Chapter 168: Acting cool is a skill, if you don't act well, you'll be a dumbass seeking death...

  Qian Jin looked at Boss Liang's completely different attitude towards Feng Tuo and Duan Feng, and sighed secretly. In any book that mentions the warriors of the Zhen Ce Empire, it is said that they are a group respected by the entire empire, even the emperor himself. However, it doesn't make clear that the warriors who truly receive respect are not the low-ranking warriors, but rather those with powerful abilities. "You three get ready to go," General Feng waved his hand: "Gather your weapons and each take a soft leather armor from the military supplies depot."

  Many mercenaries cast envious glances at the departing trio. As mercenaries, they had to earn their own equipment and pay for any upgrades themselves; a single piece of leather armor was no small expense. These three had just begun their journey as warriors and already received free leather armor.

  Qianjin found a quiet tent to think for a while, but still didn't take out the Zhanma knife from the Dou boundary. After all, it was too eye-catching with both hands and knives. He just hung an extra quiver of arrows at his waist and walked back to the team with the iron-refined Doubing Shooting Moon Bow.

  The mercenaries didn't pay much attention to Qianjin and his strong bow, good warriors always use close combat weapons like swords and spears, unless you're an archer from the Yu family, otherwise the status of an archer is never too high, even if the strong bow in your hand looks very beautiful, it's just... a replica!

  Some sons of high-ranking officials and aristocratic families are not very capable, but they want to show off their prowess, so they go to custom-make some weapons that look very beautiful, seem to be made with great craftsmanship, and appear to be very powerful, but are actually terrible.

  Where there is demand, there will naturally be a market. The fake martial arts are now very popular in the imperial capital's big cities. Each and every one of these weapons looks like it's for real combat, but their actual use might not even be enough to shoot down a large bird.

  The mercenaries' attention was focused on the Flame Road Crazy Song, at this age, not a Blood Warrior but already a Demon Warrior, enough to attract anyone's attention, who knows if there will be another chance to meet in the future, it's better to establish some relationship in advance.

  Duan Feng carried a 2-meter-long gun on his shoulder, walking forward as if no one was around. The gun body was bent slightly into an arc due to the pressure of his arms, showing its good elasticity. Only the tip of the gun reflected a cold light under the sunlight.

  The mercenaries didn't pay much attention to Dufeng's halberd, a white wax wood gun body that was good but not particularly excellent.

  He glanced at the gun tip of Duan Feng's second shot, and a hint of admiration flashed in his eyes. It was actually a Dou Bing-level gun tip, placed on this ordinary white wax wood gun, it indeed had a hidden meaning.

  Three thousand husbands finished checking and said there was nothing contraband, General Feng waved his hand and let the merchant team go.

  Gan Jiang and the other two each carried their weapons as they walked in the middle of the troops, also learning from those mercenaries to constantly observe their surroundings. [The Demon Clan is the true arch-nemesis of the Zhen Ce Imperial Dynasty.]

  This iron law has long been deeply imprinted in the minds of every citizen of the Zhen Ce Empire, but what do demons look like? What is their way of life? However, not all citizens of the Zhen Ce Empire know this. Qian Jin only knew about it from book introductions and had never seen what demons looked like with his own eyes.

  As they left the earthen fort, the atmosphere of the merchant group became even more tense. All the mercenaries showed their professional quality, with two riding horses to scout ahead and gather information, while the other mercenaries tightened their nerves and watched around them.

  There is a region between the Shin Sō Kō and the Mazoku that does not belong to either side, with varying widths in different areas. In some places, it can be hundreds of miles wide, while in others, it may only be a dozen or so miles wide, serving as a buffer zone between the two sides.

  If the border is just a foot away, then naturally it's a daily battle that never stops. After years of fighting experience, both sides have learned to keep a certain distance from each other.

  In the hundred and fifty miles of no man's land between the Demon Clan's fortress and the True Spirit Empire, it was a haven for thieves and bandits. Whether they were demon thieves or human mountain bandits from the True Spirit Empire, or horse thieves from the Barbarian tribes, they all gathered here.

  In a bandit gang, there were simultaneously barbarians, demons and humans. This was not an uncommon situation in this unadministered area.

  Caravans hired mercenaries for protection, largely against bandits along this route.

  The merchant caravan had traveled several miles when a clear and arrogant cold hum suddenly sounded from the horse carriage.

  With a glance from the corner of her eye, she suddenly understood that the beautiful and arrogant female magician's discontent was directed at whom - Duan Feng Er!

  The merchant group had only traveled a few miles when Duan Feng suddenly became very familiar with the cart driver, and was now sitting in the carriage, leaning against the straw and smoking a cigarette, enjoying the sunshine and feeling the gentle breeze, as if he were on a leisurely outing, without any sense of urgency or security that a guard should have.

  The driver sitting next to Tofu was the same driver of the third cart! His rough big hands held a cigarette handed over by Tofu, and faint blue smoke floated out from under his hat brim.

  Could it be? He also sensed that something was off about this carriage driver? A hint of doubt flashed across Qian Jin's eyes, and suddenly a hawk's cry echoed through the sky.

  The mercenary guards suddenly tensed up, and two crossbowmen holding yew longbows immediately drew their bows and aimed at the flying eagle in the sky.

  Mountain bandit's scouting eagle! Qian Jin had seen introductions about robbers in books, some of whom used humans for reconnaissance, while others used animals, such as eagles, swallows, or even a rabbit hopping on the ground.

  However, the delicious wild rabbit is often shot dead by mercenaries as soon as it appears in front of a merchant caravan and becomes their dinner. In order to avoid becoming the mercenaries' dinner after half a year of hard training, mountain bandits have almost stopped using rabbits for scouting. Hawks are a means of reconnaissance that both mountain bandits and armies frequently use.

  Whoosh, whoosh! Two powerful arrows shot out of the bow and soared into the sky. As they rose higher and higher, their speed slowed down, and just as they were about to reach their peak, a majestic eagle swooped in, its wings fluttering slightly, and with a swift motion of its talons, it snatched the arrows right out of the air.

  It let out a few mocking cries in the air, circling around the crowd with an elegant flight pattern, and then dropped its arrow towards the ground again. "Tch! Can't even bring down a hawk, and you call yourselves mercenaries?" Aibijia coldly swept her gaze over the several mercenaries holding bows: "Still got the nerve to collect mercenary fees?"

  Two archer mercenaries' faces flushed with shame, and they lowered their heads directly. No matter what, the eagle flew much higher than ordinary male eagles, and not hitting it was still a shameful thing for the mercenaries.

  The other mercenaries heard Aibika's words and showed varying degrees of anger on their faces. Since joining the merchant group, they had almost every day heard her cold and sarcastic remarks, but she happened to have the strength of a third-level magician and was also a member of the Magic Guild.

  "Oh my, it seems that you archers and warriors will always need the support of us mages. Without great mages like ourselves, you'd be useless." Elvira rose slowly from her goose-down cushion, her elegant staff in hand, her red velvet mage's robe fluttering in the wind: "Let me lend a hand, and let you see just how mysterious and powerful magic can be."

  Aibijia slowly raised the exquisite staff in her hand, lightly chanting the magic incantation. Her spiritual power was communicating with the red gemstone on the staff, and she chose to use the incantation instead of a quick-starting magic scroll.

  Qian Jin couldn't help but smile weakly at Ai Bi Jia's performance. Many magicians had this strange habit, always wanting to show off their magical chanting abilities whenever they had the time, even if it meant slowly adjusting their spiritual energy and gathering magical elements instead of using a simpler and more effective method. If she were to face Huang Quan, her ten lives would have been taken by Huang Quan long ago.

  "Spirit of the fire element, heed my call and appear!" The red glow on Aoi's magic wand swirled and gradually took shape as a rocket: "Ignite! Rocket Magic! Bring down that insignificant target!"

  Rocket soared into the sky with a loud bang, carrying an unmatched momentum as it charged towards the heavens like a majestic eagle. Wherever it passed, it left behind a faint red mark, as if it was about to set the sky ablaze.

  The eagle saw the rocket's flight, in mid-air it turned around, and with a sudden burst of its wide wings, it merged towards the rocket, stirring up a strong gust of wind. The bravely charging rocket was blown smaller and smaller by the wind, until it became a tiny spark, and then disappeared completely.

  The merchant group was unusually quiet for a moment, and Qianjin saw that the faces of those mercenaries were all red with suppressed laughter, not daring to offend the magician. The majestic fire arrow was actually extinguished by the eagle's wings, which was even more embarrassing than the bow and arrow being caught by the eagle.

  Hahaha...

  A quiet merchant caravan suddenly burst out a loud and cheerful laughter, Duan Feng couldn't help but roll back and forth on the straw in the carriage, wiping away tears of joy from the corners of his eyes with the palm of his hand that was holding a cigarette.

  "Haha! It's really too much fun!" Feng Wudi laughed breathlessly, looking at Ai Bijia: "I'm saying, pretty girl, are you feeling that traveling is too boring, so you're intentionally doing some ridiculous things to tease us and play with us? Very interesting! Too interesting! I'm saying, if you can't find a job in the future, why not just join the circus and perform? For example, you could be a rocket, and then have a mouse blow it out, this absolutely has great prospects!"

  PA: Double monthly ticket, less than an hour left... Who among you still has a monthly ticket, throw it over! Thank you thank you!!