Xuanqing Guard

Chapter 360: Chapter 360: The Truth

February 19th.

It had been a full month since they entered the territory of the Southern Barbarians.

Tan Bin and "Fifth Brother" parted ways with "Fourth Brother" some thirty li from Wu Lake, then, following Old Rat’s directions, wandered and hid around Wu Lake for a few days. Only after confirming that the Barbarians were no longer on their trail did they set out again, heading southeast to continue their reconnaissance.

It wasn’t until they crossed White Head Gorge that Tan Bin realized how wise it was for the higher-ups to dispatch them here to scout the Barbarians.

Those who’d never been to this land would have no idea that the devastated, desolate Land of Suffering of the Southern Barbarians would look like this. To say it was surprising was an understatement—the truth was enough to shatter all preconceptions.

Could you imagine lush fields, vibrant seedlings sprouting with vitality, appearing in the Land of Suffering of the Southern Barbarians?

Could you imagine clusters of villages laid out, peaceful scenes with curling smoke from chimneys, appearing in the Land of Suffering of the Southern Barbarians?

There were even markets! Even if the currency was crude, just stone-carved coins, there was already small-scale circulation of goods! This meant the Barbarians here had basically left famine behind and had begun to pursue higher material needs.

For the Jingjiu Dynasty, this was by no means good news.

They dared not travel by day, only moving onward deep into the night, cautiously following the woods.

Whenever they encountered a village, they used the Scout Ball to observe from afar. So far, both Tan Bin and "Fifth Brother" were convinced that the intelligence they extracted from the three Red-eyed Wolf Race cavalrymen was quite inaccurate. Especially the bit about "over five hundred thousand gathered"—that was way off. Judging from what Tan Bin and his group had seen, there were clearly far more Barbarians than that.

Because after crossing White Head Gorge, at about sixty li ahead, Tan Bin and the others discovered a military camp stretching more than fifteen li, with over ten villages scattered orderly around it. Just that military camp alone likely housed no less than a hundred thousand men.

And this drastic change was just past White Head Gorge—so what would things be like closer to Sangbi Hill?

With a sense of urgency, the three of them picked up their pace.

Thankfully, the Thousand-Mile Sound in Tan Bin’s chest finally reacted. It was a message: the higher-ups had already sent people to lie in wait near Xiaochuan, to shorten the distance for direct contact with their deep-in-Barbarian-Land unit. Tan Bin was told to send back any updates at once, to stay alert, to withdraw at any sign of trouble, and to avoid any reckless moves.

Now that he had reestablished contact, Tan Bin grew even bolder. They weren’t afraid of dying, only of gathering intelligence and being unable to report it. Now that concern was dealt with, they decided to try approaching Sangbi Hill.

"Sirs, I’ll call you grandfathers now! Can’t we just not go any further? It’s too dangerous! If we keep moving forward, we’re all dead men!" Old Rat was nearly losing his mind. He once made his living hunting Barbarians, saw them as walking money, and grinned whenever he caught sight of one. He didn’t even consider Barbarians "people"—he called them "sheep."

But now? They were surrounded by Barbarians! And that huge military camp, with rows of weapons and armor, the murderous intent was palpable even from a distance. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t scared. If they were ever caught by the Barbarians... their fate would be miserable beyond words, death would be a mercy.

Terrified, Old Rat realized the other two were still planning to go deeper in—and to Sangbi Hill at that, which was nearly a thousand li further!

Was this not a death wish?

"Two choices: either you go with us, or we kill you now. That way at least you don’t end up tortured by the Barbarians. Out of our acquaintance, we’ll give you a quick end. Well?" Tan Bin replied without even turning his head. He took a fresh water bottle from "Fifth Brother" and slipped it into the Storage Bag. It was the first time in two days they’d found a drinkable mountain spring, so they filled up as much as they could.

"We really can’t go any further. You’ve seen enough of the Barbarians’ situation, right? They’ve recovered, nothing like what the Dynasty calls the ’Land of Suffering.’ You should have more than enough to report, shouldn’t you?"

By now, Old Rat was certain that these two were officials of the Jingjiu Dynasty—he just didn’t know which Government Office they belonged to.

Tan Bin didn’t answer. He wouldn’t tolerate Old Rat’s uproar; he simply drew his short blade.

"Don’t! I’ll shut up! I won’t say another word, okay? Ah..." Old Rat felt utterly drained.

As night fell, Tan Bin rode out in front, with "Fifth Brother" behind him. Old Rat was no longer tied up and was even given a horse to ride, but he had no chance to escape—Fifth Brother rode behind him, short crossbow ever pointing at his back, ready to shoot if he made a move.

Perhaps the heavens took pity on Old Rat, for that night, they hadn’t ridden far before being forced to stop and immediately search for a place to hide.

On a slope, their horses were muzzled and tied in the distance; Tan Bin, "Fifth Brother", and Old Rat lay flat on the ground. About three li away, a "dragon" of torchlight meandered from afar, winding in from a great distance, heading northwest by the look of it.

"What are they doing?"

Old Rat had no Scout Ball and could only squint into the distance. But three li was a long way off, and with night so deep, he could just barely make out a lot of movement, but nothing certain.

Tan Bin and "Fifth Brother" wore grim expressions, silent for a long while.

After some time, Tan Bin spoke: "Looks like things are changing again."

"Mm! Judging by the banners, it’s a mixed-force army, at least fifty thousand strong—and they’re on a forced march. But there isn’t much baggage at the rear, so unless they’re marching to battle, they must be going somewhere to garrison."

This was Southern Barbarian territory. Apart from a few slaver caravans, there was no place here that would require such a massive army. So "marching to battle" was unlikely. They must be heading to garrison elsewhere.

"They’re heading north. Could it be the military camp we passed earlier?"

Tan Bin shook his head. "Unlikely. That camp was obviously built as a fortification—solid walls all around, clearly fully garrisoned. And the surrounding villages had already been neatly arranged. There’s no way they’d suddenly add an army this large. It doesn’t make sense.

They must be heading somewhere else."

Large-scale military movements like this were rare, and even Tan Bin, after passing White Head Gorge, had sensed something "off" about the Barbarians. He made a snap decision.

"Forget Sangbi Hill for now. We follow this army, see where they’re going."

Tan Bin had decided, and "Fifth Brother" would obey without question. But Old Rat was left troubled and at a loss. Not going to Sangbi Hill—now they were to shadow an army? That sounded even more suicidal!

That night, Tan Bin used the Thousand-Mile Sound to send the latest update back to Xiaochuan for relay to Fengri City.