Too many female prisoners, a special forces soldier transmigrates and marries wildly.

Bayar narrowly escaped the trap, but less than ten men remained with him. Terrified, they abandoned all semblance of formation and fled desperately in the direction they had come from.

However, just when they thought they were about to break out of this deadly forest, a dozen figures suddenly stood up from the snow ahead, clad in white camouflage and almost blending into the snow! They held crossbows that were already cocked, and the cold bolts were aimed at the terrified fugitives.

The leader, a hunched and thin man with a face smeared with black ash, was none other than Old Ghost. He grinned, revealing yellowed teeth, and his hoarse voice, like that of a night owl, said, "Leave no one alive."

"put!"

"Whoosh whoosh-!"

The last dozen or so Black Wolf Guards, along with Bayar, were riddled with crossbow bolts at close range and collapsed onto the cold snow, their blood quickly congealing.

More than twenty night scouts appeared from their hiding places like ghosts and quickly cleaned up the battlefield.

"Boss, it's over. All wiped out. We only injured three brothers, all of them minor injuries," a night scout reported.

"Yes. As planned, disperse and evacuate to the next ambush point." Old Ghost nodded, his eyes showing no emotion.

This was just the beginning. He intended to make every step forward for Brte's thousand Black Wolf Guards along this hundred-mile mountain road cost them blood.

"yes!"

The night scouts quickly disappeared into the snowy forest, as if they had never existed.

Almost at the same time, in the study of the Ironwall City garrison.

"Defense! News!" Han Tao pushed open the door and entered.

"Of the three carriages at the back gate of the official post station, two people left and went into the 'Liu Family Charity Estate' in the west of the city, and never came out again."

"Hmm... this connection has come together. I suspect that Feng Kun's 'Shadow Wolf' might be hiding in those two places, and they're probably about to make a move."

Suddenly, a high-pitched and penetrating eagle cry came from outside the window!

It's Blackfeather! It's back!

Lin Feng took a roll of oilcloth from the black-feathered claw and opened it. Inside was a small piece of sheepskin with words on it.

The gist of the story is that Yan Qing discovered that other forces were involved and were also exploring the underground palace.

"The letter from Jiangnan Linglong Pavilion is correct; the old friend is indeed Yan Qing, and he is in danger!"

Lin Feng paced back and forth in the room. Yan Qing had to be saved!

He stopped and looked at Han Tao. "Send Urna and the Suhe tribe to rescue Yan Qing."

Han Tao was taken aback, then his eyes lit up: "That's right! Commander Urna is the princess's personal guard captain. It's perfectly legitimate for her to contact the Suhe tribe and other forces loyal to the princess! As long as someone takes the lead, they can definitely gather a force!"

"We must consult her on this matter. Han Tao, go and invite Commander Urna to the study immediately," Lin Feng said.

"Yes!" Han Tao immediately turned around and went to do it.

"Knock, knock." A soft knocking sounded on the door.

"Come in."

The door was pushed open, and Urna walked in.

Lin Feng didn't beat around the bush and directly and briefly informed Yan Qing of the secret letter and the current situation.

"...That's the situation. Urna, I'd like to ask you to return to the Gray Fox Clan."

Urna nodded emphatically without any hesitation:

"I'll go. Give me a reliable team, and I can turn the Gray Fox tribe upside down and rescue Yan Qing."

"I'll give you ten of Old Ghost's most elite night scouts. Agula and Bagen will also go back with you; they're familiar with the Suhe tribe. I'll also transfer twenty brave cavalrymen who are fluent in the Di language to you to command."

"I understand." Urna gave Lin Feng a deep look with her grey-blue eyes. "The princess and Ironwall City are entrusted to you. Await my news."

"I'll wait for you to come back." Lin Feng looked at her.

dawn.

Lin Feng stood atop the East Gate tower, facing the biting morning wind, watching Urna mount her horse. With a flick of the reins, her warhorse charged out of the city gate first. Agula, Bagen, and thirty riders followed closely behind, like a gray arrow shooting towards the vast snowfield to the northeast, quickly disappearing behind the rolling hills.

Lin Feng watched them depart until even the dust kicked up by their horses' hooves was no longer visible before slowly withdrawing his gaze. Sending Urna back was a risky move.

"Commander, let's go back to the manor. It's windy here," Xu Tiande said in a low voice.

Lin Feng nodded, turned and walked down the city wall. Just as he returned to the garrison commander's study, Han Tao rushed in with a report from the garrison.

"Commander Zhao, urgent report!"

Lin Feng unfolded the report; it was written by Zhao Polu himself, concise in wording, yet every word carried immense weight.

"Dear Brother Feng, there has been a dramatic upheaval in the capital. Li Song has 'accidentally' fallen into the water and, despite rescue efforts, remains unconscious and unable to perform his duties. The power of the Eastern Depot and the Embroidered Uniform Guard is temporarily held by Wang Zhen, the Grand Eunuch of the Directorate of Ceremonial. However, Wang Zhen and Li Song have a long-standing feud. The political climate in the court has shifted abruptly, with memorials impeaching Li Song and his cronies pouring in. However, His Majesty is particularly concerned about the situation in the Northern Frontier, especially the 'Democratic Princess's lingering in the border town and the mystery surrounding the jade pendant from the previous dynasty.' He has issued a secret edict ordering the Inner Court, the Ministry of War, and the Court of State Ceremonies to conduct a thorough investigation. Furthermore, there have been unusual movements of martial arts forces such as the 'Linglong Pavilion' and the 'Tang Clan' in several southern provinces recently, which seem to be related to the situation in the Northern Frontier, and there may be deeper connections behind it. I hope you will handle this with caution."

A series of bombshell news items exploded in Lin Feng's mind like thunderclaps. Li Song's downfall meant that Zhou Yanru and Yan Ying had lost their greatest support, and were even in danger of losing their own lives. However, the emperor's secret decree to pay attention to the northern frontier meant that this matter was no longer a simple dispute between border generals or a factional struggle, but a sensitive issue involving the "Di Rong Princess" and the "Jade Pendant of the Previous Dynasty." The slightest mishandling could lead to a catastrophe. Furthermore, the involvement of the southern Jianghu forces made the situation even more complicated and unpredictable.

Lin Feng walked back to his desk and began replying to Zhao Polu.

Before the letter was finished, hurried footsteps sounded again outside the study, and a guard rushed in from outside the door: "Commander! Miss Bai from the West Courtyard has something important to report!"

Lin Feng put down his pen: "Let her in."

Bai Xiaohe pushed open the door and entered, her eyes filled with anxiety. "Brother Lin, Miss Xie has been restless ever since she received the letter. Just now she suddenly told me that she remembered something. She seemed to have seen the handwriting on the letter before. There was a secret letter from Jiangnan sent to her father, and the handwriting was very similar to the letter. The signature was... a 'Xuan' character."

"Xuan?" Lin Feng frowned. Was it the code name of the "Linglong Pavilion" master or an important figure? Or was it related to the "Xuanji Underground Palace"?

"Furthermore," Bai Xiaohe continued, "when Miss Xie was doing her hair by the window, she noticed a small, withered, yellow grass stem with a faint, peculiar fragrance on the windowsill, as if someone had thrown it in from outside. I checked it, and the grass stem is not poisonous, but this fragrance... is very peculiar, like some rare incense from the South. Miss Xie said that she seemed to have smelled this fragrance on some old object as well."

Throwing grass on the windowsill? Leaving a scent as a warning? Or... another form of communication? The people of Linglong Pavilion are indeed trying to contact Xie Wanqing! And, it seems they have a past connection with Prince Jing!

"Miss Xie said she only remembered that her father seemed quite wary of the Linglong Pavilion in Jiangnan, and that they seemed to have some connection. He once said something like, 'What the Linglong Pavilion seeks cannot be measured by ordinary things, and its mechanisms are beyond the comprehension of ghosts and gods.' As for the specifics... I'm afraid you'd have to ask Miss Xie herself, but she seems to know only a limited amount."

"Understood. Go back first and protect Miss Xie. Don't mention the arrow letter and the withered grass to anyone, including anyone else in the manor," Lin Feng instructed.

"Yes." Bai Xiaohe nodded and turned to leave.

It was almost midnight. It was exactly three days after the appointment with Linglong Pavilion in Jiangnan.

The City God Temple is located in the northwest corner of Iron Wall City and has been abandoned for many years.

Behind the temple is a small open space. In the center of the open space stands a lone, half-person-high broken stele, the inscription of which is long since illegible.

Lin Feng stood alone beside the broken stele. He carried in his arms a copy of the jade pendant rubbing drawn by Chen Laoshuan—of course, it had been tampered with; he had slightly modified several key mechanism nodes and the direction of the patterns, enough to mislead anyone trying to decipher it, but on the outside it looked no different from the real rubbing.