In my dream of returning to the Tang Dynasty, I snatched Wu Zetian from my lap.

That night, after a long journey, Li Yuanchang and his group returned to the shelter safely with the medicinal herbs.

There was no pirate attack here, and everything is normal.

After taking stock, apart from some abrasions, no one in the team was injured.

In addition, more than 80% of the eight baskets of medicinal herbs brought back were usable, with effects such as analgesia, hemostasis, and even clearing heat and detoxifying, which solved the urgent problem for the entire division.

At this moment, Li Yuanchang summoned all the leaders of the division.

A bonfire blazed brightly, dispelling the cold.

Li Yuanchang scalded his hands with hot oil and said, "Now that the issue of medicinal herbs is resolved, we need to get on with supplies and repairing the ships."

Upon hearing this, Cui He cupped his hands and said, "Your Highness, this humble servant and the helmsman went to inspect them, and the remaining two treasure ships are severely damaged."

"Nearly half of the cabins have been damaged to varying degrees and have been exposed to seawater. Repairing them will likely require a lot of manpower and time."

"If we put all our manpower into it, we won't have enough resources."

Li Yuanchang looked at Lao Hu's two helmsmen, who were experienced navigators and retired shipbuilding craftsmen.

It was Wu Zetian who specially invited him.

"Are you sure it can be fixed?"

Old Hu and his companion exchanged a glance.

"Your Highness, it can be fixed!"

"But the most troublesome issues are not the shortage of supplies and manpower, but the tools and materials, especially rivets."

"You can't find it on this deserted island at all."

Li Yuanchang frowned.

Without repairing the treasure ship, everything else is in vain. Relying on ordinary rafts, they can only drift across the ocean at the mercy of fate, which is extremely unstable and makes it impossible to carry supplies.

He pondered for a long time, and the scene remained quiet for a long time.

"It seems we still have to take the initiative."

"We don't have supplies, manpower, or materials, but the pirate gang's stronghold definitely does. They've been entrenched here for so many years, plundering countless ships, so they can probably find even the rivets."

Guo Chao said, "Your Highness is right, the only way is to seize control of this island!"

"Then, all the problems will be easily solved!"

"But where is the main base?" someone asked.

The crowd sank, and no one knew it.

Li Yuanchang pondered how to lure the enemy out of their hole, or how to find their stronghold and strike them precisely.

As he pondered, a sudden thought struck him: "Aren't there still two prisoners? What about the one-eyed man?"

Upon hearing this, everyone slapped their thighs in disbelief.

"yes!"

"I almost forgot about these two people!"

"Isn't this a ready-made map? We're so stupid!"

"Hahaha!"

Li Yuanchang was decisive: "Go and bring the person to me!"

"yes!"

Before long, the two prisoners were brought in.

Because the two had been imprisoned on the treasure ship, they escaped the shipwreck without even suffering any injuries. It could be said that their evil deeds have been passed down for a thousand years.

Boom!

The two knelt on the ground, looking at so many people, thinking they were about to be executed, and trembled involuntarily.

"Sir, sir, please don't kill me! Please don't kill me!"

Li Yuanchang simply sat there, without saying a word, and broke down their psychological defenses.

To get straight to the point: "Where is the pirate crew's hideout?"

The man with the pointed face and monkey-like features was on the verge of tears: "Sir, I really don't know!"

"I usually operate in Baiyingkou."

Li Yuanchang's gaze lingered on the one-eyed man: "He must know, right?"

The man with the pointed mouth and monkey-like cheeks immediately translated into Japanese.

Upon hearing this, the one-eyed dragon immediately nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, his fierce and vicious face now appearing docile and clever.

"I know, I know, I can take you there!"

"How far?" Li Yuanchang asked calmly.

"It takes less than an hour by the main road; it's in a cave deep inside the island," said the one-eyed man.

"Shall we take the narrow path through the dense forest?" Li Yuanchang asked again.

"This... it could take three or four hours or more," the one-eyed man said.

"Tell me the details of the situation, tell me everything you know, cooperate fully, and I'll keep you safe. Be careful if you lie, you know the consequences very well."

"Yes, yes..."

"..."

The fire blazed brightly, and the one-eyed dragon spent a full incense stick's time burning it.

As the third-in-command of the pirate crew, he knew the area almost like the back of his hand.

The pirate leader was named Ijiro, who was a general in Japan and had certain command and combat capabilities.

The second brother, Yoshida, was a samurai. The two of them commanded a samurai force of about two hundred men, who were relatively well-equipped and capable in combat.

This same force has always controlled the entire island, establishing hierarchical rules for the area, and the other pirates basically work alongside them.

Seizing ships and ordinary people makes one a ruthless person, but in a real fight, they are not worth mentioning, a fact that has been proven time and again.

The pirate crew's lair was an extremely well-hidden natural cave, which was very large and interconnected, with two entrances.

The area around the entrance is surrounded by numerous traps, both to prevent wild animals and to deter outsiders from intruding.

Normally, there are no fewer than four hundred pirates in a given area, with the rest scattered throughout the island, some even living in the residential areas.

Once war breaks out, a large number of pirates will swarm in, and the only option is to capture the leader of the pirates quickly and resolve the conflict swiftly.

In addition to a series of coordinates and information on the number of people, Li Yuanchang also unexpectedly learned a major clue!

"You mean there's a huge warehouse deep inside the cave? It stores all the island's resources!"

"right!"

One-Eyed Dragon nodded repeatedly: "Every time we succeed, we transport all the gold, silver, jewels, food, and tools we plunder from the ships back to the cave."

"And all the good things on the island are there, distributed by the eldest brother."

Over time, that place became a huge treasure trove.

"And women! There are plenty of women!"

"I know where it is, I can take you there!"

Li Yuanchang asked again sternly, "And what about the ships you looted each time?"

"Some are in use, some have been dismantled. All the copper and iron will be dismantled to either forge tools and weapons, or stored in the treasure vault!" said the one-eyed dragon.

Upon hearing this, Li Yuanchang's eyes lit up, and he exchanged glances with his opponents.

From that perspective, this treasure trove contains almost all the scarce resources needed by the entire division.

He took a deep breath, suppressing his inner turmoil. Haste makes waste; his men needed some time to rest and recover.

"Zhao Jie".

"Your humble servant is here."

"Take him down and have him sketch a map, as detailed as possible according to combat standards."

"yes!"

"..."

Time flies, and three days later...

Heavy rain swept across Tsushima Island again, the weather was unpredictable, and the sea was turbulent. The rainy season made the search for the elixir destined to be arduous.

Fortunately, the guards of the inner palace are gradually recovering, and only about thirty guards with broken bones still need to recuperate.

During this period, Li Yuanchang had already dispatched his personal guards, who came from mountain tribes, to conduct two reconnaissance missions, following the map provided by the one-eyed dragon.

We were unable to enter the cave, so we don't know what's inside, but the route and the cave itself are basically real.