"Brother Bai, I’ve heard that Mr. Dong is unrivaled in the Sensation realm. Is that true?"

As the three of them grew more familiar, Liao Zhong gradually opened up.

Dong Wanjun’s reputation was immense these days; even in the Capital City, his name was known.

This was mainly because Du Qinghui had once declared Dong Wanjun to be the best in the Sensation realm.

That former Left Chief Imperial Censor of the Imperial Inspection Office was a man of exceptionally high standards who had seen countless geniuses. For him to make such a statement, it certainly couldn’t have been baseless boasting.

Thus, Dong Wanjun’s fame had long been discussed countless times by the young scions of the Capital City. If Ling Province weren’t so far from the capital, many would have surely sought him out for guidance.

Now that he had met Dong Wanjun’s disciple, Liao Zhong naturally had to ask.

In fact, like Yang Fangyu, he deeply admired the tales of Old Dong’s exploits in the Northern Plains.

Bai Yuan: "It was just a casual remark from Lord Du. It can’t be taken seriously."

Liao Zhong hesitated for a moment, then nodded.

’He thought so, too.’

There were so many powerful experts in the world, not to mention the countless old monsters in the Central Plains who were stuck in the Sensation realm. Though they could never break through to the Clear Heart realm, their methods were terrifyingly strong.

He found it impossible to imagine Dong Wanjun overpowering all of those old monsters.

Yang Fangyu: "Junior Brother Liao, why did you become a Grain Transport Officer?"

He voiced the question that had been on his mind.

After all, almost all the students from Yingshan Academy became Civil Servants.

He was a complete exception, having voluntarily joined the Northern Garrison Army and worked his way up from a common foot soldier to a Thousand Households.

Liao Zhong: "It was Mountain Master Wang’s idea."

Hearing this, Yang Fangyu raised an eyebrow.

The Mountain Master of Yingshan Academy was a leading figure of the Confucian Family, and that particular Mountain Master Wang was renowned throughout the world for proposing that literature should be put to practical use.

"Mountain Master Wang once said that with the nation in peril, the Academy Disciples ought to lead by example and trade the pen for the sword."

Yang Fangyu understood.

That Mountain Master Wang was extremely popular at Yingshan Academy, with countless followers. With the old master having spoken, it was only natural that many Academy Disciples would choose to become Military Officers.

As they spoke of their shared past, Yang Fangyu and Liao Zhong became more and more animated.

Bai Yuan listened quietly from the side.

’Yingshan Academy truly lives up to its name as one of the Four Great Academies. Even ordinary students can meet a great figure like Mountain Master Wang.’

’No wonder they say that getting into Yingshan Academy guarantees at least a fifth-grade official position. It’s no surprise that students all over the world flock to it.’

However, Yingshan Academy’s entrance requirements were extremely high, accepting only ten students a year, all of whom were top-tier academic prospects.

Yang Fangyu had once admitted that he was consistently at the bottom of his class at the academy.

As they spoke, the group finally left the Official Road and entered the mountain forests.

From this point on, the danger of transporting the grain increased significantly.

Yang Fangyu and Liao Zhong stopped talking, instead watching their surroundings vigilantly, not missing a single detail.

The grain convoy used high-quality Demon Horses, so even the mountain path felt like level ground.

After the detour, the convoy would have to travel for three more days on mountain paths before returning to the Official Road, making these three days especially critical.

The convoy traveled until dusk, only making camp to rest when they reached an area with an open field of view.

Bai Yuan and the other two sat around a bonfire, the flames casting a red glow on their faces.

Liao Zhong said worriedly, "This ’Earth Dragon’ turning over is very unusual. The Astronomical Bureau didn’t issue any warning."

Bai Yuan and Yang Fangyu also wore solemn expressions.

Although the Astronomical Bureau was mostly filled with charlatans, it wasn’t entirely useless. Aside from its penchant for spreading rumors, its other main function was to detect earth tremors.

Compared to prophecies, the Astronomical Bureau’s accuracy in detecting earth tremors was much higher.

’The precision instruments from my past life were utterly defeated in the face of metaphysics.’

But this time, the tremor occurred on the Official Road, and the Astronomical Bureau had failed to predict it. Something like this hadn’t happened in several hundred years.

An anomaly like this meant trouble; they had to be extremely careful.

The Court was currently massing troops at the Northern Great Wall. If something happened to the grain supply at this critical juncture, the punishment would be severe.

Yang Fangyu: "Lord Jiang has already sent three hundred Demon Cavalry to wait twenty li away. Junior Brother Liao, you don’t need to worry."

Upon hearing this, a look of joy appeared on Liao Zhong’s face.

With the Demon Cavalry to charge the enemy lines, plus the three of them, the chances of protecting the grain convoy would be much greater.

At that moment, Liao Zhong glanced at the one hundred soldiers of the Divine Mansion Army behind him.

"Lord Bai, is this the Firearms Team?"

"I’ve heard so much about them."

Bai Yuan said lightly, "It’s all just hearsay."

Seeing Bai Yuan’s calm and nonchalant demeanor, Liao Zhong took it even more seriously in his heart. Among the younger generation of Ling Province, this General Bai before him was faintly regarded as the foremost.

This Demon-slaying Guard General of Ling Province, who was also the Chief Constable of the Patrol Office, had built a considerable reputation for himself relying on this very Firearms Team.

Thinking of Bai Yuan’s past achievements, Liao Zhong felt much calmer.

...

「The next day.」

The grain convoy set off before the sky had even brightened.

The men in the convoy were all Martial Artists and the horses were all Demon Horses. They didn’t need much time to rest, and traveling at night was not an issue.

Bai Yuan and Yang Fangyu led an escort of several hundred soldiers—a force of considerable size.

Ordinary mountain bandits wouldn’t be foolish enough to provoke such a formidable group. The only ones who would dare to make a move were the Demon Sect masters hiding in the mountains.

When the sky was fully lit, Bai Yuan finally saw the Demon Cavalry waiting in the valley.

The convoy had encountered no trouble along the way.

"Greetings, my lords."

The leading Demon Cavalry Commander cupped his hands in a salute to the three of them.

Liao Zhong returned the salute. "We’ve troubled you, General Zhang."

The Demon Cavalry Commander, whose name was Zhang Qing, quickly waved his hand. "Not at all, General Liao. It is my duty."

His strength and official rank were far inferior to the three men before him; his only advantage was the number of Demon Cavalry. Naturally, he didn’t dare to act conceited.

Yang Fangyu and Bai Yuan, however, had met this Commander Zhang on several occasions.

Yang Fangyu: "Since we’ve rendezvoused, let’s hurry on our way."

Zhang Qing: "Yes, sir!"

He was, of course, well aware of the importance of this grain transport mission.

With the addition of the Demon Cavalry, Liao Zhong’s confidence grew considerably.

...

「Elsewhere.」

「Deep in the mountain forest.」

A person in a black robe passed through a pine forest, finally arriving at the bank of a small stream.

"My lord, Xuan Yang’s grain convoy has passed Longwind Ridge."

"Good."

A woman’s voice slowly sounded.

It was none other than the Soul Chasing Tower Lord, Han Min.

She turned and walked upstream, where several figures were already waiting.

"Everyone, it’s time for us to make our move."

A vicious glint appeared in Han Min’s eyes.

The people before her were all Demon Sect masters lying in wait in Ling Province. Each one possessed strength comparable to a Prefect. Such a terrifying team was powerful enough to sweep through any prefecture in Ling Province.

’Let’s see you escape this time!’

She could hardly wait to kill that young Sect Leader of the Divine Mansion Sect and avenge her previous humiliation.

The ’Earth Dragon’ turning over on the Official Road was, of course, not a natural disaster, but a demonic one. It was the work of a great demon summoned by Kuaidong.

The goal was to force the Ling Province grain convoy to take a detour so they could be ambushed.

Clearly, their goal had been achieved.

And this time, the fish on the hook was far bigger than they had anticipated: two fifth-grade officials, plus a hundred-man Firearms Team and three hundred Demon Cavalry.

A loss like this should be enough to make that Du Jiedu Envoy ache for a long time.

...

CREAK... CREAK...

The sound of wagon wheels echoed through the mountain forest.

"Another fifty li and we’ll be out of the mountains."

Yang Fangyu said slowly, looking at the thinning trees around them.

Though victory was in sight, no one relaxed their guard in the slightest.

It was precisely at times like this that one had to be most cautious, or else they would capsize in a calm gutter.

Liao Zhong’s eyes swept over their surroundings.

Just as he was about to speak—

Suddenly, a blood-curdling scream came from the very front of the convoy.

Bai Yuan, who had been silent all this time, suddenly roared, "Poisonous smoke!"

Before his voice had faded, screams rang out one after another from the front as rows of soldiers from the grain convoy collapsed.

With a flick of his sleeve, Bai Yuan scattered an invisible, colorless powder that drifted through the convoy, neutralizing the poison in the air. Just like that, the poisonous smoke was easily dispelled.

Witnessing this, Liao Zhong praised him silently.

’The Jianghu has long had a name for Bai Yuan: the Ten Thousand Poison Yama. It refers to his mastery of poison and his blade skills.’

’Seeing him in action today, his reputation is truly well-deserved!’

’If his antidote skills are this impressive, his ability to use poison must be even more terrifying.’

Liao Zhong felt a little fortunate that he wasn’t Bai Yuan’s enemy; otherwise, it would surely be a massive headache.

"Enemy attack! On guard!"

Liao Zhong roared.

The Martial Artists of the grain convoy drew their weapons, forming triangular formations in groups of six.

Their movements were extremely swift, clearly the result of constant practice.

A series of whooshes cut through the air as countless hidden weapons—flying needles, darts, knives—shot out from the pitch-black forest.

Bai Yuan swung his blade to parry the hidden weapons aimed at him, glancing at the fallen Martial Artists beside him.

He was almost certain this attack was the work of the Soul-Chasing Tower.

"Fire!"

Bai Yuan shouted at the Firearms Team, which had already formed up.

BANG!

A dense volley of gunfire erupted.

Agonized cries of people being hit rang out from the forest, and the barrage of hidden weapons weakened considerably.

At that moment, Yang Fangyu led the three hundred Demon Cavalry in a charge toward the direction the Firearms Team was firing.

The scene instantly descended into chaos.

Figures in black dropped from the trees, clashing with the Martial Artists of the grain convoy.

Yang Fangyu had just cut down an Assassin from the Soul-Chasing Tower when he was intercepted by a bearded man in a black robe.

He could feel the terrifying aura coming from the man.

’His strength is likely no less than my own.’

His peripheral vision swept across the battlefield—there were five more experts as terrifying as the man before him!

Yang Fangyu’s heart sank. It wasn’t just him; Bai Yuan and Liao Zhong had also been engaged by opponents and were now in fierce combat.

「On the other side.」

Bai Yuan was just about to follow the Demon Cavalry into the forest when he was surrounded by four black-robed figures.

Compared to Yang Fangyu and Liao Zhong, his ’treatment’ was undoubtedly more extravagant. To kill him, the Soul-Chasing Tower had dispatched a full half of its top experts.

This was proof enough of the threat level he represented in the eyes of the Soul-Chasing Tower.

Bai Yuan’s gaze fell on the three black-robed figures poised to attack, and his heart sank.

The Soul-Chasing Tower had mobilized several hundred of its Assassins this time—an unprecedented show of force. They had made thorough preparations to ambush and kill them.

The three Soul-Chasing Tower experts had perfect coordination, positioning themselves on three sides to box Bai Yuan in.

Then, they attacked at almost the exact same moment.

An iron chain, a Soft Sword, and a long saber struck simultaneously at Bai Yuan’s vitals.

Bai Yuan’s eyes turned icy.

An invisible cloud of gas had already silently enveloped all four of the black-robed figures.