Yun Ye wasn’t going, and neither was Wu She. The old man clutched the four jade plaques, believing himself to be the person closest to the immortals. Even though Heavenly Lake was full of temptation and within reach, he was unwilling to put down the jade plaques in his hands and run up the snowy mountain.

Yuan Shoucheng wanted some soldiers to accompany him, but when Yun Ye recalled Ye Tuo’s encounter, he refused outright. The mountain was too dangerous. Ye Tuo’s brother had been torn in half by something resembling a giant gorilla. Why would he send his own perfectly good subordinates to become cannon fodder for Yuan Shoucheng? Yet the old man’s dignity couldn’t be compromised. Fortunately, he had a very capable subordinate named Tian Yuanyi, who knew that the General cherished his subordinates dearly, to such an extent that it bordered on obsession. So Tian quietly selected fifty brave warriors from the more than ten thousand auxiliary troops in Tingzhou, telling them that as long as they could protect these Daoist masters and bring them safely down from Heavenly Lake, each person would receive a reward of ten thousand coins and be promoted one rank.

Such high rewards were unprecedented. Warriors generally loved money, especially since this time the reward was exquisite Tang coins, not the messy silver cakes from the Western Regions. The warriors were very satisfied with such treatment.

Yuan Shoucheng was not very satisfied. His status in the Great Tang was lofty. That Yun Ye hadn’t dispatched the most elite Tang troops to protect him was the greatest discourtesy. In his view, he needed at least a squad of soldiers assigned to him, and the squad leader should be at least a Captain.

Just as Yun Ye was at a loss for words, Tian Yuanyi quietly offered his counsel: “Old Immortal, you possess nimble skills and can swallow clouds and exhale mist—naturally you don’t need anyone to protect you. The several Daoist masters by your side are also exceptional talents. Speaking of protection would be laughable. What you truly need are porters to carry supplies up the mountain, guides, and most importantly, people to scout the path ahead.”

“Consider this, Your Eminence: Heavenly Lake is originally the realm of immortals. The danger there isn’t from people, but from the environment. There might even be magical formations left by immortals, as well as various fierce beasts. This junior heard legends of Heavenly Lake while in Gaochang. Using these barbarians to scout the path and risk their lives presents no problem whatsoever. But if it were our own sons and brothers encountering danger, you would have to come to their aid, which would affect your journey. If losses were excessive, the General would certainly not agree. Don’t you think so?”

Yuan Shoucheng looked suspiciously at Yun Ye, and seeing him nodding constantly, he agreed. Indeed, it was so. Going to Heavenly Lake was fraught with danger. Those soldiers had inferior martial skills, and if they encountered trouble, he would indeed need to rescue them. Unlike these barbarians—if they died, they died. He needn’t trouble himself over them. If this attempt failed, next time he could simply find more barbarians to continue up the mountain.

“Young man, actually this old man has His Majesty’s imperial decree in his breast, commanding you to give your full assistance to this old man. Never mind, considering your affection for your soldiers like your own children, this old man won’t produce it. Barbarians it is, then.”

Yun Ye shook his head and said, “It can only be barbarians. Even if you produced His Majesty’s imperial decree, this junior would only give you barbarians. When a general is in the field, some of the sovereign’s commands need not be accepted, especially when this is a foolish command. This junior simply won’t accept it.”

Faced with Yun Ye’s stubbornness, Yuan Shoucheng had no recourse and could only instruct the five Daoist priests to make preparations.

“You needn’t trouble yourself. This junior has already prepared everything you’ll need. No one knows better than I what items are needed for ascending the Celestial Mountains. Sleeping bags, fuel, new stoves, tents, clothing, shoes and socks, snow shoes, walking sticks, ropes, grappling hooks, weapons, plus some prepared medicines and bandages, the military shovels used by soldiers—you’ll have to learn how to use all these things from scratch. Old sir, actually this junior is very uneasy about letting you go mountaineering now. You’d best wait until next year. After this junior has dealt with military affairs, it would be best if we went together.”

What Yun Ye said wasn’t mere courtesy; it was truly the case. Where would climbing snowy mountains ever be easy? Moreover, in the era he currently inhabited, many ancient and ferocious wild beasts had not yet gone extinct in the wilderness. At least in his previous life, Yun Ye had never heard of giant lizards in the desert, nor had he heard of ants everywhere in the desert, much less heard of scorpions growing as large as a palm.

Yuan Shoucheng chuckled, patted Yun Ye’s shoulder and said, “You truly are a fine young man. It’s just a pity that ten thousand years is too long—this old man seizes the day. This old man is too old. If I lie down tonight, I don’t know if I’ll wake tomorrow. I cannot wait. Since you’ve prepared everything, this old man will study carefully. The Celestial Mountains! This old man very much wants to see your true face.”

Regardless of whether the old man’s eyes had been dazzled by the lure of immortality, Yun Ye couldn’t help but admire this spirit of seeking truth. Tang people were all like this. The great scholars Yun Ye knew, even someone like Xu Jingzong, absolutely would not be perfunctory when it came to scholarship. Whenever they read books, neat reading notes would emerge. What they understood, what they didn’t understand—all would be clearly marked. Then they would seek advice from others. The subject of mathematics was like a heavenly book to Xu Jingzong, but this old fellow would always seek instruction from Yun Ye whenever he encountered something he didn’t know or understand. He wouldn’t rest until he figured it out.

This time, leaving Xu Jingzong at Loulan Rubble City was to have him guard the retreat for Yun Ye. Yun Ye always felt that the Western Regions seemed rather unstable. This might be related to his habitually pessimistic disposition.

But data couldn’t lie. Three years ago, there were only nine bandit raids, all targeting merchants. Two years ago, the number of bandit raids dropped to three—this was the situation after the frontier army’s vigorous suppression. But this year, the number of bandit attacks on towns reached an alarming forty-one. What did this indicate? It indicated that the forces behind these bandits were preparing for a major operation. Where exactly was their target?

Tingzhou? Or Anxi? If Yun Ye were to choose, Guo Xiaoke should be the optimal target. Five thousand Tubo bandits dared to brazenly wage war against his thirty thousand troops. Gathering a large group of people to find trouble with Old Guo wouldn’t be much of a problem, would it?

Unfolding the letter paper, he once again took up his brush to write to Guo Xiaoke. Even old platitudes must be said. His left flank was now completely empty and very dangerous. He didn’t know what Old Guo was thinking, leaving such a large gap for bandits to roam freely, while he himself eagerly went to open up new territories. The previous lands hadn’t been properly governed—what new realm was he fighting for?

Yun Ye’s great army continuously swept through the area below the Celestial Mountains. Liu Xinwu led large contingents of men like a bulldozer, charging across this great plain, following the strategy he had previously formulated, completely uprooting all obstructive forces.

Tingzhou had finally settled down. There were no more reports of large bandit gangs plundering anywhere. Naturally, the most delighted were the merchant caravans that had been trapped in various cities during this period. Long camel trains once again appeared on the commercial roads.

Yun Ye was relocating, ordering all officials’ family members to leave Tingzhou entirely and transfer to Loulan Rubble City. For a time, this main road was filled with flowing traffic and endless pedestrians.

Seeing off the last batch of family members under the protection of a Captain, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Taking advantage of the warm weather, the families would arrive at Rubble City when the northern wind began to blow. After resting there for one winter, come spring they would continue their journey toward the interior, completely removing the officials’ worries from behind.

The officials of Tingzhou all knew clearly that the Commander would likely undertake major action. About this point, they were extremely excited. Now the army’s scouts had reached as far as the Rock Lacquer River. Yun Ye’s interest in this river was far from ordinary. Petroleum actually seeped up from underground and eventually flowed into the river, forming a pitch-black stream. This was simply too wasteful. (This is historically accurate—Rock Lacquer River, an ancient place name.)

With petroleum, Yun Ye had endless fire oil. Here he didn’t need to cherish raw materials as he did in Chang’an. He was preparing to carry out plundering-style large-scale development here.

The lamp oil manufacturers in Tingzhou had struck it rich. Yun Ye’s army was purchasing fierce fire oil without limit. As long as you could produce it, he would purchase it all. Fan Hongyi looked worriedly at the mountains of pottery jars.

“Commander, we have too much fierce fire oil. According to our current consumption rate, we couldn’t use it all up in ten years. The money and resources we brought with the army are almost depleted.”

Yun Ye pushed aside his documents, rubbed the corners of his eyes and said to Fan Hongyi: “Too much? How do I feel it’s still too little? Fierce fire oil is a good thing. It can be used for warfare, it can be used for burning fires. Once our Camel City is established, you’ll feel that no amount will satisfy the army’s consumption. Old Fan, gunpowder and fierce fire oil represent another new method of warfare. We’re accumulating experience in this area. Rest assured, once Yuezhou ships over countless iron barrels, you won’t need to worry about having nowhere to store the fierce fire oil.”

“You need to accelerate the production of hot air balloons now. When our entire army enters the Camel City, they’ll be our eyes. Five of them—absolutely no fewer than five. The new oil-spraying furnaces shipped from Chang’an must be installed on them. You select personnel and train them well. Our hot air balloons don’t need to fly all over the place. They’ll just be tied to the Camel City with ropes. The danger is much less than when in Chang’an. Among my personal guards are many who understand flag signals. Focus your selection on them.”

“As for the army having no money—you, Old Fan, aren’t you ashamed saying such things? How could the army possibly have no money? Discuss this matter with Tian Yuanyi. You have a rigid military mind. We have the most formidable soldiers and are situated on the busiest commercial route. If we had to send documents to the Ministry of War requesting money, the hat of the Great Tang’s most incompetent general would be placed on my head.”

Seeing that Yun Ye had started studying documents again, Fan Hongyi could only go find Tian Yuanyi. Tian Yuanyi was laughing with delight. Ever since the Commander came to Beiting, Tian Yuanyi felt like he was living in a dream.

Previously, he had begged and pleaded wanting to send his two sons to study at Yushan Academy but simply couldn’t get them in. As a result, the Commander tossed over a waist token, allowing his two children to take the entrance exam at Yushan Academy. If their grades weren’t too poor, they would be given priority for admission to the academy. His children and legitimate wife had already returned to Chang’an with the Cheng family merchant caravan. He suddenly felt his future was bright. His own grievances from guarding isolated cities in the Western Regions didn’t matter at all. Following the Commander campaigning east and fighting west didn’t matter at all. Even accidentally dying in battle wouldn’t be a big deal, because his official position had changed from Western Regions Commissioner to Military Advisor of the General’s Headquarters.