Chapter 123: A Misunderstanding

“I told you, I would never abandon them and run away alone!” Zhuoma shouted fiercely. “I will challenge the dragon! I want to gloriously throw myself into the arms of the God of War before the dragon itself!”

Jia Zhengjin imagined the God of War as a muscular man, and then Zhuoma, this muscle-bound warrior, throwing himself into the God of War’s embrace...

“Ugh—” he shuddered, goosebumps rising all over.

The two sides remained locked in a stalemate. Seeing this, Christina stepped forward. “Keane... sir, may I have a private word with General Zhuoma?”

Jia Zhengjin thought, why are you stepping closer now? Isn’t this chaotic enough already?

But after a moment’s thought, he nodded. “Alright!”

With a wave of his hand, everyone stepped back.

“General Zhuoma!” Christina pulled him into the broken prison cell and lowered her voice as she pressed her ear close to his. “It’s meaningless to recklessly seek death like this, and it won’t save those more than eight hundred city guards. It’s just a pointless sacrifice!”

“I know that very well!” Zhuoma frowned. “But it’s better than living a miserable life alone. I would never abandon my brothers.”

“Clearly, Lord Keane does not want you to die,” Christina said. “So no matter how much you ask, he probably won’t give you the chance to challenge the dragon.”

“I know that too!” General Zhuoma said gloomily. “Christina, as Master Leo’s top disciple, do you have any good suggestions?”

“I think...” Christina glanced at the trapped city guards. “Since you can’t get what you want, why not try another approach?”

“What do you mean?” Zhuoma asked anxiously.

Christina thought for a moment. “Lord Keane wants to release you alone, right?”

“That’s right.”

“And he won’t let the city guards go.”

“Exactly.”

“And you can’t leave the city guards behind.”

“Absolutely not!”

“Then would you be willing to try a different way—letting these city guards return to the City of Light?”

“But he said no!” Zhuoma said gloomily.

“In that case, you can follow his terms and challenge one of his men—and win! After winning, you can demand that the right to freedom be granted to the city guards,” Christina said. “At least, this way, all the city guards can reunite with their families!”

“Is that even possible?” Zhuoma was tempted by the idea. He had already resolved to die, knowing he could not bring his brothers home safely. But hearing Christina’s suggestion, he thought that if he could win freedom for all the city guards with just himself, it would be worth it. His only worry was whether the other side would agree.

“How will you know if you don’t try?” Christina encouraged.

“You’re right!” General Zhuoma’s eyes brightened. “Christina, don’t worry. I will make sure you all gain your freedom!”

“No, only the city guards,” Christina shook her head gently. “My master once said that a priest must never shrink from any hardship. Now that I am in this situation, it is a test from the God of Light! I have encountered my inner demons here, and only by overcoming them can I resume my path of cultivation!”

“What do you mean?” Zhuoma was confused.

“In short, that’s how it is,” Christina said.

Seeing Zhuoma and Christina whispering back and forth, Jia Zhengjin grew impatient. “Hey! Have you finished talking or not?”

“We have!” General Zhuoma strode out boldly. “I accept your chosen opponent, but I want to change the condition!”

“Change the condition?” Jia Zhengjin looked at him suspiciously.

“Yes!” General Zhuoma said loudly. “If I defeat the opponent you designate, then you must grant freedom to one of my city guard brothers! One victory, one release!”

“Thud!” Christina inside the cell heard this and suddenly went weak in the knees, collapsing to the ground.

She looked up at Zhuoma’s broad back with a speechless expression. General, how could you be so foolish? I meant, you challenge and win once, then have them release all the city guards at once! One victory for one release? That means you’d have to fight hundreds of times! My goodness! Are you even thinking? No matter how strong you are, your stamina will run out. By the time you’ve freed everyone, you might be down for the count yourself!

Christina tried to come out and stop him, but Jia Zhengjin burst out laughing upon hearing this. “One victory, one release? Are you sure?”

“I, Zhuoma, never go back on my word!”

“But isn’t that a bit unfair?” Jia Zhengjin said. “Bare-handed combat, you can’t use your axe, so it’s already a disadvantage.”

“I don’t care!”

“What if you run out of strength and lose in the end?” Jia Zhengjin asked.

“Then according to the rules, you may do as you please with me!” Zhuoma shouted.

“Seriously?”

“I swear by the name of the God of War!”

Oh no! Christina covered her face. She never expected General Zhuoma to be so powerful in combat, yet so lacking in common sense!

To be honest, Jia Zhengjin originally wanted to get rid of this dangerous character quickly. No one here could subdue him; only the fake dragon was able to intimidate him. Who would have thought Zhuoma would dare to challenge the dragon himself, making Jia even more frustrated.

If those hundreds of city guards were released, they could cause trouble later by regrouping. But if this formidable Zhuoma won one fight at a time to free one person, that would be sheer madness!

Though a werewolf alone wasn’t his match, he had an incredible regenerative ability. Plus, after each battle, he could restore health and stamina with honey. No matter how strong Zhuoma was, his stamina would eventually be exhausted. Forget hundreds of fights; even two or three hundred consecutive battles would drain him completely!

Without stamina, fatigued and facing a werewolf always in peak condition, defeat would be inevitable.

Seeing the frustrated expression on the female priest’s face, it was clear this was her idea, but General Zhuoma had misunderstood! Jia Zhengjin wasn’t about to miss such a golden opportunity. If they were lucky enough to defeat this guy, they would gain the strongest follower yet! This one man alone was worth all the city guards combined!

Lacking intelligence didn’t matter; such a fierce warrior put all his strength into combat. As long as he obeyed orders, everything would be fine!

Thinking this, Jia Zhengjin glanced at the werewolf beside him. “Wolf, you okay with this?”

“No problem!” Wolf grinned. He wasn’t a match in single combat; even Karl together couldn’t take down Zhuoma. But when it came to endurance battles, that was his specialty! Not to mention the honey, which was like cheating...