Chapter 146: Transfer Transportation Tools

He Chunhua raised his national command medallion. "I am He Chunhua, Prefect of Qiansong County, Jinzhou, on my way to Xia Province to assume the post of Governor-General! I require your assistance here to repel the enemy. Otherwise, I will have no choice but to order this redwood forest felled to impede their advance!"

Shanze roared, "How dare you!"

Redwood trees grow slowly. The five trees these humans had previously cut down were all over a hundred years old, with one even exceeding two hundred. It had watched them grow as its younger kin.

"Why wouldn't I dare?" He Chunhua said without a trace of emotion. "If you harm me, you will forfeit your position as Shanze!"

Shanze fell silent.

To be frank, the position granted by the state was quite easy. Humans rarely sought its assistance, and the primal energy bestowed by its divine status as Shanze was immensely beneficial for its cultivation.

The primal energy had played an indispensable role in allowing it to grow five or six *zhang* taller than others of its kind.

Having savored the benefits of primal energy, it had no desire to lose them.

"Very well, but my power can only last for two hours at most," Shanze said slowly. "You'd best move quickly."

"Thank you!" He Chunhua bowed to Shanze, then turned and ordered the convoy to proceed.

Ahead lay a long downhill road, with the sunlight blocked by the mountain, leaving this entire side bathed in shadow.

A thick, milky-white mist emanated from the mountain forest, rapidly enveloping the path the soldiers had traversed.

As they traveled, the giant crocodiles performed another impressive feat: upon encountering a lagoon, instead of avoiding or bypassing it, they walked directly down the sandy embankment, crawled from the water onto the sand, then from the sand back into the water, resuming their swim.

Even the smallest crocodile here was over ten feet long, moving like a mobile fortress with an imposing presence, even when simply strolling along the shore.

Everyone gave them a thumbs-up, full of continuous praise.

A lagoon is a shallow body of water formed when a bay's mouth is sealed off by sediment. While ordinary boats would have to make a wide detour to find an alternative route when a lagoon blocked their path, the giant crocodiles could simply walk directly over the sand and mud, proceeding in a straight line.

This maneuver alone shortened their journey by at least ten *li*.

Their comrades on other boats, however, would have to take the long way around.

With the crocodiles moving steadily, He Lingchuan closed his eyes to rest, seizing the opportunity to recover his energy—they might face another fierce battle later.

Immediately after passing the lagoon, the forests on both banks became lush, their dense canopies almost completely obscuring the water's surface.

Liandeng's nose was caught by a spiderweb that flew into his face, causing him to sneeze violently.

As he was about to take a deep breath, a swallow, seemingly from nowhere, skimmed across the water and flew directly into his mouth!

"Ugh, ptui, ptui, ptui!" Liandeng spat repeatedly, expelling the bird.

He enjoyed eating meat, but not when it had legs, jumped directly into his mouth, and left feathers stuck to his teeth!

The ejected swallow tumbled twice on the crocodile's back but, surprisingly, did not fly away. Instead, it scurried to hide beneath the passengers. Given the limited space on the crocodile's back and the number of people, everyone had to huddle together.

Two more white birds, flying in opposite directions, collided mid-air in their frantic haste.

With a "splat," both tumbled into the water.

Wu Shaoyi frowned. "Something's not right," he murmured.

This area was a bird's paradise, with countless birds constantly moving along the waterway. Now, seemingly startled by something, they had suddenly retreated into the dense forest.

A few even landed on the crocodiles' backs, seeking refuge in the shadows beneath the humans.

They seemed more afraid of something else than of humans.

"The sky!" A thought struck He Lingchuan. He remembered the strange atmosphere when the support army entered Xianling Village yesterday evening. Birds returning to their nests should have filled the trees with chirping, but back then, it had been eerily silent, as if all birds were terrified of something.

Just like now.

Prompted by his words, everyone looked up. Soon, a bandit pointed, "To the west, near the peak of the mountain!"

They all turned their heads and, sure enough, spotted a lone figure streaking across the sky at lightning speed.

"A falcon!" Wu Shaoyi's expression shifted. "This is bad! It's one of Lu Yao's beast-birds! It will report back to its master; Lu Yao likely knows our movements."

Xianling Lake offered abundant prey, and many raptors passed through, but only a demon with considerable power could have terrified all the other birds to such an extent.

This was the typical reaction to encountering a powerful natural predator.

Liandeng pulled out his bow and arrow, aimed at the falcon, but after a few breaths, he sighed. "No, it's out of range."

Meanwhile, the falcon continued to climb higher, forcing everyone to strain their eyes just to keep it in sight.

Falcons possess superior eyesight to humans; it had clearly spotted someone below raising a bow and ascended to avoid danger.

At this moment, He Lingchuan recalled Hu Min from the Coiling Dragon Secret Realm.

That young man was an excellent archer. He wondered if he could have shot down this flying falcon.

He Lingchuan himself had hunted before and knew that falcons and harriers were agile and nimble raptors. Some could even fly faster than arrows, let alone dodge an arrowhead.

Especially this one in the sky, which possessed some power.

If he possessed good archery skills, crippling this falcon would be like blinding one of Lu Yao's eyes. He Lingchuan mused that he should prioritize his long-range attack training.

This reminded him of the unknown archer and the two arrows that had relentlessly pursued him when he first entered the Coiling Dragon Illusion.

He Lingchuan subconsciously touched his throat. If that archer were here, shooting down this falcon would likely be a trivial matter.

He felt inexplicably confident.

Everyone was grumbling and cursing.

He Lingchuan glanced sideways. "How does that fellow Lu have such good relationships with demons?" he muttered. "First the Crocodile Deity, now a falcon demon. In contrast, Wu Shaoyi only has a small sable."

No wonder the speckled chicks in the chicken coop he had visited in Xianling Village kept trembling; they had apparently encountered a natural predator.

It seemed demons played a prominent role on the battlefield; if used well, they could be a decisive weapon. He Lingchuan also wanted to acquire one for himself.

In an instant, the falcon vanished into the distance.

"It seems it's also traveling."

Wu Shaoyi's face darkened. "It's heading west too. It's either delivering a message to Pei Xinyong or sending word to Desheng Town. We're in trouble."

Their original plan was to raid Desheng Town for mounts to pursue Pei Xinyong and the imperial soldiers. If the bandits stationed in Desheng Town were alerted by the falcon, their own attack would be severely hampered.

Regardless, their opponent likely now commanded more than five hundred men.

Everyone exchanged glances, unable to devise a good plan immediately.

Just then, the Crocodile Deity suddenly spoke. "Are you going to Desheng Town to kill people or to seize horses?"

"Both... though seizing horses is the primary objective," He Lingchuan replied, patting its broad back. "Do you have any good ideas?"

"Not far ahead is an abandoned town," the Crocodile Deity said. "There might be horses there, but only a few. Two days ago, my offspring saw some horses roaming around there; they ate one, and the rest were startled and fled into the forest."

He Lingchuan and Wu Shaoyi exclaimed almost simultaneously, "That's enough!"

"Horses tend to return to familiar places even if they run off temporarily," Wu Shaoyi mused. "The plan has changed: Young Master He, you will ride the horses to pursue your own people, while I will take my subordinates on the crocodiles and continue to Desheng Town."

He Lingchuan paused, then instantly understood. Wu Shaoyi intended to hold back Lu's bandits in Desheng Town, preventing them from advancing east to reinforce their master. By holding five to seven hundred men with only two hundred soldiers, he could significantly alleviate pressure on the eastern front.

"Thank you!"

While a surprise attack was one strategy, a delaying action was another.

Wu Shaoyi was battle-hardened, so this posed no issue for him. He added, "Even if Lu Yao has discovered our movements, we still hold an advantage, provided our subsequent actions proceed smoothly."

The abandoned town mentioned by the Crocodile Deity was soon reached, lying only a hundred *zhang* from the shore.

He Lingchuan slipped a small paper packet into Wu Shaoyi's hand. "Inside is a Dragon-Tiger Golden Pill. If you take it, you'll be full of vitality for two *ke* (quarters of an hour), even more powerful than usual. But once its effect wears off, you'll be drained for at least three days, and your virility will be absent for two months. Considering your current physical condition, do not take it unless it's absolutely necessary."

Wu Shaoyi gave him a profound look. "Thank you. May you achieve swift success, Young Master He."

He casually summoned his purple sable and said to Liandeng, "You're a local, so guide Young Master He. My sable will accompany you; its presence might also help allay Pei Xinyong's suspicions."

Liandeng agreed, and the purple sable leaped onto his shoulder as he and He Lingchuan went ashore.

The giant crocodiles turned and continued to swim away.

The sandy slope there was very gentle, and in less than a hundred *zhang*, they reached the abandoned town.

The town appeared to have once housed over a hundred families, but it now stood empty, with grass growing on its rooftops. He Lingchuan noticed a mark on the doorpost of one house—could it be... a waterline?

It was unclear which year Xianling Lake had flooded, washing away the entire town.

The inhabitants, displaced by the disaster, had no choice but to abandon their small town.

He Lingchuan and Liandeng walked through the town towards the forest. They hadn't gone more than a few steps when they heard a snorting sound.

The Crocodile Deity had been right; there were indeed horses here!

He Lingchuan picked two handfuls of tender grass from the ground, then took out a wineskin from his storage ring and sprinkled some wine onto the grass. Addressing the shadowy figures in the woods, he called out, "Come here, my beauties!"

It was fruit wine, less pungent and more fragrant. Even Liandeng salivated at its scent, let alone the horses in the forest.

Having been raised by humans, they gradually emerged, drawn by the scent. Seeing that He Lingchuan and Liandeng meant no harm, they stretched their heads toward the fresh grass in his hand.

Compared to the military horses of the support army, these horses' coats weren't as sleek, nor were their legs as long. But He Lingchuan was in no position to be choosy.

He divided the grass, feeding the two tallest and strongest horses, then asked Liandeng, "Can you ride bareback?"

These horses had likely escaped during the flood. They had no saddles, not even bridle bits.

Liandeng grinned. "A piece of cake!"

He Lingchuan dared not give them more wine, fearing they might get weak legs. Instead, he fed them two apples and spoke a few gentle, soothing words. Once fully appeased, the horses became docile.

Everything proceeded with surprising smoothness.

Behind the town, the villagers had long ago carved out a mountain path, though it was now overgrown with vines and weeds. The two led their horses along the rough, stony track before finally mounting.

Pei Xinyong and Lu Yao rode side by side, their respective subordinates following behind.

They had already rendezvoused at Langming Cave and, from there, had taken a different fork in the road, preparing to pursue the imperial soldiers.

There were numerous forks on West Mountain Road. How did they determine the imperial soldiers had escaped this way? It was simple: the carriage tracks on the sandy ground were remarkably clear and continuous, indicating that several loaded carriages had passed through here not long ago.