I used the Mo Dao (a type of long-handled sword) to fight the Japanese.

That night, they stayed at the entrance of the Ten Thousand People Cave, searching all night without finding anything. They didn't leave until late the next morning, carrying 167 urns containing ashes, looking rather dejected. They had won the battle, but it was a truly pyrrhic victory!

However, it was a good thing for Wu Erdan and Li Zisheng. After this battle, they caught the eye of Inoue Masao and could now work directly under Major Inoue, with a bright future ahead of them!

"Jingle Bell!"

A sudden, urgent phone call in the military police office interrupted Masao Inoue's thoughts.

"Moses Moses?"

"It's me, Nagano Yokosuke!"

"Hi! Senior!"

"I heard you wiped out those servants, but you don't seem happy about it."

"Yes! Those servants are all dead, but our losses are more than ten times theirs! The Imperial Army lost fifty-six soldiers, and the puppet troops lost more than a hundred... A group of servants can cause such losses to our Great Japanese Imperial Army. Junior, you are terrified..."

"Hahaha, so what? Didn't you say he was a clever opponent? He still died at your hands, didn't he? Ever since we set foot on this continent, we've been prepared to give our lives for His Majesty the Emperor. Anyone could be annihilated in the next battle! Including you and me! So you don't need to feel guilty! There are even greater challenges waiting for you in the future!"

"Hey! I'll keep your advice in mind!"

"Alright! Senyuan Resources has discovered a gold mine with considerable reserves in the upper reaches of the Baiyue River. Their exploration team will be there soon. You must ensure their safety and cooperate with them to locate the vein as quickly as possible! This matter is of great significance to the Empire, do you understand?"

"Hey! Junior, I'll do everything I can to protect the exploration team's safety!"

"Good that you understand. Go and get ready!"

After hanging up the phone, Inoue Masao regained his usual confidence. Even if his opponent was clever, he was already blown to pieces and dead. The empire's iron hooves had already set foot on this land, and it would surely become its master. Those fallen imperial soldiers were the price for conquering this continent!

……

Tianma Village is bustling again today, with over a hundred elderly people, women, and children from Zhao Village moving in, adding vitality to this ancient village!

That's right, the members of the Mo Dao Regiment are still alive, and not a single one is injured! They retreated right after the first round of shelling by the Japanese. Those corpses blown to pieces were just puppet soldiers they had killed the day before! Those were all props; it was a clever escape plan!

Ultimately, it comes down to their weakness. Destroying the pillbox and annihilating the search team was already too high-profile! The right thing to do is to take this opportunity to hide themselves again and develop secretly. It won't be too late to fight the Japanese to the death when they are stronger in the future!

In the council hall, Zhao Renyi, along with the elders of the clan, Mancang, members of the Modao Troupe, and the younger generation of Zhao Village who had not joined the Modao Troupe, gathered to discuss important matters.

"Second Grandfather, are you satisfied with the arrangements made for the clansmen?" Mancang asked Zhao Renyi, the clan chief, with a smile as he sat in the main seat.

"Satisfied! Very satisfied! You've already achieved such a great result in just over two months! Good! Excellent! The future rests on the shoulders of you young people!" Zhao Renyi exclaimed with great emotion. He had originally thought that these people, having escaped from the mine, would only kill a few Japanese soldiers out of sheer bravado and then settle down after a few setbacks.

Unexpectedly, they not only blew up pillboxes and wiped out Japanese search teams, but this time they also severely damaged a Japanese force of several hundred men, managing to protect the entire village's residents and ensure their safe evacuation despite the overwhelming Japanese offensive. These achievements alone are enough to make them the envy of the entire Guya County! Even the Nationalist army back then didn't kill so many Japanese soldiers, did they?

"Haha, I'm glad you and all the grandfathers are satisfied! This village used to be bandit territory, so the houses are already built, but we'll have to cultivate the land and crops ourselves. Besides, the food, clothing, and daily necessities for so many of us are quite an expense. I'm thinking of organizing the villagers into a caravan to do business in the city. Do any of you grandfathers have any good suggestions?"

With more people, expenses increase, and relying solely on robbing the assets of Japanese invaders and traitors is not a sustainable solution. Surely so many people can't all farm? It takes several months from planting to harvesting, and that's a long-term solution that can't address the immediate problem. A stable income is essential to sustain them.

"Hmm, you've thought this through. Our Zhao family used to escort goods for various merchants to earn some extra money to supplement our income. After the Japanese came, there were fewer goods for merchants, and with the chaos of war everywhere, no one had the mind to do business. If you people can protect everyone, it's not impossible to go into trade!"

“Our mountain products are bestsellers in the city. When we come back, we can bring back some salt, cloth, and so on. If we do a good job, it won’t be a problem to support us. A few years ago, we old folks delivered goods for Zhang Youcai in town and got to know some people in the county and city. We can go with you to check things out!” Zhao Renyi said after thinking for a moment.

"That's feasible! We can also pick up the fur-making skills again; city folks really crave that stuff!" Second Master chimed in.

“It’s just that the journey is unsafe, and there are many checkpoints with Japanese soldiers and traitors who are really annoying. We need to find someone resourceful to keep things going. Do you have a suitable candidate?” Chengzi asked.

"Not yet. We're alright at fighting, but we haven't seen any talent in business yet. Why don't you guys give these young people a try? Let Mancang lead a few men to escort them all the way; safety shouldn't be a problem," Mancang suggested, pointing to the young people who hadn't joined the Mo Dao Regiment.

“Sure! Chengzi and I will take the lead in making arrangements! You guys should also put in a good job. If anyone can handle this, we old folks will be able to relax a bit!” Second Master took the initiative to take charge of the caravan’s affairs.

Only the two of them are relatively young; the others are all too old to withstand any hardship.

“That’s great! Let Mancang help us arrange whatever we need. Let Hu Zi and the others take these people out for practice first, so they’ll be able to protect themselves if they encounter Japanese soldiers or traitors in the future. Do you think this arrangement is alright?” Mancang said.

"Train! Train hard! The whole group has changed a lot recently, so don't fall behind! In times of war and chaos, it's better to rely on yourself than on others!" Zhao Renyi immediately declared.

"No problem! I've been itching to shoot since I saw you guys doing it. Even though we joined a bit late, we're definitely no worse than Manxiang and the others!" Qingxin laughed.

"It won't be bad!"

"No problem, a whole box of them couldn't beat me before!"

"Haha, as long as you don't regret it!" With things settled, everyone had a new direction, and they all rolled up their sleeves, ready to get to work!

Over the next ten days, Qingxin and his friends experienced what "devilish training" meant. They were all tortured by Hu Zi and his group until they were screaming and crying, and the young men were all visibly thinner!