Volume 29: Sword Qi Points Far Away

Chapter 1: The Wolf of Heaven

“Shortsighted!” Christina was furious, staring intently at the embarrassed Carter Wolf. Her cheeks were flushed from anger, and though her full breasts were covered by furs, it was still evident how agitated she was. “Carter, you’ve really disappointed me. Can’t you see what your actions will bring?”

Carter glared irritably at the generals standing behind him. They all hung their heads like mute sparrows, pretending to look pitiful, but Carter was sure these bastards were actually overjoyed. Such a huge gain even made him excited, and since it hadn’t happened within the kingdom’s control, it was just another ordinary thing for orcs—why such a fuss?

“Look, Christina, it’s already done. I’ll punish them later. I think you shouldn’t keep nitpicking, right?” Carter knew Christina’s temperament. It seemed she was truly angry this time. Coming straight to his camp and raging in front of all the generals was too much even for him, especially since he was still the leader of his tribe—she hadn’t spared him any face at all.

“Nitpicking? Carter, do you know what your wolf tribe and deer tribe are doing now? Do you really think you can hide these actions from Bill and Muni? Or from Dasher? They might be waiting for you to do this so they can have an excuse to do the same.” Christina grew angrier. Carter, usually so shrewd, why was he acting so foolish today? He didn’t even understand the logic behind it.

“Hmph, so what if Bill and Muni find out? Let them do whatever they want! As for Dasher, hah, it’s not his place to give orders about our wolf tribe’s affairs. I’ll explain things to Shami myself.” Carter’s expression darkened as well.

“Explain? How will you explain? Tell Shami that you can’t control your subordinates, that they can ignore your orders and break the rules set by our Bimon Kingdom?” Christina said coldly, with sarcasm in her voice. “Is that your explanation? What do you think Shami will think?”

“Let him think whatever he wants! So what do you want me to do? Admit my mistakes to Shami, Muni, and Bill and promise not to make them again? Or read an apology letter aloud at the leaders’ meeting?” Carter’s thin, strong hands clenched tightly. “Tell you what, I can’t do that!”

“You must do this!” Kristina said firmly, showing no compromise.
“Kristina, you’re going too far! You know it’s impossible!” Carter’s face turned as dark as if it might drown, and the anger in his light green eyes burned fiercely.
“Carter, you’ve disappointed me greatly. I’ve always seen you as the most courageous and magnanimous man among our Bimon tribe. I never expected you to act like this—some petty gain is enough to cloud your judgment. I even suspect their actions might be instigated by you!” Kristina’s furious gaze swept around; the wolf tribe generals remained silent, while the awkward-looking man with the long face quickly lowered his head when she looked at him.
“Think whatever you want. I don’t think I need to explain anything to anyone!” Carter finally lost his temper. Kristina’s words were undoubtedly a doubt about his character. He could tolerate her criticism and blame, but not the insult to his dignity.
“Very well! Mr. Carter Wolf, I think we all need to calm down.” Kristina’s face turned pale as she gave the wolf tribe leader a deep stare before turning and leaving in a flash.
Dead silence filled the tent. The wolf tribe generals instinctively controlled their breathing, while the awkward man kept shrinking back, his eyes darting around as he kept signaling to the burly man who led them to step in and break the deadlock.
Carter rested his hands on the table, his dark, fierce eyes sharpening with extreme anger as they slowly swept over the generals who hung their heads.
“Well, why is everyone silent? Who will tell me what’s going on here? Dear Kallen, my good brother, don’t you want to explain anything to me?” Carter’s voice was calm, even unusually gentle.

The thin, muscular man at the front, fully armored, shivered and looked around. Everyone was staring at him. Karen Wolf moved his lips awkwardly, not knowing how to speak, then glanced at the long-faced man. This wasn’t something he could bear alone. Sharing joys and sorrows was something they had agreed upon long ago. Now, seeing his brother so calm, knowing his brother’s temper well, he realized this was a precursor to his brother’s fury. It was time for everyone to share the burden; otherwise, his brother might even skin him alive.

“Heh, Macbeth, it seems you’re involved in this as well. I really didn’t see it coming. Well, Leader of the Deer Clan, can you tell me what you and Karen have been doing behind my back? Should I hand over my title as Leader of the Wolf Clan?”

As these sinister words were spoken, Karen Wolf and Macbeth Deer were already terrified, crawling on the ground, trembling violently. “Brother (Leader), we never had any ill intentions. We just wanted to get what rightfully belongs to us for our brothers.”

These words were deeply insulting. By all conscience, Karen and Macbeth never had such thoughts and didn’t deserve such accusations. As the second-largest clan in the Bimon Kingdom, the position of leader wasn’t something just anyone could hold. When Cat Wolf took this position, he did so by standing on the bones of three or four of his cousins. The previous leader of the Deer Clan also fell under Cat’s Sky Wolf Spear due to political differences. Even now, every time Macbeth saw Cat’s Sky Wolf Spear, he felt a chill deep in his heart.

Seeing Karen and Macbeth kneeling, the other Wolf Clan generals quickly knelt down as well, except for one—Fulhaus, the commander of Cat’s elite Sky Wolf Cavalry Regiment. He clearly wasn’t involved in this, so although he was somewhat uneasy, he managed to stay composed.

“Is that so? Can I believe what you say?” Cat knew that even if he gave these two a little courage, they wouldn’t dare have such thoughts. Though Karen was brave and respected among the Wolf Clan, his cunning wasn’t even compared to his third brother, Kalan, who had always been loyal to him. As for Macbeth, he was a staunch ally whom Cat had personally supported to become the leader of the Deer Clan. But this incident truly embarrassed him greatly, especially losing face in front of Kristina, which made Cat so furious.

“Brother (Leader), please understand.”

“Do you still see me in your eyes? What about the kingdom’s laws?” Carter struggled to control his emotions, his words barely escaping between his teeth. “The decree banning raids has been issued to all tribes—why do you ignore it? Are you deliberately trying to embarrass me in front of them?”
“Brother, it’s not that we don’t follow the laws, but you must think of us, the lower-ranking brothers. When the Tiger, Bear, and Ox tribes went to war, they stayed behind, but when it came to taking what was left, they were quick—most of the benefits in Jazair City were taken by them, leaving only the poor. Now they want equal treatment with mortals, but what about our brothers? We’re the ones who charge ahead, yet when it’s time to share, we get nothing. How can we fight another battle when our brothers go into combat without any reward?”
Karen complained repeatedly, “Besides, we didn’t plunder in the kingdom’s controlled areas. We just went to Cilicia and Gaul to steal a little. Did that offend anyone? If it were up to us, Gaul’s northern region should have been taken long ago. Just hand over the city of Cologne in Gaul’s north to us, and we promise not to go outside again. Who doesn’t want to stay home and relax? They think we go to war because we have nothing better to do!”
Macbeth quickly agreed, “Yes, boss. There’s also a lot of dissent among our Deer tribe. I’ve complained to you before—just enduring this situation forever isn’t a solution. Our brothers are angry. The Tiger, Bear, and Ox tribes enjoy all the good things, but we deserve a chance to survive too, right? If the Leopard and Sheep tribes can benefit from them, can’t we Deer tribe at least avoid starving?”
Carter’s expression shifted constantly. He was well aware that his Wolf tribe had suffered a great loss last time in the distribution of spoils in Jazair. He thought they could make up for it through looting the city, but unexpectedly, Kristina’s policy of peaceful coexistence gained support from the Tiger tribe, ending the plans to plunder mortals. As Kristina’s staunch ally, he had no choice but to support it. As a result, the already unskilled in farming Wolf tribe suffered even more. With the tribes so upset, it was difficult for him as their leader to come up with a practical solution. He thought he could turn a blind eye to their minor skirmishes in the surrounding areas, but this time, Karen and Macbeth launched large-scale attacks on Cilicia and Gaul, creating such a stir that it was impossible to hide it.

“Brother, things have already happened. The novices understand our difficulties. Do we really have to be unyielding? We’re forced into this situation. I’ve always thought that Galay and Silesia could be seized as an opportunity. With our kingdom’s current military strength, taking control of these prosperous regions isn’t a problem at all. Why should we hold back?” Kallen took the chance to speak up. “If we capture those two places, distribution within the kingdom will be much more generous. Those mortals who wish to stay can follow Kristina’s suggestion and live like the Jazairi. As for those who flee, they can naturally remain with us, the Bimons. Why not do it?”

Kart shook his head. Deep down, didn’t he think the same way? But according to Kristina’s plan, the relationship between the mortals and the Bimons in the kingdom’s controlled areas had just begun to improve. There was still so much the Bimons needed to learn from the mortals. Only by integrating into the civilization created by the mortals and absorbing its essence, standing on the shoulders of giants, could the orcs quickly break free from the shackles of ignorance and barbarism. Only then could the Bimons truly gain a place among the mainstream races of the Land of Heaven and even become leaders. Sacrificing long-term plans for short-term gains was like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs—a view that even Kart found somewhat distant and unlikely. Bill and Muni might not understand or believe it either. It would be easier to simply issue orders and make them obey than to try to convince Kallen and Macbeth.

“Boss, things have already happened. How they handle this will have to be decided at the leadership meeting. I think Miss Kristina is just angry right now. It’ll depend on you to smooth things over and speak kindly. If Miss Kristina supports us at the meeting, even the Tigers will have to think twice before causing trouble. We’ve reaped plenty this time, and the brothers are waiting for your instructions. We’ve already sold these things for gold—just waiting for you to distribute it. Should we prepare some for the Foxes too?”

Macbeth’s thoughts were already on distributing these riches. For him, with the boss taking care of the troubles, the tribal leaders of the vassal tribes didn’t have the right to attend the leadership meeting. As long as the Foxes stood firmly with the Wolves, the Wolves wouldn’t face major problems.

Carter let out a sigh of exasperation. With these simple-minded guys causing trouble, it was impossible for him to have an easy time. What he had to deal with now were the accusations from the Tiger Clan. Stabilizing the situation gradually was a principle established at the leaders’ meeting, including his own. Now it was as if he were slapping himself in the face. Though it was frustrating, breaking the rule meant breaking it. The Bimon Clan didn’t need any objective reasons to justify their actions. He still needed to think about how to deal with this problem. As for these guys, there would be plenty of opportunities in the future to teach them a lesson.