clan traditions, the elite disciples from these clans would be dispatched to serve the Venerables. Some serve under the various Demon Venerables on the Ten Thousand Demon Platform, while others are sent to garrison towns.
When I was young, I served under a Demon Race Venerable at the Ten Thousand Demon Platform for eighteen years and, under the Venerable’s guidance, I apprenticed under a master known for dual cultivation of elixir and sword,
and after achieving some success, I was reassigned by the clan to Luoyan Town to serve as an elite officer in the town’s demon army."
Chen Yan listened impassively, carefully noting all the old fox said.
"Among the ’Three Platforms, Eight Passes, and Sixteen Towns’ of our Domain Realm, Luoyan Town’s conditions aren’t too bad. It’s considered a second-tier garrison, relatively peaceful most of the time, though the area is a bit remote and desolate.
I guess it’s because I was considered a talented junior of the Fox Race, and some powerful figures in the clan looked out for me, so I was sent to a relatively comfortable place.
It was also there in Luoyan Town that I met Chen Jue."
Three Platforms, Eight Passes, and Sixteen Towns!
This name stirred something in Chen Yan’s heart.
He had previously heard some of the names: Prison Suppression Platform, Bright Mirror Platform, Dragon Head Platform, Sword Box Pass, Iron Chain Pass... all must be part of the ’Three Platforms, Eight Passes, and Sixteen Towns’!
"When I met Chen Jue, he should have been very young. At that time, he was the Deputy Town General of Luoyan Town. To be honest, back then, I was his subordinate.
At the time, I thought that such a young person becoming a Deputy Town General probably didn’t have much ability. Then I heard he was a son of the Chen Family, and I thought, the Chen Family is one of the great families of the Domain Realm, with a Venerable ancestor. People like him were probably just sent to gain some superficial experience.
Moreover, everything he did made it impossible for the town army of Luoyan Town to have much respect for him..."
Upon hearing this, a question formed in Chen Yan’s mind.
The Chen Family... has a Venerable ancestor!
But Gu Qingyi had said that the Chen Family had already declined in the Domain Realm.
A family with a Venerable ancestor... Even if such a person as Chen Jue committed some grave offense — they could imprison him or even execute him, even suppress him beneath Five Elements Mountain for centuries would be appropriate.
But with a Venerable ancestor, how could the Chen Family decline just because of one Chen Jue?
However, with this question in his heart, Chen Yan could not ask directly.
Asking it would break his own persona.
With that in mind, Chen Yan asked, "What did Chen Jue do in Luoyan Town that made everyone, including you, look down on him?"
You Su Yi shook her head, "Once you join the town army, you’re naturally going to endure hardships. Even though Luoyan Town isn’t a frontline garrison and it’s relatively relaxed, no one indulged like he did."
Pausing, You Su Yi’s tone became strange: "As a Deputy Town General, he never patrolled the garrison, and it was rare to see him even twice a year managing his assigned duties. Yet every season, someone from the Chen Family would deliver fine wines and top-tier cultivation resources, cartload after cartload to the Commander’s Mansion.
Most of the time, he wasn’t even at the town platform. Rumor had it he was off traveling and having fun. Even if you went to the Commander’s Mansion seeking him, you couldn’t find him.
But since Luoyan Town was a second-tier garrison and usually saw no battles, everyone just let him be. Even Town General Jiang Yu was very tolerant of him and never reprimanded him.
At the time, the common saying among the town army was: It’s a good thing that our Luoyan Town has no major battles. If enemies were to invade, we’d probably have to rely on the Celestial Human Realm Town General Jiang Yu, because this Deputy Town General from the Chen Family would be utterly unreliable.
We later realized how laughable we were."
You Su Yi’s tone suddenly took on a note of melancholy, but a faint light gleamed in her clouded eyes!
You could hear You Su Yi’s voice, tinged with excitement and fervor, speak slowly: "In the second year of my garrison duty at Luoyan Town, on June 4th..."
Here, she suddenly took a deep breath, her breathing becoming somewhat rapid, as if her excited fingers were trembling.
Chen Yan couldn’t hold it in and asked, "June 4th, what happened on that day?"
You Su Yi slowly said, "On June 4th, we were unexpectedly attacked by Evil. At that time, Lord Chen Jue was not at the garrison. He had gone off who knows where for fun, and only Town General Jiang Yu led us in the defense... That battle cost us dearly, and even Town General Jiang Yu died before my eyes."
Chen Yan frowned at this.
This was the first time Chen Yan finally understood what the people of the Domain Realm were fighting against.
But because You Su Yi was speaking verbally, Chen Yan could not be sure which character ’Evil’ represented.
He gently prodded, "And then?"