Chapter 64: Proving He Overthought

Chapter 64 Proving He Overthought

Because of his own suspicions, Li Hongshen no longer had any intention of greeting Li Bingbing. He simply turned away and led his people home. He also decided not to follow through with the plan he and Zhao Yun had arranged—no more putting on an act before Li Bingbing to muddy his own persona.

After Sophia finished collecting the resources from that wild tribe, she returned to the settlement and came before Li Bingbing.

“My Lady, we’re back,” she announced.

Li Bingbing gave no response, continuing instead to carefully inscribe the witch script in her hand. Sophia was not surprised; she simply stood quietly at her side, waiting patiently.

Soon after, Li Bingbing set down her wolf-hair witch pen, capped the ink, and returned both to the drawer.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Sophia. I’ve been working with this wolf-hair pen since morning. I have to tell you, a witch pen made from a direwolf’s tail hair is truly different—so much better. The tip is firm, the ink lasts, and for the first time I managed to inscribe an entire script in one go.”

“Congratulations, my Lady. With this wolf-hair pen, our tribe will be able to create even more enchanted equipment.”

“Yes, we will. You did well this time; I’m just glad you returned safely. How did you find their fighting strength? Tell me your thoughts on Li Hongshen.”

“Well… They’re strong—much stronger than most, even if they’re a little less agile than us. Every warrior is skilled in combat, but they come off as a bit too reckless and violent. As for Li Hongshen… Hmm, that’s harder to comment on.”

“Go ahead, speak freely. There’s no one else here.”

“My impression is complicated. He seems to have a flair for the dramatic, a need for attention. This time, he even ordered that second-rank warrior, Zhao Yun, to take action. With his fighters and ours combined, we could’ve swept the whole tribe without Zhao Yun ever needing to get involved. But still, he had Zhao Yun lead the charge—like using a bow and arrow to kill a mosquito, such a waste of talent. We almost never ask Sister Loris to take action, after all.

I’m not sure if he wanted to impress us or was just showing off. Either way, it seemed foolish. Yet his tactical arrangements were precise and cunning—he sent those fierce birds to dive-bomb the enemy camp in turns, fully drawing their attention away. We weren’t discovered until we’d already entered the settlement.

So I can’t quite put my finger on him. He’s hard to judge. We’ll just have to see over time.”

“I see. Just remember, you can share these thoughts with me, but don’t speak of them to others. It wouldn’t do for word to reach Li Hongshen. Where are they now—still on the field?”

“No, they didn’t come back. They left right away.”

“Oh? You didn’t invite them to rest here for a while?”

“I did, but Li Hongshen seemed odd, said there was an urgent matter in his tribe, and left, telling us to gather the resources ourselves.”

“Did you encounter any trouble? Was there any kind of incident?”

“Not at all. Everything went smoothly. But that tribe spoke the common tongue, which surprised me—I thought only our tribes could.”

At Sophia’s words, Li Bingbing’s relaxed expression vanished. She shot to her feet, hands braced on the table, knocking her chair over behind her.

“Damn, that explains why they left in such a hurry. Li Hongshen must think I was plotting against him. This is a misunderstanding!”

“Oh no! Should I take some people and catch up with them while they’re still close?”

“Yes, hurry!”

Sophia immediately spun around to run out, but before she reached the door, Li Bingbing’s voice called her back.

“Wait. Never mind, don’t go after them. If you catch up now, you could be in danger. He might even turn on you. Next time, I’ll explain things to him face to face and hope to clear up the misunderstanding. What a mess…”

Meanwhile, Li Hongshen drove his ox cart and led his people rapidly toward Phoenix Perch Valley, his warriors erasing all traces behind them to ensure they weren’t followed. He also ordered the Storm Eagles to widen their patrols, and sent one eagle with a warrior back to the valley to call for reinforcements. Suspicion gnawed at him; he couldn’t shake the feeling that someone was out to get him.

After a forced march for five days and nights, they finally met up with a group of warriors from Phoenix Perch Valley, led by Li Li, who had run with two hunting teams for three days straight to rendezvous with them.

Only then did Li Hongshen finally relax. They camped for a day before setting out again, this time at a steady pace—marching at sunrise, securing the area at dusk, and resting at night.

The wounded warriors from the wild tribe were healed by Li Hongshen’s rejuvenation spell, easing their pain. Once they could move again, they were chased off the ox carts to make room for the common folk to rest in turns.

A week later, they returned to Phoenix Perch Valley at last. There’s no place like home—nothing smells as sweet. The wilds outside were thrilling but far too volatile for Li Hongshen’s taste.

This time, he didn’t immediately integrate the newcomers into the tribe as he had with the Ling Bamboo remnants and the Lang Tribe. Instead, he had them housed in several dormitories.

There, they would receive basic education, broaden their knowledge, refine their thinking, and alter their habits until they could truly accept the Hong Tribe from the heart.

Different people required different approaches and yielded different results. Back when the Mammoth Witch arrived, she had been treated with respect and valued for her magical abilities—mainly due to the scarcity of people and her own willingness to pledge loyalty. The Lang Tribe had lost all its leaders, so with no one left to rally dissent, they were absorbed smoothly.

But this time, things were different. Many of the newcomers harbored inexplicable hostility toward the lord. They would have to be educated and tested. Only once they passed would they be allowed to join the tribe and swear loyalty to Li Hongshen. Otherwise, they would soon learn why the natives of the Great Wilderness called their lord the Slave Master.

Even though Li Hongshen retained some sense of a moral baseline from his previous life, he was by no means pure-hearted. As a lord—and a seeded candidate for the lord’s trial—how could he afford such weakness?

After arranging all this, Li Hongshen headed to the beast garden with the spiritual treasures he’d traded from Lin Shengzun.

(End of chapter)