Speed Is of the Essence

After the troops left through the south gate, they headed southeast. Half an hour later, they reached the foot of the mountain.

A vast range of mountains stretched endlessly before them. The view was bleak and boundless, with no end in sight.

Lu Chuan had heard the mountain's name on the way there: Cangtu Mountain. It spanned several thousand li in every direction, and its depths teemed with poisonous insects and fierce beasts, making it a natural barrier for Chaoge City.

After reaching the foot of the mountain, Huang Feihu raised his hand, and the army came to a halt.

"Everyone, we've reached Cangtu Mountain. I'll assign the tasks now. The three thousand Flying Tiger Soldiers will split up into groups of ten, making exactly three hundred teams."

Huang Feihu spoke in a clear, ringing voice. "Each team will be led into the mountain by a local who knows the terrain. Search for traces of that beast.

"For safety's sake, no two teams may be more than ten zhang apart. I'll hold the center, with two generals supporting the flanks.

"If anyone spots the beast, signal the others immediately. Everyone else will converge on the location. Report any leads to me and the two generals..."

Hearing the plan, Lu Chuan felt conflicted.

Very conflicted!

They expected someone who didn't know the way to lead the troops?

Was this a joke?

He'd joined the group because he couldn't find his way. Who could have guessed he'd end up leading the way...

Lu Chuan watched with a complicated expression as Zhou Ji assigned the civilians to the ten-man Flying Tiger Army teams, one by one, until it was his turn.

"Not bad, kid. You've got guts!"

Seeing Lu Chuan again, Zhou Ji remarked, then turned to a tall, burly man with a full beard and said with a laugh, "Wu Qiu, this kid's joining your squad."

"Yes, sir!"

The big man replied, then looked at Lu Chuan and cupped his fists. "We'll be counting on you, young brother."

Lu Chuan remained composed. He walked over and returned the salute, his expression unchanged. "Of course!"

"Huh. Is this kid really not afraid of dying?"

Zhou Ji watched the calm, collected Lu Chuan, then turned to the other civilians, whose faces were taut with nerves. He rubbed his chin, looking puzzled.

The contrast between them only made Lu Chuan's composure and courage seem all the more impressive.

Men in the military tended to be frank and bold. They often faced armies by the thousand and braved blades and flames, which nurtured a heroic spirit. Naturally, they admired courage above all.

But Zhou Ji had no idea that Lu Chuan's confidence came from the Five Elements Escape Technique.

Even if he couldn't win, he could still run. If he could get away, what was there to fear?

At that thought, Lu Chuan relaxed. That calm state of mind was crucial; it would greatly help him in his coming fight with the beast.

Only when unafraid could one stay calm, and only when calm could one perform to one's full potential—or even surpass it. On the other hand, being too nervous meant fear had taken hold.

Fear your enemy, and you've already lost half the battle before it even begins.

"Come on, relax. Look at that young fellow over there. He's so much younger than you, yet he's calm as can be, and a lot braver than you are."

Zhou Ji walked over to the civilians who were still waiting. "Just look at yourselves. Don't worry—even if the beast shows up, our Flying Tiger Army will be the first to face it. You just take the chance to run."

Everyone looked over and saw the young fellow, much younger than they were, standing there utterly calm. Ashamed, they blushed as they were assigned to their teams.

Once the teams were assembled, they spread out in both directions along the foot of the mountain, with ten zhang between each pair.

In the end, they formed a shape like a flock of geese in a V.

At the front, in the middle of the formation, was Huang Feihu. He sat astride the Five-Colored Divine Ox, holding a long spear as he guarded the center, ready to rush to either side if anything happened.

Zhou Ji held a great axe, while Long Huan carried an iron halberd. Both rode horses at the two farthest points of the V. If anything happened, they would quickly close in from the flanks.

This was one of the formations they used in battle.

Once everything was ready, Huang Feihu gave the order, and the troops began their grand advance up the mountain.

Seeing a squad not far away on either side, Lu Chuan silently breathed a sigh of relief.

At least the teams weren't far apart. He could simply keep moving with them and wouldn't have to worry about the guide and the people being led getting lost together.

At first, the path was fairly easy to walk. But the farther they went into the mountains, the rougher it became. The woods grew dense, and vegetation tangled across the trail.

Fortunately, these were ordinary folk, not pampered nobles. They often made their living in the mountains and were used to this kind of terrain, so their pace didn't slow by much.

A little over an hour later, everyone stopped to rest. The civilians were simply exhausted. Even if they were used to mountain trails, after three hours of walking they needed a break, especially in such hot weather.

But there were too many poisonous insects in the mountains, so no one dared remove their clothes. By the time they had made it this far, they were all drenched in sweat and panting, as if they'd been boiled in it.

As for Huang Feihu, he had the Five-Colored Divine Ox and didn't need to walk. But he had to stay alert every moment, watching in all directions and listening for the slightest rustle of wind.

After keeping that up for so long, he was tired too. He ordered everyone to stop, rest, drink water, and eat their dry rations.

The Flying Tiger Army had brought water and dry rations. Lu Chuan also happened to notice that more than a hundred horses were carrying tents and other camping supplies.

"I thought we'd be back in a day, but it looks like it won't be that easy. Even Huang Feihu has prepared for a drawn-out battle..."

Lu Chuan rested with his back against a tree and looked up at the sky. Here in the forest, dense, flourishing treetops and branches blocked most of the sky.

He had no idea whether the area they'd searched in three and a half hours amounted to even one hundredth of this vast mountain range.

After all, searching a mountain stretching thousands of li in every direction for a single beast was no easier than fishing a needle out of a well. Saying it was like finding a needle in the sea would be exaggerating and talking big.

At that moment, Lu Chuan couldn't help admiring Huang Feihu. His method of breaking the army into smaller groups was remarkably wise, though there was no word for it yet.

Certainly, concentrating their forces to look for a beast in these vast mountains would be safer and more secure.

But it would be terribly inefficient.

If they searched such a huge mountain with the entire army, combing through it bit by bit, they'd never finish.

Besides, the beast they were hunting was alive. It could run, jump, and walk. Did they expect it to stay in one spot and obediently wait for the army to catch it?

As if.

If it were that stupid, the army would have caught it the first few times. They wouldn't be back again now, with even Huang Feihu himself joining the hunt.

By Lu Chuan's reckoning, the beast had at least awakened its spiritual intelligence, just as he had. It knew how to avoid danger and protect itself.

If things were worse than that, the beast might even be cleverer than everyone there. Then they'd be in an awkward spot.

That was unlikely, but not impossible.

So, there was only one key to finding the beast in these vast mountains: speed!

Speed was of the essence. Everything had to be done quickly.

They had to search the entire mountain in the shortest possible time. Even if they didn't encounter the beast, they could still drive it out of Cangtu Mountain.

Once it was out of the mountains and no longer had the terrain to hide in, it would be much easier to deal with.

Huang Feihu's plan to break the troops into smaller groups was countless times more efficient than searching together.

Even so, searching a mountain this vast would take at least half a month, and possibly several months. That was why Huang Feihu had even prepared tents.

"Here, young brother. Have some water!"

As Lu Chuan pondered, the man called Wu Qiu handed him a gourd.

Besides their weapons and armor, each of the three thousand Flying Tiger Soldiers had a water gourd hanging from his waist. Once they'd finished drinking, they could refill it at a mountain spring or stream along the way.

After walking for so long, Lu Chuan was thirsty too. He took it, thanked him, and drank a few swallows.