Young White Horse: The Poison Sword Master of the Wen Family, Shocking the Apocalypse

At midnight, in the side hall of the Zichen Palace.

A middle-aged man in a gray robe with an ordinary face stood bowing in the hall.

Ib remained as mature and composed as ever, the only difference being his eyes—since the loss of his daughter, they had become as calm as two ancient wells, undisturbed by any ripples.

"Your subject Yi Bu greets Your Majesty." Upon seeing the new emperor, Yi Bu hurriedly knelt and bowed.

"General Yi, please rise." Xiao Ruojin sat at the head of the table, her attitude gentle.

"When the late emperor was alive, it was thanks to the Shadow Sect that Tianqi was protected and treacherous officials were eliminated. Since I ascended the throne, I have been busy with many matters and have only now had time to summon the general. I hope you will not take offense."

"Your Majesty is too kind!" Yi Bu said, bowing his head. "The Yingzong clan has been favored by the Emperor for generations and should naturally be loyal to the royal family. We are deeply saddened by the passing of the late Emperor. Fortunately, Your Majesty is a young and wise emperor, which is a blessing to our Great Li."

These words were perfectly worded, expressing both loyalty and flattery.

Xiao Ruojin smiled and said, "General Yi, you flatter me. I have summoned you here today because I have an important matter to entrust to you."

"Your Majesty, please give your orders."

"My younger brother, the Prince of Langya, will soon lead his army south to quell the rebellion in the southwest."

Xiao Ruojin slowly said, "This journey is fraught with danger. The rebel army is powerful, and they also have that little poisoner from the Wen family helping them. I am worried about the safety of the Prince of Langya, so... I would like to ask the Shadow Sect to select a few capable disciples to secretly accompany the army and protect him."

A strange light flashed in Ib's eyes.

Guards? Langya King Xiao Ruofeng's martial arts have reached the Free and Unfettered Realm, and he has fierce generals under his command such as Lei Mengsha and Ye Xiaoying. Why would he need the Shadow Sect to secretly protect him?

These words, though spoken politely, have a deeper meaning.

"Your Majesty's concerns are deeply felt by me," Yi Bu bowed. "However... the Shadow Sect disciples excel at assassination and infiltration, but guarding is probably not their forte. Moreover, the Langya King's army is strictly disciplined; if outsiders were to infiltrate, I fear..."

“General Yi, you are overthinking it.” Xiao Ruojin interrupted him, her smile unchanged. “What I need is not guards in the open.”

It's about being discreet—observing secretly, following secretly, and protecting secretly. If the Prince of Langya unfortunately encounters danger, your Shadow Sect guards can immediately lend a helping hand!

If anyone in the Prince of Langya's army plots any wrongdoing... you may... report this to me in due course.

He paused, then emphasized, "After all, my emperor holds the military power of the entire country. If someone takes advantage of the chaos of war to incite him to do treacherous things... I, as his elder brother, cannot afford to be complacent."

After hearing these words, Ib understood perfectly.

What guards, what protection—it's all a facade!

What the new emperor truly wanted was surveillance—to monitor the every move of the Prince of Langya and to monitor whether anyone in the army harbored ulterior motives.

This is the art of imperial strategy, and also a manifestation of suspicion towards the Prince of Langya, who wields immense power and command a large army.

"Your Majesty, I understand." Yi Bu bowed deeply. "When I return, I will select my most reliable disciple to secretly accompany the army, protect the Prince of Langya, and report the army's movements to Your Majesty in a timely manner."

"Then I'll leave it to General Yi." Xiao Ruojin nodded in satisfaction. "This matter is confidential; no third party may know about it except for you and me!"

"The minister obeys the order!"

After Yi Bu withdrew, Xiao Ruojin sat alone in the hall, her fingers still gently caressing the white jade thumb ring.

The candlelight flickered, casting dappled shadows on his face.

“My dear brother…” he murmured to himself, “Please don’t blame your elder brother. Once you sit on this dragon throne, you’ll realize how cold and difficult it is. It’s so cold that you have to be wary of everyone, including you.”

Outside the palace, the night wind howled.

The lights of every household in Tianqi City gradually went out, leaving only a few palaces in the imperial palace still lit.

Yi Bu entered the Shadow Sect.

Three black-clad Shadow Sect disciples were already waiting outside the main hall. Upon seeing their sect leader return, they all bowed.

"metropolitan!"

Yi Bu walked to the main seat and sat down. After a moment of contemplation, he said, "Luo Qinghong, Song Chen, and Zhuo Yifeng, the three of you prepare yourselves. Soon after the Prince of Langya sets off, you will secretly follow him!"

Of the three, the oldest, Song Chen, looked up and asked, "Sect Master, what exactly is this mission?"

"On the surface, your duty is to protect the safety of the Prince of Langya," Yi Bu said slowly. "In reality, the three of you will monitor his every move and all the generals in the army. Every three days, send me a message via falcon!"

"If any unusual activity is detected?" Song Chen's eyes darted around.

Yi Bu remained silent for a long time before saying, "I will report this first. As for how to handle it... I will have to report to His Majesty and then hear his decree."

The three exchanged a glance and replied in unison, "Yes!"

Ib waved for them to leave, then sat alone in the main hall, a complex expression flashing in his eyes.

For a century, the Shadow Clan has been loyal to the royal family. Each successive clan leader has kept to their duty, serving only as a weapon and not questioning who wields it.

But this new emperor... seems to be even more difficult to serve than the previous emperor, Xiao Chongjing.

“King of Langya,” Yi Bu sighed, “I hope your army consists of loyal and dutiful men. If there are any who harbor ill intentions, then I will have no choice but to act according to the rules…”

Yi Bu sighed inwardly. If the drama of brothers killing each other were to actually unfold in the future, Ying Zong would probably have to get involved as well.

……

Since that confrontation at Zichen Palace that night, Xiao Ruofeng has never entered the palace again.

He simply moved directly to the Imperial Guard camp outside Xuanwu Gate, where he ate and slept.

During the day, he would review troops and train soldiers; at night, he would study the terrain of the southwest and military reports, with the candlesticks on his desk often burning until dawn.

In mid-May, the summer heat was beginning to set in Tianqi City.

On the training ground, three thousand imperial guards were practicing the "Eight Gates Nightmare Formation," a formation that Xiao Ruofeng improved from ancient books. It consisted of eight teams of soldiers arranged in the positions of the Eight Trigrams, supporting each other and combining offense and defense.

Under the blazing sun, the soldiers' armor gleamed with gold, their footsteps kicked up dust, and their battle cries shook the camp flags.

Xiao Ruofeng stood on the command platform, with Lei Mengsha and Ye Xiaoying standing beside him.

"The left flank of the Xiumen is closing in too slowly. If we were to actually engage in battle, do you think their force could hold off the speed-renowned Pofeng Army?!" Xiao Ruofeng frowned and waved his command flag, saying:

"Order: Start over!"

The flag officer waved the command flag, and the formation was rearranged.

Lei Mengsha wiped his sweat and whispered, "Seventh Brother, isn't this formation a bit too complicated? The southwest is mostly mountainous; the army might not be able to maneuver effectively..."

"Of course I know we can't deploy them all at once, which is why I've reduced the massive formation of ten thousand men in the ancient texts to a smaller formation of three thousand two hundred! If we really end up in the southwest and the two armies are facing off, we'll use the smaller formation!"

Xiao Ruofeng's gaze remained fixed as he continued, "Bai Li Luo Chen's Breaking Wind Army excels at field raids. If we engage them head-on in formation, we won't gain the upper hand. Only by engaging them in small-scale skirmishes and wearing down their morale can we hope to achieve victory!"

Ye Xiaoying nodded: "Your Highness is right, but our soldiers are used to large-scale charges, and they are really struggling with the ever-changing formations of the Small Eight Gates Formation..."

"That's why we need to train even harder!" Xiao Ruofeng turned around. "General Ye, we've drawn two thousand elite troops from your Twin Blades Battalion to train them specifically for mountain raids these past few days. Second Senior Brother, your Silver-Clad Guards are skilled in mounted archery; we'll focus on jungle guerrilla warfare!"

"Order!"

The two clasped their hands in a fist salute and left. Xiao Ruofeng stood alone on the stage, gazing southwest, his eyes growing increasingly intense.

These days, the military reports sent by the Ministry of War are piled up to almost half a person's height.

Baili Luochen increased his troops to 150,000 along the Yunzhou and Juzhou lines, and also seized the Zhenfeng silver mine, ensuring ample food and supplies.

What's even more troublesome is that Wen Yanzhao, that little poisoner, has returned to Lingnan—which means that the legendary "Medicine Man Army" could very well appear on the battlefield.

Three thousand medicine men can be worth one hundred thousand elite soldiers.

Xiao Ruofeng pressed his temples; this battle would be difficult.

Just as he was pondering this, a personal guard came to report: "Your Highness, Minister Gao of the Ministry of Revenue has arrived and is waiting in the tent."

Xiao Ruofeng turned and stepped off the stage. After taking a few steps, he suddenly paused and glanced to the side at a corner of the training ground—where there were some abandoned archery targets and stone locks, but no one was there.

Just now, he seemed to sense several gazes behind him.

It was very light and faint, like the wind blowing across my neck.

Illusion?

Xiao Ruofeng frowned and continued walking towards the main tent.

Unbeknownst to him, in the shadows of Lin Yin outside the camp, a corner of clothing had silently tucked back in.

……

As night fell, three miles outside the Imperial Guard camp, there was an abandoned City God Temple.

Three dark figures swept into the temple like ghosts. The leader was a tall, thin man with an ordinary face, but his eyes shone brightly in the darkness.

His name is Song Chen, the strongest swordsman among the younger generation of the Shadow Sect, second only to Luo Qingyang.

Behind them were two people, one short and stocky like an iron tower, named Luo Qinghong; the other elusive and with superb lightness skills, named Zhuo Yifeng.

"Senior Brother Song, what's our next step?" Luo Qinghong asked in a low voice.

Song Chen grinned, revealing a set of white teeth: "Those two generals beside the Prince of Langya are not easy to deal with. Lei Mengsha has already entered the Free and Unfettered Heaven Realm, and Ye Xiaoying is also a valiant general in the army. If we really fight, the three of us combined can only hold them off for thirty breaths at most."

“I know that very well!” Luo Qinghong pondered for a moment. “The sect leader said that we will only monitor, not intervene.”

Zhuo Yifeng's voice was ethereal: "Today at the training ground, the Prince of Langya seemed to have sensed something."

“It’s alright,” Song Chen said. “We’re far enough away that at most he’ll find something strange and won’t be able to find us.”

Remember to send a message to the clan leader every three days, reporting on the movements of the Prince of Langya, the morale of the army, and the grain reserves—especially who he has been in contact with, as His Majesty specifically instructed.

Luo Qinghong scratched her head: "Is Your Majesty worried that the Prince of Langya is becoming too powerful?"

"Don't ask questions you shouldn't ask!" Song Chen said coldly. "Do your job well. Tomorrow, the Prince of Langya will go to the Ministry of War's armory to check the weapons. Junior Brother Zhuo, you disguise yourself as a porter and sneak in. You have good lightness skills. Qinghong and I will continue to keep an eye on the central command tent."

"Yes!"

The three exchanged a glance, then dispersed and disappeared into the night.

The Earth God Temple has fallen silent once more. On the offering table, the smile of the clay statue of the Earth God appears eerie in the moonlight.

……