Start with a red name

"...This first phase of the operation has come to an end, and it has basically met expectations."

After reporting the operations up to the present to Geng Xuan, Tie Lang summarized it in this way.

Geng Xuan nodded and asked:

"What are your next steps? Continue using the current methods to incorporate other bandit groups?"

Although the value of the fourteen Night Division spies has been completely exploited.

But it's not only the Dark Night Division that plants spies in various bandit groups.

Within the bandit gangs, spies and informants were also planted among each other.

Compared to the spies of the Dark Night Division, there are actually more of these spies.

After using fourteen Dark Knights spies to take control of all fourteen bandit gangs, they also naturally gained control of the spies and informants that these gangs had planted in other bandit gangs.

Whenever needed, they can immediately become the "fulcrum" for the Black Wind Gang to leverage these sand bandit gangs.

Iron Wolf nodded first, then shook his head, and said:

"I plan to use this method to integrate as many small and medium-sized teams as possible into my own hands."

But I don't want to take those three large regimental outposts using this method.

"Then what method do you want to use?" Geng Xuan asked, puzzled.

"Attack with full force!" Iron Wolf said.

Geng Xuan raised an eyebrow.

Iron Wolf offered a further explanation.

The situations at Baihetan and Yelangxia are quite different.

Compared to Wild Wolf Gorge, Baihetan actually has better natural endowments.

If managed properly, it could even support a settlement of four or five thousand people.

They have basically achieved self-sufficiency.

However, this place happens to be the most concentrated area of ​​sand bandits within a thousand or two miles around. In addition, it is too far away from the core area of ​​Dong Guan's power. A good place to live and thrive has now become a notorious gathering place for sand bandits in Xuanzhou.

Also because of the special nature of this place, although many bandit groups have their eyes on it, none of them dare to set up their permanent base in Baihetan or the surrounding area.

This is because it is the easternmost of the many bandit gathering places in Xuanzhou.

Although it is still far from the front line of the standoff and friction with Minju, the mere fact that it is "at the very front" is enough to raise suspicions.

Driven by the need to make a living, they have no choice but to expand their "foraging" range as much as possible.

But if you place your "home" here, you're just asking for trouble.

However, such a place is a treasure trove for the bandit gangs, and they cannot afford to abandon it.

Therefore, although there are no major bandit groups with their strongholds in Baihetan and its surrounding areas, three major bandit groups have stationed their elite troops here year-round.

Moreover, each of them is no less of the quality than the elite troops permanently stationed in Wild Wolf Gorge by Wild Wolf Village.

Conservative estimates suggest that the number of elite personnel permanently stationed at Baihetan by these three bandit groups is no less than seven hundred.

The number of combatants at the Marrow Refinement level is certainly not small.

There will be no fewer than three people in the late stage of Marrow Refinement.

—Every bandit gang has at least one representative at the late stage of Marrow Refinement.

This was still during normal times, but the current situation is clearly somewhat "unusual," and there is likely to be even more combat power at the late stage of Marrow Refinement.

"...This method is naturally very effective for small and medium-sized bandit groups."

Some even knelt down before we could finish speaking, very decisively.

However, when facing large groups of bandits, this method alone is not very effective.

...Take Wild Wolf Gorge for example, if Wild Wolf Village hadn't already become one of their own,

If we want them to lay down their arms and surrender, a bloody battle is inevitable.

However, the number of elite troops permanently stationed at Baihetan is at least three times that of those at Yelangxia!

"In that case, let's just abandon this method that is unlikely to succeed directly and fight a direct battle."

"This will save us even more time," Iron Wolf said.

Geng Xuan nodded slightly.

The analysis by Iron Wolf was acknowledged.

He also realized that this strategy actually coincided with Iron Wolf's previous advice not to be too lenient with the bandit leaders.

Compared to other bandit gangs in Baihetan, these three most elite groups, all of which originated from large bandit groups, are the most likely to become new "powerhouses".

Since we foresaw this possibility, we shouldn't be too accommodating to them from the start.

First, engage in a head-on confrontation, strike hard, and kill as many as possible.

This is obviously beneficial for bringing them under the Black Wind Gang's banner more quickly and thoroughly.

Of course, the premise is that you have to win.

Iron Wolf then brought this up.

"...However, it is impossible to do this with the current rabble."

Therefore, before the formal attack, I not only need to try to recruit more bandits, but I also need your blessing as a source of motivation.

We also need to reorganize these bandits from different backgrounds.

Geng Xuan readily agreed to Tie Lang's request.

He spent about an hour blessing and reorganizing the 1470 bandits.

有10人得了32点红运，20人得了24点红运，40人得红运16点，80人得红运8点，160人得红运4点，1160人得红运2点。

A total of 5040 luck points were consumed.

Although this time, the blessing was much more generous compared to the Black Wind Gang's "early days".

But its stimulating effect on the mind is by no means weak.

Many who have accumulated years of experience in a certain field but are stuck at a bottleneck and unable to make any progress can take this opportunity to complete this crucial step and make a breakthrough.

Among them was a senior mid-stage Marrow Refinement cultivator who directly broke through to the late-stage Marrow Refinement stage.

The way everyone looked at Geng Xuan changed.

Originally, Geng Xuan was only responsible for taking action along the way, and did nothing else; Tie Lang handled everything else.

Many bandits believed that Iron Wolf was the one in charge.

But now, after personally experiencing the wonder of the blessing, anyone with a brain knows who the real boss is.

After bestowing the blessing, Geng Xuan began to organize the 1470 people into groups.

Iron Wolf was not idle either. He did his best to transform the turmoil and shock brought about by the blessing into a cohesive force directed towards the Black Wind Gang.

Around 11 p.m., Geng Xuan finished organizing the group.

The existing teams will be organized into 150 squads, 30 platoons, and 3 battalions.

Each brigade has a late-stage Marrow Refinement expert in charge.

—Besides the one who had just broken through to the late stage of Marrow Refinement with the help of the blessing, two other people at the late stage of Marrow Refinement joined the Black Wind Gang.

As the Black Wind Gang swept through all fourteen bandit groups like a whirlwind, even more late-stage Marrow Refinement cultivators were killed.

After completing all of this, Geng Xuan completely withdrew from the situation.

Iron Wolf also "half-withdrew".

They transformed from plan executors into plan creators and supervisors, while the actual execution was handed over to three late-stage Marrow Refinement experts leading three large teams.

Their actions deliberately avoided the areas where the elite of the three bandit groups were stationed.

At Iron Wolf's request, each brigade, like a greedy snake, devoured one bandit gang after another that was no match for them, all while trying to remain as silent as possible.

To prevent the news from spreading, several squadrons were specially arranged to lie in ambush around all the roads leading to the elite garrisons of these large regiments.

According to a long-standing unspoken agreement, the stronger the team, the closer its base would be to the best water source.

Those smaller groups, with only a few dozen or even a dozen people, tend to be closer to the outer perimeter.

In absolute numbers, these bandits constitute the majority of the bandit community.

But even if there were more than a dozen such teams, let alone one or two, they wouldn't be enough to wipe out a single Black Wind Gang brigade.

With the added incentive of more "carrots" of good fortune, coupled with Geng Xuan's reorganization that made the best possible combination of them under limited conditions.

The three separate battalions, which then further dispersed into dozens of companies and hundreds of squads, showcased almost all of the best qualities of the bandit group.

What are the excellent qualities of the bandits?

They are quick-witted, tenacious, and often possess special talents such as picking locks, stealing, and petty thievery.

The principles are flexible, or rather, the means are unscrupulous.

They excel at maximizing existing advantages, or in other words, they are all masters at winning when they have the upper hand.

They are almost all masters of skills such as taking advantage of others' misfortunes, bullying the weak, and kicking someone when they're down.

Greed, or rather, an insatiable appetite.

When facing off against a battle-hardened elite force, there may be many shortcomings.

Even at their current level, they are not qualified to confront them head-on.

Yet, even when they were carrying out this mission and their advantage was already firmly established, they still managed to deliver a perfect performance that was second to none.

Geng Xuan watched silently from the shadows for a while. Seeing that the three Black Wind Gangs had fully developed the ability to "grow on their own" and did not need him to act as a caretaker in the shadows, he stopped patrolling around and instead chose a secluded place to quietly cultivate the "Heaven and Earth Stance".

While cultivating, one should also conserve physical strength and energy to ensure that one is always in peak condition.

On the other hand, the "Earth Listening Spider Web" transformed from the Perfect Realm Earth Listening Technique covered the entire White Crane Beach.

His heart was as clear as a mirror, reflecting all the movements within Baihetan, yet without causing the slightest ripple in his mind.

During this process, new bandit gangs were forcibly abducted onto the Black Wind Gang's war machine.

However, for these new bandit recruits who have already agreed to join the Black Wind Gang and even swore allegiance to the black flag.

Iron Wolf did not assign them to the front lines of missions, but instead kept them confined to the rear.

One after another, red names surged towards his brow, where they were automatically refined by the "Flint Pearl," turning into red and black fortune that settled within.

Tiny specks of white energy continued to form, while specks of black energy vanished without a trace from the "flint pearl".

Before these nascent calamities could fully take shape, they were all disrupted by the proactive attacks of the Black Wind Gang's various units.

About two hours later, in Geng Xuan's mind, Baihetan, which had always been bustling with activity, became quiet once again.

Familiar footsteps were rapidly approaching.

Geng Xuan finished practicing the "Heaven and Earth Stance" and looked in the direction from which the footsteps came.

A moment later, Iron Wolf appeared before him and said:
"Commander, apart from the central area which has remained untouched, the rest of Baihetan, including the sand bandits there, is now entirely under our control."

And after our persuasion, they have all agreed to join the Black Wind Gang and have sworn allegiance to the Black Flag.

I have now gathered them all in an open area near the center.

Geng Xuan nodded and said, "Let's go take a look."

"Yes."

Iron Wolf turned around and led the way, taking Geng Xuan with him as they hurried there.

Iron Wolf also took the opportunity to give a brief report on the achievements and losses of this phase.

"During this phase, we successfully brought 1820 bandits scattered outside the central area under our control and transformed them all into members of the Black Wind Gang."

To achieve this goal, a total of 356 people were killed.

"In order to complete this mission, we also lost 75 men."

At this point, Iron Wolf paused, hesitated for a moment, and then said:

"In addition, there are 86 people who are seriously injured or disabled. If they do not receive timely treatment, more people may die." "..."

After a moment, Geng Xuan said:
"Let's try to treat them. I remember we have some emergency medications, right? Let's use whatever we can on them."

Whether they can rejoin the emergency medical team alive depends on their luck.

It wasn't that he didn't want to save them, but the limited time available didn't allow him to build up another well-trained emergency medical team.

“…Yes.” After a pause, Iron Wolf replied.

"As a result, of the 1470 members recruited in the previous phase, only 1309 can be deployed to the next phase of the battle."

As they spoke, the two arrived at the open space where 1820 newlyweds had gathered.

As it turns out, without him, this approach of trying to snowball growth in a short period of time simply has no possibility of being implemented in practice.

Because of these 1820 "newcomers" who all swore allegiance to the black flag, the actual "one of their own" numbered just over a thousand.

There are also about 800 other people, who are still "outsiders".

Verbal promises and concessions, even oaths and vows, along with the powerful figure of Dong Guan—all these methods were exhausted, yet less than 60% of them managed to complete their self-transformation.

More than 40% of the bandits remained "stubborn and unrepentant," and none of this had fundamentally touched their hearts.

Geng Xuan already has a mature solution for this.

"Let's play a game."

Geng Xuan ascended the high platform and, under the curious and inquisitive gazes of the crowd, spoke his first words to them.

Even now, many people are still in a relatively relaxed state of mind.

They didn't realize what this game really meant.

With the help of the "old-timers" who had joined the Black Wind Gang before them, more than 800 people were singled out and arranged into six groups according to their cultivation level, from the skin refining stage to the mid-stage of marrow refining—there were no late-stage marrow refining cultivators, and many of those involved were still confused and bewildered.

But soon, the game officially began.

More than half of those who reached the Skin Refining Realm "failed the game" and lost their lives, while less than 40% "completed the game" and survived to become official members of the Black Wind Gang.

The other "game participants" then belatedly realized what had happened and what kind of great terror was descending upon them.

When Geng Xuan looked at the 224 flesh-refining realm bandits kneeling respectfully on the ground and started the "death interrogation" again, nearly half of the bandits immediately changed sides. When he finished counting down the "death countdown" to three, only about 30% of them had failed the game, and about 70% had survived and completed the game.

As the game progresses, fewer bandits die due to game failure, and more people survive to complete the game.

Ultimately, of the 807 bandits who participated in the game, 251 died due to losing, and the rest all became "one of their own" in the Black Wind Gang.

Moreover, most of the dead bandits were at the Skin Refining Realm.

Above the Marrow Refinement stage, only one person in the early Marrow Refinement stage has received this "honor".

After this efficient and brutal selection process, the Black Wind Gang recruited another 1569 people.

During this phase, because Geng Xuan was not personally involved, both the "enemy" and "us" paid a higher price.

In total, more than 700 lives were lost in the effort to recruit these 1,500 people into the Black Wind Gang.

The cost is high, but the benefits are also high.

Refining yielded 22560 points of good fortune.

In addition, there are 1269 points of Black Luck, and 30 points of White Luck acquired gradually.

Next, the same standard procedure will apply.

Blessings are used to boost morale and unite people's hearts.

This morale can be maximized through reorganization.

After these two tasks were completed, excluding those who were seriously injured or disabled, the Black Wind Gang suddenly gained a team of 2878 members in Baihetan in less than half a day.

Among them, there are five who are at the late stage of Marrow Refinement.

There are sixteen people in the middle stage of the Marrow Refining Realm and sixty-seven people in the early stage.

The vast majority of breakthroughs were achieved during the two periods of blessing.

……

The blessing consumes 8906 points of good fortune.

They were organized into 300 squads, 60 companies, and 6 brigades.

……

Around three or four in the morning, after finishing all this, Geng Xuan withdrew from the specific tasks and handed this power over to Tie Lang.

Just half an hour later, the newly formed 300 Black Wind Gang squads and 6 battalions completely surrounded the central area of ​​Baihetan.

Soon, without any tactical maneuvering or warm-up, Iron Wolf unleashed all the power in his hands.

The sudden night raid immediately escalated into a fierce battle.

As key targets, the strongholds of the three major bandit groups suffered the greatest damage.

The other unfortunate souls in the area were not spared either, all suffering "splash damage".

As the "enemy" and "our" sides engaged in fierce combat, the wounded and the dead appeared rapidly.

Clumps of red names, like kites with broken strings, broke away from their original owners and converged in the direction of Geng Xuan.

Geng Xuan's attention, however, was focused on the encampment of one of the bandit groups.

"There's even a peak Marrow Refinement cultivator," he muttered to himself.

……

Shortly after the base was attacked.

In a spacious courtyard deep within this settlement, a rockery suddenly exploded with a "boom," and a figure leaped out from it.

Soon, he arrived at the area where the battle had taken place.

There, a newly promoted late-stage Marrow Refinement cultivator from the Black Wind Clan was fighting against a late-stage Marrow Refinement enemy, with the help of three mid-stage Marrow Refinement cultivators.

Moreover, with their numerical advantage, they have already gained a clear upper hand and are about to launch a fatal combined attack.

Just then, the figure attacked.

Before even getting close, a palm strike was launched from afar, a palm of tangible energy slamming into the Black Wind Gang's newly promoted late-stage Marrow Refinement cultivator, causing him to cough up blood and stagger backward.

The figure that charged forward didn't stop moving; the two retreated while the other pursued, and the distance between them quickly closed.

Just as he was about to catch up and deliver the fatal blow, Iron Wolf blocked his way, and the two exchanged three punches and two kicks in a head-on collision.

Iron Wolf remained motionless, while his opponent lost control of his body and staggered back more than twenty steps before finally stopping.

The other person looked at him in shock and exclaimed:
"Iron Wolf, how did you become so strong?... Also, we have no grudges against each other, so why did you attack my base?"

When they met again, Tie Lang made no attempt to exchange pleasantries or formalities.

As for why he has suddenly become so much stronger, he naturally doesn't need to explain it to the other party.

He put his hands behind his back, looked down at the other person with disdain, and said indifferently:
"Considering our past relationship, I will guarantee your safety as long as you surrender immediately."

Upon hearing this, the other party glared angrily.

It made a move to attack the Iron Wolf again.

Just as Iron Wolf was ready to take the attack, his opponent exerted force with his feet, and his figure instantly shot into the distant night sky.

Upon seeing this, Iron Wolf was astonished and was about to give chase.

However, he had already realized that, thanks to the several opportunities to be granted a cheat code, his strength had surpassed that of his opponent in every aspect.

However, if the other party is determined to escape, it will be difficult for him to keep them there.

The key point is that he couldn't possibly abandon everything in Baihetan to engage in a long chase with the other party that could potentially last hundreds or thousands of miles.

Just as Iron Wolf was feeling frustrated and reflecting on how his overconfidence had led to a lapse in tonight's operation,

The figure of the "old friend" who had been completely lost in the night sky and almost disappeared from his sight suddenly paused for a moment in the air, and then rapidly magnified in his field of vision.

But the figure that should have been walking away was rapidly approaching him, hurtling towards him.

Realizing what was happening immediately, Iron Wolf's tense mood instantly relaxed.

He reached out and used a gentle force to catch the figure that was rapidly hurtling towards him.

Apart from this minor setback, no further surprises occurred during this powerful siege of the central area of ​​Baihetan.

As Iron Wolf carried the bandit leader, who possessed peak Marrow Refinement cultivation, back to the bandit group's encampment, the remaining bandits, who had been fiercely resisting, instantly lost their morale and surrendered.

Following their surrender, the other two large-scale settlements, each with only late-stage Marrow Refinement cultivators in command, also surrendered after suffering heavy casualties.

As for those unfortunate individuals who ended up in this area and suffered "splash damage," they had already made a wise choice long before.

After the brief but intense battle ended, Tie Lang did not immediately disturb Geng Xuan, who was cultivating. Instead, he arranged for people to carefully survey the entire Baihetan area.

Meanwhile, he and other experienced members participated in the work of "persuading" a group of newly surrendered bandits to join the Black Wind Gang.

He was specifically responsible for "persuading" the leader of the peak Marrow Refinement sect named Zhang Kai.

Before we knew it, the night had passed and dawn was breaking.

The sun rose as usual on December 30th, bathing the entire Baihetan area in a cool, radiant glow.

Only then did Geng Xuan, who had finished his cultivation, have time to listen to Tie Lang's report.

……

This refers to the third and final stage of the Baihetan project. Although there was a minor mishap during the process, the project was successfully completed in the end.

The Black Wind Regiment deployed 2878 troops to launch a strong attack on the central area of ​​Baihetan.

In the end, 315 people were killed and 754 surrendered.

Our side paid the price of 183 dead, 102 seriously wounded, and some disabled.

Given their overwhelming advantage, the fact that they paid such a heavy price meant that this operation was by no means easy for any of the Black Wind Gang members involved.

It should be noted that of the 315 people killed, only about half were actually killed on the spot during the battle.

The rest of the victims were killed after the war because of their severe injuries and serious disabilities.

On our side, these people will receive more appropriate resettlement.

Iron Wolf will arrange for people to do everything they can to treat them.

The most common method of dealing with such situations in the bandit community is to treat them as "one of their own." If the injuries are too severe, the usual method is to "send them on their way" for a quick and effective solution.

After listening to the report, Geng Xuan spent about two hours handling the follow-up matters.

Of the 754 who surrendered, 42 "impurities" were eliminated, leaving 712 who became fresh blood for the Black Wind Gang.

The benefits of this kind of "tough battle" are also obvious.

The content of impurities is significantly lower.

Even Zhang Kai, a peak Marrow Refinement cultivator, didn't give Tie Lang a chance to make a move.

Geng Xuan could even tell that after confirming that Zhang Kai had passed the test on the first try and had truly become "one of us," Tie Lang still felt a little regretful.

His true desired outcome was that Zhang Kai, the leader, would agree to join the Black Wind Gang but harbor ulterior motives, and then he would have a legitimate reason to kill him.

After recruiting these new recruits, the next step was naturally to bestow blessings and reorganize them.

Including the more than 100 people who were seriously injured or disabled, the Black Wind Gang now numbers 3436.

First, they used blessings to boost morale and unite people's hearts, and then they organized them into 350 small teams, 70 squads, and 7 brigades.

It has already reached half the size of the Wild Wolf Gorge Black Wind Gang.

Around 9 a.m., after completing all of this, Iron Wolf asked for instructions on the next steps.

"Now that we have subdued all the bandits in Baihetan, should we follow the example of Wild Wolf Gorge and have them guard Baihetan while waiting for the next bandits to fall into our trap, so that we can go to Golden Leaf Cliff?" Iron Wolf asked.

However, his expression betrayed some doubt.

He really couldn't guarantee how this newly subdued force would perform after leaving them.

Fortunately, Geng Xuan's answer put his mind at ease.

He shook his head and said, "No." (End of Chapter)