Chapter 2204: Rules

Du Quan respectfully said, "The garrison commander is a cultivator from the main branch of the Du family, and I am from a side branch."

Strictly speaking, both the main and side branches still belonged to the same clan.

Lu Ye understood, raising his eyes to look at him. "What is it?"

Du Quan smiled and said, "I have been ordered by the garrison commander to collect the spoils of war!"

"What do you mean?" Lu Ye frowned.

Wang Xun, standing nearby, could not hold back. He cupped his fists and said, "Sir, he wants us to hand over twenty percent of the spoils from this battle!"

Du Quan quickly said, "My fellow Daoist, you shouldn't make wild accusations. It's not *I*, Du Quan, who wants your spoils. This is a rule established by the garrison commander long ago: twenty percent of all spoils from this stronghold belong to the garrison commander. I am merely here on his orders to collect them."

Wang Xun was so angry he almost laughed. "What kind of rule is that?"

Du Quan squinted at him. "That just shows your limited experience. Commander Du Feng is the garrison commander of this stronghold. He is not only the strongest combatant but also a guardian and a deterrent against external threats. During a major battle, the commander exerts the most effort. Does he not deserve his share of the spoils? Although the commander has achieved the Fusion Dao realm, he still needs to cultivate and requires Dao power to maintain his strength. If everyone is unwilling to contribute like you, how can the commander exert his full power if another enemy attacks? The commander's Dao power doesn't come out of thin air."

Wang Xun was furious at his words, yet somehow, he felt there was a grain of truth in them. He wanted to retort but didn't know where to begin.

His character was more reckless, and his thoughts less meticulous. After holding back for a long time, he finally said, "Anyway, I've never heard of such a rule."

Yang Mingfang, standing nearby, said, "Indeed, many garrison commanders in various war zones have established such rules. Brother Wang, you've always been in Blue Water, so you probably haven't heard of them. After all, commanders who are as considerate of their subordinates as Commander Ziying are quite rare now."

Wang Xun angrily turned his head to look at him. "Whose side are you on?"

Yang Mingfang smiled slightly, offering no explanation. Instead, he looked at Du Quan. "However, to my knowledge, most garrison commanders only require a ten percent contribution of spoils. Why is it twenty percent here?"

Du Quan replied flatly, "In the previous battle, the commander expended a great deal and it's not easy for a Fusion Dao cultivator to recover. That's why an extra ten percent is required. From what you just said, you seem to be a reasonable person, so you should understand that if another powerful enemy attacks, Commander Du Feng will still have to face them to defend the stronghold. He must recover his strength as quickly as possible."

Yang Mingfang scoffed. "If a powerful enemy truly attacks, will our garrison commander even have the courage to face them?"

Du Quan's expression changed, and he snapped, "How dare you!" He knew that Du Feng's previous escape when things looked grim was a stain on his record. Now that the stronghold was defended, this matter could be either minor or serious, but if the stronghold had fallen, Du Feng would certainly have been held accountable.

Yang Mingfang said calmly, "If the garrison commander had fought to the death without retreating earlier, and had the heart to protect his subordinates, we would naturally be willing to hand over spoils. After all, having a Fusion Dao cultivator present does make us feel more secure. But everyone knows the real reason we won today's battle, and it has nothing to do with the garrison commander. And you, don't forget who allowed you to live at this very moment."

Du Quan said coldly, "Du Quan would never forget your life-saving grace, and I believe all fellow Daoists in the stronghold are grateful to you. But you don't actually think you could kill a Fusion Dao cultivator without the commander's contribution, do you?"

Wang Xun looked astonished. "I don't recall the garrison commander making an appearance when that Insectoid Fusion Dao cultivator died!"

Du Quan nodded. "Yes, the garrison commander was indeed not present at that time. However, if he hadn't fought a desperate battle with that Insectoid Fusion Dao cultivator earlier, how could that Insectoid have been in such a weakened state? The fact that you were able to defeat a stronger opponent and slay a Fusion Dao cultivator is precisely due to the foundation laid by the garrison commander, isn't it?"

Du Feng had just told these words to his trusted confidants. Upon closer thought, it did seem to make sense.

At the time, Du Quan and others were filled with shock and the joy of survival after witnessing the Insectoid Fusion Dao cultivator's death. They hadn't considered much, but after listening to Du Feng, they realized that the Crane Wing Battalion had simply gotten lucky. The Insectoid Fusion Dao cultivator had been too careless, believing its high cultivation level made it invincible, otherwise, it would never have died at the hands of a group of cultivators who had just entered the Dao realm.

Therefore, even if he was grateful for the Crane Wing Battalion's help, it didn't prevent him from coming to collect the spoils, especially since it was Du Feng's order.

Du Quan's words left Wang Xun and the others somewhat speechless, because from the perspective of all the stronghold's cultivators, what Du Quan said seemed... correct!

Their engagement with that Fusion Dao cultivator had only lasted a moment before the opponent died, seemingly collapsing with little effort.

For a moment, they couldn't help but wonder if they had truly gotten a huge advantage, and if that Insectoid Fusion Dao cultivator was indeed in a greatly weakened state.

Only Lu Ye knew that the opponent was not weakened at all; the Fusion Dao cultivator died purely due to a vast disparity in strength.

Besides, how could something already consumed be regurgitated? The Dao bones he had acquired and shared were almost entirely refined. Even if Du Feng wanted them, Lu Ye had none to give.

"Commander Lu." Seeing Wang Xun and the others fall silent, Du Quan turned his gaze to Lu Ye, cupping his fists. "I am merely acting on orders. Please don't make things difficult for me, Commander Lu."

Lu Ye pondered briefly, then nodded. "Understood."

Saying this, he took a few Dao bones from his storage ring and handed them to Du Quan.

Du Quan stared blankly.

Lu Ye said, "During the great battle, my Crane Wing Battalion charged first and was only focused on killing enemies, so we didn't collect many spoils. These few bones are twenty percent of all our gains."

Since it was a rule set by the garrison commander, there was no harm in complying.

Anyway, only the Crane Wing Battalion's own members knew how many spoils they truly had; Du Quan had no way of knowing and couldn't possibly search every person's storage ring.

Du Quan was dumbfounded.

Wang Xun and Yang Mingfang, standing nearby, suppressed their laughter. They hadn't expected Lu Ye to respond this way, offering a few Dao bones as if shooing away a scavenging dog.

"Commander Lu!" Du Quan's face turned cold. "I can't report back with this!"

Even if he didn't know the exact amount the Crane Wing Battalion had gained, it couldn't possibly be so little. What was the meaning of just a few Dao bones?

"Just report it as it is," Lu Ye said, looking at him indifferently. Seeing that Du Quan wasn't taking them, he simply dropped the Dao bones at his feet and then closed his eyes.

It was even more like shooing away a scavenging dog!

Under everyone's gaze, Du Quan's face alternated between green and red. In the end, he dared not say anything more, bent down to pick up the few Dao bones, and left with a cold snort.

"Commander," Wang Xun, who had been quite vocal against Du Quan earlier, now seemed a bit nervous. "Won't doing this offend Du Feng?"

Lu Ye opened his eyes and looked at him. "Are you willing to hand over twenty percent of your spoils?"

Wang Xun shook his head vigorously like a rattle drum, clutching his storage ring. "Those were fought for with our brothers' blood and lives. That Du Feng is as timid as a mouse, he deserted during the battle. Now that the stronghold is defended, he's back, trying to act mighty. I'd rather feed the Dao bones to a dog than give them to him."

"Then that's that," Lu Ye said with a calm expression. "As for offending him... the Crane Wing Battalion was formed by Commander Ziying. We are Commander Ziying's people. This time, we merely came to provide support due to the urgent military situation in Fengtai."

Wang Xun's eyes lit up. "That's right, we are Commander Ziying's people, not his subordinates!"

According to their original itinerary, the Crane Wing Battalion was supposed to rendezvous with Ziying, but they were temporarily diverted by the Yellow Springs War Star to provide support.

Lu Ye had already confirmed this with Ziying, and the Yellow Springs side had also informed her.

Therefore, Lu Ye was certain that they wouldn't stay here long. Once the situation stabilized, they would leave this place and rendezvous with Ziying, serving under her command then.

Thus, offending Du Feng was of no real consequence. Moreover, Lu Ye wasn't afraid of offending such a Fusion Dao cultivator. To be frank, in his current state, he didn't really put a Fusion Dao cultivator like Du Feng in his eyes.

As they spoke, Wang Xun recalled something else. "Du Feng deserted during the battle. If the stronghold had truly fallen, that would be one thing. But the key is that the stronghold has been defended. Once the Yellow Springs War Star learns of this, they will definitely hold him accountable!"

Lu Ye said calmly, "The battle report details are drafted by him as the garrison commander, so naturally, he can write whatever he wants."

Although he hadn't directly interacted with him, Lu Ye could roughly infer Du Feng's character just from Du Quan's behavior.

How could someone like that truthfully report the battle? The military intelligence received by Yellow Springs would most likely state that Du Feng was incredibly brave, led the fight, not only defended the stronghold but also killed an enemy Fusion Dao cultivator.

Wang Xun was stunned. "Isn't he afraid of the truth coming out? Yellow Springs will definitely send people to verify the battle details."

There are quite a few people at Fengtai Stronghold, and not everyone is Du Feng's confidant. Once Yellow Springs sends someone to verify the battle, a little investigation will reveal the true situation.

"What if it comes out?" Lu Ye slowly said. "He is, after all, a Fusion Dao cultivator. Even if Yellow Springs finds out, they will only let him atone for his misdeeds by performing meritorious service. Besides... which cultivator in this stronghold would dare to offend him?"

Living in the stronghold, sheltering under the wing of a Fusion Dao cultivator, offending him would mean dying without even knowing how.

"You're right!" Wang Xun nodded, then said indignantly, "This is too dark. It's much more enjoyable to work under Commander Ziying."

Yang Mingfang shook his head. "A garrison commander like Ziying is actually quite rare. In the current War Alliance, powerful families run rampant, and most individuals are selfish."

"Alright, everyone, go rest and quickly refine the Dao bones you have," Lu Ye said.

Only then did everyone hastily disperse.

Having just gone through a major battle where an enemy Fusion Dao cultivator was even slain, and before the Insect Matriarch could make a suitable counter, there shouldn't be any major movements. For all the cultivators in the stronghold, this was a rare moment of leisure.

Although they couldn't fight on the battlefield to acquire Dao bones, they could still gain Dao power through diligent cultivation, albeit at a much slower pace.

Lu Ye refined the few remaining Dao bones he had, then also entered a state of diligent cultivation.