It was midsummer of the sixth year of Chongde.
The Central Plains, which had been peaceful for just over forty years, were once again engulfed in flames of war. In addition to Yelü Yan in the north and Hai Linqin in the east, Wei Nan, the former governor of Sizhou in the south, Wu Xiao, the bandit leader of Qishan, and Tan Xin, the leader of the Robin Hood-like outlaws in the west, all declared themselves kings and generals and rose up in rebellion against the tyranny of Emperor Rui.
When Liuli, Li Molin, and the others arrived at the northern battlefield, Yelü Yan was leading his troops to attack Huyue Pass again.
Tiger Leap Pass is located in the Tiger-shaped Mountain Range at the border of Moyan Prefecture and Qi Prefecture. The peaks of the Tiger-shaped Mountain Range are not very high, but the terrain is steep. The mountain range stretches for about a hundred miles from east to west. The peaks, when connected together, look like a fierce tiger from a distance, hence the name.
Huyue Pass was built between two mountains and appeared rectangular when viewed from the sky. It had two gates: the southern gate, which led to the Central Plains, was called the South Gate, and the northern gate was inscribed with the three large characters "Huyue Pass". The entire Huyue Pass was about ten li long from east to west and six li wide from north to south. It had arrow towers, watchtowers, corner towers, and other towers. The city walls were about seven zhang high and two zhang thick.
The two armies faced off inside and outside Huyue Pass. Liang Yimo and Xu Wu, the former garrison commander of the pass, led the troops of the Dasheng Kingdom to guard the pass, while more than 30,000 Northern Rong cavalry were encamped outside the pass, about five miles away.
It was late at night, and apart from those on duty on the city walls, all the soldiers of the Dasheng Kingdom guarding Huyue Pass were resting in their camps inside the inner city.
Meanwhile, the Northern Rong troops outside the pass were all resting in their respective barracks. Except for the commander's barracks, which were still brightly lit, the lights in the other Northern Rong barracks had been turned off.
In the spacious commander's barracks, the candles were more than half lit. Behind a large table in the center, a burly man with a rugged face sat upright in a chair, looking down at the map spread out on the table, his face full of contemplation.
Suddenly, the tent flap of the barracks was lifted, and a man dressed in black walked in slowly. He found a chair and sat down comfortably, a wicked smile on his lips, and said lazily, "Yelü Wang is looking for me?"
Yelü Yan looked up at the man, frowning and thinking unhappily, "I did send someone to summon him, but that was two hours ago."
He barely suppressed his displeasure and said in a pleasant tone, "Yes, Young Master Wolf has arrived."
The man in black had a sinister face; his eyes were long and narrow, with deep-set sockets, sharp eyes, and yellowish-brown pupils. Although he often wore a smile, his gaze was always cold and menacing, capable of chilling anyone who looked at him.
He chuckled deeply and casually asked, "I wonder what business King Yelü has with me?"
Yelü Yan leaned forward, his posture humble, and asked modestly, "Tiger Leap Pass is easy to defend but difficult to attack. Does Young Master Wolf have any good strategies?"
The man in black chuckled, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world, and said without the slightest politeness, "Is King Yelü joking? How could I possibly know your military strategies? At worst..."
He looked at Yelü Yan with a wicked smile and said, "At worst, if King Yelü is captured again, I'll come and rescue you. Don't come looking for me for anything else."
Hearing the sarcasm in the man's words, Yelü Yan was furious, but considering the man's extraordinary abilities, he could only suppress his anger and said dryly, "There's nothing else. It's late, Young Master Wolf, you should go and rest."
"Oh." The man in black nodded indifferently. He stretched and was about to get up when he suddenly stopped, turned his head sharply to look at the tent flap, and became wary.
Not long after, the tent flap was lifted, and four figures filed in.
The first to enter was a burly man in black, followed closely by a woman in white, who was holding a tabby cat in her arms. The last two to enter were a somewhat frail-looking man and a burly giant.
Li Molin used the Binding God Rope to grab Liuli. Liuli made a huge fuss for a while before finally calming down under Li Molin's half-threat and half-pleading coaxing. It was also because she was curious about the Northern Rong's camp that she managed to keep up the commotion.
She entered the tent, looked around, and finally curiously gazed at the black-clad man sitting casually in the chair. At that moment, the black-clad man was also looking at her, or more precisely, at the tabby cat in her arms.
Ahua, who was originally curled up lazily in Liuli's arms, was so frightened when she suddenly saw the sinister-looking man in black that she trembled and hid her frightened face in Liuli's arms.
Li Molin entered the tent first. He first glanced at Yelü Yan, who was sitting behind a low table, then casually shifted his gaze to the strange-looking man in black.
"Who are you?!" Yelü Yan was stunned for a moment before coming to his senses and asked in surprise, "How did you get in?"
He couldn't help but be surprised. This tent was located in the very center of the Northern Rong army camp. Not to mention the soldiers who patrolled back and forth at night, even the guards outside the commander's tent were not just for show!
Li Molin ignored Yelü Yan, scrutinizing the man in black on the chair for a long time, his eyes growing increasingly hesitant. After a long while, he bowed slightly, his posture surprisingly humble, and said in a deep voice, "I am Li Molin, the young master of the Demon Clan. May I ask who this young master is?"
Having grown accustomed to Li Molin's arrogant and haughty demeanor, Liu Li was taken aback when she suddenly saw him being so humble. She leaned over to look at Li Molin, wondering with a puzzled expression, "What's wrong with Li Molin's brain this time?"
"Young Master of the Demon Clan?" The man in black withdrew his gaze from Ah Hua and stared intently at Li Molin, his eyes deep and unfathomable. After pondering for a while, a smile appeared on his face, and he stood up to greet Li Molin, saying with exceptional warmth, "I am Lang Yuan, greetings to Young Master Li."
Li Molin said with a smile, "So it's Young Master Langyuan. You're quite capable, Young Master. In this day and age, there are very few demons who can overcome the demon calamity on their own."
Li Molin's words were clearly a test. Indeed, the spiritual energy in ancient times was more than a hundred times more abundant than it is now. Back then, most intelligent demons could overcome their demonic tribulations if they cultivated diligently. However, now that there are many human cultivators in the Central Plains, after dividing the abundant spiritual energy in the world, there is very little left that can awaken the intelligence of ordinary animals, let alone support these demons through their demonic tribulations.
If Lang Yuan wasn't a genius who overcame the demon calamity on his own, then he must have been helped by some powerful cultivator or demon.
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