Chapter 101: The chu country

"There goes the first mole in the convoy. I hope the princess would be wiser when choosing maids next time. All of you are invited to rest in the quarters assigned to you. We will have the next meeting scheduled after breakfast. We will be leaving Tamar day after tomorrow. "The meeting was adjourned and the soldiers along with the princess and her remaining maids went to their rooms for resting for the day. Su Menqi stayed behind to have a conversation with Long Tao regarding some of the passages they would be following in the trip. Long Tao confronted and cleared the doubts regarding the path. He asked Su Menqi to look after the princess's safety.

"Are you sure about all the spies and moles in the convoy being dead?" Long Tao chose to remain silent. SU Menqi didn't bother him any longer and went to the troop's rendezvous position to take care of some formalities and report to the general's office regarding their arrival at the camp. The news of the princess's arrival in the Black-buck dwelling soon spread. The vice-generals and even the general himself came to pay a visit. "I hope my subordinate had been treating you well in this journey of yours." The princess had a hearty conversation with the general before the dinner was served and all of them retired into their bedrooms.

Long Tao was current in the general's quarter. "What is your view regarding this mission.". "I am quite certain of a mole being present in the royal court itself. I wouldn't be surprised if there were more than one. The other thing which worries me is that this assassinations objective.". The general was curious regarding this statement." If you see the scenario properly, what is the motive behind the possible death of the eldest princess? One reason could be a personal vendetta. A political move regarding the royal court might also be an objective.". "The aim of inciting a war might also be an objective in this case.".

"It's unlikely to be the case. If the motive was to incite a war, the assassination attempt should have begun within the Chu country, especially in the royal city. Because the Chu royal family would be in the perfect spot to be claimed as criminals. But the attacks happened in the Jiao country.". "It might be the work of the Chu country to give the royal clan a blow, by taking out one of the chief strategists. ". "The princess is on her way to the Chu country. If they wanted to kill a strategist, then they are sure about going to war. In which case, they would have allowed the convoy to pass through and killed her within the country. Why now? She can also be tortured to gather information regarding the military secrets and is a perfect hostage in times of war."

"So, you expect some other play in this case." Long Tao nodded. He was trying to point his fingers in another direction, but the picture was too blurry to see. Long Tao was not able to put his finger on. He had a gut feeling that the princess was hiding something. This mission's details haven't been provided in its whole. He had to plan something in this case. A backup, which would also act as his trump card to play. He needs to surprise his enemies. His cultivation was going on well. By the time they reach the Chu, Long Tao was confident about reaching the 10th stage of Qi master and completing the Crimson world scripture. The only thing remaining would be Hell soldier sutra.

The next morning-

The convoy set out on its trip again. The royal guards who were slain were replaced by a set of 4 new soldiers who were handpicked and allotted by the general himself. Although these people were capable, who in the north-eastern regime didn't have a dream to work in Black-buck now. The new vice-general was a powerful figure as of now. They greeted Long Tao as soon as they reached and the convoy formally resumed its journey. The border between Chu and Jiao was successfully crossed and they were received by a messenger from the Jiao royal court, who left as soon as they greeted him. His work was to report the arrival in the Chu royal court. The convoy would be there in the next ten days.

"Princess we have successfully set foot in the Chu country. We will be reaching the next checkpoint tomorrow. It is the regimen of the unrivaled general is the post we will be resting in. I hope the princess wouldn't mind the continuous travel since this is the location that comes under the area controlled by the level 4 monster, the Slytherin." Long Tao consulted with the group regarding their further passage. He needed to avoid the Slytherin at all cost, otherwise, it would turn into a messy fight.

From what he knew the Slytherin was able to compete with the blood general. It would have already healed until now. Beasts have an acute sense to recognize their prey. The Slytherin must have remembered him too. A useless confrontation at the moment would be bad, especially when he is still not capable enough to kill it. He convoy was heading towards the interiors now. They were in the location that fell in the direct territory of monsters. Multiple small confrontations took place while on the journey. They finally managed to get away with it. Long Tao was breathing a sigh of relief when he saw this. They managed to avoid any necessary confrontation. The night stay was done in an open area under the sky.

Long Tao already learned from his mistakes in the past. The reason he was still alive was because of the origin avatar art of his, which helped him create multiple true bodies and divide their consciousness. Long Tao used the night to practice his set of swords and saber arts. He needed to learn the Heaven Canyon perfectly until the first part. Only then would he be able to get another strong secret weapon. He also wanted to find out about the evil moon and the evil church. There were many potential cultivators who were eligible to join the Heaven Cleaver sect. He decided to join it only after he reached the QI emperor peak. Long Tao's training was going well and he managed to complete the Crimson world 10th rotation by a quarter now. He was confident to be able to reach the Qi master 10th stage by the time they reach the Chu capital.

It was not until they reached and reported in the office of general unrivaled, that another attack happened. It was on the outskirts of the regiment. This was a critical area, due to the number of people commuting from this place. Some assassins who were dressed as locals attacked the convoy from multiple directions. They were taken care of, at the cost of 2 more men. The princess was even more nervous as of now. These two were sent by the assassination cult too. Finally reaching in the office, they made their reporting.

The princess and Long Tao were invited to the office of the general." I hope your trip has been a good princess. We would like to beg your pardon regarding the incident on the outskirts of the regimen. I will make sure that the perpetrators who planned this operation pay for what they have done, given I am faced with them in the future. I will be providing you with an additional set of my men, who will be accompanying you throughout your journey in the Chu country. I hope the peace talks would go right. As I am informed you are leaving tomorrow right." Long Tao and the princess confirmed some of the information, and an exchange of dialogue took place between the two.

After retiring for the night, Long Tao continued his training. He couldn't let his guard down behind enemy lines. The blood general is still present as an obstacle should he recognize Long Tao. He didn't want any problem to occur while he has multiple burdens around him to take care of. The other suspicion he had was about the attack that might arrive in the future. He predicted the next attack to be mid-way or somewhere in the capital. The death of the princess at this point would surely incite war among the two countries. Long Tao wanted to avoid that at all costs. He couldn't remain chained down in this place after he breaks through the QI general level. A war would delay his plans.

The next day-

A new squadron of soldiers, headed by the so of the general accompanied the convoy which resumed its journey towards the Chu royal clan. The new additions provided lots of information regarding the general situation of the military, the capital, and the country as whole. Soon enough a good comradery began to build up between the two groups. They had to face bandits and beats on the way. But the predicted attack didn't arrive.