Chapter 35: The Precipice of Yellow Reed Fortress

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“Is this Yellow Reed Fort? My God, there’s no way we can climb that!”

Beneath the moonlit forest, Song Xian covered his mouth, his despairing eyes reflecting the sheer cliffs of Yellow Reed Fort.

Built along a mountain ridge with precipices rising behind it beside Sunny Road, the fortress possessed a three-dimensional defensive network formed by walls in front and behind. The outer wall alone stood more than thirty feet high, while the gate tower rose another ten feet or so. The main wall stretched from one cliff edge to the other, with four watchtowers positioned along it. Each tower had a beacon platform and arrow slits.

Though midnight had long since passed, the walls were still illuminated as brightly as day by torchlight. No more than thirty feet apart stood a sentry with a bow on his back and arrows at his waist, while patrols of roaming guards passed by from time to time.

“Forget climbing up. We can’t even walk across to it...” Hou Cheng’s voice was equally bitter.

To reach the fortress from below Sunny Road, they had abandoned their horses in the darkness and climbed the mountain on foot. They had already spent nearly half an hour making their way through the forest, and that was only thanks to the bright moonlight. Without it, they did not know how much longer they would have been delayed.

Yet having finally arrived, they were confronted by a towering wall and faced a more immediate question: how were they even supposed to get across?

Indeed, for several hundred paces before the fortress, the ground had been cleared completely bare. Every tree had been chopped down to its roots, and braziers had been placed at intervals to provide illumination, all to eliminate any possibility of a nighttime ambush.

The terrain here was also peculiar, almost shaped like a gourd. The road narrowed between cliffs on either side, widening only as it approached the fortress walls. Even an army of tens of thousands could not deploy easily in such a place; only a small force could pass through.

And that entire approach lay within easy bowshot of the walls.

Anyone could see that advancing straight ahead under fire from crossbows and bows on three sides would turn this road into a genuine path of death. No wonder they said that even an army ten or twenty times larger could not take Yellow Reed Fort by storm.

Cheng Lian sighed without uttering a word of discouragement, but for the first time, complicated and negative emotions appeared in his eyes as he looked at Su Yao.

Could this commander, who had brought him countless shocks and moments of wonder, still create a miracle?

Could the sheer cliffs of Yellow Reed Fort become the place where they were buried?

“Yellow Reed Fort cannot be taken by luck, much less by some miracle!”

Gritting his teeth, Jin Fangyan said bitterly, “Look at the patrols on the walls. There are at least twice as many as when I left. They are already on full alert and will not overlook a single suspicious person.”

“Hmm... Yellow Reed Fort is indeed magnificent.”

Su Yao stroked his chin. There was no fear on his face, let alone despair...

No. In the moonlight, Su Yao’s eyes were actually shining.

As expected of a hidden stage—what a map, what a model! This was unquestionably a masterpiece.

Before coming here, he had already read about it in an encyclopedia. In later generations, Yellow Reed Ridge would become the southern starting point of the Northern Qi Great Wall, and a mighty pass known as Golden Lock Pass would eventually be built on the ruins of the fortress atop this mountain.

This must be a map constructed after Golden Lock Pass:

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“I’m curious. How did you Huns manage to take a fortress like this?”

“...”

Seeing that Su Yao had finally begun to face reality and think of a solution instead of acting so arrogantly, Jin Fangyan felt no joy at winning their argument. He felt only boundless emptiness and exhaustion.

“We didn’t attack this place.”

“Hm?”

Su Yao’s gaze followed the figures moving along the battlements.

“The fortress your Han people designed is indeed ingenious. It relies on the mountain ridge and sheer cliffs, commands Sunny Road, and makes it difficult for carts and horses to pass.

“But fortresses built on mountain ridges all share one weakness: water.”

Jin Fangyan pointed toward the distant darkness.

“The only source of water here is a stream in the ravine over there. An army need only surround this place without attacking. In less than ten days, Yellow Reed Fort would fall without a fight.”

“...That’s idiotic.” Su Yao turned his gaze back toward the road before the fortress.

“No, it isn’t foolish.”

Jin Fangyan shook his head.

“If your Inspector Zhang had not left the pass to fight us, we would never have had the chance to encircle Yellow Reed Fort at our leisure.”

It had been the foolish act of Zhang Yi, the former Inspector of Bing Province, that had caused the situation in Bing Province to spiral out of control. The last field army of elite troops in the province had been wiped out in a single battle. In the end, the narrow mountain road of Sunny Road had become a deadly passage that cut off the warriors’ return home. Pursued by the barbarian cavalry, countless men either collapsed by the roadside or fell into the valleys below. Only Lü Bu, Zhang Yang, and a hundred or so others managed to escape.

“So you understand now? We had no time to cut off their water for that long. That is why Yellow Reed Fort was— and remains—impregnable.”

Su Yao did not reply. His gaze had shifted from the towering gatehouse to the abysses on either side of the approach. The cliffs were black, as though they plunged straight into the deepest reaches of the underworld. Even with his abilities, a fall from there would surely mean death.

“All right. We’re here already, so stop saying things that sap our morale.”

Hou Cheng slapped his cheeks and forced himself to rally.

“We never intended to storm the fortress in the first place. According to the original plan, we’ll disguise ourselves as routed soldiers and knock on the gate at night. Once we trick them into opening it, we’ll rush inside and buy Commander Su time to seize the barbarian general. Capture the leader first!”

Cheng Lian nodded.

“Then I’ll accompany Commander Su and Master Jin in the first wave. The moment you see the gate open, charge forward. If anything goes wrong... withdraw at once and report to Officer Zhang. There is no need to send reinforcements.”

This was the strategy Su Yao and Zhang Yang had devised beforehand. It was simple enough: use Jin Fangyan’s identity to deceive the guards into opening the gate, then rely on Su Yao to lead the men in a direct assault.

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If not for Su Yao’s earlier displays of unmatched martial prowess, Zhang Yang would never have approved such a plan, no matter how many military pledges he made.

Even so, the plan’s success depended to a considerable degree on luck and coincidence.

“What if I fail to trick them into opening the gate?”

Jin Fangyan glanced aside.

“They’re already on guard. If I were the commander, I absolutely wouldn’t let anyone into the fortress at night. And even if I did admit someone, I wouldn’t open the gates. I’d lower a basket instead. What would you do then?”

Cheng Lian clapped his hands and retorted, “Afraid of wolves ahead and tigers behind! If we demanded absolute certainty in everything, there would be no battles left to fight in this world!”

“I think this barbarian is simply scared now, but—”

Suddenly, Song Xian drew his weapon with a sharp ring and leveled the sword at Jin Fangyan.

“—it’s too late. Once the bow is drawn, there is no turning back. If you’re going, then go. If you refuse, all the better. We’ll kill you here and return to report to Officer Zhang.”

“Fine, fine! What is death but death? I’ll go with you!”

Jin Fangyan spoke through clenched teeth.

“But surely you can give me enough time to write a farewell letter. If we should meet with misfortune, I hope those who survive will deliver it to Officer Zhang.”

Cheng Lian, Hou Cheng, and Song Xian exchanged glances. None of them could understand what the man was trying to do, but in the end they nodded. Just as they were about to agree—

“There’s no need.”

Su Yao’s languid voice drifted over.

Everyone froze, only to discover that their commander had vanished without them noticing.

“Raiding a camp, assaulting a fortress—one takes advantage of the night. Let us see what this little Yellow Reed Fort can do to me.

“You may remain here and wait in peace for the gates to open.”

“What?!”

Where was Su Yao?