42: Chapter 42 A Failed Attempt

The commander of the West Mountain Camp really did give Chen Aoyun some face, coming to the only decent tavern outside the camp to have a chat with him.

It wasn't that Chen Aoyun had much face, but rather that the position of 'Imperial Censor' was worth the attention of the West Mountain Camp's commander.

The commander's name was Commander Wan Fei.

Chen Aoyun, who was a novice at everything, had no rank—neither the rank of a [Strategist] nor the rank of a [Roleplayer].

Without a rank of his own, he could not directly perceive Commander Wan Fei's strength.

But this did not affect his judgment of Commander Wan Fei—this was a very powerful NPC. If a conflict were to arise, the other party could likely strangle Chen Aoyun with just one hand.

"Commander Wan Fei, thank you for honoring me with your presence. Please, sit."

The food and wine had already been prepared. With seven parts respect and three parts arrogance, Chen Aoyun ushered Commander Wan Fei to the table.

This was the world of the script. Chen Aoyun had to play the role of the 'Imperial Censor' well; he couldn't disrespect Commander Wan Fei, yet he couldn't be too humble either, as he represented imperial authority at this moment.

Commander Wan Fei sat down and paused slightly upon seeing the dishes on the table.

On the table were a whole turkey, exquisite steak, expensive cheese... as well as a plate of crispy roast duck, a plate of braised prawns, a plate of four-joy meatballs... and so on.

This table of food could be described as a fusion of East and West. It wasn't just Commander Wan Fei who paused after a glance; even Chen Aoyun himself had been silent for a long time when he first saw this spread.

"Chinese elements are not prominent, but my appearance has caused this plot to change. Perhaps this bizarre 'combination' is the result of Dragon Country elements being injected into the plot, but not very thoroughly."

He carefully observed Commander Wan Fei's demeanor and expression.

Chen Aoyun noticed that after Commander Wan Fei paused slightly at the strange 'combination' on the table, a subtle flash clearly crossed his eyes, as if he had been electrocuted, or like a robot in a sci-fi movie suddenly having a program loaded.

"Did the appearance of Chinese elements cause Commander Wan Fei to 'glitch'? Was that flash in his eyes just now the Starlight Will filling in Commander Wan Fei's cognition?"

Chen Aoyun remained calm. Commander Wan Fei showed no further strange behavior, and the conversation at the table quickly turned to the main topic.

Commander Wan Fei did not touch his chopsticks, nor did he raise his glass to drink; he simply stared straight at Chen Aoyun.

The pressure from a 'Rank 6' expert was indeed significant. Commander Wan Fei's intense stare made Chen Aoyun feel a bit uneasy, forcing him to speak first. Chen Aoyun probed,

"Commander, what is your take on the assassins that appeared at the West Mountain Camp?"

"What is your take?" Commander Wan Fei countered.

Chen Aoyun thought for a moment and replied, "The West Mountain Camp guards the outskirts of the Imperial Capital and is the Emperor's most trusted and important barrier. Now that the West Mountain Camp has run into trouble—both the First Prince and the Second Prince have sent people to attack the camp—I suspect that something has gone wrong in the Imperial Capital..."

"You think the same way as that group of generals—you want me to enter the palace to serve the King? Both the First Prince and the Second Prince have sent people to attack the West Mountain Camp. To enter the palace to serve the King and purge the court—who am I purging? The people around the First Prince, or the people around the Second Prince? Or perhaps you want me to execute the princes?" Commander Wan Fei sneered at Chen Aoyun.

It wasn't strictly necessary to obtain the token; if Commander Wan Fei were willing to lead troops into the capital, he could still 'purge the court.' However, Chen Aoyun did not understand Commander Wan Fei's stance.

Was Commander Wan Fei on the First Prince's side? Or the Second Prince's side? To enter the capital to serve the King—who were the scoundrels? Were the people around the First Prince or the Second Prince the ones who needed to be purged from the Emperor's side? Chen Aoyun had no answers to these questions and, for a moment, didn't know what to say.

"I am asking you a question! You want me to enter the palace to serve the King—kill whom!!!"

An icy gaze swept over him. Commander Wan Fei's suspicion value did not increase, but his killing intent toward Chen Aoyun was undisguised!

Chen Aoyun understood that it wasn't strictly necessary for the 'suspicion value' to reach 100 for characters in the plot to attack him. Characters in the plot had their own thoughts; asking the wrong question or picking the wrong side would just as easily provoke an attack from Commander Wan Fei.

A faint cold sweat broke out. Facing Commander Wan Fei's questioning and undisguised killing intent, Chen Aoyun forced himself to calm down.

A moment later, Chen Aoyun gave his answer, "Serving the King does not necessarily require killing. I hope Commander, you will enter the capital, only hoping that you can protect His Majesty."

The killing intent receded, and Commander Wan Fei laughed, "Protect His Majesty? His Majesty does not need me to protect him!"

As he spoke, Commander Wan Fei pulled a token from his bosom and slapped it onto the table. "You want this, right! So, you are also a part of His Majesty's game?"

His Majesty's game? What did that mean? Chen Aoyun was confused. Commander Wan Fei then pulled an imperial edict from his bosom and pushed it in front of Chen Aoyun.

Chen Aoyun took the imperial edict with a puzzled expression. The contents within left Chen Aoyun speechless for a long time.

...On the other side. Zhao Hongxiu and Xiao Zhenghong had already snuck into Commander Wan Fei's tent.

"We've searched everywhere; it's not here! If that token wasn't taken by the people who attacked the camp, it must be on Commander Wan Fei! We can't keep searching; Commander Wan Fei is about to return. If we don't leave now, it'll be troublesome if we run into him!"

Calculating the time, Zhao Hongxiu and Xiao Zhenghong had to retreat from Commander Wan Fei's tent. Fortunately, they retreated quickly; one minute later and they would have run into the returning Commander Wan Fei.

The two of them had just exited Commander Wan Fei's tent and were about to go find Chen Aoyun to ask about the situation when they ran straight into an unnamed general.

"General Zhao, General Xiao, why haven't you participated in the martial arts competition in the camp? For this competition, the Commander has promised a heavy reward. The winner will not only receive a reward but will also have the opportunity to fill the position of the deceased general. Come with me quickly!"

A competition? A reward? The two immediately realized that the so-called reward was very likely the [glory fragments]!

Refusing might increase the suspicion value, so the two followed this unknown general to the martial arts arena.

The rules of the competition were simple: one-on-one duels, elimination format. Whoever could last until the end would be the champion of the competition.

The champion could 'get a promotion and a raise,' but that was not important. What the two valued more was the [glory fragments] that the first-place winner could obtain.

Before the competition began, the two seized the last moment to sign up.

Before it was their turn to compete, after witnessing the other generals sparring, Xiao Zhenghong said with a bitter face, "You were right; the further we go, the harder it is to obtain the [glory fragments]. The generals participating in the competition have an average strength of 'Rank 4,' with the highest being 'Rank 5.' How are we supposed to take first place?"