Dragon Tamer

The Copper Knife Army has always been one of the more infamous private military forces in the tea-colored grounds. They don’t belong to any nation but are often seen in national wars.

Whichever country is willing to pay a high price, they sell their services to them; given the chaos of the tea-colored grounds, a strong private army like theirs never has to worry about going hungry.

In the Copper Knife Army, there are more than three thousand soldiers proficient in blade techniques, not to mention a few Divine and Mortal beings among them. The core force leading this army is also a group of Blade Masters with high cultivation bases, experts in assaulting cities and killing enemies. Even the armies of some city-states need to retreat when they encounter the Copper Knife Army!

With their formidable strength and strict discipline, and with many powerful interests entangled behind them, many countries tend to accommodate them.

“So it’s a private army led by a bunch of Blade Masters, huh? Since your Copper Knife Army is so remarkable, why usurp another’s nest, wouldn’t it be better to attack and take a city for yourselves?” Zhu Minglang said to Zhu Weicai, the Copper Knife Army’s commander.

“Our army has taken over cities before but, while capturing a city is easy, managing it is not. There hasn’t been a single city under our management that didn’t end up steeped in debt. After numerous occasions, we’ve learned our lesson—fighting and killing is our forte; we know nothing beyond that!” Zhu Weicai, the commander of the Copper Knife Army, replied with surprising honesty.

“Then, Runyu City isn’t exactly a lucrative place either, why cling to it so stubbornly?” Zhu Minglang asked.

“Haven’t you heard that Mourning Dragons have appeared again? Our Copper Knife Army is waiting here to catch them off guard. The complete corpse of a Mourning Dragon can fetch a few thousand gold pieces, and those of high level can sell for tens of thousands…”

“Commander, weren’t you going to question him about why he wanted to drive us out of the city?” At that moment, a Junior beside Zhu Weicai quietly reminded his commander.

“Right, why am I discussing this with you? Are you the new City Lord of this city?” Zhu Weicai asked.

“This is the City Ownership Deed, at noon I’ll issue the first order to expel all armed forces. Your Copper Knife Army might want to head outside the city early to pick a prime spot to camp, to save your brothers from freezing at night.” Zhu Minglang said.

“Hmph, acting all high and mighty with that feathered command, just issue your order, and when the time comes, we’ll see if the Copper Knife Army moves an inch!” Zhu Weicai displayed his disdain once more.

“Where is your camp located?” Li Yunzi spoke up.

“Right beside this ruined marketplace, why, fancy a tour of our camp’s might?” Zhu Weicai of the Copper Knife Army said.

“Sure, lead the way.” Zhu Minglang smiled in response.

Following the soldiers clad in copper helmets and armed with copper knives, they headed towards their camp.

The Copper Knife Army had occupied a large compound of residences directly and had transformed the most important markets, streets, and business districts into their camp. The significant crossroads had become a place for their soldiers to drill.

At that time, several thousand soldiers split into multiple battalions were practicing right in the thoroughfares of the city, looking no different from the regular armies of some nations, and even with the presence of Divine and Mortal beings and Blade Masters, their might seemed even more impressive.

“Don’t you have any Dragon Shepherds?” Zhu Minglang asked.

Most armies would recruit Dragon Shepherds, as they are the mightiest force in battle and many ferocious Dragon Beasts are killing machines on the battlefield!

“No, Dragon Shepherds are all too arrogant, spending money to hire them is not worth it when we could give that money to our brothers to enjoy themselves!” Zhu Weicai again showed a disdainful curl of the lip, clearly holding great prejudice and dissatisfaction toward Dragon Shepherds.

“Commander, this morning we saw the Dragon Shepherds of the Hu Family Army, it seems like they’re planning something big,” a Junior soldier hurried over, paying no mind to Zhu Minglang, Li Yunzi, and Hao Ye, and reported directly to the commander.

“What are Hu Bailing and Hu Chongming, those siblings, up to now?” Zhu Weicai said, furrowing his thick brows.

“The details are still unclear. Should we send someone to keep a close watch first?” asked the Junior.

“Hey, City Lord, didn’t you want to expel all armed forces? Why don’t you start by driving out the Hu Family Army? They are the original owners of this city after all.” Zhu Weicai turned his head and said to Zhu Minglang.

“We are with them,” Zhu Minglang said indifferently, not minding revealing himself.

“Damn it, doesn’t that mean you are here to scout our military information!” Zhu Weicai glared back in anger.

“You invited us to visit,” Zhu Minglang said.

“I invited you to visit only to let you clearly see our strength, to stay out of our way. Young people can be wild, but don’t court death!” Zhu Weicai said angrily.

“At what price?” Li Yunzi asked.

“What price?” Zhu Weicai was utterly confused.

“To hire your army,” Li Yunzi continued.

“You little girl, the Copper Knife Army does big jobs: seizing cities, annihilating clans, stomping on Dragon Caverns, and trampling demon lairs. We’re not here to act as guards for you Embroidered Ladies, or to play the role of Blade Masters.” Zhu Weicai said.

“So the price,” Li Yunzi asked coldly.

“One million and a half in gold as a down payment. It depends on what we do for you. If it involves attacking cities, participating in national wars, or eliminating some stubborn forces, we need to charge a more reasonable fee according to the level of danger and our potential losses,” Zhu Weicai said.

Zhu Minglang certainly hadn’t anticipated that Li Yunzi would recruit troops on the spot!

But upon reflection, it made sense.

Such a big city, teeming with dragons and fishes, bustling with numerous forces, it’s indeed difficult to clean up without one’s own army.

The Hu Family Army, after all, was cooperating with them and not completely under their command.

“One million in gold for Hu Family, and their Dragon Shepherds are easier to deploy,” Li Yunzi said.

“How could those greenhorns possibly compare to us, the battle-hardened Copper Knife Army!” Zhu Weicai retorted, his thick eyebrows raised again.

“One million in gold. If you accept, continue to be stationed here and follow my orders from now on. If not, pack up and leave as soon as possible. Once night falls, we control everything in this city, including your lives!” Li Yunzi said.

“This… this…” Zhu Weicai was actually somewhat indecisive at the moment.

He had originally intended to invite this new City Lord over to intimidate him, but now he found himself overwhelmed by her imposing manner.

One million in gold…

To take it or not, the price was a bit low, but actually, earning a profit from hunting Mourning Dragons was not something that happened overnight. It really might be better to accept the employment, a stable job for a while.

After all, with three thousand of the Copper Knife Army having no work for a day, they would lose a large sum of money!

“Agreed, agreed, agreed! One million in gold it is!” Zhu Weicai accepted.

Zhu Minglang and Hao Ye still hadn’t quite grasped what had happened, and Li Yunzi had already taken control of the Copper Knife Army!