Suddenly, an aged voice came from beneath the Treasure Ship.
This should have been the Miao-Conquest Army's encampment.
Qing Chen's gaze swept slowly over the hill below, sharp as a blade.
What should have been a military encampment beginning to take shape was now nothing but a shambles;
-just a few dozen craftsmen scattered about, great swathes of tents standing crooked, and progress so slow it made one's hair stand on end.
An elderly Foundation Establishment cultivator stood at the front. His qi and blood were in decline, yet his face held a measure of brazen confidence.
Only when he saw the immense fleet blotting out the sun, its military might imposing, did a flicker of panic cross his eyes.
Gao Yuliang flashed forward, stepping into the air, and barked, "Are those dog eyes of yours blind?
"This is the Miao-Conquest Army under Lord Qing Chen, Miao-Conquest Deputy General and Left Gentleman of the Palace!
"This site was allocated to our army by Commander-in-Chief Wei Ting and Anman Prefecture. Who are you to dare show such disrespect?"
The old cultivator steadied himself and reluctantly cupped his hands. "So Lord Qing has arrived...
"This old man is a Black-Robed Constable serving under Anman Prefecture's Prefectural Assistant, ordered to oversee construction of the encampment here. It is just that... the undertaking is enormous, and it is not yet complete."
Qing Chen remained silent. His gaze passed over the craftsmen dragging their feet and the idle puppets before finally settling on the old cultivator's face again.
The so-called "encampment" was merely a cleared patch of level ground on the hillside, with a few foundations built to less than a person's height.
Plenty of tents and military tents had indeed been delivered, but they were only barely fit to live in.
Large sections of