Chapter 1288

To the west of the empire, endless mountain ranges had once encircled the land, forming a natural barrier in a gently curved line that separated the Tianwu Empire from all the western kingdoms.

But seven hundred years ago, a violent earthquake struck the border between the empire and the Chilperi Kingdom, shaking the entire Infinite Mountains and carving a massive, straight chasm directly through them.

Over the following centuries, this chasm gradually became today's Heavenly Danger Gorge, through which curious western adventurers took the shortcut to the ancient eastern land, bringing trade opportunities—and potential threats.

Originally, with the Infinite Mountains as a natural barrier, it was nearly impossible for western kingdoms to move large armies over them; they had to detour through the northern Ice Kingdom, cross the Beastman Steppes, and then traverse the Elf Forest to reach the distant ancient eastern land.

But now… no such trouble was needed.

All they had to do was eliminate the seventeen Chilperi Kingdoms, widen the Heavenly Danger Gorge, and the western alliance could march directly into the ancient eastern land.

Precisely because of this, since the Heavenly Danger Gorge appeared, the Tianwu Empire had maintained friendly relations with the Chilperi Kingdom on the other side, exchanging trade and strengthening each other's power.

And because of this, the Chilperi Kingdom was envied by the other western kingdoms.

The Holy Kingdom once tried to persuade the Chilperi Kingdom to join their alliance, but the king of Chilperi at the time had firmly refused.

The king then understood perfectly the advantage and danger of the Heavenly Danger Gorge: with this gorge, both Chilperi and Tianwu would remain cautious; whichever side wished to invade, merely holding part of the gorge's path would let a small force hold back a million soldiers.

Even joining the Holy Kingdom's side would do no good—it would only damage relations with Tianwu and reduce mutual trade.

War had always been merely an excuse for aggression!

Four hundred thousand troops had to halt for rest.

The gorge's passage was at most five meters wide, and in its narrowest spots less than two meters—just enough for a single cart to pass—but its total straight-line length stretched nearly thirty thousand meters.

This did not even account for the gorge's winding, treacherous paths or its hidden dangers…

The gorge was perpetually dark and damp, home to all manner of poisons, and loose rocks above could tumble down at any time.

An ordinary person would need at least one full day to cross the gorge.

These four hundred thousand troops could not possibly cross in a single day—they would need at least two—but the Chilperi Kingdom on the other end was in dire straits, and enemy forces might already be lying in ambush at the exit or even along the way.

With the gorge's narrow terrain, the enemy needed no equal numbers: ten thousand heavily armored soldiers could hold off this four-hundred-thousand-strong army for days, forcing them to retreat first from unsustainable supply consumption.

"What do you suggest?"

The army was now camped before the Heavenly Danger Gorge; the longer they delayed, the worse it would be for Chilperi's war effort—but advancing now was unthinkable.

The gorge's terrain was too narrow; if the army could not press forward continuously, any ambush would make turning back extremely difficult, likely causing chaos within the ranks and wasting precious time inside the gorge.

Lei Yi believed sending out reconnaissance squads was the safest approach.

"Should we first dispatch small reconnaissance teams?"

But the problem was they were running out of time.

"No, time is too tight—if we miss the optimal moment, we lose our chance! We won't just fail to save Chilperi, we'll be surrounded by Taki and Lei Dun!" Imperial Prince Li Chun immediately objected.

"Indeed, the prince speaks wisely," Lord Xuan Wuji glanced at Imperial Prince Li Chun and nodded in agreement.

In the years since they last met, the third prince had grown sensible—he understood the principle that speed is paramount in warfare.

If they missed the optimal moment for a two-pronged strike, their mission would be in vain.

Even if they returned successfully to the empire, if Chilperi had already fallen, the empire's future would no longer be as secure as before.

"Then what do you propose? We can't just charge through, can we?" Lei Dun sighed.

He wished the Lei Ying Legion could march swiftly, but he would never believe the other side was unguarded—even five thousand soldiers could hold off this four-hundred-thousand-strong army for a full day.

"Your Highness, what do you think?" Lord Xuan Wuji turned his gaze to Imperial Prince Li Chun, deliberately asking.

He already had an idea in mind, but he wanted to see what Li Chun would suggest—if Li Chun truly sought the crown prince's position, courage alone would not suffice.

"Speed is paramount… send reconnaissance teams, but the main army must keep advancing! We must proceed with caution," Imperial Prince Li Chun proposed.

He vaguely suspected Lord Xuan Wuji already had a plan—but the commander was waiting for him to speak, testing his capabilities.