Chapter 213 – Pioneering the South, Cutting Through the Chaos - Part 3
Eventually, Li Yuan steered the conversation back. “This trip is different from the others. I’m bringing you for actual combat. You’ve grown up. You’ll face battles sooner or later.”
He then explained his main goal, scouting and pioneering. He needed to see for himself whether the south would be a viable place to relocate.
The first step was to find a guide, though anyone they found wouldn’t be an obedient hired hand. Such people had their own plans and secrets; some might even harbor ill intentions.
“So you want me to go to that settlement and persuade them to cooperate?” Tang Nian asked.
Li Yuan nodded. “They’ve got a lot of demonic beasts penned up there. If we push them too far and they decide to release everything, maybe it won’t hurt us directly, but it could wreak havoc on the nearby settlements.”
Tang Nian propped a hand under her chin, then her eyes gleamed. “We poison them.”
“Do you actually have poison on you?” Li Yuan asked.
A slight blush spread across her cheeks. She raised her chin proudly. “I studied at the Orange Blossom Sect, remember? Of course I brought plenty of poisons.”
With a quick mental command, the puppet Tang Qiu opened his large iron chest, taking out rows of colorful vials and jars filled with all manner of poisons.
“When do I leave?” she asked with a yawn.
Li Yuan’s tone shifted. “There’s one sixth rank martial artist who’s a little weaker than your puppet. Then there are three at seventh rank, six at eighth rank, and a handful at ninth. Not a single ordinary person among them. They keep a lot of demonic beasts too—no sixth rank, but plenty of seventh, eighth, and ninth.
“They mostly use bows, arrows, and hunting knives. Their water source is a stream just southwest of the settlement, close enough that any disturbance would be heard. And remember, a sixth rank martial artist’s senses are extremely sharp. Plus, there’s a chance this isn’t their main base. Others may arrive to help.”