Chapter Thirty-Nine: One Thousand Shattering One Hundred Thousand (Part One)

After Zhao Hong and Zhang Cheng departed to carry out their orders, only Xu Kang remained in the camp with over two hundred soldiers assigned to transport supplies, and more than seventy carts loaded with provisions.

The soldiers tasked with this transport clearly understood their mission. Faced with such a daunting challenge, they couldn’t help but feel uneasy—their eyes revealed fear and confusion.

As the saying goes, “the eyes are the windows to the soul.” One look at their expressions, and Xu Kang could guess what they were thinking.

He also knew that, when confronted with matters of life and death, mere slogans did nothing to change a person’s resolve; what these men needed was hope—hope for victory, hope for survival.

With this in mind, Xu Kang suddenly struck his spear against the ground and shouted loudly.

“Heavenly Steed, come forth!”

As he uttered these words, he immediately activated the Invincible Cavalry Gallop, the skill of the Divine Knight, summoning forth his awe-inspiring warhorse, clad in armor from head to hoof.

A resounding neigh shattered the daze, snapping the two hundred-odd supply soldiers back to attention.

Those standing closest to the warhorse, which had appeared out of thin air, cried out in alarm and collapsed to the ground in shock.

Seeing this, Xu Kang couldn’t help but twitch his lips, almost bursting out laughing. In such a “critical moment,” he bit his lip hard to stifle his amusement, then put on a stern face and roared at the soldiers.

“The Yellow Scarves are wicked rebels, defying the will of Heaven! We act as Heaven’s enforcers—undefeatable and unstoppable! Today, aided by the auspicious Heavenly Steed, we shall crush the Yellow Scarves!”

As he spoke, the mighty form of Iron Will the Boar, summoned by his will, emerged in the torchlight alongside the horse. The sight struck the men with awe, but also filled them with confidence.

Excitement broke out among the ranks.

“With Iron Will the Auspicious Beast by our side, victory is certain!”

“With Iron Will the Auspicious Beast here, we shall break the Yellow Scarves!”

“Iron Will! Iron Will! Iron Will!”

Hearing the men begin to chant “Iron Will, Iron Will,” Xu Kang’s expression changed at once. He quickly raised his hand to silence them.

“There’s no time to lose! All officers, prepare to move out!”

“Yes, sir!”

…

Under Xu Kang’s command, the two hundred supply soldiers set out, escorting more than seventy wagons laden with hay, bedding, and all manner of incendiaries. Their spirits were high, a stark contrast to their earlier anxiety.

This was exactly the result Xu Kang had hoped for, but he couldn’t help feeling a twinge of irritation knowing that all this was due to Iron Will the Boar.

“Damn it, I’m supposed to be a demigod, and yet I’m outshone by a giant wild boar?”

Though he was unwilling to admit it, he had to concede that, in terms of pure fighting power, he was no match for Iron Will—and by a long shot.

Whenever this thought crossed his mind, he couldn’t help but twitch his lips in frustration, silently comforting himself.

“Iron Will is my tamed beast; his strength is my strength. Besides, I’m human. Intelligence is my advantage—he can never surpass me there!”

With this, he felt a bit better and even managed a smile.

The soldiers behind him, not knowing his thoughts, saw the smile and assumed he was confident of victory. Their own confidence grew, and they quickened their pace.

At this rate, only a short time after midnight, the lights of the Yellow Scarves’ main camp came into view.

Estimating the distance to be less than a kilometer, Xu Kang immediately dismounted and gave new orders to the supply soldiers.

“Quickly rearrange the carts: those carrying hay, bedding, and tents to the front; those with incendiaries to the rear. Prepare an empty cart and cover Iron Will—get him loaded up. Move fast, we’re going to sneak into the Yellow Scarves’ camp together!”

“Yes, sir!”

The supply soldiers swiftly repositioned the wagons, prepared a cart for Iron Will, and, once ready, followed Xu Kang toward the enemy camp.

Soon, they reached the front of the Yellow Scarves’ main encampment, but before they could approach the tall wooden gates, shouts rang out from the arrow towers on either side.

“Halt! Who goes there?”

“Stop at once, or we’ll open fire!”

At these words, Xu Kang signaled his men to halt and called up to the guards on the towers.

“We serve under Commander Bo Cai! Yesterday, our lord defeated a Han relief force and captured supplies. We were ordered to bring them here to share with the brothers!”

“Supplies?” The sentry brightened instantly. “Is there any grain?”

“None—only hay, bedding, and tents. If you don’t want them, we’ll take them back!” Xu Kang replied calmly.

“Wait!” The sentry, afraid they’d leave, conferred with his comrades, then sent one man down to inspect the goods.

With over seventy wagons, it was impossible to check everything. After inspecting a dozen or so, he called up to the tower.

“They’re legitimate Han army supplies—these are our own men. Open the gates and let them in to rest!”

But the guards on the tower hesitated, apparently wary.

Seeing this, Xu Kang raised his voice.

“No need for all this trouble! The supplies are delivered—we should return at once to Changshe to report to the commander. Farewell!”

He gestured to his men and turned to leave.

But before he could go, the voice from the tower called again.

“Wait, brother! If you won’t stay to rest, we won’t force you, but at least leave an inventory of the supplies. Otherwise, if the commander asks, we’ll have no explanation.”

“There’s no list!” Xu Kang immediately denied. “All the supplies are here—over seventy carts, not one missing!”

“Not one missing? Hmph!”

No sooner had he finished than a cold snort came down from the tower.

“If nothing’s missing, where’s the grain? Where are the weapons? And where did you get those Han army uniforms?”

“Well… uh…”

Flustered by the questioning, Xu Kang stammered like a petty official caught embezzling.

The man on the tower, now certain of his suspicions, snorted again.

“Hmph. Since you can’t explain, you’ll have to escort the supplies inside yourselves. Whatever you have to say, tell our commander Peng Tuo in the morning… Men, open the gate!”

“Yes, sir!”

At the order, the great barricade gate of the Yellow Scarves’ camp slowly swung open.

Seeing this, a smile crept across Xu Kang’s face.

“Half the plan has succeeded!”