The terrain began to change on the morning of the tenth day. The flat, fertile plains of the central prefecture gave way to the rugged foothills of the Twin Dragon Mountains. The air grew thinner, the nights colder, and the road—once a wide, paved thoroughfare—narrowed into a winding shelf carved into the side of the cliff.
The Iron Convoy was no longer rolling; it was crawling.
Li Wei walked alongside the lead cart, his boots crunching on loose gravel. The grade was steep, a relentless five-percent incline that taxed the mules and worried the cattle.
"Watch the off-side!" Li Wei shouted to Da Niu, who was driving the second cart. "Keep the wheels away from the edge. The gravel is loose."
Da Niu nodded, his knuckles white as he gripped the reins. To his right, the earth dropped away into a misty abyss. A thousand feet below, a river looked like a silver thread.
The bulls in the carts were reacting poorly to the altitude. The "Emergency Finishing Formula" had turned them into engines of muscle and energy, but engines generated heat. Even with the open slats of the carts, they were panting, their tongues lolling out.
"Boss," Er-Gou called out from the rear. "Typhoon is kicking again. I think he's getting altitude sickness."
Li Wei stopped. He walked back to the cart holding the massive black bull. Typhoon's eyes were rolling. He was stomping, making the cart rock dangerously close to the cliff edge.
"He's not sick," Li Wei diagnosed after a quick scan. **[Status: Oxygen Deficiency + Excess Energy.]** "He's suffocating in his own energy. He needs air. We have to walk him."
"Here?" Li Jun looked at the narrow road, barely wide enough for two carts. "If he bolts, he goes over the side."
"We rig a drag line," Li Wei decided. "Qin Hu, break out the heavy chains."
The technique Li Wei employed was an old cowboy trick adapted for the mountains. They wrapped a heavy chain around the bull's hind legs, not to hobble him completely, but to force him to take short, measured steps. It prevented him from building up the momentum to bolt or buck.
It took twenty minutes of dangerous work to unload Typhoon and fit the chain. The bull snorted, annoyed by the weight, but he calmed down as soon as he felt the cool mountain air on his face.
"Alright," Li Wei wiped sweat from his brow. "Slow and steady. We walk them from here. No riding in the carts until we crest the pass."
***
**The Iron Gate of the Pass**
By late afternoon, they reached the summit: Twin Pass.
It was a natural choke point, a gap between two towering peaks that looked like the jagged teeth of a dragon. A fortress wall spanned the gap, built of black stone that seemed to absorb the fading light. This was the gateway to the Northern Province and the final barrier before the capital basin.
A checkpoint blocked the road. A wooden barrier painted in red and black. A squad of soldiers in iron armor lounged by the gate, their spears resting against the wall. They looked bored, cold, and predatory.
"Halt!" a sergeant bellowed, stepping forward. He was a thick-set man with a scarred lip. "State your business and pay the transit tax."
Li Wei stepped forward, putting on his most respectful merchant's smile. "Goods for the Imperial Kitchen, Sergeant. Prime cattle from Cloud Hill Ranch."
"Imperial Kitchen?" The sergeant sneered, looking at the dusty, ragged convoy. "You? You look like beggars herding strays. Open the carts. We need to inspect for… contraband."
"Contraband?" Li Jun bristled. "We have cows, you idiot!"
"Jun!" Li Wei snapped, silencing his brother. He turned back to the sergeant. "Of course, Sergeant. Inspection is standard procedure. However, I must warn you, these are prize animals. They are high-strung. If you startle them and they break the cart, the Imperial Kitchen will be asking why their tribute is late."
He reached into his vest and pulled out a small, wax-sealed jar. He also pulled out a string of copper coins—fifty of them.
"Perhaps the Sergeant and his men would prefer some refreshment while we pass?" Li Wei offered the coins. "And this… this is Cloud Hill Butter. It's the finest in the province. Spread it on some hot bread. It will warm you against the mountain wind."
The sergeant eyed the coins and the jar. The bribe wasn't huge, but the butter was a novelty. He took both.
"Move along," the sergeant grunted, pocketing the coins. "But keep your animals quiet. If they make a mess on my road, I'll have your hide."
"Thank you, Sergeant."
The barrier lifted. The convoy rolled through the gate.
"That was close," Da Niu whispered as they passed the soldiers. "They looked ready to confiscate the whole lot."
"Greed is a universal language," Li Wei said quietly. "But we're not safe yet. The descent is more dangerous than the climb."
***
**The Descent: Fire and Friction**
The road on the northern side of the pass was steeper, a zig-zagging trail of switchbacks carved into the shale. Gravity, which had been their enemy on the way up, now became a terrifying accelerant.
The heavy carts, laden with nearly a thousand pounds of cattle each, wanted to slide.
"Lock the wheels!" Li Wei ordered.
The drivers engaged the crude braking mechanisms—wooden blocks pressed against the iron-rimmed wheels by levers. A screeching sound, like a banshee's wail, filled the mountain air. The smell of burning wood and hot iron instantly replaced the scent of pine.
"Don't let them smoke!" Li Wei shouted, running alongside the lead cart. "If the wood catches fire, we lose the axle!"
He watched the wheels. They were glowing red-hot in the twilight.
"Water! Cool the brakes!"
Da Niu ran alongside with a bucket of water, splashing it onto the wheels. *Hiss!* Steam erupted, obscuring the path.
"It's not enough, Boss!" Li Jun yelled from the second cart. "The grade is too steep! The mules can't hold the weight back! They're being pushed!"
It was a critical failure point. If the cart gained too much speed, it would smash into the mules, crippling them, and then careen off the cliff.
"Cut the mules loose!" Li Wei commanded.
"What?"
"Cut them! We can't sacrifice the mules! We'll lower the carts with ropes!"
It was a desperate, chaotic maneuver. They unhitched the mules, who scrambled panicked to the side. The carts were now free-rolling down a ten-percent grade.
"Tie the drag chains to the rear axles!" Li Wei shouted, throwing a heavy iron chain around the back axle of the lead cart and letting the long end drop to the ground. "It will dig into the dirt! It will act as an anchor!"
*Clank-clank-clank!*
The chain paid out, biting into the rocky soil. It jerked tight. The cart lurched, slowing down significantly. The friction of the chain dragging against the earth acted as a secondary brake.
"Use the logs!" Li Wei pointed to a pile of deadfall timber near the switchback. "Chock the wheels at every turn!"
For two hours, they fought the mountain. It was a battle of muscle and iron. They would roll the cart ten feet, chock the wheels, catch their breath, and roll again. The men's hands were blistered and bleeding from handling the rough chains and ropes.
Li Wei worked harder than anyone. He was everywhere—checking the cattle to ensure they weren't panicking, guiding the wheels around sharp corners, resetting the drag chains.
"Push!" Li Wei grunted, putting his shoulder against the side of the cart to keep it from scraping the cliff wall. "Just one more switchback!"
Finally, as the moon rose high over the peaks, the gradient eased. The road flattened out into a wide valley.
They had made it down.
***
**The Valley of Fireflies**
The convoy collapsed into a clearing in the valley. The men didn't even bother to set up tents. They lay on the ground, chests heaving, staring up at the stars.
"We're alive," Da Niu gasped. "I thought… I thought for sure we were going over the edge on that third turn."
"The cattle," Li Wei said, forcing himself to stand up. He was the Boss. He couldn't collapse. "Check the cattle."
They were shaken, but uninjured. The drag chains had saved them.
Li Wei walked among the carts. Typhoon was lying down, chewing his cud contentedly, as if the life-or-death struggle of the descent had been a casual stroll.
"You stupid animal," Li Wei murmured, patting the bull's flank. "You cost me ten years of life today."
He walked to the back of the convoy where Qin Hu was sitting on a rock, cleaning his blade. The old soldier had been silent during the descent, focused entirely on the mechanics, but now he looked at Li Wei with a rare expression of respect.
"You have a head for logistics, Boy," Qin Hu said. "Most merchants panic. They freeze. You didn't. You cut the mules. You used the chains. That was… military thinking."
"I just didn't want to die," Li Wei said, sitting down heavily. He pulled out a water skin and drank deeply.
"It's the same thing," Qin Hu smiled faintly.
He tossed a piece of dried meat to Li Wei. "Eat. We're in the capital basin now. The easy part is over."
"Easy part?" Li Jun groaned from the ground. "Please, tell me you're joking."
"The roads will be better," Qin Hu said. "But the people will be worse. We're approaching the capital's sphere of influence. The officials here are sharks. They smell blood in the water. And we're bringing them a feast."
Li Wei looked north. The mountains were behind them. Ahead lay rolling hills and, in the distance, a faint glow on the horizon that wasn't the moon.
The Capital.
It was the heart of the Empire. The center of power. And they were bringing it meat.
"How far?" Li Wei asked.
"Ten days," Qin Hu said. "If the carts hold."
"Ten days," Li Wei repeated. He looked at his hands—shaking, dirty, scarred. He thought of Chen. He thought of the two hundred taels.
"Wake the men in four hours," Li Wei said, closing his eyes. "We move at dawn. I want to see that city before I die of old age."
**[Journey Status: Day 10 / 40.]**
**[Distance Covered: 400 Li.]**
**[Remaining: 600 Li.]**
**[Convoy Status: Damaged but Mobile.]**
**[Morale: Tested.]**
They had crossed the spine of the world. Now, they just had to deliver the heart.