Ch. 29
Chapter 29: Into the Ten Directions Marsh
All at once, Chen Guan felt his whole body relax.
“Hyah!”
At the crack of Li Fei’s whip, the convoy set out once more, slowly driving deeper into the vast reaches of the Qingcang Mountains.
...
The wheels rumbled onward, crushing through the morning light.
On both sides of this ancient official road, towering old trees rose in layer upon layer like ghostly claws. Beneath their shadows, one could not see even five fingers before one’s face.
When the mountain wind blew now and then, the sound it made was like evil spirits laughing in whispers.
Just as Chen Guan had expected, the road ahead was unnervingly smooth. Until the sun slanted westward, the convoy did not encounter so much as a single low-tier demon or fiend blocking their way.
Yet this eerie peace did not relax anyone’s heart. If anything, the atmosphere within the convoy only grew more oppressive.
The fiends in these mountains were like chives growing in a field—cut one crop down and another sprang up. They were everywhere.
In the past, whenever one walked this escort road, no matter how good one’s luck was, one would still end up killing several hundred witless little demons and monsters along the way.
And yet after an entire day, let alone demons or fiends, even the usual noisy chorus of insects and birds at the roadside had vanished completely.
It was as though the whole mountain had died.
That could only mean one thing—
all around them, high-tier demonic fiends had been lurking in the shadows the entire time.
That terrifying aura had suppressed every living thing within ten li, leaving them all too frightened to stir or make the slightest sound.
It felt like a butcher’s blade hanging above one’s head, with no way of knowing when it might finally fall.
What awaited them next would inevitably be a bloody battle that would decide life or death.
The convoy had only just stopped in an open stretch of ground, intending to rest for a short while.
At last, unable to endure the anxiety in her heart any longer, Luo Li jumped down from the carriage and immediately went to find Chen Guan.
“Brother Chen, this can’t go on! We have to think of a way to break this deadlock before it’s too late!”
Chen Guan arched a brow in mild surprise.
This little girl was only sixteen, pampered since birth. Yet at such a critical moment, she could actually take the initiative to worry about something like this?
A slow smile curled onto his lips as he asked with genuine interest, “Oh? Then do you have any good ideas?”
“I...”
Luo Li faltered, then lifted her head and swept her clear eyes over the surroundings.
The sun had already gone down. The afterglow was red as blood, staining the western sky in a shocking tide of crimson.
In the distance stood one black mountain after another, towering and silent like crouching beasts.
As her gaze moved, her expression gradually steadied. Then she spoke directly.
“Brother Chen, we don’t have enough people. If we try to fight them head-on, we definitely won’t make it. So... should we think of some way to borrow another force?”
“Hmm???”
Chen Guan was genuinely surprised this time.
He had only teased her casually a moment ago. He truly had not expected this little girl to actually have an idea.
“All right, then tell me—out in this desolate wilderness, what force can we possibly borrow?”
Catching the faintly teasing look in his eyes, Luo Li pressed her lips together. It was as though she were sulking, yet also as though she were gathering her thoughts.
After a moment, she finally spoke.
“Brother Chen, you said before that pack-type demonic fiends always have an extremely strong territorial instinct.”
“So... should we find another pack-type demonic fiend strong enough to stand against these Grudge-Bearing Demon Apes, then lure it out—or perhaps simply circle into its territory instead?”
She paused, then continued,
“As the saying goes, one mountain cannot hold two tigers. The moment these two groups of fiends clash, they’ll become mortal enemies.”
“The enemy of my enemy is my friend. We may be able to reap the fisherman’s profit and escape in the chaos!”
Luo Tong and the others standing nearby also heard those words, and one after another, looks of astonishment appeared on their faces.
Was this really the sort of idea a sixteen-year-old girl, who had supposedly never stepped beyond the threshold, could come up with?
The thoroughness of her thinking was even more vicious than that of old hands like them!
As for Chen Guan, he slowly narrowed his eyes and looked deeply at the little girl standing before him.
How could a mountain girl know this sort of military stratagem?
That was right—this move of hers was a classic tactic from the art of war:
Driving the tiger to devour the wolf. Killing with a borrowed blade.
And more than that, the solution she had come up with was exactly the same as the one he himself had already worked out.
Use the tangled distribution of forces within the Qingcang Mountains themselves to strike with a borrowed blade!
This little girl’s identity is probably even less simple than I thought.
Chen Guan muttered inwardly, then frowned as he looked at her.
That probing look happened to be caught perfectly by Luo Li.
Her lips puffed slightly as she snorted in dissatisfaction. “Hey! Why are you looking at me like that? Don’t tell me my idea won’t work?”
“It’ll work. Why wouldn’t it?”
Luo Tong immediately stepped forward, stroking his beard as he nodded in approval. “Escort Master Chen, this old man also thinks the method is excellent. It’s a stratagem that carves out life from certain death.”
“It’ll do.”
Chen Guan nodded as well. Rarely, he even curled his lips into a faint smile and gave a judgment that was not especially cutting.
“Not bad. At least you do have a bit of brains. Those books of sages you’ve been reading weren’t entirely for nothing.”
At once, Luo Li proudly lifted her neck.
The words still carried that faint hint of mockery, but to her ears, they sounded far more like a rare acknowledgment.
After all, this fellow’s conduct all along the road had been so deep and inscrutable that it was impossible to see the bottom of him.
Whether it was that ruthless and decisive saber work, or that astonishing power of judgment, everything about him suggested that he was no ordinary person.
Now that she had earned his approval, it was naturally something worth being proud of.
Li Fei and the others also brightened immediately, and the hopeless atmosphere that had weighed on them at last seemed to admit a few threads of light.
“At least now we finally have a road to follow!”
No matter how dangerous that road might be, it was still better than sitting around waiting for death.
At the same time, however, the way they looked at Luo Li also acquired a trace of doubt.
As far as they knew, this little employer of theirs was nothing more than a farm girl born and raised in Sanhua Town, and in the ordinary course of things, she had not even had a proper teacher.
How could such a clever girl, one who even understood military stratagems, have been raised in such a poor and remote place?
Then again, there were always greater people beyond greater people, and heavens beyond heavens.
This world might be chaotic, but it certainly did not lack for the sort of genius born already knowing.
So they did not think too deeply about it.
Suddenly, as if remembering something, Luo Tong pointed westward and spoke.
“Six hundred li west of the Qingcang Mountains lies the famous Heifeng Ridge. A group of notorious Ironclad Demon Oxen has occupied that place for years. Their hides are thick, their tempers violent, and they are especially ferocious when protecting their young.”
“If we can lure the Grudge-Bearing Demon Apes over there, then there will certainly be a fine show to watch!”
As he said that, a gleam flashed through his eyes, and he continued,
“This old man has walked this escort road dozens of times before. I know of a hidden path that leads down the mountain directly from here and runs straight to that Heifeng Ridge.”
“So why don’t I take the lead right now, and we push forward at full speed?”
“No hurry.”
Chen Guan suddenly cut him off.
All eyes immediately fell upon him, every face full of confusion.
Should they not be taking advantage of the fact that the demon apes had not reacted yet and break through as quickly as possible?
The longer they lingered here, even for a single moment, the smaller their chances of survival would become.
But at this moment, Chen Guan was looking at the map visible to him alone.
With the Qingcang Mountains as the center, Heifeng Ridge lay to the west, just as Luo Tong had said. To the north lay the border of Great Zhou, which was their final destination on this journey.
Yet his gaze was fixed on the east.
There lay the forbidden land shrouded year-round in black mist—the Ten Directions Marsh!
After confirming once more the route he had already marked out in his mind, he finally explained,
“We’re not going to Heifeng Ridge. We’re heading east, straight into the Ten Directions Marsh!”
“What?!”
Everyone’s pupils shrank violently.
“Escort Master Chen... have you gone mad?!”