Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

A hundred-strong army marched out of the city to suppress the bandits.

Excluding Ye Tingxiu, Xiao Hongyun, Zhou Qingfeng, and Jin Wei.

The number of officially appointed soldiers in the bandit suppression operation was ninety-six.

Among the ninety-six people, there were six cultivators who had suffered from food-related disasters, and the rest were elite warriors of the Turbid Food Realm.

If these people are used well, Zhou Qingfeng is confident that he will have nothing to fear even if he encounters three times the number of enemies!

The premise is that there are no cultivators at the Devouring Fiend Realm among the bandits.

Suppressing bandits is no child's play; it's real warfare, and in warfare, people die.

We must arrange our troops in a strategic formation.

Zhou Qingfeng then divided the troops into scout squads, defense squads, ranged squads, and raid squads.

The scout squad is responsible for reconnaissance and harassment, and selects cultivators who are proficient in reconnaissance and concealment spells.

The defense squad is responsible for direct confrontation, and is composed of melee cultivators with strong physiques and expertise in defense.

The ranged squad is responsible for dealing damage from a distance, and cultivators who are proficient in swordsmanship, archery, and the like are preferred.

The raiding squad was composed of six cultivators, led by Jin Wei, tasked with tearing gaps in the enemy's formation.

Thus, Zhou Qingfeng transformed a loosely organized group of cultivators into the prototype of a killing squad.

Then they set up camp and began training at Shili Grain Yard outside the city.

Zhou Qingfeng gave Xiao Hongyun and Ye Tingxiu the nominal position of adjutant and then left them to their own devices.

After training here for over a month, Xiao Hongyun and Ye Tingxiu became anxious.

So, taking advantage of the lunch break, he caught Zhou Qingfeng and demanded an explanation.

Xiao Hongyun said, "Old Zhou, I know you are resourceful and you must have your own reasons for doing this, but please give me a hint so I know what we are doing here and what we are going to do next."

Ye Tingxiu stood with his hand on his sword, expressionless, and said, "Hurry."

After several months apart, the one who changed the most was Ye Tingxiu. It seemed that his master, Night Owl, had given him facial paralysis and a stutter. He was extremely sparing with his words, and if he could express something in one word, he would never use two.

Zhou Qingfeng ate his spicy hot pot, using a small knife to cut the fresh mutton on the table into slices and put them into the pot. He ate while looking at the map of the Sword Tower.

"I thought you guys could put up with it for a while longer." Zhou Qingfeng didn't even look up, casually pointed to the seat next to him with his chopsticks and said, "Sit down and eat with us. Help yourself to whatever you want to cook. Don't be shy, make yourself at home."

Ye Tingxiu drew his sword and slashed, cutting countless slices in the blink of an eye, slicing a sheep into countless thin pieces.

Zhou Qingfeng, holding the bowl of seasonings, looked up at him blankly and asked, "What are you doing?"

"It's convenient to eat." Ye Tingxiu put away his knife expressionlessly, then picked up a bowl and chopsticks and started simmering the mutton in the hot pot.

Zhou Qingfeng pointed at the guy and looked at Xiao Hongyun: "Has this bastard been possessed?"

Xiao Hongyun scratched his head, then sat down and picked up his bowl and chopsticks to cook some mutton: "Stop talking about him. He was such a sunny young man, but his master has turned him into a withdrawn person. Now, let's talk about you."

"Me? What do I have to say?" Zhou Qingfeng continued to unfold the topographic map to look at it: "It's just preparation for battle, otherwise, with this hastily assembled force under my command, going to suppress bandits, ha, would that be suicide?"

"A group of fearless cultivators who have not been trained together will fight individually even on the battlefield, without thinking about cooperating with their comrades. They probably won't even be able to exert 30% of the army's strength."

Ye Tingxiu ate his hot pot meat expressionlessly, when suddenly he blurted out, "I'm begging you, Lao Zhou."

Zhou Qingfeng glanced at him and clicked his tongue: "Fine, I'll talk to you since you begged me."

He got up and hung the topographical map on the wall, then plopped back down and pointed at the map with his chopsticks, saying, "I never fight a battle I'm not sure I can win, nor will I go to suppress bandits without preparation."

"During this period, in addition to training troops for joint operations, I also..."

"I also got a topographical map of the Sword Tower area and information about the bandits from my master."

"This gang of bandits claims to be from the Immortal Slaughtering Village. Their high-level combat strength is unknown, but they are numerous and mostly cultivators at the Turbidity Realm. They also roam around committing crimes. I have marked their main activity area on the map."

"Did you notice anything?" Zhou Qingfeng asked with a grin, holding the dipping sauce bowl and scooping up the hot pot. He then noticed that the mutton he had just thrown in was gone. Seeing Ye Tingxiu chewing the mutton with gusto, he immediately slapped him across the face.

"Damn it, you begged me to explain, and you secretly ate the lamb I just cooked?"

Ye Tingxiu leaned back to avoid him, holding the bowl of condiments: "I'm listening and I'm eating, you can continue."

Seeing this, Zhou Qingfeng smiled and pointed at Ye Tingxiu: "You've become less talkative, but you're much more fun than before."

Ye Tingxiu raised his head: "Absolutely."

Xiao Hongyun looked at the topographic map thoughtfully, then beckoned with his hand and said, "Don't interrupt, we're talking about serious matters. Lao Zhou, you showed me the map, and I did see something, but I don't know if it's the same as what you're thinking."

Zhou Qingfeng crossed his arms and smiled slightly: "Please speak freely, perhaps great minds think alike."

Xiao Hongyun pointed to the map and said, "Although their crime locations seem random and chaotic, there are still clues to follow. Look at this gang of robbers, they are located 136 li east of the mine and 36 li west of the grain store."

"From the south to the eighty-eight-mile trade route, only in the north were there no traces of them."

Finally, Xiao Hong drew a circle to the north with his finger: "This place, the outer edge of Tiger Might Ridge, should be the hiding place of the Zhuxian Village bandits!"

Zhou Qingfeng stroked his chin and smiled: "That's right. They deliberately avoid robbing the trade routes, manors, and mines near Huwei Ridge to the north, creating the illusion that they don't frequent those areas. In reality, it's just a smokescreen."

"Once I've trained my soldiers, we'll strike at their heart and wipe out their bandit stronghold!"

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hongyun mentally simulated the battle. Knowing the enemy's stronghold, he planned a surprise attack to annihilate them. The enemy, believing themselves well-hidden, would never expect an attack.

Caught off guard, the other side will inevitably suffer heavy losses and scatter in all directions.

The final outcome will only be a resounding victory!

"You won just like that?" Xiao Hongyun was stunned, his face showing shock. Looking at Zhou Qingfeng, a complex expression appeared on his face. Finally, he sighed, bowed deeply, and said, "I am grateful for your guidance."

"So this is what it means to strategize within the command tent and win battles a thousand miles away."

"The outcome of this battle was already decided before it even began. I admire Hongyun and humbly admit defeat!"

Ye Tingxiu ate his hot pot, feeling both amazed and impressed. He even gave a thumbs-up while eating, exclaiming, "Awesome!"

Zhou Qingfeng smiled faintly: "Sit down and eat. Give me another month to train my hundred-man force. I can wipe out these bandits from Zhuxian Village with just a flick of my finger!"

Xiao Hongyun took his seat and nodded earnestly: "I believe you."

"I believe it too!" Ye Tingxiu wiped his mouth and let out a burp: "Had your meal? Old Zhou, wanna have a fight?"

Zhou Qingfeng turned to look at him, smiling, and said, "With your current strength, are you really confident you can beat me?"

Ye Tingxiu shook his head and said, "It's hard to say. I've never fought one. Are you scared?"

Zhou Qingfeng smiled slightly: "No, I'm not afraid of failure, I'm only afraid of not having a good opponent."

"Deep down, I crave defeat, but among those of the same level, I am already invincible."

"Old Ye, keep sharpening your knife."

"When we reach the summit together one day, I will agree to a fair competition with you!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Tingxiu stood up expressionlessly, placed his hand on his sword, and left: "I look forward to that day."