Start with a red name

Not long after, Geng Xuan, along with Ruan Ruizhe, boarded "Meicun Island".

Half an hour later, "Meicun Island" transformed into the shape of a black whirlwind.

This is a small island with a total population of only 673, and only 74 of them are formal cultivators who have crossed the threshold of skin refining.

The strongest among them was only at the early stage of the Marrow Refinement realm, and he was over sixty years old, showing signs of aging.

For Geng Xuan, consuming such a small island was incredibly easy, and there was no need to elaborate.

Although there were quite a few ordinary islanders without cultivation among them, Geng Xuan ignored them and only picked out six stubborn individuals with strong red names who were arrogant and refused to bow their heads from among the cultivators and killed them.

Then, all 68 cultivators, including the old man who was in the early stage of Marrow Refinement, were brought under the banner of the Black Wind Gang.

At this moment, the remaining cultivators, under Ruan Ruizhe's command, had already boarded the island's only five large ships and were making various preparations for setting sail.

In Geng Xuan's eyes, this so-called large ship was not much different from a small sampan.

Apart from two of them which looked relatively new, the other three looked like ancient relics that had been submerged in water for many years, with signs of repair almost everywhere.

However, they all look very clean, because the wooden decks have developed a patina from being wiped so frequently.

This detail also shows that although these ships are old, they are maintained very carefully.

Ruan Ruizhe inspected the ship thoroughly to ensure there were no safety hazards.

"...To be honest, let alone five hundred people, even one or two thousand people could be accommodated on these five ships."

However, it really was packed with people, and many had to stay in the bottom of the hold.

No one else is allowed to move around freely on the ship.

An elderly man named Fan Tao, slightly hunched over, whispered the situation to Geng Xuan.

Geng Xuan carefully examined the five ships in front of him while listening attentively.

This was to use some people as ballast and to prevent the movement of people from causing a shift in the center of gravity, which could lead to the ship capsizing.

Unless absolutely necessary, it's best to avoid making such arrangements.

The security is too poor.

Then he asked, "Island Master Fan, I want to build more large ships. Do you have any good suggestions?"

Fan Tao quickly waved his hand and said, "Commander, you can just call me Old Fan or Old Man Fan, please don't call me anything like Island Lord... I do know a bit about the waters around here..."

He then gave a more detailed description of the surrounding waters.

There are several sand islands similar to "Meicun Island".

Some were better off than "Meicun Island," while others were worse. All of them had boats that could carry more than a hundred people and barely navigate the Xuanqing Sea.

Geng Xuan listened attentively, but there were no new discoveries that caught his eye.

When Fan Tao mentioned a sand island nearly 60 miles away from "Meicun Island", Geng Xuan immediately perked up.

It was a place similar to "Wild Wolf Gorge" or "Swallow Peak".

It was a place where river bandits gathered and secretly exchanged goods.

However, it is much smaller in scale.

Moreover, it is a closed system.

Only the "locals" know that "outsider bandits" like Ruan Ruizhe cannot enter this circle without a recommender.

Compared to Meicun Island, there are not only more people there, but also more boats.

Not only were there ships belonging to various pirate groups, but also many merchant ships of unknown origin, some even burdened with blood debts and karmic consequences.

They can't sell them.

Or rather, those who could afford to buy the boat were unwilling to purchase stolen goods with such obvious markings.

They wanted to chisel it out, but they couldn't bear to.

"There are quite a few. I went to that area last September and there were at least a dozen of them."

They are all in very good condition.

Each one of them is bigger than ours.

"I also saw two vehicles and boats that can carry more than a thousand people," Fan Tao explained.

"Vehicles and boats?" Geng Xuan murmured to himself.

Fan Tao immediately gave a more detailed explanation.

This is a type of vessel that has only gradually developed in the Xuanqing Sea in recent years.

Because the Xuanqing Sea is not a real sea, it has no strong winds or big waves.

If we rely solely on the power of the sails, the effect will be very poor.

Therefore, although ships in the Xuanqing Sea are equipped with sails, they are also equipped with many oars.

For a ship to run fast, besides the weather, the sailors' performance is even more important.

If the ship isn't too big, this is fine.

As long as there are enough sailors and a high enough number of cultivators, and they cooperate well and are willing to put in the effort, they can run on the water at a speed comparable to running.

However, as the size of the ships increased, the original rowing method became increasingly outdated.

Gradually, vehicles and boats came into being.

Drawing inspiration from the waterwheel's water-drawing mechanism, the hand crank was replaced with a foot pedal.

The scene of all the sailors driving the boat at full speed is similar to the scene of everyone gathering together to pedal bicycles.

Provided that the ship's material strength is not exceeded, the ship's speed depends mainly on the number and skill level of the sailors who are propelling the boat.

However, under normal circumstances, apart from some leaders who are low-level cultivators, most sailors are ordinary people.

—I, an old man, strive to cultivate myself so that I can enjoy a life of luxury and be a superior person, not so that I can do hard labor.

Upon hearing Fan Tao's introduction, Geng Xuan's eyes lit up, and he thought to himself, "This is exactly what I need to do!"

He has made his decision; his next stop will be this sand island.

And they targeted "vehicles and ships" as their primary objective.

Just as Geng Xuan was about to take Fan Tao to the target sand island nearly sixty miles away, he suddenly had a premonition and looked up at the sky.

One after another, black dots rapidly approached from the distant sky.

These dark blue sea sand sculptures rapidly approached him, conveying their joy at the successful completion of their mission.

……

Just as Geng Xuan was launching his "ship-raising operation" in the Xuanqing Sea, the ripples stirred up by the Black Wind Group had already spread rapidly to the Xuanyou and Xuanyou states.

Moreover, as the scope rapidly expanded, the turmoil not only showed no signs of abating but also grew larger and larger.

Finally, it even went so far as to encompass the entire Xuanyou and Youzhou states.

No one living within the two states could escape the impact of this raging torrent.

Evening of the seventh day of the lunar new year.

A force of about two thousand Xuanyou Iron Cavalry arrived near the "Jiliu Cave".

Soon, through feedback from the Xuanqinghai sand eagles during aerial reconnaissance and their own observations, they discovered the anomaly.

After a brief discussion, they decided to abandon their strategy of temporarily avoiding venturing into the "Rapid Current Cave" and provoking the bandits inside.

Two thousand fully armed Xuanyou Iron Cavalrymen pressed fiercely towards the "Rapid Stream Cave".

Then, everyone felt a chill run down their spines.

Looking at the empty "Rapid River Cave" without a single living person, everyone had only one thought in their minds.

"What about people?"

"What about my several thousand people?"

Before witnessing this bizarre scene firsthand, everyone was absolutely certain that everything was under their control.

The actions taken against those trade route nodes, along with other supporting operations, caused the sand bandits, who were originally scattered in various places, to head north, either spontaneously or guided by spies from the Dark Night Division, and converge on the few remaining sand bandit gathering places.

All of this happened right under their noses.

Many people even participated in "driving away" actions targeting certain trade route nodes or other related locations.

There are also so many spies from the Dark Night Division mixed in among them.

In just a few days, unless they all grew wings and flew away.

Otherwise, there would be no way there wouldn't be a single person.

But that's the truth.

From top to bottom, everyone, with emotions ranging from horror, bewilderment, to confusion, began to investigate more carefully.

Then they discovered that not only were the people gone, but they were also missing.

All the money, food, weapons, horses, and other valuable items, such as ores, medicines, and jewels, have disappeared.

Then, they discovered many real traces in the seemingly messy and chaotic scene that had been deliberately vandalized.

—Before the “Jiliudong” cave was extensively destroyed by human hands, an extremely fierce and brutal bloody battle broke out.

Before nightfall, almost all the Xuanyou Iron Cavalry silently gathered in front of the central pool of the "Rapid Stream Cave".

This is the water source of "Jiliudong" (Rapid Stream Cave), and it is because of this perpetually flowing pool that a large number of bandits gathered here.

Now, this once clear pool of water has turned black and has a foul odor because it was filled with a large amount of blood.

"Keep looking!"

The man leading the group gritted his teeth and gave the order in a deep voice.

Not long after, someone discovered something strange about the presence of a patch of soft, sandy soil next to the "Rapids Cave".

Peel it open and take a look—

A massive burial pit containing nearly three thousand corpses was exposed to everyone's view.

Seeing this scene, even the Xuanyou Iron Cavalry, who were known as "cruel and bloodthirsty," couldn't help but feel a chill.

After exploring the "Rapid Stream Cave" thoroughly, the leader of this cavalry unit did three things at the same time.

First, half of the Xuanyou Iron Cavalry, or about a thousand cavalry, were dispatched.

We will try to find more clues within a radius of 100 miles.

Secondly, they dispatched dozens of riders to "Wild Wolf Gorge" in the west and "Golden Leaf Cliff" in the east.

We attempted to contact the cavalry units in these two locations to report our findings and to confirm the situation in those areas.

The third and most important thing was to arrange for dozens of riders to abandon all their loads, each riding two horses, to send messages back.

Such a major event happening right under their noses, especially at this critical juncture, naturally required Dong Guan to be informed immediately.

The night passed.

The exploration within a radius of 100 li yielded no results. The group heading east towards "Golden Leaf Cliff" encountered another cavalry team coming from the direction of "Golden Leaf Cliff" when they were halfway there.

They then realized that their discovery was not unique.

It was a shared experience of "Rapid Flow Cave" and "Golden Leaf Cliff".

The shock in everyone's hearts reached a whole new level.

With just a little more thought, one can realize that this is likely not limited to these two places, but rather a change that has occurred in all the places where bandits gather!

Things are getting serious!
Everyone knew that the greatest crisis, or rather the greatest calamity, that had occurred since Dong Guan took charge of the Xuan You two states had arrived without warning!

Before this crisis is resolved, the southward invasion strategy, which was already poised to be launched and embodied all of Dong Guan's lofty ambitions, will have to give way.

It could even stop completely.

Before dawn, the cavalry that set off from "Jiliudong" towards "Yelangxia" discovered that "Yelangxia" and "Yelangzhai" were deserted.

They discovered something even more shocking.

They traveled north together and were assigned to "Wild Wolf Gorge," where a cavalry force of similar size and strength was completely wiped out!

The battlefield was located more than ten miles south of "Wild Wolf Gorge".

This news was enough to cause a huge uproar in the Xuanyou and You states when the first cavalry arrived at the chaotic, blood-soaked scene.

When they found the location of the "burial pit" and dug out the bodies of many of their colleagues.

Instead, it revealed a kind of utterly numb calm after extreme shock.

More cavalry scouts gathered in this direction.

The Xuanqinghai sand sculptures were also moved from the "Jiliudong" (Rapid Stream Cave).

The traces of more than 20,000 people hastily migrating westward were exposed to their sight.

Subsequently, Song Mingzhu and others were completely identified.

The power of the "rushing torrent" is increasingly tilting in this direction.

Moreover, as time passed and news spread rapidly, the Xuanyou Iron Cavalry from "Golden Leaf Cliff" and "White Crane Beach" further east were also moving in this direction.

Just as the leader of the Iron Cavalry of "Rapid Stream Cave" began to lead the main force toward "Wild Wolf Gorge".

A piece of breaking news made him immediately stop in his tracks.

The twelve scout cavalry teams closest to the target, including the Azure Sea Sand Eagle sent there for aerial reconnaissance, have all lost contact.

Just moments before, messages were still coming back from there.

After a certain point, no more news came back.

The caravan, which had already been traveling at full speed westward for some distance, stopped.

After withdrawing all the force that had been probing the "Wild Wolf Gorge," they silently retreated back to the "Rapid Stream Cave."

The team leader then did three more things.

The first step is to send the latest information back.

Secondly, the situation was shared with the cavalry forces at "Jinye Cliff" and "Baihetan," who were then instructed to come to "Jiliudong" to join forces with them.

Third, supplies were transferred from the south.

They did not originally plan to stay here for an extended period.

Furthermore, after subduing the bandits, you can also obtain some supplies.

That should be enough to hold out until they lead their troops back.

Therefore, they did not carry too many supplies with them on this trip north.

They had already prepared supplies for the team's southward journey.

The preparations have been very thorough.

But this completely unexpected turn of events has utterly disrupted these plans.

They are now facing severe shortages of other supplies.

Even the drinking water that the horses and men need cannot be obtained from the "Rapid Stream Cave" where the water source has been destroyed.

The original plan was disrupted, and all the meticulous preparations made for it became outdated, requiring a complete overhaul.

Things suddenly became incredibly complicated.

Besides urgently allocating supplies and waiting for Dong Guan's decision, they could only wait quietly in the "Rapid Current Cave".

……

Red arrowhead plains.

It is located in the southeast of Xuanzhou.

It is more than 2,000 miles away from the "Jiliudong" (Rapid Flow Cave).

It is the closest to "Baihetan" (White Crane Beach), only about 1,200 li away.

Since the end of last year, Dong Guan led a large group of people to move here, and this place has become the current "heart and brain" of Xuanyou and Erzhou.

The eighth day of the lunar month, the darkest hour before dawn.

More than ten riders galloped back from the direction of "Baihetan" and rushed into the depths of Chizhuyuan.

With a clear objective, they headed straight for the location of Dong Guan's palace.

Riding on the Xuan You horse, they had the best pass in the Xuan You and Xuan You states, and their journey was unimpeded.

But at this moment, they were still a mile away from the palace in the darkness.

More than a dozen arrows, swift as lightning, tore through the night and pierced deep into the bodies of each of the Xuanyou horses without any hindrance.

The dozen or so Xuanyou horses that were galloping just moments before were instantly thrown out as the arrow pierced their bodies.

More than half of the riders were thrown off balance before they could even react.

The unfortunate one was crushed on top of the Xuanyou horse, which weighed several thousand kilograms, and slid dozens of steps, breaking his tendons and bones, screaming in agony.

Several quick-thinking riders jumped off their horses to escape beforehand, and seeing what had happened to their companions, they were still shaken and terrified.

Before they could react, the night seemed to materialize, and dozens of people surrounded them, completely blocking their way.

Seeing that these Iron Feather Guards treated them as enemies, the Xuan You riders, who had desperately traveled over a thousand miles to send the message back as quickly as possible, were enraged.

But before they could react, the other party reacted first.

A man with a resolute face said coldly, "Do you want to die?!"

A Xuanyou rider finally couldn't hold back his anger and said:

"We have urgent military intelligence! Do you know what a crime it is to delay a military operation?... Since you were able to spot us, didn't you see we were riding Xuanyou horses? Are you blind?!"

Upon hearing this, the man opposite him did not back down at all, and coldly replied:
"After nightfall, the area within one mile of the palace is a restricted zone. No one may enter without permission for any reason. This is an ironclad rule!"

Anyone who violates this rule will be executed!

Don't you even know this?
If you hadn't been riding the Xuanyou Horse, do you think you would still be alive?

"...You've already been given a chance, don't mess around!"

"you……"

The Xuan You riders were furious, but they had to suppress their anger and say:
"We have something extremely urgent that we must inform the commander-in-chief immediately."

Upon hearing this, the other party's expression remained unchanged, and he coldly replied:
"Go to Tongwen Pavilion to register, and then wait to be summoned. Do I need to teach you the rules?"

"You... you..."

The Xuanyou rider wanted to say something more, but the other party's cold and stubborn attitude made him lose the will to argue.

Moreover, he knew that the other party was indeed "doing their duty" by doing so.

Although he didn't know much about the specifics, he did know that the Iron Feather Guard had been strictly enforcing this "ironclad rule" for many years.

In the past, the Iron Feather Guard frequently changed its commanders, largely because some commanders, due to certain urgent reasons, gave special treatment to those who trespassed into the palace.

Any Iron Feather Guard commander who did this, no matter how reasonable his reasons were at the time, would soon lose his post or even his life for various reasons.

As for the guards below them, each such experience results in a major reshuffle.

Those directly involved will all lose their lives.

For example, if we let these people pass, no matter what the reason, they will all eventually die.

Thinking of this, he didn't say another word to him. He led the other riders who came from Baihetan and waved his hand, saying, "Let's go."

He turned around and left.

Because the leadership team headed by Dong Guan had only recently moved to Chizhu Plain, the various agencies were all temporarily set up in different locations and did not have fixed locations.

These people are stationed in the countryside year-round, and they are often completely clueless about many things. They need to find out where "Tongwen Pavilion" is first.

Thinking about this, everyone felt an urge to curse, and also a sense of despondency.

"grass!"

Two more hours passed.

Another cavalry unit, consisting of one rider and two horses, galloped swiftly into the Red Arrow Plain, heading straight for the location of the imperial palace.

This cavalry team came from "Golden Leaf Cliff".

At this moment, it was already daylight.

They were not attacked by the Iron Feather Guards without provocation; instead, a dozen or so terrifying arrows shot towards them and pierced the ground in front of them.

This startled all the galloping Xuanyou horses, causing them to stop immediately, rear up on their front hooves, and many riders were thrown off their horses by this sudden change.

After another heated argument, these people, with mixed emotions, went to the "Tongwen Pavilion" to report and wait.

As for why these Iron Feather Guards were still strictly enforcing the ban even though it was already dawn, refusing to let people pass without asking any questions.

Naturally, it's because Dong Guan had too much fun last night.

Firstly, it coincides with the Chinese New Year, and there are lively banquets every night.

Secondly, a new palace was set up, and a new batch of concubines were brought in to serve the emperor.

They were all unique and charming beauties that people from all over the world had gone to great lengths to bring him.

If he didn't enjoy it more, it would seem like he was being unreasonable.

Third, with the invasion to the south imminent, once the army marches south, he will never be able to enjoy such a leisurely life again for a long time to come.

Now is the time to make the most of it and have some fun.

It wasn't until the sun was high in the sky that he, as round as a ball, finally woke up from his pile of cosmetics.

When he receives the news, he will be summoned by the person waiting in the "Tongwen Pavilion".

Not only were the riders at "White Crane Beach" and "Golden Leaf Cliff" waiting quietly, but even the messenger from "Rapid Stream Cave" had arrived. (End of Chapter)