Chapter 212: Chapter 211: I Seem to Be Pretty Strong

With Li Youtao’s permission, Zhou Hu strode up the stone steps and entered the room.

As he did, his nostrils flared, picking up the faint, almost imperceptible scent of herbal medicine in the air.

He glanced around. The window paper, torn during the last altercation between Li Youtao and Wu Chen, had been repaired in the past few days. The furnishings that had been blasted across the room were also all back in their proper places.

Finally, Zhou Hu’s gaze fell upon Captain Li, who sat behind the desk. More specifically, it landed on the Captain’s right hand, which, despite looking largely unharmed, was hanging limply and unnaturally at his side.

Seeing this, he had a good idea of what had happened and quickly averted his gaze.

Thinking back to the brief clash three days ago when Li Youtao and Wu Chen first met, it was now perfectly clear who had won and who had lost.

But then he remembered the scene in the mountain forest. Lord Wu had taken down the barbarian spy with a single knee strike—no! It was one knee strike for every single person there! He’d floored everyone!

And not a single one of them had been able to fight back. They just lay there on the ground...

Zhou Hu figured that Captain Li getting off with just a broken arm meant the young man had already shown him considerable mercy that day.

He then recalled his own behavior that day. Before the two lords had even started, he had jumped in and demanded to test Wu Chen himself.

’If you’re in the Organ Refining Realm, one of our Organ Refining Realm guys will fight you.’

’If you’re in the Jade Bone Realm, one of our Jade Bone Realm guys will fight you!’

Fight him, my ass!

How the hell were we supposed to fight him?!

The man is in the Leakless Realm!

Not the Perfection Stage of the Blood Coagulation Realm at all!

There are barely enough Leakless Realm masters in the entire Demon Suppression Bureau to be counted on two hands!

The memory of that day was still vivid, and he couldn’t help but shudder, feeling as though he had walked a razor’s edge.

The fact that Wu Chen hadn’t crushed him to death with one hand on the spot wasn’t just magnanimity!

Zhou Hu was certain that if he’d had that kind of power at that age and suffered such an insult, he would have torn the entire Demon Suppression Bureau apart!

’No wonder he’s so accomplished at such a young age,’ he thought. ’His composure alone puts him above most people.’

’These forty years of my life... I’ve completely wasted them!’

Zhou Hu looked at the brocade robe he was holding and sighed softly.

In the past, hadn’t he racked his brains and risked his life, all for a robe just like this one?

But now that he finally had it in his hands, he felt completely unworthy of it.

"Hm? A Silver Wolf Brocade Robe? What, did that kid catch the barbarian, get promoted, and is already so eager that he’s gone to report to the Silver Wolf Garrison?"

Zhou Hu stood still inside the room. Seeing that only one person had entered and noticing the brocade robe in his hands, Li Youtao asked coolly.

His tone suggested he felt it was only natural for someone with a powerful backer like Wu Chen to catch the barbarian spy.

After all, some of the great and powerful families were more than willing to expend vast resources to pave the way for their scions.

"Captain Li..."

The answer to Li Youtao’s question was, in theory, very simple. But when the time came to actually say it, Zhou Hu found his mouth dry and his throat tight. The brocade robe in his hands suddenly felt as if it weighed a ton, making his arms ache.

He opened his mouth, but no words came out. Several breaths later, he finally managed to say, "This Silver Wolf Brocade Robe... is mine."

Though his voice was not loud, the words were deafening.

Li Youtao leaned forward slightly. At the door, the group of provisional guards fell silent. Some dug at their ears, others craned their necks, suspecting they must have misheard.

After all, no matter the mission, there was only a set amount of merit to be awarded. If a Silver Wolf Captain position was given to Zhou Hu, then the merit Wu Chen received would have to be reduced.

So why would Wu Chen have spent so much manpower and resources searching for the barbarian spy in the first place?

Could it be that you’re a long-lost son of the Wu family? Did you just happen to kowtow and get formally recognized as kin while you were outside the city?

"If you were promoted to Silver Wolf Captain, then what about that kid? Did he become a Tiger Head? Or a Golden Eagle?"

Li Youtao wasn’t all that surprised by this possibility.

For these great, influential clans, even the scraps that slipped through their fingers were more than an ordinary person could ever hope to attain in a lifetime.

Still, his eyes narrowed with interest.

Feeling the stinging pain in his right arm, he couldn’t deny that Wu Chen had the strength to become a Tiger Head or a Golden Eagle.

The problem was, he was simply too young.

He lacked tempering and experience, and possessed all the hot-headedness of youth.

Placing him in a high position would ultimately bring harm to both himself and others.

"He..."

Faced with Li Youtao’s question, Zhou Hu knew the answer was simple, yet he found the words stuck in his throat, even more so than before.

The main reason was that the answer sounded so absurd and ridiculous even to him. If he said it out loud, who would possibly believe it?

"Zhou Hu! Hurry up and answer Captain Li!"

His hesitation left the crowd of provisional guards at the door on the edge of their seats, practically scratching at the walls with impatience.

"You’re usually as restless as a monkey in a cage, so why are you dragging your feet today?"

"..."

Li Youtao shot a silent glance outside, and the crowd of provisional guards at the door immediately fell quiet, not daring to utter another word.

Then he turned back to Zhou Hu.

"Just say it. What position did his backers arrange for him? Tiger Head? Or Golden Eagle?"

"Don’t tell me he’s a Cloud Pattern Captain. To pull that off, the backing would have to come from the palace itself..."

Li Youtao trailed off, but everyone present understood his unspoken meaning.

A Cloud Pattern Captain not only needed sufficient strength, but also had to pledge allegiance directly to the one on the Dragon Throne—not to the people, and not to the Demon Suppression Bureau.

It was a position second to one, yet above all others.

Under the expectant gazes of dozens of eyes, Zhou Hu puffed out his cheeks, gritted his teeth, and forced out the word:

"Provisional Guard."

"Oh, a Provisional Guard."

Li Youtao nodded, then his head snapped up. "What? A Provisional Guard!"

Zhou Hu looked at Li Youtao’s wide, bulging eyes and nodded.

"You seem a little worked up, Captain Li."

Li Youtao’s face twitched. "Am I worked up?!"

"..."

Once again, an eerie silence fell over the room and the crowd outside.

Everyone seemed to be trying to process the answer Zhou Hu had given them.

They couldn’t understand if there had been some kind of mistake.

After a moment, Li Youtao opened his mouth to say something, but just ended up smacking his lips and sighing, unable to form the words.

He couldn’t figure it out. No matter how he thought about it, it made no sense.

Finally, Li Youtao simply gave up trying to understand.

He changed the subject. "Then how did he take care of the barbarian? Don’t tell me he did it all by himself!"

Zhou Hu nodded firmly, without a shred of hesitation this time.

HISS!

"Well, well, well!"

"So the kid really does have a few tricks up his sleeve!"

Li Youtao smacked his lips again, realizing he had underestimated Wu Chen. He asked another question:

"So, subduing the barbarian all by himself... it must have been an arduous fight, right?"

This time, Zhou Hu simply raised a hand and held up his index finger.

"A near-death struggle?" Li Youtao didn’t mind the theatrics; he was an easygoing person by nature.

Zhou Hu shook his head. Wrong.

"A bitter, drawn-out battle?"

Zhou Hu shook his head again.

"A hundred-round epic, then? Ugh, forget it, just tell me straight!"

Zhou Hu said calmly, "Captain Li, the kid took care of the barbarian with a single kick."

"You’re telling me he floored a barbarian with one kick!"

Li Youtao shot to his feet, his piercing eyes glaring at Zhou Hu. He suspected the man had gotten a promotion and decided to start pulling his leg.

"Captain Li, you’re getting worked up again!"

Zhou Hu knew no one would believe him. It was the kind of thing you had to witness firsthand.

Even he, who had been right there and seen Wu Chen in action, still felt like he was in a daze.

Suddenly, as he was being stared down by everyone inside and outside the room, Zhou Hu understood what Wu Chen had meant by ’at least you can provide backup with that look in your eyes!’

So this was where he was supposed to "put in the work"—in the debriefing!

"So, what realm is that kid actually in?"

After a long silence, Li Youtao finally realized the most crucial point, the most important point, and the one thing he had completely overlooked.

What if the kid was never at the Perfection Stage of the Blood Coagulation Realm to begin with?

This question was easy to answer.

Zhou Hu answered truthfully, "The Leakless Realm."

Just as he’d thought!

As soon as the words were out, Li Youtao slumped back into his chair, any lingering doubt finally extinguished.

He was still horrified by the kid’s strength and methods.

But the good news was:

’So you’re saying I traded a palm strike with someone who’s at least in the Mid Stage of the Leakless Realm?’

’And I only lost the use of one arm?’

’Compared to the barbarian... I guess I’m actually pretty strong, huh?’

Li Youtao comforted himself with this thought.

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