Only when his men brought him around did Wu Shaoyi realize that the Xunzhou light cavalry had attacked, throwing the entire camp into chaos. Zhou Hongyue had been killed in the brick building by the explosion, and Wu Shaoyi had forced himself up through the pain to take command, but morale had already collapsed.
Watching the supply wagons burn one after another and his soldiers cut down one by one, the signs of a total rout were undeniable. Wu Shaoyi knew it was beyond hope and had no choice but to order a retreat.
He had rallied stragglers along the way, managing to salvage only this meager handful of men.
As for the grain and fodder, most of it was destroyed.
The Xunzhou cavalry had penetrated deep into Xiazhou to sever the supply line. Knowing well that their small force could never transport the grain, they typically put it to the torch.
Reaching this point in his account, Wu Shaoyi lowered his head. "This subordinate begs Your Excellency for punishment."
"Negligence, carelessness, and losing the grain—you deserve death," He Chunhua said coldly. "However, we are short on hands right now. I will spare your life for now to see how you perform hereafter."
Wu Shaoyi could only thank him for his leniency.
The pride from their previous victory over the Xunzhou forces had completely vanished. Half the grain allocated by the royal court was gone, and the one who had to answer to the northern front was He Chunhua.
Fortunately, half still remained.
He Chunhua continued, "I remember Bailu Town has bailiffs and a local militia. Why didn't they come to assist?"
Wu Shaoyi shook his head. "Perhaps they didn't dare, or perhaps they were out hunting mountain bandits. I heard that bandits have been wreaking havoc these past few days. They killed several government officers in Bailu Town, and a wealthy local family was pillaged clean, all thirty-odd members slaughtered."
He Lingchuan could not help chiming in. "Two murder cases in succession in a small town—isn't that rather suspicious?"
"I did tighten our guard," Wu Shaoyi said under his breath. "Word was that the one who killed the officers was actually a local townsman who fled right after the deed. As for those bandits, the locals had seen them, and they weren't Xunzhou soldiers. So I..."
He had lost the battle and the grain; any further explanation would sound like an excuse, so he shut his mouth.
He Chunhua frowned. "Did you get a clear look at the enemy commander? Who was he?"
"In his thirties, tall and lean, with formidable martial prowess—even Lu Yao couldn't match him," Wu Shaoyi said. "I didn't see him during our last campaign against the Xunzhou cavalry, but I heard his subordinates address him as General."
"The Xunzhou forces certainly think highly of our supply convoy. Two towns, and they dispatched two generals into the field." Even if they might be generals with minor titles. He Chunhua let out a long sigh. "I underestimated the enemy."
The supply convoy that departed from Dunyu had actually been split into two detachments: one taking the route through Xinhuang Town, and the other through Bailu Town. This was because both fork roads led to narrow passes further ahead, terrain that was easy to attack but difficult to defend. For the sake of safety and security, He Chunhua had decided to divide the forces and transport the grain along separate paths. That way, even if one detachment was ambushed, the other would still preserve more than half the supplies, preventing the soldiers on the northern front from starving again.
"In other words, the enemy cavalry also split their forces into two routes, intercepting our convoy at both Bailu Town and Xinhuang." He Lingchuan was inwardly alarmed. "Did a traitor leak our plans?"
"How could that be? I only gave the order to divide our forces once we reached Panjiagou. Prior to that, only Master Mozhe and I knew. After that, it took the two detachments only two days to reach Bailu Town and Xinhuang respectively." He Chunhua pointed to his temple. "No matter how capable a spy is, they cannot pry into my mind."
So it was a coincidence?
"There are three roads heading north. The easternmost official road has fallen into disrepair for years, and nobody wants to take it, so they staked out the remaining two roads," He Lingchuan pondered. "While reasonable, it's far too reckless. Their numbers were small to begin with, yet they dared split into two routes to strike us."
The Xunzhou cavalry operated deep behind enemy lines, where resupply was a major issue, so their ranks favored elite quality over quantity. Whoever came up with this plan was daring indeed.
He Chunhua's expression grew unusually grave. "Furthermore, the enemy's methods are entirely different from before. Could they have changed commanders?"
The customary tactic for intercepting enemy supplies was to strike in dangerous wilderness terrain, but this time they shifted to towns, catching their targets completely off guard. Moreover, they struck straight at the vital points, aiming directly for the leaders of the supply convoy with swift, accurate, and ruthless force. He Chunhua had only narrowly escaped with his life.
Against an opponent like this, how could Zhao Qinghe and Wu Shaoyi have effortlessly brought back three consecutive victories last time?
"None of the prisoners we interrogated knew anything; they merely followed their commanders' orders." This was also a measure to prevent state secrets from leaking. He Chunhua looked at his eldest son. "In your view, will they come to intercept our grain again?"
Seeing his father ask this, He Lingchuan knew the man was somewhat rattled; why else would he seek counsel from his most unreliable eldest son? After a moment of thought, he answered, "No. They took Bailu Town, but hit a wall at Xinhuang, so they must know we're a tough target. Besides, their numbers are simply too few, and Baili Qing lost more than two hundred men. We, on the other hand, are different."
With Wu Shaoyi's return, He Chunhua's troops were back to seventeen or eighteen hundred men. In terms of sheer numbers, their side had increased while the enemy had dwindled. "Furthermore, we will surely be on high alert from here on out. It's impossible for them to pull off the same trick again."
The cost and risk of another surprise attack were mounting for the enemy.
He Chunhua pondered for a long while before slowly nodding.
"They have already intercepted and burned nearly ten thousand shi of grain this time, which is no small feat. If their commanding general is smart, he should know not to let greed get the better of him. Otherwise, another ambush might ruin everything they've achieved."
His gaze gradually hardened. "In fact, it would be best if they refuse to give up. That way, we'll have a chance to turn the tables."
Once he had thought it through, he no longer worried about them coming; rather, he feared they wouldn't come.
After making several arrangements, he stood up and said, "We will rest and reorganize in Xinhuang for one day, then resume our march tomorrow morning."
Everyone took their orders and departed.
The sun rose in the east, yet the soldiers of Xiazhou were exhausted. He Lingchuan drew some clean water, washed the soot and bloodstains from his hands and face, found an available tent, and lay down fully clothed.
He had been rushing about all night. Listening to the distant sounds of men and horses moving outside, he quickly fell asleep.
***
It was a dreamless sleep, leaving He Lingchuan somewhat disappointed.
By the time he woke, the sun was high in the sky.
Shan Youjun came to find him. "The prisoner talked."
"He broke after the water torture?"
"No," Shan Youjun chuckled. "The fellow looked cowardly, but he was actually stubborn. Every time he couldn't endure the torture, he'd only cough up a tiny scrap. Jiao Tai nearly castrated him before he finally gave in."
When He Lingchuan saw the prisoner again, the man was haggard and slumped over, the skin of his lips peeling—clearly having suffered through immense torment.
"Give him some water."
The prisoner took the large bowl and gulped it all down in a few swallows before letting out a long, ragged breath.
He Lingchuan drew the small scepter from his robes. "Be forthcoming. Explain everything clearly, and you get to live."
Half-dead from the torture, the prisoner no longer tried to play games. He whispered, "This is a Dragon-Torture Pillar, an ancient treasure. Legend says it was crafted from the bronze pillars standing along the edge of dragon-slaughtering grounds."
"High-grade stuff?" He Lingchuan turned the scepter over in his hand. Though it looked aged, the texture felt somehow smoother once he heard it was an ancient relic. "What does it do?"
"It gathers nightmare energy," the prisoner said. "War inevitably brings death and injury, inevitably breeds resentful souls. National Preceptor Shuangye of the Beijia Kingdom ordered us to carry these scepters with us, gather nightmare energy after major battles, and bring it back for them to perform deliverance."
"Nightmare energy?" He Lingchuan heard a new term. "Is nightmare energy just resentment?"
"More than that. It also contains the unwillingness, terror, and fury of people before they die." The prisoner's voice rose slightly. "Gathering these from the battlefield and taking them back for deliverance is... is an act of immense merit!"
"Gathering nightmare energy to take back for deliverance? Is your National Preceptor addicted to that sort of thing?" As for boundless compassion and universal love, He Lingchuan didn't believe a single word of it. "Is that what he told you?"
"It's the truth, and it's not even National Preceptor Shuangye's invention alone!" The prisoner sat up straighter. "It has been a tradition of the Beijia Kingdom since its founding, lasting at least five or six centuries!"
Five or six centuries?
"If nightmare energy lingers without dispersing, it can easily turn into malevolent spirits. Haven't you heard that resentful souls often haunt ancient battlefields?"
Like the Panlong Desert? He Lingchuan raised an eyebrow.
The prisoner continued, "On at least two battlefields where the nightmare energy was collected, the local areas enjoyed six or seven years of favorable weather and bountiful harvests! I experienced it personally; I saw it with my own eyes!"
This man believed it wholeheartedly. Who knew how thoroughly National Preceptor Shuangye had brainwashed him? He Lingchuan did not bother arguing with him, his gaze shifting slightly. "This Dragon-Torture Pillar can't be the only one, can it?"
"Others carry them as well, all individuals personally chosen by the National Preceptor. But I don't know the exact number."
Which meant that the Beijia Kingdom routinely gathered hundreds of thousands or even millions of this so-called 'nightmare energy'? That equated to hundreds of thousands or even millions of dead! If the scepter truly held a concentrated mass of resentment, the scale was staggering.
The prisoner explained, "Not just anyone can use a Dragon-Torture Pillar. Only those with the potential to open the Heavenly Eye can become acolytes."
"How does one open this 'Heavenly Eye'?"
"You must apply a specially concocted medicinal solution to your eyes for forty-nine consecutive days. Every single day brings excruciating pain," the prisoner said. "Without the requisite potential, a single application will blind you permanently."
No wonder the fellow had looked so shocked when he realized He Lingchuan could also see the nightmare energy. He Lingchuan rubbed his own eyelids. To open the Heavenly Eye without enduring forty-nine days of agony—he truly had been born with a bug in his favor.
Was it because of the two treasures he carried?
"So, once you bring the nightmare energy back, how is this deliverance performed?"
"The National Preceptor erects an altar to conduct the ritual, offering salutations to Heaven!"
He Lingchuan gave the scepter a slight shake, observing the shifting, unsettled nightmare energy within the gemstone. "How long did it take you to gather just this much?"
Since ordinary people couldn't see the existence of nightmare energy, they had no idea what these people were doing.
At the very least, this secret remained hidden from most.
"Eleven years. Across ninety-seven battles and rebellions." The prisoner swallowed hard. "I've never fought in a battle. I only go to the battlefield after the fighting is over."
"Running around year after year—you sure keep busy." On average, this fellow had to hit seven or eight sites a year, all of them corpse-strewn battlegrounds. "How many dead souls' nightmare energy is inside this?"
"I've never counted precisely, but there must be at least a hundred-odd thousand?" The prisoner gazed at the scepter with a trace of reluctance. "Five years ago during the coup in the Mian Kingdom, the royal clan was slaughtered until rivers of blood ran. In that single event, I gathered the nightmare energy of several tens of thousands of people."
He Lingchuan paused, taken aback. "Was the royal house of Mian really that fertile?"
Chapter 263