Chapter 285

Heading west all the way, the Great King glanced back at Long Peace several times but said nothing.

Wei Shen knew the Great King's little thoughts; Emperor Ningde had not yet been interred in the imperial mausoleum, and this child was still thinking of him.

Only after putting Long Peace far behind did the Great King return to normal.

Bing Province

The Great King took the Bing Province city cavalry away unchanged, only leaving two hundred supply battalion troops to manage the governor's residence. Don't be fooled by the small number; their equipment is complete. These two hundred or so troops have two gunpowder crossbows and some regular crossbows, to coordinate with White Marsh in defending the city.

Usually they are scattered around the four city gates on patrol; after the Great King finally took it, for easier management Bing Province city has been placed under temporary martial law, and no one may enter or leave without a major reason.

Although there are over two hundred humans, the Great King still feels most at ease with White Marsh.

As for Cover Sky, its role is that of an enforcer, and it hasn't run away.

Both are indispensable, after all, having only enforcers without a commander wouldn't work here.

White Marsh and Cover Sky continue to stay in the government office, but White Marsh often goes out to stroll on the city wall. At that time, the soldiers left to guard the governor's residence eagerly follow; heaven knows when the Great King leaves, letting them listen to that guy's command……

White Marsh walked through the city, a lone eagle perched on its back, followed by a unit of Black Armor Cavalry—this was no ordinary swagger. When townsfolk encountered it, they knelt and called it a divine envoy; its entourage surpassed even that of the Great King.

The townsfolk heard the soldiers say White Marsh was specially left by the Great King to protect them, until the Marquis of the Eastern Capital from Shanggu Pass comes to take over. For such a strange-looking creature, the northern townsfolk already revere it, and now they say they want to protect them; looking at White Marsh and Cover Sky, it rises to an even higher level.

The young soldiers eagerly hoped each day to be commanded by White Marsh, but unfortunately these past two days everything has been normal with nothing happening.

After a few days, the Marquis of the Eastern Capital still hasn't arrived, and Cover Sky got anxious first. It's still the first time it's been away from the Great King this long; normally they're inseparable, at most apart for half a day. It's not like the bear at home, which has gradually become accustomed to the Great King going out every few days and meeting at home every few days.

After three days, Cover Sky no longer idly hung around White Marsh's back to go out and play; it anxiously circled the city's skies.

The so-called Marquis of the Eastern Capital didn't come, and neither did any bad guys?

Anyone of you will do, just come one!

But this circle wasn't for nothing.

The Xiongnu occupied two vast commanderies, and they indeed closely communicate information. Every move of the Great King, starting from the fall of Rui'an City, has been closely watched; now there are even scouts trailing behind the great army.

As for why the Great King and company didn't go straight but suddenly headed south, the Xiongnu still haven't figured it out.

But confirming the approximate numbers is still simple; after successive defeats, the Xiongnu have also become cautious. Upon learning that the Great King's almost entire army had marched south and left Bing Province City, they waited left and right, then instead of attacking other cities, they bypassed some major counties and cities and headed straight southwest.

The Xiongnu waited a few days, then decided to retake Bing Province City; Lan Yi Zhi's identity is not ordinary, so they still need to go to Bing Province to further confirm whether he is alive or dead.

Cover Sky's circles weren't for nothing; when a large force rapidly approached Bing Province City, it detected them immediately.

This guy rushed up at once to observe, then went back and forth to discern the direction—it didn't seem to be coming from their side?

It immediately went back to fetch White Marsh, asking the knowledgeable classmates to help confirm it.

White Marsh's movement caused a great commotion.

Besides those left to guard the city gates, all the remaining soldiers in Bing Province set aside their tasks and followed it to the west gate.

White Marsh reached the west gate; in broad daylight, under everyone's gaze, it leapt onto Bing Province's city wall without a run‑up!

The fortunate townsfolk below first gasped, then knelt ever more devoutly.

Is this the kind of strength that mortal beasts can have?! Even those civet cats that are good at climbing would find it hard to scale such a sheer wall, let alone their size.

And the civilians there looked dazed, only then realizing their city wall was actually quite sturdy—could it withstand the divine envoy?

The only two gunpowder crossbows are right at the West City Gate; at this moment the artillery battalion has already begun preparations.

Bai Ze stepped onto the city wall, took a glance, then nodded at Zhe Tian: 'Let the fighters begin—these aren't our own!'

The soldiers had just seen a large force appear at the horizon's end when Zhe Tian let out a long cry and shot up into the sky, instantly becoming a black dot appearing above the Xiongnu cavalry; the still somewhat orderly formation opposite immediately fell into chaos.

"How did they start scattering?"

"Our Zhe Tian has left!"

"Maybe the gunpowder won't be needed."

The Xiongnu are already stunned.

They call Zhe Tian's attack heavenly punishment.

It is the heavenly gods punishing them.

It is the heavenly gods who disagree with their southern advance; it seems the southern Jin people are still favored by the gods.

Some panicked and fled; others dismounted and performed a full prostration, kowtowing.

Coincidentally, the Xiongnu's feudal superstitious activities also include totem worship, and this totem also bears the image of an eagle.

Now it's good, we've matched up, everything matches!

Zhe Tian is also crafty; it gave up on those who knelt especially devoutly, and went specifically to chase those fleeing and those still seated on horseback.

The cloud‑rolling eagle sweeps one wing, frost seals the earth.

What these Xiongnu used to believe doesn't matter anymore; from now on they must make room for Lord Zhe Tian.

The one‑sided intimidation operation was quickly forced to end in the Xiongnu's scattered flight; they scattered and didn't regroup, making Zhe Tian tired, so it went on strike.

As long as they don't run toward Bing Prefecture City, Lord Zhe Tian allows them to live.

Bai Ze looked on with satisfaction as the Xiongnu cavalry was thrown into disarray by it; in the panic some ran toward them, but after realizing they immediately turned tail and ran north without looking back—Bing Prefecture should be able to stay quiet for a few days.

The soldiers on the city wall looked excited; they actually hadn't seen much combat, even though they'd received the same training and followed the northern expedition against the Eastern Xianbei, most of them served in the supply corps and lacked real battle experience. Now they couldn't help but be eager to try—is this a chance to pick up enemy heads?

Isn't this a good opportunity to get some practice?

Watching from the city wall made them eager; why not go down and give it a try? Those are Xiongnu cavalry! The enemy's momentum has already been broken.

The squad leader's corporal turned his gaze toward the commander.

Here his word doesn't count, huh.

Bai Ze nodded at him; the corporal stared in shock, 'You‑you‑you understand? Do you mean we can go finish off the wounded? I see some still alive down there—can we charge?'

At this moment the West City Gate probably has only a hundred or twenty people; Bai Ze thinks soldiers need to practice fighting, so why not? Anyway, the fighters have their backs covered.

It nodded again, then extended its claw to point at the chaotic battlefield ahead.

Go!

Once you've trained well, you all go into the cavalry camp.

The supply corps the King led out is also well-armored; the only difference is that their horses are Western Region horses, and due to endurance and load-bearing considerations these horses have no armor, while the soldiers' gear is the same as that of the frontline cavalry.

They got White Marsh's approval, and over a hundred cavalry went out to chase down the frightened Xiongnu.

That night the King was forced to learn of this news; just as he was sleeping soundly, he suddenly heard a miserable cry from Wei Shen beside him.

The King squinted his eyes and sat up, using the faint light of the small night lamp in the tent, and saw White Marsh and Coversky both crouching beside his head……

They blocked the faint light of the night lamp; White Marsh's big head was in the darkness, only the white fur at the edges and its deep purple eyes were glowing, the terrifying effect maximized.

Now the King understands why his usually bold cousin cried out so miserably!

Anyone else would have been scared to death!

"Is my night lamp out of power? Why isn't it lighting at all?"

Wei Shen reacted, now feeling life was hopeless: "It's because your pet is too big, blocking half the tent. Why don't you ask how they came? Or did they just show up silently without a sound?" His cousin was filled with resentment.

The King said: "No need to ask—just look at Coversky's smug look… Did we beat the Xiongnu? According to my timing, the Marquis of Dongdu should still be three or four days away."

Wei Shen perked up: "Did we win?"

"Of course we had to!" the King said, full of confidence, which mainly came from White Marsh.

Wei Shen hurriedly sat up and shifted over, saying, "Come on, come on, you two heroes lie down here; I'll just stand."

After being tossed around by those two, his sleepiness was completely frightened away. The tent was cramped, so Wei Shen went to lift the curtain to let the wind blow in.

After he got up and walked away, he heard the King quietly questioning White Marsh: "…How many Xiongnu did they kill? Were they scared off by Coversky, or was it the gunpowder crossbow?"

Wei Shen thought, you're asking so specifically, expecting White Marsh to answer you?

In the next instant, a low, slow voice said: "You should be able to tell from Coversky's smugness, right?"

Wei Shen's foot slipped, and he was successfully tripped by the grass at the doorway……

He lay on the ground for a while without moving, "Oh my God, King, I really have a sleepwalking problem!"

The King: ……

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20250124 supplement:

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Wei Shen's mind was blown; he lay prone behind the King, eyes wide open staring at White Marsh.

While the King and White Marsh were talking, he kept staring at White Marsh with a blown‑mind expression, not blinking.

The King, unable to tolerate it any longer, shook him off and said, "What did you see? Did it suddenly grow two horns? We've been together for years, and only now do you find our White Marsh cute?"

Being called cute, White Marsh lifted its paw and shoved the cross‑legged King over; the King then stubbornly climbed back to his feet.

Only Wei Shen was still dazed, stammering, "What… how can it talk!? It's not a person, so how can it speak human language?"

The King was quite calm; he had said it before in front of his grandfather, never expecting them not to tell his cousin. His cousin had always been by his side, unaware and feeling a bit left out. White Marsh didn't avoid him, simply not caring, so now the King is happily watching Wei Shen make a fool of himself.

"Have you ever seen a fluffy creature as ethereal as our White Marsh? Have you ever seen such long fur that never needs washing?"

Wei Shen: "……What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Then have you ever seen such a gigantic fluffy creature? Does it also have big purple eyes?"

Wei Shen shook his head.

"Have you ever seen a fluffy creature with a single horn?"

"Have you ever seen a fluffy creature with red eyebrows?"

Wei Shen shook his head, shook his head again, and shook his head once more.

White Marsh suddenly spoke up, interrupting the King: "That's not eyebrows."

The King brushed it aside, saying, "Don't worry about it."

"Cousin, you've never seen any of these things, which proves there's no other kind like our White Marsh in the world! So what's strange about it being able to speak? This species is just like humans in that it can speak. If you'd ever seen another White Marsh that couldn't speak, only this one of ours can, then it would have become a spirit. But we've never seen another White Marsh. Look, if your horse suddenly started talking, that would be strange, because for thousands of years no horse has spoken. Cousin, do you get it?"

Wei Shen's mental circuits were overloaded; he felt the King was pulling his leg, but couldn't point out what was wrong.

The King pressed on, determined to clear White Marsh's ability to speak: "I heard from Zhao Zhu Ge that in a far‑southern continent there is a kind of brilliantly colored bird called a parrot. These parrots can speak human language, and there are lots of them there, and nobody finds it strange."

The King, being quite sly, fundamentally didn't mention that parrots merely repeat what people say.

Wei Shen, however, took it in; he knew the outside world was vast, and from Zhao Zhu Ge he had indeed learned many strange things that the Great Jin lacked, including the odd items the King had purchased overseas.

After digesting it for a while, he finally shifted his gaze of looking at an extraterrestrial from White Marsh to Coversky beside him.

"Don't pretend either—are you also able to speak?!"

Coversky: ……

The King: ……

"Just say a word, quit lying to me, let me get my fill of proof! I know you're not ordinary either—that freezing ability isn't something an ordinary bird could produce. Go on!"

The King: "……He really can't."

Wei Shen: "Impossible! I'll never believe you three again! Wait… that bear can't talk, right?"

The King: "……The bear was just picked up outside Youzhou City, not outside the Heavenly Court."

Wei Shen's mind was working well now: "So you picked up this White Marsh from the Heavenly Court, right? Is that the logic?"

The Great King flopped headfirst into his sleeping bag, "Save me! I, the King, am going to sleep! If I don't sleep now I'll die suddenly; tomorrow I'll really see the True Heavenly Court!"

Wei Shen dug him out, "Where exactly did you pick up that White Marsh, anyway?"

The Great King pretended to be dead, "The shore of the East Sea."

Wei Shen: "I don't believe it!"

"You see, I said outside Secluded Prefecture City you wouldn't believe me, you made up something you still wouldn't believe! Are you just not wanting the King to sleep so he'll die suddenly in the day, so you can inherit my White Marsh? Cousin, don't even think about it, the King has to leave a last will, and the White Marsh goes to my older sister!"

The Great King, exhausted, began to fuss and ramble, and Wei Shen could only let him be.

Seeing that neither the White Marsh nor the Sky-Covering meant to leave, the Great King, before falling completely asleep, struggled to give his orders: "You two, return to Conjoined Prefecture at dawn, and hold on for two more days—the Marquis of the Eastern Capital will come then…"

The next day, the Great King spent another three thousand taels to get rid of the two, but Wei Shen wasn't easy to get rid of.

"Speaking honestly, this place is already far from Conjoined Prefecture City—can they fly? Otherwise… wouldn't they arrive at the same time as the Marquis of the Eastern Capital? Is there any point in going back?" He knew the Sky-Covering's speed; could this White Marsh fly as well?

The Great King acted slow-witted, "Ah? Isn't that perfect… handover?"

Wei Shen: ……

Sly fatty! … Wait, he's not fat anymore. Hehe, even after this fatty slims down, he's still sly.