Chapter 532 - 431: A Show of Force?

"Duan Guangtai, the administrator of Ice Extreme Pass, he’s from the Luoho Clan."

Hai Mo’s expression was serious, flashes of anger crossing his eyes, "He came and immediately started planting his people throughout the army. Several officers I had promoted were all repositioned under various excuses, and he is arrogant, completely disregarding military discipline in daily affairs."

From Hai Mo’s words, Qin Tian could easily sense the deep-seated anger.

The administrator doesn’t have the authority to interfere in military appointments, but Duan Guangtai dared do so, clearly leveraging the Luoho Clan’s background while calculating that Hai Mo was about to step down, thus acting so brazenly.

"General Qin, I’m sure he’ll give you trouble everywhere from now on," Hai Mo’s tone grew heavier, "Moreover, this person is cunning, a Tier Six Spiritualist with Golden Clan roots, and he has a few capable confidants under him. Be especially cautious when dealing with him in the future."

"Understood, thank you for the warning, General Hai."

Qin Tian nodded.

"Alright, General Qin, the handover is complete, and now it’s time for me to leave."

Hai Mo stood up, a smile appearing on his face, "I’ve advised a few brothers to work well with General Qin going forward, and I also believe that Ice Extreme Pass will certainly improve under General Qin’s leadership."

He patted Qin Tian’s arm, turned, and pushed the door open—the wind and snow instantly poured in, surrounding them were soldiers of Ice Extreme Pass, densely packed.

"Military Lord!"

"Military Lord!"

The soldiers’ shouts rose and fell, many already had reddened eyes.

Only then did Qin Tian realize that in Ice Extreme Pass, soldiers privately calling the Guardian Envoy "Military Lord" was a more endearing title than "General."

Hai Mo stood at the door, looking over the familiar faces, his eyes also slightly reddened: "Brothers, three years have passed in a flash, today I, Hai Mo, must bid farewell to everyone."

"These three years, I couldn’t lead you to expand territories, couldn’t make Ice Extreme Pass better, and couldn’t even improve the lives of brothers much, I’ve let everyone down."

His voice was slightly hoarse, yet utterly sincere, "But in these three years, we’ve stood guard together in the snow, we’ve fought against Snow Beasts, over a thousand days and nights shoulder-to-shoulder, I, Hai Mo, will never forget every brother’s name, every face in my life!"

"Brothers, take care!"

Hai Mo bowed deeply.

"Military Lord, take care!"

"Safe journey!"

The soldiers’ voices carried with sobs, their eyes fixed on Hai Mo’s figure.

Even though Hai Mo couldn’t bring development, in three years he was rigorous and upright, often charging forward to protect subordinates during Snow Beast attacks, he had long earned everyone’s respect.

Under everyone’s gaze, Hai Mo walked step-by-step toward the flying device on the tarmac, after getting on, he waved goodbye to everyone through the transparent window.

The sound of the flying device’s engines gradually faded away, eventually disappearing completely into the snow-filled sky.

The soldiers withdrew their gazes, each turning to Qin Tian—there was curiosity, expectation, and also a subtle hint of observation.

Facing everyone’s gaze, Qin Tian’s voice was clear and steady: "Everyone, from today onwards, I officially take on the role of Guardian Envoy of Ice Extreme Pass. Firstly, I’d like to meet the four regimental commanders responsible for defense, please step forward."

As his words fell, the scene instantly fell into silence.

A second passed, two seconds, five seconds... A whole half minute passed, and there was no movement in the crowd, even the sound of breathing seemed lighter.

The awkward atmosphere permeated the wind and snow, many soldiers instinctively glanced to one side of the crowd, as if waiting for someone’s signal.

Qin Tian’s eyes slightly narrowed, following everyone’s gaze—he saw a man in his forties standing there, dressed in an administrative uniform with dark patterns, wearing a faint smile, playing with a cold jade ring on his finger.

Realizing Qin Tian’s gaze, the man leisurely spoke, his tone slightly condescending: "Didn’t you hear General Qin speaking? Why aren’t you four stepping out quickly!"

"Yes!"

Four answering voices sounded almost simultaneously, then, four men in military uniforms squeezed out of the crowd, quickly stepping up to Qin Tian.

"Damn it, all turned mute? Don’t know to salute General Qin, report your names?" The man’s voice suddenly grew stern, his gaze sweeping over the four with palpable pressure.

The four quickly straightened up, speaking in succession:

"General Qin, I am Regimental Commander of Regiment One, Zhai Jialu!"

"Regimental Commander of Regiment Two, Qu Feng!"

"Regimental Commander of Regiment Three, Sang Yanhua!"

"Regimental Commander of Regiment Four, Fan Jun!"

Qin Tian’s gaze swept over the four, among them some avoided eye contact, some stood firm against his gaze.

He felt a sense of understanding and his gaze returned to the man—this person was Duan Guangtai, specifically warned by Hai Mo, the "nail" planted by the Luoho Clan in Ice Extreme Pass, who he had already labeled in his mind as a "troublemaker."

Indeed, in his view, Duan Guangtai was nothing more than a troublemaker.

Duan Guangtai, fifty-five, born into a family with Golden Bloodline, now a Tier Six One Star Spiritualist.

His Talent is not bad but certainly not outstanding, if truly valued by the Luoho Clan, he wouldn’t be sent from the resource-rich Rift Soul Ice Valley to the remote Ice Extreme Pass as an administrator—in short, to obstruct Ice Extreme Pass’s development.

He had experienced too many grand scenes, figures like Duan Guangtai were mere clowns unworthy of his attention.

However, Mingwang Planet is close to the Royal star, here rules are more restrictive, some simple and crude methods aren’t impossible to use, just need to be careful, at least not be caught.

"Alright, I’ve noted your names, you may go back now." Qin Tian’s tone was flat.

However, after his words fell, the four led by Zhai Jialu remained unmoved, instead subconsciously turning to Duan Guangtai, with clear looks of seeking approval.

This scene intensified the awkward atmosphere, even the howling wind and snow seemed to pause.

The faces of the present soldiers changed slightly, anyone could see, this was Duan Guangtai using the four regimental commanders to blatantly show his influence in Ice Extreme Pass to the new military lord, also a bare challenge.

Many veteran soldiers felt secretly alarmed—earlier they only knew Duan Guangtai and Hai Mo had disagreements, frequently clashing over logistics and personnel, thinking it was a conflict between administrative and military positions, but now it seemed Duan Guangtai not only disregarded the departing Hai Mo but also the newly appointed Guardian Envoy.

"What? General Qin’s words don’t work?"

Duan Guangtai leisurely spoke then, his tone teasing, his gaze sweeping over the four, "Still dawdling? Didn’t hear General Qin telling you to go back?"

Only then did the four led by Zhai Jialu hurriedly salute Qin Tian and squeeze back into the crowd.

The atmosphere grew increasingly tense, soldiers looking at each other, eyes filled with worry—the remote location and difficult development of Ice Extreme Pass, now faced with open provocation of the new official by the administrator, the days ahead would undoubtedly involve relentless internal conflict.

Some secretly observed Qin Tian, wondering how this new Guardian Envoy would respond, while others looked at Duan Guangtai, pondering how much confidence this administrator had to act so brazenly.

Everyone wondered inside: Who would ultimately win in this power struggle?

And where would Ice Extreme Pass’s future go?

Qin Tian watched the farce before him, his face still expressionless, though a flicker of cold light passed beneath his eyes—Duan Guangtai’s provocation was earlier and more direct than he expected.

But this is good, saving the effort of probing later, this confrontation could officially begin now.