Reborn as a Hatrack in the Mystical Land-Chapter 72 - 4: The Rising Female Mercenary_2

Years ago, when Ni Qianjun was but a greenhorn little mercenary, during a common mission, his elder brother Ni Huo and he were ambushed by a Dark Beast, and an old mercenary of their group sustained serious injuries protecting their leader. At that time, they were surrounded by enemies, with no certainty of escape.

Without any supplies ahead and Fierce Beasts behind, Ni Huo did not heed Ni Qianjun's pleas to save the injured old mercenary; he killed the old man with his own hands.

Ni Qianjun would forever remember that night when his elder brother stayed awake the entire night. He buried the old mercenary and told himself in a heavy voice, "Better to let him die swiftly than to live in such agony. Remember, a successful mercenary should never let anyone or anything hold back your pace."

"I'll take you to the camp, to meet the brothers in the group," Ni Qianjun suddenly realized, perhaps he had not truly investigated Yue Jinghua's background thoroughly.

Was it a coincidence? Why did Yue Jinghua, the rumored waste of the Lie Family Mansion, give him a familiar feeling in that moment as if his elder brother himself was present?

Seeing Ni Qianjun cordially taking Yue Jinghua's luggage and personally leading her forward, Lihua Xue's originally harmless and beautiful eyes quickly sprouted jealousy like wild grass in the spring wilderness.

"Send someone to thoroughly investigate this ugly woman's background. A genius Pill Master? Could it be that even the Pill Masters of Danlu are not her match?" Lihua Xue watched the two walking away and spoke sharply.

The Mercenary Group's station is an open area on all four sides. Tents constructed of earth-toned moisture-proof tarpaulin are set up adjacent to each other.

The Reversed Fire Mercenary Group, true to its reputation as a large mercenary group, had several designated areas within the camp aside from the tents used for daily rest.

At the entrance, there's a densely growing Blue Birch Forest, and in this season, the blue leaves blend with the sky, creating a lush blue vista.

As Ni Qianjun and Yue Jinghua passed by, the leaves rustled, and a nimble young mercenary looking uncannily like a monkey dropped down from the trees. "Deputy leader, is this the new Pill Master? We won't get pranked by Feng Buhui and his gang again, will we? Hey, deputy leader, did you shave? Looking sharp! It's really exceptional today. Let me see if the sun is rising from the west," he said.

The barrage of words gave Ni Qianjun an instant headache. "Shut up, Ah Bu, if you keep babbling I'll make you work as a kitchen fire-starter as a punishment."

The young mercenary shrunk his tongue and swiftly climbed back up the tree with a powerful pull on his arm, disappearing like a monkey.

A muttering voice could still be faintly heard from the leaves: "Goodness gracious, everyone was right, the deputy leader has been a bit off lately, really off indeed."

Ni Qianjun, feeling embarrassed, said, "His name is Ah Bu, the youngest in our group, no, you'll be the youngest after joining. Ah Bu is a scout with strong lookout and tracking skills. Don't take his words to heart too much. If that bunch of rascals give you a hard time, I won't let them off lightly."

As Ni Qianjun spoke, he had already led Yue Jinghua into the center of the mercenary camp.

For this secret mercenary mission, Ni Huo had called for the mobilization of over thirty mercenaries. There were also more than a dozen tents set up around the camp.

Similar to modern tents, these tents were mostly in earthy green colors, made from waterproof and moisture-proof canvas, equipped with Whale Oil Lamps and other lighting facilities, pitched in the wilderness forests, not easily discoverable by others.

Tents of different areas served different functions, with dedicated cooking areas, meeting tents for discussions, and tents for washing and hygiene purposes.

As Ni Qianjun was introducing the camp, cheering came from up front. Over a dozen mercenaries clad in Light Armor and equipped with Crossbows, Shields, and Daggers gathered around an open space.

Weapons of various sorts, stone weights, and targets were placed all around the open ground – this was the Reversed Fire Mercenary Group's training field. On days while preparing for missions, during their free time, the mercenaries would gather here for basic training exercises.

Yue Jinghua and Ni Qianjun walked up, and in the center of the circle was a burly man built like a small mountain.

The old mercenary, built like a bull calf, had bulging muscles on his arms as he was exerting force, lifting a stone weight from the training ground weighing four to five hundred kilograms.

"Not bad, barbarian, show us a trick and let Feng Buhui and his bunch see just how formidable we seasoned mercenaries are," the male spectators were predominantly male mercenaries from the Reversed Fire Mercenary Group, with a clear absence of their female counterparts.

Yue Jinghua observed quietly, realizing that even within the Reversed Fire Mercenary Group, the mercenaries were distinctly divided into two factions.

The ones cheering for the man lifting the huge stone were older, typically more bulky, and commonly armed with close-range weapons like swords, hammers, and axes.

On the other hand, the jeering mercenaries were mostly younger, equipped with crossbows and bows, favoring light and agile fighting techniques.

"I wonder which faction Ni Qianjun belongs to?" Yue Jinghua remembered hearing about Ni Qianjun's famous signature move, the Wind Red Slash. However, in the two times she met him, she had not seen him carry any weapons.

A loud whistle rang out, and a middle-aged mercenary with freckles stepped forward, holding a bow made of fine iron in his right hand. With a flick of his thumb, "whoosh," an iron bullet, accompanied by a powerful stream of Dark Energy, sped off, rivaling the velocity of modern-day bullets.

The man strong as a bull suddenly felt the weight in his hands lighten as the Iron Crossbow Arrow struck the giant rock with a "pang," splitting it apart. Fragments of stone showered down like hail on the brawny man.

"Feng Buhui, you little shit, you're courting death," caught off guard, the brawny man was pelted by the stony shrapnel, his hair and beard covered in a coating of white dust from the rock as if floured, but thankfully, his thick skin spared him from injury.

Yet being publicly humiliated by younger mercenaries was as if these veteran mercenaries had been slapped across the face.

Red-eyed with anger, the brawny man swung his arms around, ready to settle the score with Feng Buhui.

Feng Buhui was incredibly nimble, rapidly shifting his positions and skillfully dodging the brawny man's iron fists, making it impossible for the man to land a hit. Feng ducked and dodged, taunting as he went: "Barbarian, you're getting old, can't even block a simple crossbow arrow. Hopefully, it's not because you went soft after frolicking with those noisy brothel ladies last night."

On hearing this, the barbarian was enraged by Feng Buhui's mockery of his age, despising these young mercenaries who showed no respect. This time, he was truly provoked.

With a roar from the barbarian, his bones crackled, and his skin seemed to toughen as if covered by a layer of iron. His fist, curving sharply through the air with the force of a hammer, lunged with a whoosh toward Feng Buhui.

Yue Jinghua was secretly astonished; the Reversed Fire Mercenary Group was indeed extraordinary. This seemingly rugged, old mercenary turned out to be a strong practitioner with a Dark Earth Small Achievement.

If he were in Polo City, he would already be considered a top-tier expert.

Feng Buhui seemed undeterred by the barbarian's fury, quickly loading and readying his crossbow.

"How many times have I said, no private fights," Ni Qianjun couldn't keep face any longer. Having only recently joined, Yue Jinghua had already witnessed their internal squabblings twice, which made him, as the deputy leader, struggle to maintain his dignity. A thunderous roar echoed as he shouted, and Yue Jinghua, standing beside Ni Qianjun, felt a slight tremor and could clearly sense a surge of overwhelming Dark Power bursting from his body.

This stern reprimand snapped the heated mercenaries out of their rage, leaving their minds ringing, and instantly silencing them, with none daring to speak a word.

As the atmosphere cooled, the young mercenary named Feng Buhui chuckled, "Qianjun, we're just messing around, right, Barbarian?" He slung an arm over the barbarian's shoulder, posing as if they were the best of friends.

The barbarian harrumphed, glaring with his bull-like eyes, and remained silent, which was as good as an acknowledgement.

Just then, everyone noticed someone standing behind the deputy leader, Ni Qianjun. frёewebηovel.cѳm

A woman.