Chapter 398: The Unbypassable Auspicious Time Pass

Could Chen Yan possibly be an ordinary commander?

If he weren't formidable, he wouldn't have beaten the Tongtian Society to a rout in Qinzhou.....

That was an extremely terrifying opponent!

Shen Zhiyan stared at Ming Shuo's tense profile, then suddenly curled his lip, revealing a half‑smile: "He must see it clearly!"

At that point he let out a low laugh, the chuckle carrying a hint of amusement in the night wind, and reached out to pat Ming Shuo's back: "But Chen Yan no longer has any room for choice....."

His eyes were filled with certainty.

"Hm?"

Ming Shuo furrowed his brows, not understanding, utterly confused.

"Fuhan is besieged, its fall imminent, and Tu Gu Hun cavalry are ravaging Hezhou....."

Shen Zhiyan, seeing this, placed one hand behind his back; the night wind lifted his robe with a rustling sound, and he exuded a confident arrogance.

He raised his hand and pointed toward the direction beyond the pass, patiently explaining: "The military situation is like a raging fire, the circumstances are extremely dire; we cannot delay, we must take a risky gamble....."

He paused, his tone gaining a hint of self‑satisfaction, as if victory were already assured: "We can only gamble that we have no spare troops left, and set an ambush at Auspicious Time Pass!"

Having said that, he lowered his head to glance at the subordinates waiting in strict formation below, a determined smile curling his lips.

If one puts oneself in his shoes, one can deeply feel Chen Yan's difficult predicament.....

He can't afford to delay even a single moment!

There's no choice; although they suffered heavy losses in Qinzhou, with various material aid from the King of Tu Gu Hun, the Tongtian Society quickly, using Liuren, raised a new force.....

And the numbers far surpass those before!

Not only can they besiege Fuhan, they can also field sufficient troops here to set an ambush, catching the Zhou State's young soldier Xian off guard, making him throw down his helm and armor.....

Ming Shuo brushed his night‑wind‑tossed beard, and his brows gradually relaxed.

He raised his hand to wipe his face, exhaled a deep breath of foul air, which in the cool night condensed into a white vapor that vanished in an instant.

"Makes sense!"

He nodded slowly, the doubt in his eyes fading by far, his tone also lightening, "If we choose to bypass Auspicious Time Pass, even the shortest route would still take at least ten days......"

He shuffled toward the cliff edge, gazing at the pitch‑black shadows below; the solemnity on his face had vanished, and he continued, "Chen Yan simply cannot afford to stall!"

After grasping this layer, Ming Shuo understood why Shen Zhiyan could be so confident.....

Mainly because Auspicious Time Pass's location is crucial, sitting on the unavoidable route to Fuhan!

Moreover, due to the urgent military situation, Chen Yan cannot safely choose to go around.....

Shen Zhiyan, though confident, showed no trace of arrogance; instead he looked up at the Can Yue wrapped in wispy clouds, his voice deepening: "Even though we are to wait for the enemy's fatigue, we must not be careless!"

"We must deal a heavy blow to the Court's reinforcements at Auspicious Time Pass!"

He raised his hand and patted the stone wall, tilting his head downward: "Let's go, inspect a bit more....."

Ming Shuo, hearing this, immediately folded away his relaxed expression, and nodded heavily: "Hm."

Having said that, the two walked side by side along the cliff, descending the steep Stone Steps.

Can Yue hung in the ink‑blue sky, its clear light spilling over the scattered rocks at the Auspicious Time Pass entrance.

The night had deepened to the point that even insect cries grew sparse.

In a concealed spot at the pass, four Liuren soldiers huddled behind a wind‑sheltered crevice on guard, their thin cloth garments puffed up by the night wind.

The Long Spear in their hands leaned askew against the stone, its rusted tip faintly visible in the moonlight.

Ha—

The youngest, short‑statured soldier could no longer hold back, suddenly letting out a long yawn, two drops of physiological tears welling at the corners of his eyes; he rubbed his eyes with his rough back of the hand, his eyelids heavy as if weighted with lead, nearly sticking together.

He curled further into the crevice, his voice full of drowsiness and complaint: "Why must we stand guard this late at night?"

"I'm exhausted......"

The scarred man beside him also sighed, rubbing his hands, and added: "It's already deep into the night, no one in sight, we're freezing here like a sifter of chaff, what exactly are we guarding?"

"Who says it isn't?" another short, stout soldier tightened his tattered cotton coat, his teeth chattering, "How could the Court possibly launch an attack in such pitch‑black darkness?"

Moonlight still coldly illuminated the pass, the wind still blew, the four were trading complaints, when a harsh rebuke suddenly came from the shadows behind them:

"You four, snap to attention!"

"Is standing guard really worth it for you!"

The four were startled by the sudden rebuke, their bodies jolting; the short soldier's yawning mouth was abruptly stifled.

Sss—

The scarred man inhaled a sharp breath of cold air, instantly straightening his hunchback— the drowsiness vanished without a trace.

When they saw who emerged from the shadows—Shen Zhiyan and Ming Shuo—the four's faces turned pale, hurriedly straightening their collars and bowing, their voices trembling:

"We have seen you, Lord Shen!"

"We have seen you, Lord Ming!"

The earlier complaints and laxity vanished completely, each bowed their heads, not daring to even draw a breath.

Shen Zhiyan stepped forward, his gaze like a torch scanning the four trembling soldiers, his tone adding a chill: "Gather your spirit, vigor, and resolve!"

"After the watch rotation, when you're asleep!"

He raised his hand and gave the stone wall a heavy slap, causing fragments to tumble down: "If the Court's army sneaks up at night, you'll be the first to die!"

Those words were not mere alarmist rhetoric from Shen Zhiyan.

With no choice, Chen Yan is very likely to opt for a night raid on Auspicious Time Pass......

Is it really that absurd? The Court's army in the middle of the night, could they possibly not be sleeping........... The short, stout soldier secretly sneered, muttering a complaint in his mind.

But he only dared to think that; he furtively glanced at Shen Zhiyan's cold expression, then quickly lowered his head again.

The four, in unison, bowed and replied: "As you command!"

Their voices still trembled slightly, yet were filled with utmost respect.

"Hm?"

At that moment, Ming Shuo, whose sense of smell was rather keen, suddenly furrowed his brows, twitched his nose, scanned the surroundings with his eyes, and muttered to himself, "What is this thing?"

Shen Zhi Yan was just about to turn and check another watchpost when he heard that and stopped, turned his head toward him, and asked in puzzlement, "What's wrong?"

Ming Shuo inhaled again, his brows twisting tighter, stepped forward two paces, and said, "Zhi Yan, do you smell anything?"

"Smell?"

Upon hearing that, Shen Zhi Yan immediately halted, held his breath, and sniffed—

Indeed, a strange scent drifted in with the night wind, bearing a hint of spicy astringency mixed with a greasy oiliness, standing out unusually in the cool night air.

He furrowed his brows, stepped forward two steps, sniffed hard, yet could not discern what it was, and turned his head toward Ming Shuo, his tone full of doubt, "What is this?"

The four soldiers, already on edge, also twitched their noses at the words.

The short one was first stunned, then furrowed his brows, "It seems… it really is there! A bit pungent, can't quite say what the flavor is… how strange!"

The short, stout soldier also nodded, sniffed forcefully, then shook his head, "I've never smelled it before…"

The scarred man leaned forward a bit, then quickly withdrew, whispering in agreement, "Me too!"

For some reason, the scent made his heart flutter…

Shen Zhi Yan's face darkened; without hesitation, he raised his hand, pointed at the short and stout soldiers, and declared decisively, "You two, go find the source of that smell!"

At such a critical moment, not a single oddity can be overlooked…

It must be handled with utmost caution!

"Yes."

The two responded in unison, turned, and hunched forward to search.

But after a brief moment, the two figures hurried back, faces showing a hint of panic.

Ming Shuo, seeing this, stepped forward immediately and asked urgently, "What's the matter?"

The short one gasped, raised his hand stained black‑brown, palm spreading a small clump of soil, and said, "Lord Shen, Lord Ming, that smell is emanating from this earth…"

The stout soldier also quickly raised his hand, his palm likewise coated with similar soil, and shouted, "All the surrounding earth has it!"

Shen Zhi Yan pinched the soil from the thin, stout palms, brought it to his nose, sniffed, his brows tightening further, muttering, "Emitted from the earth…"

Before he could finish, a terrified scream came from behind.

He whirled around, only to see the scarred man pointing at the sky, his face ashen as paper, voice trembling, "Sir, look at what's in the heavens!"

He seemed to have seen some great horror, his whole body trembling incessantly.

Shen Zhi Yan, irritated by the sudden scream, barked sharply, "Stop being so jumpy!"

After speaking, he finally looked up in the direction indicated.

"Wait!"

At that glance, his impatience froze instantly, his pupils contracting sharply—

Below the waning moon, the previously empty night sky was filled with countless specks of light.

Those specks trailed tiny sparks, like a sudden meteor shower, roaring with wind as they swooped down toward Auspicious Time Pass!

Looking again, what was this meteor shower?

Clearly they were arrows wrapped in oil‑soaked hemp, their tips ablaze!

Ming Shuo snapped back to his senses, shouting, "Retreat quickly!"

The surrounding soldiers, seeing this, instantly panicked, their taut nerves snapping, each one flailing helplessly.

A soldier clutching his head cried out, his voice full of despair, "The Court's army has arrived!"

"It must be the Court's great army arriving!" another man said, staring at the falling flaming arrows in the distance, his limbs growing weak.

Someone suddenly recalled something, voice trembling, "The commander said it's Lord Chen Yan!"

"It's that undefeated Lord Chen Yan; can we stand against him?" the skinny tall man slumped on the ground, his short sword clanging onto the floor, "What should we do?"

"Don't panic!"

Shen Zhi Yan, seeing the soldiers in chaos, veins bulging on his forehead with anger, drew his waist short sword and struck the nearby rock hard, shouting, "So what if the arrows are ignited?"

The blade's strike on the stone sparked, and the chaotic scene quieted for a few moments.

He panted, roaring, "The range of bows and crossbows isn't that far; they can't hurt us!"

Ming Shuo beside him also snapped back, hurried forward to agree, his voice as steady as possible, "We only need to defend patiently!"

"Lord Chen Yan might be testing…"

But those flaming arrows, trailing sparks, thudded and lodged far outside the pass, into mud coated with sticky residue.

The flame on the arrow shafts, already weak, suddenly leapt half a foot high the instant it touched the soil.

The orange‑red tongues of fire, like poisonous snakes, hissed and crackled along the black‑brown ground, spreading toward the interior of Auspicious Time Pass.

The fire snakes crawled faster, threading through the tangled stones of the pass, darting inside, and when the foremost flame touched a spot within the pass…

"Boom—!"