Chapter Forty-One: Collusion

“Haha, haha, hahahaha!”
In the dense forest, Diro, cradled in Tuo’ao’s arms, shrieked and laughed with a crazed abandon, blood spurting incessantly from his mouth.
“Tuo’ba, Tuo’ao, to think I’ve been wounded so badly by a bunch of uncivilized savages! Our Bloodfang Company has captured and sold over a million slaves in the Southern Wilds, and never once has anyone managed to so much as harm a hair on my head. Yet now, I’m in this state!”
Tuo’ba snapped a tangled serpent vine from their path, his face grim as he tried to reassure Diro: “Captain, once we regroup with Chief Disha, we’ll definitely return.”
Diro cackled grotesquely, gritting his teeth as he spat a vicious curse at Ji Hao. Then, he abruptly ordered, “Stop.”
Immediately, Tuo’ba, Tuo’ao, and the several dozen warriors following them halted in their tracks. With utmost care, Tuo’ao set Diro down. Diro frowned deeply. On his left wrist, a jade-blue bracelet five fingers wide glimmered with ghostly light, and a sumptuous silk robe appeared out of thin air in his hand.
Several dozen yards behind, hidden in the dense shadows, the sorcerous crow’s pupils shrank sharply.
In Cold Creek Valley, Ji Hao, who was controlling the sorcerous crow to track Diro’s party, bit his lip so hard his heart thundered in his chest. A spatial bracelet? That’s the legendary spatial bracelet! In his previous life, such artifacts only existed as the greatest treasures of myth. In this life, not even the Firecrow tribe’s shamans had ever mentioned the existence of space treasures!
Yet on Diro’s wrist was a legendary spatial bracelet!
Ji Hao’s heart pounded fiercely, veins bulging on his forehead, his blood surging with excitement—a burning urge to summon Old Crow and chase down Diro’s party to kill and seize the treasure.
But he quickly dismissed the thought.
Right now, Cold Creek Valley was in chaos. Qing Fu was drenched in sweat, busy saving the severely wounded tribesmen; Ji Xia, with Ji Bao, Qing Ying, and the others, was catching those fleeing barbarian warriors as if they were chickens.
Ji Xia had sworn upon the ancestral spirits to let Diro and the others leave unharmed. With his character, he would never break his word. Even with Old Crow’s help, Ji Hao couldn’t possibly handle Diro together with Tuo’ba and Tuo’ao. The spatial bracelet was tempting, but Ji Hao simply didn’t have the strength to make a move.
The sorcerous crow twisted its head lightly, ghostly light flashing in its eyes.
Diro cursed under his breath, pulling from his bracelet a black metallic centipede over two feet long. He tossed it to the ground and chanted a spell. One by one, runes lit up along the centipede’s long body, which began to expand rapidly.
In just a few breaths, a gigantic centipede, over thirty yards long from head to tail, materialized before them. With a silent wave, Diro gestured for Tuo’ba, Tuo’ao, and the warriors to climb onto its back. Under Diro’s control, the huge metal contraption sped through the forest like a gale, swiftly distancing itself from Cold Creek Valley.

Half a quarter of an hour later, the metal centipede had traveled over twenty miles. Following a steep cliff, it crawled into a river gorge several hundred yards deep and quietly settled on the flat riverbank.
The sorcerous crow glided across the gorge, landing on a sapling on the opposite cliff, its scarlet eyes flickering as it watched below.
In Cold Creek Valley, Ji Hao wiped cold sweat from his brow as he sat in meditation at the cave entrance, exhaling heavily. Fortunately, Diro and the others hadn’t gone far—twenty miles was the limit at which he could just barely maintain contact with his crow. Any further, and he’d lose the ability to secretly monitor them.
Suddenly, images transmitted back by the crow made Ji Hao’s body jolt violently.

“Damn it, Ji Hou, Ji Xiao! You actually conspired with outsiders to murder your own tribesmen?”
In the river gorge, several dozen sturdy, imposing Firecrow warriors stood silently on the sandbank, gazing coldly at the battered Diro and his group.
At the very front was the father of Ji Hu, whom Ji Hao had slain days ago—a formidable shaman of high status and renown among the sacred warriors of Golden Crow Ridge, Ji Xiao.
Standing shoulder to shoulder with Ji Xiao was Ji Hou, Ji Shu’s younger brother and the vanguard who had challenged Ji Xia for the position of chief warrior—a mighty shaman in his own right.
Seeing Diro and his party, Ji Xiao gritted his teeth and barked, “Ji Hou, these are the ‘old friends’ you spoke of? They’re supposed to help my son Hu get his revenge? What a joke! Just look at the sorry state they’re in!”
Stamping his foot in anger, Ji Xiao shouted, “I gave them so much refined gold and jade, and this is how they come back—battered and barely alive?”
Ji Hou’s eyes flickered with odd light. He patted Ji Xiao on the shoulder, then strode toward Diro with arms spread wide and a loud laugh: “Diro, old friend, it seems things didn’t go your way this time? Before you set out, you swore to me you’d easily take Cold Creek Valley!”
Diro did not embrace Ji Hou but backed away in disgust, shouting harshly, “This is all your fault! Your intelligence was wrong! Aside from Ji Xia and Qing Fu, who you claimed were gravely wounded and powerless, Tuo’ba and Tuo’ao could have easily dealt with those three newly advanced shamans you mentioned!”
He took a deep breath, his voice cold: “But you didn’t tell me that brat had actually bonded with a giant fire crow!”
With his two remaining eyes, Diro glared daggers at Ji Hou, grinding his teeth. “Originally, I could have easily taken Cold Creek Valley, eliminated your enemies, and made a fortune! But because of your faulty information, I underestimated their strength. I lost an eye and three fingers… You owe me compensation!”
He jabbed a finger at Ji Hou, sneering, “Ten times the deposit, Ji Hou! Otherwise, you’ll personally experience the terror of the Bloodfang Company!”
Ji Hou’s expression shifted rapidly, his rugged features freezing into a mask.

“Are you sure? Only great shamans who have rendered outstanding service to the Firecrow tribe are qualified to bond with a giant crow. Even Ji Xia hasn’t received one—how could that boy…” Ji Hou murmured under his breath, then beckoned Ji Xiao over: “Xiao, my brother, if you truly wish to avenge poor Ah Hu, you may have to do something yourself that you’re not willing to do!”
“Hou, I absolutely will not raise a hand against Big Brother Ji Xia!” Ji Xiao’s face twitched violently, his body trembling, sweat pouring down his forehead. “I only… want revenge for Ah Hu, but I will never, never strike at Big Brother Ji Xia!”
“But you already have,” Ji Hou said with quiet gravity. “Xiao, just by standing here, you’ve already acted against Ji Xia…”
Seeing Ji Xiao’s contorted expression, Ji Hou added calmly, “Fine, you don’t have to deal with Ji Xia—just keep the others occupied. As for Ji Xia… someone else will take care of him.”
“Who?” Ji Xiao blurted out.
“Of course… me!”
From the surging river came a hoarse, rasping voice.
A single-horned black serpent, as thick as a water barrel, slowly raised its body from the water.

—
Three sets of abdominal muscles, torn!
My stomach aches terribly today!
My thighs hurt like crazy too!
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