Battle for Northern Frontier: The game begins with the grassland woman buying him.

The stench of blood lingered in the morning mist. The battle at Black Wind Stronghold was over, but the chilling atmosphere remained.

The warriors of Stone City silently moved among the broken walls and ruins, clearing the battlefield.

The corpses were piled up, the armor was confiscated, and the wounded comrades were temporarily carried to an open space.

Every victory comes at a heavy price.

Su Zhan stood in front of the blackened chieftain's house, with Wuyan Tu's angry-looking corpse at his feet.

That son of a bitch held onto a totem symbolizing authority until his death, but his dignity had long been shattered under the longsword of the Stone City.

"Third Master, the count is almost complete. We captured over eight hundred people in total, mostly craftsmen and laborers, as well as some able-bodied men who resisted. Only a few of the nomads are left. Also, we found this in the chieftain's house."

He handed over an exquisite bronze box, also smoked, which was far more refined than the one he had obtained from the slave trader.

Su Zhan took the bronze box; it felt heavy in his hand and had wolf vine patterns on its surface.

He carefully opened it; inside were no gold or silver, only a few neatly folded pieces of parchment with a distinctive fragrance, and a seal made of black jade.

The characters on the parchment were no longer unfamiliar symbols, but a common grassland script.

He quickly scanned the contents, his eyes turning sharp as ice.

Pheasant Neck stepped forward, his expression grave, and said in a low voice, "The smelter is completely destroyed. Several blast furnaces collapsed, and the core components have been completely destroyed. It's unlikely to be restored anytime soon. However, I found their warehouse where they stored finished and semi-finished products, as well as a lot of blueprints."

A glint of excitement flashed in his eyes: "The hinge technology of those ladder components and engineering piles is indeed much better than that used by Agudamu. The structures recorded in the drawings are all very dangerous."

Su Zhan handed the parchment from the copper box to the pheasant's neck: "Take a look at this."

His gaze swept over the mess on the ground, and he said in a low voice, "It's not just the blueprints that are dangerous. Wuyan Tu has been neutral for generations, huh, what a fine example of neutrality. He's not only secretly building engineering tools, but he's also secretly colluding with others."

Pheasant Neck swept across the parchment quickly, his face growing increasingly grim: "This is a blood oath signed with Batu, the Great Chieftain of the White Deer Tribe, and the terms of a secret agreement with the leader of the Southwest Wind Wolf Valley. They agreed that if a new overlord emerges on the grasslands, or if our Central Plains show signs of decline, the three will jointly send troops to divide up Stone City and the surrounding lush lands. Wuyan Tu will provide equipment, Batu will provide elite cavalry, and Wind Wolf Valley will be responsible for cutting off any possible aid routes from the Empire."

He gasped: "That old fox is really good at hiding his true intentions. He doesn't want to be a neutral party, but rather the mastermind behind the scenes."

Su Zhan's eyes turned completely cold.

He looked at the trembling prisoners gathered in the open space, especially the emaciated slaves with blank stares. He strode up to the group of slaves and said in a low but slightly cold voice, "You may have heard of the rules of Stone City."

Whether you are a nomadic or Han Chinese, as long as you lay down your weapons, sincerely submit, and are willing to fight alongside our Stone City to avenge those slave owners and ambitious individuals who oppress you and treat you like dirt, you are my brothers in Su Zhan.

Those who do not wish to stay will each be given three days' worth of dry rations and water to fend for themselves. If anyone harbors ulterior motives, secretly conspires, or attempts to overthrow us…”

Su Zhan's voice turned cold, and his gaze swept over the slaves like an icicle: "Wuyan Tu's fate is his example."

A commotion arose among the slaves, a faint light gleaming in the eyes of the ragged men. Freedom, a way to survive, even a chance for revenge—could such a thing really exist? In an instant, the people stirred, for such an opportunity was truly rare.

The squad leader in charge of the inventory ran over again, his eyes filled with surprise: "Third Master, we found a hidden warehouse in the back mountain. Inside, there's a large quantity of refined iron ingots and copper, as well as several well-sealed boxes with the Imperial seal!"

Su Zhan and Nogihiro exchanged a glance, both seeing the seriousness in each other's eyes.

How did the Empire's supplies end up in a neutral grassland village? This is more complicated than I imagined!

The smelter is destroyed, but the value of the raw materials, and perhaps the mysterious imperial supplies, is even greater.

Su Zhan took a deep breath; the cold air made his shoulders ache slightly, but his mind was crystal clear: wiping out Black Wind Stronghold and taking down one enemy tower had also revealed the tip of a much larger iceberg. The White Deer Tribe, the Sealed Wolf Valley, the mysterious imperial supplies… it was all incredibly interesting.

"Immediately seal up the blueprints, copper ore, and imperial supplies, along with these prisoners, and load them onto wagons. Prioritize their transport back to Stone City!" Su Zhan decisively ordered. "I will personally escort them. The technicians and craftsmen among the prisoners must be individually screened and guarded; not a single one can be missed. What's in their minds is more important than those lumps of iron!"

He turned to the squad leader clearing the battlefield: "Brothers, move faster! Take all the spoils you can, and burn what you can't! We can't stay here any longer. Fenglang Valley and Batu aren't far from us, and the news of Wuyan Tu's demise won't stay hidden for long!"

The order was quickly issued, and the Black Wind Stronghold, which had once been bustling with activity when it was building devastating weapons, was now filled with a somber and tense atmosphere.

Su Zhan stood on the city wall, glancing at Black Wind Valley. The battle was over, but he knew the game had only just begun. Stone City had barely caught its breath before it had to tense up again.

This is all so difficult.

Finally, Su Zhan ordered his men to take everything back to Stone City.

On the way, he kept thinking, and things became more and more confusing: How could there be imperial supplies? Could it be that the empire is not a united front, and someone is secretly sowing discord?

That's very likely.

After all, Xiao Shenzan only represents one faction; it would be too much to ask him to represent the entire empire.

He was just a counselor; nobody knew who was backing him. Nobody knew how many powerful figures were manipulating the grasslands; all they could do was wait and see.

In any case, Stone City's strategic policy is very clear: first, eliminate the surrounding tribes. Today is just the beginning, and it will continue tomorrow. The right path is to eliminate the surrounding tribes and gain a firm foothold on the grassland. We can deal with the rest later.

No matter how many powerful forces the empire has, they will continue with their own affairs and will never allow anyone to lay a finger on Stone City. After all, Stone City is the foundation upon which they depend for survival, and only by protecting it can they thrive on the grasslands.

The grasslands are too treacherous; if the empire wants to intervene, it needs those who have established a foothold in Stone City.

Want to rely on the empire itself? Then a large army must advance, but who can say for sure about such an advance? Large armies have come before, but after spring breezes blow and new forces emerge, they can only fail.

Therefore, Su Zhan has the confidence to fight anyone. He only needs to keep everything firmly in his own hands to solve everything.

So Su Zhan made up his mind and continued his march toward Stone City.

When they arrived at Stone City, the garrison commander was delighted to see them return safely and ordered the city gates to be opened.

Then Su Zhan let Wild Chicken Neck arrange the rest of the matters, while he took the things he had collected from that tribe and returned to the Stone City Fierce Dragon Gang's base.

Bai Zhanqiu was overjoyed to hear that Su Zhan had won a great victory and returned with a full load of spoils, and came out to greet him.

He was followed by many managers, who all congratulated Su Zhan, but Su Zhan couldn't feel happy at all.

The news he brought today was quite explosive, so he said to everyone, "Let's go inside and talk."

Then everyone followed Su Zhan into the council hall. After everyone was seated, Su Zhan presented everything he had received.

Bai Zhanqiu was initially quite happy when he saw it, but the more he looked at it, the less he realized it was true, and his expression turned gloomy.

After he finished reading, he showed all of this to the other managers. Some of them jumped out immediately after reading it and shouted, "What the hell? This is so complicated! How many powerful figures are involved? If they keep stirring things up, won't we be in complete chaos?"

Another steward chimed in, "That's right, this information is incredibly important. It's unbelievable how many twists and turns there are in all of this. We would have had no idea if we hadn't conquered this tribe."

Bai Zhanqiu nodded and said, "That's right, this matter must be investigated thoroughly. Send Zhu Yeqing to investigate immediately, and be sure to dig out more clues along this line."

Bai Zhanqiu gave the order, and Zhu Yeqing immediately went to investigate. Everything was shrouded in mystery and needed to be clarified. After that, everyone just needed to wait for news.

Before that, let's determine the next direction of the battle. After all, we've already wiped out a tribe and lost some manpower, but we've also replenished our forces with new troops.

Overall, Stone City is still Stone City, very powerful. We must press on and launch another attack on the other tribes.

The tribe they chose this time was very difficult to afflict; it was said to have more than 2 people and was 500 miles away from them.

The tribe's name seemed to be White Fish Alliance, which consisted of three smaller tribes. The leader they elected was a Nascent Soul cultivator, who was also the actual leader of the three tribes.

The three tribes came together after the Stone City incident.

In other words, the transformation of Stone City indirectly led to the alliance of other forces on the grasslands.

This was to be expected, given the recent movements in Stone City and the chaos on the grasslands, which had truly alarmed the grassland people.

They felt they had to unite to accomplish more.

Unity required the collective strength of the grassland people themselves. And so, they formed an alliance.

This makes things even more difficult.

If it were just a small tribe, it could be easily taken down.

But if it becomes three tribes, then it will be extremely dangerous.

With over 2 people, Stone City has never done anything like this before, except for one battle with Agudamu that involved tens of thousands of people. This time, we must plan carefully.

The air in the council hall seemed to freeze. The hoofprint leading to Lina's Goose had revealed Wuyan Tu's secret collusion with Bailubudazhu and the leader of Wind Wolf Valley, and the unexpectedly discovered supplies had stirred up ripples like a boulder.

The White Cloud Alliance they identified has now been confirmed.

The current discussion revolves around the White Cloud Alliance.

A manager broke the silence: "A large tribe of over 2 people. The Great God has moved quickly this time. We just dealt with powerful enemies like Agudamu and Black Wind Village, and he's already set up a huge operation in the blink of an eye."

Another burly steward sneered, "They're just opportunists. They didn't dare utter a sound when Agudamu was around, and they cowered when Wuyan seized the stronghold. Seeing that our Stone City has just finished a major battle and is weakened, they think they can band together and take advantage of the situation. Are they dreaming?"

However, most of the managers had serious expressions, and things were not as simple as this manager thought.

Stone City had just experienced a bloody battle and then made a long-distance raid to remove Black Wind Stronghold, a thorn in their side. Although they had gained a lot of spoils, the casualties and exhaustion they suffered were also very real.

The city had no more than ten thousand soldiers available for battle at this time, and they still had to be deployed to various fortresses and guard the newly captured people and supplies.

Facing a powerful and well-organized alliance with a numerical advantage, a head-on confrontation is not the best strategy.

Wild Chicken Neck coughed lightly, his gaze sweeping over everyone before finally settling on Su Zhan and Bai Zhanqiu: "Intelligence indicates that the internal strife within the White Cloud Alliance is not monolithic. The White Wolf Tribe, where the Nascent Soul cultivators reside, is the strongest, with a population of nearly 10,000, of whom about 4000 are capable fighters. The Black Wolf Tribe is second, with about 6000 people and 2000 capable fighters."

The Black Feather Tribe is the weakest, with a population of less than 5000 and fewer than 200 capable fighters. The reason Hua Shen was able to become the alliance leader is twofold: firstly, the White Wolf Tribe is the strongest, and secondly, he is said to be cunning and resourceful. During Agudamu's era, he was adept at playing both sides.

Whether the Black Wolf and Black Feather tribes were forced into this alliance or formed a genuine alliance remains unknown. The Black Feather tribe, in particular, has the closest grasslands to us and previously maintained some trade relations with us, making their relationship much more amicable than that of the other tribes.

Su Zhan remained silent, his finger slowly tracing the locations of the three tribes before finally landing on the mark representing the Black Feather Tribe: "Wild Chicken Neck is right. A head-on clash of 2 is a Pyrrhic victory, even if it's a narrow triumph. Stone City can't afford it. If Nascent Soul cultivators can form alliances, we can break them up too."

Bai Zhanqiu looked up at him and said, "Su Zhan, are you trying to sow discord?"

Su Zhan's eyes flashed with golden light: "That's right, exactly."

First, the spoils from the battle of Black Wind Stronghold, especially the refined iron ingots and copper materials, should be used immediately to forge arrows, repair armor, and especially to replicate the captured crossbows.

We want the Nascent Soul cultivators to see not a Stone City exhausted from a bloody battle, but a Stone City with well-equipped soldiers and an even stronger fighting spirit. This is a show of strength.

He paused, then pointed to the Black Feather tribe again: "Secondly, spread the word that Stone City will only pursue the ringleader, and that other tribes participating in the alliance will be forgiven if they voluntarily withdraw, and even the salt and iron trade can be opened up."

The key was to deliberately let the Black Feather tribe overhear this news unintentionally, while simultaneously arranging for people to create minor skirmishes on the route that the Black Wolf and White Wolf tribes would inevitably take, such as by using the Black Feather tribe's name to intercept and plunder a few small caravans of the Black Wolf tribe.

Pheasant Neck's eyes lit up: "Brilliant! We'll intimidate them by showing strength and sow discord to confuse them. Su Zhan's plan is to attack their hearts. Since the Nascent Soul stage cultivators want to band together, we'll make sure their group grows barbs first."

The other managers excitedly slapped their thighs and said, "That's right! Let that old bastard Hei Yu know that their Nascent Soul stage has no future, and let Black Wolf and White Wolf distrust each other, making them lose their composure. Then we'll seize the opportunity and strike with lightning speed."

Bai Zhanqiu nodded slowly, a smile of approval on his face: "Su Zhan is not only brave and skilled in battle, but his strategic thinking, which is keen to assess the situation and understand people's hearts, is also becoming more and more sophisticated."

He said in a deep voice, "Su Zhan's plan is feasible. You are in charge of this matter, and you must ensure that nothing is overlooked. Zhu Yeqing's investigation into the source of the supplies cannot stop either. I have a feeling that these two things are intricately connected."

He stood up, his gaze sweeping over every manager present, and said in a resolute tone: "Gentlemen, Black Wind Stronghold has proven that our Stone City is still formidable. White Cloud Alliance may seem powerful, but its foundation is actually unstable."

The Nascent Soul cultivators are mistaken in trying to take advantage of the chaos. Immediately follow Su Zhan's strategy: regroup, repair weapons, and sow discord. We must let the Nascent Soul cultivators and their White Cloud Alliance know that anyone who dares to challenge Stone City will only meet a gruesome end!

"Yes, sir!" Inside the council hall, everyone responded and withdrew.

The fatigue from days of fighting had been somewhat dispelled by this decisive order, replaced by a sharp, ready-to-go spirit.

Just as the order was about to be given, someone suddenly rushed in to report: "Report! Second Master, Third Master, we have received an urgent report from the front lines. The White Cloud Alliance has suddenly made a move!"

Bai Zhanqiu and Su Zhan asked simultaneously, "What's that commotion?"

The scout took a deep breath and said, "Our spies have discovered that a large number of White Cloud Alliance cavalry are leaving their settlement, seemingly heading southwest. Their target is Qingshuiwa, 300 li away. They number no less than several thousand, and the banner leading them appears to be that of the White Wolf Tribe."

Qingshuiwa...

Pheasant Neck quickly located the location on the map, his brow furrowed: "This is not a strategic location, nor is it our stronghold. What are they doing there? And sending only 5000 cavalry is far too hasty."

Bai Zhanqiu and Su Zhan exchanged a glance, both seeing the seriousness in each other's eyes.

The cunning opponent, Hua Shen, did not launch his first attack on Stone City, but instead headed straight for a seemingly insignificant clear water pool.

What exactly are they trying to do?