Both captains had been downed, but the members of their squads were far from done. A few women from the Old Turtle Squad had even dug out a set of cooking implements and whipped up some small dishes. Feng Ying and Bai Yi stepped forward to help when they saw this.
The small courtyard was alive with the clamor of a drinking battle, raucous as war drums.
The two elite squads were rivals on the battlefield yet inseparable comrades-in-arms, and it was no different here in this drinking contest.
Some gathered in groups of three or five, others paired off for head-to-head bouts. As the liquor took hold, eyes grew bleary and unfocused—even Feng Ying and the other women were flushed from drink.
Though they were all Open Heaven Realm cultivators, their alcohol tolerance was still limited when they didn't draw on their own power. Of course, given their formidable physiques, any one of them could hold enough liquor to be called a prodigious drinker.
The empty wine jars piled higher and higher, and more and more people collapsed to the ground.
No one knew how much time had passed before the entire courtyard was strewn with bodies in every which direction, not a single person left standing. As for Feng Ying and Bai Yi, they had long since succumbed to the liquor and retreated to their rooms to rest.
The once-chaotic courtyard fell utterly silent.
Beneath the long table, Yang Kai secretly cracked his eyes open. Seeing that the outcome was decided, he braced himself against a chair and poked his head out—only to find a pair of sharp, keen eyes staring at him from the opposite side.
Their gazes met. Yang Kai and Chai Fang were both equally embarrassed!
Yang Kai had quietly circulated his power to sober himself up, never expecting that Chai Fang had done exactly the same thing.
Scoundrels! Both silently cursed the other in their hearts.
Composing himself, Yang Kai calmly settled back into his seat and produced a tea set, placing it on the table. He began carefully brewing with practiced ease.
Chai Fang said nothing, simply waiting for the tea.
Moments later, the fragrance of tea wafted through the air. Yang Kai poured two cups and slid one across the table.
Chai Fang silently lifted his cup and took a small sip.
The sound of sipping rose and fell in alternating rhythm.
Once the pot of tea was finished, Chai Fang suddenly spoke. "Something's probably going to happen inside the Pass before long."
Yang Kai raised an eyebrow slightly. "You've noticed it too, Senior Brother?"
Chai Fang nodded. "Looks like you've noticed as well."
Yang Kai said, "Eighty percent of the Pass's strength has been concentrated at the Forward Outpost for over two hundred years now. Even though there hasn't been any fighting recently, they still need to guard against a counterattack from the Ink Clan. Under those circumstances, suddenly recalling our two elite squads back to the Pass is somewhat abnormal."
Chai Fang nodded and picked up where Yang Kai left off. "If it were just our two squads, that would be one thing. But lately, squad after squad has been trickling back in, all of them having received recall orders. I don't know if you've paid attention, but these squads all belong to different Towns and Garrisons—in other words, none of the recalled squads belong to the same Garrison."
"Do you have any guesses, Senior Brother?" Yang Kai asked.
Chai Fang shook his head. "What guesses could I have? I'm completely in the dark over here. I was actually hoping to ask you about it."
That was the real reason he had come to find Yang Kai tonight. The drinking contest had merely been incidental.
Yang Kai furrowed his brow. "If the Pass really is planning some kind of operation, it should be consolidating its forces at the Forward Outpost. I can't figure out why they'd recall us."
"Looks like you're just as clueless as I am."
Yang Kai harbored some suspicion that whatever the Pass was planning might be related to the newly completed Divine Spears of Purification, but it felt too rushed if that were the case. The number of Divine Spears he had personally infused with the Purifying Light was considerable, but each Pass only had two or three hundred. Those spears could serve as a surprise force for a single strike, but they couldn't achieve anything of real scale—after all, they were single-use consumables that couldn't be reused.
In his estimation, the Divine Spears needed to be accumulated to a truly impressive number before they could actually be deployed. Either you didn't use them at all, or you used them in such overwhelming force that the Ink Clan would have no room to resist.
As this involved the Divine Spears, Yang Kai couldn't say too much to Chai Fang.
"The higher-ups have always been so secretive about their plans. Until the very last moment, I doubt anyone will know what they're really thinking." Chai Fang couldn't help but grumble.
It had been the same when they'd previously used Xiang Shan's realm breakthrough to lure the Ink Clan's Domain Lord. Several of their elite squads had fought and died to hold the line in total confusion, only for the Pass's leadership to have been fully prepared all along.
Not informing them last time had been somewhat understandable—they had needed to fight with genuine desperation so the Ink Clan's Domain Lord would believe there was no ambush. Had they known the plan in advance, they might have revealed some flaw.