They lived together outside the Anxi Pass because they were hoping for the best and thought their relatives were not dead but were just lost somewhere in the vast desert.
The Inhuman War forty years ago was unprecedented.
One hundred thousand elite troops were annihilated, with only one person surviving. This was the most brutal war in the history of Kyushu.
Just talking about the number of deaths, there have been cases in history where there were more than this.
But a hundred thousand people died, including the city of Anxi. Everyone disappeared without a trace, leaving no trace... This makes the matter seem confusing.
In the first few years after the war, many people believed that the soldiers were still alive, so many people from Zhongzhou rushed to the desert to look for them.
But as time passed and with the establishment of the Rest Pass, their hopes gradually faded.
And the letters in the hands of these townspeople, including the innkeeper... were not meant to be sent to the dead, but to the living.
This glimmer of hope is the reason why they are stuck outside the Anxi Pass.
... ..
The checkpoint gate slammed shut.
Qiao Mu and the old woman disappeared from everyone's sight.
Mr. Hai sighed, silently adjusted his breathing, and used his internal energy to repair the damage to his body.
"Brother Da Mu has given me a bad idea this time." Mr. Hai shook his head and said:
"Although the Blood Rush Technique he gave me can temporarily enhance my vision and reaction speed, even with this Blood Rush Technique, I still can't defeat the Iron Lady..."
"Maybe we need to think about this matter for a long time... Hmm? Where is Brother Da Mu? Wasn't he still in the crowd just now?"
He searched among the crowd but found nothing.
... ..
The interior of Anxi Pass is not very large, and the buildings inside are just the living quarters for the soldiers.
There are not many soldiers stationed here, only about one or two hundred in total, and these soldiers are obviously not elite warriors who have experienced many battles, and their strength is mediocre.
Among them, less than one-third of the warriors have reached a certain level of internal strength.
It can be seen that the Great Yan court does not seem to attach much importance to the Anxi Pass, which can be seen from the number and strength of the soldiers.
The only unusual person was the female general guarding the pass.
She is a third-grade martial artist who has mastered the art of spiritual cultivation. Although she is old and her energy and blood have declined, her strength is clearly still there.
Weak soldiers with strong generals? This is unreasonable.
The appearance of a third-grade spirit-refining warrior in Anxi Pass was actually an anomaly.
The old woman led Qiao Mu to the city wall of Anxi Pass and asked the soldiers following them to step back.
Looking down from the city wall, you can see the cemetery in the distance, with numerous tombstones densely packed like a forest.
"Mr. Qiao, your martial arts skills are amazing. I can't stop you." The old woman looked at the stele forest from afar and spoke first:
"As for the vast desert outside the Great Wall, if you have any questions, you can ask me here."
Is this your attitude as a guard? And weren't you quite domineering towards that ordinary town resident just now? Qiao Mu couldn't understand why the old woman's attitude suddenly changed.
However, he did not care about such details. After thinking for a moment, he asked the first question:
"Where did you learn the Martial Spiritual Rhinoceros Secret? Is it related to the Martial Saint or the Martial Extreme Association?"
The old woman was obviously stunned, and was surprised that this was the first question Qiao Mu asked.
"I am not practicing the Martial Saint Spirit Rhinoceros Technique. I have nothing to do with the Martial Saint or the Martial Arts Society."
"If you want to ask me why I guard this pass, this is actually my personal wish."
"How could you have an intuitive connection with me if you haven't practiced the Martial Spiritual Rhinoceros Secret Art?" Qiao Mu asked.
The old woman looked deep and silent for a moment, but did not go into details:
"Mr. Qiao, this problem has nothing to do with the desert."
"You are a rare master. You may have a chance of survival if you enter the desert, so I just want to do my best to help you."
"But this is no reason for you to find out about my background."
"You want to help an old man entering the desert, but why do you stop the townspeople from breaking through?" Qiao Mu asked again.
"That's because the desert is very dangerous. It's a forbidden zone for life." The old woman said calmly:
"For ordinary people, there is a 100% chance of survival. A master like you may have a chance of survival... Of course, whether you go or not, I can't stop you."
"Tell me what are the specific dangers of this desert?" Qiao Mu asked again.
"Although this desert is only a hundred miles in radius and not as vast as the desert to the west of Kyushu, almost everyone who has entered the desert over the years has gotten lost in it and never returned. It is a natural maze."
"In addition, there are rumors like 'ghost soldiers passing through'. It is said that travelers who go deep into the desert will sometimes encounter ghost soldiers as white as paper gathering and hear the illusion of trumpets..."
Qiao Mu nodded.
These words seem to be consistent with Daozhen's words.
"You said that this Rest Pass cannot stop true masters. Does this mean that there are other masters who have passed the pass before me?" Qiao Mu asked again.
"Yes. There is a master who has recently passed the level. He is quite famous. You may have heard of him." The old woman said:
"Lu Yanbei, the Wooden Sword Wanderer, has reached the pinnacle of swordsmanship. He is ranked 30th on the Tingchao Tower's 'Skills List'. In terms of swordsmanship alone, he might even be among the top ten swordsmen in the world."
"He also has a disciple called 'Dragon Claw' Hu Han, who has become quite famous in Zhongzhou in recent years."
"Well... then, what about Jian Zexian, the number one in the world forty years ago? Did he also make it through this level?" Qiao Mu asked again.
There was a flash of surprise across the old woman's face.
Jian Zexian was the world's number one warrior forty years ago. In front of an older warrior like her, his reputation is naturally well-known.
"I don't know about that," she said.
"The top ten masters in the world, led by Jian Zexian, disappeared ten years after the Alien War, which is thirty years ago. At that time, there was no Anxi Pass."
Qiao Mu nodded thoughtfully, and then asked the last question:
"I've heard that the 100,000 soldiers and officers back then are still alive and well, and some are still trapped in Anxi City in the desert... As the commander of Anxi Pass, have you ever heard of this?"
Chapter 176 Entering the Restricted Area
As soon as Qiao Mu said this.
The old woman beside me was gazing at the forest of steles in the distance. She looked obviously stunned. Her hands, which were pressed on the fence, clenched tightly subconsciously. The knuckles of her fingers turned slightly white. It was obvious that she was not calm.
"Mr. Qiao is joking." The old woman's tone was still calm:
"It has been forty years since the Alien War. Even if there were survivors from the early years of the war and not all of the troops were wiped out, could they have held out in this desert for forty years?"
"Even if it is a strange story made up by storytellers, the story of the remnant army holding on to the lonely city for forty years when they were isolated and helpless is so bizarre and absurd that even storytellers would not dare to make it up like this."
The old woman paused, her eyes sweeping towards the small town outside the pass.
"Most of the people in this town are relatives of the 100,000 soldiers in the past. Many of them were still hoping for a lucky break many years ago, but now the number of people in the town is gradually decreasing."
"How long is forty years?" The old woman looked at him dimly, her long gray hair blowing in the wind.
"The life span of a warrior is not much longer than that of an ordinary person. Forty years can turn a beautiful woman into gray hair and a hero into old age."
"Only the extraordinary people pursue immortality, have a long life span, and can cross the long years..."
When talking about strange people, the eyes of the female general guarding Anxi Pass became more and more deep, like a bottomless pool of water.
"Mr. Qiao, your martial arts skills are so impressive, I'm afraid you have already reached the first level, right?"
"As a first-class warrior, you may know how powerful the aliens are better than me." The old woman sighed slightly.
There are nine ranks among martial artists in the world. The first rank is the pinnacle of martial arts and they are the top martial artists appointed by the imperial court.
Although there are differences in strength among the first rank, only when you are on top of this mountain can you see how far the martial arts are from the immortal path above the clouds.
"The nine great immortal sects pressured Da Yan, and a war between aliens shattered the character of the scholars and the backbone of the warriors of Da Yan."
"Then, the strength of the nine powerful immortal sects is so different from that of the 100,000 Great Yan soldiers. How could it be possible that the 100,000 soldiers have survived until now?" The old woman asked in a deep voice:
"If Mr. Qiao is hoping for luck and wants to step into the desert with such awareness, please go back."
"Although I can't stop you, I know that you will definitely die if you do this."
It sounded like she was questioning the outrageous rumor that Qiao Mu had spread, but when Qiao Mu listened carefully, it seemed like the old woman was just talking to herself, pouring cold water on the hope in her heart.
Qiao Mu could only remain silent. In fact, he was also confused by this question and had no idea how to answer it.
Daozhen, a disciple of Da Dao Sect, told him that there was still a solitary army in the desert, and what they had to face were the nine great sects that were far stronger than them.
Let's not talk about whether they still have the will to fight for forty years... ..
The strength of the Immortal Sect has surpassed that of the Great Yan Dynasty. If this isolated army is still there, then the first premise for them to survive until now is: either the Immortal Sect does not care about their life or death at all, or the Immortal Sect has other purposes and did it deliberately.
The immortals view mortals as ants and mayflies, like a cat playing with a mouse. The gap between the two is as huge as heaven and earth.
"Since I, Qiao Shuangsen, am here, I will not leave." Qiao Mu said seriously:
"If there are still isolated soldiers holding out in this desert, I will do my best to help them escape."
"If this is just a hoax, an unfounded rumor, then it's not so bad." Qiao Mu said faintly:
"At least there is no real iron army that has been fighting alone until now. Just thinking about those days makes me feel miserable."
If there really exists such an iron army that has held on for forty years, what is the most bitter thing
It's not that they are alone and no one knows they are fighting.
But while this remnant army was fighting bloody battles for forty years, the Great Yan Dynasty had already bowed down to the nine great immortal gates and devoted all the manpower and resources of the Nine Provinces to supply the nine high and mighty immortal gates.
There are even many people in the Nine Provinces who do not know that the strange people are the so-called immortals, and they still worship the immortals on the shrines and offer incense.
Qiao Mu was born immortal, his life was worthless and could be squandered at will, so he was extremely brave and dared to enter this forbidden zone of life alone.
But in the eyes of this old woman, even a veteran who had been guarding Anxi Pass for many years, was dazzled.
"Just for a vague rumor? Are you willing to gamble your life?" Her voice was still as cold as before, but there was an obvious fluctuation in her expression.
But Qiao Mu just responded with a faint smile.
"If there really is such a group of remnant soldiers of the Great Yan Army, then their lives are naturally more important than the life of an old man who has half a foot in the coffin."
"Since I know about this, how can I sit back and do nothing?"
Qiao Mu is telling the truth.
After all, his life was worthless. Not to mention the remnants of the Great Yan army, the mere possibility of the former number one swordsman in the world was worth the gamble.
Anyway, he is running a win-win business, he will make a lot of money whether he wins or loses!
But when the old guard heard these words, it felt quite different.
"Mr. Qiao is so kind." The old woman was immediately in awe. She had always been cold as ice, but now she bowed to Qiao Mu:
"I will continue to stay here and wait for Mr. Qiao's return. If the old man needs anything else, please feel free to ask."
After saying that, she called the soldiers around her to go to the warehouse to fetch some water bags and dry food, and told Qiao Mu to take them away.
"There is nothing more you need.... You might as well spread my name."
Qiao Mu stroked the white beard at the corner of his mouth and said with a heroic smile:
"I have no other hobbies in my life except fame and showing off in front of others."
"You should remember my name and don't let me die quietly. This is the greatest help you can give me."
After saying.
Qiao Mu laughed, turned around, leaped, and walked alone towards the open gate of Anxi Pass.
Outside the door was a desolate desert, with strong winds and yellow sand blowing in our faces, and distorted heat waves blurring our vision.
Anxi Pass is the dividing line between Zhongzhou and the desert.
The old guard followed the back of the old man who was walking away alone, and her heart was filled with awe again.
Qiumu's last words were actually the truth.
But when he said it in this situation, it sounded like a heroic laugh.
"Spread your name? If such a heroic figure really cared about his reputation, why would he mention it so often?" The old woman sighed.