Jon understood. He took a step forward and placed himself in front of Zen. Then with a low voice, he
said, "Just let it go, Randall. Fighting with a kid will not make you look good."
"Out of the way, Jon. His life is mine to take!" Randall roared. Normally, Randall would consider Jon's
advice. But now he had completely lost it. He couldn't think about anything else except tearing Zen
apart.
"Randall, just because you have the Zhuge family supporting you, you think you can do whatever you
want?" Jon's face darkened. It seemed that Randall was not going to think rationally.
"So what? You want a fight?" Randall clenched his fists. As white tufts of frost covered his hands, the
air around Randall shimmered with cold. This was Randall's life vitality.
"You think I am afraid of you?" Jon didn't flinch at Randall's rage.
Seeing that the two were going to fight, Roger became impatient.
"I'm in no mood to watch you two fight. Just let Martin go. Jon, if you can't get it done, I will go find my
uncle," Roger said with displeasure written all over his face. He had been confident that Jon could
handle the issue. Randall could do this the easy way or the hard way, but apparently, he had chosen
the latter.
Jon's expression changed at Roger's words. If Roger's uncle were involved, it would take this situation
to a whole different level. Jon didn't want that. He said quickly, "Young master, there is no need to
trouble your uncle with such a little thing."
Roger shrugged. He gestured around the yard and asked, "To me, it seems that they don't want to
release Martin. Do you have any ideas?"
Jon turned to Randall. "You heard the young master. If you don't release Martin, the Flying Dragon
General will be involved. If that happens, this can get really ugly for you."
The Flying Dragon General was one of the commanders who were in charge of Dragon Fort. Nobody
knew the depth of his force. His reputation, however, was well-known. For his achievements and skill,
he had earned the title of 'anchor' of the Dragon Fort. The Flying Dragon General was undoubtedly the
most famous general of the Imperial Army!
"He.. He knows the Flying Dragon General?" Randall's expression conveyed the skepticism he felt
when he heard what Jon had said.
If Roger had the support and protection of the Flying Dragon General, Randall would release Martin at
once. But Randall had been through a lot of battles. He wasn't a man who would be easily intimated by
words.
"Try crossing me, and you'll find out!" Roger said calmly. Compared with Zen, his attitude was
indifferent toward Randall, an undeniably stronger opponent. Roger had a domineering air that was
exclusive to someone born with privilege, such as disciples from noble clans.
"This is the young master of the Meng Clan. As to his relationship with the Flying Dragon General, you
can take a wild guess now that you know his identity," Jon sneered.
It was only when he heard the mention of the Meng Clan that Randall came to understand the situation.
It was no small wonder that Jon had dared to offend the Zhuge Clan. Jon had the Meng Clan behind
him now. Not only did they put pressure on Randall with the Meng Clan's name, but they also
threatened to involve the Flying Dragon General.
Randall wasn't some green boy. He knew what decision to make if the situation changed.
Fren did have a certain reputation on which Randall could rely. But now the young master of the Meng
Clan was standing in front of him.
Randall sighed as he knew there was no wiggle room left. Still, making a concession was never a
pleasant experience. As feelings of resentment coursed through Randall, he turned and shot Zen a
venomous glare.
Roger, understanding that he had won, gave a cold laugh and turned to leave.
If Roger involved the Flying Dragon General in this, Randall knew it wouldn't end well for him. "Okay,"
Randall said through gritted teeth. "I will let Martin go!"
"Great!" Roger looked back when he heard Randall. Then he insulted the man further with a mocking
retort. "We could have saved ourselves a lot of talking if you had been wiser."
Randall didn't respond to Roger's riposte. He turned to the side and asked his accomplice to bring
Martin.
Randall was a tough guy, yet with a few words, and Roger had bent Randall to his will. Zen was
impressed. Disciples from noble clans really knew how to achieve their goals by merely mentioning the
influence of their clans! In comparison, an individual with no supporting clan seemed so small and
powerless.
Zen had no clan influence he could count on. All he had was his force, his fists.
But that was okay. He would climb to the apotheosis of body refining based on his skills. Then, he
would have his influence!
Soon Martin was brought to the yard.
The bruises all over his body implied that he had been beaten badly while in captivity. However, his
calm expression and his state of mind conveyed that he was fine. Such injuries were not a big deal for
a body refiner who was half a step into the nature level.
Like others, when Martin saw Zen, he looked as if he had just seen a ghost.
"Zen… bro, you're alive! You're still alive!" Martin exclaimed excitedly.
"Yeah, Martin, I survived," Zen replied with a smile.
"That's great, wonderful..." Martin muttered. Throughout his imprisonment, Martin had been tormented
over the death of his brothers during the fight with the blade locusts. It wasn't the lashes meted out to
him that pained Martin the most. No, it was the thought that Zen had sacrificed himself by volunteering
to bait the queen blade locust to save Martin. All these times, Martin had not been able to stop thinking
about what had happened. It was true that Martin blamed himself. If only he hadn't been so careless! If
he had noticed there was something wrong with the marching route early enough, those people
wouldn't have died.
How Zen had survived was beyond Martin's understanding. The sight of Zen standing in the yard
unscathed filled Martin with surprise and joy.
"Zen, Randall is responsible for all this. He is the culprit!" Martin turned to Randall and pointed as he
spoke, "As I recall, I had no beef with you before. But you changed our marching route without
permission, which put my teammates' lives on the line. I will give my life to hold you responsible for
your actions!"
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