Bright Sword: Conquer the monk at the beginning and take down Zhou Weiguo

Xiaohu followed closely behind. Although his eyes were fixed on the surrounding darkness, his mind was focused on Qin Cang. He knew Qin Cang too well. Whenever this man faced a battle, he was always as calm as a piece of iron, as if no accident or crisis could truly shake his judgment. But Xiaohu knew that beneath that calm exterior, there was actually extremely meticulous thinking and unfathomable strategy. Every time Qin Cang spoke like this, it usually meant that he had already deduced countless possibilities in his mind.

Finally, the soldier leading the way stopped and raised his hand gently, signaling everyone to pause.

Qin Cang immediately lowered his body, his eyes scanning the front sharply. Through the sparse shadows of the trees, he saw a slightly open woodland. Moonlight barely filtered through the gaps between the leaves, and some messy traces were vaguely visible on the ground.

The soldier squatted down, pointed at several footprints on the ground, and whispered, "Look, these marks are very fresh, no more than two days old, they must have been left recently."

Qin Cang squatted down, carefully examining the footprints on the ground. Indeed, these footprints were deeper than those left by ordinary patrols, indicating that the people standing there had stayed for a long time, or were carrying heavy supplies. He gently brushed his fingers along the edge of the print, feeling the softness of the soil, and mentally calculated the time these footprints had left. His eyes were quickly drawn to another strange spot—not far from the footprints, a patch of ground had been turned over, as if someone had dug something there and then covered it up again.

Qin Cang frowned slightly, pointed at the disturbed ground, and whispered to Liu San, "Go and take a look."

Without saying anything, Liu San immediately crawled over and dug his fingers into the ground. Sure enough, the soil was much looser than the surrounding areas. He lowered his voice and said, "This place must have been dug up."

Xiao Hu also came over, his curiosity completely piqued. He whispered, "What did they bury here? Or...did they dig up?"

Qin Cang didn't answer, his gaze still fixed on the surrounding darkness. After a moment, he whispered, "Whatever it is, the enemy has stayed here longer than we thought, which means they have other plans."

Xiaohu frowned and thought for a while, then suddenly whispered, "How about I go over to the front and take a look?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Qin Cang's gaze suddenly turned to him, his eyes were sharp and contained a hint of coldness that could not be refused.

"No." Qin Cang's voice was low, but his tone was filled with unquestionable majesty. "You can't expose yourself."

Xiao Hu was slightly taken aback, obviously not expecting Qin Cang to reject him so directly. He frowned and whispered back, "But if we don't go and see, how can we know what they are doing? Besides, I'm fast and my movements are stealthy. Even if I'm discovered, I can get away immediately."

Liu San snorted coldly, glanced at Xiao Hu, and said with a hint of disdain: "You escaped? You are so agile. I am afraid you will step into the trap. Then we will have to take the risk to save you."

Xiaohu frowned, obviously dissatisfied, but he still looked at Qin Cang, waiting for the final decision.

Qin Cang didn't speak immediately. Instead, he looked at Xiao Hu deeply and said in a low voice, "Do you think covert action is just avoiding the enemy's sight? The real concealment is to make the enemy unable to even detect your existence."

Xiaohu's lips moved, wanting to refute, but in the end he kept silent. He knew Qin Cang was right. If he left the team to investigate, any accident would not only expose himself, but also affect the entire team's operations.

Qin Cang's eyes softened a bit, and his voice lowered, but still with a hint of severity: "Remember, Xiaohu, on the battlefield, impulsiveness is the most deadly thing."

Xiaohu was silent for a moment, then finally nodded and whispered, "I understand."

Qin Cang breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that he had given up. It wasn't that he didn't trust Xiao Hu's abilities, but the risks on the battlefield were far more complex than they seemed. A single misstep could lead to a complete loss, and he couldn't take that risk.

Liu San looked at the two of them from the side, raised the corner of his mouth slightly, and whispered: "Okay, what should we do next?"

Qin Cang's eyes darkened, and he said slowly: "Continue to observe."

Qin Cang narrowed his eyes. In the moonlight, he could see the mottled shadows of the trees around him, and the breeze rustled the branches, making a slight rustling sound. This forest was not too dense, and the terrain was not very rugged. If the enemy was ambushed in the distance, the slightest movement would easily expose them. He glanced down at the loose soil under his feet, and he had already made a decision.

He bent down and reached out to grope on the ground, his fingertips brushing against a few fallen branches, then breaking off some branches from a low shrub. Each movement was controlled with extreme lightness, making no unnecessary noise. Liu San watched from the side, his brows slightly furrowed, and whispered, "What are you going to do?"

Qin Cang did not answer immediately, but continued to gather the branches, and then whispered: "Use them as a cover."

Liu San was slightly taken aback, then he understood his intention. Qin Cang wanted to use these branches to disguise a natural obstacle, making their hiding place more concealed, while also creating some illusions to mislead enemies who might be observing from the dark.

Xiao Hu squatted aside, watching Qin Cang skillfully fiddling with the branches, and couldn't help but lower his voice and asked, "Do you want my help?"

Qin Cang didn't even raise his head and replied calmly: "No, just be alert."

Xiao Hu opened his mouth, but eventually closed it. Although he felt a little unconvinced, he also knew that Qin Cang was methodical and wouldn't waste a single moment. He gripped his dagger tightly, his eyes scanning the surroundings vigilantly, his ears sharp to pick up any movement.

Qin Cang quickly wove the branches together, skillfully placing them around their hiding area. His movements were extremely cautious, and the angles of each branch were carefully calculated, so as not to appear deliberate, yet still create a natural illusion under the moonlight. This way, even if the enemy were observing from a distance, it would be difficult to detect anyone hiding here.

Liu San watched his movements, a flicker of approval in his eyes. They had been through many battles, but Qin Cang's meticulousness still impressed him. While others might only think about hiding, Qin Cang could quickly create the best possible cover, even using the natural environment to create illusions, fooling the enemy into thinking nothing was amiss.

A few minutes later, Qin Cang stopped what he was doing, glanced over his "work", and then whispered, "It's done."