Looking at the expressionless Wang Zhenwu, Chu You’s emotions churned inside her, but not a single ripple showed on her face.
The wind brushed past her hair tips stained with grass clippings, carrying away the smell of blood and dust.
She simply looked at this legend of Huafu and asked calmly, “Chief Commander, did you come all the way to Beihai just to catch me?”
As her voice fell, the wilderness seemed even quieter.
In the distance, withered grass broken by battle lay low, and the dusk at the horizon was encroaching inch by inch.
Wang Zhenwu’s eyes narrowed slightly.
On that face etched with the ravages of time, his expression was like a deep pool, reflecting not a glimmer of light.
His tone was flat, impossible to read any fluctuation: “What if it is? What if it isn’t?”
Chu You stared straight at him, her gaze without any evasion, like a short blade tempered by fire—even knowing the other was a mountain or an ocean, she would still show that bit of sharpness.
“If it isn’t, then please, Chief Commander, consider me dead.”
She paused, and in the depths of her eyes, a faint peach-colored light flickered and vanished, so fast one could mistake it for an illusion.
But her voice grew heavier, each word clear.
“If it is… Please understand, I will not surrender without a fight.”
As her words settled, the air suddenly froze.
These words had already revealed the final position.
Chu You never liked to complicate simple things or beat around the bush with clouded verbal jousting.
Even facing this old man known as the “Strongest of the Age,” who had wielded the Enforcer’s authority for countless years, she chose to be straightforward.
She knew in her heart that if she truly fought this old man, she would have no chance of victory.
But she absolutely could not obediently let him lock her up in Beifu, imprisoned in a dark dungeon that never saw sunlight.
Since that was the case, she might as well lay her cards on the table and throw the choice back to him.
The wind rose again, stirring up fine dust, brushing over every face in the wilderness, each with a complex expression.
The six members of the Night Hunt squad, the captain and vice-captain of the 23rd squad, Gao Yuan and Su Tao from the provincial capital, Du Qiang from the Binhai branch… Everyone held their breath.
On one side was a comrade who had fought shoulder to shoulder with them, entrusting life and death.
On the other side was the Chief Commander, whose legend they had heard since childhood, symbolizing the guardian deity of Huafu.
At this moment, the two sides’ positions were vaguely opposed, and no one knew how to act.
Especially the six of Night Hunt, their eyes tangled even deeper.
Chu You was their former captain who led them out of the mud, taught them to grip their swords—a mentor, and even more, the light that once illuminated their path in the darkness.
Without Chu You, there would be no them today.
In the dead silence, Qing Luan suddenly moved.
Without a word, she stepped to Chu You’s side and stood.
Her movements were crisp, without a hint of hesitation.
As if a silent signal, Tie Jiang, Hua Yao, Yu Chan, Shadow, Mongoose—the five moved almost simultaneously, silently stepping toward Chu You, lining up beside her.
As the current temporary captain, Tie Jiang raised his eyes to look at Wang Zhenwu, his voice hoarse from prolonged silence: “I’m sorry, Chief Commander…” After he spoke, he looked at Hua Yao beside him.
Hua Yao smiled charmingly, taking over the conversation.
Her voice was clear, but every word was firm: “We follow the captain.”
Chu You turned her head to look at Tie Jiang, her eyes clearly stopping him—don’t get involved.
Tie Jiang just smiled at her and shook his head.
The meaning in his eyes was resolute: This matter, we’re sticking with it.
Chu You let out a barely audible sigh, then looked back at Wang Zhenwu, about to speak….
“Chief Commander.”
Lin Mo’s voice suddenly rang out, breaking the tense silence.
He stepped forward, his gaze clear and resolute: “Back then, the mission to capture Senior… ahem, capture Chu Qingqian—I was the one who carried it out. If you want to hold someone accountable, you might as well start with me.”
With that, he took a step and stood firmly beside Chu You.
“Me too, me too!” Gu Qiancheng, who had been watching lazily, also hopped over, his face wearing his usual cynical smile.
“As the head of the Investigation Group, I concealed the truth and covered for my junior. According to the rules, I should be shot three hundred times, right? Chief Commander, why don’t you just kill me first?”
He spread his hands and shrugged, looking completely unfazed, but deep in his eyes there was a light that would not back down.
Xia Ji didn’t speak; she just silently walked to Chu You’s other side.
She wasn’t an Enforcer, and she didn’t know any Wang Zhenwu.
Her logic was extremely simple: Whoever wants to move Sister You, she will kill that person.
At that moment, Du Qiang from the Binhai branch also stepped forward.
As he walked, he twisted the corner of his mouth and said in a loud voice: “Like general, like soldiers… I’m from the Binhai branch, and I only recognize our Minister’s orders.”
With that, he stood firm on Chu You’s side.
The remaining captain and vice-captain of the 23rd squad, as well as Gao Yuan and Su Tao from the provincial capital, although they didn’t move, all averted their eyes, either looking at the ground or gazing into the distant sky, presenting a silent posture of “not my business, I didn’t see anything.”
Wang Zhenwu’s gaze slowly swept over these young, stubborn, even somewhat naive but exceptionally determined faces.
The calm, like a still well, on his face finally showed cracks.
He frowned slightly, and although his back was still a little hunched, it suddenly exuded a heart-stopping majesty.
The usual cloudiness of old age in his eyes instantly dissipated, replaced by a sharpness that pierced through hearts, like an invisible sword blade that easily punctured the tragic momentum that Chu You and the others had gathered.
An even vaster, more majestic invisible aura spread out, like a curtain of heaven falling, locking Chu You and her group firmly in place.
It was a pressure that transcended ordinary energy levels, as if touching some fundamental law of the world’s operation, making one feel small and tremble from the depths of their soul.
He spoke, his voice cold and hard as iron, each word striking everyone’s heart: “Do you know that I can regard today’s behavior as desertion?”
His voice paused for a moment, and that hunched figure seemed to straighten for an instant.
“And for deserters, the Enforcer’s rule has always been—”
“KILL THEM ALL!” The moment the word “kill” left his mouth, a sticky, tangible murderous intent erupted!
The air on the wilderness seemed to freeze; everyone felt their breath catch, and their blood seemed to congeal for a beat.
The pressure emanating from this old man was unlike anything they had ever seen, like facing the collapse of a towering mountain or staring into the opening eyes of an abyssal giant beast.
The atmosphere tightened to the limit, swords drawn and bows bent, time seemed to stand still.
Only the wind in the wilderness continued to blow, unaware and uncaring, stirring the grass blades and making a soft wailing sound.
Just as this suffocating dead silence was about to crush them….
Wang Zhenwu’s gaze, locked with Chu You’s, suddenly softened without any warning.
The terrifying murderous aura that filled the surroundings, seemingly about to tear the sky apart the next second, receded like a tide, vanishing without a trace.
Wang Zhenwu’s tense, stone-sculpted facial lines also abruptly relaxed.
Then, a clear smile curled at the corners of his mouth, the wrinkles around his eyes spreading out, even revealing a mischievous glint like a playful child.
“The last time I returned to Beifu, I just happened to be there for your promotion ceremony.”
He looked at Chu You with a beaming smile, as if the “Chief Commander” who was just exuding murderous aura and deciding life and death with a word was not him at all.
“Among you young people of this generation, I haven’t seen many… Girl, I truly think you’re very good…”
He clasped his hands behind his back, took a half-step, looked at the gradually setting sun, and his tone became leisurely: “It doesn’t matter whether human or Demon Clan. I’ve lived too long; many things, I’ve come to see more openly. What I was annoyed about earlier was that you so easily gave up your beliefs. What angered me was that you were unwilling to trust me, unwilling to trust Xiao Qin, unwilling to believe that the Enforcers… would give you justice.”
He turned his head, his gaze sweeping again over Chu You and the group of young people beside her who were still tense but with surprised expressions, his smile adding a warm sense of emotion: “Now… it seems, it’s pretty good too. This old man, I’m not angry anymore.”
With that, he actually turned around, waved his hand, and simply walked toward the end of the wilderness without any hesitation, as if he had just happened to meet them and chatted a bit after a meal.
“You just fought a fierce battle; you kids must be exhausted, right?”
His voice came with the wind, carrying a nagging tone like an elder: “Hurry back and get some good rest. Those who need to spend time with family, spend time with family; those who need to fall in love, fall in love…”
After a few steps, he suddenly stopped, turned half his face, and the sunset cast a warm golden glow on the outline of his aged figure.
He looked at Chu You, his gaze deliberately lingering for a moment on Lin Mo beside her, then raised his eyebrows and revealed a sly, almost disrespectful smile for an old man: “As for this old man… This time I really was just passing by. Next time we meet? Heh… I’m afraid I might be able to ask for a cup of wedding wine, right?”
In the laughter, that slightly hunched figure gradually walked away, eventually blending into the vast twilight and disappearing.
Only the crowd was left standing in a daze, staring in the direction Wang Zhenwu had left, unable to snap out of it for a long time.
“Just… just like that?!”
“Was that too hasty?! And…”
Everyone simultaneously looked at Chu You and Lin Mo, their eyes carrying complex emotions of curiosity, expectation, teasing…
“What did the Chief Commander say in his last sentence? Was it about drinking wedding wine, right?”