A Backup Plan

As a key location in Huainan for alchemy, casting, and smelting gold and silver coins, Beishan was indeed heavily guarded.

From the air, Zhang Xuezhou only felt that Beishan was imposing, but after landing on the ground, he found that the patrols here were so tight that it gave him no reason to even think about it.

A 3,000-strong army corps was stationed in this area. Not to mention the constant patrols every three or five steps, the dynamic and regular patrols made it difficult to infiltrate, and it was virtually impossible to leave with heavy items.

When Zhang Xuezhou saw Zhang Jiangang off from Beishan, his only consolation was that Zhang Jiangang was a living being and was extremely cooperative with his commands.

Both men and women in Zhang Household Village are skilled hunters, and many can lift hundreds or even thousands of kilograms with their bare hands. Even women can draw strong bows.

Zhang Xuezhou once thought that everyone in Zhang Household Village was a normal human being, but after leaving the mountain, he discovered that the average physical fitness of everyone in Zhang Household Village was ridiculously strong.

In the realm of cultivation sects, the people Zhang Household Village Zhang Household Village are inconspicuous, but among ordinary people, they undoubtedly possess unparalleled strength, agility, and other unmatched qualities.

"Brother Zhou, we really made it out of those mountains!"

They stumbled and bumped along the way, often traversing pathless mountain forests, and even piled a bunch of weeds, branches, and leaves on their heads. By the time Zhang Xuezhou allowed them to turn around, Zhang Jian realized that he had already left Zijin Mountain.

"Where are you, Zhou-ge?"

"Brother Zhou!"

"Erbaozi?"

Zhang Jiangang shouted wildly, and three figures emerged from behind the hillside, one of whom was Zhang Xuezhou, dressed in a blue robe.

She opened her mouth, not understanding for a moment how Zhang Xuezhou could move so fast, disappearing behind the mountain in a flash.

"Brother Zhou!"

Zhang Jiangang reached out and waved vigorously at the three people.

"Stop shouting nonsense, I brought the second bow too!"

Zhang Xuezhou couldn't help but feel a bit of a headache, but the fact that he had managed to rescue someone on this trip at least proved that, given enough opportunity, it was possible for him to bring the people of Zhang Household Village out.

Especially after nightfall, the chances of him taking someone away on this mountain path are even higher, and it won't be limited to just one or two people.

"What, are you going to let Ci Gong hit me?" Zhang Jiangang asked, bewildered.

"This girl looks a bit like Gang Niu when she was little," Zhang Cigong said.

"That's Zhang Jiangang," Zhang Xuezhou nodded.

"Wow, what a tough girl!" Zhang Cigong exclaimed after a moment of surprise, then overjoyed, "So, does that mean my parents from Zhang Household Village are all in these mountains?"

"I saw dozens of people, but I didn't have time to search carefully," Zhang Xuezhou nodded and added, "My dad was in there too!"

"What should we do?" Zhang Cigong asked in a low voice.

"We must lead the people of our village out of Huainan," Zhang Xuezhou said. "And we must be fast!"

Has something serious happened?

"You should know that I told you before that race and alchemy are related," Zhang Xuezhou said. "The people of Zhang Household Village are used as medicinal materials, just like tiger bones, musk, and deer antlers, which are used in certain special elixirs. They may be able to refine elixirs again right now."

Zhang Xuezhou did not regret inducing Li Shang to take the human medicine. Firstly, he needed a legitimate reason to escape after being discovered by Li Shang. Secondly, it was indeed difficult for Zhang Xuezhou to find the people of Zhang Household Village. Even though he followed the medicine slave, it took him a long time to discern the truth.

If Zhang Xuezhou were to conduct a cursory investigation, he would be certain that he would most likely find nothing.

Time is a bit tight right now, but it's still better than having no clues at all.

"Can you bring everyone out like you brought Gang Niu?" Zhang Cigong asked anxiously.

"It's very difficult," Zhang Xuezhou said. "There's a patrol force of at least a thousand people stationed here at Beishan, and powerful cultivators at the Divine Ability Realm or even the Sole Self Realm are protecting the mountain. Leaving here is extremely difficult!"

"Should we ask the imperial court for help?" Rong Tianding suggested.

"Distant water can't quench immediate thirst," Zhang Xuezhou shook his head and said, "Besides, the imperial court has no jurisdiction over Huainan!"

The imperial court appointed prefects to govern the areas under its jurisdiction, while the territories of the vassal kings were governed autonomously by the individual kings. The imperial court only stationed a few people in these places as a symbolic presence, and it was impossible for them to rely on the power of the imperial court.

"Then we..."

"I plan to try targeting Li Shang first, to see if we can launch a surprise attack on him after nightfall," Zhang Xuezhou said. "If I can make him unconscious or unwell, his idea of using people to make medicine should temporarily subside, and we'll have more time to save him."

Zhang Xuezhou groped around in his storage bag, sensing the various low-class items inside.

He had previously used the Water of Eternity to poison Confucian scholars like Shen Peigong once. The Water of Eternity was used up in that operation, and all that remained of his low-level poisons were Soul-Severing Powder and Five-Step Bewitching Smoke.

Zhang Xuezhou thought about the smoke on Wuzhu Mountain and took out the Five-Step Bewitching Smoke.

He glanced at the sky and could only wait until it got dark to sneak in and check the situation.

From leaving Shouchun City to exploring Wuzhu Mountain, then Dao of Alchemy with Li Shang, then exploring Zijin Mountain, and finally sending Zhang Jiangang out, the time involved was extremely long.

Night was indeed falling, and Zhang Xuezhou's time to act freely was not far off.

"Should we prepare a place first?" Rong Tianding suggested. "If my cousin's operation succeeds and he rescues many people, their food, water, and shelter will be a huge problem!"

"That is indeed a problem," Zhang Xuezhou nodded.

"If you intend to lead them away from Huainan, such a long distance can't be covered on foot," Rong Tianding said. "Besides, you don't have much time left!"

Rong Tianding raised several very real issues.

Zhang Xuezhou was still considering how to rescue the people of Zhang Household Village, while Rong Tianding was discussing how to settle dozens, hundreds, or even hundreds of people, how to get them out of Huainan, and where to send them to live in peace.

More importantly, Zhang Xuezhou had spent several days practicing in Jin Chang, leaving him with only four days of lucidity.

Once he returns to the real world, Zhang Xuezhou will inevitably be unable to handle any matters related to rescuing or arranging things for the people of Zhang Household Village.

If they want to handle things properly, they need to arrange everything in advance.

"I manage the horse stables outside Shouchun City, so I should be able to steal a few dozen horses," Zhang Cigong, frowning. "But these horses are a drop in the ocean for hundreds of people; they might not be fast enough. And if we want to steal too many, I won't be able to control them all!"

"What will you eat? What will you drink? Where will you escape to?" Rong Tianding asked.

"Our village used to live by hunting. As long as we had a few good bows, we didn't have to worry about food," Zhang Xuezhou said. "If all else failed, we could even kill a horse for meat!"

"Where to go then?"

"We can only go to Chang'an," Zhang Xuezhou replied, then added, "Chang'an City!"

"That's a good place!"

Even in the most impoverished Chang'an City, it was still under the emperor's nose, and this location could effectively isolate the King of Huainan's Household from pursuit.

Moreover, the road from Huainan to Chang'an City had been repaired, and it was a route that Zhang Xuezhou and his group had familiarized themselves with time and again before their arrival, so there was no possibility that they would get lost or take the wrong turn.

Zhang Xuezhou and his group had already established a small foothold in Chang'an City.

Most importantly, the land Chang'an City can be cultivated, which will make it easy for the people of Zhang Household Village to become self-reliant in the future.

This is a move for the future, and it must be considered even before the rescue operation begins.

Only by properly arranging the contingency plan can Rong Tianding and others carry out the relevant tasks in an orderly manner after Zhang Xuezhou returns to the real world.

"Cousin, you..."

"I can Grain Avoidance, I have official documents from the imperial court, and I can stay in Jin Chang, so you don't need to worry about me!"

It would be difficult for Zhang Cigong to lead the people Zhang Household Village Zhang Household Village to flee together, and he would be unable to settle them Chang'an City. This would inevitably require Rong Tianding to lead the way, and it would be difficult to take Zhang Xuezhou with him on the journey.

Zhang Xuezhou waved his hand, indicating that Rong Tianding didn't need to worry about him.

Everyone spoke up one after another. After the negotiation and agreement were completed, Zhang Xuezhou looked at the night sky and then found a place to sit down cross-legged.

His body swayed, and his Yang Soul Incarnation manifested.

Once he had obtained the Five-Step Bewitching Smoke, Zhang Xuezhou reached out and swept it away, then leaped into the vast night sky.