182: Chapter 182 Finding Fault

Qin Ce raised his hand, and Jiang Mo stepped back.

Lei Gang stepped back.

Sun Lie also stepped back.

Qin Ce looked at the veteran wrapped up like a mummy and asked, "How did Feng Bao injure you?"

The veteran was stunned for a moment, then said, "He hacked at me with Thunder Light Claw!"

"Where did he hit you?"

"He hit... he hit me on my body!"

"Where on your body?"

The veteran gestured on himself, "Right here, the chest!"

Qin Ce nodded and then asked the people behind him, "What about you? How did Feng Bao injure you?"

"He hacked at me with Thunder Light Claw!"

"I was also hit by Thunder Light Claw!"

"My Pet Beast was frightened by the thunder light!"

Qin Ce asked them one by one, inquiring in great detail about where they were injured, how they were injured, and where they were standing at the time.

They all spoke at once; some said they were on the left, some said on the right, some at the very front, and others at the very back.

Their accounts were all over the place and full of holes.

After listening, Qin Ce nodded. "Alright, I understand. It was my man's fault."

The veteran's eyes lit up. "Then you agree to the compensation?"

"I agree," Qin Ce said. "Jiang Mo, get some paper and a pen to register them. Everyone, report for yourselves how many military merits you want."

Jiang Mo opened his mouth, wanting to say something.

Qin Ce glanced at him. The look was indifferent, but Jiang Mo swallowed his words. He pulled out paper and a pen from his robes, squatted on the ground, and looked up at the men.

"Report."

The crowd erupted.

"I want five hundred!"

"I want a thousand!"

"I want three thousand! I suffered internal injuries from the shock; I'll need at least three months to recover!"

"I want five thousand! My Pet Beast is Bronze Rank; it was scared out of its wits and needs a professional Beast Tamer to treat it!"

Each demand was higher and more ridiculous than the last.

Someone reported eight hundred, and the person next to them immediately changed their mind, saying it was too little and they wanted more.

Someone reported three thousand, and the person behind them immediately reported five thousand.

Someone reported five thousand, and the person behind them went straight to ten thousand.

Jiang Mo recorded them one by one, his fingers scratching across the paper.

His expression was calm, but the veins on his temples were throbbing.

Qin Ce stood to the side, listening to those numbers without any expression on his face.

Tianlu squatted at his feet, his golden eyes sweeping over the people reporting numbers. The nine-colored light on his antlers flickered slightly before dimming again.

More and more people came forward to report numbers.

It wasn't just the group that had been frightened by Feng Bao at the camp gate three days ago; others had heard the news and come to join the commotion.

Some people clearly weren't even there, yet they squeezed in to report a number.

Some clearly weren't injured, yet they made up an excuse.

Some felt their reported number wasn't enough and squeezed back in to change it.

Jiang Mo filled one sheet of paper and then another.

Three sheets, five sheets, ten sheets.

Finally, over three hundred people and over three hundred compensation claims, a thick stack of paper, was placed in Qin Ce's hand.

Qin Ce flipped through them and nodded. "Is everything recorded?"

Jiang Mo said, "Recorded."

Qin Ce folded the stack of paper and tucked it into his robes.

Then he turned and walked toward the pile of ferocious beast materials that had just been brought back to the edge of the camp.

That pile of materials had just been transported back from the North by the 3rd Battalion and hadn't been put into storage yet.

Hides, bones, claws, and teeth of various ferocious beasts were piled together, emitting a strong smell of blood.

Qin Ce rummaged through the pile of materials and pulled out a bone.

It was a femur, nearly two meters long, thick at one end and tapering at the other, with the thin end about the thickness of a wrist.

The bone was heavy, its surface gleaming with a dull yellow luster. It was unknown which ferocious beast it came from, but its texture was extremely hard.

Qin Ce weighed it in his hand, gripped it, and turned back.

His expression remained the same—calm and indifferent, as if nothing had happened.

But when the members of the Seventh Squad saw that bone, they all sucked in a breath of cold air in unison.

They had seen Qin Ce battle Gold Rank ferocious beasts; they had seen him use Wind Blade, Spider-Web Wind Blade, Shadow Sight, and Flowing Cloud Wave Roll.

None of them would ever again mistake Qin Ce for some ignorant young master from a noble family.

Qin Ce stood before those three hundred-plus people, shouldering the bone.

His voice wasn't loud, but every word was crystal clear.

"What Feng Bao did yesterday was very wrong."

The crowd went silent for a moment.

A smug smile appeared on the veteran's face, thinking Qin Ce was about to back down.

"Since he already made a move, he should have finished the job," Qin Ce's voice remained quiet. "How can they still be standing here today, blabbering away?"

The veteran's smile froze.

Qin Ce turned his head to look at the squad members behind him.

"Now, I will teach you," he took the bone off his shoulder and held it in his hand, the tip pointing to the ground. "What you should do when faced with a situation like yesterday's."

As soon as he finished speaking, he moved.

Seven Kills Chaos, Ku Mantra.

That bone slammed into the first person in front—the veteran wrapped up like a mummy.

The bone landed on his shoulder; there was no sound of bones breaking, no sound of screaming.

In an instant, the veteran's expression changed from smug to blank, from blank to terrified, and from terrified to ashen.

His body seemed to have all its strength drained away, and he collapsed limply to the ground, unable to even let out a cry.

The Ku Mantra didn't damage bones and sinews; it withered a person's vital energy and blood.

The force of Seven Kills Chaos passed through the bone and deep into the body; wherever it went, vital energy and blood withered, and bones and sinews became limp and weak.

It wasn't a break; it was a withering.

Like a tree having its moisture drained away, from root to tip, from inside to out, it withered bit by bit.

The veteran lay on the ground, eyes still open, mouth agape, but he couldn't muster an ounce of strength in his body.

He wanted to scream, but he couldn't.

He wanted to move, but he couldn't.

He could only lie there like a conscious corpse.

Qin Ce didn't stop.

The second person—the bone hit their shoulder, and they collapsed.

The third person—the bone hit their arm, and they collapsed.

The fourth person—the bone hit their back, and they collapsed.

Qin Ce's movements weren't fast; one might even say they were slow.

He walked step by step, striking with the club one blow after another.

"He... he's crazy!" someone finally shouted. "Attack together! Can he really fight three hundred of us alone?!"

That shout was like a match thrown into a barrel of oil.

Those who could still move, those who hadn't been hit yet, and those standing in the back who hadn't had time to react all moved at once.

Some rushed forward throwing punches, some summoned Pet Beasts, some picked up stones from the ground, and some turned and ran.

Qin Ce didn't dodge.

He didn't even pick up his pace.

He simply walked step by step, striking with the club blow by blow.

Those who rushed forward hadn't even touched the corner of his clothes before the bone landed on them.

The summoned Pet Beasts hadn't even launched an attack before the bone struck their heads.

The force of Seven Kills Chaos passed through the bone deep into the Pet Beasts' bodies; their energy circulation was disrupted in an instant, making them unable to release skills or even stand steadily.

Over three hundred people, in less than fifteen minutes, were all lying on the ground.

Some were still moaning, some had already passed out, and some lay there with eyes wide open, trembling all over.

The Training Field was covered with people lying in all directions, like a forest devastated by a violent storm.

Qin Ce stood in the middle of the crowd and thrust the bone into the ground.

The bone pierced into the soil and stood there like a flagpole.

He pulled the stack of paper from his robes, unfolded it, and read the first name.

"Zhao Si, five hundred military merits."

The veteran lying on the ground trembled all over.

"Wang Hu, one thousand."

Another one.

"Liu Dazhuang, three thousand."

One name after another, one number after another.

Qin Ce read very slowly, pronouncing every name clearly.

After he finished reading, Qin Ce folded the paper and tucked it back into his robes.

"You reported the names, and you wrote the amounts." His voice wasn't loud, but in the deathly silent Training Field, everyone heard him clearly.

"Within a week, hand over what you owe me. If you're late, I'll track you down one by one. By then, it will be double."

The three hundred-plus people lying on the ground all sucked in a breath of cold air simultaneously.

Owed him?

When did the amounts on that list become what they owed him?

Wasn't that the compensation they had reported?

How did it become what they had to pay?

Someone opened their mouth, wanting to say something threatening, but seeing the bone at Qin Ce's feet—stained with blood and dust—they closed it again.

Someone lying on the ground was calculating in their heart: I just won't give it; what can Qin Ce do?!

Then their expression turned fierce!

Damn it, when the time comes...

At worst, I'll just dive into the mountains; who would know where I went?

...