Great Wilderness.
Night fell, and the desert wind was bleak.
At this pass, scorching by day and bitterly cold at midnight, within the camp.
Yang Jishan, of the Yang Family from the Dao Soldier Bureau, was discussing military affairs by candlelight in his tent with his clansman brother, Yang Jiyong.
For nearly a hundred years, the Southern Wilderness had never been particularly stable.
A small number of clans had remained in constant revolt, their weapons never ceasing.
Within the great state boundaries of the Great Wilderness, the various Dragon Lord princes and nobles each held their own territories, crushing one another openly and scheming against one another in secret.
All along, the Dao Court had only been able to suppress them and maintain stability.
The Great Wilderness was also the place where the Dao Court had deployed troops most frequently over the past ten thousand years.
The Yang Family in particular—almost every generation of disciples had to undergo a trial in the Great Wilderness, fighting bloody battles against the rebellious Barbarian Tribe.
That night, Yang Jishan and Yang Jiyong were discussing military intelligence, speaking of the Barbarian Tribe's movements that day.
As they talked, Yang Jishan suddenly frowned, as though something weighed on his mind.
Yang Jiyong asked, "Big Brother, what is it?"
Yang Jishan pondered for a moment, then asked, "Did you see anything unusual in the sky during the day?"
"Something unusual?"
Yang Jishan nodded. "It seemed as though firelight streaked across the sky, turning the horizon red..."
Yang Jiyong shook his head. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary..."
Yang Jishan nodded lightly. "Perhaps I was overthinking it."
Perhaps the Heavenly Flame had been restless lately, and the frequent movements of the Barbarian Tribe had drained him too much, causing him to hallucinate.
Yang Jishan silently