Chapter 54 : Chapter 54
Chapter 54: The Weapons of My Sword-Forging Manor Are Bestowed Only upon the Virtuous and Righteous. You Are Unworthy!
When Cheng Yu uttered the three words “Great Hero Cheng,” he stressed each one without the slightest respect, his tone dripping with sarcasm and mockery.
Under normal circumstances, if Cheng Zhenjiang, who valued his reputation above all else, heard his son address him that way, he would have flown into a furious rage.
Utterly devoid of proper decorum!
But the moment he heard Cheng Yu mention the lives of those million laborers, the only thing left in his heart was a storm of shock.
Something had gone terribly wrong!
Cheng Zhenjiang’s eyes widened, the anger in his heart instantly drowned beneath fear.
At first, he had been focused on seeking a sword for Cheng Feng. After that, he had learned of Cheng Yu’s affairs.
All of it had left him so overwhelmed that he had overlooked one extremely crucial piece of information.
In order to excavate the vast Sword-Forging Mountain and dig out the treasure suspected to be tied to a Dragon Vein, Sword-Forging Manor had gathered a million laborers from all across Dragon Abyss Path over the course of five years.
No matter how well they concealed it, Sword-Forging Mountain could not possibly hold that many people!
There could only be one explanation...
Most of those million laborers had already been worked to death!
The moment that thought struck him, Cheng Zhenjiang began trembling all over, filled with boundless regret.
How could a great hero like him have gotten involved in something like this?
Colluding with people who had ruined a million lives!
If word of this spread, the reputation he had painstakingly built over decades would be utterly ruined!
And not just him. The entire River-Severing Sect and the Cheng Family would be dragged down with him.
Amid shock and fury, a terrifying thought flashed through his mind.
It was not that he could truly have overlooked such a matter. Rather, on some instinctive level, he simply had not cared.
The bright and upright Great Hero Cheng did not actually care about the lives of the common people...
The instant that thought appeared, an icy chill ran through his entire body, and he immediately shouted at Cheng Yu:
“Silence, you rebellious son! Stop bewitching the crowd with your lies!”
Cheng Yu had already expected Cheng Zhenjiang to forcibly deny the truth, and he let out a cold laugh.
“Hahaha! Bewitching the crowd? Telling me to shut up? Do you really think that if I say nothing, those people would still not be murdered?”
“Across all of Dragon Abyss Path, families destroyed by this can be found everywhere. Can you make all those common folk shut their mouths too?”
“Just like you are doing now, using that so-called reputation and authority of yours to force them into silence!”
The moment those words were spoken—
“You!”
Regret filled Cheng Zhenjiang’s eyes, and his face darkened to the extreme. Over a million lives were not something he could deny simply by silencing people!
His heart churned with countless emotions, yet for a moment, he found himself unable to say a word.
The martial artists from the other factions standing nearby were equally horrified, staring at one another in alarm.
When they had first heard there was a Grandmaster Inheritance, they had rushed here without thinking too deeply about it.
The lives of mere common laborers were hardly something anyone would make a serious issue of. They could simply be ignored.
How could such lives compare to the importance of a Grandmaster Inheritance?
Only now did they realize that all of this concealed a massive trap.
Cheng Yu had first spread the rumor and lured them to Sword-Forging Manor, and now he was bringing up the matter of the million laborers.
Was he not deliberately trying to turn them into accomplices in the deaths of a million people?
Lost and flustered, they could only look toward He Qin.
The true party involved had to explain this matter!
“The deaths of over a million people will cause an enormous uproar!”
“Manor Master He, Sword-Forging Manor must give an explanation for this!”
Seeing himself suddenly being besieged from all sides, He Qin ground his teeth, fury rising to the limit in his heart.
There was not a single decent person in this Jianghu. Every last one of them was a beast!
When there were benefits to seize, they shamelessly came to take a share. But the moment consequences appeared, they all pushed Sword-Forging Manor out to bear them.
If Cheng Zhenjiang had not been present, he would have wanted to smash the pot and be done with it, driving every one of these people out!
The deed had already been done, and there was no regretting it now. So why should he share the gains with this pack?
Once he extracted the Dragon Vein and fully reclaimed the Dragon Abyss Sword, Sword-Forging Manor would become the tenth great sect in the realm.
At that point, who would dare question the matter of those laborers?
But with the situation forcing his hand, he could only brace himself and answer:
“Excavating the Fire Essence is a great undertaking that benefits the Jianghu. Only with that Fire Essence can my Sword-Forging Manor better aid the heroes of the Jianghu in slaying bandits, securing the realm, and upholding the righteous path of chivalry!”
“Those sacrifices occurred only for the sake of a greater righteous cause! We never maliciously took anyone’s life!”
“Besides, every laborer my Sword-Forging Manor recruited signed a written contract in black and white and was fully paid. Since they signed the contract, then whether they lived or died was their own fate. How can that be blamed on us?”
He Qin spoke with forceful conviction, then turned a furious glare toward Cheng Yu.
“When the Great Qian Dynasty was first founded, did it not also conscript vast numbers of laborers for major construction projects? The number of laborers who died back then was a hundred times greater than this, and they received not even the slightest compensation. Others may have the face to speak, but what face does an Imperial Hound of the court have to accuse me?”
The moment those words were spoken, the others immediately understood.
He Qin was speaking only of Fire Essence and not mentioning the Dragon Vein.
That meant he knew the matter of the Dragon Vein absolutely could not be allowed to leak.
If the Great Qian Emperor heard of it, he would certainly go mad, and then they would not even get to sip the broth.
So they quickly began clapping and voicing their support.
“Well said!”
“Manor Master He is right! It is all for the sake of a greater righteous cause!”
“And an Imperial Hound dares question us men of chivalry?!”
The crowd loudly voiced their support, though in their hearts they knew perfectly well that at this point, they were being utterly shameless.
But they had no choice except to remain shameless together with Sword-Forging Manor.
Because they were already involved too!
Standing to one side, Cheng Zhenjiang stared with wide eyes, his expression conflicted.
As the great hero and Martial Alliance Leader who cherished his reputation above all, he could not casually cast aside shame the way these people did.
Any stance he took would only be magnified.
In the end, he could only look at He Qin and let out a deep sigh.
“You have your reasoning, but had I known of this matter earlier, I would never have kept company with your lot!”
“My failure to perceive it is a fact. I nearly committed a grave mistake.”
“Once this matter is over, I will guard the northern frontier for ten years, defending the people against barbarian tribes and demon clans as atonement!”
The moment the others heard this, they were all moved with admiration.
A great hero was truly a great hero. He could clearly have glossed it over with a few vague words and shirked responsibility, yet instead he was actually going to atone!
No wonder his fame spread so far and wide!
Only He Qin was so angry that his whole body trembled, cursing inwardly.
Among all of them, Cheng Zhenjiang was the most shameless one!
Watching this scene, Cheng Yu sneered inwardly to the utmost.
A great hero devoted to the nation and the people?
What a joke!
At that moment, the enraged He Qin fixed his gaze on Cheng Yu.
“I have already explained myself! Those people all signed contracts and voluntarily excavated Fire Essence for the sake of the Jianghu!”
“Some sacrifices were unavoidable, and my Sword-Forging Manor did not neglect their hardships either!”
“All that nonsense you spoke of abducting, tormenting, and slaughtering them is utter fabrication! Why are you still not getting out!”
He was already angry with Cheng Zhenjiang, so he no longer gave Cheng Yu any face either. An overwhelming pressure crashed down on him.
He was only a mere Fourth Rank martial artist. The fact that He Qin had not casually killed him on the spot already counted as a display of restraint.
Yet even under the crushing pressure of an Eighth Rank martial artist, Cheng Yu did not waver in the slightest.
Instead, he merely smiled and shook his head with complete ease.
“I’m not leaving. I still have something to do.”
“What is it?”
Cheng Yu swept his gaze across the many martial artists from all over gathered at Sword-Forging Manor and gave a cold smile.
“They came here for something, so I came here for the same thing.”
“It can’t be that they all just happened to come here as guests.”
The martial artists frowned the moment they heard that.
They understood perfectly well that Cheng Yu clearly did not believe the story about Fire Essence.
Anyone with eyes could see that they were all waiting to divide whatever had been dug out of the mountain.
By the rules of the past hundred years, anything excavated from Great Qian territory had to be shared with the Great Qian court.
Cheng Yu was clearly forcing them to let him see what exactly had been dug out of Sword-Forging Mountain.
If he discovered it was a Dragon Vein and the Great Qian royal house learned of it, then everything would be finished!
Hearing this, He Qin let out a cold laugh and said with disdain:
“These people came to seek weapons from my Sword-Forging Manor. Does Hundred-Household Commander Cheng also wish to seek a weapon?”
“Yes,” Cheng Yu said blandly. “What? Am I not allowed?”
“Seek a sword?”
The crowd burst into laughter the instant they heard that.
An Imperial Hound actually wanted to seek a weapon from Sword-Forging Manor?
Was he even worthy?
To them, Cheng Yu was ultimately nothing much beyond having a bit of ability.
Even his greatest backing, Cheng Zhenjiang, was already at odds with him like fire and water.
And with things like this, he still wanted to seek a weapon?
He could keep dreaming!
He Qin shook his head with even greater disdain.
“My apologies, Hundred-Household Commander Cheng. The weapons of my Sword-Forging Manor are bestowed only upon the virtuous and righteous.”
“You are not worthy!”
Everyone looked at Cheng Yu with even greater mockery.
It was simply humiliating to watch!
Among them all, Cheng Feng was the most delighted. Watching Cheng Yu get ridiculed by the crowd filled his heart with satisfaction.
That stray cur was making a fool of himself!
Compared to the treatment Cheng Feng received, the gap between them was like heaven and earth!
Born of the same mother, Cheng Feng was still far better than this unfilial, unrighteous piece of trash!
Cheng Yu lifted his head, looked at the cold disdain in everyone’s eyes, and calmly shook his head.
“So my virtue is not enough...”
“Then let me show you... whether it is enough or not!”
As he spoke, he ordered the Jinyiwei at his side to blow their horns and wave their flags.
The crowd frowned in confusion. Then, all of a sudden, they felt the ground beneath their feet begin to tremble again and again.
While they were still startled and bewildered, someone suddenly shouted:
“Look into the distance!”
The others instinctively turned their heads, and the mockery and contempt in their eyes instantly froze into dull shock.
Faced with the scene before them, every one of them stood rooted in place, their faces filled with nothing but extreme astonishment.
What they saw was utterly unbelievable.
Dust billowed into the sky, and the thunder of men and horses rolled forward like a storm!
A single thought remained in their hearts.
Cheng Yu had gone mad!
He had actually marched troops to the foot of Sword-Forging Mountain!