Chapter 139: Dividing Forces and Advancing Provisions First

The Tobad tribesmen present had originally thought Jiang Pinchuan shook his head because they were not cultivators. After all, the soldiers here were all cultivators at the first layer of Qi Practicing realm, with some even faintly reaching the second layer.

Aside from their physical strength, the Tobad tribe had nothing else to show, and they felt it would be entirely reasonable if Jiang Pinchuan rejected them for this reason.

However, that was not what Jiang Pinchuan meant. Jiang Pinchuan wanted them to send the Tobad clansmen back to their tribe first and then return to the army.

He left a portion of the soldiers to escort the Tobad clansmen back to their tribe, after which those soldiers would hurry to the border to fight. The leader of the group was named Tobad Xiuwu.

Tobad Xiuwu led the detached soldiers to escort his clansmen slowly in the direction of the Tobad tribe. The journey from here to the Tobad tribe would take at least three months.

It was equivalent to traveling from this place back to the royal capital, then tracing back through three lines of defense to reach the Tobad tribe. Looking at Tobad Xiuwu's retreating figure, Jiang Pinchuan pulled the Asura Spear from the ground.

All the fallen Tobad clansmen were loaded onto horse-drawn carriages, ready to be laid to rest in a secluded place. Jiang Pinchuan mounted his Listen-Cloud Horse and rode toward the exit of the canyon. When he passed by Duolun, Jiang Pinchuan stopped.

"If they are willing to follow to the border, pick up the weapons on the ground and catch up. I will wait for you ten miles ahead."

Jiang Pinchuan looked at Duolun and spoke. With that, he spurred his Listen-Cloud Horse and rode forward. At this moment, Lord Gong also caught up, while Long Heng and Xiaha patted Duolun on the shoulder, mounted their respective warhorses, and led the soldiers after Jiang Pinchuan.

Behind them, the massive army of six hundred thousand, heavily guarding the grain and forage, slowly marched out of the canyon. Duolun and his soldiers stood to the side, watching the giant army gradually disappear around the bend of the canyon. Duolun let out a sigh of relief, looked at the ten thousand or so soldiers he had personally trained, shook his head, and sighed.

"You all are quite good."

Duolun shouted loudly to the ten thousand soldiers before him. The soldiers shuddered slightly and looked at Duolun, their eyes filled with confusion. Was this young man still their deputy general? Was he still that mad deputy general who had put them through all sorts of harsh difficulties purely to train them better?

"General Duolun, are we still your soldiers?"

A soldier raised his head, looked at Duolun standing before the crowd, and shouted aloud. Duolun swept his gaze across the tens of thousands of men. He thought of what Jiang Pinchuan had said: if these people were willing to follow him to the battlefield, then they would remain his soldiers, and he could continue to lead them.

"Everyone, you are soldiers trained by my own hands. Now you have also seen that I am a man of the imperial court. The Marquis of Yunshui harbors rebellious intentions, and I have slain his son, Feng Tong, right here. Three paths now lie before you."

Duolun kept a straight face as he looked at the soldiers. The soldiers all closed their mouths and quietly awaited the three paths Duolun spoke of.

"General Duolun, what are the three paths? Tell us."

A soldier shouted out. Duolun pressed his lips together, thought for a moment, and let out a breath.

"First, kill me and take my head to the Marquis of Yunshui to claim credit and enjoy a lifetime of wealth and glory. Second, lay down your armor and return to your hometowns to dutifully honor your parents and care for your families."

Having said this, Duolun looked at the tens of thousands of soldiers. There were still nearly fifty thousand troops remaining here, with casualties exceeding half—a testament to the formidable combat strength of the six hundred thousand troops under Jiang Pinchuan's command. When Duolun finished speaking, there was not a single murmur of discussion; everyone simply watched him quietly. Duolun gave a bitter, helpless sigh.

"Third, follow me and General Jiang Pinchuan to the border to defend our territory and fight against the Northwest Barbarian King. I will not force you. If anyone wants my head, come and take it; if anyone wants to return to civilian life, I will never stop them. But if you wish to stay, then march forward to the death and never look back."

Duolun straightened his posture and gazed at the soldiers. The soldiers remained silent, fixing their eyes upon him. Seeing them stand mute without a sound, Duolun let out a hearty laugh, suddenly drew his long saber, and his expression turned fiercely stern.

"March with me, and resist the Barbarian King!"

Duolun let out a thunderous roar and leaped onto his warhorse. The soldiers behind him immediately picked up their weapons from the ground, mounted their horses, and followed Duolun out of the canyon. Ten miles outside the canyon, Duolun caught up with Jiang Pinchuan's six hundred thousand troops. Seeing the more than forty thousand soldiers behind Duolun, Jiang Pinchuan smiled slightly.

"General Pinchuan, Duolun leads forty-six thousand troops to join you on this expedition," Duolun said earnestly, cupping his fists toward Jiang Pinchuan.

Jiang Pinchuan nodded and gestured for Duolun to come over. Duolun leaped down from his warhorse and walked toward Jiang Pinchuan.

Jiang Pinchuan called Lord Gong, Long Heng, and Xiaha together, spread out the topographic map of the Changfeng Continent, located their current position, and pointed to two paths on the map.

"This is where we currently are. Fifty miles further ahead is a fork in the road. Both paths lead to the border. We will split our forces and advance along two routes."

Jiang Pinchuan pointed to the fork on the map, and the others nodded as they looked at the spot his finger touched.

"What about the grain and forage? Which route will it travel on?" Lord Gong looked at the two paths beneath Jiang Pinchuan's finger. Since they were dividing their forces into two routes, they obviously could not split the provisions into two as well.

Splitting into two routes was meant to confuse the enemy, leaving them unable to determine which path held the grain, thereby forcing them into rash actions that would alert Jiang Pinchuan. However, the immediate problem they faced was deciding which route should carry the grain.

"What do you all think? I plan to have Xiaha, Long Heng, and Duolun take forty thousand troops along the lower route, while Lord Gong and I will take the remaining twenty-odd thousand soldiers along the upper route. Which route do you think the grain should be placed on?" Jiang Pinchuan asked softly, looking at the four men.

After thinking for a moment, Long Heng raised his hand to signal Jiang Pinchuan.

"I think it would be safer for General Pinchuan to personally escort it. A single general can hold off a thousand troops; even if some blind fools come to seize the provisions, General Pinchuan can deal with them swiftly without delaying the army's marching speed," Long Heng said very earnestly.

Beside him, Xiaha nodded in agreement, feeling that it was best for Jiang Pinchuan to escort the grain personally, given his peerless strength.

If anyone truly dared to make trouble over the grain, Jiang Pinchuan would likely dispatch them quickly and cleanly without any dragging of feet. Everyone knew Jiang Pinchuan's style of swift and decisive action; because of his formidable strength and readiness to execute, he could resolve troubles rapidly without slowing down the march.

"I agree with Hengheng's view," Xiaha said with a grin, looking at Long Heng.

Long Heng's body twitched, and he glared angrily at Xiaha. "Hengheng" was his childhood nickname, and no one had called him that for many years. Since Xiaha had grown up with him since childhood, hearing him suddenly use that name felt rather awkward.

"I think we should split the grain in half and escort them separately. That way, even if trouble arises, losses will be minimized," Lord Gong said after a moment of contemplation.

His worry was not without reason. Even though Jiang Pinchuan possessed dual-peak strength, an army of ants could still kill an elephant. In case the Barbarian King concentrated all his forces to attack Jiang Pinchuan, even he might not be able to guarantee the safety of all the provisions.

"I think the grain should be escorted by myself, Long Heng, and Xiaha," Duolun said, looking at Jiang Pinchuan.

Jiang Pinchuan smiled faintly, looking at Duolun to signal him to continue. Duolun nodded and stretched out a hand to point at the two routes on the map.

"If I were the Barbarian King, I would certainly assume that such a huge batch of provisions must be personally escorted by General Pinchuan himself. However, rumor has it that the Barbarian King is naturally suspicious. He is very likely to do the exact opposite and assume the grain is not in General Pinchuan's hands..."

"Are you talking nonsense? If the Barbarian King guesses that the grain is not in the General's hands, he will definitely dispatch heavy troops to intercept us on the lower route, and we'll be in deep trouble then!" Xiaha glared at Duolun and interrupted him without letting him finish.

Xiaha and Long Heng were just like this—they loved to cut people off and butt in mid-sentence.

"Let Duolun finish."

Jiang Pinchuan glared at the grinning Xiaha. Seeing Jiang Pinchuan's expression turn grim, Xiaha immediately straightened his face and nodded earnestly.

"Precisely because the Barbarian King is suspicious, even though he suspects the grain is on the lower route, he will still send heavy troops to guard the upper route, because he believes General Pinchuan's cautious nature would compel him to keep the provisions by his side for personal escort. At that time, we will make a forced march with the grain, allowing us to bypass the Barbarian King's ambush," Duolun explained, pointing to the two paths on the map.

"Duolun's thought aligns with mine. The three of you will take the grain and set off from the lower route, while Lord Gong and I will lead the troops from the upper route. Remember, no matter what happens, protect the grain with your lives."

As Jiang Pinchuan spoke, he withdrew his map. Long Heng and Xiaha exchanged glances and nodded. This matter was of paramount importance; successfully delivering the grain to the border might well determine the entire strategic situation of the border war.

If Jiang Pinchuan could reach the border and deliver the provisions, the morale of the border troops would soar tremendously, potentially reversing the entire war situation in the region.

"What if the Barbarian King doesn't go to the upper route, but heads to the lower route instead?" Lord Gong asked, looking at Jiang Pinchuan with worry.

They had formulated this plan based entirely on guesswork regarding the Barbarian King's movements, while in reality, they knew nothing of his actual plans. If the Barbarian King did not act as they anticipated, entrusting all the army's grain to Duolun and the other two carried enormous risks.

"There is no need to worry about that. Don't we still have an expert?" Jiang Pinchuan said, looking at Lord Gong.

Lord Gong was stunned for a moment, failing to understand Jiang Pinchuan's words immediately. Then, catching sight of Jiang Pinchuan's shoulder, he remembered that they still had Maoqiu.

Maoqiu's power was also at the peak realm. If the Barbarian King really went to the lower route to seize the grain, with Maoqiu around, nothing should go wrong with the provisions. After all, the Barbarian King himself wouldn't personally get involved in robbing grain.

After making the arrangements, Long Heng directly placed the grain convoy in the center of the forty thousand troops and slowly moved toward the lower route. Jiang Pinchuan, meanwhile, looked at the remaining twenty thousand elite soldiers.

After exchanging a few words with Lord Gong, Jiang Pinchuan leaped onto his warhorse and, alongside Lord Gong, led the twenty thousand troops toward the upper route. At this moment, Maoqiu was sitting on a boulder along the lower route, dozing off now and then, or lying flat on its back with all four paws in the air, sleeping soundly.

After tossing and turning to try out a few positions, Maoqiu decided that sleeping on its back with its fat belly exposed to the air was the most comfortable.

The news of Duolun executing Feng Tong quickly spread across the Changfeng Continent. The Marquis of Yunshui was furious, swearing to slice Duolun to pieces piece by piece. On the other side, upon learning the news that Jiang Pinchuan was rapidly approaching the border, people finally could not hold back any longer.

Seeing that someone was willing to make a move against Jiang Pinchuan again, others grew restless as well, quietly calculating their own interests and beginning to gradually re-align themselves in the shifting factions.

In their eyes, Jiang Pinchuan was a man of Lan Xiu; having a different allegiance meant risking one's life at any moment. Yet those who lingered in official circles were busily studying the political climate and choosing their sides anew.

Choosing the wrong side meant death.