I became a prince in a martial arts world.

Wang Yu named the new technique derived from tortoise shells "Ice and Fire in Two Worlds".

As the name suggests, it's very fitting!

The group left Baolun Temple and headed straight for Yumen Pass. In just a few days, they arrived at the foot of Yumen Pass.

This is the western gateway to the Central Plains. Beyond the Jade Gate Pass lies the Gobi Desert and oasis belonging to the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions. While it may not be described as a vast expanse of uninhabited land, it is certainly sparsely populated and devoid of human presence.

Well, actually, it's not much different inside Yumen Pass.

The famous western gateway to the Central Plains had only five hundred garrison troops, and with the surrounding camps and garrisons, the total number was no more than three thousand.

However, that was enough. In fact, Yumen Pass mainly served the functions of early warning, delay, garrison, and rearguard.

Not to mention that the thirty-six kingdoms of the Western Regions were sparsely populated and had no ability to attack the Central Plains, even if the Qiang people of the northern desert wanted to attack by detouring, there was still a vast strategic depth and dangerous passes within the Yumen Pass, enough to trap them in the wide and narrow Anxi Road.

The sound of hooves startled the soldiers guarding the city wall. When they looked up, they saw dust billowing in the east as a cavalry of several hundred men galloped towards them, carrying several carriages, and moving at a similarly rapid pace.

"Not a caravan! It's cavalry!"

"This morning, scouts from the Prince of Zhenxi's mansion entered the city; this must be the Prince of Zhenxi's entourage."

"I saw the flag, it definitely has the character 'Zhao' on it!"

"Notify the captain! The Prince of Zhenxi has arrived in person!"

A moment later, the garrison commander of Yumen Pass met with Wang Yu and led the Iron Eagle Cavalry into the camp inside the pass for a meal. He personally entertained Wang Yu at his residence and was presented with a fine steel spear by Wang Yu, which he cherished.

"Your Highness is truly a pillar of the nation, a role model for us all!" The general guarding Yumen Pass flattered him.

Of course, Wang Yu also received a lot of information from the garrison commander.

"Loulan was one of the thirty-six kingdoms in the Western Regions that was closest to the Central Plains. It was only about five hundred li southwest of Yumen Pass."

"On the way to Loulan, there are two relatively large markets along the way: Feisha Town and Huanglong Market. They are neither in the Central Plains nor in Loulan, and each has a master guarding it."

"The bandits of the Western Regions are all in the surrounding oases. These oases are not large and it is difficult to form a stable market, but it is not a problem to hide a caravan of a hundred or so people. The two largest ones are almost always occupied by bandits, but no one dares to attack them."

"Our cavalry patrols frequently go to the Western Regions. They have been to Feisha Town and Huanglongji. Half a month ago, we saw Han Dingyuan in Feisha Town. He was accompanied by a beautiful woman, who is very likely the White Flower Fairy."

"Han Dingyuan, the Arrow Piercing the Clouds, and Shi Yinyu, the Fairy of White Flowers?"

The five bandits of Qishan: Poison Hand Wei Tuo, Wei Honggang, was a former disciple of the Great Vajra Temple; the other four bandits also had their own backgrounds.

Han Dingyuan was originally a border general. He later committed adultery and murder of his superior's wife and daughter. He fled to Qishan to become a bandit. Shi Yinyu was born in Xingxiuhai. He was vicious by nature and good at raising poisonous snakes. He loved keeping male concubines. After he got tired of them, he would use them to test poisons. Later, he raised one in the body of the son of a Tantric master in the snowy region. He had no choice but to flee north and eventually also entered Qishan.

"In other words, the Qishan bandits entered the Western Regions at least half a month ago."

"Exactly."

"What's the reaction from the Loulan Kingdom?"

"Your Highness is wise. According to merchants who recently entered the pass, the Loulan Kingdom has, for some reason, dispatched people to search and investigate the surrounding area. It is said that they even sent people into an ancient city that was abandoned two hundred years ago, seemingly looking for someone or something."

The commander guarding Yumen Pass was unaware of the Loulan treasure.

Wang Yu asked, "Have any martial arts practitioners or military-like groups emerged from seclusion recently?"

Song Chengyue and Song Qingchuan were too small a target, but they couldn't retrieve the Loulan treasure either. The Shuntian Army would have to come to the Western Regions to meet with them and retrieve the treasure, and there would be at least a hundred of them.

"The martial arts practitioners are pretty much the same as usual, and of course, the army is also absent." The general guarding Yumen Pass shook his head.

Li Yunxiu's eyebrows twitched. "Where's the escort team?"

The general guarding Yumen Pass suddenly realized, "Recently, several caravans have indeed left the pass. It is said that the caravans have purchased precious perfumes and glass in the pass and are preparing to transport them to countries such as Kangju, Wusun, and Dayuan for sale."

At this, not only Li Yunxiu, but even Qianqian covered her mouth and chuckled.

You can leave aside other things, but perfume glass is a new specialty of the Zhenxi Prince's Mansion. The newly established trading company of the Prince's Mansion is responsible for selling it to the Central Plains, Jiangnan, and the Western Regions and the northern deserts. How could it be the turn of individual merchants to take large quantities of goods and sell them in the Western Regions?

"What kind of escort team?" Li Yunxiu asked.

The general guarding Yumen Pass couldn't answer, so he asked the guards. He learned that there were three such escort teams, each with a winged tiger, an iron shield, and a red flame with a gold border on its flag.

"When the escort teams left the pass, they all had local documents, namely Flying Tiger Escort Agency, Ping An Escort Agency, and Tiancheng Escort Agency, all of which were escort agencies in Henan Province."

At this point, the garrison commander of Yumen Pass scratched his head, "Why are they all escort agencies from Henan Province? There are quite a few escort agencies from Hexi Province too. Could they be merchants from Henan Province?"

Wang Yu and Li Yunxiu exchanged a glance. The Shuntian Army was gaining momentum in Henan Province, so using the identity of a security escort agency in Henan Province was the most appropriate thing to do. Perhaps the local travel documents were genuine.

Li Yunxiu thought for a moment, "Do you remember the caravan we encountered when we left Longshan Prefecture?"

Wang Yu nodded. "The flames embroidered with red background and gold trim, I never expected that we would just miss the Shuntian Army."

……

After resting for one night at Yumen Pass, the group set off again.

As the saying goes, "Why should the Qiang flute lament the willows, for the spring breeze does not reach Yumen Pass?" Outside Yumen Pass, there is only winter and summer, no spring or autumn. Although it is now the golden autumn season, the area outside the pass is still sunny, giving people the feeling that summer has not yet ended.

"But once it gets dark, and the northwest wind blows at night, it's absolutely freezing!"

The Prince's entourage consisted entirely of cavalry. Although they also had Wang Yu's carriage and several freight cars, their speed was not slow.

Once inside the desert, a typical caravan or escort team can only travel fifty li a day, but Wang Yu and his group can travel one hundred and fifty li a day, even with consideration for the horses' strength and the speed of the cargo trucks.

So on the first night they arrived at Feisha Town, which was closest to Yumen Pass, and on the second night they arrived at Huanglongji, which was close to Loulan Kingdom.

Huanglongji gets its name from a gray-yellow cliff on its north side that resembles a flying dragon. A section of an underground river is exposed below the cliff, forming a lake and a small oasis.

The sound of a large cavalry arriving quickly alerted the people in Huanglong Market. Many thought it was a bandit attack, and the market guards drew their bows and swords, causing quite a commotion.

"Who goes there! State your name!"

"Summon Chang Feng to come out and answer!"

Bathed in the glow of the setting sun, three hundred Iron Eagles, mounted on tall horses, each clad in black armor, their banners fluttering and spears gleaming, stood silently outside Huanglongji. Their imposing presence was overwhelming, making the guards, who had only ever dealt with bandits and Western Region soldiers, feel as if a stone was pressing on their hearts, making it hard to breathe.

A moment later, a tall, middle-aged man dressed in red silk arrived at the market entrance, cupped his hands, and said, "My name is Chang Feng. I didn't know which high-ranking official from the Central Plains had come to greet me. Please forgive me for not welcoming you properly!"

The Iron Eagle Cavalry cleared the way, and two horses pulled a magnificent carriage out slowly. Although it had been through two days of sandstorms, the curtains on the carriage were still clean, as if they had just been washed with water.

The next moment, two old men appeared before Chang Feng like ghosts, gesturing for him to enter. "Our lord invites you in!"

"A master!" Chang Feng's eyes twitched.

Such a level of expert might not be uncommon in the Central Plains, but they are very rare in the Western Regions. However, within the opposing forces, they are merely used as messengers.

Wait, they said "Your Highness"?

There are very few princes in the Central Plains court, especially in the northwest. The only one who can be called a prince is the Great Jin Zhenxi King, who controls the three prefectures in the northwest and commands an army of 50,000!

When Chang Feng saw the three hundred silent cavalrymen on the other side, he immediately felt relieved.

Besides the Iron Eagle Cavalry under the command of the Prince of Zhenxi, which swept across the Northwest, what other cavalry has such momentum?

Chang Feng quickly straightened his clothes, jogged to the front of the carriage, bowed deeply, and said, "Chang Feng from Huanglongji pays his respects to the Prince of Zhenxi!"

A young voice came from inside the carriage, "Is it difficult to tidy up the post station, prepare food and wine, and make some room for my cavalry?"

"No!" Chang Feng immediately replied, "The post station is simple. If the Prince of Zhenxi does not mind, you may stay temporarily in my humble abode. There is a camp there specifically set up for traveling merchants, which is sufficient to accommodate your cavalry."

"Okay, lead the way."

"yes!"

A moment later, Wang Yu entered Chang Feng's residence in Huanglongji.

It must be said that even in the windy and sandy northwest, the scenery of Changfu is quite remarkable. With pavilions, towers, carved beams and painted rafters, although the place is not very large, it is exquisite and delicate, and even has a Jiangnan style.

In the backyard of the Chang residence, a pool of clear spring water was dug out, gurgling and even emitting wisps of steam.

"There's a hot spring underground here, which I happened to find, so I built a manor on top of it. Your Highness must be tired from your journey; would you like to soak in the hot spring tonight?"

Chang Feng, of course, saw Li Yunxiu and Qianqian, and then made a suggestion to Wang Yu.

Wang Yu shook his head. "A quick wash is all we need. We have to travel tomorrow."

Chang Feng's eyes twitched, and then he invited the group to the main hall of the mansion, where he served them local delicacies. In addition to Northwest cuisine, there were also dishes from the Central Plains.

Chang Feng invited Wang Yu to sit in the main seat, with Li Yunxiu and Qianqian accompanying him. Ma Bojun sat at the head of the table, while he himself sat to the left.

Wang Yu inquired about the matter again and learned that the three caravans that had previously left Yumen Pass had not appeared in Huanglongji!

……

"What's going on?"

After dinner, Wang Yu called over Ma Bojun and Li Yunxiu to discuss the matter.

"This means they didn't take this trade route," Li Yunxiu said, spreading out the map he had obtained from the garrison commander of Yumen Pass. "Instead, they took another route."

"Shall we take Loulan head-on?" Ma Bojun asked.

Li Yunxiu nodded, looking at the scattered black dots on the map. "They should be similar to those bandits, hiding in the oases near Loulan."