The one who pushed open the door was the adjutant. He was carrying a brocade box and bowed. "General, Lord Dugu Bo sent something over. He said it was the Ice Marrow Grass you requested, and he also asked when you would be able to refine the medicine."
Chen Chu took the brocade box and opened it. Inside lay a crystal-clear blade of grass, radiating a biting chill. "Tell Old Poison to come collect it himself before I set out tomorrow."
"Yes." The adjutant acknowledged, then hesitated before adding, "News just came from the Capital Garrison. Thirty thousand Imperial Guards have finished assembling: fifteen thousand New Army troops and fifteen thousand elite soldiers. They are waiting outside the camp for your inspection."
"Understood." Chen Chu tossed the Ice Marrow Grass into the pill furnace, and the flames surged higher with a whoosh. "Go keep watch at the camp first and inspect everything on my behalf. Also, make sure the New Army checks the supply wagons several more times. We depart promptly at dawn tomorrow. Anyone who delays the march will be dealt with according to military law."
The adjutant accepted the order and withdrew, leaving only the crackling of the coals in the room. Chen Chu watched the medicinal vapors churn within the pill furnace as he slowly poured Soul Power into it. Refining pills in the Douluo Continent was simple enough, but Dugu Yan's Martial Soul flaw was congenital. The chill of the Ice Marrow Grass had to neutralize the fiery nature of the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum. There could not be the slightest mistake in this process.
"Forget it." After watching for a while, Chen Chu still felt he was being too stingy. He took out several Dragon Ganoderma Leaves and tossed them in as well. "Dugu Yan is my student, after all. I'll give her a chance at transforming her Martial Soul."
The Dragon Ganoderma Leaf strengthened one's foundation and replenished vitality. Combined with its abundant Dragon Qi and the impact of the other Immortal Herbs, it might give Dugu Yan a sliver of a chance at Martial Soul Evolution.
The night passed without incident.
Early the next morning, Xue Qinghe only received word that Chen Chu was about to lead troops into battle when Chen Chu appeared at the Capital Garrison.
"That old bastard is actually this wary of me." Xue Qinghe stared at the secret report in his hand, fury boiling within him. Once he had vented his anger, he turned to Pufferfish beside him. "Do not make another move for now. Reduce the dosage of Xue Ye's medicine as well. He already suspects me. We'll wait for this period to pass."
Faced with Xue Ye's warning, Xue Qinghe had no choice but to scale back his plans for the time being. He did not yet have absolute confidence, and he had not even finished replacing the Imperial Guard. Nothing could go wrong at this point.
Pufferfish Douluo bowed. "Rest assured, Your Highness. I understand.
"But if Chen Chu achieves military merit during this trip to Barak, I'm afraid he will become even harder for us to control after returning to the capital."
Xue Qinghe lightly tapped the table, his expression darkening. "He wants to earn merit? Hmph, it won't be so easy. I have already sent word to Star Luo and given them the route. The Heaven Dou reinforcements number only thirty thousand, and half of them are New Army troops. Tell them to send Death Warrior squads and strike without restraint.
"Old Marshal Ge Long may be capable in battle, but if the supplies are lost, the front lines will inevitably descend into chaos. Even if Chen Chu survives, this General of the Town Army will have to bear the charge of dereliction of duty. When he returns, let's see whether Xue Ye still dares to let him retain power!"
"Your Highness is wise." Pufferfish Douluo lowered his head in agreement, a cold glint flashing through his eyes.
Xue Qinghe suddenly rose and walked to the window, looking toward the camp. "Send Snake Lance as well. If Star Luo's people fail, have him kill Chen Chu personally."
Chen Chu had opposed him time and time again, constantly making trouble for him. Xue Qinghe had long run out of patience. If Chen Chu died this time, the blame could conveniently be pinned on the Star Luo Empire.
Pufferfish Douluo stiffened and looked up at Xue Qinghe. "Your Highness, would it not be too conspicuous for Snake Lance Douluo to act personally? Chen Chu may not have a Titled Douluo by his side, but the Capital Garrison has quite a few elites. If any traces are left behind..."
"Traces?" Xue Qinghe sneered, his fingertips gliding across the windowsill. "Have him wear Star Luo clothing, then clean up the bodies afterward. Who could trace it back to me?
"Besides, once Chen Chu dies, the thirty thousand soldiers will be leaderless. If Star Luo takes the supplies while they have the chance, Xue Ye will only assume the Star Luo Imperial Family dealt the fatal blow. He will merely direct his anger at Star Luo. Why would he suspect me?"
"I understand." Pufferfish Douluo bowed. "I will notify Snake Lance at once."
"Wait." Xue Qinghe stopped him. "Tell him not to act too early. Wait until Chen Chu has passed through Barak Canyon. The terrain there is complicated and makes it easy to conceal one's tracks."
"Yes."
After Pufferfish Douluo withdrew, Xue Qinghe walked to his desk and picked up the secret report. With a slight squeeze, he crushed it to pieces. Looking out the window, his gaze turned sinister. "Chen Chu, your luck is bad. You brought this upon yourself, so don't blame me for being ruthless."
Capital Garrison, parade ground.
Thirty thousand Imperial Guards stood in formation, their armor gleaming in the light. Wearing a suit of battle robes, Chen Chu strode onto the command platform and swept his gaze over the ranks. "By His Majesty's decree, we march to reinforce Barak, protect the supplies, and guard the grain route.
"We raise soldiers for a thousand days to use them in a single battle. On the battlefield, any New Army soldier who dares to retreat will be dealt with under military law.
"Any elite soldier who dares to slack off will receive the same punishment!"
The soldiers below answered in unison, their voices shaking the heavens.
Chen Chu nodded and looked at the deputy general. "Muster the troops. Move out."
Resounding horn blasts rose. The supply wagons rolled in the center, the New Army marched at the front, and the elites guarded the rear as the army slowly set off.
Chen Chu rode a tall horse in the middle of the column and beckoned the adjutant over. "Pass word to the vanguard. Once we pass Barak Canyon, have the scouts keep probing the road ahead."
"Yes." The adjutant nodded and rode off.
Chen Chu urged his horse forward and reached a nearby hillside ahead of the others. Watching the army march out of the garrison, his heroic spirit surged skyward.
With merely thirty thousand armored soldiers, the sight was already so grand. He truly could not imagine how magnificent an army of a million men would be.
He could feel Sagros's excitement, and it stirred a faint excitement within him as well.
"Let me see what the ancient battlefields of the Douluo Continent are truly like."
A young man left Heaven Dou with sword in hand, riding into the wind toward the battlefield.
Dugu Mansion.
Dugu Bo looked at the pale yellow pill in the jade box in his hand, his heart full of hesitation. "He... probably would not harm Yan'er. She is his student, after all. I traded that treasured place for this..."
Seeing her grandfather standing there in a daze, Dugu Yan could not help calling out, "Grandpa, what are you doing? Didn't you say it was something urgent? Hurry up and tell me."
Snapped out of his thoughts by his granddaughter's call, Dugu Bo came back to himself. "Yan Yan, come. Take this pill. Once you take it, your illness will be cured."
Dugu Yan took the jade box and looked at the pill inside. She did not ask any questions. She had taken no small amount of medicine over the years.
She raised her head and swallowed it. The pill entered her stomach, and a warm current rushed through her meridians. Before long, the Soul Power in her lower abdomen suddenly churned, and her back began to faintly grow hot.
"Grandpa..." Dugu Yan instinctively reached back to touch her back. The phantom of her Jade Phosphorous Serpent Martial Soul emerged beyond her control. Its originally pale purple scales now glimmered with a thin layer of golden light, while the serpent's eyes possessed a sharpness they had never held before.
Dugu Bo hurried forward and pressed a hand to her shoulder, sending his Soul Power inside to examine her. The moment he did, his heart shook violently and his pupils constricted. The pill's medicinal power was wrapping around the Dragon Qi from the Dragon Ganoderma Leaf and drilling into her Martial Soul. The originally incomplete flaw in her Martial Soul was being repaired bit by bit. A faint thread of Dragon Might even coiled around the serpent shadow, exerting pressure on his own Serpent Emperor Martial Soul.
"Don't resist. Quickly guide the medicinal power." Dugu Bo's voice trembled. In all his years, he had never seen a Martial Soul flaw repaired so thoroughly, much less one infused with Dragon Qi and brought to evolution.
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