A man of principle

The enormous red eye sent a shiver through them. Their expressions grew complicated as their minds raced, each turning over their own thoughts.

"Knight Commander, has something happened to the water supply?" The knight standing behind them naturally sensed their unease and could not help asking.

Aikimu released his grip. With nothing holding it up, the bucket plunged down, the well rope hissing as it unspooled, and vanished into the deep well. At last, a cold echo rose from below, striking their ears like frost.

His voice was perfectly calm. "Nothing. Just a routine inspection of the water supply."

"Oh, and the Knight Commander has ordered this well temporarily sealed. No one is to approach it."

The knight froze for a moment before stammering, "Seal it? But we have plenty of wounded in camp. Sand City is already out in the Gobi, and the sun is scorching today. If the men go more than two hours without water, their mouths will dry out, then they'll start getting dizzy. What will we do if the enemy attacks then? And the cooks need plenty of water for the meals, too."

"Of course I know that. Don't worry. The well won't be sealed for long-tomorrow noon at the latest. I guarantee you'll all have water to drink. Besides, this is part of the Knight Commander's plan. Understand?" Aikimu spoke softly, as though sharing a momentous secret that no one else could be allowed to hear.

At those words, the doubt in the knight's eyes vanished immediately. His eyes shone as he shouted, "Yes!" and withdrew. Together with several others, he brought over a massive stone slab and covered the well under Aikimu's watch.

Aikimu also told them that this matter was strictly confidential. No one else could be allowed to learn of it, and anyone who leaked it would face military punishment.

Realizing that leaking the secret could cost them their heads, their faces immediately took on the same complicated expressions Zeng Mu and his two companions had worn earlier. They appeared calm and composed, but their throats trembled as they agreed. All the while, they wondered what exactly the Knight Commander was planning.

Leaving the puzzled men to their thoughts, the four headed for the cooks' area. Fortunately, they arrived in time: the buckets containing Red Night Ants had not yet been poured into the cooking pots. Aikimu offered a few more bewildering explanations, fobbed off the cooks, and retrieved the buckets. By the time they carried the water back to camp, Yetos had already been waiting in the stone house for quite a while.

"Whew, my arms are aching. We should've asked those cooks to help carry these over." Kanni set down the buckets in his hands and rubbed his shoulders.

"Don't be stupid. That would've been too conspicuous. We'd have drawn attention." Zeng Mu gently set down four buckets.

Empty-handed, Ma Linya looked at Yetos and asked, "Knight Commander, how is the well in the Southern District?"

Yetos walked over and lifted a wooden lid to inspect the bucket, his brow twitching slightly. "The same. It's full of Red Night Ants. It's been temporarily sealed."

Green light flickered in his eyes. He plunged his hand into the bucket and stirred it rapidly like a wooden rod, making the water whirl with a soft hiss.

With a sharp slap, his hand broke the surface. A red mass wriggled faintly in his palm-more than a hundred Red Night Ants.

Whoosh! Green light flashed again, enveloping his hand. The red mass began to sizzle, then vanished into green smoke within a few blinks. Yetos dusted off his hands as though he had just disposed of a whole crate of poison.

"Chief." William and Xibizete entered through the doorway.

Yetos acknowledged them and asked, "How are things looking?"

"We've checked both logistics and supplies. The drinkable water we currently have will last half a day. If we ration it a little and include the water held by visiting merchants in Sand City, we can hold out until tomorrow evening."

"As you instructed, I've requested emergency supplies from the nearest capital. But even riding at full speed, the messenger needs half a day to get there. Allowing for the journey both ways, the water won't arrive until noon the day after tomorrow at the earliest. That means we'll be without water tomorrow night and the following morning. Morale will plummet, the troops will panic, and our combat strength will drop drastically. If the enemy attacks after that, we won't even be able to withdraw safely."

"Chief, what do we do now? Retreat?" Aikimu asked with a soft sigh, knowing that was their best option at present.

Zeng Mu immediately thought of the moat and asked why they could not use its water.

To his surprise, they all looked at him as though he were an idiot. Had he not been Nameless, they would probably have taken him for a spy.

Only after Ma Linya explained did Zeng Mu learn that the moats of Military Capitals contained stagnant water. To stop enemies from swimming beneath the surface at night and infiltrating the city, the water was laced with lethal poison. Never mind drinking it-merely dipping a finger into it would cause the skin to rot within seconds.

After hearing this, Zeng Mu sighed softly. "Damn it. Those bastards really aren't easy to deal with."

The room fell silent for a few seconds. Yetos shook his head. "Why panic? The water problem is actually easy to solve."

"Tell me, where does that underground tributary beneath Sand City extend?"

William pursed his lips and tilted his head. "That underground river is a subterranean tributary of the Gesihui River. Its source lies fifty li northwest of Sand City, and it runs southeast. In that direction, if I remember correctly, it should be..."

"Hm? Creek Valley, where the Viking Legion is camped?" Xibizete's brows twitched.

Yetos nodded. "Exactly. Those fellows have no idea that the valley they're camped in is fed by the underground river beneath Sand City, which most people don't even know exists. Idiveer must be very pleased with himself for finding such an excellent campsite."

An idea struck Kanni. "You mean we can fetch water from upstream of Creek Valley?"

"Exactly." Yetos turned toward a wall draped in black cloth. He pulled it away, revealing a map.

The map was fairly crude, its rough outlines drawn in charcoal as a series of circles. Yetos had clearly sketched it to show the current military situation.

At the center of the map's left side was a circle labeled "Sand City." His finger traced southeast from it and stopped to the left of another circle, labeled "Creek Valley."

"Twenty li from Creek Valley is Hidden Lake, right on the edge of the Withered Forest. It's well concealed, so most people don't notice it. That little lake was formed by a spring rising from the underground river. It's freshwater. It might not look particularly clean, but it's perfectly drinkable once boiled."

Despite hearing this, Xibizete looked far from happy. He was the first to shatter their hopeful visions. "Chief, don't forget how much water we need. Going by these wooden buckets at our feet, we'd need at least a hundred to get the legion safely through these two dangerous days."

More problems followed. Catching on, William continued the analysis. "Right. Saddlebags can't hold water, so our warhorses are no use. If we rely on manpower, we'll need at least two hundred men taking turns carrying those hundred buckets back from so far away. But that would draw far too much attention. Don't forget how many enemy lookouts are stationed around Sand City, and we suspect they have spies inside, too. Once those two hundred men leave, they won't come back. Not only would we lose troops, we'd also reveal that our water supply has been cut off. At that point, both enemy forces might join together and attack us with everything they have."

Aikimu bit his finger. "But we can't just sit here and wait to die. Even if the enemy doesn't come today or tomorrow, they're bound to arrive before the water supplies reach us the day after. But how much water can we bring back without exposing ourselves...?"

Silence settled over the room again. Bitterness gradually crept into Zeng Mu's thoughtful expression. Kanni and Ma Linya looked much the same. None of them could think of a way out.

"I've already decided who will leave the city to fetch the water..."

William and the others listened intently. Yetos pointed and said, "Those three."

"The three of us?" Zeng Mu asked, looking at the finger pointing toward them in mild confusion.

"Knight Commander, the three of us could manage sneaking around the enemy camp to gather intelligence. But bringing back enough drinking water for the entire legion? Surely you're joking?" Kanni made no attempt to hide his doubts.

Ma Linya did not echo their objections. She understood that, since he dared make such a proposal, he must have some clever method in mind. Realizing this in an instant, she promptly asked, "Please explain, Knight Commander."

Yetos smiled faintly, his eyes conveying a thought: This girl really is quick-witted.

He took a wooden box from inside his clothes and gently opened the lid, revealing a small, smooth, emerald-colored bead.

Sensing the aura emanating from it, Zeng Mu immediately exclaimed, "A Wood Elemental Artifact?"

"Exactly." Yetos's eyes likewise showed undisguised admiration and wonder as he explained, "This bead is a First-Rank Wood Elemental Artifact formed by a Willful Realm Elementalist. It contains an internal space that can hold a hundred beasts or ten thousand books. I found it on the black market years ago, but damage to its elemental patterns made it unusable. I've spent years nurturing it, and two days ago, it finally repaired itself as if by a miracle. It can now be used normally."

Xibizete's eyes widened, a rare sight. "Heavens, this restored Emerald Bead couldn't have come at a better time! This is fate!"

"I always wondered why you spent all those years fiddling with a broken lump of coal. So that lump was actually this Wood Elemental Artifact, the Emerald Bead," Aikimu muttered.

Relief spread across William's face. "Wonderful. There really is always a way out."

Under their gazes, Yetos placed the white bead in Zeng Mu's hand and instructed him, "Sand City's survival rests in your hands. The disguises, supplies, and vehicles are already prepared. We can disguise you as merchants and send you out immediately. Before that, though, we need one special person. With him along, the enemy will completely let down their guard."

"Oh? Who is this distinguished person?" Kanni asked with anticipation and reverence.

"Cobert, one of the Fulin Taiyou People."

"Ugh, that crafty old fox..." Kanni covered his face with one hand and sighed.

Yetos looked at Ma Linya. "The Fulin Taiyou People hold neutrality as their guiding principle. They've stayed out of conflicts for years, which is how they've managed to establish themselves among all three powers. Cobert has an eccentric temperament. I doubt even I could persuade him. Of everyone in Sand City, you're the one he's most willing to listen to, Lingya. Go persuade him to leave the city with you."

Zeng Mu covered half his face as well and sighed inwardly. Persuading him to leave the city and risk his neck won't be easy...

Sand City, the Herbal Medicine Shop...

"What? Disguise yourselves and leave the city to fetch water? You must be joking!"

Cobert stared at Ma Linya with a strange expression and said quietly, "Lingya, I thought you were a kind, understanding girl. That's why I was willing to give you that medicine book. But never in my wildest dreams did I imagine you'd set your sights on a little old man like me."

Zeng Mu was about to speak, but Cobert stopped him with a look. "And you, Nameless. You seem so upright and dependable. How could you show such poor judgment?"

"I only address the Knight Commander as 'sir' out of respect for his position. If anyone else tried persuading me to do something like that, I'd respond exactly as I am now-with the facts, and without sparing their feelings."

Confident that he was in the right, he spoke with rare fearlessness, his words pouring out in a rapid torrent. "The reason we Fulin Taiyou People have endured for so many years is our neutrality in war. As they say, life goes on, and the cycle never ends. When have wars ever stopped? That's the wisdom of our ancestors."

"This is our clan rule, and the vital principle that lets our people thrive and endure. As a man of principle, if I agreed to your request, wouldn't I be violating our clan rules? Wouldn't I be disgracing my ancestors? Wouldn't I be betraying myself?"

"If my people found out, they'd follow the clan rules and turn me into cured meat, then toss me into a cage to feed the tigers!"

He could not stop talking, and his neck soon flushed red. Beside him, the corners of Kanni's closed eyes began to twitch.

Five minutes later, Zeng Mu and Ma Linya shook their heads, sighed, and stepped back, indicating that they could do nothing.

We'll have to do it his way after all, they both sighed inwardly.

"That's right, back off! Now get out of my shop before I really lose my temper. I don't want to see either of you for the rest of the day!"

Whoosh! A humming sound reached his ears, and something cold settled against his neck, motionless as stagnant water.

Cobert stopped short. His face turned white in an instant, and his eyes widened as he stared down at the blade pressed against his neck.

Kanni, who had remained silent the entire time, now stood behind him and spoke coldly into his ear. "I'll ask you only once. Will you leave the city with us?"

The air froze for a moment. Cobert's brows trembled, but his voice was not particularly panicked as he slowly said, "As I said, I'm a man of principle. Under ordinary circumstances, I certainly couldn't do this. But as the saying goes, saving one life is worth more than building a seven-story pagoda. And this concerns the very survival of Sand City, doesn't it?"

With a resolve his voice had never held before, he declared, "I'm leaving this city with you, no matter what!"