In chaotic times, skill points are added: from hunter to martial saint, only killing and no mercy!

Hundreds of officials stood in a magnificent, golden hall.

Before everyone stood a young man, no more than seventeen or eighteen years old, dressed in a dragon robe, looking down at the border war report in his hand.

Two eunuchs stood to the side, unfurling and displaying a Xiongnu king's flag.

If Li Yi were here, he would recognize at a glance that this was the royal banner of Lu Hu Wu, the Left General of the Xiongnu, which he had captured!

"Guan Xing is truly a fine general!"

The Emperor of Chen put down the border war report with satisfaction and looked at the civil and military officials in front of him.

"Guan Xing guarded Yanmen Pass and killed five thousand elite Xiongnu soldiers. This achievement deserves a reward!"

"My esteemed ministers, do you have any suggestions?"

Then, Cui Shi, the Minister of Personnel, stepped forward and said in a loud voice:

"Guan Xingjue is a Grand Master, and can be promoted two ranks to Grand Master of the Palace!"

"In addition, the position of commander of Yanmen Pass has been vacant for a long time. He can be appointed as the commander of Yanmen Pass and put in charge of all matters at Yanmen Pass."

"The remaining rewards shall be distributed according to the established rules!"

Hearing the words of Cui Shi, the Minister of Personnel, everyone nodded in agreement. After pondering for a moment, the Emperor of Chen agreed to Cui Shi's suggestion, seeing that no one objected.

After the eunuch finished writing the commendation document and the emperor personally affixed his seal, the young emperor suddenly said:

"I read in the battle report that this Xiongnu king's banner was captured by Colonel Li Yi; this achievement should not go unrewarded!"

"Minister Cui, what do you think? Would it be appropriate to bestow a noble title upon him?"

Upon hearing this, Cui Shi clasped his hands together and fell into deep thought. Just then, an old man came out.

"Your Majesty, although Li Yi has made great contributions, he is still young. It is inappropriate to bestow a title upon him and place him in a high position. It is unfair to other meritorious officials."

"In my humble opinion, it would be better to reward him with some gold and silver to demonstrate Your Majesty's divine power!"

Upon hearing the words of Cao Ping, the Minister of Rites, not a single civil or military official objected. Even Cui Shi, the Minister of Personnel, and others from the Ministry of War spoke up in support of Cao Ping.

The Chen Kingdom is currently in chaos, with the seven powerful families, led by the Cui family (whose members include the Minister of Personnel Cui Shi) and the Cao family (whose members include the Minister of Rites Cao Ping), controlling the Chen Kingdom's court.

Their disciples and former subordinates were everywhere, and no one dared to oppose their ideas.

Seeing this, the emperor, seated on the dragon throne, remained silent for a moment, then suppressed his displeasure and smiled:

"What Minister Cao says is quite right. It is indeed inappropriate for someone who is too young to hold a high position."

"In that case, reward him with one hundred taels of gold and one hundred bolts of brocade!"

Cao Ping's words were both a way of suppressing Li Yi, who had offended his own people, and a veiled reminder and mockery of the young emperor of Chen.

This incident dampened the young emperor's joy at the border victory somewhat. After dealing with some trivial matters, he withdrew from court and left.

The turmoil within the imperial court had not yet affected Yanmen Pass. Li Yi was unaware that the Cao family was secretly sabotaging him.

After receiving the commendation from the imperial court, General Guan and his men were overjoyed, and the entire military camp received their share of the reward.

As the main force and the one who made the greatest contribution in this battle, Li Yi's reputation grew more and more. His former title of "Arrow Piercing the Clouds" gradually faded away, and more people began to call Li Yi the number one fierce general of Yanmen Pass.

After accepting his share of the reward, Li Yi looked at General Guan and said loudly:

"General, I have something to say, and I would be grateful if you would listen!"

Upon hearing this, the entire central army camp fell silent, and all eyes turned to Li Yi.

From the Qing Kingdom Colonel onwards, their many achievements were inseparable from Li Yi's advice.

To put it bluntly, if Li Yi hadn't taken the initiative to fight, most of the time they spent guarding Yanmen Pass would have been spent in tedious defensive battles, with no chance to earn military merit.

"Oh? I wonder what Lieutenant Li has in mind? Speak quickly!"

General Guan also trusted Li Yi's judgment and quickly gestured for Li Yi to speak frankly.

Seeing this, Li Yi didn't hesitate. After clearing his throat, he said in a deep voice:

"Now that the Xiongnu have just suffered a defeat, not only has the Left General's troops been severely weakened, but he himself has also been wounded by me."

"At this time, the Xiongnu were at their weakest."

"I believe we should seize this opportunity to launch a northern expedition, penetrating deep into the grasslands, defending against the enemy from the outside, and attacking their weaknesses!"

To actively venture deep into the grasslands and wipe out the Xiongnu tribes?

Li Yi's words gave everyone a jolt.

They were able to defeat the Xiongnu by using infantry formations to encircle and kill them. If they ventured deeper into the grasslands, they would face the Xiongnu's forte: cavalry warfare!

For a moment, everyone fell silent.

General Guan knew that Li Yi was not a frivolous person. After pondering for a moment, he spoke:

"Li Yi, just say what you're thinking!"

Seeing this, Li Yi pointed to the sand table and said to General Guan:

"The Xiongnu have just suffered a defeat, and their morale is greatly damaged. They certainly do not expect us to take the initiative to attack the grasslands."

"We can send out an elite cavalry force, lightly equipped and without baggage!"

"Along the way, we can plunder the cattle and sheep of the Xiongnu tribes for supplies!"

"Without the burden of baggage, the Xiongnu will find it difficult to track us and will be forced to passively face our blades!"

Li Yi quickly revealed his plan in its entirety and tried his best to persuade General Guan.

"Nowadays, with snow and wind raging on the grasslands, the biggest problem is that it's easy to get lost, and even impossible to find the whereabouts of the Xiongnu people."

"Li Yi, it's not that I don't want to wipe out the Xiongnu, it's just that it's too easy to fail."

"We have ventured deep into the grasslands before, but we often got lost. Some of us even lost a lot of troops before we even encountered the Xiongnu."

After becoming the commander of Yanmen Pass, General Guan had to consider many more aspects, as he was responsible for the entire Yanmen Pass and the State of Chen.

Li Yi was already prepared for what General Guan said.

After capturing the Xiongnu archer Gumu Da, Li Yi successfully subdued him and obtained information about the whereabouts of some Xiongnu tribes from him.

"General, I am willing to lead the troops into battle!"

Li Yi looked at General Guan and told him about the whereabouts of the Xiongnu tribes that he had learned.

"What?"

General Guan was greatly surprised, but then a hint of joy appeared on his face.

After confirming that Li Yi's words were true, General Guan pondered for a moment and then agreed to Li Yi's plan.

"General, although my Wind Tiger Battalion is an elite force, we lack cavalry. I beg your assistance!"

Currently, the Wind Tiger Battalion only has three hundred elite light cavalry. To complete this battle plan, at least one thousand light cavalry will be needed!

Upon hearing this, General Guan immediately took out the tiger tally and ordered Li Yi to select elite light cavalry from other units to form this thousand men!

With General Guan's help, Li Yi raised a thousand elite soldiers in just one day.

"Li Xin, Han Jia, the Wind Tiger Camp and the family are entrusted to you!"

After giving some instructions to Li Xin and Han Jia, Li Yi led Liu Ye and others, along with a thousand light cavalry, into the snowstorm.

This time, Li Yi and his men carried only five days' worth of military rations. After leaving Yanmen Pass, they shot straight into the grasslands like an iron arrow.

In winter, the grasslands are completely covered by heavy snow, but in some valleys, there are still many withered and yellow meadows.

Li Yi and his men would rest and water their horses in these valleys during the day, and ride swiftly at night.

In just two days, they had penetrated more than a hundred miles into the grassland.

At this point, the dry rations they carried were only enough for one day.

"Gumu Da, where exactly is this Wooden Sheep Tribe you mentioned?"

Looking at the vast grassland, Li Yi called over Gumu Da and asked in a low voice.

After seeking refuge with Li Yi, Gu Muda's injuries were treated, and his complexion improved significantly.

Gumu Da stood on a horse, gazing into the distance, muttering to himself.

A moment later, Gumu Da dismounted and came to Li Yi's side.

"My lord, the Wood Sheep tribe is located in a valley seven miles to the west!"

"This valley is quite warm and has plenty of fodder, making it the wintering grounds of the Wood Sheep tribe!"

Although Li Yi subdued Gu Muda using his archery skills and the fact that Old Zhang was an elder from his ancestors, Li Yi always required Gu Muda to address him as Captain and strictly forbade him from revealing anything about the Divine Bow Hall.

"Alright, pass down the order: rest on the spot, and then launch a surprise attack on the Muyang tribe after nightfall!"

With the skills of [Reconnaissance and Concealment] and [Hunting], even if Gumu Da dared to deceive him, Li Yi was confident in escaping the Xiongnu's encirclement and killing, finding traces of the Xiongnu tribe in the vast grasslands, and completing his plan.

At Li Yi's command, thousands of cavalrymen took out military rations from their horses to fill their stomachs, and cut grass from the valley to feed their warhorses.

To ensure operational mobility, Li Yi even requested all the best horses from Yanmen Pass, making each cavalryman a man with three horses!

Time ticked by, and Li Yi, leaning against his warhorse, slowly opened his eyes.

The wind and snow had long since stopped, and the night sky was clear, with a crescent moon shining on the earth.

Looking at the sky, Li Yi smiled.

"This weather is truly divine intervention!"

"Victory is assured!"

"The Xiongnu will surely submit to our blades!"

Li Yi mounted his horse and encouraged his soldiers.

Under the bright moonlight, the light cavalrymen were full of energy, their eyes filled with a desire for military merit!

After giving a pep talk, Li Yi picked up the wooden stick hanging around his neck and said sternly:

"Holding a gag in its mouth!"

"Wrapped hooves!"

In an instant, the hooves of thousands of warhorses were covered with cloth, and the cavalrymen were biting wooden sticks tightly in their mouths.

Led by Gumu Da, Li Yi and the others quietly headed towards the distant valley.

About half an hour later, the group arrived at the back of a hillside.

"My lord, look! That's the Wooden Sheep Tribe!"

Li Yi peered out from the hillside and saw nearly a thousand tents nestled in the valley a few hundred meters away. Occasionally, he could hear the shouts and drinking sounds of the Xiongnu people.

The Muyang tribe was a small tribe with three or four thousand people. Due to its low strength, it could only stay on the outskirts of the grasslands near Chen State, occupying a small valley to barely withstand the wind and snow.

It was precisely because they were weak that Li Yi chose them as his first target.

This battle is both a training exercise and a way to defeat the enemy!

After identifying his target, Li Yi mounted his horse and gripped the Ink-Cold Serpent Spear tightly in his hand:

"Gentlemen, follow me and kill!"

Snapped!

Li Yi kicked his warhorse hard, and the horse, in pain, spurred its hooves and charged toward the Muyang tribe, who were fast asleep.

Behind Li Yi, thousands of cavalrymen formed a black line, closely following Li Yi's steps, and charged out from the hillside!