In the middle of the road, an army was marching rapidly.

They looked like mongrel dogs, their bodies much larger than humans, yet able to walk upright, gripping thick spiked clubs in their hands. Their eyes were bloodshot, making them inexplicably terrifying.

These were precisely the vicious dog soldiers upon whom the Hawke Nation relied for its existence. Every single vicious dog soldier was a sixth-tier powerhouse, and against ordinary people, they could fight a hundred alone!

“General, thirty li ahead and we’ll reach the capital of Taicang.”

A vicious dog soldier, struggling to catch up with the armored general at the very front, called out loudly.

“Thirty li? Then let’s rest here for a moment and wait for those useless Scavenger Troops.”

The one speaking was the strongest among the vicious dog soldiers—the Vicious Dog General. Unlike the ordinary vicious dogs’ gray fur, his was a lustrous black, making him stand out at a glance.

A thousand vicious dog soldiers immediately made camp on the spot. They skillfully lay down on the ground, curling up like real mongrel dogs, resting in the open.

Before long, another troop, several times larger than the vicious dog soldiers, arrived on foot.

Among them, a general came to pay respects to the Vicious Dog General, loudly saying, “General! All five thousand Scavenger Troops have arrived. Please give your orders.”

The Vicious Dog General nodded, a hint of disdain in his brows: “With both the Cang Guard Army and Clark Bennett lost, Taicang is like a fish caught on the chopping block—knife at its body, it can only struggle helplessly, with no way to save itself.

A human nation like this can be flattened by just our thousand vicious dog soldiers. You’re only in the way here.”

The Scavenger Troop leader lowered his dog head, a flash of resentment in his eyes, but dared not retort.

The Vicious Dog General said, “In the past, with the Cang Guard defending and Clark Bennett, that mighty sorcerer, holding the fort, we dared not attack with our whole nation, fearing a stalemate and that the Crocodile Horn Nation to the south would take advantage. Now that old Clark Bennett is dead, there’s no need for Taicang to exist.

Their land will be used to raise slaves; their adult people can be enslaved; the rest will be our food. With so much grain, when the Day of Eclipse comes in two months, our people can have an extra meal.”

The Scavenger Troop leader nodded, a hint of joy gradually appearing on his dog face.

Indeed, every Day of Eclipse meant enduring the pain of food shortages. If the entire Taicang human race became food reserves, at least for the next three Days of Eclipse, they would never go hungry again.

“General, should we send scouts to investigate the defenses of Taicang’s capital?” the Scavenger Troop leader asked cautiously.

“Defenses? What defenses could there be? Apart from the eight thousand Cang Guards in Taicheng, our spies have reported nothing. The six thousand Cang Guards in Cangcheng are tightly watched by the monkeys of Zhouqing State stationed at Cangqing Mountain. What else do we need to investigate?

Could those lowly humans, like livestock, possibly conjure up an army?”

The Vicious Dog General was full of disdain, but the Scavenger Troop leader knew it wasn’t arrogance—just the truth.

“Hear my command! All soldiers, march! Let us smash open the gates of Taicang’s capital with our dog claws and eat everything edible inside!” the Vicious Dog General ordered loudly.

“Yes, sir!”

Like a stampede of wild beasts, they thundered past, leaving terrifying footprints on the ground.

——

“Since the Hawke spy has already been exposed, why do you still insist on locking all the officials in the dark prison?” Melody Shaw looked at the crown prince, who was discussing strategies to defeat the enemy with Grace Harper, and voiced his doubt.

They knew that Summer Clark wanted to imprison all the officials because he feared that, once the war began, enemy agents disguised as ministers would cause chaos from within.

The situation was urgent, and there was clearly no time to interrogate them one by one.

“Minister of Records, can you guarantee there’s only one Hawke spy among those high officials?” Summer Clark didn’t even look up.

Grace Harper took over, saying, “Minister of Records, you also saw just now that Hawke Nation possesses several strange drugs—one can change appearances, another can give even a mere fifth-tier Hawke explosive power. We must be on guard.”

Summer Clark nodded and said, “Hawke Nation still doesn’t know about the Yin Army. Right now, Taicang’s only advantage is the element of surprise.

Other than these high officials, no one knows of Father’s passing.

Yet in just a few hours, the Hawke already found out. I fear news of the Yin Army will leak, so I wanted to temporarily imprison the officials. Unexpectedly, it forced a Hawke to reveal itself.

But no one can guarantee there’s only one Hawke spy, so it’s better to keep them locked up until the war is over, lest our only advantage is exposed to the enemy.”

Grace Harper looked carefully at Summer Clark, then suddenly asked, “Are you really the Wind Walker?”

Summer Clark was taken aback and replied, “Of course. Otherwise, how would you explain the Yin Army?”

Grace Harper shook her head and said, “From books, I’ve learned about the art of spirit arrays and summoning—many great nations have it. At first, I thought you just mastered some very special summoning array. Now, I’m starting to believe you really are the Wind Walker.”

Seeing Summer Clark’s puzzled expression, she explained, “Only the great wind can turn someone once timid into someone so bold as to dare imprison all the high officials of Taicang.”

Summer Clark tilted his head, thinking, just about to speak.