knife

Chapter 185 A Letter with Chicken Feathers
A massive torrent of water cascaded down from a height of several dozen feet, the huge rocks at the bottom already worn smooth by the force; even the hardest edges could not withstand such power for long.

The highest good is like water. Water benefits all things without striving, and none in the world can contend with it.

A naked man wearing only shorts stood at the point where the water was most violently surging, letting the powerful force impact his body. The muscles all over his body gleamed with a reddish-brown color, each one seemingly containing immense power, ready to burst forth at any moment.

After an unknown amount of time, the man slowly raised his hands, which had been hanging down, to embrace himself. With this movement, the waterfall above his head suddenly swung back, while the water in the deep pool in front of him slowly rose, forming a column of water in front of him.

With a roar from the man, the water column suddenly surged outwards, and with a thunderous roar, countless stones in the pool were thrown into the air and crashed into the woods further away, breaking countless trees in the crash, leaving behind a scene of utter devastation.

"General, General!" came the shouts of his subordinates from afar. The man stomped his foot and flew out from under the waterfall like a javelin, landing straight on the ground.

The officer who ran closer looked at the broken trees and rubble scattered on the ground with a look of awe. He stood in front of the man and bent his body even lower.

"General, the Third Prince is here. Your hard times are probably coming to an end!" the officer said with a hint of flattery.

The man nodded, but there was no hint of surprise on his face, as if everything was under his control.

"Okay, you go ahead, I'll pack up and come right away!"

Watching the officer fly away like the wind, the man chuckled coldly.

I've been here for four years now!

Have you finally remembered yourself?
This man was none other than Wutu, a Yuan general who had been exiled to these mountains to work as a foreman four years ago for failing to rescue Astu.

He was not surprised at all by Aktun's arrival, because Wutu already knew about it.

Astu is dead!
He was brutally murdered on his own estate.

"Asttu is a piece of trash!" This was Wutu's assessment of Astu.

Four years ago, during that battle, Wutu also gave his superior the same assessment.

In the initial battle with Li Dachui, he had to juggle tens of thousands of captured young men and countless supplies, leaving him tied up and constrained at every turn. But later, when he resolved to shed these burdens and truly challenge Li Dachui, Astu strictly ordered him to immediately go to his rescue.

Damn it!
This unquestionable order caused Astu to fall into a slump, and also led him to become a miner foreman here for four years.

Now that Astu is dead, Aktun only remembers himself, which is chilling.

Wutu took a deep breath, feeling the surging waves of true energy within his body, and was filled with gratitude towards the other prince, Tiele.

When he was at his lowest point, Tiele secretly came to see him.

He gave himself the mental cultivation method of the Condensing Sea Technique.

The Tongjiang Technique he practiced was a simplified version of the Ninghai Technique, and it was also a technique bestowed by the royal family upon meritorious officials. However, it was virtually impossible to cultivate the Tongjiang Technique to the ninth rank or higher.

Three years ago, he was stuck at the peak of the eighth rank and could not make any further progress.

Fortunately, we have the Sea Condensation Technique.

Of course, there's also a quote from Tiele.

Baojianfeng comes from the sharpening, and the fragrance of plum blossoms comes from bitter cold.

Wutu didn't quite understand this sentence from a Qin book, but he could grasp its general meaning.

After three years, he finally broke through to the ninth rank of Xuan Yuan, becoming one of the few generals in the Great Yuan Dynasty to achieve this rank.

After a crushing defeat and the humiliating death of Astu, Aktun finally had no capable men left and only then remembered himself, the abandoned fellow.

Wu Tu chuckled.

You ignored me for the past few years, but now you can't afford to be near me.

Not quite right either.

You should be able to betray me without feeling any guilt.

It was you who wronged me first.

He slowly dressed, then suddenly took out a knife and carefully trimmed his beard in the pool before striding back.

Standing behind a large tree, he stared intently at Aktun in front of the hut. The man was holding a horsewhip upside down and pacing impatiently in the open space in front of the hut, probably because he found the hut too shabby and smelled of sweat and didn't want to go in!
As he suddenly stepped forward, his face was already full of smiles. He crossed his arms and bowed deeply.

"Your Highness, you've finally come to see me!"

Her tone carried a slight sob and grievance, a hint of dissatisfaction, and a mixture of surprise and delight.

The grand drama in the Northern Yuan capital of Yan has finally begun.

Everyone believes they will be the protagonist in this grand drama and will control its final outcome.

Meanwhile, in the Anxi Protectorate, the battle to wipe out the Black Territory finally began after the spring planting season.

It's a familiar recipe, and it's a familiar taste.

Mao Daxian, the chief administrator of the Anxi Protectorate, and Zhang Ruo, the deputy censor-in-chief and inspector of the area outside the pass, divided the Black Domain into sections based on its wealth, population size, and geographical importance. Xiao Changche, the protector of Anxi, was responsible for formulating battle plans and eliminating any forces in these areas that did not obey the command of the Anxi Protectorate.

There are specific standards for whether or not to obey the command of the Anxi Protectorate. These forces in the Black Domain can no longer rely on empty words to pledge their loyalty.

There are two hard and fast rules. The first is paying taxes. The tax officials from the Anxi Protectorate will come to your door to verify your income and the number of people in your household, and then give you an amount of taxes to pay each year. If the Black Domain forces can tolerate paying money to ensure safety, then the second rule is absolutely intolerable.

The Anxi Protectorate did not allow them to retain private armed forces.

From then on, under the jurisdiction of the Anxi Protectorate, only the government had the right to possess armed forces.

Others who retain armed forces are bandits and are subject to elimination.

When contradictions become irreconcilable, war naturally breaks out.

However, their strength was far too weak compared to that of the Anxi Protectorate. Furthermore, the long-standing struggle within the Black Domain had resulted in a lack of mutual trust and difficulty in uniting. Consequently, in the face of Xiao Changche's military might, more than a dozen local small forces had been wiped out in a short period of time.

Xiao Changche was quite adept at dealing with these underworld forces.

Because she used to do it often.

However, at that time, her main goal was to raise military funds, so she was willing to pay as long as people were willing to contribute.

It's rare to see someone truly and utterly ruthless and wipe out the entire enemy force.

Moreover, due to the lack of detailed intelligence support, she often found herself empty-handed in the past.

The forces in the Black Domain, intimidated by her reputation, dared not confront her directly, but they would still choose to flee.

For Xiao Changche, no gain meant a huge loss.

Things are different now.

Before the advance, detailed military intelligence about the enemy and a detailed military map of the area were already on her desk.

Moreover, after the battle, the Anxi Protectorate would immediately send troops to govern the area.

She has now truly achieved the ability to focus solely on fighting and not worry about anything else.

This was far too easy for her.

Therefore, using this incident to train soldiers properly became an even more important matter.

It wasn't that she looked down on Li Dachui's soldiers.

These soldiers, in terms of individual combat ability, were stronger than those under her command.

However, when it came to large-scale battles and teamwork, she was very dissatisfied.

In Xiao Changche's view, her army has indeed expanded several times over, but if she were to fight against an opponent like Linghu Ye, she would suffer a loss.

Regardless of anything else, the five thousand personal guards under Linghu Ye alone are enough to give me a run for my money.

Standing atop a high hill, looking down at the vast plain below, cavalrymen in black uniforms were galloping back and forth under the command of flags and bugles, coordinating with each other to force the fleeing fellows into a group, and then dealing with them one by one.

No matter how much you practice on the training field, it can't compare to a real battle.

Having only been in the Black Domain for a little over a month, these few thousand cavalrymen have already become quite formidable. Although their coordination is still somewhat lacking and not as good as their previous three thousand iron cavalry, they are gradually developing the necessary skills.

After developing good habits and going through several real battles, they can be considered to have truly become a strong army. Moreover, Gu Xiaoman and Fang Xiaomao's ability to command troops and direct combat is also growing rapidly at a visible pace.

Thinking about his current strong logistical support capabilities and looking at the brand-new armor on his personal guards around him, Xiao Changche couldn't help but smile.

In the distance, the melodious sound of horns rang out.

The men who were imprisoned had nowhere to go, and when they saw the Xiao banner fluttering in the distance, they finally gave up, dismounted, dropped their weapons, squatted on the ground with their heads in their hands, and surrendered to the government troops.

Xiao Changche reached out his hand, and the guard beside him handed him a map and a charcoal pencil. Xiao Changche picked up the pencil and drew a large X in one of the boxes on the map full of boxes.

Another one completed.

With a pull on the reins, Xiao Changche turned and descended the hill.

Now that she has Gu Xiaoman and Fang Xiaomao, she no longer needs to personally lead the charge, but she still misses the days when she could sweep through thousands of troops.

Warhorses galloped from the direction of the camp, and Xiao Changche narrowed his eyes.

It seems there's been some new development!
"Greetings, Protector-General!" The rider dismounted and rushed to Xiao Changche, presenting him with a letter: "A secret letter from the Deputy Protector-General, forwarded by Zhi Qiu Academy, is urgent!"

Seeing the chicken feather stuck to the envelope, Xiao Changche couldn't help but laugh.

That guy always does weird things.

If it's urgent, then so be it. Why insist on adding a trivial detail to an urgent letter?

Upon opening the letter, her expression changed drastically, and a flush instantly spread across her face.

The letter contained only one line!

"I killed Astu for you!"

(End of this chapter)