The next morning, Xiao Chen and Viscount Yosa stood in front of Heimuguan. The large army led by Shi Hao and Huang Zheng was two kilometers behind them. There was also an assault team consisting of high-level warriors such as Huang Zheng, Evelyn, Roger, and Zhang Hong, as well as mid-level and above masters selected from the mage class and melee company, ambushing in the woods only a few hundred meters away from Xiao Chen.
As Huang Zheng said, there were high mountains on both sides of the Blackwood Pass that were difficult for the army to cross. The steep mountains were difficult for even experts to cross, not to mention ordinary people. And the only valley between the mountains was blocked by a majestic pass.
As its name suggests, the Black Wood Pass is made of black rocks. This is the Black Wood Stone produced in the nearby mountains. This kind of stone has natural wood textures and looks very beautiful after being polished. Although this kind of rock is relatively rough, it is naturally resistant to magic. Although it looks gloomy when used to build buildings, it is a very good material for making passes.
Heimu Pass is extremely tall. When Xiao Chen looked at it from below across the moat, it felt like he was looking up at the top of a twenty-story building from the bottom.
Because Suances was occupied, the atmosphere in Heimu Pass was very tense, and even the gate facing the country was closed.
Xiao Chen snapped his fingers, and a small red bird appeared out of thin air. He raised his hand, and the bird flapped its wings and flew to the top of the level. When it reached the top of the level, the flying bird suddenly scattered into countless sparks, forming a line of words hanging in the air: Viscount Yosa came to visit Count Orgas, and he had something important to discuss.
The guards at Heimu Pass exclaimed. After a while, someone above used amplification magic to shout down, "Sir Viscount, please wait a moment. Let us inform the Earl."
Xiao Chen said to Viscount Yosa: "You can convey our ideas to the Earl later. Pay attention to your own safety and don't force yourself."
Viscount Yosa said, "It shouldn't be a big problem. After all, our family has always intermarried with Count Orgas's family. After all, I am still his cousin. No matter what his attitude is, it will not endanger my safety."
Xiao Chen took out an envelope from the Traveler's Heart and said to Viscount Yosa, "There is some information in this letter that can help you convince Count Orgas. If he is hesitant, you can show him this letter."
Viscount Josa took the envelope and looked at it. It was made of fine paper unique to the Chinese. It looked nothing special. It said: To Count Orgis. He put the letter into his pocket and said, "Don't worry, I know how to judge the timing."
The moat in front of Heimu Pass is nearly twenty meters wide, and there is no drawbridge on the gate of the pass. This is because in this world, high-level warriors can break the iron chains on the drawbridge across the moat, so some castles and checkpoints have abandoned such a design.
After a while, the gate of the checkpoint opened a crack, and a one-meter-wide and more than 20-meter-long iron bridge was slowly extended from the gate by a group of soldiers, and then built to Xiao Chen's side. A knight-like man walked over from the suspension bridge. He looked at the two people and said, "Viscount Yosa, Lord Orgas invites you to enter the checkpoint to meet him. But you can only go alone, and the Chinese wizard who accompanied you cannot enter."
Viscount Yosa said, "I will follow the arrangements of His Excellency the Earl. Please lead the way."
The knight led Viscount Yosa towards the gate. When they reached the door, a wizard appeared and scanned his surroundings with the Eye of Truth. Only after making sure that there were no invisible enemies following him did he let him in.
After they walked down the iron bridge, the soldiers pulled the iron bridge back and closed the door. But just as the door was about to close, a magician's eye released by Xiao Chen drilled into the crack of the door.
After the Mage's Eye passed through the gate, the view suddenly opened up. Behind the tall gate was a busy town built on the mountain. Because the open space inside the pass was limited, many houses were built along the mountains on both sides. The difference between the lowest point and the highest point of the town was at least 20 to 30 meters. Most of the houses here were simple and rough, and they were all square box-shaped. Most of them should be barracks, but the army deployed in Heimu Pass was far from full, so most of the houses were still empty.
If this pass was fully occupied by troops, it would have at least 20,000 troops. But even during the long war with the Empire, the garrison here was always kept below 10,000.
About 300 meters across the town is the city wall facing the empire. The wall looks much thicker from the back, just like the inner wall of the arena. It is divided into more than ten layers, and the lower the layer, the wider it is. The whole is a right triangle. There are winding stairs and platforms connecting each layer. There are doorways on each platform leading to the rooms inside the wall. Some of them look like barracks, and some look like warehouses.
The top of the city wall is quite wide, with battlements on the outside to defend against arrows and magic, and a large number of oil pans, catapults, and rock piles on the ground. The situation is tense now, so there are soldiers standing guard at intervals, and there are even more guardhouses for mages at further intervals.
The soldiers at Kuroki Pass were obviously better than the mob in Suero. Most of them were quite strong and had a fierce air when they walked. Many of the people here had participated in the war against the empire, had seen blood, and had killed people.
Although Count Orgas had missed a supply shipment, it did not affect the food supply. The atmosphere inside the pass was calm, and most of the soldiers looked normal. Both training and work were proceeding normally.
Xiao Chen didn't dare let the Mage's Eye fly too high, because according to Huang Zheng, he had already tried to use the Mage's Eye to observe the entire Black Wood Pass from above a few days ago, but the Mage's Eye was discovered as soon as it flew over the top of the city wall. It was directly discovered by the mage in the sentry box, and then disintegrated with scattered rays.
He just let the Mage's Eye follow Viscount Yosa and slowly fly towards the town inside the pass. The knight took Count Yosa to the high ground on the west side of the town. After walking up about 60 or 70 steps, they came to a wide platform where there was a two-story house. This house was much more exquisite than the other houses around it, with a bit of Suero style. There were four knights and two mages guarding the door who looked quite skilled.
They used magic to examine Viscount Yosa, and then took him to the second floor. In a reception room, he met Count Orgas, the commander of Blackwood Pass.