Cheng Xu pointed down the slope.
"The bandits didn't leave. Look—those scoundrels at the foot of the hill are regrouping."
Everyone belly-crawled to the cliff edge. One glance downward confirmed it.
Fan-Shan-Yue, Sui-Feng-Xiong, and Er-Chun—the three big leaders—were gathering six or seven dozen smaller captains, scooping up the scattered rabble and forcing them back into formation. They lifted their heads toward the cliff, staring from afar, whispering about something.
Cheng Xu's expression sank—thankfully he had his face cloth on, so nobody could see the pain.
Beside him, Xing Honglang muttered, "Not good. They're not giving up."
Cheng Xu nodded. "They saw our clothes. They know we're not government troops. So—even if they got smashed once, they aren't afraid of us."
Bandits ran from soldiers like terrified chickens, but bandits were never scared of civilian militias.
It's the same principle as street punks: cops show up—everybody runs like their mother is on fire. But when meeting another gang? Out come the machetes, and suddenly it's all 'die-trying brotherhood.' Their so-called 'underworld dignity' magically appears.
That's the difference between orthodox and non-orthodox power. A fancy way of saying: people only fear institutions, not amateurs.
Flat-Rabbit shouted, "Those thugs dare come again? Then we'll smash them again!"
Cheng Xu glared at him. "Easy? Please. Bandits fell for rolling logs once, but they won't climb straight up again like idiots. They'll think of something else. Like… distracting us from the front and sending a few hundred through a hidden mountain path."
He inhaled sharply.
"I need the terrain!"
He grabbed Zheng Daniu. "Daniu! Zhengjia Village is your home, right?"
Zheng Daniu nodded proudly. "Yup!"
Cheng Xu brightened. "Good! Grab a stick and draw the terrain on the ground!"
Zheng Daniu blinked. "Terrain? It's mountains. Lots of mountains. Lots of trees."
"No—I mean within a few li. Draw where mountains are, where trees are, where valleys are."
Zheng Daniu grinned. "Who the heck remembers that?"
Everyone: "…"
What kind of life choices led me to recruit people like this?
Cheng Xu almost wept.
He kicked Zheng Daniu in frustration—intended to send him stumbling—but instead bounced off him and landed on his own backside.
He sat there, utterly wronged by life.
Before he could finish mentally cursing all his subordinates for being natural disasters in human form—Cheng Xu suddenly felt something tap his back. A strong force, but controlled.
He spun around—saw nothing.
But he understood instantly.
"Dao Xuan Tianzun!"
He reached forward. His hands touched something like… skin?
Tianzun's invisible giant hand was right in front of him!
Heart racing with excitement, Cheng Xu jumped forward and hugged what felt like a giant fingertip, scrambling up like a squirrel. In moments, he clung to the tip of Li Daoxuan's finger.
Li Daoxuan raised a brow. He hadn't expected Cheng Xu to understand his intention so quickly.
In "interpreting divine hints," this man truly had talent.
The invisible hand lifted—and Cheng Xu soared into the sky.
Only a few people had witnessed "Li jumping off the wall and being caught by Tianzun." For everyone else, seeing Cheng Xu rise into the air was jaw-dropping.
Xing Honglang's smuggling crew turned into stunned salted fish.
Up, up, up he flew—until he hovered dozens of zhang above.
Cheng Xu swallowed hard, loud enough to hear himself. Looking down, everyone below was tiny—like a miniature village.
So this is what Tianzun sees when he looks at us, he thought.
Then he slapped himself mentally. Focus! This isn't for sightseeing. Don't get arrogant. You're still a human.
He forced his attention back to work and surveyed the terrain.
From this height—what a view. Even a mountaintop could be blocked by trees, but floating in the open air? Perfect, unobstructed perspective. A general's dream.
He memorized every ridge, valley, and path.
Then he looked up at the unseen heavens.
"Tianzun, thank you. I've seen everything clearly."
Li Daoxuan gently lowered him.
Cheng Xu hopped off the invisible hand with the grace of someone pretending he'd done this his whole life.
"Hahaha! I, uh—this humble instructor—have scouted the whole area. I know exactly what the bandits will do. Xing-guniang, I need your help."
"Speak."
"You'll take your people around that small hill, half a li forward. There's a hidden ravine covered by trees. I'm guessing the bandits will try climbing from there. You set up rolling logs and rocks—wait until they poke their heads up."
Xing Honglang grinned. "Oh, happily."
She turned to order her men to move the logs—
—but the logs suddenly levitated and flew in the direction they needed to go.
Xing Honglang immediately understood.
"Tianzun knows we mortals are weak at heavy lifting, so he moved them for us."
Her smugglers cheered, "Tianzun bless us!"
Quick learners. They picked up the Gaojia Village slogan in record speed.
"We don't even need to find the place," Xing Honglang said. "Just follow the flying logs. When they drop, that's the valley Instructor meant. Move out!"
They followed the logs around the hill, another li forward—and sure enough, there it was: a deep ravine hidden beneath rich, unnaturally green woods. Even after years of drought, this place stayed lush—meaning the underground water was excellent.
Xing Honglang set up her people at the top edge of the ravine. Piles of logs around them.
Come on, she thought. Let Er-Chun show up in person. Perfect chance to repay my injured arm.
Footnotes
Bandits vs. Civilian Militias – Throughout many dynasties, bandits tended to fear government troops due to harsh punishments, but rarely respected civilian self-defense groups, viewing them as disorganized amateurs.
Mountain Warfare & Hidden Paths – Ravines and narrow goat-paths were historically key infiltration routes in ambush warfare across East Asian mountain regions.
Aerial Reconnaissance (Fantasy Style) – Before modern maps, generals often relied on scouts climbing high ground. Cheng Xu's "Tianzun-airlift" is basically the supernatural upgrade of real-world high-ground reconnaissance.