Peace Order
Chapter 563 - 37 Arriving at Jiangnan Eighteen States

Chapter 563: Chapter 37 Arriving at Jiangnan Eighteen States

The scorching summer days had passed; the autumn air was slightly cold. Around Jiangzhou City and Guan Yi City, tall trees slowly turned yellow, and then, beneath the autumn rain, they fluttered to the ground where the raindrops pitter-pattered crisply upon them.

News from Changfeng Building was carried here by the autumn breeze.

Although Changfeng Building was Li Guanyi’s intelligence organization, safely delivering this letter across the complex political landscape of Chen Country had taken time. After practicing martial arts, Xue Shuangtao skimmed through Li Guanyi’s letter during a brief rest.

She looked at the drawing of a young man tucked inside the letter, a simple ink painting that vividly sketched out a river, waterfall, and a vaguely discernible crowd in the distance. Xue Shuangtao smiled, pulling out a falcon feather included with the letter.

This feather, unlike those from falcons bred by nobility’s children, was different.

It was not the smooth straightness, but rather, those noble falcons’ feathers, which had an oily sheen and gleamed under light.

The feather sent with the letter was firm and straight, and when touched, it rendered a scraping hardness, characteristic of an exotic beast that brawled in the skies, wrestled with wild beasts, and danced amidst thunderstorms through fierce mountain forests.

Then she read the contents of Li Guanyi’s letter.

She saw those names—Lei Laomeng, Nangong Wumeng, Fan Qing, Ling Pingyang—and those lightly mentioned, yet deeply tumultuous experiences brought a faint smile to her face.

Cold autumn rain fell outside the window.

Xue Shuangtao ground ink and wrote a reply.

"Guan Yi, hoping this letter finds you well. The Xue Family continues as ever. Elder Qingyan is teaching me martial arts and swordsmanship that originate from the ancient traditions of Kunlun Mountain, similar to the Kunlun Sword Sect, which seemed to have grown gradually after acquiring this sword technique."

"Your experiences must be far more exciting than those in Guan Yi City."

"The months since you left have felt no different from before. Day after day has passed in a blink, and Changqing has been training very hard recently, as if he suddenly became a different child."

"He also practices the battle halberd and archery."

"Your friends, Ye Buyi and Zhou Liuying, often visit Changqing as their martial skills among the younger generation of military officers are exceptional. They occasionally guide Changqing in his martial arts."

"Aunt’s child will soon be born. Grandfather has not returned for a while; the court has been stagnant like dead water. Since Prime Minister Tantai Xianming’s death, His Majesty has grown increasingly tyrannical."

"Grandfather says that all previous edicts were personally polished by Tantai Xianming."

"Like the incessant spring rain falling naturally upon the earth, yet His Majesty thought all the credits were his own. Grandfather mentioned that Emperor Chen Dingye once had youthful ambition and knowledge surpassing ordinary people, but over these monotonous days, Tantai Xianming quelled his heroic spirit."

"I don’t know what heroic spirit is, perhaps it’s the kind of spirited vigor you possess."

"Take care."

"Be sure to stay safe."

After a long silence, the young girl folded the letter neatly and handed it to a guest elder of Changfeng Building, a serene voice saying, "The letters you are sending, he won’t receive them." Princess Chen Qingyan, who despite her whitened hair, still looked as if she were in her twenties, observed the girl before her.

"The Qilin Army has ventured deeper into the border area between the two countries. At this moment, every exit is heavily garrisoned, and even birds can hardly cross. Changfeng Building has lost contact with the Qilin Army, and it’s likely that no more letters from him will come."

Xue Shuangtao laughed, "But I still want to write to him."

"That way, when he returns, he will have a lot of letters to read."

Chen Qingyan said nothing.

The Qilin Army, Li Guanyi—these names, though not as universally renowned as the Regent King or Yue Pengwu, were starting to be mentioned, yet always with skepticism.

Merely a solitary force. The major powers of the world all have tens of thousands of armored soldiers.

Among the world’s top hundred Divine Generals, Ying Country holds almost a third—over thirty generals, each commanding tens of thousands of troops; Chen Country and Turkic each hold a fifth. Adding Yue Pengwu, the borders outside, the Western Regions, and the Regent King, each accounting for a tenth, be it a dozen or several, just the Qilin Army...

Chen Qingyan suddenly paused.

Wait, the major nations all have hundreds of thousands of armored soldiers.

In Ying Country, with hundreds of thousands of warriors, there are just over thirty famous generals, each leading thousands of soldiers.

But in Li Guanyi’s Qilin Army.

Within just a few thousand of the Qilin Army, assuming Yuwen Tianxian is counted as well.

There are three mighty generals.

Among a few thousand, three mighty generals are stationed.

If Pang Shuiyun were added...

This ratio is actually absurdly off the charts; if one were purely to compare numbers, Li Guanyi is just a minor force, hardly worth mentioning. But considering the ratio of mighty generals...

Chen Qingyan suppressed this thought.

She looked at the girl before her and still chose to speak, her tone cool: "But aren’t you worried about that Nangong Wumeng? He’s the new top ranker in the Martial World, only three years older than you at eighteen, and already attained the third layer realm."

"Both his natural talent and root bone are extraordinary."

"According to the letter, he serves under Guan Yi, close in age, and in constant company."

"It’s hard not to develop feelings."

Xue Shuangtao looked at the letter. The young girl in martial attire, her black hair tied in a ponytail, responded, "Actually, Princess Qingyan, to me, even the last half-year feels like a dream." She extended her hand, the pale palm now roughened, grasping: