The young officer was looking at Li Wenli with ill intent, "A little practice is fine, but if you lose, both of you must stay behind to serve us."
Li Wenli hooked up the corner of his mouth, "If you want to taste the torment of a thousand cuts and the extinction of your lineage, I don’t mind at all."
Upon hearing this, the man immediately glared with cold, hostile eyebrows, and the sword at his waist flashed out with a whoosh.
"Fox, that’s not acceptable."
"Please forgive me, Superior Officer, the kid is young and doesn’t understand the gravity of his words. Please, raise your noble hand and do not stoop to his level."
Just as Li Wenli was rolling up his sleeves, ready to teach this group of young brothers a lesson, the Death Valley companions around him sensed something wrong and stepped forward to obstruct.
"Whoever dares to intervene, I’ll deal with them first!"
"Try me if you dare!"
Seeing that there were some who weren’t afraid to come forward, the three men beside the squad leader glared over ferociously, clearly not taking this group of old, weak, sick, and disabled logistics soldiers seriously.
"Superior Officer, don’t be angry, I have something good here. Let me apologize on behalf of this kid."
The Lame Man Uncle from Death Valley also knew these soldiers were merely here to extract their pound of flesh, and as he spoke, he reached for the Heart Protecting Armor he carried.
Bai Junjun quickly pressed him down, "Uncle, don’t move."
The man’s anger had just subsided a bit upon hearing there was something good, but Bai Junjun actually restrained him.
Such insolence from these two kids provoked the squad leader beyond the point of giving another chance, he cursed, "Ptui! All of you are tired of living for disrespecting your superiors!"
With that, the man drew his sword and charged forward, and naturally, everyone else followed suit, drawing their swords to resist.
The commotion finally caught the attention of the Lame Man, the Elite Troop Captain, and the Guard Post Soldier Chief, who followed the noise and rushed over.
The squad leader who had been about to shout and fight instantly stopped in his tracks, looking obediently at his own Superior Officer.
The Guard Post Soldier Chief looked at them sternly, "What’s going on here!"
"Reporting to the Superior Officer, I was just following the rules to inspect the military supplies when this kid was disrespectful..."
The squad leader shifted all the blame onto Li Wenli, claiming they were conducting a routine inspection, and it was Li Wenli who refused to cooperate and spoke offensively first, leading to the quarrel.
The squad leader was single-mindedly set on getting Li Wenli killed and preferably detained, considering extreme means of retaliation. He had long forgotten about the matter with the basket.
After hearing his subordinate’s account, the Superior Officer glanced indifferently at the frail and down-and-out Li Wenli, "Merely a logistics transport soldier, he should be killed on the spot for disrespecting and offending a superior officer."
This statement shocked the Lame Man Uncle, "This cannot be, Superior Officer."
A Superior Officer ranks higher than a High Official, and although the Lame Man was acting as a Centurion, he had no Military Merit to his name—in every respect, he was several ranks below the Superior Officer.
In the military camp, insubordination was a very serious matter. A minor manager like the Lame Man was not qualified to interfere, and of course, there was no need to offend a Superior Officer for the sake of a mere soldier.
Yet, the Lame Man was no ordinary person. Even if the one being mistreated was any ordinary person from Death Valley, he would intervene, let alone if it was Li Wenli being troubled.
As the Lame Man stepped forward to intervene, the people from Death Valley also moved ahead, shielding the "weak and pitiable" Li Wenli behind them.
All these uncles were kowtowing and apologizing to them, pleading for the Superior Officer to show mercy.
The Superior Officer’s face grew darker and darker, "The military has strict discipline, and those who disobey superiors must face military punishment! Do you think this is a marketplace, where you all can fuss and obstruct as you please!"
Just as tensions were rising to a critical point, the Elite Troop Captain finally stood out.
"Superior Officer, please calm your anger."