Start with a red name

Perhaps some have forgotten that Dong Guan was a master falconer in his early years.

He could tame birds of prey like the Xuanqinghai Sand Eagle without needing any secret techniques like "Flying Eagle Technique."

Therefore, he understood early on that the secret to taming such birds of prey was not so-called "loyalty," but "hunger."

The same principle applies to managing people.

When hungry, they cling to others; when full, they fly far away.

Based on Dong Guan's personal experience, some people's nature is even more monstrous than that of birds of prey.

If it were truly given a full meal, "wandering far away" would be the least of its worries; it might even turn around and feed on the original owner's flesh and blood!
So don't ask why Dong Guanming, who clearly held a "perfect hand," never used it.

Because he knew very well that once he decided to play it, the card would no longer belong to him.

If he were in his prime, or if he had offspring of sufficient ability, he might still take the risk.

But now, all he can do is hold on tightly to the chain that tethers the "eagle".

Thinking this in his heart, he shook his head and sighed:
"We have suffered repeated setbacks, how can we still underestimate the enemy?"
Haven't you ever considered that while we can avoid the enemy's strength and attack their weaknesses, once we send out our iron cavalry, this military camp will become our biggest weakness and Achilles' heel?

Not only are all the key personnel gathered here, but all the provisions and supplies are also stored here.

"Have you considered that, faced with our attack, the other side has a third option: to target this place?!"

Hearing him say this, everyone in the room was shocked and moved.

"For this operation, almost all of the cavalry in the camp were mobilized, leaving the camp very empty."

Finally, Dong Guan slapped his thigh and said:
"I can only feel at ease in this situation if my son is personally overseeing things... You can forget about taking him away from me!"

Finally, his gaze fell once more on the person who had made the suggestion, calm and undisturbed.

The man felt a sudden pang in his heart and quickly lowered his head.

Later, Dong Guan discussed more details with the others, but they were all distracted.

As soon as the party ended, he slipped out.

As soon as he stepped out, he looked at a seemingly ordinary guard on duty and opened his mouth to say something, but at that moment, he suddenly felt as if the strength in his throat had suddenly failed. Although his mouth was opening and closing slightly, no sound came out.

"idiot!"

At the same time, a thunderous voice resounded directly in his mind.

The man felt his body stiffen and his heart turn cold. He paused for a moment, then immediately walked away into the distance without uttering another word.

After this person, more people came out of the house.

The figure went against the flow of people, ignoring the ambiguous prying eyes, and strode into the room.

Sitting in the main seat, watching everyone leave, Dong Guan's eyes suddenly lit up, and he laughed loudly, "My son, come here! I have something important to tell you, just now..."

……

When the war chain, involving more than 100,000 people, was restarted, the deafening roar immediately spread to the surrounding area.

Moreover, Dong Guan and the others had no intention of hiding anything and were eager for the Black Wind Army to discover their actions immediately.

Therefore, the news quickly reached the "Black Wind Army" camp.

"I'm entrusting this battle to you. Are you confident?"

After hearing the news brought by Liu Mu, Geng Xuan, who was prepared, asked calmly.

Liu Mu solemnly replied, "Yes!"

Geng Xuan smiled brightly and nodded, saying, "Then go ahead and do it."

After bowing respectfully once more, Liu Mu immediately turned and left the room.

Yang Qian didn't linger either, and soon left as well.

Geng Xuan sat alone for a while, but he couldn't really calm down and cultivate. So he got up and left the room to wander around the camp.

He also witnessed firsthand how the once tranquil camp was rapidly "awakening."

To his satisfaction, this "awakening" was not chaotic, but rather possessed a kind of orderly beauty brought about by strict adherence to orders.

After waking up the "Black Wind Army" and starting to make various preparations for the battle in an orderly manner, Liu Mu did not issue any new orders.

Shortly after dawn, the Black Wind Army had completed all the necessary pre-battle preparations, including a hearty meal that had ended before dawn.

Liu Mu, who had been gradually gathering information on the enemy's movements, finally obtained important details about them.

—A force of over 100,000 Xuanyou Iron Cavalry galloped out from the enemy camp, advancing towards the due west at a "medium speed".

In order to ensure both the accuracy and conciseness of information transmission, Liu Mu divided the speed of the Xuanyou cavalry into several levels.

"Medium speed" means a speed of about 40 kilometers per hour.

Even if the Azure Blue Horse were to risk its life, it could only maintain such high speed for a short time, but for the Dark Nether Horse, it was merely a "slight effort".

It's still a step away from "taking it seriously," and a step away from "running for your life," which is three or four steps away.

The enemy troops did not rush towards the camp, but instead headed west, towards their "base" behind them.

Upon receiving this news, Liu Mu showed no surprise or loss of composure.

He even ordered the army waiting to attack in the camp to continue waiting and remain inactive, only issuing a few orders in succession and sending the news to the rear "base" by fast horses.

The enemy cavalry had left the enemy camp by more than a hundred miles and still showed no signs of heading north, continuing their steady westward advance.

Liu Mu remained motionless with the "Black Wind Army" and continued to wait.

On the contrary, Yang Qian, after consulting with Geng Xuan again, left the camp and went alone into the mountains to the north.

Having been "promoted" by Geng Xuan all the way to the fifth realm of perfection, his speed, when exerting all his strength, was even faster than the Xuan You horse running for its life.

He would use the cover of the mountains to the north of the camp to sneak out of the camp, travel a distance to the north, then to the east, then to the south, making a big circle, and finally sneak into the enemy camp from the east, that is, from the direction of Canglan Mountain.

The reason he chose to act at this time was...

The reason given was that Dong Guan had launched a new offensive with great force, and his energy was completely focused on the mobilization of the enemy's and our own armies, which numbered over 100,000. He had no time to spare for anything else, making him the easiest target for Dong Guan to exploit.

The unspoken reason was that Yang Qian wanted to actively distance himself from the place of suspicion.

Now that Dong Guan's army has been mobilized, it's like an arrow has already left the bowstring. At this point, even if Yang Qian were to frankly tell Dong Guan, it would be too late for Dong Guan to withdraw the army back to camp.

The moment it thinks it is the "hunter" and steps out of its den, it has already become the "prey".

Or is it prey that has completely fallen into the trap?
Unaware of this, the iron cavalry army, which Dong Guan regarded as his greatest source of confidence, continued its steady and resolute westward advance.

When this army was two hundred miles away from the camp, it had moved from the east to the west of the "Black Wind Army" camp, from facing the "Black Wind Army" camp to having its back to the "Black Wind Army" camp.

The Black Wind Army's mere 36,000 cavalrymen, without holding back, charged out of their camp and thrust their weapons at the enemy cavalry's backs.

Of course, the two sides were three or four hundred miles apart at that moment, and the "Black Wind Army" had no chance of catching the enemy cavalry off guard with such a "surprise attack". By the time the "Black Wind Army" 36,000 cavalry caught up with the enemy cavalry, the enemy had already made adjustments.

Be prepared for battle and wait for the enemy to tire themselves out.

In addition, they had a significant advantage in troop strength.

In the eyes of the enemy generals, the reason why the Black Wind Army's Xuan You Iron Cavalry had only moved out at this moment was because of hesitation and indecision.

On the one hand, the "Black Wind Army" knew that there was a huge disparity in troop strength between the two sides, and that a head-on confrontation would not end well.

On the other hand, they cannot turn a blind eye to the "base" that is about to change hands.

If they simply stand by and watch this happen, the "Black Wind Army," with only one camp, will still starve to death.

This dilemma is what makes the "Black Wind Army" waver and hesitate when it comes to making a choice.

When they learned that the Black Wind Army's less than 40,000 Xuan You Iron Cavalry had finally been forced out, they also learned that the Black Wind Army's Xuan You Iron Cavalry had made a fatal mistake.

Neither the people nor the horses wore armor; instead, they carried it on the backs of the horses.

"Isn't this looking for death?"

"Do you expect to leisurely put on your armor right before the battle begins?"

Upon learning of the enemy's fatal mistake, Dong Guan's cavalry calmly adjusted their tactics while mocking the enemy's unprofessional use of the Xuanyou Iron Cavalry.

Although they found such behavior outrageous.

But looking back, this is actually the "path they came from" for their professional motorcycle unit.

They only gradually became professional after suffering many losses.

However, some people have doubts.

"Didn't they say that the enemy's iron cavalry were all taken from our hands?"
Don't they understand? Don't those who surrendered understand either?

Others also offered their opinions on this.

"Do you think someone who has just surrendered has much say in a situation like this?"

"Moreover, haven't we seen plenty of cases where laymen direct experts?"
Those with only a superficial understanding are even more dangerous; they might even think they've discovered a brilliant idea that no other fool had thought of!

……

Rewinding to the beginning, when 36,000 Xuanyou cavalrymen left the camp in an organized manner.

Seeing Geng Xuan standing by the gate, his eyes fixed on the huge packages on the horse's back, specifically used to store armor, Liu Mu leaned over and offered to explain:

“It’s all empty… I thought about it, and if I just rush out like this without any armor, it might arouse suspicion.”

Geng Xuan nodded, even able to understand the ingenuity of Liu Mu's arrangement.

To disguise flaws as mistakes.

When the enemy discovers the truth and realizes they've been tricked, Geng Xuan is genuinely curious about their reaction.

Shortly after the "Black Wind Army" was lured out of its camp, the enemy forces halted their westward advance and began to actively head towards the "Black Wind Army."

As both sides actively "rushed" toward each other, the distance between them quickly closed.

The Black Wind Army, which had already hesitated for quite some time before leaving the camp, seemed to become hesitant and conflicted once again after seeing this change.

The speed of the pursuit visibly slowed down.

They even showed signs of wanting to retreat back into their camp.

Upon seeing this, Dong Guan's iron cavalry army immediately increased their speed from "medium" to "maximum".

The distance between the two sides quickly closed.

With their rich experience, the entire army was very confident that even if the cowardly "Black Wind Army" turned back now, they could still stab them in the back before they could crawl into their "turtle shell".

……

That very morning.

Just as this army of hundreds of thousands was dancing a "dance" on the vast wilderness, teasing and interacting with each other in a fun way.

Whether it was the instinctive attraction of immense cause and effect, the entanglement of each other, or the chaotic undercurrents caused by the release of a massive amount of dark fortune and calamity, many more events were unfolding on this same wasteland.

Just west of the wilderness where the two armies had tacitly chosen as the battlefield, a messenger arranged by Liu Mu immediately notified them.

All forces belonging to the "Black Wind Army" along the way, as well as groups that showed goodwill or allegiance to the "Black Wind Army," avoided it in advance.

In particular, several relocated tribes in the region, before they could even warm their seats, scattered and fled into the wilderness once again, heading in directions far away from the 100,000 iron cavalry, a feat so familiar it was heartbreaking.

No one considered that when the 100,000 iron cavalry actually arrived and targeted them, all their actions would be in vain.

Even if such efforts can only increase their survival rate by one percent, or even less, they will do it without hesitation.

Against this backdrop, two figures went against the tide.

The two figures, a man and a woman, were naturally the two who had traveled south from the icy lands of the far north.

The woman's name was Xiuna, and the man was her teacher, Bayanzhuo.

Few people know this name.

But he has an even more resounding identity: the "High Priest of the Holy Mountain," a figure that exists in the mouths of all "Canglang Believers" and is also rumored in the Dark Night Division and other groups under Dong Guan's command.

After heading south, the two, who had essentially locked onto their target, did not immediately go looking for the "person in question."

Instead, they conducted a close-up, on-site investigation into the changes that had occurred within the "Black Wind Army base" during this period.

This includes the relief provided by the "Black Wind Army" to the returning tribespeople.

There was also interaction with those sand people's settlements, through clever means, extracting nearly a million bushels of grain from them.

How can an army primarily composed of "Crimson Wolf Followers" participate in maintaining order within the "base area"...?

The two, who originally only intended to check on the relief efforts, were completely overwhelmed by all the "new things" happening around them.

However, this kind of "inspection" should come to an end.

Huna's teacher, the High Priest of the Holy Mountain, Bayanzhuo, decided to continue eastward to have a "close and friendly" encounter with the "divine child".

Just then, a mighty and powerful cavalry force spread out in the field in front of them, as if showing off.

……

at the same time.

To the east of this wilderness, two other figures quietly slipped out of Dong Guan's camp and disappeared into the vast wilderness. (End of Chapter)