At the hour of chen, Yang Zhuo assembled the team. Everyone was dressed neatly, holding their horses with their right hand and placing their equipment bags on the horses.
General Cao Zhan was also there to bid them farewell.
Yan Ge, Huangfu Yuchen, Yan Jin, Gao Feng, and Gao Yun appeared next. Like the special forces, they were now dressed in camouflage uniforms.
As Yang Zhuo and the others were about to pay their respects, Huangfu Yuchen raised his hand to stop them. “No need for formalities. From today onwards, address me as ‘Boss,’ and Yan Guiqing as ‘Young Master.’”
“Yes!”
Huangfu Yuchen continued, “Everyone, do one final check of your equipment.”
“Yes!”
They all opened their equipment bags to inspect the contents. Because this mission might take some time, they each brought two sets of camouflage clothing. In addition to that, the bags contained dry rations—compressed biscuits. These were new products from the First Company, currently only supplied to the military and with a shelf life of two months. Two months was sufficient, and improvements could be made in the future. They also had canteens filled with water, made of iron with a special rust-resistant coating on the surface. The canteen mouth was threaded, ensuring it wouldn’t leak when tightened, and the lid was not easily dislodged. Moreover, the canteen was sturdy enough to be heated directly over a fire. The medical kit contained basic items such as disinfectant, gauze, small scissors, a sewing kit, and even salt. Additionally, Yan Ge provided detox pills, waterproof clothing suitable for jungle operations, tents, and other essential items.
After confirming everything was in order, Huangfu Yuchen and Yan Ge playfully put on their disguises, but in truth, they used their transformation skills to change their appearances. Masks were uncomfortable and both disliked wearing them for too long.
“Mount your horses.”
The team officially set off, heading towards the Mai Kingdom.
Three days later, they arrived at the gathering point for representatives from other countries—Maeden, Wei, Mai, Youji, Mini, and other kingdoms . As mentioned in the royal letter, each kingdom sent a thousand elite soldiers, dressed in various uniforms, totaling nearly twenty thousand people, forming a vast expanse of human heads.
“The army of the Great Han Kingdom has arrived.” General Yilihan of the Mai Kingdom saw the flags of the Great Han Kingdom’s army and rode out to meet them.
The leaders of the other kingdoms also joined him.
“I am General Yilihan, the leader of the Mai Kingdom’s one-thousand-strong elite troops. Welcome to Mai Kingdom.”
Yang Zhuo, as the official leader, nodded in response. “Thank you, General Yilihan. I am Yang Zhuo, the leader of the team from the Great Han Kingdom.”
“General Yang, you are polite,” Yilihan glanced behind Yang Zhuo and paused, “Most of the other teams from various kingdoms have arrived. When will the rest of your team arrive?”
Yang Zhuo replied, “We only have 105 people. It may seem laughable, but our kingdom has been extremely busy lately, and after careful selection, we could only muster over a hundred elite soldiers. However, General Yilihan, please don’t underestimate our team. These hundred-plus individuals are all among the best in our military. Though our numbers are small, we will compete with all our might against everyone else!”
Yilihan’s first impression was that the Great Han Kingdom was taking this mission lightly, but Yang Zhuo’s last sentence dispelled that feeling. They had reached this point, and he could only accept the reality. He could not exclude the people of the Great Han Kingdom from this mission.
“Very well, then we shall wait and see. Haha… Let me introduce you. This is Bai Shaobai, the leader of the soldiers from the Wei Kingdom, and this is Fick, the leader of Mini Kingdom…”
Bai Shaobai, they had met during the New Dynasty Ceremony.
After the introductions, Yilihan continued, “Everyone, we will set off now and hopefully arrive at tonight’s campsite before dark.”
This was the Mai Kingdom, and Yilihan was familiar with the route. The others had no objections and mounted their horses, hurrying along the way.
Ten thousand men galloped across the grassland, creating a spectacular scene.
That night, the large group camped on the outskirts of a small town. Everyone replenished their supplies consumed during the journey, buying extra provisions to ensure they would have enough at the Demon Fortress. They also bought food from the town for their dinner, enough to feed an entire county.
The people from Great Han Kingdom were used to eating rice, so they paid a high price to buy some rice and cooked several large pots of rice. Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen would not treat themselves badly and had brought plenty of seasonings, making the dishes fragrant. The other special forces soldiers happily joined in.
Both Wei Kingdom and Mai Kingdom invited them to join the Demon Fortress exploration for their own hidden motives, so they wouldn’t harm them before reaching the destination. Therefore, the Great Han’s team slept soundly that night.
Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen had separate tents, but due to limited space in their backpacks, they had no blankets, let alone quilts, so they slept on the ground. Yan Ge wasn’t used to it and kept tossing and turning.
Huangfu Yuchen eventually hugged him to his chest, letting him lie on top and kissing his face and hands. Both his palms gently caressed Yan Ge’s back.
Yan Ge’s body gradually warmed up, and he unconsciously snuggled closer.
Both were tempted, but they knew it wasn’t the right time.
Yan Ge stopped Huangfu Yuchen’s advances, found his lips, gave him a gentle kiss, and slipped his tongue into his mouth. In an instant, it was firmly held, and their tongues intertwined passionately.
They kissed silently for a while before relieving a bit of their longing.
“Sleep well, baby. Sweet dreams,” Huangfu Yuchen’s hoarse voice was particularly evident in the darkness.
Yan Ge kissed his face again but couldn’t tell where it landed precisely. Then he adjusted to a comfortable position, held Huangfu Yuchen’s waist and soon fell asleep.
The next morning, at the crack of dawn, everyone woke up one by one, had breakfast, and continued their journey.
After three more days of travel, the group stopped.
Yilihan asked the representatives from each kingdom to come forward.
“Everyone, we are about to approach the Lash Desert. It will take us two days to cross it. This is the last place we can replenish water, so make sure to fill your containers in time. Otherwise, it will be difficult to make it through the desert.”
The message was passed down, and they bought water tanks carried by camels in the towns and villages. Everyone filled their canteens and water bags before continuing. About an hour later, they could already see what seemed like an endless desert.
Gao Yun glanced at Yan Ge with a hint of worry, “Boss, young master…”
Yan Ge reassured, “Don’t worry, I have been taking care of Little Jin’s physique. He will be fine.”
Yan Jin smiled in cooperation and said to Gao Yun, “Thank you, Uncle Yun, for your concern. I’m doing well!”
Seeing Yan Jin’s rosy complexion and no signs of fatigue, coupled with the abilities of His Majesty and Yan Guiqing, Gao Yun’s worries eased.
Even before entering the desert, they could feel the dryness in the air and the scorching sun. Once inside the desert, the sensation intensified, and soon, almost everyone started sweating.
Perhaps the only fortunate thing was that the team from the Mai Kingdom had a guide, so they didn’t have to worry about getting lost in the desert. Regarding this guide, everyone witnessed how Yilihan had to spend one hundred taels of gold just to get him to agree to lead the way. It was evident that the Demon Fortress held great terror in this guide’s heart.
In the Great Han team, Yang Zhuo and Wei Hao took turns leading, while Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen followed closely behind them, ready to issue commands at any time.
Because their team stayed at the rear of the main force, following in the footsteps of others, they didn’t need to worry too much about poisonous insects or monsters in the desert. Those creatures either attacked the people in front or were trampled or frightened away by the horses ahead, so there was no need for excessive concern.
However, just to be cautious, Huangfu Yuchen called Yang Zhuo over and said, “Spread the word and have everyone remain vigilant, guarding against any monsters or poisonous insects.”
“Yes!”
Yan Ge, Huangfu Yuchen, and Yan Jin were the most relaxed among them. Yan Jin, in particular, seemed carefree. In the eyes of outsiders, he was just a child of eight or nine years old, and he didn’t need to worry about anything. He curiously looked around while in Yan Ge’s embrace and fell asleep when he felt tired.
Yilihan wasn’t a fool; he wouldn’t let his kingdom’s team lead the way all the time. The teams took turns leading every hour. Whichever kingdom’s team was at the forefront was responsible for protecting the guide.
The guide handed over one hundred taels of gold to his family before departure, appearing quite indifferent at the moment. It seemed he had already come to terms with the situation. Even if he died on the way to the Demon Fortress, his family would have one hundred taels of gold to live comfortably.
Soon, it was the Great Han team’s turn to lead. Yang Zhuo ordered a few soldiers to lead the way, while Wei Hao and others rode forward, discreetly protecting Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen in the middle.
Their team consisted of only a little over a hundred people, which made the soldiers from the Mai Kingdom and Wei kingdom following behind them feel quite uneasy.
To them, if there were monsters in the desert, these one hundred people wouldn’t be enough to fend them off. Yilihan and Bai Shaobai felt like their mission had already failed before it even began. However, at this point, they had no choice but to go on.
Yan Ge quickly noticed that their soldiers were drinking water more frequently than others. He furrowed his brows and reminded them, “Everyone, be mindful and try to conserve water.” Their military water flasks could only hold about 2 liters of water at most, but they had to travel in the desert for two days. At this rate, the water wouldn’t last. Before entering the desert, they rented camels in the village, and the camels carried several water tanks, but those were for emergencies and couldn’t be used lightly.
“Yes!”
In fact, it’s not surprising that their soldiers were drinking water more frequently than others. The Great Han had little desert terrain, and these soldiers have never stayed in a desert area before; they were not accustomed to it and couldn’t resist the urge to drink water when they felt their throats were dry.
Not only the soldiers from the Great Han but also the soldiers from other kingdoms were facing the same situation.
The soldiers from the Mai kingdom were either deliberately taunting them or were genuinely accustomed to the desert environment; they all appeared quite relaxed.
Yan Ge couldn’t help but complain silently, ‘Were they also constructed like camels?’
At this moment, the front hooves of a horse for one of the solders suddenly sank a few inches into the sand. The horse was startled, and it neighed and arched its body. The special forces soldier reacted quickly. He tightly clamped the horse’s belly, and held the reins firmly, pulling the horse back.
“What’s going on?” Yang Zhuo asked cautiously.
The special forces soldier was a bit dismissive, “Report to the General, it’s nothing. The horse’s hoof sank.”
The guide was a bit nervous, “Be careful; it might have stepped on some ant or insect nest.”
As soon as he finished speaking, Yan Ge noticed a black, centipede-like creature with a crab-like shell emerging from the collapsed area where the horse had stepped. There were at least twenty to thirty of them— they had poked an unknown insect’s nest!
“Be careful!”
The creatures crawled very fast, and the group couldn’t react in time. One of them had already climbed up a horse’s leg and must have bitten it. The horse suddenly reared up, let out a mournful cry, and collapsed to the ground, motionless.
The toxicity was so strong!
“Move away!” Yang Zhuo’s face changed drastically.
At the same time, Wei Hao reprimanded the stunned special forces soldier, “Why are you still standing there? Run!”
The special forces soldier finally reacted, leaped off the horse, and rolled on the ground. While rolling, he drew his weapon and fiercely chopped at the sand. His knife skills were precise, and he cut one of the black creatures in half with a single blow, making it motionless.
The special forces soldiers had undergone rigorous training after all, so they quickly calmed down. The nearest few quickly lifted their knives and began to attack.
However, the creatures crawled fast and as soon as they sensed an attack, they burrowed into the sand and reemerged from another location moments later. The special soldiers couldn’t deal with them for a while, and the horses were also panicking due to their frequent changes in commands.
“Not good!” Yang Zhuo saw that the situation was not good and shouted, “Protect the young master and the Boss! Charge through!”
The special forces soldiers immediately gave up confronting the creatures head-on and protected Yan Ge and Huangfu Yuchen along with them, urging their horses to dash forward.
Wei Hao picked up the special forces soldier who had lost his horse and shared a horse with him.
“There are poisonous insects ahead; good luck, everyone!” Yang Zhuo warned the other teams at the back out of conscience, shouting as he ran away.
The troops from the Mai kingdom were closest and noticed something was amiss. They quickly avoided the creatures and spurred their horses to gallop away.
