This young master truly has the ambition of a hero.

Fortunately, it didn't snow those two days, and the wind wasn't strong, so when the liaison officer who was searching for the missing person arrived at the scene, the bloodstains on the ground were still clearly visible.

The search party was sent by a veteran, a former hunter. Based on the traces at the scene, he determined that someone had ambushed the liaison officer, but the bloodstains on the ground belonged to sled dogs, suggesting that the liaison officer might still be alive.

Upon receiving the news, Dick, who was working on the map to naturalize the next year's frontier area, was furious.

"You ambushed my men and dared to kill my dogs?!"

Based on the location of the ambush and the direction of the footprints found by the veteran nearby, Dick quickly identified the suspects, most likely the Vulture Gang, which was closest to the location.

This group of people used to be the most arrogant bandits in Lagug. The bandit leader, Infidel, was once a knight who was knighted. He killed the viscount's family in a fit of rage after his marriage proposal to the youngest daughter of the viscount's family was rejected. He then fled to the north and raised a bandit gang to become the king of the mountains.

Previous governors of Lagug had been unable to control this group and could only let them do as they pleased.

But Dick was no pushover. He immediately began devising a retaliatory operation, deciding to launch an attack on the Vultures gang ahead of schedule. Firstly, the liaison officer might still be alive, and they needed to find a way to rescue him. Secondly, although the operation would be more difficult, it would also be more unpredictable. Those bandits would never expect that Dick would lead his troops to attack their doorstep at this time.

Indeed, with the heavy snow blocking the mountain passes and snowdrifts exceeding two meters in thickness, travel is difficult, but difficult doesn't mean impossible. Furthermore, the ninja group had previously conducted reconnaissance, and the Vulture Gang was a key target. While Ghost Cry Peak is treacherous, it's far from invincible; they had already discovered several trails leading into the mountains.

Moreover, this time Dick did not launch a full-scale attack, but instead concentrated his elite forces to carry out a special operations surprise attack on the Vulture Gang with small units.

This was also the operational plan he prepared to use to deal with several "key bandit strongholds".

Those easy targets were left to junior officers to lead regular troops to fight, which both eliminated the bandits and trained the soldiers. For the difficult ones, he personally led the troops into battle to show these bumpkins the "skills" of earthlings!

Dick led a force of seventy men, fifty of whom were veteran private soldiers, all of whom had served for more than two and a half years and possessed certain martial skills. Among them, five of the deputies were ten-year veterans.

The "Royal Guard" consisted of Black and White Gunner, the Ninja Trio, Rita, Joel, and Lily, with Natasha as the accompanying medic, and a ten-person medic team still undergoing training.

Including Dick himself, that makes a total of seventy people!

A team of seventy men couldn't possibly fight head-on. Dick called on Lily from the spy group to make full use of her drug-making skills and directly poison the bandits in the lair.

This is the advantage of operating in winter. Mountain bandits are also human. They wouldn't want to stay outdoors in temperatures below minus twenty degrees Celsius. They would definitely stay in their easily defensible caves.

Fortunately, Dick had a diagram of the cave's interior, which gave him a clear understanding of the cave's layout. He knew which entrance to use for poisoning and which entrance to block the fleeing "rats."

Speaking of which, this cave structure diagram was provided by Ayane. This competitive female ninja ignored Dick's order to "observe but not approach" in order to show off, and relied on her superb ninjutsu to risk sneaking into the cave.

When he got back, he got a good scolding from Dick!

"You really think you're invincible, huh! You want to be a secret investigator, huh? Alerting the enemy is a minor matter. Before you impulsively rushed in, didn't you even consider your own safety? That's a den of bandits, a den of bandits hiding more than three hundred human-shaped beasts! If you fail and get caught, what will happen to you in their hands?"

She launched into a tirade, leaving Ayane feeling utterly wronged.

But Dick still commended her afterward, awarding her a second-class prize and a medal for the topographical map, and then "happily" gave her a week of confinement to reflect on her mistakes.

Dick warned her that, considering it was her first offense and that she had indeed done good deeds, this time the good deeds were good deeds and the bad deeds were bad deeds. Next time, it would be a deliberate offense. Forget about getting any good deeds back; the detention time would be doubled!

After that, Ayane became noticeably more obedient, and she no longer addressed Dick as "Master" so reluctantly.

Starting from the castle, the elite troops spent a day and a night successfully reaching the mountainside forest southwest of Ghost Cry Peak and lying in ambush.

The thick snow was both an obstacle to their progress and a cover. At this moment, Dick, who was 1.45 meters tall, was standing in at least two meters of snow. He had to use his telekinesis to squeeze a snow brick more than half a meter high so that he could barely stick half of his head out to observe in the dark.

The thought that as a half-elf, he would have three or four hundred years of service even without breaking through to the Saint rank, and could directly exceed a thousand upon breaking through, but his physical "adolescence" would last for more than half a century, filled him with a deep sense of helplessness. If it weren't for the "stud bloodline" of the Best family and a quarter succubus bloodline, he would most likely be "willing but unable" right now.

When the girls around him learned about Dick's troubles, most of them would offer comfort while secretly and mercilessly gloating.

This is exactly what I like, it's fantastic!

I secretly observed them through binoculars for a while. The Vulture Gang's hideout was very ostentatious. Taking advantage of the nearly 45-degree steep slope in front of Ghost Cry Peak, they had built an earthen fortress at the entrance. If they were to launch a frontal assault, even two or three thousand men might not be able to take it down.

However, according to Ayane's investigation, there are actually several exits in the cave. The main entrance is likely deliberately built to be so conspicuous to lure you in. The other entrances are very well hidden and each has sentries on duty 24 hours a day.

Dick glanced at the sky; there was still some time before nightfall. He planned to make his move after nightfall, so everyone was currently in their tents on the north slope, wrapped in sleeping bags, making the most of the time to rest.

Dick's operation plan was to have the ninja team infiltrate the bandits' lair with Lily's highly volatile, non-lethal poison gas and poison it. The raw materials for the poison gas were carefully separated and stored, and Lily would personally mix it when needed, otherwise the stuff would easily become ineffective.

The reason it was so complicated was mainly because Dick's requirements were high. He demanded that it be non-lethal and preferably not easily detected, because in addition to the vicious bandits, there might also be surviving liaisons and hostages kidnapped by the bandits in the thieves' den.

Moreover, poisoning all three hundred-plus bandits would be too lenient on them!

These people will be sentenced to life imprisonment as serious offenders, becoming slave laborers, with mines and farms becoming their final destination. To show them even the slightest pity is to disrespect innocent victims.

Time passed by, and the winter days were already short. Tonight was a perfect time of darkness and wind, just right for getting to work.

Before the operation began, all personnel were distributed with gas masks made by the Governor's Office's "Arsenal Department" and pre-administered gas immunity agents. Dick, always overly cautious, employed a double precaution.

Meanwhile, Lily was in her separate tent, finalizing the preparation of the incapacitating gas. The liquid was contained in a ceramic canister, and Lily had even made a suggested "detonator" inside the canister.

"Here's how to use it: First, lift the sealed cap to expose the atomizer nozzle. Second, pull the ring on the side; the dry powder container inside will open and mix with the liquid, creating a chemical reaction. Last step: Run! Because the can might explode."

"Is this poison gas an anesthetic?"

"No, it's a muscle relaxant. Those bandits won't faint, but they'll become spineless wrecks who can't even hold a fork. If someone happens to need to pee at that time... they'll most likely have to stay in Bengbu."

Lily smiled slyly and handed the nine jars to the ninja group who were preparing to infiltrate.

Based on the map inside the cave, Lily selected nine placement points. If activated in sequence, the poison gas could fill the entire cave within twenty minutes.

Some bandits will likely notice and try to escape, but elite troops will block each exit.

We'll make sure none of them escape!

After the operation began, the three ninjas, carrying jars, infiltrated the darkness first. The elite soldiers, meanwhile, made their final preparations before the battle. They then, led by their respective leaders, also approached the bandit's lair.

Dick's team went directly to the front of Ghost Cry Peak, accompanied by Rita and Joel.

At the edge of the woods, the group looked up at the earthen fortress atop the hillside. They could see flickering firelight and vaguely hear the bandits on night watch laughing and talking without restraint, seemingly unconcerned about potential enemy attacks. Only every so often would someone look up and glance down symbolically.

At this moment, Joel volunteered. With her speed, she could easily take advantage of the enemy's momentary lapse in attention and rush in to eliminate the bad guys. Dick thought for a moment and nodded in agreement to her request, but also arranged for Rita, who was equally skilled in surprise attacks, to accompany her.

Before taking action, Dick gave the two of them a full set of buffs.

Unlike the priest's shameless and cheesy magic of directly casting an "invincible shield," the mage's buff skills are relatively weak and targeted, so they are not so versatile.

It increases movement speed and allows you to travel faster.

They carried the clouds and lowered their footsteps.

Stone Skin enhances defensive capabilities.

It's used for heating, keeping warm, and even treating uterine coldness.

In short, Dick applied all the available buffs to both of them, and also pulled out a mace-shaped staff (a melee staff). He instructed them to send a signal immediately after they succeeded so he could lead his men to block the door.

As it turns out, Dick's worries were completely unnecessary!

The two rushed forward and within half a minute, they had dealt with the bandits on guard and signaled to Dick.

When Dick led his troops up the hillside and into the earthen fort, they were surprised to find only four bandits on guard, their laxity almost unbelievable. Perhaps they were so used to their fearless lives that they didn't expect an army to come into the mountains to suppress bandits in this freezing season.

At this moment, one of the soldiers saw that the four bandit sentries were roasting meat over their fire. Perhaps the aroma of the meat whetted his appetite, so he took out his knife and wanted to cut off a couple of pieces of meat to try.

But when he got closer, he realized that what was being roasted looked like a dog's leg, most likely from a sled dog that had been killed. He immediately lost his appetite and his anger level soared.

Many of the soldiers in the private army had served as liaison officers under Dick's arrangement, and thus learned to drive dog sleds. The young soldiers really liked those big, furry dogs.

According to previous searchers, they found signs of fighting at the scene of the attack. None of the eight sled dogs deserted; they all died protecting the potentially injured liaison officer.

These loyal sled dogs now hold a position in the hearts of private soldiers that is in no way inferior to their warhorses. Even in regular armies of feudal times, there were explicit regulations prohibiting the killing of warhorses unless absolutely necessary.

Therefore, when the private soldiers traveling with them discovered that these damned bandits had not only killed their dogs but also eaten their meat, they all channeled the spirit of "Jiang Weike," their eyes blazing with murderous intent.

"Your Excellency, are we really going to capture these beasts alive?"

"The low-level henchmen must live, but the gang leaders and all the big and small bosses must be killed without exception!"

Dick knew very well that those bandit leaders were quite influential, and if they were allowed to live and go to the labor camp, they might lead their former subordinates to escape. So it was better to kill them.

Firstly, it serves as a warning to others, and secondly, it helps to reassure the public.

Holding a mace and staff, Dick erected a breastwork over a meter high at the entrance to the earthen fort. Seven soldiers stood in the front row, using the breastwork as cover; four held spears, and three held short swords, positioned at intervals to provide mutual cover. Three soldiers in the back row, armed with crossbows, were responsible for shooting down the bandit leader and archers.

About ten minutes later, a hand suddenly reached out from around the corner of the passageway ahead, gesturing for friendly forces. Then they saw Hongye come out and run quickly toward them.

"My lord, all the gas canisters have been placed and activated. In five minutes, the entire cave will be filled."

"Thank you for your hard work, well done."

Not long after Hongye arrived, there was some commotion inside the cave.

Lily's concoction of poison gas was barely colorless, but not odorless; it had a slightly pungent, acidic smell. Dick, considering the bandit's hideout's hygiene, figured the smell probably wouldn't be much better, but that wasn't a major problem.

However, the bandits weren't stupid. Apart from those who were still sleeping, when someone vaguely smelled a scent they hadn't smelled before, and then immediately felt dizzy and weak in their limbs, the smarter ones would probably quickly realize they had been poisoned and try to run away.

So soon, several disheveled bandits stumbled out of the passageway, only to be dumbfounded when they saw an earthen wall erected at the main gate, with regular soldiers guarding behind it.

One of them, whether out of sheer recklessness or a lack of common sense, shouted "Charge!" with a lisp. The other bandits, following their long-established tendency to blindly follow, charged towards the private army soldiers who were waiting in battle, only to be all taken down.

The spearmen in the front row originally intended to stab these bastards to the core, but Dick ordered them to use knocking instead, and then drag the one who gave the order over, wanting to interrogate him alive.

Dick didn't have anyone give the bandit who was dragged over an antidote. Instead, he woke him up with a basin of cold water. After all, the poison gas only relaxed muscles, not numbed them. Keeping him in this state wouldn't affect Dick's questioning.

Seeing the bewildered bandit who had been woken up by the splash, Dick slammed his mace between the bandit's legs with a loud thud, very close to the base of his penis, and then revealed a grin like an eel.

"I'm asking you something, you won't refuse, will you?"

Chapter 032: Let's get more practical.

Dick naturally wouldn't give a friendly look to a group of ruthless bandits. So, although he was smiling, there was no smile in his eyes. Combined with his handsome face, this gave his expression an indescribable sense of terror.

Dick didn't even bother asking the man's name; he went straight to the point, asking how many bandits were in the cave, whether they had kidnapped any hostages, and where the liaison officer from a few days ago was.

After asking the question, Dick added a comment.

"Depending on your performance, I might give you a way out."

Using a mere straw as a lifeline, the bandit before him was utterly unreserved in his knowledge. And since he himself happened to be one of the bandit leader Infidel's trusted confidants, he knew more than the average henchman.

The Vulture Gang has slightly more members than previously estimated, totaling over 330. Moreover, their leader, Infidel, plans to "expand" this year by recruiting more young and strong men from the villages they control, aiming to grow the gang to over 500.

Because their leader heard from "friends in the city" that the new governor was not an easy person to deal with. He brought three hundred private soldiers with him, incorporated some of David's original men, and then recruited more soldiers to expand his army to five hundred. He also held a martial arts competition and recruited a group of skilled civilians.

Therefore, Fidel judged that the new governor would most likely launch a campaign to suppress bandits after the spring of the following year. Many young, ambitious, and self-important noblemen liked to suppress bandits as soon as they took office, in order to show off their bravery in front of their subjects. He was not surprised by this.

At first, Fidel didn't care. He was the most powerful bandit in the area, with over three hundred men, and he guarded the strategically important and easily defensible Ghost Cry Peak. If that inexperienced young governor had any brains, he wouldn't have bothered him. Otherwise, Fidel would have made sure all five hundred of his private soldiers died on the steep slope in front of the earthen fortress on Ghost Cry Peak, letting them know who the uncrowned king of Laguge was.

However, some subsequent news made Infidel slightly less dismissive of the new governor.

First of all, this person did not embezzle or deduct military pay, and even raised the food standards for his private army. However, he also raised the training requirements. Even in such a cold winter, the soldiers of his private army had to get up on time to go to the drill ground for training, to the point that wind and snow could not stop them.

Moreover, it is said that because the soldiers were paid well and the food was of high quality, the governor would give extra rewards or even promotion opportunities to those who excelled in daily training. As a result, the soldiers not only did not complain, but trained with great enthusiasm. The physical condition and mental state of these soldiers were worlds apart from the dozens of beggar soldiers under David's command who were starving and cold!

Upon learning of this, Infidel realized that this young governor was not just a good-for-nothing who could only talk big.

At least in terms of training troops, he is indeed quite capable, and his attitude is serious.

But even at this point, Infidel still felt that there was no major problem and that the advantage was in his hands!

The Vulture Gang is the top bandit group in Lagug, and Infidel even proclaimed himself "Baron". He used force and intimidation to bring several villages near Ghost Cry Peak under his control. Even if the previous governors knew about this, they didn't dare to say a word.

Therefore, Fidel decided to expand the army and engage in an arms race with the governor!

If the governor has five hundred private soldiers, then I will also have five hundred bandits. In fact, with five hundred bandits, their sphere of influence can be further expanded. Once the governor begins to suppress the bandits, he will take the opportunity to extend olive branches to those small and medium-sized bandit gangs, recruiting them into his own ranks and striving to gain an advantage in military strength over the governor's private army.

In fact, this was what Fidel thought and did. He sent messages to several bandit villages under his control, firstly to warn them not to cooperate with the governor, and secondly to inform them in advance of his plan to expand the bandit force.

The local young people have lived a hard life since childhood. No one thinks that they can get rich by farming. Because of their lack of knowledge, they regard joining a gang of thieves as a "very good way out".

However, the henchman who went out to deliver the message soon brought back some bad news for the boss.

Stone Creek Village, the furthest from them and the one with the weakest control, seems to have sided with the governor because a patient with cold-related illness was brought to the castle and cured by a liaison sent by the governor.

Upon learning of this, Fidel was surprised that the coldness syndrome could actually be cured, but he felt that something was amiss, so he made what he thought was a clever decision.

Ambush this liaison officer, capture him, torture him severely, extract some intelligence about the governor's side, then kill him and send his body to Stone Creek Village to intimidate those unruly villagers.

This is the cause and effect of the ambush on the liaison officer. Fortunately, the liaison officer is still alive. Infidel tortured him for two days and two nights, but the man gritted his teeth and wouldn't say a word. Forced by this, Infidel had no choice but to order his men to temporarily stop and instead use a method of starvation, cutting off his food and water for a period of time before attacking again.

While admiring the man's toughness, the bandit leader also felt increasingly worried.

If the governor's soldiers are mostly these fearless and ruthless men, then even if he expands his force to five hundred men and takes advantage of the terrain, it will still be unstable.

But now things are fine; Infidel doesn't have to worry about the future anymore.

His self-righteous behavior thoroughly angered Dick. He had been thinking about the climate issue and wanted to wait until closer to spring to take action, but he brought it upon himself, and Dick came knocking on his door four days after the incident.

Upon learning that the liaison officer was still alive, everyone present breathed a sigh of relief.