Chapter 57

Wu Tiejun sat on his horse, his back straighter than a javelin. His gaze swept over the surroundings like that of a hawk, missing nothing out of the ordinary. The task of escorting the tribute was of utmost importance, which was why Prince Jing entrusted it to their "Iron Blood Camp." As the leader of the Iron Blood Camp, he was far from a reckless brute. Prince Jing valued his calmness, caution, and formidable combat skills!

An ancient saying goes, "A journey of a hundred miles is only half over when ninety miles have been completed." The closer they got to the capital, the more vigilant they needed to be. If anything went wrong here, he would have no way to explain it to Prince Jing.

In the entire escort team, only he knew that the five large carts contained only ordinary goods. The real treasure was hidden in the flagpole he held in his hand.

No bandit would dare to rob the army's escort. Even if they had the nerve, they might not know that the real treasure was hidden in the flagpole. As long as the flagpole remained intact, losing some ordinary goods would not be a big deal. Wu Tiejun was confident in his skills and was sure he could protect the flagpole.

"Up ahead, we'll enter Langya Town. Once we get there, the men can rest for a while and have some dry rations before we set off again!" Wu Tiejun shouted.

The soldiers cheered. After such a long journey, they could finally rest for a bit. For them, this was a rare opportunity to relax. They were only fifty miles from the capital, and everyone felt that the mission would surely go smoothly. Who would be so bold as to rob the tribute near the capital?

What they didn't expect was that there was indeed someone with such audacity.

As the team approached the entrance of Langya Town, a sudden change occurred!

The lead horses suddenly fell into a large pit without warning. The sounds of neighing horses and cursing soldiers echoed continuously, and the first ten or so riders fell into the pit!

In the face of this sudden change, the well-trained Iron Blood Camp showed their composure and discipline. After the front riders fell into the pit, the rear troops did not panic. The soldiers quickly pulled on their reins, and the entire formation came to an abrupt stop, maintaining perfect order.

"Front squad, scout for the enemy and rescue the fallen comrades. Left squad, right squad, guard the tribute on the spot. Rear squad, be on alert!" Wu Tiejun quickly issued orders, everything under his control.

Suddenly, Wu Tiejun smelled the scent of saltpeter and sulfur. Before he could react, the rear of the formation erupted with the sound of firecrackers. Sparks flew, and the explosions continued in rapid succession. Although the soldiers remained calm, the horses, being animals, were still animals, with limited intelligence. Hearing the firecrackers, the horses became uncontrollable, charging forward in blind panic, heedless of their riders' shouts and whips!

Despite knowing there was a pit ahead, the warhorses still charged forward without hesitation. The soldiers on their backs tumbled into the pit like dumplings into a pot.

Wu Tiejun was no exception. His horse was spooked, and no matter how he tried to control it, he couldn't stop it. With a "splash," he and his horse fell into the pit. After a chaotic scramble, a thick white mist rose from the pit, quickly enveloping everything in a dense fog, making it impossible to see anything.

Wu Tiejun stood up, tightly gripping the flagpole. Just as he was about to rally his men, he was knocked off balance by a charging horse. To maintain his balance, he temporarily let go of the flagpole and used his hand to steady himself. In that moment, a black rope, like a snake's tongue, suddenly appeared in the mist, coiling around the flagpole in a flash. Before Wu Tiejun could react, the rope tightened, and the flagpole, along with the rope, disappeared into the thick white fog!

Wu Tiejun's heart sank. He knew he had fallen into the enemy's trap! What good were the Iron Blood Camp's formidable combat skills if they couldn't even see the enemy? Who would they fight? The firecrackers and the pit?

What puzzled him was how the enemy knew the real treasure was in the flagpole?

When the mist cleared and the soldiers pulled their horses out of the pit, they found their leader, Wu Tiejun, standing by the pit, dazed and disoriented.

One of the soldiers went to check and reported back cheerfully, "Report to the leader, the tribute is intact. It seems these bandits were afraid of your might and just made a show of force before fleeing..."

"Get lost!" Wu Tiejun's eyes blazed with fury, and he wanted to cut this sycophantic subordinate down with a single stroke!

By the time the Iron Blood Camp recovered from the chaos, Song Li had already led the Justice Alliance brothers twenty miles away.

Although more than thirty brothers had come, only Pang Da knew that Song Li was there to rob the tribute. The others just followed Pang Da's orders to set up an ambush and carry out the plan. Since the Ming and Jing Princes were not on good terms, they thought Song Li was just trying to trip up the Jing Prince's army, not realizing the larger scheme behind it.

Since Song Li was only interested in the Snow Mountain Black Mud Stem in the flagpole, their operation was relatively simple. The main road passed through the center of Langya Town, making it a necessary stop for all passing carriages. Song Li had his men dig a large pit at the entrance of Langya Town and sprinkle it with blinding powder. This powder was not toxic but spread easily, quickly enveloping everything in a dense fog, making it impossible to see anything. As a talented alchemist, preparing this low-level blinding powder was a piece of cake for Song Li.

For a well-trained army, such a trap would not cause much chaos. So Song Li prepared a second move, hiding firecrackers and thunderclaps behind the escort team. Once the lead horses fell into the pit, someone would light the fuse, and the firecrackers would explode in rapid succession. Even if the soldiers remained calm, the horses would certainly panic!

Driven by the firecrackers, the horses would blindly charge forward, undoubtedly falling into the pit. Song Li didn't wait for anyone else; he only waited for the officer holding the flag to fall off his horse. Using a pre-prepared long rope, he would snatch the flag away, all without anyone noticing. Despite the officer's skill, Song Li chose the perfect moment under the cover of the blinding powder and succeeded.

The entire operation was swift and precise, exactly as Song Li had planned, with no deviations.

After the operation, Song Li did not join his brothers but split up, retreating separately. He went one way, and Pang Da led the others another way.

Song Li was a generous man. Since his brothers had put in the effort, he would not let them down. He had already prepared gold coins for Pang Da, and after the mission, each of the boys would receive 1000 gold coins. The condition was that they must not reveal a word of what happened. 1000 gold coins was a significant amount, enough to keep them spending in Saint Lion City for a long time. Who would want to give up such a windfall? So the boys kept their mouths shut, not daring to leak a word. Besides, they weren't fools. Even though they didn't know Song Li had robbed the tribute, they knew they were dealing with the capital's army. Who would shout on the streets that they had taken down the escort team?

Although Song Li was bold, he preferred to keep trouble to a minimum. Robbing the tribute was a serious crime, and the fewer people who knew, the better.

He separated from the others to avoid drawing attention and to retrieve the treasure from the flagpole.

After the operation, Song Li found a secluded place, unscrewed the top of the flagpole, and discovered two yellow silk-wrapped packages inside. Due to the urgency, he didn't examine them on the spot but put them in his bag and quickly left Langya Town.

Back home, in his training room, Song Li opened the packages with great joy.

The first package contained, as expected, a century-old Snow Mountain Black Mud Stem!

It was a stem as thick as a child's arm, over a foot long, shaped like a young lotus root, snow-white, and crystal-clear, with a faint glow. It was clearly a treasure imbued with the essence of heaven and earth. Song Li happily stored the Snow Mountain Black Mud Stem. In terms of size, shape, and quality, it was a top-notch specimen. If it were to hit the market, it would drive alchemists into a frenzy! Potions were precious, and so were the rare materials needed to make them. A century-old Snow Mountain Black Mud Stem was a valuable ingredient for many good potions, and who wouldn't be tempted?

If the Snow Mountain Black Mud Stem was within Song Li's expectations, the contents of the second package were a pleasant surprise.

When Song Li opened the second package, he found a small booklet with a dark blue cover. The text on the cover was curved and unfamiliar, likely in Angzang script. Fortunately, there was a line of Saint Lion script next to it, which Song Li could read: "Dragon Elephant Prajna Palm."

Dragon Elephant Prajna Palm? Song Li's heart raced. From the name, it seemed to be a combat technique from the Angzang Kingdom. Song Li had been practicing for a long time but had not yet found a combat technique of his own. Song Xinghai specialized in swordsmanship, but Song Li was not particularly interested in it. He had been searching for a combat technique suitable for him. By chance, he had obtained a palm technique manual, which was a pleasant surprise.