Although Qin Ming didn't dare continue attacking or go for the kill, he wasn't about to let Sun Shangxiang off so easily either.
After all, he was seriously injured, with wounds all over his body. If he didn't recover quickly, things could get dangerous if another battle broke out.
As for using his high-level consumables as a backup plan, Qin Ming simply couldn't bear to waste them.
Fighting so hard and not gaining any rewards was already frustrating enough—if he had to waste precious resources on top of that, it would be a huge loss.
So, he chose to make use of what was available.
Without hesitation, he grabbed Sun Shangxiang and bit down hard on her shoulder.
As his Essence Absorption skill activated, Qin Ming's injuries rapidly healed.
Sun Shangxiang, on the other hand, trembled violently, her body convulsing as her eyes rolled back.
Only when all of his wounds were fully restored did Qin Ming finally let go. Pushing himself off the ground, he stood up.
Lying on the floor, gasping for breath, Sun Shangxiang still hadn't stopped shuddering from the effects of the skill.
But suddenly, she reached into her chest pocket and pulled out an item.
With a flash of light, a delicately crafted lantern appeared in her hand, radiating a soft glow!
Three Kingdoms Chronicle Item: Seven-Star Lantern
Effect: Instantly restores the user's full health.
Quality: Ordinary Silver-Tier Consumable.
As the starlight fell upon her, Sun Shangxiang's injuries disappeared in an instant, fully restoring her to peak condition.
Seeing this, Qin Ming's pupils contracted, and he instinctively took a step back, his expression darkening.
He had completely overlooked one crucial detail—Sun Shangxiang wasn't just some high-ranking officer; as a key figure in both the Wu and Shu factions, she had access to significant perks.
A life-saving item like this? Of course, she would have one!
If Qin Ming had actually tried to kill her just now, he would have ended up in another drawn-out battle.
And now that she had figured out his fighting style, she wouldn't give him the same opening to grapple with her in close combat. Her difficulty level would have increased dramatically.
After using the Seven-Star Lantern, Sun Shangxiang didn't immediately stand up. Instead, she looked at Qin Ming, then suddenly extended a hand toward him.
Qin Ming hesitated for a moment but eventually stepped forward, grasped her hand, and pulled her up with a firm tug.
Once on her feet, Sun Shangxiang stretched her limbs and even did a couple of quick jumps.
Confirming that her body was fine, she suddenly grinned and playfully punched Qin Ming in the chest.
"Not bad, kid! Never thought Zhao Yun would have such a fierce general under him! How come I've never heard of you before?"
Qin Ming's gaze flickered slightly.
"I'm not one of Zhao Yun's men."
"Hmm? You're not? Then whose subordinate are you?"
"No one's. I just enlisted recently, just a regular soldier. When we attacked earlier, I jumped onto this ship by accident and couldn't get back."
Hearing this, Sun Shangxiang froze for a moment.
She stared at Qin Ming in shock, dumbfounded for a few seconds before suddenly bursting into laughter.
She then slung an arm around his shoulder, her eyes filled with amusement.
"Oh? So we've got ourselves an unpolished gem here. Need me to pull some strings? I could introduce you to my second brother or even my husband."
"Appreciate the offer, but no thanks."
"Suit yourself."
Retracting her arm, Sun Shangxiang turned toward the door.
She pulled back the door bolt and swung the door open. Outside, more than a hundred armored soldiers and female guards had already gathered, weapons raised.
But before the foremost soldier, Zhou Dun, could even speak, Sun Shangxiang waved her hand dismissively as she strode past them.
"Starting today, this guy is my personal guard captain!"
"What? But, My Lady! He's of unknown origin!"
"That's an order!"
"...Yes, My Lady!"
Seeing Sun Shangxiang's cold, piercing gaze, Zhou Dun's expression shifted slightly, but in the end, he didn't dare to say anything more.
As Sun Shangxiang left, Zhou Dun turned to give Qin Ming a deep look before quickly leading his men away as well.
And so, in just two short days, Qin Ming had gone from a mere janitor to a Vice General and Captain of the Personal Guard. Standing inside the cabin, he let out a sigh of relief, finally loosening his grip on the flight jacket in his hand…
Meanwhile, on another armed warship in the Wu fleet, the sound of hurried footsteps rang out as someone abruptly pushed open a door.
Hearing the commotion, the warship's vice general looked up in confusion and saw one of his personal guards rushing inside.
"What's the matter? Why are you in such a hurry?"
"Boss! A high-ranking general from the flagship is here for an inspection! The commander asked you to come and join the welcoming party!"
"Huh? A general inspection? But Zhao Yun has never been seen on our ship! Why would they inspect us?"
The vice general's face was filled with confusion as he quickly got up and led his men outside.
Upon arriving at the flagship's main cabin, he saw that the ship's high-ranking officers had already gathered.
Not only was the ship captain present, but also another vice general, the logistics captain, the spear unit captain, and the archery unit captain—everyone except him.
Realizing this, he quickly jogged forward and took his place beside the ship captain.
A few moments later, the sound of footsteps echoed through the entrance, and a squad of imposing female soldiers strode in, marching in perfect sync.
Among them was a broad-shouldered man clad in scaled armor.
Seeing this man enter, the ship's officers immediately straightened their backs, standing at attention as they shouted out their formal greetings.
However, among them, the vice general's eyes widened in sheer disbelief, his expression filled with shock.
Because this broad-shouldered "general" walking in armor…
Wasn't he the same guy that had been scammed out of ten gold coins just two days ago?
The same guy who was assigned to clean the toilets on the flagship?
Noticing the vice general's stunned expression, Qin Ming—now donned in his newly issued General's Armor—slowly turned to look at him.
Their eyes met, and Qin Ming flashed a gentle smile.
Seeing this smile, the vice general felt his heart turn ice cold…
Ten minutes later.
The inspection meeting ended, and the newly appointed Captain of the Personal Guard expressed his satisfaction with the ship's defensive layout, even taking the time to praise the ship captain and his officers.
Only one unlucky vice general was singled out for disciplinary action due to his tardiness.
As punishment, he was assigned to clean the ship's toilets for a full month.
Oh, and he was also fined exactly ten gold coins.
After reclaiming his money and delivering a small dose of karma to this corrupt officer, Qin Ming finally left, feeling quite satisfied.
Of course, he didn't abuse his new authority to completely remove the vice general from his position or anything.
It wasn't because he couldn't—as Captain of the Personal Guard, his rank was equal to Zhou Dun, the overall commander of the fleet.
Forget demoting a mere vice general—he could easily remove the ship captain from his position, and no one would dare object.
But in the end, the vice general had helped him sneak onto the flagship, even if the job assignment he received was absolute garbage.
Still, the man did get him inside, so a small punishment was enough. There was no need to ruin him completely.
Now, if that bastard had just taken the money without doing anything?
Punishment? Ha!
Qin Ming wouldn't have wasted time punishing him—he would've just made up some excuse like "stepping onto the deck with his left foot first" and tossed him into the sea to feed the fish!
Even revenge had its levels—not everyone deserved to have their entire family wiped out.
Qin Ming wasn't some mindless butcher, slaughtering everyone who crossed him.
Take General Germi Foss from the Metal Slug world, for example. That old bastard had offended Qin Ming too.
Did Qin Ming ever say he'd kill him?
Nah.
At worst, he just beat him up… one, two, three, four, five, six times…
That was all.
(End of Chapter)