Until he was impatiently riding out of the pass, looking at the faint military tents on the horizon, Zhao Changhe suddenly turned and took a detour, silently cursing himself for being so flustered and not knowing what he was in a hurry for.

If He Lei had died, it would have been announced to the world. Yue Hongling's presence on the People's List clearly meant that she was being treated with some respect. Since there was no announcement, it at least proved that she was alive.

It seemed that besides causing trouble and showing off, the biggest advantage of the Chaos Chronicles was to report safety...

Thinking about this, he could draw inferences about other cases—someone like Yue Hongling, if she had really fallen into danger, the barbarians would have publicized it long ago. Since they hadn't, it was clear that she hadn't been captured, and it was more likely that she hadn't encountered any danger at all, just scaring herself.

The vast grassland was so wide, with the desert to the west and the desert to the north. Even after crossing the desert, it was still grassland, and it was not uncommon to be out of contact for one or two months.

Presumably, Cui Yuanyong was also very speechless just now, praising your intelligence on one hand and doing something stupid on the other.

There's no way... caring is chaotic, and I would be just as anxious if my sister lost contact...

Anyway, this time out, he would do the task while looking for news of Yue Hongling. It's not impossible that two things would turn into one.

Zhao Changhe calmed down and quietly rode his horse, observing the surrounding environment along the way. Inside and outside the pass, there was a world of difference, and it had a significant impact on people's minds.

"Outside Yanmen Pass, wild people live, not raising silkworms or planting hemp; there are no pear or jujube trees for a hundred miles, how could there be peach and apricot blossoms in spring?"

This was the watershed between farming and nomadism, and just one mountain away was two different civilizations.

Seeing many towering mountains inside the pass did not evoke poetic feelings, but coming out here seemed to bring up a lot of sentences about the division of civilization. Even the famous "Do not let the Hu horses cross the Yin Mountains" had not been thought of before... Now seeing the grassland and the military tents, it suddenly occurred to him that this was the intersection of the Yin Mountains and the Taihang Mountains, and this was where the Hu horses were crossing the Yin Mountains!

The division and intersection of civilization, yet the time and space were connected here, which was quite interesting.

This was still a war zone, not where his mission was, so Zhao Changhe made a big detour and headed west.

The Northern Hu was a general term, but it was actually a union of multiple ethnic groups. Although the Great Khan Temujin was also called a king, in the eyes of the Central Plains, the concept was more like a leader. Even his own tribe was divided into countless sub-tribes, and he was from the Golden Wolf tribe. There were many others like the War Lion and Black Wolf, but recently, his own tribe was in a bit of trouble.

He Lei was the leader of the War Lion tribe, and the one killed by Yue Hongling when she entered the People's List was the Black Wolf King, all of whom were strong members of Temujin's own tribe.

It was hard to say whether this would cause certain thoughts among other tribes, as Temujin was third on the Heavenly List, and his deterrent power to the various tribes on the grassland was not lower than that of Xia Longyuan to the Central Plains forces.

Who was second on the Heavenly List?

The Great Shaman of Changshengtian.

He was not actually from the same ethnic group as Temujin, but he did not participate in tribal disputes and only stayed in the temple. Whoever unified the grassland had nothing to do with him. However, his control over the grassland might even surpass that of Temujin.

But he participated in the battle in the Central Plains... the Red Fox, was his direct disciple.

From this perspective, it could be said that Xia Longyuan was single-handedly suppressing the second and third. They had not personally appeared on the front lines, which was also a kind of tacit understanding with Xia Longyuan.

Or it was also possible that they were fighting in secret?

For example, was the lightning related to the temple of Changshengtian? Zhao Changhe felt that there was still some possibility, at least the blind man would not strike lightning just because of a little disrespect, and the Hu gods who were in battle were a bit possible.

In any case, due to the characteristics of the various tribes on the grassland, the locations of the allied forces were often far apart, which gave people like Yue Hongling the opportunity to cause trouble everywhere, which was very suitable for martial arts masters to do. This was how she broke into the Black Wolf camp.

This time, a small team went to a relatively distant tribal settlement, mainly to gather intelligence. If there was an opportunity, they could also attempt to do things like burning crops, similar to a military scout, but more special operations. It was dangerous, but they were all martial arts masters, not ordinary soldiers. The main thing was to gather information, not to act as a suicide squad. If something happened, they would scatter and run, and it was unlikely that the entire army would be wiped out and not even one person would come back.

Cui Yuanyong felt that at least they should confirm what had happened, at least confirm the death. If they hadn't died and were just trapped or captured, they still had to find a way to rescue them.

Zhao Changhe also felt it was necessary, and this time he felt a strong sense of mission.

It was really far, and Wuzhui unleashed the full power of the horse and galloped for a whole day without seeing the sky darken.

When he unfolded the map, he looked at it blankly, not knowing where he was positioned. What use was the map?

Just as he was feeling a little headache, he sensed people approaching from a distance. Zhao Changhe reined in his horse and looked around, seeing a small mound, he galloped over and hid behind it to observe.

Damn, it's not easy to find a small mound on this boundless plain. Fortunately, Wuzhui was very clever and didn't make a sound.

Under the cover of night, a convoy gradually approached, with a strict formation and over a thousand people. It looked like a well-trained army, but there were many vehicles and horses escorting them, and it seemed like a merchant convoy, except that the vehicles were empty.

Zhao Changhe was somewhat astonished. Most of them looked like people from the Central Plains... It looked like they were going to trade with the grassland, and the goods had already been unloaded. But why weren't the empty vehicles loaded with other goods to take back?

At a time like this, there were still people trading?

Zhao Changhe thought of Ji Yinan's shop. Where did the goods from the grassland come from at this time?

Since there were goods from the grassland coming south, were there goods from the Central Plains going north?

Someone was speaking in standard Central Plains Mandarin: "At a time like this, you're still afraid of bandits? I told you it's impossible."

Another person said, "It's not the bandits we're afraid of. At a time like this, would real bandits dare to approach this area? We're afraid of real military forces disguised as bandits."

"They wouldn't, would they? They usually play this game on ordinary days, but at a time like this?"

"Hard to say." Someone sighed, "Do you know that it's not just the grassland tribes who pretend to be bandits to rob? Who else is there?"

"Who else?""Of course, it's Huangfu Yongxian. If he robs you, you can only swallow your teeth and blood. That old geezer wouldn't dare to make a fuss about it, but he'd dare to gobble it up."

Zhao Changhe had his suspicions.

Damn it, the Central Plains merchants are selling grain to the barbarians at this time, aren't they? I've heard of such things, but I never expected them to play this game even during wartime. Impressive.

Huangfu Yongxian has long been stationed at the border; he probably has his own considerations and it's not easy for him to make a move. Directly snatching it back is also a viable option.

The conversation continued on the other side:

"Recently, there's something even more disgusting. Have you heard about the solo horse bandit?"

"Huh? What's a solo horse bandit? Can one person really rob others?"

"When she's called Yue Hongling, she can."

Zhao Changhe: "……"

"So, it's essential to have a large group. If there are slightly fewer people, there have been several incidents where Yue Hongling robbed a whole group by herself."

"I see…" The man shrank his neck: "She's not nearby right now, is she?"

"We have a lot of people this time; of course, she wouldn't dare. Maybe she's waiting on the road at Huangsha Gathering. Someone was ambushed by her on this route before, leaving everyone in panic." The previous speaker gritted his teeth: "When I return, I'll report to the family head and find a way to get back at that wench. She still lives in the Central Plains after all; the monk may run away, but the temple can't. Offending us won't be so easily forgotten!"

Someone laughed: "We have over a thousand people this time; if she's brave enough to come, we'll strip her bare for the brothers to have some fun."

What followed was a bunch of obscenities.

Zhao Changhe frowned and pondered for a moment, then suddenly realized something and looked up at the sky.

The direction pointed by the Big Dipper... the direction of this troop was north.

Search bit.ly/3iBfjkV for the original.

He sorted through his thoughts and roughly understood the situation... These people were most likely trafficking grain and weapons to the tribe he originally intended to visit, only he was off course, this place being to the north. After they unloaded their goods, they would continue north, with empty carts heading to Huangsha Gathering to restock.

Zhao Changhe hesitated for a moment.

Should he go south to check out that tribe, or head north to Huangsha Gathering?