In the early morning, the sky was just beginning to turn pale.
Next to the gate of a large courtyard in the east of Zhao'an City,
A green dragon horse, nearly ten feet tall and covered with scales, kept raising its head and wagging its tail despite the groom's efforts to comfort it, and its four iron hooves as big as bowls kicked the ground impatiently.
Later, with a creaking sound, the door of the mansion was slowly opened, and then a tall, broad-eared middle-aged man walked out, surrounded by a large group of people.
"Madam, you guys go back!" Zhao Shuo pulled the reins and turned to say to his wife.
"Master, can you please not go? Otherwise, let Ang'er go and beg the master. He is an immortal cultivator and will definitely be able to save you from this mission."
Seeing his wife crying, Zhao Shuo frowned and said solemnly: "My wife, please give me your opinion! It is precisely because Ang'er is a cultivator that I, as his father, must go. Moreover, for the sake of the Zhao family's thousand-year foundation, as the innate master of the Zhao family, I, Zhao Shuo, have no choice but to go!"
"But...what if..."
Zhao Shuo waved his hand, interrupting his wife's words, and said firmly: "There is no such thing as a miracle. Even if I die in the southern border wilderness this time, I will die for the great cause of my family, and it can be considered a worthy death!"
After he finished speaking, Zhao Shuo suddenly jumped onto his horse, pulled the reins, turned the horse's head, looked back at his wife, and finally said: "Madam, take care!"
After saying that, Zhao Shuo squeezed the horse's belly. Feeling the pain, the Qingjiao horse suddenly raised its front hooves high and then rushed out.
"Master, woo!"
Looking at her husband's receding back, the mistress of the Zhao family, who had always lived a life of luxury, suddenly burst into tears.
A moment later, Zhao Shuo rode the dragon horse and quickly approached the east gate of the city.
At this time, he saw from afar that there were twelve figures riding on dragon horses waiting silently at the city gate.
Most of these people are white-haired old men, and there is only one like him who is in the prime of his life.
Arriving at the city gate, Zhao Shuo grabbed the horse's head, reined in the Green Dragon Horse, and joined in silently.
After a while, eight more Zhao family innate warriors came from various parts of Zhao'an City.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Zhao Wenxi, the oldest among them, suddenly said in a deep voice: "Everyone, this time, our Zhao family can be said to be going all out, so this trip to southern Xinjiang, we can only succeed and cannot fail.
In addition, I want to remind you one more thing. Even if we have to die, we old bones must die before the immortal cultivators in our family. Do you understand?"
"Third Master, don't worry!"
"It's natural!"
"Haha, Third Brother, we can still distinguish between what is important and what is not."
The Zhao family members responded with expressions that were either solemn or free and easy.
Zhao Wenxi nodded with a smile on his face, then tightened the reins and shouted, "Let's go!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the green dragon horse under him rushed out first.
Seeing this, the other Zhao Xiantians whipped their whips and squeezed their stomachs. Twenty-one dragon horses took off one after another and galloped towards Taiwu Mountain.
…
Three days later, beside a secluded pond on the mountainside, Zhao Sheng looked at the two horse teams gradually moving away down the mountain. His face was calm and he did not say a word for a long time.
Zhao Xuanan, who was standing beside him, saw this and couldn't help asking, "Seventh Uncle, isn't this a bit too hasty?"
Zhao Sheng turned to look at the current head of the Zhao family and said calmly, "This is a test, and also a period of adjustment. If they can't even adapt to the nearby Ghost Mist Ridge, they will be of no use in the Southern Border Wilderness."
After listening to this, although Zhao Xuan'an did not quite agree with his seventh uncle's approach, he did not continue to question it.
In the past two years, he has been staying in the Ge family to gather information. As he learned more about the inside story of the Tutu War, Zhao Xuan'an became more and more aware of the cruelty of the Tutu War.
Although Uncle Seven's decision was somewhat cruel and inhumane, it was the best choice for the family.
"Xuan'an, you and Feng'er won't go on this trip to Southern Xinjiang. You will be in charge of Taiwu Mountain."
Hearing this, Zhao Xuanan said anxiously: "How can this be possible! The family is currently short of manpower, and Feng'er and I are both at the sixth level of Qi Refining. How can we just stand by and watch!"
Zhao Sheng waved his hand and said, "Everyone in the family, including me, can die, but neither you nor your wife can die. Do you understand?"
Zhao Xuan'an remained silent, he understood the unspoken meaning of his seventh uncle's words.
"Besides, your presence at Taiwu Mountain is extremely important to the family. On the one hand, you have to cut off the prying eyes of those with ill intentions, and on the other hand, you have to keep an eye on these little brats of the Xuan generation who are at the first and second levels of Qi Refining.
Most importantly, the family's logistical responsibility also falls on you. Compared to having two more Qi Refining Level 6 warriors, these things are more important, right?"
When Zhao Xuan'an heard this, he nodded sincerely, and the knot in his heart was instantly untied.
"By the way, how many days will it take for Feng'er to come back?" Zhao Sheng suddenly asked.
Zhao Xuanan thought for a moment and said, "Calculating the distance, they should be back soon, one or two days at most."
"Hmm," Zhao Sheng nodded thoughtfully.
…
Two days later, in the bluestone courtyard on the top of Taiwu Mountain.
Zhao Jinjian, Zhao Keru, Zhao Sheng, Zhao Xuan'an and other key figures of the Zhao family appeared here one after another.
The reason why so many people gathered was because Ge Feng'er brought back a crucial piece of information.
Ge Feng'er is not tall and looks delicate and petite, but she has a cheerful and generous personality.
She stood beside her husband, looking at the Zhao family's uncles and elders with a smile, and her aura was even slightly more powerful than Zhao Xuan'an.
"Feng'er, hurry up and take out the things!" Zhao Xuan'an urged.
Ge Feng'er glanced at her husband with her almond-shaped eyes, then pulled out a crystal ball the size of a human head from her storage bag. She smiled and said, "My dear uncles and elders, Feng'er has fulfilled your mission. I have brought back the True Shadow Ball, which records a portion of the desolate region's topography."
After that, she took out a map and handed it to her husband, saying, "This is a simple map I copied from my family. It roughly covers the scope of this land expansion war."
Hearing this, Zhao Jinjian couldn't hide his joy. He immediately stepped forward to take the True Shadow Ball, praising it repeatedly: "Feng'er, you are so thoughtful! You have truly made great contributions to our Zhao family. If this mission succeeds, you should be the first to be credited!"
"Feng'er, I dare not take credit for it. Since I have married into the Zhao family, I should put the family first." Ge Feng'er said humbly.
"That's well said. An'er is truly lucky to marry you!" Zhao Sheng also praised.
"Uncle Qi, you're too kind. Who made me fall in love with this playboy back then?" Ge Feng'er rolled her eyes at her husband.
Zhao Xuan'an smiled awkwardly, with a hint of bitterness on his face.
With just a few words, Zhao Jinjian successfully activated the magic weapon, the True Shadow Ball.
At this moment, a layer of light suddenly appeared on the surface of the real shadow ball, and then a lifelike three-dimensional image was projected from the inside of the sphere into the air.
The image's perspective is high in the sky, as if a person is flying forward at high speed, looking down, taking in all the scenery and terrain along the way.
Looking around, the earth is covered with rolling hills, valleys and lakes.