It's Hard to Be Good

Lucy rose, her expression serious. "Since you have official business, my sister and I shall withdraw for now. However, Francis, the resurgence of the Fiendkind is a grave calamity that could very well imperil all of humanity. You must make your decision swiftly!"

Du Chen waved his hand dismissively. "I am, of course, well aware of the gravity of the situation. Young ladies, are you privy to the true identity of this Sonora?"

Lily nodded cheerfully. "Of course, we know! He was the top student of the Academy's 75th graduating class, your Senior Brother! Even Lord Ricardo still praises him endlessly!"

Du Chen offered a mysterious smile. "Yet, I personally heard Sonora confess that he is 'Number Four' of a scheme called the 'Eminence Project,' and a spy for the Fiendkind!"

*Shatter!* Lily slammed her palm down, shattering the wine glass on the table. Her expression was furious. "Damn it, he's a Fiendkind spy? Francis, why didn't you expose him sooner?"

Lucy's face turned ashen. "Sister, Francis likely only pieced everything together today. If we hadn't translated that letter for him, he wouldn't have known Sonora's true identity as Fiendkind!" She anxiously wrung her hands. "Francis, this situation is dire! This spy, Sonora, is now the esteemed consort of McAllen, commander of an Army Corps of a hundred thousand, and a God-blessed Marquis. Just from him, we can imagine how long the Fiendkind have been planning their counterattack against humanity, and how much they've already achieved!"

Lily slapped her forehead abruptly, exclaiming, "Indeed! Number Four is already an influential consort in a powerful continental nation. There must also be Number One, Number Two, and Number Three! Heavens, these three might have already attained illustrious positions among humans. If they were to aid the Fiendkind..." She trailed off, unable to voice her terrifying conjecture.

Du Chen smiled calmly. The internecine struggle between the Red-Bloods and Violet-Bloods held no personal consequence for him. However, he knew that with Duhong's identity confirmed, the culprits responsible for Old Foye's death were also identified—the Fiendkind, the Fiendkind under Marshal Bonis!

Undeniably, the Fiendkind's desecration of valiant souls, their formation of Undead legions, and their attempts to drag humanity into extinction, were monumental evils! To stop them, to save humanity, was an act of immeasurable virtue. But Du Chen, at this moment, cared little for good deeds or evil. He sought vengeance! Vengeance for his adoptive father!

The Blade of Heaven knew no regret, and Du Chen harbored profound hatred!

Glancing at the two concerned Grand Matriarchs, Du Chen gracefully cleared the shattered wine glass fragments from the table, rearranged the setting, and raised a fresh glass. "Young ladies, you have engaged in countless skirmishes with the Fiendkind; you must understand them intimately. I wish to know, what is the simplest method to prove a person is Fiendkind? Must one truly provoke them into an emotional outburst, and then seize the opportunity to inspect their blood for identification?"

Lily replied, "There's no need for such drastic measures. Back then, Divine Emperor Prince, after years of research, developed the simplest method to distinguish humans from Fiendkind: the Amia Silver Needle!"

"The Amia Silver Needle?"

Lucy nodded. "Yes, Amia is not a particularly rare metal. A needle forged from a blend of Amia and silver will turn purple upon contact with Fiendkind blood. In the past, the Alliance's armies relied on this to identify Fiendkind spies. Every General, when undertaking a mission or transferring a Military Edict, would undergo an Amia Silver Needle test."

"No, no!" Du Chen waved his hand. "I mean, Divine Emperor Prince, the Divine, was also proficient in alchemy?"

Lily affirmed, "Indeed, His Majesty the Divine Emperor's alchemy was exceptionally powerful! The Alliance's most formidable strategic sacred artifact—the Raging Fire Scorcher Cannon—was crafted by him, a masterpiece of alchemy built upon ordinary Lightning Cannons!"

Lucy added, "From the history I've witnessed, I believe no one, throughout all of time, has ever surpassed His Majesty the Divine Emperor in alchemy. Even Philip, the present Grandmaster Alchemist, has only grasped a mere fraction of the Divine Emperor's profound knowledge!" Perhaps feeling her words, born of reverence for the Divine Emperor, had become excessive, she appended, "At the very least, His Majesty the Divine Emperor was undeniably a magnificent Grandmaster Alchemist, unrivaled during the era of the Fallen Gods!"

"Oh, then, young ladies, would you be able to procure some Amia Silver Needles?" Du Chen inquired.

"We can, yes. Provided we have Amia metal, we can forge many within a single day."

Du Chen rose. "Then I shall trouble the two young ladies. I will procure the Amia metal as quickly as possible. You may rest for a moment while I go confront that Fiendkind spy and probe the Fiendkind's intentions!"

Stepping out, he scooped up little Beibei, who had been diligently keeping watch with wide, alert eyes. Du Chen couldn't resist planting a kiss on her cheek. He then instructed Deboning, who stood nearby, "Go to the largest auction house and merchant guild in the nearby city. Find some metal called Amia—the more, the better—but do not reveal that I am the one acquiring it!" Finishing, he playfully pinched his daughter's nose. "Sweetheart, Daddy is about to meet a bad lion. Do you understand what to do?"

The little one nodded vigorously, her face splitting into a sweet, dimpled smile that was utterly charming. "Daddy... Beibei will monitor his mental fluctuations!"

After years apart, Sonora no longer carried the despondency and dejection from his dereliction of duty at Auerbach Grand Canyon. Instead, he radiated renewed vigor. In this war, he and Du Chen hadn't been on opposing battle lines, thus avoiding direct combat. Their current meeting was notably warmer than the usual frigid reception from other beastmen.

"Junior Brother! Long time no see! I should now address you as Grand Duke!" Sonora greeted Du Chen effusively in the hall, gesturing for him to take a seat. He patted the Lieutenant General insignia on his own shoulder, then glanced at the General insignia on Du Chen's ceremonial robes, sighing, "Ah, no wonder Dean Zigurd praises you as his most outstanding student. An eighteen-year-old General! Not only do I, your Senior Brother, feel ashamed of my own inadequacy, but I fear soon your Water Pavilion dormitory will be declared a memorial museum!"

Little Beibei, through their Battle Soul link, communicated, "Daddy, this guy is all smiles, he's definitely no good! Swindle him dry!"

Du Chen suppressed a laugh. After exchanging a few pleasantries and some superfluous chatter about old times, Du Chen stated, "Senior Brother, now that we each serve our own masters, and our positions are clear, let's get straight to the point! There's nothing between us brothers that can't be laid bare on the table!"

Sonora clapped his hands and laughed heartily. "Straightforward! Then I, your Senior Brother, shall cease with the pleasantries. His Majesty has dispatched me this time to confer with you before negotiations. As brothers, some things are simply easier for me to convey than for others!" His expression turned solemn. "We beastmen hold funeral rites in high regard. In the Battle of Star River, your forces captured thirty thousand of our Soldiers and six thousand corpses! The prisoners can be discussed during negotiations, but with the weather warming, those sixty thousand corpses are likely nearing decay. Our beastmen customs dictate that the more intact the bodies, the greater the respect shown to the Supreme Father God. Therefore, I hope Junior Brother can return these bodies before negotiations begin!"

His true thoughts, however, were entirely different: *Today is April 3rd. Marshal Bonis himself has arrived at Auerbach Grand Canyon, planning to seize Orbach's corpse on April 15th—the 1500th anniversary of Orbach's birth. This is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity, and the date cannot be changed! But Philip, that Outsider, needs tens of thousands more corpses for his Undead legion to form the Twentieth Army Corps. Therefore, I must make Francis hand over these bodies as quickly as possible and have them 'buried' before April 10th! I must assist Philip in completing his recruitment plan for twenty Army Corps before the 'Undead Commander' Project, centered on Orbach's corpse, begins!*

Hearing Sonora's request, Du Chen naturally understood his true meaning—both from the Beastkin's perspective and the Fiendkind's! Du Chen chuckled, "Senior Brother, both you and I are Commanders of vast armies; we should be well-versed in the rules of the battlefield!"

Sonora probed, "Naturally. Those bodies are your spoils of war, an undeniable fact! For us to reclaim them, we would, of course, have to offer something in return... But, my Junior Brother, could you perhaps, for the sake of your Senior Brother's humble reputation..."

Du Chen stroked his nose, feigning deep thought, yet through their Battle Soul link, he whispered to his daughter, "Sweetheart, Daddy already ordered Dud to prepare those bodies for return to the Beastkin. But look, Daddy originally planned not to ask for a single coin, yet they're practically delivering themselves to be fleeced! Tell me... what's the best way to extort him?"

Little Beibei tilted her head, playfully tugging her braid, and gazed at Sonora with a cheerful, dimpled smile that made him yearn to kiss her. Yet, through the Battle Soul, the little one said, "Daddy, don't be too ruthless!"

Du Chen sighed with deep emotion. "Indeed. If I were to simply return the tampered bodies to the Beastkin without consequence, that wouldn't be Francis's style. Ah, sweetheart! See? If Daddy doesn't give them a good squeeze, they won't even believe Daddy's capability!"

Little Beibei nodded in agreement. "Yes, no wonder Daddy says it's so hard to be good these days!"

Sonora looked at Du Chen expectantly.

Du Chen deliberately "pondered" for a long while, then slowly, under Sonora's gaze, poured wine, drank it, wiped his mouth, sampled a dessert... completing an entire sequence of aristocratic, elegant gestures before finally speaking: "Were it anyone else, I would not utter these next words! But you are, after all, my Senior Brother. Both of us hail from the Academy. Though we now serve different masters, we cannot disregard the bond between Senior and Junior Brothers! Senior Brother, one sentence: Go tell the Saint Baton Clan that I demand what the Saint Dak family cannot give me!"

Sonora's expression instantly shifted, but with extreme swiftness, he masked it! *Francis, you truly dare to make such an outrageous demand! More of a lion than I, a true Lionkin!*

Though Fiendkind's Number Four understood precisely what "the Saint Dak family cannot give" referred to, Sonora, in his current guise as McAllen's consort, should not have comprehended such a statement. He feigned ignorance, saying, "Junior Brother, what was that last sentence? Your Senior Brother doesn't quite understand!"

"Keep feigning ignorance then," Du Chen thought, having already learned of Sonora's recent "Disturbance" in his mental fluctuations from little Beibei. He chuckled aloud, "Since Senior Brother doesn't understand, then simply relay that message to the Saint Baton Clan. They will understand!"