Chapter 97 - Entering the Wilderness

Chapter 97: Chapter 95: Entering the WildernessLu Hong had just opened his eyes when he saw Lock Fan’s big face, and the bad smell almost made him pass out again. If he hadn’t felt so weak, he really would have wanted to slap him.

"Are you awake?" Lock Fan apparently didn’t notice the aversion in Lu Hong’s eyes and hurriedly brought a bowl of porridge from the bedside, "Do you know? You have been unconscious for three days and nights, Nono almost cried her eyes dry."

"Where is Nono now?" Thinking of Nono’s possible heartbreak after his unconsciousness, Lu Hong suddenly felt somewhat guilty.

"You first eat a bit to regain some strength." Lock Fan stirred up a spoonful of colorful mush and stretched it toward Lu Hong’s mouth.

"Are you trying to poison me?" Lu Hong wouldn’t eat that stuff; it was detrimental to his health.

Just as Lock Fan was persuading Lu Hong, who refused to open his mouth, Caesar walked into the room and said with a grave voice, "Eat it, it’s good for you."

"Don’t you think this thing might just kill me?" Lu Hong knew the colorful mush could be helpful, but he couldn’t convince himself to eat it.

"You, get out." Caesar took the colorful porridge from Lock Fan’s hand, sent him out, and after making sure no one was eavesdropping, continued, "While you were unconscious, that little girl didn’t know how many times she gave you mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. What? You refuse to open your mouth when a man is feeding you?"

"I—mouth-to-mouth?" Lu Hong could only feel that his relationship with Nono was getting deeper and deeper, wondering if she would be the first one to rush forward to deal with him if he were ever poisoned.

"Alright, no more jokes. You must drink this porridge." Caesar forcibly pried open Lu Hong’s mouth and stuffed a spoonful of paste inside, "How did you encounter the Golden Lion? That battle nearly cost you your life, severely depleting your body. If it weren’t for the nourishment from these ingredients, I reckon you wouldn’t be able to get out of bed for another two months."

"It tastes awful." Since there was no escaping, Lu Hong obediently ate the porridge Caesar had spooned, to be honest, it really tasted terrible, sour and bitter, and it was particularly sticky to the teeth.

Caesar rolled his eyes at Lu Hong, "Since you think it tastes bad, think about how the young girl fed it to you spoon by spoon these past days."

Alright, Lu Hong didn’t want to talk anymore, what a day not fit for chatting!

Caesar, concerned with other matters, asked, "Do you know why the Golden Lion kidnapped you?"

"I don’t know."

"Fine, if you won’t tell. If it wasn’t for you making such a fuss, I might not have uncovered the conspiracy the Beastmen were plotting right under my nose. You’ve saved the empire, I’ll find a treasure to give you as a reward." Caesar didn’t press further; his mind was totally focused on the shadow beside the Golden Lion.

"They have a human envoy who has been secretly integrating the intelligent Demon Beast communities within the empire." Lu Hong forced down the mush, kindly reminding Caesar.

"I know." Caesar nodded, "I will now focus on uncovering this person’s identity."

"Where is Nono now?" Having finished discussing the secrets, Lu Hong’s concern shifted back to Nono.

"She’s asleep. She stayed awake for three days and nights beside you and just fell asleep right before you woke up." Caesar laughed, "Seems like fate didn’t want you to witness such a touching scene."

"Don’t, I’m afraid I might actually become a real scoundrel if I keep getting moved like this." Hearing that Nono was all right, Lu Hong felt at ease.

"Okay, you should be recovered by tomorrow. To treat you, boy, I’ve spent at least tens of thousands of Gold Coins on ingredients."

Seeing the pained look on Caesar’s face, Lu Hong tentatively asked, "So... I don’t have to pay it back, right?"

"Thinking of not paying?" Hearing Lu Hong’s intention to default, Caesar’s expression instantly darkened.

"But I have no money!"

"Then we’ll put it on your tab!" With that, Caesar stormed out, slamming the door behind him.

"I’m someone who saved the empire, and you still want to charge me for this?" Lu Hong shouted after him, not sure if Caesar had heard.

At this moment, Lock Fan stuck his head out curiously and asked, "Saved what? Bro, you’re so awesome you saved the empire?"

"Get lost! None of your business!" Just as Lu Hong was about to shoo Lock Fan away, he suddenly remembered to ask, "What about our classmates? Are they all right?"

"They’re fine, but they took a big hit from being bullied by a bunch of rats in the mine."

"And then?"

"Then they voluntarily signed up for the combat training classes run by Loise." Speaking of which, Lock Fan heard Lai Li softly calling from downstairs, so he quickly said, "Bro, I have something to do, I’ll come back to visit you tonight, okay?"

"Get lost!" This kid, now he can be all lovey-dovey with Lai Li all day long, Lu Hong really couldn’t understand how Lai Li, a woman with high standards, could fall for a simpleton like Lock Fan.

Lu Hong, still very weak, could only lie boredly on the bed, guessing why he still hadn’t progressed to the Second Transition despite killing enough monsters.

Shortly after, Loise, having received the news, pushed open the door and entered the room; seeing Lu Hong safe and sound finally put her at ease, "What exactly did you do in the mine? Did you watch a duel between superpowerhouses?"

"Yeah, it was spectacular, but sneaking in came at a hefty price." Lu Hong made up a lie, trusting that Caesar wouldn’t expose his strength, he had to make stuff up without knowing what Caesar had said.

"I thought you were dead when I dug you out of the soil by the pit, you know!" Luis’s expression was somewhat horrified, "Had it not been for Old Tu, who came after receiving a message saying that food therapy could cure you, I would have buried you right there."

Hearing that she might have buried him, Lu Hong’s face stiffened. "Do you really think I couldn’t have been saved by a Priest or a Druid?"

"In our town, we only have four priests and druids combined, and they’ve just reached the Second Transition. How could we rely on them?" Luis sighed helplessly.

Hearing what Luis said, Lu Hong suddenly remembered the two mercenaries he had met in the potion shop. "Do you all rely on potions for healing?"

"Yes, I don’t know what happened, but the resources of Priests and Druids are very scarce now. They’ve almost all been forcibly conscripted into the army." Luis continued unhappily, "Even the five Second Transition Level 7 Priests and four Second Transition Level 5 Druids that were originally with our group have been taken away by headquarters through a single order."

"War is going on, having healing professions means an unending force of life—no one feels they have too many." Lu Hong understood well. In times of war, injuries were common, and as long as those in healing professions could breathe, they could ensure a group of soldiers were ready to fight another three hundred rounds.

"Alright, since you’re fine, I’ll be going now."

Luis turned to leave but seemed to remember something before departing and dropped a line.

"That girl named Nono truly loves you, you should cherish her."

Over the next ten days or half a month, Lu Hong had a rather relaxed time, wandering around with Nono, occasionally seeing Lock Fan covering his face excitedly, hopping about on the streets.

Because of the mine incident, Luis strictly trained the whole group, not only enhancing the physical abilities of the members but also passing on most of the combat skills she had learned. This move not only earned the approval of everyone in the group but also gained a staunch following from Lu Hong and his classmates.

As for the rat men with hammers and spears, they were still alive. Caesar had directed the explosion’s force upwards, so most of the rat men had a narrow escape from the crisis. Under Lu Hong’s guidance, they sought good land again, excavating an underground city, and re-concealing themselves on the Empire’s territory. However, this time, they were no longer secretly controlled by the Beastman Empire but had switched allegiance to Lu Hong.

"Tukulu, are you really going?" Nono was staring at Lu Hong with tear-filled eyes that day.

"Yes!" Lu Hong answered resolutely.

"You can’t not go?" Nono pleaded.

"A real man’s word is his bond."

"Alright, then you must promise me you must take good care of yourself." Nono knew Lu Hong’s nature well and simply gave up persuading him.

"Don’t worry, I carry a heavy responsibility on my shoulders; how could I die so early?"

"Right, you have to become my warrior." Nono said happily, "So you still remember what you said before."

"Uh... right, right, right." Lu Hong was stunned; actually, he was referring to the responsibilities of revitalizing the warriors.

"Is Tukulu ready?" Luis, dressed in a fiery red tight-fitting combat suit, stood at the entrance of the town, looking gallant.

"Ready. How are we going?"

"Of course, we teleport." Luis pointed south. "We’ll walk a bit further, as someone from the wilderness, I naturally have ways to return to my own plane."

"Not with a Teleportation Scroll?"

"No."

Lu Hong was stunned. "Then how do we come back?"

"We’ll directly use a Teleportation Scroll to return to the town, idiot." Luis rolled her eyes at Lu Hong and took the lead, heading towards the wilderness outside the town.

"Farewell boss on your journey home!" Along with Luis’ departure, the mercenaries guarding the entrance shouted loudly behind her.

"Listen up, everyone! If anything goes wrong with the town while I’m away, you’ll all be in big trouble!"

"I’m leaving too." Lu Hong said goodbye to Nono and the others who came to see him off and chased after Luis.

"Boss! Remember to take me along next time you find a fun place!" Lock Fan shouted unwillingly from behind.

But before he could finish, Lai Li’s talons reached for his ears and twisted hard: "Dare you repeat that?"

"No no no, I know I was wrong, I know I was wrong." Lock Fan quickly knelt down and pleaded; initially, when he knew Lu Hong would follow Luis to the wilderness plane, Lock Fan had clamored to go, but Lai Li, of course, did not allow it.

Compared to Lock Fan and Nono, the one with a stronger desire to go was actually Lai Li. Not because of any special relationship, but because she was clear on the value Lu Hong carried—something that could allow the Empire to dominate for centuries!

Unfortunately, if Lai Li entered the wilderness, she too could not avoid being suppressed by the Law, and since she primarily practiced soul cultivation and had never transplanted any lineage, she probably wouldn’t be as strong as Lu Hong if she entered the wilderness. What use would following him be?