Sand Bandits

The gale howled through the wooden windows. Nobody dared open them, but the light seeping through the cracks told He Lingchuan it was almost dark outside.

He lay on the bed with one leg crossed over the other, idly flipping He Chunhua's Kite Coin in his hand. "Dad, who first figured out how to use yuan force? Some say the gods taught it to people; others say the immortals passed it down."

When it wasn't activated, it looked like an ordinary coin. Who would have guessed that a little State Decree could carry the fortune of a nation and the will of its people?

Yuan force was truly mysterious.

"There's no consensus, and the historical record offers little help." He Chunhua frowned. "The origins of yuan force are extremely vague. After all, human history only goes back two or three thousand years, and nations have existed for barely a thousand. They say that in ancient times, gods and immortals roamed the mortal world, where there were no states or nations. It wasn't until a cataclysmic calamity that shook the world drove the immortals away and let demons run rampant that humanity had to band together to fight back. That was when nations came into being."

He took the Kite Coin back from his son. "It was the appearance of the State Decree that made it possible for human nations to stand against the Demon Race. Whether the gods taught us, the immortals taught us, or people figured it out themselves—what difference does it make?"

Cultivators were a tiny minority. Most people were born ordinary. How could they stand against demons that had grown powerful? At such a time, the yuan force born of united hearts and a common purpose became a weapon for nations to use against the Demon Race.

From holding their own against one another to turning the tables, yuan force had played no small part. Today, human nations outnumbered demon nations, and their territories were far larger than the demon realms.

"So no one knows where yuan force came from after all?" He Lingchuan sighed, then returned to the point. "Dad, why did you follow us into the desert?"

"Could I not?" He Chunhua half-reclined as well. After days of hard labor, he felt as though his whole body would fall apart the moment he relaxed. "If I refused, State Preceptor Sun could carry out the king's orders and execute me."

"Just because he has the king's orders, he thinks he can do whatever he wants?" He Lingchuan scoffed. "The royal decree also says we're to cooperate with the investigation, but didn't we drag our feet for ages? On the day we set out, you could've stalled things too, if you'd really wanted to."

Where there were policies, there were countermeasures. Wasn't that true in every world?

The boy had certainly become more perceptive than before. He Chunhua closed his eyes and rested for a while before speaking quietly. "With State Preceptor Sun here, our odds of returning alive aren't bad. Besides, I've always felt there was something fishy about this trip to Ancient Coiling Dragon City. If I didn't come along and see for myself, I feared something terribly ill-omened lay ahead."

He Lingchuan's heart skipped a beat. "What do you mean?"

"I can't explain it." He Chunhua shook his head. "It was just a sudden premonition. I thought about making excuses to stay behind, but my unease only grew. My instincts told me I should make this trip."

That sudden premonition was what people called a sixth sense.

People in this era took such things seriously, so He Lingchuan had nothing more to say. Still, he felt there was something odd about it.

Governor He was famous for being cautious and steady. Would he really put himself in danger over a mere feeling?

But if his father didn't tell him, how was he supposed to guess?

He Chunhua added, "Chuan, you've done very well on this trip."

"Oh?" His father was actually praising him? He Lingchuan perked up at once.

"Don't be too polite with Nian Songyu. Use your own methods to get him talking. He has the State Preceptor behind him, and you have me." He Chunhua lowered his voice. "But don't pick a fight with him, either. You can't beat him. You've judged that line well."

"Yes!" So his father did want his eldest son to play the bad cop while he played the good cop. His eldest son had blustered and blurted out everything that needed saying, then He Chunhua would step in and smooth things over.

His father could even make good use of his rough, shameless, don't-give-a-damn nature. He really was suited to returning to Yuan Capital and working the social scene.

He wouldn't be at a disadvantage in the officialdom anywhere.

The next morning, the party set out again.

They were still on Red Cliff Road, but fewer and fewer travelers came this way. At last, State Preceptor Sun's party encountered the second greatest scourge of the Coiling Dragon Desert:

Sand bandits.

They were human, some thirty-odd riders, mostly burly, tough-looking men who rode their horses as swiftly as the wind. He Lingchuan could tell at a glance that several of the muscle-bound men up front were martial artists. There might even be a spellcaster among them.

The two parties approached from opposite directions and came face-to-face. Both sides paused, taken aback, and sized each other up.

There was no need to say how their own party looked at the bandits. But to the bandits, this group was neatly outfitted, with light armor, long sabers, regulation weapons and gear, and warhorses anyone could recognize. What did that mean?

It was an army!

An army in the Coiling Dragon Desert could only be marching, suppressing bandits, or patrolling. What else could it be doing?

Civilians didn't fight the authorities. Besides, the army vastly outnumbered them, and the bandits were thoroughly taken aback.

Fortunately, the masked man at their head turned and spotted He Chunhua. His eyes lit up, and he urged his horse forward. "Governor He, we're just passing through!"

Before they'd robbed anyone, they were indeed just passing through. He Chunhua coughed, a little awkwardly. "We don't have time to suppress bandits today. Just don't go causing trouble... Are there any people due north?"

State Preceptor Sun and the others glanced at He Chunhua, then at the bandits. They understood.

The two sides clearly knew each other.

"No, not a feather in sight." The big man laughed and hurriedly said, "We'll be on our way. We won't get in the way of your business!"

The bandits were just about to make themselves scarce when Sun Fuping spoke up. "Hold on! You know the Coiling Dragon Desert well, don't you?"

"Uh, you could say that." The big man noticed he was half a horse ahead of He Chunhua, with an imposing air. He must be another big shot. Men like him were usually the bandits' favorite plump prey. They could rob him of his valuables, then hold him for ransom—a two-for-one deal with nothing wasted.

But with Governor He right there, they didn't dare make trouble.

"How long have you been here?"

"Ten—just a few years." Situ Han hurried to explain. "We've always known when to stop..."

"Then you're staying."

"Huh?"

Sun Fuping turned to He Chunhua. "We're short on manpower. Aren't these just what we need?"

He Chunhua wondered if two hundred soldiers weren't enough. But he nodded all the same. "True. It's not easy to recruit people in the city."

The State Preceptor smiled kindly, eyeing the bandits like a weasel eyeing a chicken. The sight made them uneasy, and they picked up speed, hoping to flee. Unexpectedly, He Chunhua raised the Kite Coin and coughed. "You're all staying! Blackwater City hereby formally enlists the Mang Mountain Bandits—thirty..."

He Lingchuan counted them from the side. "Thirty-two!"

"...Thirty-two men, assigned under Deputy Commandant Zeng Feixiong and placed at the army's disposal!"

He Chunhua even listed their pay and benefits.

The Mang Mountain bandits' eyes widened as they looked at one another. Their leader couldn't believe it and ventured a question. "W-we're soldiers now?"

This was too absurd, too much like child's play. The officials really knew how to have fun.

"That's right!"

"Then where is Governor He going?"

"To carry out the State Preceptor's orders." He Chunhua pointed to Sun Fuping. "Deep into the Coiling Dragon Ruins."

Seeing the soldiers closing in around them, the bandits went blank. "What?!"

After riding for more than ten miles, the bandit leader, Situ Han, still felt dizzy. He'd checked the almanac before setting out to rob people today. How had he somehow become part of the regular army halfway through?

He Lingchuan patted him on the shoulder sympathetically. "Hang in there. As long as you make it back to the city alive, you'll be drawing an imperial salary from now on."

Drawing an imperial salary was nowhere near as fun as being a mountain king. But the Blackwater City troops had surrounded his men on all sides, leaving them nowhere to run. Situ Han's smile looked more like a grimace, and his back felt icy cold. "Young Master He, are we really going into the Coiling Dragon Ruins? The Furious Sand Season is almost here. If we get trapped in there, we're dead men!"