After the conclusion of the meeting, all those inside the big hall left one after another.
Although there were many who hoped for something better after this meeting, the last words spoken by Bai Zemin served to raise the courage and fighting spirit of all those with great ambitions.
The ambition was dangerous, and Bai Zemin was aware of that. After all, when a character was ambitious they were highly likely to be willing to do anything for power; which in turn could lead to a possible betrayal or takeover. However, he didn't care too much about this.
If someone was brave enough to attempt something against him, then what awaited them was an extremely miserable fate. Bai Zemin believed that, at least, most of his men were aware of this fact, and if they were not then he would simply have to use the first ones to go astray to show the rest of them the consequences of going off the course he had set.
Just as Bai Zemin was about to leave, Shangguan Bing Xue approached him and stared at him for a moment.
"What's happening?" Bai Zemin asked without looking at her, finishing putting away some papers.
She watched his appearance working and no one knew what she was thinking. After a moment of silence, she finally said calmly, "I wanted to thank you for the position you gave me earlier. I know well what it means to hold a title of the highest level and also to have the power to mobilize the faction's most powerful Legion in times of need."
Bai Zemin chuckled and yet without looking at her he put the documents away in the small cabinet next to him. After that, he looked at her and said with a slight smile, "Don't overthink it. About 70% of the reason I gave you that title and position is because you earned it through your own efforts. Similar to Wu Yijun, you are the other person who has worked the hardest for the faction. As a Leader, I think I can't be so stingy, can I?"
Shangguan Bing Xue's lips curved slightly upward and her eyes twinkled playfully. She looked at him like a mischievous little fox and said with amusement, "Leader? Weren't you King?"
Cough!
Bai Zemin cleared his throat and walked towards the exit. Without looking back, he said with a hint of mockery of his own, "Rather than King, considering that there are barely around 10,000 'subdites' under my 'kingdom', I think it might be more correct to call me Bandit."
That King had so few subdites? He was probably the first ever! Damn, even the number of territories he controlled was barely a couple of villages! Even if his skin was thick, he still felt ashamed of his current 'reign'!
Then, he simply disappeared beyond the large wooden door.
"Bandit... Hahaha, I think that title is also correct." She muttered and giggled softly even though she was alone inside the room.
Her giggle was clear and soothing like the pure water of a river flowing gently among the colorful rocks while the smile on her usually cold face was as warm as the sun lighting up the world with a beautiful rainbow after a fierce storm.
As she looked at the place where Bai Zemin had just disappeared with a dazed look for more than a minute, Shangguan Bing Xue was forced to return from the dream world when another person appeared.
"I wonder what happened to make our princess stunned looking at nothingness? Could it be that some gentleman just won your heart with honeyed words? In love?"
Wu Yijun entered the room with a small smile on her charming face and looked around. Not finding the person she was looking for, a glint of disillusionment flashed in her eyes before disappearing without a trace.
She had left earlier and planned to wait until everyone left before returning to chat with Bai Zemin as she knew he had some paperwork to sort out before he could leave. However, she did not expect him to finish so soon.
Shangguan Bing Xue looked at Wu Yijun and was surprised to hear her words. She opened her eyes wide and said dumbfounded, "In love? Me? Are you sure you're feeling well, girl?"
"Hehe..." Wu Yijun came over and gave her a hug while giggling like a happy baby.
Shangguan Bing Xue didn't know whether to laugh or cry as she watched her best friend's behavior. If someone saw them at this moment they might even come to think that they hadn't seen each other in a long time.
"What's wrong? So cheerful all of a sudden." Shangguan Bing Xue asked in confusion. As if she had thought of something, she blurted out of nowhere, "It may be that Bai Zemin..."
To be honest, even she herself was surprised when Wu Yijun announced that Bai Zemin would be conferring such a great position on her. Although Wu Yijun was currently a First Order existence, intelligent, and hard-working; the truth was that Shangguan Bing Xue knew that the merits her friend had gathered so far were not enough to sit in such a high position.
Now, seeing Wu Yijun so happy, Shangguan Bing Xue naturally came to the conclusion that something must have happened without her knowledge. This made her feel a little odd, but she didn't know if it was because she didn't know what was going on in her good sister's life or any other reason; after all, Wu Yijun and she always told each other everything since they were little.
"No... It's not that." Wu Yijun blushed slightly as even though Shangguan Bing Xue had not finished her words it was extremely easy to understand what she meant.
Her heart raced at the mere thought and this only helped to make her more sure of her feelings. This also made Wu Yijun determined to fight for what she felt no matter what.
"Then where did all this happiness come from?" Shangguan Bing Xue asked stupefied.
Even if Wu Yijun was always cheerful and kind, at this moment she was exuding happiness and joy from every fiber of her body!
Wu Yijun finally broke away from Shangguan Bing Xue's embrace and said with a small smile, "It's no big deal.... Well, it is to me. It's just that in the past few days, that man and I have been spending a lot more time together. Even though most of the stuff we talk about is just work, faction, future, etc.... It's very important to me and I really cherish those little moments."
"... You're really in love, aren't you?" Shangguan Bing Xue sighed and an intricate light flashed in her eyes as she looked at her best friend, who was as close to her as a blood sister.
She had grown up together with Wu Yijun and even though there were many times when they could not see each other for different reasons, the two were always extremely close. Shangguan Bing Xue knew that the number of Wu Yijun's suitors were so many that they could form several rows a couple of kilometers long. Even in the university alone, the number of men courting her was easily a couple of tens of thousands.
"Isn't it ironic?" Wu Yijun smiled with a hint of bitterness as she said quietly, "I remember when I told you two years ago that I doubted I would ever fall in love with anyone. I was fine with my family's arrangements, you know.... Marrying a man from a prominent family, giving birth, and that sort of stuff. Thousands of outstanding men pestered me tirelessly without receiving anything, but look at me now.... Here I am, completely head over heels for a guy younger than me who doesn't even seem to care about me more than the normal."
Shangguan Bing Xue looked at her without saying a word, however, she let out a small incomprehensible sigh. Even to her it was surprising. Not only what was happening to Wu Yijun, but also what was happening to herself.
After a brief silence, Shangguan Bing Xue said in a somewhat awkward tone of voice:
"I don't think it's as ironic as it sounds.... It's just that this guy, Bai Zemin.... That man is... He's unusual.... Some kind of anomaly."
"Uh?" Wu Yijun looked at her with slightly widened eyes of surprise and said puzzled, "Did something happen while you were in the north?"
For someone with Shangguan Bing Xue's cold and indifferent personality to show an expression as complex and difficult to describe as the one she had at the moment, Wu Yijun felt it was extremely strange. Even more so considering that she was making that kind of expression for a man!
With her intelligence, she naturally came to the immediate conclusion that something must have happened while Bai Zemin and Shangguan Bing Xue were conquering the North Camp a couple of days ago.
"That's..." Shangguan Bing Xue hesitated for a moment when she heard her friend's question and for a second she did not know what to say.
Wu Yijun's eyes glittered uncannily as she noticed the hesitation in her good sister's eyes. Just as different thoughts popped into her head, Shangguan Bing Xue finally spoke.
"Indeed. A lot of things happened."
Shangguan Bing Xue sighed and began to slowly narrate the events that happened since the first day they arrived at the North Camp.
From the meeting of the mother and daughter pair starving and desperate almost beyond salvation to the surprise attack by the goblin army just as everyone was preparing to leave and when humanity's defenses were at their lowest point.
Shangguan Bing Xue gave a fairly accurate summary of what happened during the nearly 10 days they were at the North Camp and only skipped the boring trip back south.
"Bing Xue, you..." Wu Yijun looked at her with wide eyes and said in a reprimanding tone, "Why did you put yourself in that kind of situation if you didn't fully trust in him?"
What Wu Yijun was referring to was of course the event when Shangguan Bing Xue ate the Lightning Fruit and went into a state of coma for a full 24 hours. While Wu Yijun herself had full confidence in Bai Zemin as he was the man her heart cried out for, Shangguan Bing Xue's case was different from her case!
"I had to do it." Shangguan Bing Xue shook her head gently and slowly explained, "Bai Zemin is a very... too powerful man. Besides, his personality is capable of making people unconsciously open up to him and trust him, even I was no exception. I had to check if that indifferent and cold but at the same time loyal and proud personality he showed before everyone was his true self. At most... At most I would only have lost my purity."
Although Shangguan Bing Xue said it with apparent indifference, Wu Yijun had known her for many years. It was impossible for her not to notice the slight changes in her eyes as she said those last words.
She stepped forward and hugged her briefly before returning to her previous position. She looked into her eyes and said with a smile, "So, it looks like Bai Zemin didn't disappoint you?"
Disappoint her? Shangguan Bing Xue forced a smile into her heart.
"Far from disappointing, he really amazed me." She said in a clear voice and glanced at the door to make sure no one was eavesdropping. "That's why I said that this man is an anomaly. His personality may be far from perfect; he is arrogant, disdainful, often cold and to some extent cruel.... However, he is also honorable and proud enough to keep his hands and eyes off my body. He was even capable of getting my friendship and trust to the extent that I told him about my past."
Even if Shangguan Bing Xue did not express it openly, she was fully aware of how beautiful her face was and how tempting her curvy body was. The fact that a man was able to stand his ground regardless of the circumstances, more so when she was completely vulnerable, was a feat that so far only Bai Zemin had achieved.
Thank you very much to everyone who voted for Blood Warlock with Golden Tickets! <3

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