Chapter 9: Chapter Eight: Raising the Hidden Dragon by Polishing an Iron Rod (Seeking Collection)

General Guan followed Qing Song’s gesture and stared in shock: “A mere barbarian woman, and her destiny star is this bright? Impossible.”

In fact, the stars they saw now were already dim, for the fifth watch had passed and the sun was about to rise.

The crescent moon had vanished; only a few stars remained visible—those that could still be seen proved themselves exceptionally bright.

Qing Song, the Daoist acolyte, glanced sideways at him and said, “You may have secretly resented that for the sake of a single sand barbarian, Xiao Yu, I—a lowly Daoist boy—sent the most elite iron cavalry of Great Shu to this godforsaken place, and even had a Commandant lead them personally.”

“Your servant dares not!” General Guan’s face turned pale with fear; he immediately bowed low to the acolyte in apology.

Qing Song smiled. “It’s natural for you to harbor resentment.”

“But I tell you this: I am not tormenting you.”

“I am saving your lives—and the lives of millions in Great Shu.”

“If you had not come on this mission, within thirty years, Great Shu will face national collapse.”

“If Qin cannot spare its forces, Shu will fall directly to the sand barbarians.”

“Oh, by then it won’t be just the sand barbarians—or even just the Sand Dune Kingdom—but the ‘Western Sand Empire.’”

“W-Western Sand Empire... You... you’re joking, right?” General Guan’s face twisted in disbelief.

The black-armored cavalry behind him turned pale with shock.

The old barbarian in the leopard-skin skirt walked silently at the rear, head bowed, fists clenched, trembling all over.

Qing Song sighed. “From Hengsha Pass to here, the straight-line distance is over two thousand li. Even with my Five Elements teleportation art, I can only cover fifteen hundred li per day (PS).”

“Since yesterday afternoon, I’ve been rushing here nonstop—through the afternoon and night, never pausing, never eating or drinking.”

“I’m far from immortality—I’m still flesh and blood, subject to fatigue and hunger.”

“Do you think I went through all this just to come here and joke with you?”

“Think again: Lu State has millions of households, tens of thousands of armed soldiers, and at least ten human immortals openly listed. When they formed the alliance to destroy Shu, why did they personally seek out Sand Dune—and even propose that the sand barbarian chieftain be crowned king, recognizing the legitimacy of the ‘Sand Dune Kingdom’?”

General Xiang Huchen’s expression sharpened. “Could it be that Lu State has a sage who saw the sand barbarians’ extraordinary potential?”

Qing Song smiled. “Lu State has immortals, and observing star patterns to forecast national fortune isn’t an ultimate divine art.”

“But the people of Lu considered more.”

“A Sand Dune Kingdom capable of evolving into the Western Sand Empire is a threat to Shu in the south—and equally a grave danger to Lu in the west.”

“By bringing Sand Dune into the alliance, they used its strength to concentrate the fortune of the thirty-six states for Lu’s ambitions, while simultaneously draining Sand Dune’s essence in battle—wearing it down until its vital energy collapsed and its fortune withered. Of course, I now know the key to Sand Dune is Xiao Yu.”

“But back then, the people of Lu didn’t know.”

“Once the thirty-six-state alliance succeeded in destroying Shu, and they saw that Sand Dune’s rising destiny star hadn’t changed, Lu would inevitably use other means to crush it.”

“Unbelievable... unimaginable... I led only three hundred iron cavalry and swept clean the ancestral lands of the western sand barbarians—I didn’t even draw my blade...” General Guan murmured.

“Don’t you believe in star observation?” Qing Song turned back, his voice calm. “Long before the thirty-six-state alliance led by Lu was formed, Qin’s Imperial Astronomical Bureau had already foreseen chaos in the west and reported it immediately to Chancellor Li.”

“Two months later, Chancellor Li compiled all intelligence gathered from western states and devised a strategy to quell the chaos, submitting it all to the Emperor’s personal review.”

“By the time the thirty-six states began invading western Shu, the Shu King urgently sent envoys to Xianyang for help—Prince Lieyang had already been relocated from the eastern front, fully prepared for the western advance.”

“Do you know how far it is from the eastern sea to western Shu? One hundred thousand li!”

General Guan had nothing to say.

Qing Song added: “To observe a nation’s fortune through star patterns, timing and location are crucial.”

“Forget celestial timing—the best position is the observatory near the imperial palace.”

“The more thorough the ritual preparations and the more cooperative the reigning monarch, the clearer the results.”

“Even the most skilled sorcerer cannot observe the fortune of some ordinary small nation ten thousand li away from within his own country’s borders.”

“He’d see virtually nothing.”

“There’s a saying: ‘Viewed from the side, it’s a ridge; viewed from the front, it’s a peak.’”

“Under the same sky, we mortals gaze at the stars—but each sees a different constellation.”

“The Purple Micro Star you see in your kingdom belongs only to your king; your star chart looks one way.”

“The Purple Micro Star he sees in his kingdom likely has nothing to do with your monarch; his star chart looks entirely different.”

“If there’s any celestial connection between star charts, it’s always bad news—either he invades you, or you invade him.”

General Guan watched Qing Song tilt his head upward, his eyes shimmering faintly with starlight, mysterious and unfathomable.

He looked down and saw Qing Song’s right hand forming a seal, his left fingers flying as he calculated something rapidly.

Qing Song didn’t notice his gaze; his murmurs continued unabated.

“When I left Xianyang under the Emperor’s orders, Supervisor Zhang warned me: never treat the Imperial Astronomical Bureau’s star charts as absolute truth.”

“After the destruction of the thirty-six states, I met the Shu King and found the aura of decline still hovering over Shu.”

“On your western Shu observatory platform, I saw Shu’s greatest enemy to the north—exactly corresponding to this place.”

“I also saw the root of the sand barbarians’ rise.”

General Guan frowned. “Xiao Yu?”

Qing Song nodded slightly. “Yes—her! Unless you find her, Shu’s national crisis will never be resolved.”

General Guan pointed at the “destiny star of Xiao Yu,” nearly vanished in the gray sky, and asked: “Is that Sand Dune’s Purple Micro Star?”

“No. The ‘Western Sand Emperor’ is not Xiao Yu. The hidden dragon is someone else.”

General Guan asked again: “Is she Sand Dune’s Wenqu Star?”

“No. Sand Dune’s Wenqu Star hasn’t yet coalesced. The destined one has either not been born, or the timing isn’t right, or they haven’t yet connected with Sand Dune.”

“Or perhaps they’re right here in the sand barbarian camp—but haven’t yet risen.”

“The Wqu Star does show faint signs—but recently it was extinguished.”

“Likely died in yesterday’s cavalry charge through the camp,” Qing Song said.

Song Changqing behind General Guan immediately thought of someone.

“Sha Long?” Zhu Tong also realized.

General Guan frowned. “If Xiao Yu isn’t the hidden dragon, nor a civil or military minister aiding the hidden dragon, then what is she...? Wait—is she the hidden dragon’s consort? No, consorts are merely appendages to true dragons.”

Qing Song shook his head. “From Sand Dune’s star chart, Xiao Yu’s destiny star sits highest—even seems ready to leap beyond.”

“Based on what I’ve learned, even the true dragon was nurtured by her.”

“Who could possibly be worthy of her offering her phoenix destiny as support?”

“At least the true dragon of Sand Dune is far too weak to contain her—forcing it would bring great harm.”

“Your servant truly doesn’t understand. Please, Daoist, enlighten me,” General Guan said.

Qing Song dispersed the starlight from his eyes and stopped his finger-calculations.

He turned and surveyed all around, then pointed behind the iron cavalry and shouted: “Bring that old sand barbarian here.”

Everyone turned to look back, their gazes locking onto the old man in the leopard-skin skirt.

“My lord, you called for your servant?” The old barbarian, though trembling inside, stepped forward obediently and prostrated himself fully.

Qing Song smiled at General Guan. “Don’t underestimate this old barbarian. Had you and I not come to Sand Dune today, within ten years he will rise to the highest rank, holding life-and-death power over a million people.”

The old barbarian lifted his head, stunned.

General Guan’s dignified, refined face twisted into a stiff smile. “Could he be the hidden dragon?”

“Just now, while using the Qi-seeing art to locate Xiao Yu, I accidentally noticed this barbarian’s head—his gray-white aura was nearly gone, but at its core, a faint, nearly vanished thread of pale purple remained. Very faint—but it speaks volumes.”

Qing Song shook his head, then looked down at the old man. “Old barbarian, what is your position in Sand Dune?”

“Position?” The old man looked bewildered. “What position do I have?”

Qing Song cleared his throat. “Let me rephrase: after your chieftain declared himself King of Sand Dune and established the kingdom, what official title do you hold?”

“Do sand barbarians even have official titles?” The black-armored cavalry looked skeptical.

The old barbarian’s face twisted in confusion.

Song Changqing said: “Xiao Yu calls herself Princess Yu. Yesterday there was even a Sand Dune Empress Dowager... Oh, wasn’t Sha Long the Grand General?”

The old barbarian pressed his face to the ground, voice trembling: “Forgive your servant, I had no official title. I merely accompanied the chieftain for years. After the kingdom was founded, Yu girl forcibly appointed me as Right Chancellor.”

“My lord, I’m just a withered log, a foolish, powerless old barbarian—I can’t even read a single character, never opened a book...” He wailed, desperately distancing himself from the idea of being a supreme minister.

Qing Song chuckled. “Now do you understand, General Guan?”

General Guan pondered. “There’s a chancellor, a Grand General, an Empress Dowager—so naturally there must be a crown prince... Even if the Sand Dune King died outside Tianmen Town, the system is already established. All that’s needed is orderly succession, and ‘Sand Dune Kingdom’ can be restored and gradually grow...”

Qing Song sighed. “Xiao Yu may have acted without intent, but she truly established a system for the ignorant sand barbarians.”

“And she has good judgment—her appointed Grand General and Chancellor are both truly deserving... at least the best choices among the sand tribes.”

“But a system alone isn’t enough. A castle in the air cannot stand.”

He looked around. “General Guan, have you noticed that the Sand Dune barbarians don’t lack iron or bronze?”

“They don’t?” General Guan glanced left and right—there were few metal items in sight.

Qing Song said: “Their weapons are all forged from fine iron. Perhaps Sand Dune has little, but I’ll tell you this: the weapons used by the Sand Dune King and his five thousand warriors were all forged by themselves.”

General Guan gasped, bent down, seized the old barbarian’s neck, and barked: “You can forge iron?”

The old barbarian’s face twisted in anguish, his eyes filled with bitterness, despair, pain, and terror. “Fifty li north... there’s... there’s a great furnace built by Yu girl. From black sand, she burns out red water. When the red water cools, it becomes black iron ingots.”

General Guan immediately activated his far-seeing eyes and scanned northward. After searching a long while, he found the “iron-smelting furnace” carved into the cliffside.

Had the old barbarian not pointed it out, he’d have thought it merely a strange cave.

But outside the cave lay piles of charcoal ash, and the surrounding rocks were blackened by smoke.

“This is all desert. Where did you mine your iron ore?” General Guan asked, his expression grave.

The old barbarian lowered his head, expressionless. “No iron ore—only black sand. Five years ago, Yu girl rolled a black rod along the riverbank sandpile. Soon, clumps of strange black sand clung to it. Then... then she burned it into iron ingots. It was miraculous. We thought she practiced sorcery.”

“What black rod?” General Guan asked.

Qing Song’s eyes flashed. “It must be a magnetic iron rod—magnetite attracting iron-rich sand from the soil.”

The people of Shu didn’t know, but he did: in Great Qin, many blacksmiths had mastered the “ancestral secret” of extracting iron from sand.

“Could there be a lot of iron sand hidden in the sand of Liushahe? Our Great Shu Kingdom is still mining in the southern mountains!” The black-armored cavalrymen were stunned and delighted, their emotions deeply complicated.

Qingsong the Daoist acolyte mused, “Why did Sha Man Yu build a smelting furnace fifty li away?”

“Why?” General Guan turned to the old barbarian. “If this is a place for forging iron, why are there only two old barbarian women living there?”

“Originally, many strong young men worked here smelting iron—they were all mighty warriors, from the Third Warrior to the Seventeenth Warrior, all forging here. Last year, when the chieftain went to war, he took all the warriors with him, and the furnaces went out.”

After a pause, the old barbarian added, “Yu girl said burning furnaces consumes too much charcoal. The dunes are where our people live—why burn down all the trees just for a few pieces of iron? We’d lose our homes.”

“Besides, she found a shallow bay nearby, where she collects even more black sand.”

“Even if the iron sand is unevenly distributed, with enough people, you can still accumulate it bit by bit. It’s still better than mining deep in the southern mountains.”

As General Guan spoke, he began calculating in his mind.

With the manpower and resources of the Sha Man tribe, they’ve managed to equip a five-thousand-man army within a few years.

The Guan family is the foremost clan of Yingxiang Prefecture—their efficiency can only be higher.

I’ll form a ‘ten-thousand-man team’ to collect iron as soon as we return.

This isn’t just collecting iron—it’s gathering mountains of gold and silver!

(PS: This setting draws from Investiture of the Gods, which explicitly states that ordinary-level earth-traveling techniques can cover a thousand li in a day.

Here, ‘day’ does not mean twenty-four hours—it means daylight, twelve hours.

There may also be stops along the way for rest, meals, and bodily functions.

Expert-level earth-traveling techniques can cover one thousand five hundred li in a day.

Below are the speeds of earth-traveling techniques in Investiture of the Gods: Golden Light Ground Travel, covering thousands of li per day. Earth-traveling method: one thousand li per day. Zhang Kui’s Earth Travel Technique can cover one thousand five hundred li in a day; Tu Xingsun can only manage one thousand li, so he cannot match him.

After the Three Xiao Niangniang used the Nine-Curves Yellow River Array to strip the Twelve Golden Immortals of their Three Flowers, Yuanshi Tianzun taught them Golden Light Ground Travel, which still only allows travel of thousands of li per day.

But this does not mean the power system of Investiture of the Gods is inferior to Journey to the West.

In fact, I find Investiture of the Gods quite reasonable, because at this point the Twelve Golden Immortals are no longer Golden Immortals—they’ve been cast down to the mortal realm. When they were still Golden Immortals, they could travel from the Northern Seas to the Western Mountains in a single day—ten thousand li per day.

By the way, everyone knows Sun Wukong can leap one hundred and eight thousand li in a single somersault.

But do you know how long it takes him to complete one somersault? At least ten to fifteen minutes!

Sun Wukong says this himself in the original text.

Here is the original passage: Sha Seng asked, ‘Master, how far is it to Lingyan?’ Wukong replied, ‘One hundred and eight thousand li—we haven’t even covered one-tenth of the journey.’ Bajie asked, ‘Brother, how many years will it take to get there?’ Wukong said, ‘For the two of you, it would take about ten days. For me, I could make fifty round trips in a single day and still see the sun.’

In one daylight period—twelve hours—he travels fifty times one hundred and eight thousand li.

This is likely when he’s rushing, his maximum speed.

In some plotlines, Sun Wukong takes half a day to complete a round trip of one hundred and eight thousand li.

Of course, this is before he became a Buddha; after becoming the Victorious Fighting Buddha and ascending further in realm, his speed increased even more.

Also, I’ve placed the PS in public chapters directly after the chapter, free of charge, and in a separate chapter that’s still part of the public chapters.

Once the novel is monetized, I certainly won’t do it this way.)