Chapter 154: A Subject of the Great Wei?

At the very moment closest to victory, at the very moment when Zhao Jun was about to pierce Wei Wuji's chest, the situation turned drastically.

Zhao Jun was defeated, thoroughly and completely. Under the gaze of all the soldiers, he was ruthlessly knocked to the ground by Wei Wuji.

Even his most cherished sword as a warrior could not be preserved; it was struck right out of his hand.

Holding his sword forward, Wei Wuji walked up to Zhao Jun and pointed the blade at his throat, saying, "You are defeated!"

Zhao Jun felt as though his entrails were burning. His body suffered heavy blows, but compared to the physical pain, his heart ached far more. He was consumed by hatred.

When a person is so agonizingly close to victory only to be defeated in the blink of an eye, the frustration and resentment in his heart can well be imagined.

For Zhao Jun, defeat itself was not truly terrifying. What truly tormented him was that the one who defeated him was a mere "profligate son," the very type of person he despised most in his life.

Not only that, but within the ranks of the elite Wei Wu Zu, if he wanted to firmly secure his position as a military commander, he had to constantly guard his authority and prestige.

Now that Zhao Jun had been defeated, his status within the Wei Wu Zu was severely threatened, a blow with far-reaching and damaging consequences.

Therefore, Zhao Jun hated. He hated Wei Wuji.

"I am defeated..." Zhao Jun closed his eyes, his voice filled with unwillingness.

At this moment, the expressions of the soldiers below also shifted.

They could never have imagined that Commander Zhao, usually so formidable and majestic, could be defeated—and defeated so cleanly and decisively.

They were the Wei Wu Zu, renowned far and wide, with no one daring to pull the tiger's whiskers. Yet today, someone had not only come to run amok, but had also heavily bruised their pride by defeating their mightiest warrior.

A wave of resentment stirred in the hearts of the soldiers, and their gazes toward Wei Wuji turned icy cold.

By now, the captain standing nearby could no longer sit still. At this juncture, he had to represent the Wei Wu Zu and deliver a verdict on the matter.

Slowly stepping onto the platform, the captain glared coldly at Wei Wuji.

"My lord, you must capture this man! You cannot simply let him go..."

"Captain Chen, this man has humiliated our Wu Zu. He deserves to die..."

From within the crowd, voices rose one after another, urging Captain Chen to take action against Wei Wuji and show no leniency.

This startled Wei Wuji. His original purpose in coming here was to display his strength, build friendly relations with the Wei Wu Zu, or at least become a familiar face.

Yet now, he had somehow managed to draw the hatred of the entire camp.

This would never do. If he ended up on the blacklist of these soldiers, it would spell disaster, Wei Wuji thought to himself.

"Are you going to kill him?" At that moment, the captain demanded in a stern voice.

For at that instant, Wei Wuji's sword was still pointed at Zhao Jun on the ground.

Wei Wuji smiled faintly, then withdrew his sword and thrust it heavily into the wooden flooring, the hilt vibrating ceaselessly in the air.

"It was merely a spar, how could I possibly kill him?" Wei Wuji said calmly.

At that, armored guards behind Captain Chen stepped forward and carried the fallen Zhao Jun away.

"Although you did not kill him, your blows were hardly light. Had Zhao Jun not possessed a sturdy constitution, he likely would have perished at your hands!" Captain Chen said coldly. No matter what, he needed to pin a crime on Wei Wuji first before arresting him.

That way, he would stand on solid moral ground. Having held an official post for so many years, Captain Chen was undoubtedly a cautious man.

"All of you saw it just now. It was clearly Zhao Jun who pressed his sword to my chest first. Had I not knocked him down, the one who died would surely have been me!" Turning around, Wei Wuji addressed the soldiers below.

Based on his experience from his past life, true power lay among the masses, while bureaucrats were merely paper tigers.

Wei Wuji was not afraid of offending this captain, but he did not want the common soldiers to harbor resentment toward him.

Therefore, he had to explain clearly to the soldiers below that the fault did not lie with him; he had been driven to it by necessity.

"Hmph!"

Captain Chen's face was stern and grim, his gaze toward Wei Wuji growing increasingly gloomy.

Wei Wuji ignored this, maintaining his composure. Yet this only fueled Captain Chen's disgust.

On his own turf, someone had beaten his man and still remained so nonchalant, completely disregarding his authority and his status as a captain of the Wei Wu Zu.

"To strike a comrade with such lethal intent, do you still possess any sense of brotherhood?" Captain Chen shouted angrily, attempting to wrest control of the narrative.

As the saying goes, if one is determined to condemn someone, pretexts are never lacking. Since Captain Chen wanted to make an arrest, who here would dare resist?

Yet Captain Chen never expected that his words would actually hand Wei Wuji an opportunity. The young man had been worrying about how to put on a show for the soldiers below!

This kind of emotional manipulation was precisely what Wei Wuji needed most at the moment.

"I lack a sense of brotherhood?" Wei Wuji stared fixedly at Captain Chen, his voice laced with disbelief.

"When Zhao Jun intended to kill me, did he have any sense of brotherhood?" Wei Wuji pointed straight at Captain Chen.

Captain Chen's face darkened, looking at Wei Wuji as if looking at a dead man.

Let him dance a little longer! Soon enough, he will wish he were dead, Captain Chen thought to himself.

To him, regardless of how influential this arrogant wretch before him might be, he would strip him down to the bone.

As for whether or not to spare Wei Wuji's life, that would depend entirely on his mood.

Zheng Dali could sense the murderous intent radiating from the man before them, and he quietly took a few steps closer to Wei Wuji to prevent the opponent from suddenly launching a fatal attack.

"He accuses me of lacking brotherhood, but do you know how I even arrived here and was forced into a duel with Zhao Jun?" Wei Wuji turned back once more to face the soldiers below.

"I was merely watching your army's military drill from the side, only to be verbally abused and subjected to personal insults by Zhao Jun..."

Wei Wuji looked almost on the verge of tears as he continued, "For the dignity of a man, I was left with no choice but to issue a challenge."

Even Zheng Dali nearby stared with wide eyes, silently marveling that his young master was truly a genius who picked everything up instantly.

"Utter nonsense!" Captain Chen bellowed.

"It was clearly you who stood on the sidelines during our military drills, laughing, jeering, and mocking us, showing zero respect for our army!" Captain Chen said coldly.

He was clever. Since Wei Wuji was striving to explain himself to the soldiers, he would forcibly pin the hatred back onto him.

"Did you see it or hear it with your own eyes?" Wei Wuji retorted.

Naturally, Captain Chen could not claim he had, as he had been busy overseeing the evaluations at the time.

Seeing Captain Chen remain silent, Wei Wuji continued, "When the Wei Wu Zu performed their drills, I came purely to observe. I was awed by the soldiers' swordplay, and whenever a brilliant move was executed, I applauded in praise. How could that possibly be considered mocking or jeering?"

Wei Wuji's words were remarkably adroit. Not only did they deflect Captain Chen's slander, but they also subtly flattered the soldiers below.

If someone who had defeated Commander Zhao was praising their extraordinary swordplay, did that not mean they were no less formidable than Commander Zhao himself?

Initially, the soldiers had harbored a deep sense of sympathy for Wei Wuji as the perceived "weaker party." Hearing him speak thus, their lingering hostility toward him dissipated significantly.

Captain Chen saw all of this, which only made it harder for him to swallow. Since when could an outsider strut about so wildly on his territory?

Without another word, Captain Chen waved both hands, signaling the armored guards to close in.

"You have shown contempt for military law with malicious intent. Prepare to be arrested!" Captain Chen's voice turned chillingly cold.

He no longer wished to drag this out. He had no intention of wasting further mental effort on a mere weakling.

"Are you going to lay hands on me?" Wei Wuji asked calmly, showing no trace of fear, for his trump cards remained formidable.

Faced with Wei Wuji's seemingly foolish question, Captain Chen could scarcely muster the desire to reply.

"Do you take this place for Wu'an City?" Captain Chen laughed derisively.

Among the profligate youths of Wu'an City, there were indeed a few he dared not touch. But Wei Wuji certainly was not one of them.

At that moment, facing the relentless closing-in of the guards, Zheng Dali finally stepped forward. He drew his sword with a sharp ring and fixed the approaching guards with a fierce, warning glare.

Wei Wuji retained his faint smile, saying leisurely, "If this is not Wu'an City, is it not still the land of Great Wei? Are you not subjects of Great Wei?"