Lin Feng smiled. "Most of it was supported by the General Bureau; I actually don't have much money."

Feng Qingyan's eyes widened, her face full of disbelief. "Lord Lin, who are you trying to fool? If you go back to Blue Star now and walk into any bank, saying you're the Lord of Beacon Fire Territory, the branch manager would personally carry money boxes to deliver cash to you."

"They'd be terrified you wouldn't take a loan! If you didn't pay it back, the manager would even praise you for having 'character'—that's what you call status!"

Su Yuehua looked back at her, her tone gentle but carrying an unquestionable weight: "Qingyan, if you keep being cheeky, I'll have you move stone projectiles on the city walls for a day."

Feng Qingyan stuck out her tongue and shrunk back behind Feng Qingshuang.

Feng Qingshuang glanced at her sister expressionlessly without saying a word.

Lin Feng waved his hand to show it was fine, then his smile faded as he looked toward the northern wilderness, his tone becoming steady.

"I don't need that much money on Blue Star. I'll probably be staying in the Nightmare World recently, mainly because the war situation with the alien races is becoming increasingly unfavorable."

He paused and continued, "According to the General {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} Bureau's latest intelligence, the Orc Army within Sakura Country's borders hasn't been wiped out; instead, they've been winning frequently in field battles."

"The day before yesterday, the Orc Army captured the sixth Sakura Country county town. Their troop strength has swelled back to thirty thousand, and another Level 40 War Lord has descended."

"Sakura Country has already abandoned its plan to eliminate the orcs in field battles. They're preparing to use city-level territories to block them and have requested aid from Zhenyue City. The Orc Army will attack Osaka Castle in a few days."

Su Yuehua's brow furrowed slightly, Feng Qingyan stopped her joking, and Feng Qingshuang's gaze also became a bit more solemn.

"News came from Zhenyue City that this reinforcement will be led by City Lord Lu and City Lord Liu. We won't move for now."

Lin Feng's tone was very calm, as if he were stating something that had nothing to do with him.

But in his mind, the abacus was already clicking away rapidly.

His plan was simple: wait for the Orc Army and Sakura Country's Osaka Castle to lock in a death struggle, then quietly sneak over from the Crying Rift Valley, take out the several county towns in the orcs' rear, and then surround them with the Great Wall.

Population, resources, recruitment quotas for the Great Qin Elite Soldiers—he'd get them all, comfortably.

Low risk, high reward; while others held the line with their lives at the front, he'd make a fortune in silence. No matter how he looked at it, this deal was a win.

And to be honest, ever since that business in Hundred Ghosts County, he really couldn't muster any goodwill toward Sakura Country.

Snatching a few cities back this time didn't weigh on his conscience at all.

At this thought, the corner of Lin Feng's mouth curled up almost imperceptibly.

He suppressed his smile, turned his head, and asked, "President Su, how long until Lord Jiang and the others return?"

Su Yuehua thought for a moment and replied, "Zhaoyue and the others are already preparing to return. They should arrive the day after tomorrow."

The day after tomorrow.

Just one day before the recruitment of the last batch of Great Qin Elite Soldiers would be complete.

By then, Osaka Castle would likely have already engaged the Orc Army.

At that time, he would lead the Great Qin Elite Soldiers of Fenghuo County directly to Chidori County and catch them off guard.

Perfect!

As Lin Feng was thinking, a member of the Beacon Guards ran up the city wall steps and knelt on one knee before him: "Reporting to the Lord, General Zhao and the others are about to reach the East Gate."

The corner of Lin Feng's mouth turned up slightly as he turned toward the steps. "Let's go meet them."

Su Yuehua nodded, and the four of them walked down the city wall steps from the tower toward the East Gate.

...

Lin Feng and his group arrived at the East Gate of Hangu Pass. From a distance, they saw a massive convoy slowly approaching from the northern road.

Leading the way was Zhao Hu, his bone-crushing greatsword hanging at his waist, his half-body iron armor glinting dully in the sunlight.

Tie Dun followed on his right, his shield on his back. His head kept turning left and right as he looked around, a half-eaten biscuit in his mouth, his cheeks puffed out like a hamster's.

Su Yurou walked in the middle of the procession, clutching the bone healing staff in her arms.

Behind the procession followed about eight hundred Awakened.

Their equipment was a mixed bag; weapons included sabers, swords, bows, and crossbows, while their armor ranged from leather and iron to cloth. They didn't look like an army but rather a group of stragglers who had just finished a brawl.

Yet they walked with a swagger and were in high spirits. A few were whispering to each other, pointing at the forty-meter-high walls of Hangu Pass and clicking their tongues in awe.

Further back were a thousand County Soldiers from Linshan County.

Their formation was countless times tidier than the Awakened in front. They were dressed in uniform half-body leather armor, holding spears, with short swords at their waists.

The leading Centurion was expressionless, gaze fixed forward—clearly a regular soldier by training.

Behind the County Soldiers were over two thousand family members of the soldiers, pushing handcarts, leading children, and carrying bundles.

The procession was slow and lively. The handcarts were piled with bedding, pots and pans, grain bags, and some wood that was dark in color with a fine grain, emitting a faint herbal fragrance.

The scent wasn't strong, but it lingered, detectable even from dozens of paces away.

Seeing Lin Feng standing outside the East Gate from afar, Zhao Hu quickened his pace and jogged over. "Lord, we've returned."

Lin Feng nodded, his gaze sweeping past him to the long procession behind. The corner of his mouth turned up slightly. "Good work. How is the situation?"

Zhao Hu pressed his right fist to his chest, his voice steady. "Lord, we were out for six days and went through all the surrounding village-level and town-level territories, as well as Linshan County."

"We recruited a total of eight hundred and twelve Awakened of Level 7 or higher. We also brought back all one thousand County Soldiers from Linshan County."

"Nearly two thousand family members were also settled into the group. Furthermore—"

He paused, took a wooden box from a nearby attendant, and presented it to Lin Feng with both hands.

"A specialty of Linshan County: Mind-Awakening Wood. This is the heartwood carved from the center of an ancient tree over a hundred years old. Ground into powder and mixed with medicine, it can be made into 'Mind-Awakening Soup.' Drinking a bowl restores physical strength extremely quickly."

Lin Feng took the wooden box and opened it. Inside lay seven or eight palm-sized pieces of wood, their texture as warm and smooth as jade, emitting a faint herbal fragrance.

Feng Qingyan had squeezed forward at some point, her neck craned long, her eyes sparkling as she cried out.

"Mind-Awakening Wood? I've heard of this stuff in Zhenyue City; it's ridiculously expensive! I heard a small piece can be traded for a Great-Horned Deer! How much did you bring back in that cart?"

She turned to look at the handcarts at the back of the procession. They were piled with mountain-like stacks of timber, dark and emitting the same herbal fragrance as the heartwood.

Su Yuehua was also slightly moved, her brow furrowing lightly. "All this timber is Mind-Awakening Wood? Since when did Linshan County have so much in stock?"

Su Yurou stepped out from behind Zhao Hu and explained with a smile, "Not the whole log. Only the palm-sized heartwood is useful. While the outer wood also has a refreshing effect, it's far inferior to the heartwood. However, even if we only count the heartwood, this batch of timber is enough to make over ten thousand servings of Mind-Awakening Soup."

Feng Qingyan's eyes grew even wider, her mouth forming an 'O' shape. "Ten thousand servings? How much money would that be worth? Lord Lin, you've struck gold!"

She slapped Tie Dun's shield. "Brother Tie Dun, you guys have achieved a great merit this trip!"