Frodo Autonomous Region, Fagong Gorge Pass.
A decisive battle was on the verge of breaking out. The Mountain Folk uprising, which had lasted nearly half a year, was now about to reach its end.
The Mountain Folk who sought independence and the Mountain Folk unwilling to join the rebellion, backed respectively by the Blazing Flame Lands and the Empire, were fighting a war with the flesh and lives of their people—a war in which, win or lose, both sides lost.
Behind Fagong Gorge Pass lay the Independent Mountain Folk Alliance command post.
Noisy voices rang out in chaotic confusion, as though they were arguing over something.
In theory, this should not have been happening.
Even though Kede Jiamu, the commander-in-chief, had suddenly departed because of the anomaly at the Steel Dragon Nest, there were many other tribal chiefs besides Kede Jiamu, including no shortage of respected figures capable of winning the trust of every tribe.
To say nothing else, Olei Ronggang, chief of the Ronggang Tribe, was one such figure.
As the chief of a major tribe second only to the Jiamu Tribe, and Kede's longtime deputy, Olei Ronggang had taken over command of the Independent Mountain Folk after Kede left.
Yet contrary to all expectations, this big Mountain Folk man, once known for his honesty, reliability, and reassuring steadiness, gave no command orders after Kede's departure, instead allowing the Independent Mountain Folk to act freely.
The Independent Mountain Folk coalition had originally been an alliance assembled from several large tribes and dozens of small and medium-sized tribes. Their movements had always been extremely loose. Only after gaining a Third Energy Level leader had they begun to obey orders with anything resembling discipline, developed habits of battle, and barely become a regional militia force.
But on the eve of the