"It's me!" Wild Grass’s face flooded with ecstasy. Gan Jing remembered him! And there was no hostility in his eyes, nor any intention to deliberately avoid him. All the worries he had before coming were truly unnecessary. "How did you get here?" Gan Jing stepped forward, making room for Wild Grass, whose face was still smeared with blood and mud, and asked, "How is the Seventeenth Squad? Do you need me for something?" The joy on Wild Grass’s face quickly gave way to gravity. He didn't sit down, instead reaching out to grab Gan Jing’s wrist, saying urgently, "I don't want to lie to you. The Big Sister didn't send me to find you. It was our subordinates who discussed it among themselves and decided, on their own initiative, to come seeking your help. The Black Wind area is in complete chaos now; the Third Boss and the First Boss can no longer tolerate each other. The friction has escalated into factional strife, and the Big Sister is caught up in it."

Gan Jing stared silently at the injuries on Wild Grass’s body. Having spent many days together, the relationship among those bandits in the Seventeenth Squad felt more like family than fellow marauders. Now, it seemed the situation must be serious, otherwise, Wild Grass and his group wouldn't have thought to seek help from an outsider like him.

"Gan Jing, you are living well now." Wild Grass looked at Gan Jing. "I have no right to ask you to take a risk with me. The frontier is indeed incredibly chaotic. If you don't want to go, just say so directly. Don't give any excuses or hesitate in thought to waste my time! If I can’t save the Big Sister and the others," I must at least go back to die with them..."

Lucifer Flowing Water’s singular, beautiful eye gleamed with an unusual light. He hadn't expected that among the bandits rumored to only care about money, profit, and who were timid yet cruel, there could be a person like this! Although his strength wasn't overwhelming, there was an aura within him harder than steel.

"I'll go." Gan Jing looked faintly at Wild Grass. "Although I still don't fully understand what exactly happened out in the frontier. But... I will go! If the Seventeenth Squad hadn't been separated from Hua Yan that day, the four of us wouldn't have made it back alive to the Zhen Ce Dynasty."

"Good! Our brothers didn't misjudge you!" Wild Grass forcefully clapped Gan Jing’s shoulder, wincing as he moved an unhealed injury. A grimace contorted his face. "Worthy of being the man our Big Sister favors."

"Where to? The frontier?" Gu Yue Jiaying stood up silently. Her footsteps were completely unseen beneath the long skirt as she approached Gan Jing. "This time... I'm going too."

"You...?" Gan Jing frowned slightly. Gu Yue Jiaying's presence didn't seem strong, but she managed everything at home. If she followed him out to the frontier, then Luo Qingqing...

"Brother Gan Jing..." Luo Qingqing spoke softly. "Two consecutive batches of goods for the merchant convoy had trouble in the frontier. I won't make any drastic moves with the Merchant Association; I will maintain its operations for now and temporarily won't be leaving the Flood Fortress."

Gan Jing smiled faintly. The women beside him were smarter than the last. Before he could even voice an idea, they had already figured out solutions.

Gan Jing stared at Gu Yue Jiaying for a moment, then shook his head gently. "You cannot go."

A flicker of stunned surprise crossed Gu Yue Jiaying's eyes. This man was usually firm towards outsiders but quite easygoing internally—he rarely refused anything the others wanted to do. This time, he flatly refused.

"I..."

"No need to say more." Gan Jing waved his hand decisively. "The frontier is too chaotic. You shouldn't go to dangerous places."

Gu Yue Jiaying stood still, unsure what to say. This man, who usually yielded to them on so many matters, was being so unyieldingly firm this time. His words contained no room for discussion.

"You just need to take good care of the household." Gan Jing pushed the door open and spoke to the warrior standing outside. "Apologies, could you help me find a large, dark grey cloak?" The warrior froze, then quickly nodded and turned to leave. This successor to the Guild Master clearly didn't want anyone to know the state of his condition.

Gu Yue Jiaying watched Gan Jing's retreating back, her heart trembling slightly. The once immature boy had truly grown up. A wave of fatigue began to emanate through her body.

These past days, Gu Yue Jiaying had maintained a strong front. Besides her nature, it was also because Gan Jing was never truly firm internally, giving people the lingering illusion that he hadn't fully matured.

Today, in this moment of firm refusal, Gu Yue Jiaying felt a sense of being protected, the safe feeling of a small bird sheltering beneath the wings of a strong, large bird.

"Tell Uncle Mu Gui I'm stepping out for a bit and will be back soon." Gan Jing instructed the warrior, then seriously pondered to himself. "I only just got back a few days ago, and now I have to leave temporarily again. I wonder what the Headmaster will say when he finds out? Getting leave will be another headache."

"Oh, right, Wild Grass." Gan Jing turned back to look at Wild Grass. "Bu Er and the others are not here for the moment. It's not that they don't want to come, so..."

Wild Grass nodded. "I believe you."

"Alright then! I'll go to the academy to ask for leave." Gan Jing rubbed his forehead. "After I get the leave approved, we head to the frontier. You few, stay put at home and don't wander around; it's not safe in the city right now either."

Lucifer Flowing Water watched Gan Jing’s departing back and pouted slightly, her eyes sneaking glances in Gu Yue Jiaying's direction.

"Xun Yu, get ready." Gu Yue Jiaying flipped her hand lightly. Within the seemingly delicate sleeves, two cold, gleaming curved sabers flashed: Twin Moons!

"You..." Lucifer Flowing Water looked at the blades in Gu Yue Jiaying's hand in surprise. "...What are you doing?"

"We won't wander around." Gu Yue Jiaying displayed a rare smile. "We'll follow him! Danger in the frontier isn't just for women. Perhaps we can even lend a hand."

"Of course," Gu Yue Jiaying closed the door, changed into a practical female warrior's uniform, and slightly raised her head. "Even if the Dynasty doesn't stipulate that a man can only have one wife, he can't just bring anyone home, can he? Gan Jing is good in every way, but his biggest flaw is that he can't refuse people. There are already quite a few women at home; since he won't refuse, as his women, we have to help him refuse."

The streets of Eternal Flow City had seen the martial law lifted in a short time. People from the Four Great Factions were seldom seen on the streets, yet the usual flow of common citizens was also conspicuously absent.

The simultaneous announcement of martial law by the Four Great Factions, even though it was now lifted, still left the populace worried. They preferred to wait and observe the situation first.

Gan Jing, riding a fine warhorse provided by the Flood Fortress, traveled to the city gate. He found three times the usual number of city defense warriors standing guard, observing vigilantly.

"Lower your cloak..."

Before the city guard could finish speaking, upon seeing the special pass Gan Jing held, obtained from the Flood Fortress, they quickly stepped aside. That was a special pass personally issued by the City Lord; with such an item, even a nationally wanted criminal would be let through, with the guards pretending not to see him.

Gan Jing urged his horse through the archway of the city gate. He saw dust billowing in the distance, and dozens of warriors on horseback were galloping towards Eternal Flow City. "Stop..."

The leading warrior pulled hard on his horse’s reins when he reached the city gate, rearing the beast up on its hind legs with a piercing whinny. The warriors behind him all jerked their horses to a halt.

"Uncle?" Gan Jing slightly adjusted his cloak, somewhat surprised to run into Zeng Yicheng from the Flood Fortress here.

Zeng Yicheng was so startled by the sight of the robust Gan Jing on horseback that he nearly fell off. He rubbed his eyes hard, then blinked again. Didn't Guild Master Mu Gui say Gan Jing would be bedridden for several months? How could he look as strong as an ox?

"Oh, it's you." Zeng Yicheng glanced at the warriors following him; it wasn't convenient to call out Gan Jing's name directly. He just frowned. "Where are you off to?"

"Just heading to the academy," Gan Jing reined in his horse and asked with a smile, "Uncle, what about you...?" Zeng Yicheng’s expression darkened slightly. He spat on the ground and said resentfully, "The Lei family dug two secret tunnels leading out of the city; we were pursuing them. The Guild Master said we were too exhausted and told us to return and rest first while they continued the chase."

"They got away?" Gan Jing’s mood sank.

Zeng Yicheng nodded without hiding his expression. "Some got away! Right when Lei Zhen launched a sneak attack against an important figure in our Fortress, he had already secretly moved a contingent of Lei family members away. How could we have anticipated that? We only found out after we took down the Lei family compound."

Gan Jing slowly closed his eyelids, calculating in his mind. This meant! Before Gan Jing had even taken the initiative to coordinate with the major powers, Lei Zhen, that old man, had already predicted all possible consequences and arranged for some of his people to leave Eternal Flow City a full day in advance. If things went smoothly, he planned to bring them back.

It seemed... it was too late! Gan Jing let out a long breath. Mu Gui probably couldn't catch up even if he pursued with full effort. It was only a matter of trying their best! He truly hadn't expected that completely dismantling the Lei family would be this troublesome. This failure was on him; he had been on the defensive until Lei Zhen’s sneak attack finally prompted him to unite the various powers and launch a full, proactive assault on the Lei family.

"Alas," Gan Jing sighed again. "This outcome is actually the best possible scenario. If I hadn't taken over the Blacksmiths' Guild, the only forces I could truly mobilize would have been the Flood Fortress and the Wu Dao Society. Lacking the City Lord's power would have been very problematic, especially if the City Lord had sided with the Lei family at a critical moment!"

"To have achieved this result is already the best we could hope for." Gan Jing vigorously stretched his neck and frowned in thought. "But... where would the Lei family go?"

"To Qian Zhou! To seek refuge with the Qian family!"

In the wilderness several hundred li from Eternal Flow City, several hundred people formed a circle around an old man, listening to his commands.

"My elder brother, Lei Zhen, once served as a Centurion under Qian Zhan Xuan, the head of the Elven King's Bloodline Warriors." The old man turned his hawk-like eyes back towards the direction of Eternal Flow. "Eternal Flow! Gan Jing! I, Lei Kan, swear here! Our Lei family will return! When we do, it will be the moment of your deaths."

"Family Head, if we seek refuge with the Qian family... then our status..." Lei Kan's hawk-like eyes flashed with resentment and malice, his yellowed teeth grinding audibly. "What status do you think we'll have? Do you think we're still the Lei family of Eternal Flow? A vassal family for a hundred years! That's an optimistic estimate at best..."

The several hundred members of the Lei family fell silent. A vassal family! What a humiliation! Damn Gan Jing! This humiliation would be repaid a hundredfold in the future!

"Gan Jing... Lei Wei has not finished with you!"