Inside the crude castle on Rubble Island, it was as if everything had been completely transformed, and even a red carpet had been laid in the courtyard.
Arriving at the castle gate, two warriors stood guard.
However, these two warriors were unknown to Suo Lun. They were exceptionally tall, with black hair and green eyes, a different race from most of the people in the Nu Lang Kingdom, of exotic bloodline, rather resembling the Persian ethnicity on Earth.
These were clearly not warriors of the Suo clan, nor were they warriors of Duke Ting.
“Halt!” Before Suo Lun had even entered, he was blocked by these two warriors.
Instantly, he flew into a rage. This was his territory, his castle, and he had actually been blocked by someone else’s warriors.
“Kill…” Suo Lun said in a cold voice.
Immediately, Ye Jingyu and Suo Feiyang behind him drew their swords and charged forward to kill these two exotic warriors.
And those two exotic warriors also directly drew their scimitars, their gazes revealing sinister killing intent.
“Wait, wait…” A man walked out from inside, smiling and saying, “Suo Lun, you’ve finally returned. My warriors are always so tense, as if everyone they see is an assassin out to kill me.”
This man was Suo Lun’s brother-in-law, whose name seemed to be… A Shi Luo.
Suo Lun’s first impression upon seeing this legendary brother-in-law was one of extreme revulsion.
Because seeing him gave Suo Lun the feeling of looking into a mirror. He was too similar to Suo Lun. Of course, Suo Lun and A Shi Luo looked completely different, but their temperament and style were too alike.
The Tu Ling family were originally of exotic blood, but in recent decades they had gradually integrated into the Nu Lang Kingdom, and the exotic bloodline in them had grown increasingly faint.
The A Shi family, however, was one hundred percent pure exotic bloodline.
The cheap brother-in-law before him, A Shi Luo, was a typical exotic handsome man.
He possessed deep, three-dimensional features, jade-green eyes, a height of nearly one metre ninety, and skin as white as a vampire’s.
Back on Earth, Suo Lun had once seen news about a handsome man from the United Arab Emirates who was so extraordinarily good-looking that he was banned from entering the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. And this A Shi Luo before him was precisely the type of beautiful man who was so handsome he would be banned from entering a country.
Exotic handsome men possessed certain advantages over Eastern men. For instance, their features were more three-dimensional, and they also had larger…
This A Shi Na before him was no less handsome than Suo Lun. Because of his exotic bloodline, he possessed an additional special allure.
In short, the so-called human-shaped aphrodisiac referred to men like A Shi Luo.
So the moment Suo Lun saw him, he felt revulsion, as if looking into a mirror, because it was as if he were seeing another version of himself, an exotic version.
The same top-tier handsome man, the same dissolute and unrestrained nature, the same insidious cunning, the same ruthlessness.
Moreover, this man before him was even a combination of Lan Ling and Suo Lun. Those peach blossom eyes of his fully revealed that the women he had conquered and toyed with were even more numerous than the previous scoundrel Suo Lun.
“Suo Lun, hurry up and persuade your sister to come home with me.” A Shi Luo put his arm around Suo Lun’s shoulder affectionately, and Suo Lun noticed that his fingers still had several curly golden hairs stuck to them.
Then, A Shi Luo directly put his arm around Suo Lun’s shoulder and walked into the castle.
At this moment, the castle interior had been decorated anew, covered with expensive wool carpets, hung with countless crystal light fixtures, and even the walls were covered with famous paintings.
This crude great hall had been decorated with such splendour and magnificence that it even surpassed Duke Ting’s ducal residence.
This was Suo Lun’s castle, yet A Shi Luo before him acted as if he were the master.
What was even more shocking was that lying on the carpet in the castle hall were actually more than a dozen women.
There were black-skinned, white-skinned, brown-skinned, and Eastern women, plump and slender, every one of them beautiful.
“Tsst, tsst…” A Shi Luo called out.
Immediately, two snow-white dogs ran over quickly, winding around his legs, stretching out their little tongues to lick and fawn.
“This is Lord Suo Lun, go and serve him.” A Shi Luo commanded.
The two dogs directly leapt onto his body, actually using their teeth to try to tear off Suo Lun’s clothes.
At this moment, Suo Lun discovered with horror that these… these two dogs were actually people in disguise, two petite and beautiful girls wrapped inside dog skins, with a dog tail inserted behind them.
Unless one looked very carefully, one could not tell at all that these were people. Whether in the sounds they made, or wagging their tails, or when running, they were exactly the same as real dogs.
And Suo Lun discovered that these two girls’ faces were exquisitely beautiful, innocent and flawless.
When they served Suo Lun, they truly did not use their hands at all, all four limbs on the ground, completing everything with their mouths.
It was as if they themselves had forgotten they were human, thinking they were dogs.
“Are my two dogs not excellent? I spent a full eight years training them, and I have never been willing to let others play with them. Brother-in-law dotes on you, so I shall lend you these two dogs for two days.” A Shi Luo said, “I guarantee that you will never forget it in your lifetime. That feeling is completely…”
He suddenly seemed unable to find the words to describe it, in any case revealing an extremely ecstatic expression.
“Come, one thousand gold coins, I bet you won’t last three minutes.” A Shi Luo beckoned with his hand, and immediately three beauties knelt on the ground, forming a beauty chair, allowing A Shi Luo to sit comfortably upon it.
Then, a stunningly beautiful exotic girl knelt before him, serving him with extreme dedication.
Seeing all this, Suo Lun was truly completely stunned.
Such extravagance and debauchery, such absurdity. Even Prince Ji Li had not lived a life of wine pools and meat forests like this.
“Have you taken a fancy to my little golden wildcat?” A Shi Luo grabbed her golden hair and said, “She is the daughter of an earl from the Ye Lan Duchy. If you like her, you can play with her too. Otherwise, shall we compete on her body and see who is more formidable?”
This man’s shamelessness was simply outrageous.
Suo Lun pushed the two beauty dogs aside and said, “Young Master A Shi Luo, what have you come here for?”
A Shi Na said, “To fetch your sister, that is, my wife, and take her home?”
Suo Lun said, “You, come to fetch her home like this?”
A Shi Na said, “Is there anything wrong with that? Men like you and me, should we not possess all the beauties under heaven? Your sister is my only principal wife, the future mistress of Rou Ran City, what more is there to be dissatisfied with? Is it wrong for a man to be romantic?”
Suo Lun said, “Where is my sister?”
A Shi Na said, “Top floor of the castle. Go and persuade her to come back to Rou Ran City with me.”
Suo Lun glanced at him, then walked towards the top floor of the castle. He did not turn hostile for the moment, because he needed to obtain sufficient information from Suo Ning Bing.
A Shi Luo closed his eyes, enjoying the service of the golden-haired beauty. Suddenly, he saw a scimitar warrior looking at his woman, his breathing growing rapid.
“What are you looking at?” A Shi Luo asked.
“Master… I, I…” That scimitar warrior immediately knelt down.
“Rise, rise…” A Shi Luo stood up, pulling that golden-haired beauty before him and saying, “It is normal for men to like looking at women’s bodies. Who wouldn’t like looking at such a beauty? If you want to look, then look openly and aboveboard.”
“Yes…” That scimitar warrior said, then his gaze trembled as he looked at this golden-haired beauty’s body.
This woman was the daughter of a noble from the Ye Lan Duchy. A beauty of such noble status was someone these warriors could never aspire to in their entire lives, let alone see their bodies.
At this moment, because of A Shi Luo’s favour, he was able to feast his eyes to his heart’s content.
“Is it nice to look at? Is it satisfying?” A Shi Luo asked with a smile.
“Nice, satisfying.” That scimitar warrior said.
A Shi Luo said, “I truly am a generous master.”
Then, he took that warrior’s scimitar and slashed fiercely.
That warrior froze, then let out a miserable wail, because his manhood had been directly castrated.
Blood spurted out like a fountain.
A Shi Luo watched him struggle and convulse on the ground with lingering interest, then said to the surrounding beauties and warriors, “Come, come, come, let us make a bet. I bet that within a quarter of an hour, he will bleed to death.”
Then, he actually took out a handful of gold coins and placed them on the table, and also placed an hourglass on the tabletop.
“Come and bet, come and bet. If he doesn’t die before the sand runs out, the gold coins on the table are yours.” A Shi Luo said.
One of the beauties beside him said, “Master, but we have nowhere on our bodies to put gold coins.”
A Shi Luo said, “Then use plucking hair as the wager, one hair for one gold coin.”
Then, more than a dozen beauties all took out their wagers, betting on when the scimitar warrior wailing and rolling on the ground would die.
And the other scimitar warriors in the room looked straight ahead without glancing sideways, as if they had seen nothing.
…
Arriving at the top floor of the castle, the haggard and pale Suo Ning Bing suddenly rushed into Suo Lun’s embrace.
“Little brother, you’ve finally returned, you’ve finally returned…” Suo Ning Bing’s delicate body was ice-cold, trembling uncontrollably.
Suo Lun quickly embraced her, saying softly, “I’m back, don’t be afraid, I’m back.”
In Suo Lun’s embrace, Suo Ning Bing finally gradually calmed down, then asked softly, “Did we win? Did we reclaim Tian Shui City?”
Suo Lun nodded.
Suo Ning Bing was instantly overcome with wild joy and said, “Wonderful, wonderful, I have had nightmares every day, afraid that something bad would happen to you.”
Suo Lun said, “I’m fine, the battle went very smoothly, I am completely unharmed.”
“That’s good, that’s good…” Suo Ning Bing murmured.
Suo Lun asked, “Sister, what is going on with that A Shi Luo downstairs? What exactly has happened between you and him?”
Suo Ning Bing’s peerlessly beautiful face changed, and she said through gritted teeth, “This man is a devil.”
Then, Suo Ning Bing finally narrated the matters between her and A Shi Na in full detail.
…
A Shi Luo, young master of Rou Ran City.
Rou Ran City was located in the extreme west of the Nu Lang Kingdom, bordering the Ye Lan Duchy, and was the Nu Lang Kingdom’s greatest vassal, ruling over territories stretching more than a thousand li.
The Suo clan of Tian Shui City possessed five hundred li of territory, and was already ranked among the foremost great vassals under heaven. Yet Rou Ran City’s territory was fully five times that of Tian Shui City, with more than two million subjects and over a hundred thousand troops.
Moreover, Rou Ran City was also the vassal with the strongest independence. The A Shi clan’s allegiance to the Nu Lang royal house did not exceed fifteen years.
So to this day, the Nu Lang royal house’s control over Rou Ran was virtually zero.
Rou Ran City was once part of the Ye Lan Duchy, and at that time its territory was only a quarter of its present size, roughly about the same as Tian Shui City.
More than a decade ago, the A Shi clan of Rou Ran City rebelled from the Ye Lan Duchy and began invading surrounding territories, expanding continuously.
The Ye Lan Duchy mobilised its full national strength to suppress the rebellion, dispatching nearly three hundred thousand troops to attack Rou Ran City.
Rou Ran City’s cavalry was renowned throughout the world, but at that time the A Shi clan only had five hundred li of territory and twenty thousand troops.
Twenty thousand against three hundred thousand, and the A Shi clan was actually undefeated, showing how formidable their military strength was.
But the disparity in strength between the two sides was too great, so the A Shi clan sought help from the Nu Lang Kingdom and swore allegiance to the Ji clan.
After weighing the matter, the Nu Lang Kingdom decided to accept the A Shi clan, dispatching two great armies, one to rescue Rou Ran City and one to attack the capital of the Ye Lan Duchy.
The army attacking the Ye Lan capital was commanded by Tu Ling Tuo.
And the army going to rescue Rou Ran City was commanded by Suo Lun’s father, Count Suo Long.
This battle was a great victory for the Nu Lang Kingdom and the A Shi clan. Not only was Rou Ran City preserved, but its territory was expanded by more than twofold.
At that time, Count Suo Long and the Lord of Rou Ran City, A Shi Mo, fought side by side for several months, forging a deep friendship.
The engagement between Suo Ning Bing and A Shi Luo was also established at that time.
A Shi Luo was the heir of Rou Ran City. At the age of ten he went to Yao Zhou to study sorcery, and at the age of twenty he returned to Rou Ran City to marry Suo Ning Bing.
However, less than a month after the marriage, Suo Ning Bing left Rou Ran City and returned home.
“He is a pervert, a devil…” Suo Ning Bing said, “After we bowed in the wedding ceremony, it was time for the wedding night. Yet I discovered that inside the bridal chamber were more than a dozen other women, and three male favourites. He actually said that these dozen or so men and women were to join us in the wedding night. I directly slapped him across the face, and we parted on bad terms.”
Suo Lun was dumbstruck. This was beyond perversion?
“Not only that, he also discussed with me that when he took me back to my natal family, they would pass through the royal capital Ji Du, and he had heard that Prince Ji Li’s wife was very beautiful, so he wanted me to agree to him and Ji Li swapping wives for two days to play.” Suo Ning Bing said, “When he made this request, it was very natural, without the slightest shame, as if it were as ordinary as eating or drinking.”
Suo Lun could not believe he was hearing all this. This man was beyond perversion, simply… there were no words to describe him. What kind of education had he received in Yao Zhou?
Recalling that magnificent fleet on the sea, which A Shi Luo had brought, Suo Lun could not help asking, “Rou Ran City is in the extreme west, the king of cavalry. Where did he get a fleet?”
Ji Ning said, “He conquered the daughter of the Lord of Ying Zhou Island, so he obtained her fleet.”
Suo Lun had conquered Yan Nai Er and obtained the Silver Wolf Legion.
This scoundrel had conquered the daughter of the Lord of Ying Zhou Island and obtained the Ying Zhou fleet.
This scoundrel’s path to rising up was truly similar to Suo Lun’s. That was why Suo Lun found him especially repulsive. And this repulsion was innate, irreconcilable.
“Little brother, I would rather die than leave your side. I want to take care of you for the rest of my life.” Suo Ning Bing said softly yet firmly.
“Rest assured, I will not let anyone take you away from my side.” Suo Lun held Ning Bing’s face firmly and said.
…
Returning to the castle hall, Suo Lun said decisively, “A Shi Luo, you are not welcome here. Please leave!”
A Shi Luo said in surprise, “You want to drive me away? I am Suo Ning Bing’s husband, I count as half the master here.”
Suo Lun said, “My sister has already divorced you, she is no longer your wife.”
A Shi Luo said, “In our Rou Ran, there is no such thing as divorce. In life she is my person, in death she is my ghost! So today, no matter what, I am going to take her away. The reason I stayed here waiting for you for three days was mainly to see whether you could return alive from Tian Shui City.”
On the staircase, Suo Ning Bing said coldly, “A Shi Luo, you cannot take me away. Unless what you take away is my corpse.”
A Shi shrugged his shoulders and said, “A corpse works too!”
The moment these words were spoken, Suo Lun’s gaze turned cold. He directly waved his hand and said, “Move!”
Immediately, Ye Jingyu, Suo Feiyang, and all the warriors drew their swords.
The scimitar warriors behind A Shi Luo also lightning-fast drew their weapons.
Suo Lun said angrily, “Gao Ning Shi, what are you still standing there for?”
Gao Ning Shi was the eunuch that Duke Ting had left on Rubble Island, who had once acted to save Suo Ning Bing and captured Gui Qin Shao.
The moment Suo Lun’s voice fell, several figures floated over, precisely the four eunuchs led by Gao Ning Shi.
Gao Ning Shi had completely white hair, a kindly face, very long eyebrows almost hanging down to the corners of his mouth, and held a Buddhist whisk as a weapon.
He was already over sixty years old, with very high martial arts, surpassing even that Li Zhu beside Ji Ning. He could be considered the person with the strongest martial arts on Rubble Island.
However, after Gao Ning Shi entered, he did not act, but merely stood motionless.
Suo Lun said, “Eunuch Gao, why do you still not act?”
“They will not act, and will instead treat me as an honoured guest.” A Shi Luo said, “Because the person behind Duke Ting has need of me. Everyone knows that now all the vassals and nobles under heaven are supporting Ji Li. My Rou Ran City, as the foremost vassal under heaven, Princess Ji Yan’s faction naturally hopes to gain my support.”
Then, A Shi Luo caressed the woman beside him and said, “In my eyes, beauty is justice. Princess Ji Yan is very beautiful, so I am willing to stand on her side. However, I made one small condition, that I wanted to take Suo Ning Bing back to Rou Ran City, and then Duke Ting agreed, so I came.”
The moment these words were spoken, Suo Lun’s expression changed completely. He was even furious in his heart. What right did Duke Ting have to agree to hand Suo Ning Bing over to A Shi Luo?
A Shi Luo said, “You are a vassal, and I am also a vassal. But I have several million subjects, over a hundred thousand troops, and possess the foremost cavalry under heaven. The power I possess is fully ten times yours. So the question is, if they had to choose between us, who do you think the King and Princess Ji would choose? And who would they abandon?”
Suo Lun looked towards the eunuch Gao Ning Shi and said, “Eunuch Gao, you represent Duke Ting. You must make a choice now. If you choose me, then act to capture A Shi Luo. Otherwise, I shall consider the alliance between me and Duke Ting to be broken.”
A Shi Luo shrugged his shoulders and said, “Fun, interesting, I like gambling the most. So Eunuch Gao, please choose. Will you choose to ally with me? Or choose to ally with Suo Lun? Moreover, I must take Suo Ning Bing away today, whether dead or alive.”
Thus, both Suo Lun and A Shi Luo stared at Gao Ning Shi, waiting for his final choice.
Gao Ning Shi’s face originally had not a single wrinkle, but at this moment it wrinkled into a ball. Then he said to Suo Lun, “I apologise, Count Suo Lun, I truly cannot make a choice.”
Suo Lun’s face was ice-cold as he said, “Your inability to make a choice is equivalent to having already made a choice.”
At this moment, there was not even anger in his heart, but a chill.
Then, he directly ordered, “Suo Feiyang, tell all the troops on the island to expel all of Duke Ting’s people. Ye Jingyu, go to Tian Shui City and bring Princess Ji Ning here, and by the way ask her, is it still too late for me to have an affair with her now?”
Gao Ning Shi said in a cold voice, “Count Suo Lun, are you betraying His Majesty?”
Suo Lun said, “I have always been quick to turn hostile, faster than turning the pages of a book!”