"Could it be as Young Master Liang said?" Ding Wuyi's heart stirred in surprise.
Just last year, drought had struck various regions, even causing a degree of famine.
This Fierce Tiger River, after drying up, had revealed a hidden cave?
Startled, Ding Wuyi immediately asked, "Have you investigated whether there will be flood season or rainstorms recently?"
Had it not been for Liang Xiao's reminder, Ding Wuyi's troops would still have been clearing the area, thus having no time to scout the terrain of the Fierce Tiger River.
What if it suddenly rained heavily, and the Fierce Tiger River was filled again!
"Reporting to the Commander! We've asked the people of Yanzhou, and they all say that it doesn't rain at this time of year, nor is there a flood season!" the captain of the Shadow Guard replied.
Considering that the Fierce Tiger River had also dried up, Ding Wuyi finally felt at ease. He led the Shadow Guards directly to the southeast, following the end of the river, and finally arrived at the entrance of the cave.
At this moment, a large number of Feathered Forest Guards and Shadow Guards were guarding the place, awaiting Ding Wuyi's command, their expressions tense.
Before coming, each member had been rewarded with ten taels of silver, and they were also informed that this mission was top secret, and anyone who leaked it would be executed along with their entire family!
Ding Wuyi also promised that upon their return, depending on the situation, there would be additional rewards, so everyone hoped for a successful outcome.
This cave was located in a depression at the end of the Fierce Tiger River, a tributary of the Celestial River. Normally, it would be submerged by the river. Moreover, the area was overgrown with weeds, surrounded by thorny bushes, and frequented by wild beasts. Ordinary people would not come here for no reason.
Gazing at the cave entrance, large enough for over a dozen people to enter and exit simultaneously, and a deep black wolf head emblem above it, Ding Wuyi's heart trembled.
According to the translation of the treasure map, there would be a deep black wolf head emblem at the entrance to the treasure location!!
"A divine man, a divine man! Young Master Liang!" Ding Wuyi's heart surged, almost wanting to roar out.
As the commander of the Shadow Guards, Ding Wuyi had always been meticulous, but at this moment, he was also genuinely awestruck.
Without Liang Xiao, they might still be clearing and searching in their original location.
By the time the rainy season arrived, they would not have been able to reach the Fierce Tiger River, and by then, the river might have returned to its former state!
The information about the Fierce Tiger River was provided by the nomadic tribes. Even if the nomadic tribes didn't steal Liang Xiao's military horses, they would have stolen the cattle brought by the Shadow Guards as military rations.
If Liang Xiao had not taken the nomadic tribes in without holding a grudge, they might have sent them to prison, and there might even have been casualties due to conflict on the way!
And this treasure map was voluntarily presented to Xiao Qing by Klishti, who admired Liang Xiao and Xiao Qing...
All the cause and effect stemmed from Liang Xiao!
Was the treasure still here? How much treasure was there? Were there any mechanisms or poisonous gas inside?
Suppressing his excitement, Ding Wuyi made a decisive move and turned to issue orders: "Immediately mobilize all troops to set up defenses and dig around the area. At the same time, send people urgently to Yanzhou to notify Marquis An Guo, Liang Xiao, that the target has been found and assistance is urgently needed!"
Two captains of the Shadow Guards mounted their fine horses and rode in two different directions to notify Liang Xiao and the distant troops.
In Anxi County, upon learning that Liang Xiao had waived the taxes for the people in his fief, the three thousand Qingtian Guards were even more impressed.
Among them, ten Qingtian Guards, led by Jiang Long, were from these fiefs and, like the nomadic tribes, were Liang Xiao's most ardent supporters!
After two days of training, the Qingtian Guards had fully familiarized themselves with and accepted Liang Xiao's organization.
Five men formed a squad, with one squad leader. Ten squads formed a company, with one company commander. Fifty men formed a platoon, with one platoon leader. Two platoons, one hundred men, had a centurion. Five hundred men had a commander of five hundred, and one thousand men had a commander of one thousand. A thousand men formed the basic combat unit, roughly equivalent to a small legion.
Each Qingtian Guard was given a temporary wooden identification tag, recording their number and name. Liang Xiao promised that this identification tag would be replaced with a bronze or silver plate in the future.
The three selected centurions were Jiang Long, a local from Yanzhou, and Yue Heng and Yue Qian, clansmen of Yue Qingtian.
These three were actually skilled in martial arts, but they were no match for a top general like Yue Qingtian.
Jiang Long was a citizen of Liang Xiao's fief and the first Qingtian Guard to openly support Liang Xiao. He challenged Yue Qingtian's position and promptly conceded after Liang Xiao's subtle guidance. He was a promising talent, with his only drawback being his age of thirty-three.
Yue Qingtian became the undisputed overall captain, responsible for leading the training. When accompanying Liang Xiao, the three captains would take over the training. Liang Zhan and He Zizhang were assigned by Liang Xiao to supervise.
Having witnessed Liang Xiao's methods and the organization he had established, Liang Xiao's advisors like Liu Fan, as well as Liang Zhan and He Zizhang, were greatly impressed.
As a captain of the Shadow Guards, He Zizhang was loyal to Emperor Xiao Qing and was a general-level Shadow Guard captain trained by Ding Wuyi himself.
Initially, He Zizhang believed that he was more than capable of training Liang Xiao's troops. Now, seeing this, he realized how superficial his knowledge was and that he needed to learn from Liang Xiao!
If one day he retired from Liang Xiao's service and returned to the Shadow Guard, he might even be able to brag to his brothers: "I once followed Marquis An Guo to achieve great deeds!"
He Zizhang watched the Qingtian Guards training, his thoughts becoming increasingly pleasant. A rare, lewd smile appeared on his usually cold face, causing Liang Mingyu and others from the Shadow Guard to look at him with confusion.
"My Lord, speaking of which, do our Qingtian Guards only use long sabers?" Liu Fan asked with some confusion.
Liang Xiao nodded. "Firstly, Qingtian and Jiang Long are proficient with sabers. Secondly, in the future, I will equip them with more powerful weapons: Mo Dao!"
"Mo Dao?" Everyone looked bewildered.
This was a weapon name they had never heard before!
Liang Xiao merely smiled without speaking. He wasn't trying to be mysterious, but he couldn't produce the actual weapons yet, and any further explanation would only confuse them more.
The current craftsmanship for forging Mo Dao was not mature enough, so they could only use the long sabers made by the Imperial Armaments Bureau for him.
Weapons of such astonishing power would not be practical if made from ordinary iron.
They needed steel!
In this world, steel was generally not referred to as "steel" but by various names for "finely smelted iron."
Due to productivity limitations, the output of finely smelted iron in the Great Gan Kingdom was pitifully small, even less in the Great Liang Kingdom, and the output in other countries was even more dismal!
Weapons forged from finely smelted iron were sometimes considered divine weapons.
Of course, Liang Xiao's 'Luminous White Dragon Armor' and 'White Night Flying Shadow' vest were lightweight and indestructible, and the 'Sky Dragon Breaking City Halberd' was extremely heavy and could cut through iron like mud. Clearly, these were not as simple as finely smelted iron but were special alloys beyond Liang Xiao's comprehension.
To increase steel production, the method of steelmaking needed to be revolutionized, which required a significant amount of money.
Liang Xiao was still earning money, and the promotion of new crops also took time.
The only way to quickly realize this grand blueprint was through the treasure of the ancient Xiongnu king, Hervor!
Liang Xiao was watching Yue Qingtian lead the saber training when Nan Jiyun arrived.
Seeing the imposing presence of the Qingtian Guards, Nan Jiyun also sincerely praised, "One can imagine that in the future, this will be an elite force! The Marshal has also selected ten thousand elite soldiers for Marquis An Guo, but the current problem is that you wish to implement military laws for each person, and there isn't enough time to print them yet..."
Liang Xiao smiled and said, "I am already solving this problem. Is the Marshal free now? I have something good to show him."
Nan Jiyun nodded. "With Advisor Zhuo and my third brother at the northern military camp, the Marshal can take some time today. What do you want to show him?"
"Movable Type Printing!"