Chapter 698

"Tang Commander."

This was the old form of address for Tang Zhao at Zhaoyang Camp; at that time, everyone called him that.

However, Chi Deputy Envoy was not at Zhaoyang Camp back then. He was originally the Deputy Garrison Commander of Jichun City, which is to say, the local Deputy Commander of Zhuoyu Villa. Come to think of it, he was not only an old comrade-in-arms of Tang Zhao, but actually had a half-mentor relationship with him. When Tang Zhao first became a Sword Guest, he had asked Chi Deputy Envoy to provide training, which helped him a great deal and from which he still benefits to this day.

Counting it up, it has been a year since that time. Tang Zhao had basically never returned, and even when he returned to Zhuoyu Villa, he had not passed through Jichun City. It seems that during this period, Chi Deputy Envoy had also been transferred here to serve as the Main Envoy. This was Tang Zhao's guess: firstly, his current leadership status is similar to Che Lin's; secondly, he was originally a Deputy Envoy, and if he were still a Deputy Envoy, there would be no need for a transfer.

In fact, Chi Deputy Envoy had been a Sword Guest for quite some time; his seniority was not bad, and his strength was sufficient. It was only natural for him to be promoted to Main Envoy. If it weren't for his well-known fondness for wine and his greed for the cup, he should have been a Main Envoy of a region long ago.

Tang Zhao had fought side-by-side with him many times, and even his first battle after becoming a Sword Guest was with him. Knowing he was powerful and reliable, seeing that it was him who had come, Tang Zhao felt half his worries vanish.

He had previously invited Che Lin to go to Yunzhou to study, but he could not guarantee that there were no black sheep in the Yunzhou Inspection Division. If they ran into someone unreliable before even entering Yunzhou, someone whose character and cultivation were not even as good as Che Lin's, wouldn't that be a slap in his own face?

Che Lin felt a chill, thinking: "Tang Commander, is that what you mean?"

Tang Zhao laughed: "You're too polite. I'm not Tang Commander anymore."

Chi Deputy Envoy—now he should be called the Dinghun City Town Guardian Chi Qianli—brought people over. Upon confirming it was Tang Zhao, he first dismounted and bowed with hands folded, then returned to that slightly tipsy feeling. It was just unclear if he had become more serious after becoming a Town Guardian, but those originally blurry eyes had become much clearer, looking a bit less distinctive. He said: "Why aren't you Tang Commander? Have you already stepped down as Deputy Commander? I didn't receive any notification."

Tang Zhao only then realized: he himself was a bit muddled. Being called Tang Commander, in the final analysis, was not because he was the commander of Zhaoyang Camp, but because he held the position of Deputy Commander of the Inspection Division.

That was conferred by the Gaoyuan Marquis when he brought the news of the Golden Crow from Baiyujing, and it was also the highest substantive position he currently held. He hadn't officially taken up the post, but this title had always been there; being conferred a marquis did not interfere with his duties.

Tang Zhao laughed: "Brother Chi is too polite. We are old comrades-in-arms, why bother with titles?"

Chi Qianli laughed: "If I don't call you Tang Commander, should I call you Lord Marquis?"

Tang Zhao waved his hands repeatedly. Although anyone who was conferred a marquis could be called Lord Marquis, in Yunzhou, "Lord Marquis" could only refer to the Gaoyuan Marquis. Tang Zhao had never taken his own "Fuguang Marquis" title to heart; being a marquis didn't mean much to him. After all, the tasks he faced could not be solved by a marquis of the Human World.

However, everyone behind him was stunned.

This "everyone" did not just refer to the Youzhou crowd including Che Lin, but also the Yunzhou crowd behind Chi Qianli.

What Commander, what Lord Marquis—is this the identity a plain-looking young man a generation younger than oneself should have when he suddenly appears?

Is such a big shot someone of my status should be meeting?

I'm not even prepared yet, hey!

However, seeing that this big shot was already before them, let alone the Yunzhou subordinates bowing together, even the Youzhou crowd lowered their heads one after another, adding another layer of respect for Tang Zhao.

Although they were not under each other's command, a big shot of this level would put pressure on people, making them become respectful unconsciously.

Chi Qianli said happily: "This Demon Cave appeared abruptly, and we were only given less than a day in total. Although I notified the Inspection Envoy, he might not be able to arrive in time. Presumably, the brothers from Youzhou are the same. I was just afraid of some accident, and then you, Young Master Tang, arrived. With you here, what is there to fear? Let alone no accidents, even if there really were accidents, then it would just be their bad luck."

Tang Zhao said: "If there are no accidents, there will definitely be an accident." He thought that the Demon Sect had already secretly reached Che Lin's home, so they clearly attached great importance to this Demon Cave. He asked Chi Qianli if any similar accidents had occurred in Yunzhou.

Chi Qianli thought for a moment and said no. Although there were indeed traces of Demon Sect activity in the surrounding area, the kind of major accident that happened at Che Lin's home had not occurred.

As for the traces of the Demon Sect, it was not that they didn't attach importance to them, but the Demon Sect was different from the Turtle Bandits. The Turtle Bandits would not appear unless they had a major conspiracy, with clear targets and leaders. But the Demon Sect was like cockroaches; they were everywhere, impossible to catch or kill off completely, and their connections were weak. Apart from strict defense and guarding, there really was no good way to deal with them. The old Inspection Division was already used to it.

Tang Zhao pondered secretly: Is this differential treatment? Is it because Yunzhou's management is strict, leaving the Demon Sect no opportunity? Or is it specifically aimed at Che Lin? Could it be that there is something different about Che Lin's sword?

Chi Qianli also only learned how he and Che Lin met after hearing Tang Zhao's introduction. He took the initiative to step forward to meet him, then said: "Town Guardian Che, since this Demon Cave has come so urgently and suspiciously, you and I must cooperate sincerely so that we won't fall into a trap. Since we are cooperating, we must avoid having orders coming from multiple sources. I suggest that Tang Commander act as the leader to command uniformly. How about you and I both guarantee that our respective units will obey orders?"

Che Lin looked at Tang Zhao and said: "No problem."

He agreed so readily that Chi Qianli was somewhat surprised and couldn't help but think more highly of Che Lin. He thought: Youzhou is indeed one of the few states where the Inspection Division's organizational structure remains intact; even a random Town Guardian can consider the overall situation, something we might not even be able to do.

He did not know that if he had come two days earlier, Che Lin would definitely have haggled over it. Even if he knew Tang Zhao was a Sword Hero, for the sake of Youzhou's face, he would have had to argue. It was just that now, Che Lin did not care about these things. Now, he was actively thinking:

What is the most important thing?

Since Che Lin was so cooperative, Chi Qianli's attitude also became much friendlier. Tang Zhao knew that at this time, he should not decline. Although he did not have enough experience in presiding over the suppression of a Demon Cave, firstly, he already had the experience of commanding a large force, and secondly, he had two experienced Town Guardians to assist him, so he thought he could handle it.

Moreover, when all is said and done, defeating the enemy still depends on strength. Especially in small-scale battles dominated by Heavenly Demons, it is strength that speaks. Tang Zhao had the greatest strength, so others could only be convinced.

Tang Zhao said: "Although time is tight, the things that need to be done must be completed. Both sides should first compare their respective data, and at the same time, send out scouts to investigate."

In the division of labor of the Inspection Division, there were originally light scouts, usually served by outstanding Sword Students or Spirit Officials. Among them, Spirit Officials serving as scouts had a great safety advantage.

Chi Deputy Envoy signaled a young Sword Student to go out and investigate, and used the "Green Ants" Sword Art to help. On Che Lin's side, a Spirit Official was sent out, who was his Deputy Commander.

The scouts from both sides detoured to investigate separately, and there was a second vanguard team following behind to provide support.

At the same time, Tang Zhao took out a large tent to serve as a temporary headquarters, and also provided tents for the dozens of Inspection Division members on both sides to use as their stations. The Youzhou crowd was very surprised: what kind of operation is it for a Sword Hero to travel with tents for a hundred people?

This was also because Tang Zhao had just returned from Wangliang Mountain, so he was carrying marching equipment; he hadn't expected it to be useful at this time.

Tang Zhao arranged the layout of the camp and the sentries, and took the Town Guardians, Deputy Town Guardians, and the specialists in charge of intelligence from both sides into the large tent. He posted a map of the surroundings in the tent, and both sides brought their intelligence together.

The time the Yunzhou Inspection Division and the Youzhou Inspection Division sensed the Yin Calamity was about the same. It can be seen that if someone could hide it, that person's methods were quite remarkable, and it was not specifically to deceive anyone, but to hide the time of the Demon Cave's arrival in every aspect.

The speculated locations were not far apart for both sides, but the speculated times differed.

Perhaps it was not that they differed, but that Youzhou only narrowed it down to this afternoon and evening, while Yunzhou's world was much more precise.

Evening time.

"I think being too precise is not good," Youzhou's Thousand-Household Officer Wang said disapprovingly. "We are just analyzing, not calculating. How can we be precise to such a short interval? I'm afraid you are too confident."

The one summarizing the intelligence for Yunzhou was the Deputy Envoy, who said calmly: "We just have this confidence."

Chi Qianli said to Tang Zhao: "It should be correct."

He gave a wink, and Tang Zhao understood; this had been calculated by Zhang Rong.

It wasn't necessarily Zhang Rong himself. Zhang Rong had been in Yunzhou for two years. He usually made some Calculation Star Plates and also taught a few successors. Now he could be considered to have some achievements. Although not as precise and infallible as Zhang Rong himself, combined with the specially made star plate calculations, it was also very reliable.

Moreover, ever since Tang Zhao developed Daily Art Tools, the Inspection Division was the first to switch to real-time communication Art Tools. Although they had only received the news for a day, they were already able to contact Zhongtian Prefecture to request support from the Heavenly Numbers there. Even if Zhang Rong could not get away, his disciples could help, so they were able to get precise feedback.

Tang Zhao nodded and said: "Then we will prepare seventy percent according to the evening, and leave thirty percent for contingencies. Evening is the earlier part of the time interval. If it is not evening, then it will be later, and we can just postpone it. Making arrangements in advance is not a loss."

He did not distrust Yunzhou's time, but wanted to protect Zhang Rong. Even now, unauthorized calculation of Heavenly Numbers was still a taboo. Even if the Imperial Court was half-dead, it would still "resurrect" when encountering such things.

Che Lin felt there was no problem and nodded in agreement. Everyone continued to analyze the intelligence. There were still many differences in the intelligence from both sides, but both clearly analyzed that this was a Water-type Demon Cave.

"Youzhou believes it is a Medium-sized Demon Cave. Yunzhou believes it is a Medium-sized... or above."

That is to say, there is a possibility of a Large-sized Demon Cave.

"Now it can be said that the Demon Cave will be no smaller than the area of the grassland. We just sent people to measure the grassland. If the radius exceeds ten miles, then the probability of a Large-sized Demon Cave increases."

Tang Zhao analyzed all the intelligence, and then arranged for everyone to go about their business. In addition to measuring and investigating the Demon Cave, there was another important task, which was to search for traces of the Demon Sect. Because this was very important, the Inspection Division personnel were not allowed to walk alone and had to carry out tasks in small teams.

After arranging everyone properly, the Town Guardians on both sides also had to go out to command. Tang Zhao kept Che Lin and said: "Town Guardian Che, is it convenient to reveal the direction of your Sword Intent?"