Entering Suotuo City, Enemies on a Narrow Road!

At midnight, the highest ridge of the Border Mountains was finally beneath their feet.

Dai Mobai stood upon the ridge as the night wind whistled from the west, carrying snow particles that never melted on the high peaks, striking his face with cold, hard force.

He reached up to brush the frost from his shoulders and looked toward the east.

Under the moonlight, the land of the Heaven Dou Empire unfolded without obstruction, the flat expanse of the Lima Plain stretching to the very edge of the horizon.

On the horizon, a few sparse lights were faintly visible, like stars fallen from the sky, hanging lonely in the boundless darkness.

Over a hundred people crossed the Border Mountains in silence, appearing within the territory of the Heaven Dou Empire.

The path Yang Wudi had chosen was indeed well-hidden; this trail was tucked away on the leeward side of a cliff, flanked by jagged rocks and dense cedar trees, making it impossible to spot from the outside.

Although the descent was just as rugged, the slope was much gentler than the ascent, and their pace quickened significantly.

By the time the entire group set foot on the soil of the Heaven Dou Empire, the moon had only just begun to tilt westward.

At the foot of the mountain stood a Heaven Dou Empire outpost.

The outpost was small, a circle of rammed-earth walls enclosing a few barracks, with thatched roofs atop the walls and a flickering, half-dead oil lamp hanging from the watchtower.

The flame was blown askew by the night wind, casting the swaying shadow of the watchtower onto the ground.

Under normal circumstances, such a border outpost should have been manned around the clock, with at least two sentries rotating shifts on the tower.

But the Heaven Dou Empire guards never believed that anyone from the Star Luo Empire could cross the snow-covered, desolate Border Mountains.

In their eyes, that three-thousand-meter-high snow mountain was a natural city wall, more effective than any fortress.

Thus, when Dai Mobai and his party reached the perimeter of the outpost, the watchtower was completely empty, not even a shadow of a sentry in sight.

Faint, rhythmic snoring drifted from the barracks.

Someone was snoring, slow and steady, interspersed with a few garbled words of sleep-talk.

Dai Mobai turned his head to glance at Yang Wudi, whose young face remained calm under the moonlight.

He lowered his voice and spoke.

"To ensure they get a more restful sleep, let us not wake them."

Yang Wudi understood, raising his hand to make a clean, decisive gesture.

Several elites of the Breaking Clan slipped into the barracks like ghosts, their figures merging into the darkness, only to emerge again in silence a moment later.

Their movements were clean and restrained, not even causing the hinges of the doors to creak.

The snoring in the barracks ceased, replaced by a profound, absolute silence.

A heavy silence that would never be broken again.

Dai Mobai did not spare it another glance.

He arranged for a dozen clansmen to change into the guards' uniforms, clean up the traces in the barracks, and remain behind to take over the outpost.

These dozen men would hold this position to ensure their retreat would not be cut off, while also providing support for subsequent operations if necessary.

With everything arranged, Dai Mobai led the rest of the group on their way.

Their next target was the city standing in the night on the Lima Plain.

As the sky hovered between night and dawn, the first ray of morning light peeked from beneath the eastern horizon, like a golden sword cleaving through the night.

The light spilled across the boundless Lima Plain, illuminating the morning mist flowing slowly in the lowlands; the mist shimmered with a faint golden-pink hue in the dawn, making the entire plain look like a painting with wet ink.

Deep within the plain, the dark gray outline of a city was already faintly visible, the battlements on the city walls rimmed with a golden edge by the morning light.

That was the target of Dai Mobai's journey: Suotuo City.

As the sun rose, Dai Mobai instructed the elites of the Breaking Clan to enter the city in batches to avoid attracting unnecessary attention.

The eighty-plus men broke into smaller groups; some disguised themselves as merchants heading to the morning market, their mules and horses laden with bundles of cloth and medicinal herbs.

Others posed as traveling mercenaries, carrying weapons and chatting as they walked toward the city gate.

In twos and threes, they trickled in, blending into the morning market crowd of Suotuo City without drawing notice.

Dai Mobai himself, accompanied by Li Yue and Yang Wudi, walked through the main gate with an air of nonchalance.

Li Yue on the right and Yang Wudi on the left, the two flanked Dai Mobai, firmly guarding him in the center.

Li Yue was still dressed in her capable, tight-fitting attire, her expression cold and her gaze fixed forward, the soft sword at her waist serving as a belt that accentuated her slender figure.

Yang Wudi followed half a step behind Dai Mobai's left, his thin, gaunt frame standing perfectly straight.

He looked like an ordinary old man, yet the faint, sharp aura surrounding him could not be concealed.

As they entered the city, the guards at the gate took a few extra looks at them.

A young gentleman of extraordinary bearing, handsome yet dressed in understated clothing, possessing an indescribable air of nobility in every gesture.

A beautiful young woman as cold as frost, whose appearance would rank highly even in Suotuo City, yet whose gaze sent a chill down one's spine.

A gaunt, upright old man who looked at least sixty, yet whose eyes were as sharp as if they could pierce through a person.

This combination looked unusual no matter how one viewed it.

The guard hesitated for a moment, his mouth opening as if he intended to question them.

However, when Dai Mobai walked past him, he merely cast a faint glance his way, his gaze calm and composed.

For some reason, a sudden sense of submission welled up in the guard's heart. Had Dai Mobai not brushed past him directly, his knees, which had bent involuntarily, would have hit the ground the very next second.

As one of the only two major cities in the Balak Kingdom, Suotuo City was not as grand as Star Luo City, but it was far superior to Nuoding City.

The main street was wide enough for four carriages to travel side-by-side, paved with neat bluestone slabs that had been lightly sprinkled by early-morning water carts, shimmering with a damp luster under the sunlight.

Shops lined both sides of the street, their signboards packed tightly together. The wooden door panels had already been removed by the shop assistants, revealing the dazzling array of goods on the shelves inside.

Passersby walked to and fro, relaxed and at ease, chatting and laughing.

This city seemed completely unaffected by the silent standoff at the border; it remained bustling and prosperous, with businesses opening and vendors hawking their wares as usual, presenting the appearance of a peaceful and flourishing age.

Meanwhile, at the main gate of Suotuo City.

Ma Hongjun took the lead, walking at the very front. He stopped at the city gate and stretched his body in a long, exaggerated yawn.

The fat on his body quivered with the movement, and his chubby face was filled with irrepressible excitement.

Due to Yu Xiaogang's devilish training, he hadn't been able to go out and vent his urges for nearly half a month.

Fortunately, Yu Xiaogang had announced today that they would begin the second phase of their training in Suotuo City, which finally saved his body from reaching its breaking point.

"Finally, we're in the city! Staying in that village all day was driving me crazy. After holding it in for so long, I'm definitely going to properly vent my evil fire!"

He shouted as he charged through the city gate.