Call Me Daddy

Su Aobai had originally thought that today would merely involve reporting in and then he could return home to have a meal with his daughter. It was still the first day in Lin’an, and even in the strictly regulated military camp, he should have been given some time to settle in with his family.

As expected, after demonstrating his skills, he would be allowed to go home and return to the camp in 3 days to formally join the military. However, the unexpected happened quickly.

A faction from the southern border suddenly sent troops to attack their camp.

The situation on the southern border was very complicated. It wasn’t a unified small country but a region composed of many different tribes with various beliefs. These tribes often had conflicts among themselves, but they could unite against the Tang Dynasty.

They coveted the vast and flat territory of the Tang Dynasty, and combined with their extreme religious beliefs, they were determined to exterminate the heretics in the Tang Dynasty. Consequently, these tribes united and, during the increasingly feeble years of Emperor Shangqing, repeatedly tested the defenses of the northwest garrison, trying to plunder the nearest cities.

Over the years, it was mostly the southern tribes initiating attacks, while the Tang Dynasty could only passively defend. The southern border was plagued with miasmas and swamps, and the terrain was extremely complex. Without the guidance of local elders, anyone entering the dense forests could easily lose their way and eventually die in the woods for various reasons.

Therefore, whenever the southern tribes retreated into the forests, the Tang Dynasty troops could only pursue them a short distance before being forced to withdraw.

Otherwise, given the provocations over the years, the northwest garrison would have already attacked their strongholds.

“Damn it, it’s those Heiwu tribe people again.” Wang Chunmu, furious, quickly assembled all his troops and gathered at the defensive camp.

Their camp housed a force of over ten thousand people. Wang Chunmu was one of the commanders, and he, along with the other five commanders, followed the defensive orders.

As they were leaving, Wang Chunmu glanced at Su Aobai, who was still standing on the stage.

“You come along too.”

He then had Yang Yong find him a suit of armor and some suitable weapons.

However, Su Aobai’s build was so massive that even the largest armor available looked like children’s clothing on him. Yang Yong, helpless, rummaged through the inventory and found a piece of flexible bamboo armor, which barely fit him.

Perhaps because they hadn’t fought together before, Yang Yong admired Su Aobai, who had easily knocked down all seven of them. On the way to the defensive camp, Yang Yong briefly introduced the main military situation of their area.

Their side mainly faced two southern tribes; the Heiwu Tribe and the Luopo Tribe.

These two tribes weren’t considered major powers in the southern border, and their combined population didn’t exceed thirty thousand.

The Heiwu Tribe was known for its expertise in poisons and often concocted various nasty toxins.

Several years ago, a previous garrison commander had fallen victim to their schemes, leading to the deaths of more than half of the over ten thousand soldiers stationed there. The camp’s supplies, including food and weapons, were completely plundered, and it nearly gave the southern border’s other tribes the opportunity to breach the weakened defenses and invade Lin’an City.

“So now, our camp has the largest number of physicians in the entire army, just to guard against those strange poisons from the Heiwu Tribe. But there’s another benefit; we receive the best medical treatment if we are injured.”

As Yang Yong spoke, a trace of sorrow flickered in his eyes.

Many soldiers didn’t die on the battlefield but succumbed to illness due to the lack of medical care and medicine after the fighting.

As for the Luopo Tribe, they were the most devout in their faith among the southern tribes. They worshiped a deity known as the Fearless One, whose doctrine stated that even if the physical body perished, their faith would coexist with the deity. Thus, this tribe fought recklessly, valuing death in battle as a high honor because their belief promised that their souls would meet the deity after death.

Although these two tribes weren’t numerous, their tenacity was on par with some of the larger tribes in the southern border.

***

Su Aobai ran along, listening to Yang Yong’s introduction about the two tribes. Soon, they arrived at the camp’s outer edge, where the first arriving squads had already engaged with a group of strangely dressed enemies.

The appearance of the southern people differed somewhat from that of the Tang Dynasty people.

Perhaps due to their territory’s proximity to the equator, their skin was darker and their body hair more prominent. Living in a hot and humid climate, their attire was also quite different from that of the Central Plains people.

For instance, the Heiwu Tribe members before them were shirtless, wrapped in coarse burlap from the waist down, decorated with large leaves and animal teeth. They had smeared something on their bodies, with strange totems covering the exposed areas.

Their attire resembled that of African tribesmen, but their features were more like the Southeast Asian appearance that Su Aobai remembered.

Su Aobai didn’t like warfare because it meant killing.

Of course, he wasn’t afraid of killing. After all, he had once been a Prince and later a young Sect Master in the cultivation world, where human lives were as insignificant as weeds. He had killed countless people, and if he were to lose sleep over killing a few more, it would be rather absurd.

It was just that his education from different lifetimes made him conflicted, as if he were two different people. One part told him that killing was no big deal, as those were merely enemies from the opposite side, and thus, not worth mourning. The other part reminded him that those he killed were also living beings.

Of course, such hesitation was fleeting.

Because he knew well that on the battlefield, if you did not kill the enemy, the enemy would kill your comrades. Besides, they had initiated the conflict, so the Heiwu Tribe was to blame for the provocation.

Seeing the faces that resembled the Southeast Asians, Su Aobai’s sense of guilt diminished significantly. After all, he had lived in the flower-picking nation for several lifetimes and had an inherent dislike for the Southeast.

Under Wang Chunmu’s leadership, the group charged into the battlefield. Su Aobai’s attention was momentarily diverted as he noticed a group of people behind them.

These people had stayed inside the camp and hadn’t come out. From their equipment, they appeared to be higher-ranking officers. In addition, there was a squad of several dozen people, controlling a few tightly bound southern captives.

Were these prisoners captured earlier?

Su Aobai’s confusion was soon answered.

Once Wang Chunmu and another Captain arrived, the previously stalemated situation on the battlefield began to shift. The Heiwu Tribe, clearly outnumbered, started to retreat into the distant forest.

“I knew you would resort to this trick! Every time you can’t win, you just run away, like the relentless weeds in the fields,” the garrison commander cursed inwardly at the retreating Heiwu Tribe members.

“Wang Chunmu, Tan Tu, take your troops and chase after them.” He issued the orders and also signaled the small squad next to him to follow with the tightly bound southern captives.

It turned out that the garrison commander could no longer tolerate the southern tribes’ habit of retreating and returning after resting to attack again. Therefore, he had imprisoned the captured prisoners from previous battles and subjected them to brutal interrogation.

Those who were willing to surrender and guide them would live, while those who resisted would suffer extreme torture before dying.

The southern tribes weren’t lacking in weak-willed soldiers. Some couldn’t endure the severe torture and yielded, while others, even before being tortured, were so frightened by witnessing their comrades’ deaths that they surrendered on the spot to lead them.

However, he didn’t trust these cunning southern people. He kept those who had surrendered for several months, constantly brainwashing them to ensure they had lost all will to fight before bringing them to the battlefield.

***

At this moment, Wang Chunmu and the other commander understood the Commander’s sudden decision to bring these captives to the battlefield.

They were all eager. They had long wanted to defeat those annoying southern tribes. With the local guides, they were confident they could successfully reach the Heiwu Tribe’s stronghold.

Thus, Wang Chunmu and the other Captain led a force of nearly five thousand into the forest.

“Mark the path as you go.”

Wang Chunmu wasn’t blindly arrogant. Although the Commander had said that these southern people were subdued, who knew if they still harbored any rebellious intentions.

Empathizing with his situation, Wang Chunmu felt that if he were captured by the southern tribes, he would rather die than betray his comrades. He knew that behind him were his family members, and if the city gates were breached, his family would face a fate of being slaughtered after suffering abuse.

So, he had to be cautious.

As they entered the forest and it became difficult to navigate, he had his personal guards tie bright red cloth strips to the tree trunks at regular intervals. This way, even if the captives led them astray, they could still find their way back.

Su Aobai kept quiet. It was clear that one should never underestimate anyone. Wang Chunmu’s position as a Captain indicated that he wasn’t as reckless as he appeared.

Throughout the journey, Su Aobai carefully observed the surroundings.

The forest at the border between the two territories lived up to its reputation as a death trap.

The dense underbrush and towering trees with massive, overlapping canopies blocked out most of the light, making it difficult to see ahead once they entered the forest. Moreover, using torches for illumination was not an option, as a forest fire would trap them within the woods.

The forest was crisscrossed with numerous narrow trails made by humans. With a force of over five thousand, they had no choice but to use these narrow paths. Hidden among the nearby shrubs could be poisonous insects, dangerous beasts, or even a swamp. Once trapped, escape would be nearly impossible.

“What’s that?!”

Suddenly, several startled exclamations came from the front of the line, and soon, agitation began spreading.

They had inadvertently wandered into an area swarming with flies. The air was filled with a dense cloud of black specks. These toxic flies left burning, painful marks on any exposed skin, causing an unbearable itch.

“Fall back quickly!”

Seeing that the leading captives had panicked and broken free due to the disturbance caused by the flies, vanishing into the depths of the forest, Wang Chunmu realized they might have been lured into a trap. He immediately shouted for his men to retreat.

The other Captain, Tan Tu, was at the rear of the group. Hearing the commotion from ahead, followed by Wang Chunmu’s desperate shouts, he ordered his men to retreat as well.

“Retreat! Quickly!”

Tan Tu’s expression was grave as he glared at the tightly guarded captives, realizing that these southern tribespeople were anything but trustworthy.

Tan Tu led the troops back to the markers they had left earlier. The well-trained northwest troops, although initially flustered, quickly regained their composure and retreated in an orderly fashion.

However, Tan Tu didn’t notice the madness and smugness in the eyes of the captives.

After what felt like an endless run, they finally left the swarm of flies behind, but strangely, despite running for so long, they had not yet left the forest.

“Wait!” Su Aobai shouted and grabbed Wang Chunmu.

“What’s the matter?”

Wang Chunmu frowned at his new Officer. No one knew whether the Heiwu Tribe had set up an ambush in the forest. Given the current situation, it was best to retreat quickly. Why did Su Aobai suddenly call for a stop?

“The markers have been changed.” Su Aobai spoke decisively to Wang Chunmu, then cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted towards the distance.

“Stop, don’t move! The markers have been changed!”