C4 Chapter 4

“Zhao, kill her!”

“Yeah—Boss Zhao’s gonna do it himself?”

Who cares whose life it is?

The woman looked like she was about to collapse, but her clear eyes were razor-sharp. It was obvious: whoever rushed her next would die by her hand.

No one wanted to be the next one, so they jeered and shoved the job onto Boss Zhao.

Boss Zhao couldn’t back out. He spat a curse. “Bunch of cowards. Move! I’ll skin this brat myself!”

With that, Boss Zhao made his move and charged straight at Tang Yao.

He was actually pretty good, and Tang Yao really was at the end of her rope. He caught her with a single move, then raised his broadsword to take her head off!

Tang Yao squeezed her eyes shut. Damn it!

She had to be the most pathetic, most ridiculous person to ever end up in this mess—barely got here and almost got assaulted, and now she was about to be beheaded.

Tang Yao felt a heavy weight slump onto her. Boss Zhao’s body sagged against her.

She jolted, scrambling away on hands and knees, a total mess. Then she saw it: a long sword buried in the middle of Boss Zhao’s throat. He was down, eyes wide open, dead.

Tang Yao: “...” What just happened? Who stepped in?

Her gaze swept the crowd, and she immediately spotted someone new.

He wore silver-gray heavy armor that still couldn’t hide his tall, powerful build. Most of his face was covered by his helmet, leaving only a pair of eyes—cold as snow—enough to make your blood run cold.

He sat astride a massive black horse, perfectly still. Yet the pressure he gave off blanketed the entire camp, suffocating.

All around, the soldiers dropped to their knees. “General Lang!”

Tang Yao’s heart lurched again—General Lang, commander of the Windborne Camp, the highest authority in the entire force.

They said he enforced discipline like iron, cold-blooded and ruthless, with more blood on his hands than anyone could count.

She’d killed men from two of his squads. He hadn’t killed her—instead, he’d executed Boss Zhao. Was he planning to punish her in some even harsher way?

Just then, General Lang flicked his hand.

The soldiers clattered back to their feet.

“Any man who bullies a defenseless woman dies.” General Lang’s voice was clear, even pleasant—yet it carried a chill as old and merciless as an endless winter plain.

So the one who’d struck was General Lang himself.

The soldiers: “...” That was why he killed Boss Zhao?

But the woman in front of them… she didn’t exactly look defenseless.

Still, who would dare question General Lang’s law?

“You said you can get all of us out of this?” General Lang asked lazily.

Tang Yao jolted. In that question, she heard a way to stay alive.

She nodded quickly. “There’s an eighty percent chance.”

General Lang clearly didn’t understand what she meant—those modern terms weren’t landing.

So she tried again. “Eight or nine times out of ten, it’ll work.”

General Lang stared at her for a long moment. The camp went dead quiet—so quiet even the horses didn’t make a sound.

A bead of sweat slid slowly down Tang Yao’s forehead. She knew her life or death hung on a single thought in General Lang’s mind.

“Come into my tent,” General Lang said.

Tang Yao let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, answered softly, and followed behind General Lang’s big black horse, walking slowly toward his command tent.

The soldiers: “...” That’s it? So Squad Sixteen and Squad Seventeen died for nothing?