Exploring Technology in a Wizard World-Chapter 1424 - 1422: Incoming Attack

Could it be that Shalin uses such soldiers to guard the border? It’s really quite shabby, completely unlike the rumors. Indeed... some rumors can’t be fully trusted... Xia Zuo watched, finding it amusing, curling his lips as he looked down at the elderly Soldier and asked, "What are you doing here?"

"We are fulfilling our duties. One, to prevent unidentified armies from invading; two, to prevent criminals from entering Shalin; three, to prevent illegal merchants from smuggling goods; four..." The elderly Soldier gripped his spear tightly, his expression taut, his tone stiff, clearly reciting memorized content. Xia Zuo even doubted if the Soldier understood the meaning of his words, "..., seven, to check if entry documents are legal and complete, eight..."

"Alright, stop!" Shaya interrupted the elder’s recitation, raising an eyebrow and asking, "So, according to you, if my people and I want to enter Shalin, we must present a pass? Otherwise, we can only turn back?"

"In fact... you have already entered Shalin, so whether you want to go back or not, you must present legal and complete entry documents, otherwise it is illegal entry." The elderly Soldier hesitated for a moment, courageously answering.

"Ha!" Xia Zuo couldn’t help but laugh out loud, looking at the old and young Soldiers, then at his five hundred Cavalry, feeling like he was hearing the funniest joke, his mustache trembling with laughter.

"Did I hear wrong, or did you say something wrong? Just the two of you, and you want to inspect me? What if I refuse?" After laughing for a while, Shaya composed himself and asked the two Soldiers.

The elderly Soldier’s expression changed slightly, stepping back and saying, "Sir, please don’t make it difficult for us. We are just doing our duty, please cooperate..."

"Hahaha, hahaha." Hearing the elderly Soldier’s words, Xia Zuo couldn’t help but laugh again, finding it truly absurd. After a few seconds of laughter, he turned to his Soldiers with a stern expression and said, "What are you all standing around for? Detain these two people."

"Yes!" Following orders, the Soldiers immediately rushed towards the two Shalin Soldiers.

The two Shalin Soldiers attempted to resist, but the old and young pair were not at all capable of fighting back, being quickly knocked to the ground, and their spears kicked meters away.

The burly Soldiers pinned the two Shalin Soldiers to the ground, looking towards Xia Zuo for instruction, "Sir, should we kill them?"

"No need." Xia Zuo waved his hand, "We are here to visit Shalin, not to invade. Killing is excessive. Tie up these two fools for insubordination and leave them here to fend for themselves, then let’s continue on our way."

"Oh, and before leaving them here, be sure to knock them out," Xia Zuo seriously added, "I don’t want them finding a way to free themselves and inform Atlantis while we’re still on our way, jeopardizing the secrecy of our mission."

"Yes, Sir." The burly Soldier nodded, dragging the two Shalin Soldiers towards the Stone Building.

The younger Soldier struggled violently, shouting as if cursing, "You dare do this, you will never have a good end. This is an illegal invasion, and attacking a Sentry. Once the regular troops of Shalin find out, you’ll surely regret it. The regular troops will tear you to pieces and show you that Shalin is not to be trifled with..."

But the shouting abruptly stopped with a dull thud.

Afterward, the burly Soldier came out of the Stone Building and reported to Xia Zuo, "Sir, it’s done."

"Alright, let’s go," Xia Zuo said, not saying much more, waving his hand to signal the team to set off again, heading deeper into Shalin.

...

Soon, the team traveled several miles, as Xia Zuo’s subordinate in yellow had said, the terrain began to undulate, and the Watchtower was completely out of sight.

"Clop, clop, clop..."

Riding forward, Xia Zuo glanced back at the direction of the Watchtower, asking his subordinate in yellow, "Now, have we completely entered Shalin?"

"Yes, Sir."

"But we did not encounter any obstacles. It seems there’s quite a gap between Shalin and what’s said, the army’s vigilance isn’t high at all," Xia Zuo remarked with some sarcasm, thinking, then adding, "By the way, from now on, send two ten-person reconnaissance teams each to our front, left, and right. The reconnaissance range is three miles, rotate personnel to report findings to ensure safety around us."

The subordinate in yellow was somewhat puzzled, "Sir, didn’t you say... Shalin’s vigilance is not high and no one stopped us, so why do we still need to do this?"

"Indeed, Shalin’s vigilance is not high, but my vigilance should not be as low as theirs. What needs guarding against must be guarded against," Xia Zuo said, "I need to reach Atlantis as covertly as possible to achieve the effect of a ’surprise attack.’"

"Uh..."

"Alright, go do it then."

"Yes." The subordinate in yellow nodded, starting to select members for the reconnaissance teams.

Soon, six ten-person teams were deployed in three directions. The army continued to advance cautiously.

...

Progress continued, progress, progress.

During a brief rest, the Soldiers ate some dry food, and fed the horses some feed, then Xia Zuo directed the troops to continue towards the center of Shalin—Atlantis.

Along the way, Xia Zuo deliberately avoided all population centers according to the map, striving to keep their movement secret.

But in the afternoon, he began to feel restless.

Not because of any problems, but because things were going too smoothly.

Yes, too smoothly.

Aside from the initial Watchtower, his covert operation hadn’t encountered another living soul. Although he avoided population centers, he didn’t see any Farmers in the fields, fishers by the ponds, Hunters in the forests, or travelers on the roads, which was very strange.

He couldn’t help but suspect that there might be no one in all of Shalin, feeling an urge to check the population centers on the map.

However, his rational mind stopped this impulse, gently pressing the mustache on his lips as he took a flat, egg-shaped object from his bosom, opening it to look at the ticking needle to check the time.

This thing he had, called the "Golden Needle Pocket Watch," was mass-produced by Shalin and passed through numerous merchants’ hands, fetching a considerable price by the time it reached Shaya’s stall.

Although the new successor to the Emperor didn’t like this item and it was once banned by law, it was so cleverly practical that it was traded on the black market continuously. Eventually, the ban was lifted for high taxes and severe penalties for tax evasion.

The "Golden Needle Pocket Watch" he held was part of a batch of thirty, confiscated from tax-evading smugglers by Shaya’s officials. Instead of entering the treasury, the watches went back to the market through some means, and through insider channels, he acquired one at a low price, and has been using it ever since, skillfully. Just a glance and he knew it had been several hours since they crossed Shalin’s border.

And the more this was the case, the more uneasy he felt inside.

Considering that Shalin could mass-produce such sophisticated items as the "Golden Needle Pocket Watch," it absolutely should not meet his assumption of being so unguarded.

Absolutely shouldn’t...

But if Shalin weren’t so vulnerable, why hadn’t they detected him by now, why hadn’t there been any large-scale military outposts or patrolling Soldiers encountered so deep in?

This was the whole border... no, the whole territory unguarded?

Thinking about these things, Xia Zuo couldn’t help but stroke his mustache again, pondering as he gave further orders to his subordinate in yellow, "Send another ten-person reconnaissance team in the three directions ahead, left, and right, increasing the reconnaissance distance to five miles. Additionally, dispatch three ten-person reconnaissance teams to the rear, regardless of findings, have them report every ten minutes."

"Sir, you’re this..."

"Execute!"

"Yes." The subordinate in yellow, seeing Xia Zuo’s stern expression, didn’t argue, decisively lowering his head.

...

Before long, six new ten-person reconnaissance teams were dispatched, more than a fifth of the main force now covering the complete directions.

By logic, Xia Zuo should feel at ease now.

But Xia Zuo wasn’t; he became more restless instead.

In his agitation, half an hour’s progress brought the team to their second rest.

People weren’t hungry, but the horses needed another feeding of special forage, otherwise they wouldn’t sustain the long, demanding journey ahead.

The whole team halted on a clearing to rest. The surroundings were quiet, filled with nothing but the sounds of insects and birds.

Listening to the pastoral sounds, Xia Zuo felt momentarily at ease, finding himself wondering if he was being overly cautious.

Just then, he heard a sentry Soldier exclaim, "What’s that?!"

"Hmm?" Xia Zuo quickly looked over, his eyes narrowing as he saw multiple black dots rapidly approaching in the distant sky.

What is that?