Chapter 012: Confrontation

Du Fan let out a soft “Oh” and said, “I see. No wonder I thought you seemed so calm. If you hadn’t explained, I would have thought this city gate didn’t need much guarding.”
As they spoke, the group, led by Harry, turned into a deeply secluded alley. Occasionally, a few passersby walked by, but upon seeing the city guards, they quickly disappeared. Du Fan glanced at those passersby, then smiled again and said, “Sir, why is the place we’re going to such a remote area? This route doesn’t seem right, does it?”
Harry snorted and said, “Just follow me. Once we get there, you’ll be able to rest properly.”
Du Fan nodded slightly. He glanced at Chenchen in his arms but said nothing more.
Thus, the group of nearly fifty people continued walking through Ruijin City for an unknown length of time. Harry didn’t seem to know exactly what he was doing—leading them along the most dilapidated streets. Finally, they arrived at a corner of Ruijin City, where there was a forest right beside the city walls. Clearly, this place used to be either a military base or a nobleman’s estate, but judging from its ruined state, it must have been abandoned for a long time.
A foul smell mixed with blood stench filled the air, making noses itch slightly. Du Fan frowned slightly and pulled the blanket tighter around Chenchen so she wouldn’t smell it.
At that moment, Harry suddenly shouted loudly. The soldiers surrounding Du Fan and the others froze instantly, turning their weapons toward them.
The Templar knights behind them narrowed their eyes, ready to act, but Du Fan waved his hand and smiled calmly, saying, “Sir, what’s the meaning of this? Didn’t you say you’d take us to a hotel prepared by the military? Why have we arrived here, and why are you acting like this?”
Harry curled his lips, revealing a fierce smile. Although he saw that Du Fan and the others weren’t intimidated by his sudden move, the number of city guards was more than three times theirs, so his worries vanished. He licked his lips and said in a low voice, “Sir… what are you talking about? Do you think I, Harry, am lying? Hmph… I, Harry, never lie. Since I said this place is a hotel prepared for you by the military, then it certainly is. It’s just that the price to stay here is a bit high!”

As he spoke, he waved his hand slightly, and the soldiers dispersed a bit more, this time filling every corner tightly and blocking all routes through which Du Fan and the others could leave.
A hint of anger flashed across the faces of several Temple Knights. When had they ever suffered such an insult? The combat energy around them flickered, and it seemed they were about to strike.
Du Fan suddenly coughed softly, made a gesture to calm them down, then smiled at Harry and said, “I wonder, Lord Harry, where exactly is this so-called inn? And what would be the cost to stay there?”
“Ha! Ha! Ha!”
Harry laughed heartily and said, “What boldness! What boldness! All the merchants we’ve brought here before were terrified, kneeling and begging for mercy. I never thought a young man like you would have such courage. Don’t worry—just for that reason, I’ll surely give you a satisfying punishment later!”
Du Fan merely smiled bitterly and continued, “Lord Harry, you still haven’t answered my question.”
Harry snorted. A strange thought flashed through his mind, but when his gaze fell on Tasia, who still looked calm, his heart burned with desire. Even if he couldn’t get the money, having this woman would be worth it. Although these guys might be skilled, their subordinates would surely fight to the death. A few deaths wouldn’t matter—just a few gold coins from each family. But a beauty of this caliber was something rare!
He made up his mind and didn’t hesitate any longer. He waved his hand slightly, and a surge of combat energy from his sword cut through a large tree beside him, revealing an open space behind it. Bones and half-decomposed corpses lay scattered everywhere, with flocks of crows flying among them, carrying bits of flesh—truly a hellish scene.
Du Fan glanced at it once and smiled faintly, saying, “Ah… the scenery here really lacks taste. If I’m not mistaken, Lord Harry, you must be the owner of this Inn of the Dead, right? Then could you tell me what the cost is to stay here? I’m really tired.”
Harry laughed loudly and said, “What cost? What a great question! As long as you leave that woman here to serve me, give me everything valuable you have, and die here as well, then the fee for staying overnight will be covered. You can even stay here for a thousand years without any problem!”

“Go!” Harry shouted sharply. “Enough talk—clean this up quickly. We still need to guard the gate. If that bastard Carol finds out, he’ll cause us trouble again.”
At his words, dozens of soldiers responded at once, their gun barrels gleaming as they lunged forward.
But Du Fan didn’t even glance at them. Gently, he pushed Chenchen into Tasia’s arms, then smiled softly and said, “I’ve been in a bad mood lately. It’s fine if a few bastards come to vent my anger. None of you may move. Whoever dares to act will lose their life.”
Though his smile was gentle, everyone—Tasia, Ferre, and the Temple Knights—felt a chill. Ever since that day they left the ice fields when the mysterious woman suddenly fainted, this young master Du Fan had become extremely strange. Now, with such a terrifying expression, who would dare oppose him?
After saying this, Du Fan waved his hand casually, and a beam of light magic flashed out, hitting several of the front-line soldiers. Though those ordinary soldiers were physically strong, could they withstand such a strike? The ones hit immediately weakened and collapsed.
Although the light magic was gentle, it was still deadly fast. Though the fallen soldiers didn’t seem badly injured at first glance, upon closer inspection, thin streams of blood flowed from their seven orifices—likely their internal organs had been shattered by the magic.
Yet Du Fan’s move was too mild. Though its lethality was astonishing, it lacked a truly shocking effect. The dozens of soldiers were slightly surprised but continued to attack.
Harry drew his long sword from his waist and sneered from the periphery. “It seems this gentleman isn’t an ordinary person after all—he knows some magic. But what does that matter? Two fists can’t beat four hands. No hero can withstand a crowd. I don’t believe you can kill all the soldiers here!”
Unexpectedly, Du Fan sneered back at him with disdain. Though he had no weapon, with every gesture of his hand, streams of magic surged forth. Anyone hit by it would immediately weaken.
In less than a moment, nearly half of the soldiers had fallen. The remaining half only then realized their fear—he had only used one hand, while the others hadn’t even moved.

Robberies and murders have always relied on momentum. If they encountered people who offered no resistance, these soldiers would naturally shout and fight. But now, facing Du Fan, after all this fighting, how many still had the courage? Though there were no bloody scenes, as long as one of their men fell, they couldn’t get up again—no one knew whether they were dead or alive.

After another bout of fighting, this time Du Fan didn’t bother using his combat energy. He casually swung his hand at one of the soldiers’ spears, and the rusty spear was instantly broken in two. Then he grabbed the spear tip with one hand, twisted it, and the spear shaft plunged into the soldier’s chest.

The blow wasn’t fatal, and the soldier couldn’t die right away. After so much fighting, the first scream finally sounded!

Du Fan gently clapped his hands, looking at the drops of blood on them. Suddenly, he snorted and said, “With such weak abilities, you still dare to resort to such despicable tactics? Are the merchants from the north really this useless, or are you just too lucky?”

Hari stared at Du Fan. He suddenly understood why Du Fan had always been so unafraid. Though he couldn’t gauge Du Fan’s strength, Hari still had some self-awareness—he was definitely no match for him. His eyelids fluttered as he watched his men fall one after another. Finally, he couldn’t hold back any longer and shouted, “Retreat!”

The remaining dozen or so soldiers had been waiting for this order. They quickly retreated, leaving behind dozens of corpses on the ground.

Du Fan smiled faintly and said, “Lord Hari, why don’t you come to collect your ‘payment’? Or have you realized your men aren’t a match for me and plan to take action yourself?”

Hari felt a slight sweat on his back. Staring at Du Fan, countless thoughts raced through his mind: How is this possible? How could an ordinary merchant have such skills? And among those with some aptitude to practice combat energy and magic, who would want to be a worthless merchant?

Suddenly, Hari’s mind cleared. He remembered the last possibility: these people weren’t merchants but spies from the northern barbarians. There was no other explanation. His expression changed slightly as he slowly stepped forward, but his hidden hand made a few gestures.