Chapter 64: Infiltrate

"What did you say? Say it again!"

Li Zhen sprang to his feet, grabbed the soldier's collar, and roared.

"The… General Huo… was… killed by Jiang Xiaomu!"

The soldier shook all over and stammered.

Li Zhen froze; after a brief shock, a strange smile appeared on his face.

"Better that he's dead; saves me the trouble."

Li Zhen let go of the soldier and spoke calmly.

"Go, relay the order: the entire army is to rest, await my command, and prepare to attack the city!"

The generals exchanged bewildered glances, not understanding why Li Zhen was so calm.

"Huo Yuanba is dead; they've lost a great general—attacking the city now would be even harder, wouldn't it?"

"General, General Huo fell in battle, morale is low; attacking now, I fear…"

A general advised cautiously.

"No need for more words; I have my own plans."

Li Zhen waved his hand, cutting him off.

"Yes!"

The generals dared not speak further and all withdrew.

Li Zhen walked up to the map, his gaze landing on the city where Jiang Xiaomu was, a cold smile on his face.

"Jiang Xiaomu, do you think killing Huo Yuanba lets you rest easy? You're too naive!"

As it turns out, Li Zhen had long sent hundreds of elite soldiers disguised as refugees to infiltrate Yun Cheng.

Their mission was not to attack the city, but to gather intelligence and learn Jiang Xiaomu's details.

"A few hundred lives for this intel—worth it!"

Li Zhen could hardly wait to utterly destroy Jiang Xiaomu.

Inside Yun Cheng, Jiang Xiaomu, though forcing himself to handle military affairs, had a pallid face and a lingering sense of weakness.

He rubbed his temples, thinking: This body is still too weak; I need to boost my strength quickly.

Xiong Kuohai rushed in, saying:

"Sir, all the doctors in the city have come and are waiting outside."

"Let them in."

Jiang Xiaomu said weakly.

A group of doctors filed in, each nervously taking Jiang Xiaomu's pulse, but they all shook their heads and sighed, unable to say what was wrong.

"Trash! A bunch of trash!" Xiong Kuohai angrily cursed.

"You can't even tell what's wrong with the lord; what good are you?"

Jiang Xiaomu waved his hand, signaling Xiong Kuohai to calm down.

"No need to trouble them; I know my own body."

"Just a bit of weakness; rest and I'll be fine." Having said that, he had the doctors retreat.

The doctors, as if pardoned, all took their leave.

Jiang Xiaomu closed his eyes and silently opened the system panel.

【Host: Jiang Xiaomu】

【Heaven's Mandate Points: 200】

【Redeemable Items: Strong Body Pill (100 Heaven's Mandate Points), Marrow Washing Bone Forging Elixir (500 Heaven's Mandate Points), …】

Seeing the dazzling array of redeemable items, Jiang Xiaomu unhesitatingly chose the Strong Body Pill.

Redeem Strong Body Pill.

He swallowed it in one gulp; the pill melted on contact, Jiang Xiaomu clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within, a smile curling his lips.

Night fell, and Yun Cheng was shrouded in silence.

The hundreds of elite soldiers Li Zhen had planted inside the city were now hidden in every corner, awaiting dawn.

One of the leaders, named Erhu, hid in a ruined temple, holding a map and carefully studying Yun Cheng's layout.

"Big brother, when do we move?"

A soldier asked quietly.

"Don't rush, wait for General Li's order." Erhu said coldly.

"Remember, our mission is to create chaos inside the city."

"Draw the garrison's attention, creating an opportunity for the main force to attack the city."

"Big brother, I've heard that the city's defender, Jiang Xiaomu, is a ruthless bastard; this time…"

That soldier was a little worried.

Erhu snorted dismissively.

"Ruthless? I'm tougher than him! When we attack the city…"

"I'll be the first to charge up and take that brat's dog head!"

The other soldiers also chimed in, each cracking their knuckles, eager to try.

"Alright, you keep watch here; I'm going to take a leak."

Having said that, Erhu left the ruined temple, felt his way down a dark alley, undid his belt, and was about to urinate.

Suddenly, with a 'bang,' he collided with a wall of flesh.

"Which blind bastard dares block my path! Courting death!"

The ear-splitting roar scared Erhu into a shudder; he almost held his pee back.

He silently thought, "Oh no," if this got discovered, his little life would be over.

He endured the pain from the blow, dared not make a sound, and only hoped Xiong Kuohai would hurry away.

Xiong Kuohai was frantically searching the city for a doctor, his mind irritated beyond endurance; being suddenly bumped made him even more furious.

"Damn it, are you blind!? You hit someone and want to run? Stand still, you bastard!"

He grabbed Erhu's collar in one fist and lifted him up like a chick.

Erhu was terrified out of his wits, yet dared not resist, and could only plead for mercy in a humble voice:

"Sir, I have eyes but fail to recognize Mount Tai; I've offended you."

"Please, sir, don't hold it against me; spare me."

"Spare you? Do you even know who I am? I am……"

Xiong Kuohai was about to announce his name when he suddenly recalled Jiang Xiaomu's order to act discreetly, lest he alert the enemy.

He forcibly swallowed the second half of his sentence and changed to cursing:

"You bastard, can't you watch where you're going? You nearly ruined my important affair!"

"I deserve to die, I deserve to die."

Erhu kowtowed repeatedly, while in his mind he plotted how to escape.

Xiong Kuohai shoved him away, muttering curses as he walked off.

He continued to rush about the city, growing angrier the more he thought.

As he walked and cursed, he alerted the city's patrol soldiers.

Several soldiers, seeing his suspicious appearance, stepped forward to question him:

"Who are you? What are you sneaking around the city for in the middle of the night?"

Xiong Kuohai, feeling vexed, snapped angrily:

"Get lost! I'm Xiong Kuohai—do you dare to stop me?"

Upon hearing it was Xiong Kuohai, the soldiers dared not say another word and quickly offered apologetic smiles:

"It turns out to be General Xiong; we have eyes but fail to recognize Mount Tai—please forgive us, General Xiong."

"Cut the crap! I've no time to waste with you—get lost!"

Xiong Kuohai waved his hand impatiently.

"All right!" The soldiers, as if pardoned, hurriedly slipped away.

Xiong Kuohai continued to search the city for a doctor, but found nothing.

He wandered a few more rounds in the dark alley, still finding no trace of a doctor.

He couldn't help but kick hard at a broken pottery jar by the roadside.

"Damn it, this godforsaken place—can't even find a doctor!"

Suddenly, a flash of insight crossed his mind—the person he had just bumped……

Xiong Kuohai abruptly stopped his steps, carefully recalling what had just happened.

Something's off! Clearly I was the one who bumped him, yet he didn't retort, merely begging for mercy in a humble voice.

Moreover, although he wore ordinary commoner's clothes, his arms were strong when he walked, his steps steady—clearly a trained fighter! Even more like……a soldier!