Chapter Ninety-Two: The Formation Is Complete, Part Two-Yiwu Martial Arts(Xichu Tong)

Because this matter was closely tied to his own father, Yang Ruiyun paid it such close attention. He even faintly remembered his father saying something similar, though he had been too young then to understand what his father had meant.

While Yang Ruiyun was lost in recollection, the Western Army had already finished its display. The next force to take the field was also one everyone awaited with great anticipation: the only mixed-gender army, the Southern Camp.

The Southern Camp now numbered about four thousand. Its Four Symbols forces were made up of both men and women, and there were already two armies among them. Of the Eight Trigrams forces, the Heaven Gang First Army was composed entirely of women, while the Marsh and Exchange First Army was the opposite, made entirely of men.

“Speaking of which, Bi Luo, where did you find all these female soldiers?” Li Qiutong asked curiously. Since his arrival at North Tong Pass, the number of female soldiers under Bi Luo had steadily increased, but where they had come from was a mystery. Not only Li Qiutong, but likely no one knew except the women themselves. And since Li Qiutong had always respected Bi Luo, if she had not taken the initiative to say anything, he had no intention of prying.

But now things were different. After that battle, the relations among the people at North Tong Pass had grown much warmer, so Li Qiutong’s question did not seem out of place at all.

Bi Luo was silent for a moment before saying, “Do you remember the promise you made me back then?”

“I do. You said you wanted to take a certain city, right?”

“Yes. That city is my hometown. They are all people from that same city, just like me.” Bi Luo said it simply, but after those words she fell silent again and said no more.

Li Qiutong could only nod to show he understood.

While they spoke briefly above, the formation below had already begun to shift. Zhu Yan’er rode to the very front on horseback, her long bow drawn back.

“Volley.”

At the command, the arrows in every soldier’s hands flew from their bows almost at the same instant, their movements perfectly synchronized, without the slightest trace of dragging or sloppiness. The speed and fluidity of the whole process was astonishing.

Ren Xingtian then explained, “The Southern Camp’s troops are light cavalry archers, possessing tremendous firepower and mobility. Under the training of Bi Luo and Zhu Yan’er, I wouldn’t say every one of them is a master marksman, but as far as I know, their precision ranks among the very best among all armies on the continent. Their mounted archery is especially outstanding. Normally, the most important thing in a volley is a safe environment, but we can attack while moving on horseback, avoiding close combat. And as I said earlier, if they cooperate with the Black Tortoise Army, the power would be unimaginable.”

As Ren Xingtian was explaining, the army below also reached its climax. Flames blazed up around Zhu Yan’er, and in an instant fire spread everywhere, with sparks flickering on every soldier’s body. Then a resilient white light and a supple brown light gradually rose on the left and right. The martial essence of brown and white was then devoured by the flames like fuel, burning even more fiercely as though doused with hot oil.

“Vermilion Bird Soars, Burning the World to Ashes.” Within that explosive blaze, a pair of fiery wings suddenly spread open. With a sweep of those wings, the Vermilion Bird, cloaked in fire elemental essence, rose into the air. When it reached its highest point, those wings fully unfurled at last, with wisps of fire-feathers dancing in the wind. Its head was held high, as though looking down imperiously upon all things beneath heaven.

Yet Zhu Yan’er’s display seemed far from over. An arrow was smoothly set upon the string, and the power of fire-elemental essence ignited the entire shaft.

“Starfire, Falling Feathers!”

The words had barely fallen when the Vermilion Bird let out a cry that drew everyone’s gaze. Then its wings folded inward as if gathering power. As Zhu Yan’er’s arrow left the bow, the Vermilion Bird’s wings once again spread wide with force, its presence overwhelming. The thousands of fire-feathers upon those wings detached and shot forth, carrying the explosive force of Vermilion Bird essence as they plunged like meteors toward the front, a scene of breathtaking grandeur. The sky full of fire-feathers seemed to incinerate the heavens, a spectacle of startling magnificence.

When everything had settled, Zhu Yan’er silently saluted toward the platform above, then led the army off the training grounds.

“Bi Luo, you people are incredible,” Li Qiutong sighed.

But Bi Luo did not seem especially surprised. “So-so.”

Instead, Deng Zhanxuan looked a little excited. “Big Brother, of course they are. The girls in the Southern Camp really train hard.”

Li Qiutong looked at his third brother in confusion. “Third Brother, why is it that you never praise the hardships of your Northern Camp, yet speak so highly of the Southern Camp?”

“The training on my side is certainly hard too, but Bi Luo’s people have it even harder. I saw it with my own eyes,” Deng Zhanxuan said honestly.

Bi Luo, standing behind him, said helplessly, “Enough, you big fool. Right now we’re competitors. You should be saying a few good words for your own soldiers.”

Only after Bi Luo reminded him did Deng Zhanxuan realize it. He scratched his big head and laughed. “Oh, right. Aren’t there still rewards later? I forgot.”

Bi Luo was truly speechless. At that moment, however, the final camp, the Eastern Camp, was also entering the open ground in neat formation.

Looking at the Eastern Camp’s present orderliness, discipline, and solemnity, Li Qiutong could only marvel. “Speaking of which, when I first saw the Eastern Camp, their morale and fighting spirit were the worst of all, and their discipline was nowhere near the other camps. But now they’ve completely changed.”

“Of course. Do you not see who their supervising officer is?” Li Jing, standing nearby, said proudly.

Hearing this, Li Qiutong swallowed back the next words he had been about to use to praise Zhu Long and only smiled with a hint of meaning. But Yang Ruiyun did not think the same way and said directly, “Still, the main reason is that Zhu Long is highly capable. Though he never received formal military academy training, he has been in service for many years. His unyielding yet approachable air of an ordinary soldier makes it easier for him to earn the soldiers’ recognition.”

Hearing Yang Ruiyun praise Zhu Long and not herself, Li Jing puffed out her lips and shouted down below, “Little Dragon, do your best. Don’t embarrass me!”

When Zhu Long heard that from below, he raised his halberd and shouted back, “All troops prepare for battle. Do not embarrass Supervisor Li!”

The soldiers behind him heard that name and instantly got goosebumps. Their focus sharpened all at once. They knew very well that offending Supervisor Li was no joke. Just thinking of her eyes was enough to bring tears.

Seeing that the effect had been achieved, Zhu Long drew in a deep breath and raised his spirit to the utmost.

“Form ranks.”

On the high platform, Ren Xingtian was about to explain, but Li Jing beat him to it. “Uncle-master, let me handle the Eastern Camp.”

Ren Xingtian, who was indeed feeling tired, nodded in agreement. “Very well.”

“Under the training of Zhu Long and me, the Eastern Camp currently has no Eight Trigrams forces. Since everyone has mastered two forms of boxing, they have all been assigned to the Four Symbols forces. The total number is four thousand, which means below there are only the Azure Dragon First, Second, Third, and Fourth Armies. As for our troops, they are medium cavalry and the strongest all-around force. They can fight defensive battles and also launch offensive raids. And after Zhu Long equipped them with bows and arrows, the Azure Dragon Army’s attacks cover mid-range, close range, and long range, making them adaptable to battles against all kinds of armies. Added to that is the resilience of Azure Dragon martial essence, and our endurance in prolonged warfare is second to none.” Li Jing introduced them to everyone with complete confidence.

At this moment, Zhu Long in the field also began to condense his military martial essence, his halberd pointing skyward with a jade-green radiance.

Along with him, the more than four thousand soldiers of the entire army did the same. The jade-green essence was so dense it instantly illuminated the entire battlefield.

“Azure Dragon Rises, Reviving All Things.”

Within that green light, a great creature suddenly spiraled upward. Though wingless, it hovered in the air. Deep green scales gleamed in the light, and its massive curved horns carried an ancient air. From its dark, cavernous maw came threads of mist, while strands of lightning flickered around its body.

At that point Zhu Long lowered his halberd. The level of Azure Dragon essence condensation was enough to show that his troops were now the strongest. As for anything else, without a real enemy, he no longer wished to display more.

The majestic Azure Dragon then dispersed into the wind and vanished from the sky.

Li Jing on the platform above gave Zhu Long a thumbs-up. Zhu Long looked at her and smiled faintly, his lips seeming to say, “If I make a move, how could it possibly fail?”

“Xingtian, how high has his essence condensation reached?”

“The limit for a single Four Symbols army is five thousand men. Right now, their essence condensation is already close to that of a four-star Saint Martial Artist,” Ren Xingtian estimated.

“Then that’s quite a bit stronger than my own essence condensation.”

“That’s not quite the right way to put it. Your Four Symbols essence is much purer than theirs, and its oppressive trait is also much more pronounced.”

Li Qiutong also grew excited. “Now I’m really curious what level I can reach once I attain the Four Symbols Grandmaster stage.”

“If Big Brother reaches Grandmaster again, your strength should firmly reach the level of a four-star Saint Martial Artist. If the power of the military formation is added to Brother Qiutong, you may even completely break through the limits of a Saint Martial Artist,” Yang Ruiyun speculated.

Ren Xingtian added, “Exactly. At that point, even the Battering King Cavalry led by the Overlord would likely be no match for us.”

Soon, the soldiers and commanders of the four camps had all lined up and returned to the open ground, waiting for Li Qiutong’s judgment.

“Brother Qiutong, it’s your turn. Say a few words.”

Under everyone’s gaze, Li Qiutong walked to the front of the viewing stand. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he then spoke in a deep voice to the people below: “Today, it has been nearly two and a half years since I came to North Tong Pass. My strategist, Ren Xingtian, once said that from designing the troop types, to determining their martial arts, to actual training, and finally to taking shape, a military formation would require at least decades. Yet we succeeded in less than three years. Although the numbers are still small, our goal of a hundred-thousand-strong army finally has hope. I am truly grateful that everyone is willing to believe in me, willing to stake your lives to take this gamble with me. Perhaps some of you already know that our relations with the Tang Kingdom are now extremely strained. Tomorrow I will go to Chang’an to meet with Emperor Tang. As for the outcome, I do not know it yet. But I can tell you this with certainty: as long as I, Li Qiutong, remain here, I will be responsible for all of you.”

“Long live General Li!”

For a moment the scene erupted with fervor, and Li Qiutong finally smiled in relief.

“As for what Xingtian said before, that the camp with the best performance would receive a generous reward, I did not agree to that. Because I think everyone is excellent. I truly cannot tell who is better than whom. So I have decided that every camp and every soldier will be rewarded. Not only will your pay be increased, but you will also receive various benefits. Ren Xingtian will discuss the details with your commanders, so I won’t interfere further. Keep working hard. As my soldiers, your benefits are absolutely guaranteed.”