With the rise of my family, I can summon the Daoist Soldiers' Nest.

Early that morning, Yandang Lake near the fortress was already bustling with activity. Forty or fifty small boats gathered on the lake, densely packed along the shore and in the bays, with boatmen and guards moving back and forth in the morning mist.

These boats were transferred from the county town by Lin Qiang some time ago; it took a lot of effort to gather this number.

In recent years, monsters have frequently appeared in the river. Ordinary fishermen have long since put away their nets and abandoned their boats. The boats have been left unattended for many years, and some of the planks have even become moldy. This time, they were repaired and put back into the water.

Although these boats were originally fishing boats, they are light and shallow, making it easy for them to navigate through waterways, but small crossbows have been installed on their bows.

It was made by Lin Tie and his men who brought parts from the county's armory and modified and installed them overnight. Although it was not as powerful as the heavy crossbow used for city defense, it was enough to deal with the monsters in the water.

At this moment, each ship was filled with guards, their spears, swords, and shields echoing the crossbows at the bow, showing a posture that suggested they were ready to fight at any moment.

In fact, as the nests were settled in the territory, some monsters had slowly left Xiang County. However, the nests had only been established for a short time, and many monsters were still staying in various places, especially in the river system, which was where they often lingered.

According to Lin Ye's estimate, most of the demon beasts will move away on their own after a year when the nest officially begins to nurture Dao soldiers, except in special circumstances.

But the Lin family couldn't afford to wait. This year was too precious. No one could predict when the Northern Xiongnu might attack again. They had to open up and develop their territory as soon as possible in order to accumulate enough strength to protect themselves and even fight back.

Moreover, this is also a good opportunity to train the troops, allowing the escort team to familiarize themselves with the coordination and test their combat capabilities in actual combat.

Today marks the official start of the river cleanup by the patrol team.

Lin Qiang stood on a large ship, holding a command flag. After looking around, he shouted, "Escort teams, proceed to your respective objectives! Our mission is to drive away and kill any monsters encountered along the way—proceed!"

At the command, the small boat immediately set off from Yandang Lake.

More than twenty small boats, along with the large boat Lin Qiang was on, traveled along the main channel of the dock.

Most towns are located on both sides of the main road, and opening up this road can connect the main population and trade routes;

The remaining small boats, in groups of three or five, sailed off to the tributaries of the Wushui River, where four towns were built along the water and needed to be cleared section by section.

Lin Ye stood on the wall of the fortified city, his gaze following the silhouettes of the ships.

The small boat sailed further and further away, and he kept watching until he could see nothing at all. Then he slowly turned around and stepped down from the city wall.

More than twenty boats sailed downstream along the main channel of the dock, lined up neatly on the wide river surface, almost covering the entire surface, with even spacing between the boats, like a moving defensive line.

The bows of the boats were all facing forward, and the guards, some holding long spears and others wielding swords and shields, stared intently at the water. The crossbows were already cocked, their cold glints gleaming.

Experienced boatmen repeatedly struck the water's surface with thick bamboo poles at the bow of their boats, the "thump, thump" sound spreading along the current and startling the monsters hiding underwater and in the reeds.

Once a dark shadow appears or the water ripples abnormally, the crossbowman quickly aims, and the bolt flies through the air, plunging into the water and creating a splash.

Not long after setting sail, a group of low-class blue-scaled water lizards were the first to be disturbed. A dozen or so foot-long, bluish-green figures suddenly darted out from the seaweed, their long snouts full of fine teeth lunging straight at the gunwale.

The crossbowmen were quick-witted and swift, firing arrows in rapid succession. The arrows pierced the heads, necks, and backs of the water lizards, and the dozen or so blue shadows twitched a few times before sinking to the bottom of the river, leaving only streaks of blood in the water.

Soon after, an even bigger commotion erupted on the water's surface as a lowly black-nosed swamp crocodile burst out of the water, its massive body splashing water everywhere, and its tail sweeping across the surface nearly capsizing a small boat.

The two warriors on the boat shouted in unison. One of them held a spear to its mouth, while the other took the opportunity to shoot a crossbow bolt through its eye.

The black-nosed swamp crocodile roared in pain and fell back into the water. The team members immediately tightened the large net at the back of the boat, caught it, and dragged it closer. Several people worked together to tie it up with ropes, and by the time they lifted it onto the deck, it was already lifeless.

Each ship was towed by a large net with coarse mesh, large enough to catch even the largest monsters.

Once the water monster is injured or exhausted, the boat speed is increased slightly, and the net is tightened to trap it inside. Then, the boat is pulled onto the boat or to the shore for disposal.

As the river deepens, the current becomes more rapid, and reeds grow densely on both banks.

Suddenly, the water level in front of the fleet dropped sharply, and a third-rate monster, the Copper-Armored Beaver, appeared in front of the fleet.

It is the size of an adult water buffalo, with thick, hard, copper-colored fur, shovel-like forepaws, strong hind legs, and sharp copper teeth that can gnaw through wooden stakes and simple boats. It is a mutation of an ordinary beaver.

The bronze beaver burst out of the water and charged straight at the bow of the boat. Its thick shoulders and back slammed into the boat, causing it to rock violently. Its sharp teeth gnawed fiercely at the gunwale, and the crossbow bolts that struck its hardened fur only produced a few sparks.

Lin Qiang made a decisive move, ordering three ships to surround the creature. Crossbowmen took turns shooting at its weak points, such as its joints and eye sockets. Although the arrows hit its mark many times, they were unable to subdue it immediately.

Three captains of third-rate martial arts masters, who were relatively good swimmers, drew their swords and leaped into the water to fight it head-on. Their swords flashed in the turbid waves, and they were nearly knocked over by its side-ramming and knocking over several times.

The people on the shore held their breath, and beat the bamboo poles even more urgently to prevent it from escaping, while constantly stabbing it with their guns.

After another fierce attack, the crossbowmen seized the moment when it opened its mouth to roar, and two crossbow bolts pierced its throat and eye sockets. The copper-armored beaver writhed violently a few times, and finally floated on the surface of the water, its blood staining a patch of river red.

As the fleet sailed into the afternoon, the sun began to set, and the river surface shimmered with golden waves.

Besides the copper-armored beaver they killed in the morning, they also encountered the third-rate monster, the Azure-eyed Fat Toad, in a waterway near a river bend.

The fat toad lay motionless, lurking among the dense aquatic plants on the bank.

As a boat approached, it suddenly extended its long tongue, which wrapped around the neck of a boatman at the bow like lightning. The sticky substance pulled him into the water and drowned him, leaving only a ring of blood that spread rapidly on the surface of the water.

Before anyone could react, it used its hind legs to ram its heavy body into the sides of the two adjacent ships.

Two low-ranking guards standing together were caught off guard and were hit so hard that they vomited blood and fell into the river. Fortunately, they were rescued in time and did not suffer fatal injuries.

Finally, two third-rate captains quickly approached and attacked from the left and right. One used a knife to lock the base of the fat toad's tongue, while the other chopped at its hind leg joints to restrict its jumping.

The crossbowmen seized the opportunity to focus their fire on its eye sockets and throat. After several fierce attacks, the green-eyed fat toad finally succumbed to exhaustion and was pulled onto the boat by the large net.

In addition, the fleet encountered more than a dozen waves of low-level monsters—the Blue-scaled Water Lizard and the Black-snouted Swamp Crocodile pounced on them one after another. The guards, with the help of crossbows and nets, killed most of them on the spot. No crew members died. Only a few boatmen were hit by water or claws and suffered minor injuries.

As dusk approached, a small market town could be seen standing on the shore in the distance, with low town walls.

Abandoned farmland could be vaguely seen, and there was no one in sight outside the town, but a dozen or so figures stood on the wall watching the fleet.

We've arrived at Shitie Town, the town closest to Linjiawu along the Wushui River.