After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

The vast desert sands, the sky filled with smoke and dust.

Four figures appeared on the Ancient Tea Horse Road at sunset.

This time, Consort Ge also came along. Her country was originally in the Western Regions, but it was destroyed, and she was sold to Zhao Xier.

She couldn't take revenge on her own. Chen Futu just happened to be going to the Western Regions to deal with Fanlou and take revenge for her at the same time.

As the only route to the Western Regions, the Ancient Tea Horse Road was quite bustling, with merchants and wanderers coming and going in an endless stream.

Chen Futu was dressed as a young swordsman, wearing a black bamboo hat and carrying the Great Xia Dragon Sparrow at his waist.

As for Zhang Sanfeng and Xiaobai following behind him, they looked like grandfather and grandson.

"Big brother, there's so much sand! Ptooey, ptooey, ptooey!"

Little White spat in disgust; in such a harsh environment, even opening your mouth to speak inevitably resulted in swallowing some sand.

Upon seeing this, a shopkeeper from the Western Regions nearby smiled and said, "Guest, is this your first time visiting the Ancient Tea Horse Road?"

Chen Futu sat down nearby and ordered some food, then casually asked, "Boss, how much longer until we reach the Western Regions?"

"This is nothing. The Western Regions are far to the west. The Tea Horse Road is just the gateway from the Central Plains to the Western Regions. We have a long way to go. Moreover, I suggest you travel with a caravan. Otherwise, you might encounter bandits from Dantu along the way through the Black Sand Sea. Those people have been entrenched in the Black Sand Sea for many years and they don't follow any ironclad rules or江湖规则 (jianghu rules)."

"Dantu bandits? What are those?"

This was the first time Chen Futu had ever heard of such a name.

Ge Fei picked up the conversation and said seriously, "Dantu is a tribe that is skilled in black Gu magic. It is said that they grew up in the Black Sand Sea and their tradition is extremely ancient. Robbing travelers along the way is their only way to survive. As long as you give them supplies, they will release them. Therefore, that road has unique rules. Some merchants know this and will prepare enough local specialties and daily necessities for them as toll money before they set off."

"Can't we just go around it?"

“No, the Black Sand Sea area is inhabited, and the Dantu tribe’s settlement is a rare oasis of life, so it’s hard to go around.”

"Has no one thought of wiping them out?"

"Dantu's black Gu technique is extremely strange. He can poison people without them even noticing. Besides, the oasis needs their tribe to maintain it. No one will interfere. Even a Martial Emperor would have to bow down if he passed by."

"interesting."

These stories are unheard of in the Central Plains. As a time traveler, Chen Futu became increasingly interested in the Black Sand Sea.

Zhang Sanfeng pondered and said, "Since they exist, there must be a reason for it. Although Dantu robbed passing merchants, their presence in the oasis provided convenience for travelers, so it can be considered a win-win situation."

Chen Futu agreed wholeheartedly and said nothing more.

"Young man, are you heading to the Western Regions?"

Suddenly, a merchant from the Central Plains with a mustache came up to them. Chen Futu and the others looked him over curiously, and the man said with a smirk, "I am Shen San, a merchant from Jiangnan."

"Wasn't Jiangnan occupied by Beiwu?" Ge Fei asked suspiciously.

Shen San slapped his thigh and started talking, “Who says otherwise? Fortunately, the Empress of Northern Wu is not as brutal as the Western Regions Allied Forces. In addition, His Majesty the Holy Emperor has issued a decree that forbids external forces from harming the people of the Central Plains. Therefore, there is no conflict between Northern Wu and the people of Jiangnan. However, the Empress has increased commercial taxes, which has drained my family’s wealth. So, even at my age, I have to come out and do business.”

Why don't you move your whole family to the capital region?

"I want to too, but the Empress is afraid that we fat sheep will run away, so she has sent people to keep an eye on us. If I just turn around and run away, my whole family will be finished."

Shen San sighed, and the girl behind her, whose face was covered by a heavy veil, nodded repeatedly. "Father is right. It's a pity that His Majesty the Holy Emperor stopped fighting after reaching the north of the Milky Way. I heard that he secretly reached a cooperation agreement with the Northern Martial Empress, but I don't know if it's true or not."

The girl's words made Chen Futu slightly embarrassed.

Was he unwilling to fight?

After conquering a territory, you have to govern it first. Besides, with all the forces driven south of the Milky Way, it won't be easy to resolve the next war in the short term.

The rest of the time was spent rambling on about how his destination was also the Western Regions.

"Young Master Chen, why don't we travel together? That way we can look out for each other on the road."

Shen San shamelessly extended an invitation.

After a moment's thought, Chen Futu agreed, "Since we share the same goal, let's travel together. I hope you'll take good care of me."

"sure."

Shen San was quite pleased. It was rare to encounter a Jianghu person from the Central Plains traveling to the Western Regions, which would provide him with some protection on his journey.

The caravan mainly transported tea, cloth, and porcelain from the Central Plains, and his team included a 20-man guard unit.

These people are not very strong. The strongest captain is only at the Martial Grandmaster level, which is the highest level that ordinary people can reach. As for the team members, most of them are at the seventh or eighth rank, and there are two or three at the ninth rank and one at the Innate level.

Chen Futu asked, "The team must have cost a lot of money to hire, right?"

"Of course. Fortunately, they are a guard team belonging to the Jiangnan Chamber of Commerce Alliance, so we can get a discount. If we cooperate for a long time, we don't have to worry about them taking the money and not doing their job."

Shen San explained with a smile, and seeing that everyone had finished eating and drinking, he invited them to the inn to rest, and to set off early the next morning.

Chen Futu and the caravan stayed at the same inn called Longmen.

Ge Fei was carrying several round bundles, which attracted the attention of many people.

Shen San's daughter, Shen Lu, whispered a reminder, "Young hero, it's best not to flaunt your wealth when you're out and about."

Following her gaze, Chen Futu noticed that some people from the Western Regions in the inn were staring intently at the bundle that Ge Fei was carrying, their greed barely concealed.

Chen Futu smiled slightly at this, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

That night, he shared a room with Zhang Sanfeng, while Xiaobai shared a room with Ge Fei.

At midnight, the sandstorm intensified.

Zhang Sanfeng didn't sleep; instead, he sat cross-legged on the ground, meditating, with the Zhenwu Sword flying around him, dazzlingly bright.

Chen Futu raised an eyebrow and asked, "Old man, don't you ever sleep?"

Zhang Sanfeng replied without looking up, "I'm used to it. Young master, you don't need to worry about me. Please rest."

"To be honest, are you a cultivator?"

What is cultivation of immortality?

"I ride the sword on the wind and slay the demons between heaven and earth."

"I do not know how to fly on a sword, but my internal energy is enough for me to move around in the air for a while."

How much skill do you possess?

"Approximately twenty cycles of the Chinese calendar."

"I'll do it!"

Chen Futu was shocked.

This old man actually has twenty Jiazi of internal energy, which is 1,200 years. That's comparable to a Nascent Soul cultivator.

He also said that he is not a cultivator!

"Young master, please don't misunderstand. Cultivation depends on talent. For an ordinary person, sixty years of cultivation is one cycle of the Jiazi (a Chinese calendar system), while for a genius, ten years of cultivation may be several cycles of the Jiazi system."

"I see. So how many Jiazi have I lived in?" Chen Futu asked deliberately, trying to probe the old man's background.