Bright Sword: I don’t want to be the king!

Cao Geng left the command post and led people to dig for the secret gold.

If the secret gold can be found, the battle will still be worthwhile, but if not, the cost will be heavy.

Halfway through...

Zheng Xiao suddenly spoke, his tone strangely low: "Brother Geng, I feel strangely weak. I'm afraid I can't participate in this mission."

Upon hearing this, Cao Geng immediately asked worriedly, "What happened? Have you been attacked by some kind of magic?"

Zheng Xiao shook his head slightly and explained, "That's not the case. I just feel an inexplicable disorder in my abdomen. Perhaps it's caused by accidentally eating the strange fruit in the mysterious forest. I should feel better after resting for a while."

Cao Geng nodded in understanding: "Okay, this mission doesn't rely on your strength alone, go back and have a good rest."

Zheng Xiao responded: "Thank you, Brother Geng."

Cao Geng patted him on the shoulder and left with a smile.

Zheng Xiao looked around, started his journey home, and soon returned to the camp on the edge of the magic forest.

He moved around the camp and quickly locked onto his target - that was the soldier who had filmed the magic images for Cao Geng the day before.

At this moment, the soldier was walking out of the camp with another comrade.

Zheng Xiao glanced around and followed quietly.

On the street, Zheng Yi quickly caught up.

"Brother Han, where are you going?"

This silly guy is the warrior who took the magical photos.

Brother Han was startled, and when he saw Zheng Xiao, he forced a smile: "Brother Zheng Xiao, we are going out to carry out a secret mission. Is there anything urgent?"

His fear of Zheng Xiao originated from the terrifying moment the day before.

Zheng Xiao put on a friendly smile, put his arm around Han Xiong's shoulder, and asked, "It's nothing serious. I just want to ask, who used the magic camera to capture my soul that day?"

Brother Han was speechless.

"Brother Zheng Xiao, hasn't the brigade commander already explained it to you? That is advanced magic technology, not a soul-stealing technique. Why are you still obsessed with it?" he said helplessly.

Zheng Xiao answered resolutely: "I believe in my grandfather's words. What if what he said is true? No, I must find that person. I want to get my soul back."

Brother Han and his companions were speechless.

The three of them walked into a dark alley, completely unaware of the approaching danger.

Han Xiong tried to hold on and said, "Brother Zheng Xiao, this is not right. We filmed the magic video to record your heroic moments and keep them as eternal memories. How could you misunderstand our good intentions?"

Zheng Xiao suddenly broke away from Brother Han, his face full of anger: "Are you going to tell me or not? Do you believe that I will punish you with magic?"

Brother Han was silent. After thinking about it, he felt that there was no secret in this matter, so he said, "Forget it, forget it. I'll tell you. Why are you so angry? It was Fatty Cao who took the photo."

"Thank you very much."

Before Zheng Xiao finished speaking, he suddenly attacked. His fingers were as fast as lightning and grabbed Han Xiong's throat, twisting it violently.

There was only a crisp sound, and Brother Han stopped breathing immediately.

At the same time, Zheng Yi drew out a magic dagger from his back like a civet cat and pierced the carotid artery of another warrior with one sword.

Brother Han and the soldier never dreamed that Zheng Xiao would deal them a fatal blow.

No matter how tense the relationship is, the most it can do is just a fistfight like Cao Geng, right?

Who would have thought that Zheng's move would be fatal.

As a result, the two of them were caught off guard and fell in a pool of blood.

"Damn it, instead of practicing properly, he imitates others to take pictures. What a damn thing."

Zheng Xiao cursed in Elvish, and then a magic dagger stabbed into Da Han Ge's chest from behind.

The other fighter was also reversed and suppressed, suffering the same sneak attack.

He quickly went deep into the dark alleys, and after twists and turns, he returned to the Magic Guard’s base.

After returning to the camp, he wandered around alone, unable to ask anyone and could only rely on himself to search.

Soon, he found Fatty Cao in his dormitory.

Fatty Cao had sustained minor injuries in the recent battle with monsters, and now could only lie in the dormitory to rest.

At this time, there were two other soldiers in the dormitory who were also slightly injured.

Zheng Xiao stepped into their dormitory and said with a bright smile: "Hello, fellow soldiers! Hey, Fatty Cao, how are you injured?"

The three soldiers were stunned. What was this guy doing here? He was such a rare visitor!

However, Zheng Yi was, after all, Captain Cao Geng's right-hand man with extraordinary skills, so the three of them immediately greeted him with smiles.

Fatty Cao said, "Brother Zheng Xiao, how come you have time to come to our dormitory? You are a very busy man!"

"Oh, don't mention it. I don't know why, but I'm not feeling well. Now I'm also a sick patient. Shouldn't sick patients spend time together? Haha..."

Zheng Xiao spoke generously, in a friendly manner.

Fatty Cao immediately approached: "Oh, it's so rare, it's so rare to spend time with Brother Zheng!"

The other two soldiers quickly agreed, they were full of respect for Zheng Xiao.

Zheng Xiao suggested: "It's boring to stay here, how about I treat you guys to a meal? Let's have a drink quietly?"

The eyes of Fatty Cao and the other two instantly lit up, but in the end Fatty Cao still shook his head and said, "No, no, drinking in the military camp is against discipline."

The other two warriors nodded in agreement.

Zheng Xiao said with some dissatisfaction: "Look at how brave you are. Drinking with others is of course against discipline, but drinking with me, as long as the brigade commander doesn't know, who dares to interfere?"

The three soldiers' eyes lit up. Yes, it was definitely not okay to drink with other people, but if they followed him, who would dare to control them?

Fatty Cao said, "Brother Zheng Xiao, you are the one who said this. If anything happens, you have to take the blame for us!"

Zheng Xiao patted his chest and assured: "Don't worry, I'll take care of it. But when doing something like this, it's better to act quietly when we leave the barracks. It's always bad if too many people know about it, right?"

Fatty Cao and the other two nodded, acknowledging that Zheng Xiao was experienced.

Zheng Xiao suggested: "How about this! Have you heard of Echo Alley? I'll go there and wait for you. You can sneak out of the camp secretly and meet up there. How about that?"

The three of them immediately nodded excitedly. This way, the plan would be foolproof.

Zheng Xiao raised his hand and looked at the magic pocket watch, and said, "It is exactly half past ten in the morning. I will give you ten minutes. If you can't make it, I won't wait."

Fatty Cao said, "Don't worry, ten minutes is more than enough."

So Zheng Yi left the Magic Guard’s base alone.

Fatty Cao and his two companions then quietly slipped out of the camp.

Soon, the four of them met up successfully in Echo Alley...

The four of them chose a secluded seat in an old tavern, ordered several magical dishes and two pots of elf-brewed wine, and enjoyed them to their heart's content.

When the aroma of wine filled the air and Zheng Xiao was slightly tipsy, he said, "Brother Cao, to be honest, I invited you to drink today because I have something to ask of you!"

The fat Cao was startled, and the wine sprayed out. He said, "Brother Zheng, please tell me what you want. If it is within my ability, I will definitely help you. Even if it is beyond my ability, I will do my best to achieve it for you."

Zheng Xiao responded, "Hearing this, I feel a little relieved. Brother Cao, you may not know that I have been feeling uneasy these days. After asking around, I found out that it was your imaging technique that took away my soul. Brother, I beg you, can you return those images and negatives?"

The surroundings suddenly fell silent, and Fatty Cao and the other two looked at each other.

Since ancient times, there have been legends about the use of imaging to capture souls, and this has continued to this day. However, since they became warriors of light, they no longer believe in such mysterious powers.

Fatty Cao frowned and said, "Brother Zheng Xiao, if that's the case, then I've misunderstood you. Now that you've become a warrior, you should believe in truth and power, not these illusory things."

Zheng Xiao's face was filled with sorrow. "Brother Cao! That is true, but I am really troubled. Why don't you just do as I ask and return those images and negatives? Maybe it will help me out a little. How about that? This matter is extremely important to me. I hope you can help me and save my life."

Zheng Xiao thought that with such sincerity, Fatty Cao would not be able to refuse. Unexpectedly, Fatty Cao looked embarrassed: "Brother Zheng Xiao, I am really sorry. If you had asked me the day before, I would have handed it over without hesitation. But now, the images and negatives are no longer in my custody."

"how come?"

Zheng Xiao's eyes widened, and a speculation that made his spine shiver flashed through his mind.

It's not that he can't control himself, but this matter is of vital importance to him.

"Brother Cao, tell me quickly, where did you put the photo?"

Fatty Cao explained, "Brother Dahan and I handed it over to our superiors. The brigade commander said that it should be delivered to Commander Yan for use in war propaganda. I'm afraid the film is already in Commander Yan's hands. How can we get it back?"

Zheng Yi almost fainted when he heard this.

He originally thought that Cao Geng was suspicious of him and took the photo to threaten him, but he never expected that the other party would report it directly.

Now, everything is in trouble.

Zheng Xiao sat at the table, seemingly calm, but his heart was in chaos.

Once these photos appear in the newspapers, will the top leaders let him off when he returns?

Who could have predicted something like this?

Even though he successfully defeated Cao Geng and made great contributions, the matter was covered up by the higher-ups.

But who can guarantee that his political opponents will not use this against him?

Furthermore, are there still remnants of those he killed in the army?

These are all potential crises...

There is a huge possibility that as long as he successfully completes his mission, the higher-ups may abandon him without hesitation when he returns.

Moreover, in order to complete the mission, he killed countless dark creatures. What should he do if these actions were exposed?

Everything is set in stone, and his future seems shrouded in mystery.

Zheng Yi was filled with indignation and could hardly suppress his urge to take care of the three guys in front of him in one fell swoop.

However, in his plan, there was no problem in secretly getting rid of Dahan.

His plan was flawless. He treated the three people to a banquet just to establish proof of his alibi.

But if he were to erase all traces of these three lives at this moment, even if he could do it flawlessly, there would be no way to verify it.

But what he seeks is not to evade sanctions, but to avoid any suspicious eyes.

Especially Cao Geng, he must not have any suspicion. As long as Cao Geng had the slightest doubt about him, the task of assassinating Cao Geng would probably add a lot of difficulties.

Zheng Xiao sighed secretly in his heart: "Forget it, it seems that this is my fate, and there is nothing I can do about it. The loss of my soul makes me feel uncomfortable all over and extremely painful!"

The three of them looked at him with sympathy, and Fatty Cao was filled with guilt.

"Brother, I'm really sorry."

At this moment, a melodious whistle was heard from outside, which was the signal for the troops to assemble.

The four of them hurriedly paid the bill and quickly returned to the camp.

In fact, Zheng Xiao already knew what had happened.

Sure enough, when they returned to the camp, they saw rows of soldiers standing solemnly with two coffins placed in front of them.

Brigade Commanders Cao Geng and Duan Peng stood quietly on both sides of the coffin.

Zheng Xiao led Fatty Cao and the other two forward and deliberately asked, "Brigade Commander, Battalion Commander, what is going on?"

Cao Geng looked at Zheng Xiao with a sharp gaze: "Where did you guys go?"

That’s right, although Cao Geng was extremely reluctant to believe it, Zheng Yi’s behavior today did make him suspicious.

Apart from Cao Geng and Duan Peng, the only ones who could kill someone quietly without leaving any trace were Zheng Xiao and Lu Zhaowu.

Lu Zhaowu often accompanies the brigade commander, and Duan Peng follows him closely.

Therefore, Zheng Yi became his primary suspect.

Although he didn't want to doubt Zheng Xiao, he had to do so.

Zheng Xiao's face showed innocence: "I was feeling a little unwell, so I invited Fatty Cao and the other two to drink together to relieve my boredom. This is really wrong, please punish me, Captain."

Cao Geng ignored him and turned to Fatty Cao and asked, "Fatty Cao, when did you go to drink?"

Fatty Cao thought for a moment and replied, "Report to the battalion commander, we set out at 11:30 p.m."

The other two soldiers also nodded, confirming that what Fatty Cao said was correct.

Half past the hour of Hai?

Cao Geng was stunned.

At this moment, Zheng Yi had just left him and returned to the camp, and then he drank with Fatty Cao and others.

The time is right.

This means that Zheng Xiao had no chance to commit the crime at all.

Zheng Xiao stood there, with an innocent appearance but a heart already filled with joy.

However, at that moment, Cao Geng suddenly asked, his voice like a cold wind piercing through the fog: "Cao Fu, none of you three have time accessories, how can you determine that it was half past ten in the evening?"

Zheng's heart tightened, and he had a bad feeling.

It's over. Cao Geng was too clever and the mystery he carefully planned had been figured out.

Cao Fu hurriedly replied: "Captain, Brother Zheng just happened to glance at the magic clock."

Cao Geng asked: "So, this time was told to you by Brother Zheng."

Cao Fu was startled, and nodded quickly: "That's right."

Zheng Yi was suddenly speechless.

But he still maintained an expression of ignorance.

Cao Geng turned his head, stared at Zheng Xiao with sharp eyes, and asked clearly: "Brother Zheng, why did you do this?"