Not long after, a group of more than two thousand battered troops arrived in front of the canyon.
Most of the soldiers in this group had ragged armor and were covered in dust, but the evil qi around them was thick, and in Bird’s Eye, the strength of these individuals also appeared one by one.
The proportion of Ninth and Eighth Grades, and even Seventh Grades, was far greater than that of General Qing Xiang’s troops.
More importantly, the leader was a short fellow with the numbers "340~378" floating above his head.
This was the strongest person Li Yuan had ever seen.
His current strength is "305~455," slightly lower at the base compared to the short fellow, but his upper limit far exceeded him.
"Zhao Xiantong..."
Li Yuan coldly called out these three words. He lightly pulled the reins and stopped his horse beneath him, carefully observing.
Nevertheless, he let out a slight relief because Zhao Xiantong’s strength was still weaker than his own.
But just as he spoke, he fell silent, his pupils contracting tightly because he saw another set of numbers among the crowd: 435~539!
This was a burly man with bronze skin, a face like iron casting, and a body like copper pour; he exuded an indescribable sense of pressure, akin to a golden statue in a temple.
Immediately, the little fellow turned back to the crowd and said to the burly man, "General Gu Xiang, ahead lies the three counties of Tian Nan, Hua Mo, and Shanbao; this road is narrow, backed by mountains and water, easy to defend and hard to attack, a good place as any."
The burly man replied, "Zhao Xiantong, what’s going on at the entrance?
Do you recognize those heads?"
At this moment, Li Yuan understood that earlier General Qing Xiang thought only Zhao Xiantong had arrived, but unexpectedly there was also a stronger General Gu Xiang.
That means... two Sixth Grades!
But Zhao Xiantong’s numbers are relatively low, leaving the specifics of whether he is a Seventh or Sixth Grade unclear.
At this point, the little fellow walked to the front, grabbed a wooden stick planted at the forefront, and swung the head atop it, squinting and snorting, "They are former colleagues from the Rebel Army, standout among Seventh Grade Martial Artists.
I knew he was here long ago and had planned to annex them upon my return.
And using them as cannon fodder, to test the waters of these three frontier counties."
He glanced over the heads planted at the back, shaking his head, "Those must be his strong subordinates, all wiped out..."
"Interesting..."
Zhao Xiantong bared his teeth, "This is truly a welcome for us."
He was about to move forward, but suddenly heard General Gu Xiang’s voice behind him.
"Hold on."
"What is it, General?" Zhao Xiantong halted his steps.
General Gu Xiang said, "First capture a few people and ask."
Zhao Xiantong replied, "General... in such a backwater place, would there be any high..."
Before the last word was out, the burly man with a copper head and iron arms was already in front of him, grabbing Zhao Xiantong by the collar and lifting him up single-handedly.
"Little brat, how long have you been surviving in the Central Plains?!"
Zhao Xiantong’s eyes widened, intending to retaliate, but then he lowered his head and said, "I neglected it; I thought this was the frontier and there wouldn’t be experts, so I forgot the necessary caution..."
General Gu Xiang let go, "Investigate, find out how those people were killed."
"Immortal Child understands..."
"Wait..." General Gu Xiang suddenly said, "That white bird seems to be watching us."
Zhao Xiantong looked up and finally saw the White Sparrow in the wind atop the mountain.
He suddenly thought of something, his body shivered.
General Gu Xiang added, "Do you think..."
"It shouldn’t... be, right?" Zhao Xiantong forced a smile, "This isn’t the Central Plains... how could..."
General Gu Xiang suddenly stepped forward, bowed towards the sky, and shouted, "Junior passing through this place, if there is any disturbance, I ask for Senior’s forgiveness."
As soon as he spoke, the soldiers behind him, filled with evil qi, suddenly became solemn; none of them laughed because they... had all experienced true despair.
It was unsolvable terror...
But, this isn’t the Central Plains.
How could there be... undead remnants here?
It’s known that remnants only emerge where Ghost Gate frequently opens, and their origins are complex.
For them, this is complete unknown, mystery, and forbidden domain.
Let alone remnants, where they appear, even the fiercest bandits and elite soldiers would avoid them, because they know very well what it entails.
Li Yuan did not know about the remnants, but he silently watched this scene, suddenly realizing that his ability might not be unique, that there could be entities in the Central Plains able to wield such power.
He absolutely didn’t want these two Sixth Grades to enter; Zhao Xiantong was manageable, but if General Gu Xiang entered the county, he’d be invincible, and then... Li Yuan could only flee, but would find himself with nowhere to run.
Even if he barely escaped, how could he ensure the safety of his family?
Li Yuan’s heart pounded, sweat dripping down his forehead.
Suddenly, he thought of words like "counter with the same measure," "empty city strategy," "bluff..."
Thus, the White Sparrow at Antelope Pass gently descended, landing on one of the heads and scanning the crowd before finally resting its gaze on General Gu Xiang and meeting him from afar.
In this scene, who wouldn’t understand the significance of the White Sparrow?
Li Yuan’s mouth was dry, yet he made the White Sparrow persist strongly.
Zhao Xiantong’s mouth was dry too, urgently releasing his grip and planting the head back in place, then cautiously stepped back quickly, seemingly unwilling to get close to the White Sparrow at all.
His action immediately calmed Li Yuan’s pounding heart somewhat.
He continued to let the White Sparrow stand quietly, using its humanized pupils to coldly gaze upon the opposite army.