Lord of the Myriad Worlds

Chapter 350: Two Choices

"Clear."

A few minutes later, Li Wei looked up to see Li Yue signaling from a well-concealed sniper position about five hundred meters from the camp. On her shoulder sat a small gray crow — the Four-Star Hunting Pet Li Wei had given her, courtesy of the Neanderthal scout's generous drop package.

Li Yue, naturally, was fully capable of everything Li Wei could do. Mounted archery was no challenge for her.

That Four-Star Crow could deploy the Parabolic Positioning talent at any moment.

"Clear."

Li Wei signaled back.

He quickly left the camp and rejoined Li Yue. They had been moving all night and needed to rest.

Recovering stamina regularly — keeping it above a safe threshold — was also good practice. Staying calm and unhurried, composed but not sluggish, relaxed but not careless — these details were just as much a matter of survival as anything else.

"This was a temporary camp, occupied for roughly ten days. I found waste and signs of habitation in the surrounding area. Approximately fifty to fifty-five Ability Users — though I can't confirm whether any Neanderthal Cross-Border infiltrators were among them."

"Their strength appears to be Level 4 and above, with the possibility of Level 5 Ability Users. Their thinking seems clear, their behavior logical, and their organization reasonably disciplined.""If I'm reading this correctly, this is one of the Frost Duke's relatively elite Ability User units. I can't yet confirm whether there are similar small forces in other directions."

"Also — these people don't seem concerned or surprised that the Neanderthal scout didn't return last night. They should have realized by now. That tells me there are two separate mission threads here. One was to cause trouble inside our territory and try to kill me if the opportunity arose. The other mission thread — Aunt Yue, what do you think it is?"

Li Wei and Li Yue sat in a small valley, eating quietly and speaking in low voices as he described what he had found.

"Easy to guess. What does the Frost Duke need right now?"

"You and the Frost Duke each treat the other as the final boss. You're developing quietly on your side. He's doing the same. Right now, in this world, there are four other mission branches besides yours. To the Frost Duke, they're minor enemies — he needs to clear them first, recover, and gear up."

"So the Frost Duke is worried about you communicating and forming alliances with the others. An alliance would be bad for him. My guess is that these Ability Users and the Neanderthal scout were tasked with exactly that — cutting off contact. That's also why Zhao Xuanxuan has been winning skirmish after skirmish to the east this past month. Their goal is to contain and harass. Each small victory doesn't matter — but eventually they'll hit you with something big."

"After this battle, I'll hold Riverside Fortress for you. You need to go out — find an ally, convince them to merge with you, or find other survivor camps. The Frost Duke is building his forces. With the Neanderthals stirring things up too, we may not be able to hold if it comes to a full assault."

Li Wei nodded at Li Yue's analysis. He didn't say more. This was necessary. The next month-plus was farming downtime — and the most important window for building alliances. Miss it and there would be no second chance.

As for why it had to be Li Wei — Li Yue still needed time to integrate her newly bound Hunter Card and grind her Rare Knight Card's Destiny Grid and experience. That was a different kind of card from the Cavalry Card.

Half an hour later, the sky was fully bright. The sun rose blazing from the horizon. The world looked peaceful and harmonious. This was the beautiful month of May.

Li Wei and Li Yue rose quietly and resumed their formation — one ahead, one behind — continuing forward.

It was easier now. The Ability Users had left obvious traces. Li Wei only needed to verify there were no traps along the way.

Two more hours passed. They gradually moved out of the lush hilly terrain, and the land ahead opened up — but still no sign of the Ability User force.

"They must have set out last night. By the time we reached the temporary camp this morning, they'd had at least a four-hour head start. That's enough time to do a lot."

Li Wei and Li Yue stood behind a tree line, looking ahead. Beyond this point was open wasteland — fifteen years ago, it had all been farmland. At the far end of the wasteland was another large stretch of forest — the place where Li Wei had once discovered and killed the mutant cabbages. And further north was a ruined town and the great bridge.

"If their objective is to blockade the bridge, they've probably already encountered Zhao Xuanxuan's group. The two sides are roughly matched, and in that terrain, Zhao Xuanxuan shouldn't be reckless enough to start a fight. I told her yesterday — don't strike without a signal from Adai. But what worries me now is this: these Ability Users spent over a month without deciding to blockade the bridge. Why did they suddenly decide to do it now? Does that mean they've received reinforcements?"

Li Yue laid out the analysis. Fifty-odd Ability Users alone weren't enough to blockade the bridge. They had to be holding something in reserve.

"Exactly. We arrived too late. The original plan — a surprise attack with a pincer — is no longer viable. Now we have two choices. First: we move up, release Adai, and coordinate with Zhao Xuanxuan for a front-and-rear encirclement to destroy this Ability User force in one blow. But we have to be careful about reinforcements — otherwise we could be the ones getting surrounded."

"And the second choice?" Li Yue asked. She had already guessed where Li Wei was going.

"Leave them alone for now. Let them blockade the bridge. Pretend nothing has happened — lure them into committing more forces, and give Zhao Xuanxuan's group a training opportunity. My plan is to use Zhao Xuanxuan as the main commander, with Grant, Benjamin, Santiago, and Xavier as support, and forge a heavy cavalry unit capable of fighting hard battles."

"As for me — I'll use this window to contact potential allies. I have about a month and a half. Let's see if I can bring back a friendly force."

As he said it, Hathaway's face flashed through his mind. At this point, given how far behind she had fallen, her territory was in the worst shape of any of them. Without a merger, it was hard to imagine her holding on through the end of the year.

And Lu Ziming and the others — their contracts had probably expired and they'd left. How many would be willing to stay as her advisors?

Li Yue glanced at him. "You're the Lord — you have the authority to make strategic decisions. But there's one detail you need to watch. The Neanderthal scout Thomas killed last night — word of his death may reach the other Neanderthal Cross-Border infiltrators soon. When it does, they may make a move. There's even a chance they'll guess your intentions — if they have a third scout."

"I know. That's a real risk. The problem is we don't know the exact nature of the relationship between the Neanderthal infiltrators and the Frost Duke. Are they closely aligned, or just using each other? That's why I'm willing to take the risk." Li Wei nodded. He had made his decision.

"Alright. I'll work with your plan. Are you coming back with me first, or going straight into the Frost Duke's territory from here?"

"I'm escorting you back first. I won't be at ease until you're safely back at Riverside Fortress. And Aunt Yue — until I return, please don't make any reckless moves."

Li Yue smiled. She started to say something, then didn't. This kid was just so steady. That was exactly what she admired most about him. Solid and grounded to the core.

"Let's go then."

"No — not the same route back. We take a detour. I'll lead, you cover from behind."

As he spoke, Li Wei recalled Adai and stored him in the Five-Star Pet Card. Adai was a trump card — but a trump card used too often became a known card.

He hadn't spotted anything wrong yet. But he absolutely could not be careless.

"Understood."

Li Yue said nothing more. She drew her strong bow quickly, scanning the surroundings, and waited until Li Wei had moved four or five hundred meters ahead and disappeared from sight before following at a measured pace.

In terrain like this — complex, overgrown, wild — most combat units were at a disadvantage. But for scouts, it was paradise. And equally, it was the ideal ground for scouts to hunt each other.

Life and death, victory and defeat, a fatal mistake in the next second — always possible.

Li Wei took a long detour and moved slowly — as cautious as a mouse.

He had a habit of gathering plants along the way. Some were One-Star, some Two-Star, some just ordinary weeds.

Some he recognized, some he didn't — but he gathered them anyway. Because they all had a sharp, pungent smell.

Once he had enough, he would crush them and rub the residue on himself. This helped mask his scent from any surveillance target downwind.

Li Yue was doing the same.

A simple, effective, and cheap technique — easy to master.

After cutting south for roughly twenty-plus kilometers, Li Wei, leading at the front, suddenly stopped and signaled to Li Yue behind him.

A moment later, Li Yue moved silently to his side, looked ahead — and felt her heart drop.

About fifteen kilometers ahead, in a wide valley, hundreds of centaurs and large numbers of Ability Users were encamped. Above the valley, massive vines had been woven into a green canopy, concealing half the valley from above. From the air, nothing was visible.

Only by approaching from a specific angle at ground level could you see it.