Myriad Paths

Fang Cuiyuan huddled on the uncomfortable floor. The wind was blowing around her and it was so cold that she kept curling up.

The little girl tossed and turned and couldn't fall asleep.

In the past, her mother would have put a quilt on her and then scolded her for not covering her well.

It's a pity that I don't have a mother now.

It was too cold to sleep, so Fang Cuiyuan had no choice but to get up.

Her father was a hunter. Fang Cuiyuan remembered that when he was drunk, he once said that in the mountains, when it was too cold to sleep at night, you must not sleep, otherwise you will become seriously ill, or you will never wake up again.

The companion who went hunting with them into the mountains died for this reason.

However, there is something strange tonight.

First, the sergeants came to drive them away and asked them to change their formation so that everyone could surround the city in a ring.

One hundred thousand people gathered in a ring, which was quite a spectacle, but I had no idea what the purpose was.

However, she always felt that she would be much more comfortable if she stayed in this ring. She had never been in good health and was most afraid of the cold. Her mother said that she caught a cold when she was just born, so she had a weak constitution, Yang Fire deficiency, and coughed when she was cold. .

But when I was in this ring, although it was cold, I didn't cough, which was amazing.

She sat on the ground, wrapped her body with the only thick cloth, and looked not far away.

There were sergeants standing guard there. During the day, these sergeants risked their lives to protect them. She was behind and saw with her own eyes that the young sergeant who was still greeting her during the day was torn into pieces by the demon.

If it weren't for them, I and others would really not know what to do.

demon……

This time the demon attacked, of the six to seven hundred people in the entire village, only a few dozen survived.

The whole family is gone, parents, younger brother, older brother, she is the only one who is still alive.

Thinking of this, she lowered her head.

However, the tears could not come out.

At the beginning, I shed tears, as if I was going to go blind from crying.

But now, I can no longer cry.

Heartache and sadness seem to have their limits.

It was so heartbreaking at first, and I thought it would be unforgettable for the rest of my life, but it has only been a few days, and I don't even feel anything anymore.

This might be called heartless.

Now that I think about it, it seems like that's all.

Except for the occasional sudden burst of sadness when I was in a daze, it seemed to be nothing.

just like--

Now.

In the past, when she was outside admiring the moon under a sheet, her eldest brother would come up to scold her and tell her to go back to her room because she had always been in poor health.

Just think of this.

My heart clenched.

It seemed like it was difficult to breathe.

I just couldn't cry.

Can't cry.

The sadness and depression filled my heart, but I couldn't cry.

Just like before, the second uncle's house next door.

She'd seen it before.

My second uncle's son, my cousin, was climbing a tree in the yard to pick dates for fun. He accidentally fell from the tree and fell into the water tank.

The water tank was too deep and the edges were slippery. He couldn't climb out and drowned.

The second aunt cried inconsolably, but the second uncle just kept a dark face and said nothing, and kept telling the second aunt that in the worst case, there will be another one, in the worst case, there will be another one.

At that time, she thought her second uncle was so big-hearted, but he didn't feel anything at all.

But, now that I think about it.

In fact, it’s not that I don’t feel it.

I just can't cry.

She suddenly thought that at that time, she ran out secretly wrapped in a sheet as before, and saw her second uncle holding stones and circling around the water tank at night.

He tried again and again with the stone, but finally gave up, so he smashed the stone to the ground, squatted next to the water tank and smoked loudly.

After all, buying a new tank is not cheap.

With random thoughts in his mind, at this time, an old farmer came to the side and squatted next to Fang Cuiyuan: "Cuiyuan, why aren't you sleeping?"

The old man's skin was rough, and the joints on his limbs were extremely thick. It looked like he had done a lot of hard work, and his hands were covered with calluses.

"Ah, second uncle, I can't sleep." Fang Cuiyuan then raised her head and saw her second uncle coming to her side.

It's this second uncle.

This time, he was like himself, he was the only one left in the family.

The two new cousins, as well as the second aunt, were all eaten by the demon this time.

"It's okay to cry. Don't be really sad. No matter what, life has to go on. We are the only two left in our old Fang family. You are my niece. Don't be afraid. My eldest brother is dead. This is not the end of the world. Second brother? You can't be hungry with this uncle here," the old man said to Fang Cuiyuan with a smile.

"Hmm...Second uncle, where are we going? Did the soldiers say anything?" Fang Cuiyuan asked.

"I went to ask, and they said they would escort us to Baiding Mountain. They said there are few people there and there is a lot of wasteland, enough for us to plant. When the time comes, I will build another house. It doesn't matter if I'm tired, I can open one. Hundreds of acres of land, I will find you a good family, give birth to a few children, you can adopt one as my grandson, let him be named Fang, pass on the incense, and you will be able to take root." The old man smashed it. Mouth, Fang Cuiyuan said.

"People are humble when they leave their hometown... No matter how few people there are, there are still other people there. If we just move there, will it be so smooth?" Fang Cuiyuan asked worriedly.

The future her second uncle said was too stable and too good, so she was a little worried.

"There are over 100,000 people. If he doesn't let us be left behind, we won't be left behind. We have to live our lives, we have to eat, we have to find a way." The old man said nonchalantly, with a bachelor expression on his face.

"How long does it take to get to Baiding Mountain?"

"I don't know, but the soldiers said that they will be fed before arriving and are not afraid of starvation, so as long as they don't get sick on the way, they are not afraid of anything else," the old man said.

At this point, he seemed to suddenly think of what he was here for, and quickly stood up and took out a wrapped blanket: "By the way, I was just afraid that you were sick and you were weak, so I brought you a blanket. "

"At that time, the demon came quickly and time was tight. I didn't have much time to get things, so I snatched some copper coins and this blanket. Your aunt bought it. It was fur and belonged to his grandmother. It cost me more than one hundred and twenty. Half the harvest of many acres of land has been lost.”

"She is not lucky and cannot enjoy good things. They were gone within two days of buying them. Here you go. We both need to take care of our own lives. We are the only two left in Lao Fang's family. I am old. The incense of our ancestors But it’s up to you, there’s no delay.” The old man couldn’t help but push the fur blanket to Fang Cuiyuan.

Fang Cuiyuan wanted to refuse, but her second uncle handed it to her directly and left without looking back. She didn't know what he would do tonight.

At this moment, the moon was above the treetops, and it was already midnight.

Shen Shui Biti walked around with the silver-haired mouse and couldn't figure it out after thinking for a long time.

So she just didn't think about it anymore and went to sleep.

A night of silence.

However, many of the more than 100,000 people, including the sergeants, could not sleep.

Along the way, I don’t know how many people will die on the road.

By the next day, Li Qi and Zhang Lan had woken up, and Li Qi's consumption had been replenished. Although he had not fully recovered, the small world of his body was able to generate some energy on its own, so it was no longer so empty.

As for Zhang Lan, I don't know. Li Qi doesn't know much about martial arts and doesn't understand his foundation. Naturally, he doesn't understand what he relies on to recover.

The deputy general temporarily elected by the White Rhinoceros Army also approached Li Qi early.

Carrying a steaming basket, he came forward and said hello: "Mr. Li, Mr. Zhang, are you resting well? And this..."

"Shen, her surname is Shen." Li Qi said.

"Miss Shen," the deputy general said respectfully, and then opened the basket. Inside was some dried meat, rice, and boiled green leafy vegetables, all of which seemed to be freshly picked.

It seemed like this was the best meal they could prepare under the current conditions.

"Let's eat something first in the morning to deal with it. There is no cook in the army. The cooks cook casually and have a simple meal. Please forgive me." He was a little embarrassed.

Zhang Lan was very carefree: "It doesn't matter. I haven't eaten anything before sleeping in the open air. There is still meat here, so it's enough."

Li Qi nodded: "Eating and drinking are not important. The lives of more than 100,000 people are more important. Does the general have any arrangements?"

The three of them didn't pay attention to anything and sat cross-legged. Only Shen Shuibi declined the invitation to eat and ran to the side, writing and drawing on the ground, as if calculating something.

"Don't worry about her. Her skills are magical and she doesn't need food. Moreover, she has a somewhat cold personality and doesn't like worldly affairs, so don't bother her. Let's just talk." Li Qi saw that the other two people were not holding chopsticks and took the initiative. He picked up the cutlery, took a bite, put it in his mouth, and said with a smile.

Now that Li Qidu had done this, the other two people let go and started eating separately.

The food was not that good. Common dried meat was chopped and boiled, wild vegetables were boiled in water, and millet was boiled. Most of them were boiled, and then seasoned with some salt.

"Two gentlemen, the most urgent thing to solve should be military rations. The White Rhino Army originally had 12,500 people, but now it has 8,341 people. According to the past, one person can provide three liters of rice a day, and an army can provide rations. The rice is three hundred and fifty dan. Previously, the military rations were paid on a monthly basis, but now there are still 7,000 dan left. "

"These people are no better than fat-bellied people like us. They can get one liter a day, but they can't hold on for a few days. Even if they are under control, they can only support it at most. From here to Baiding Mountain, everything is deserted, with only one in the middle. In Guangyang City, if we drive the people there to get supplies, it will take about ten days, and some of them will definitely starve to death. This is the most important thing at the moment. Do you two gentlemen have a solution? "

"Where are your military rations hidden?" Li Qi asked.

"There are some special mustard seed bags in the army," the deputy general said.

"I have a dragon colt. If it's Guangyang City, I can arrive in five hours. I also have a mustard seed bag. Give me your mustard seed bag and give me a voucher. I'll rush to Guangyang City. Just ask for food," Li Qi said.

Zhang Lan immediately clapped his hands: "That's great, but I'm still worried. If I go to ask for food, if there is another monster attack and no one is there to protect me, then the problem will be big. Brother Li has a dragon colt, which is not as fast as us." Slow down, leaving will not affect the overall battle strength. There are still two eighth-grade soldiers who can protect them. "

Li Qi had a dark look on his face.

This guy is a bit too honest. Can he speak? Even if he leaves, it won't affect the overall battle strength. After all, he is also the third strongest here.

Next to the two eighth-grade officers, the other ninth-grade officers were basically no enemy of him.

However, his words are rough and his reasoning is not rough. No matter how strong he is, he is still at the ninth level, and his effectiveness in large-scale battlefields is limited.

The army is not a ragtag group of people.

If there were just over 10,000 low-grade reckless men, with a few ninth-grade men scattered here and there, Li Qi might be injured due to exhaustion, and if he was careless, he might even overturn his car, but at least he would be able to kill the opponent and bleed him into a river.

But if there is an army of more than 10,000 people, led by a dozen ninth-grade officers, then the situation will be different.

If Li Qi were to clash head-on with the White Rhino Army right now, it would be difficult for him to use any of his methods to shake the opponent's strength. He would not even be able to run away, and would only be attacked and hacked to death by the opponent.

This is the difference between a well-trained iron army and a mob.

An army like this has a command, a military flag, and the strength of its troops, it can defeat the eighth rank.

In the previous battle, the eagle-headed demon could break through Zhang Lan's magical power by activating the demon's aura below, which was enough to show its power.

It is indeed more appropriate for Li Qi to ride a dragon colt to transport grain.

"Ahem, leave the food transportation to me. General, can you give me a certificate?" He coughed, suppressed his embarrassment, and then said to the deputy general.

The lieutenant general understood and handed a rolled cloth to Li Qi: "This is one of our army's flags. It cannot be handed over to others easily. It is the face of the White Rhino Army. Sir, if you take it, the Sima of Guangyang City will naturally know it." You are not a liar."

"The military ration issue can be solved. The second thing is, which way should we take to Baiding Mountain?" The deputy general took out a military map and unfolded it in front of everyone.

The officers did not decide these matters privately, but discussed them with Li Qi and Zhang Lan.

Over the course of the morning, the three of them finally finalized every detail.

Zhang Lan was still responsible for the security and armament, and the army affairs were still left to the original officers. The task assigned to Li Qi was simpler, which was to get military rations.

As for Shen Shuibi, she can move freely and do whatever she wants. No one arranges anything for her.

The affairs of the common people were also arranged one by one. The army was responsible for it, and some prestigious people such as village elders were recruited to help manage it.

In short, after everything was arranged, Li Qi was ready to set off.

After pulling up the old horse and preparing to set off, Shen Shuibi suddenly appeared next to Li Qi. She asked nervously: "Um... Li Qi, can't I go with you?"

Li Qi smiled and said: "I'm going to a big human city, what can happen? You have advanced cultivation and strong combat power. It's better to stay here to protect the people."

"Oh..." Although Shen Shuibi agreed, she was obviously a little dull.

"It only takes ten hours to go back and forth. Even if there is a delay, we will be back tomorrow at most. Don't worry." Li Qi reassured.

It's not too late, leave early and come back early, it's only ten hours.

It's impossible to leave and never come back.