"What is Inspector General Yu doing in the major general's tent instead of minding his own business?" Wang Xiaohe inquired, his eyes not leaving the map.
He knew that voice all too well and didn't wish to see this person at all.
"Hmm, Major General Wang, His Majesty has entrusted me with the task of supervising the army. As per protocol, I am obligated to visit the major general's tent daily to receive the latest military reports." The faint voice turned frigid. "Why, have you done anything to violate military law?"
A frosty glint flashed through Wang Xiaohe's eyes, hidden by his lowered head. A eunuch daring to lecture him about military law?
Yet Wang Xiaohe placed his brush down and lifted his head. His expression was cold but seemed to have returned to normal. "What does Inspector General Yu wish to know?"
Standing in front of him was a young man around 1.8 meters tall, quite handsome, but slightly effeminate. He was also clad in armor.
The Great Jin Empire's power was at its peak. Even though eunuchs supervised the army, those dispatched were in no way individuals who knew nothing of the military and feared death. This was simply the emperor exercising checks and balances.
"Today, I noticed some movement in the ninth camp. They departed in the morning and only returned in the evening," Inspector General Yu mentioned nonchalantly. "By law, if a 10,000-men army is encamped in one location, any military movement involving over 1000 men must be approved by the Eastward General’s faction. Movements involving between 100 and 1000 men require the approval of both the main army and the inspector general."
"Why was I not informed about the movement of a full 800 men?" Inspector General Yu looked at Wang Xiaohe pointedly.
"It was a secret order!" Wang Xiaohe responded icily. "They were just carrying out a task. Once the monthly report comes in, the inspector general will be fully informed."
"Even if it was a secret order, as the inspector general, I should have been the first to know," Inspector General Yu sneered. "Was the request from the county mayor of Anping also a secret order? Does the field army need to get involved in local bandit suppression? Then what purpose do the city guards serve?"
Wang Xiaohe's pupils shrank slightly. He didn't expect Inspector General Yu to find out the discrepancy even before the day ended.
"The county mayor of Anping, a staff officer under the ninth prince, was a good friend of yours during your time in the Holy Capital, wasn't he?" Inspector General Yu looked at Wang Xiaohe. "The area under his jurisdiction is in chaos, so, Major General, you've taken it upon yourself to dispatch troops to quell the disturbance?”
Wang Xiaohe met his gaze coolly, not uttering a word.
"General Wang.” Inspector General Yu's voice suddenly softened, "I know you look down on me, but I'm here on His Majesty's orders, not some rigid old man. I can understand certain matters, but I do hope that in the future, you will inform me beforehand about any troop movements."
"Since this is the first time, I won't report it. But I hope there won't be a second time," Inspector General Yu said.
"Thank you, Inspector General." Wang Xiaohe looked deeply at Inspector General Yu. He knew he had underestimated this new eunuch.
"Hm?" Suddenly, a flicker of surprise and anger flashed across Wang Xiaohe's eyes. Despite his heavy armor, he swiftly lunged forward with unexpected agility.
Boom! A sturdy cabinet of documents shattered, sending countless papers, bamboo slips, and broken wood into disarray.
Swish~ A cold glint whizzed through the space where Wang Xiaohe had just stood.
"Assassin! Second-grade!" Having narrowly evaded the fatal strike, Wang Xiaohe let out a fierce roar, his voice echoing in all directions.
In truth, there was no need for him to sound the alarm, as the multitude of guards and soldiers stationed outside the tent had already heard the commotion inside.
"Quick, someone is trying to assassinate the general." Urgent shouts for help rose from outside the tent.
And inside the tent, the previously smug Inspector General Yu's face was now in disbelief.
"Assassin?" This was the central military tent! The tent was thoroughly guarded by numerous Adept experts. How did an assassin infiltrate it?
A thought flashed through his mind, unbidden: could it be that Wang Xiaohe had grown tired of him and was looking for an excuse to get rid of him?
All this happened too quickly, barely leaving any time for Inspector General Yu to gather his thoughts.
He instinctively took two steps back, attempting to escape the central military tent, only to feel himself being lifted into the air.
Lifted? This wasn't him taking flight, but rather Wang Xiaohe seizing him by the shoulder and hurling him backward to be used as a human shield.
Boom! A silver spear thrust straight toward him, piercing through Inspector General Yu's armor and body with the ease of puncturing tofu. Blood splattered.
Inspector General Yu was dead!
Squelch~ The spear shuddered as hundreds of thousands of catties erupted, turning Inspector General Yu's body into countless splatters of blood and flesh. Even his armor was broken into shards that tore through the fabric of the tent.
Outside, screams filled the air. When a martial artist was capable of unleashing such an immense force, even the tiniest fragment of stone or a sliver of steel could become a deadly weapon. Numbers meant nothing in the face of such power.
Inside the tent, the pungent stench of blood permeated the atmosphere.
"General Wang, you are indeed decisive, using your colleague as a shield," Wu Yuan remarked coolly as he stood within the tent, donning a ghoulish mask. Clad in black, he brandished a silver spear with its tip aimed directly at the still-shocked Wang Xiaohe.
In Wang Xiaohe's hand was a hefty saber, his focus locked onto Wu Yuan. "Who are you and why are you trying to assassinate me?"
"Someone hired me, so I've come to take you out," Wu Yuan responded, his voice steady.
"So you’re an expert from the Pleiades Guild. Your stealth skills are quite something, managing to infiltrate my central command tent without a sound," Wang Xiaohe's expression turned savage. "I've been a soldier for nearly two decades, and you're the most fearsome assassin I've ever seen. But what a shame..."
"What's the shame?" Wu Yuan asked softly.
"The shame is that you didn't seize the moment to strike, allowing me a chance to catch my breath," Wang Xiaohe sneered. "From the moment I grabbed my saber, your fate was sealed."
"Is that so?" Wu Yuan's voice was icy, as if echoing from the depths of the underworld. "Who knows, maybe you dodged my spear not because of your skills, but because I wanted to be entertained a while longer. After all, true experts are hard to come by."
As the words 'come by' escaped his lips, Wu Yuan sprang forward. The ground beneath his feet cracked, revealing numerous fissures.
The distance between them was a mere three zhangs. For experts of their caliber, it was practically no distance at all!
Whoosh! Imbued with 300,000 catties of force, the spear was thrust straight at Wang Xiaohe!
Swish swish! The saber flickered as Wang Xiaohe retreated, striking Wu Yuan's silver spear with all his might.
As their weapons clashed, Wang Xiaohe's initial thought was that his opponent’s strength wasn’t too powerful. But almost immediately, a strange power was transmitted from the spear shaft into his body. His soul shook, and he nearly lost grip of his saber.
"Retreat!" Wang Xiaohe tried to pull back.
"Retreat? Can you?" Wu Yuan's eyes were cold.
Swoosh! The spear was swiftly retracted and abruptly raised high. The spearhead and shaft melded into a lengthy iron staff, ferociously smashing toward Wang Xiaohe.
It was a blur of motion, too fast to make out clearly.
Boom! Wang Xiaohe swung his long saber horizontally. Even as he gave his all to resist, the ground beneath him exploded, sending rocks and debris flying in all directions.
Unbelievable speed! Wang Xiaohe exclaimed inwardly, a mix of shock and anger coursing through him. He forced himself to ignore the numbness in his arm and retreated as quickly as he could. He knew better than to face this onslaught head-on.
"Let's see how many of my attacks you can block." Wu Yuan advanced leisurely, as if strolling through his own garden. If one spear attack didn't land, he immediately followed up with another. It was a seamless barrage of attacks.
"Die!" Seeing that there was no way to dodge, Wang Xiaohe had no choice but to go all out. Streaks of blade rays lit up.
Cling! Cling! Blade rays overlapped! Spear silhouettes filled the sky! The two experts clashed over a dozen times in an instant, and beads of sweat began to form on Wang Xiaohe's forehead.
It was too fast, too furious. Wu Yuan's sheer strength wasn't overwhelming, but the speed of his spear technique surpassed Wang Xiaohe's wildest imagination. It took every ounce of his strength just to withstand the attacks.
Boom! The confrontation between the two Savant experts created intense aftershocks that radiated in all directions, causing the major general’s tent to crumble into ruins.
Silence fell. Amidst the broken wood and torn fabric, two figures stood tall in the center of the wreckage: one holding a battle saber, extraordinarily robust. The other holding a silver spear, with only his eyes visible.