Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
The Mirage
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The boiling hot horse blood was very fishy and difficult to swallow. However, at this moment, no one in the Tang Army disliked it. They picked up the steaming hot horse blood and drank it in one gulp. They even felt that it was not enough.
In the desert, anything that could replenish water was the most precious. Even the general, who was grief-stricken before killing the horse, drank two big bowls of it without hesitation.
The next day.
At the first glimmer of dawn, the army immediately set off. Taking advantage of the fact that the temperature had not yet risen, they immediately urged their horses to move. Otherwise, once it was noon and the sun was scorching hot, even moving would cause one to be drenched in sweat, not to mention rushing the army. Even walking would be a difficult task.
For three days in a row, the army marched alone in this vast desert. There were no plants, no signs of life, and no goals. There was only yellow sand all over the sky and the scorching sun. Even the birds were extinct.
The expected Tulunchuan was nowhere to be seen. If it were not for the compass in Meton's hand that had been pointing in the right direction and the sufficient water and dry food on the back of the horse that gave the army enough confidence, the army would have been in a panic and their morale would have been shaken.
Cheng Yaojin looked at Meton with a look of relief. He had been too optimistic about the situation before. If it were according to his previous arrangements, the army would have been in a predicament by now. They would not have the confidence to fight steadily now.
However, even so, there was still an atmosphere of anxiety spreading in the army. However, everyone gritted their teeth and persevered because this was a pursuit with no way out. If they did not defeat Fu Yun's last force, all the hard work and price they paid would be in vain.
"Keep moving!" Cheng Yaojin shouted and kept encouraging the army.
Meton rubbed his eyes that were stung by sweat and drank two mouthfuls of water to replenish his water. Only then did he slightly relieve the thirst in his heart. He looked at the eager eyes of Shadowless under his crotch and helplessly poured the little water in the water bag to it.
Looking at Shadowless licking the water impatiently, Meton exhaled a breath of hot air. However, he could not spit out the irritation in his heart.
Suddenly, there was an uproar among the soldiers at the front. Cries of surprise could be heard.
"What happened?" Meton urged his horse forward to Cheng Yaojin's side and asked.
"Mo Jiu is overjoyed! An oasis has appeared not far to the north. "The military commander reported with a look of pleasant surprise.
"Could it be Tulunchuan?" Cheng Yaojin was delighted.
"This oasis is a little small, so it's impossible!" The military officer shook his head and said.
The military commander did not feel any disappointment. Even if it was not the Tulun River, no matter how bad it was, it would still be able to replenish the water supply and sustain a large number of warhorses.
Cheng Yaojin and Meton were shocked. Their breathing quickened as they quickly looked towards the north.
In the northwest direction of the army, an oasis could be clearly seen. Furthermore, it was very close. It felt like they would be able to reach it after climbing over a few sand dunes.
Cheng Yaojin was overjoyed. "The heavens are really helping me. With this oasis, our army will have no hidden dangers."
"Pass down the order. Let's go immediately …"
Just as Cheng Yaojin was about to give the order for the army to march towards the oasis, Meton stopped Cheng Yaojin.
"Uncle Cheng, please wait!"
"Why is that?" Cheng Yaojin asked in surprise.
The water source was right in front of them. With sufficient water supply, the Tang Army would no longer need to kill horses. Although Cheng Yaojin was very determined when he killed the horses, if there was even a slight possibility of not killing the horses, he would never give up.
The military commander also looked at Meton angrily. He wanted Meton to give him an explanation.
Meton looked at the clearly visible oasis in front of them and said with a solemn face, "This kid once said that there was a flood dragon on the sea named Yu. It could spit out clouds and fog, turning them into tall buildings to confuse the world."
The military commander chuckled and said, "You said it was a mirage. It mostly happened on the sea of Penglai Island, and we are in the boundless desert. Mo Jiu didn't think that the flood dragon could still spit out clouds and fog in the desert, did he?"
Meton didn't care about the military commander's sarcasm at all. Instead, he nodded solemnly and said, "This kind of illusory scene doesn't only exist on the sea. It can also appear on snowfields, deserts, and lakes. It's not rare for a mirage to appear in the desert. The barbarian merchants who came and went to the Western Regions have seen it everywhere. In the eyes of those barbarian merchants, it's not a good thing. The oasis seems to be in front of them, but it's actually far away. Many barbarian merchants who fell into desperate situations took a gamble and headed in the direction of the oasis, but they got lost in the desert unknowingly."
"It seems to be the hope of survival, but it's actually a trap of death," Cheng Yaojin said sternly.
Meton nodded and said, "Now our army is not short of water. It's enough to support us for a few days. Why should we deviate from the direction and do something meaningless?"
Cheng Yaojin immediately fell silent. If the Commander of the Left was really in a desperate situation, he didn't mind taking a gamble. However, as Meton said, the Commander of the Left wasn't at the end of his rope. On the contrary, he was still at ease. If this oasis is fake, then the gains don't make up for the losses. "
"Mo Jiu, are you sure that this is a mirage?" The military commander asked unwillingly.
Meton said proudly, "Where there's light, there's shadow. The School of Mohism is the best in the world of light and shadow. In the eyes of the School of Mohism, a mirage is just the Dao of light and shadow. According to the School of Mohism's records, a mirage will only appear for a quarter of an hour at most. If the military commander doesn't believe me, we can wait here for another quarter of an hour to see if it's real or fake. "
"Okay, what's real can't be fake, and what's fake can't be real. Everyone, rest for a while. "
Cheng Yaojin nodded and immediately gave the order to rest. At this moment, the sun was scorching hot, and the army had been marching for a long time. They were already exhausted and could rest for a while.
Soon, cheers came from the Tang Army. The army that stopped immediately fed the warhorses water while they hid behind the warhorses' backs. They took out compressed rations and drank the water directly. There wasn't even a blade of dry grass on the grassland, so naturally, there was no hot food to eat.
Cheng Yaojin didn't even have the mood to drink water. Instead, he looked at the oasis in the distance and anxiously paced back and forth. Time passed by minute by minute.
Soon, a quarter of an hour had passed, but the oasis in the distance was still in sight.
Just as Cheng Yaojin and the military commander's eyes were getting brighter and brighter, the oasis suddenly shook. Under everyone's gaze, it gradually faded and soon disappeared from everyone's sight.
"The oasis is gone?"
"It really is a mirage!"
… … …
The entire army was in an uproar. When everyone was resting, the news that Meton had mentioned that the oasis in front of them was a mirage had already spread throughout the army. Therefore, they couldn't help but look at Meton with a bit of worship in their eyes.
Cheng Yaojin felt regretful at the same time, but at the same time, he was very glad. If Meton hadn't dissuaded them this time, they would've certainly been unable to resist the temptation and plunged into the vast ocean. The entire army would've been doomed eternally.
The military commander's face was also full of disappointment. However, the way he looked at Meton no longer had the previous contempt. Meton's magic had thoroughly conquered him along the way.
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