Firmament Sword

”First, since we are a team and I’ve been appointed captain, I expect everyone to obey orders. I don’t want to see any internal strife within our squad. We can discuss problems together, but once a decision is made, it must be carried out without question!”

”Second, the enemy has led their troops to slaughter our people—men, women, old, and young, none have been spared. This is a blood debt as deep as the sea, one we must repay. But when you encounter the enemy, I want you to remain rational and not make any senseless sacrifices.”

”Third, while we are on the move, I want everyone to continue refraining from using True Essence and practice their footwork techniques at the same time.”

As Xu Luo spoke, his gaze swept across everyone’s faces. ”One last point, and this isn’t mandatory, but I hope that no matter the situation, you all keep some trump cards in reserve.”

”Don’t worry, Captain. We will all obey orders,” Li Hong assured him, his face serious.

The others all nodded in agreement.

Xu Luo felt a little relieved. ’Even if what Li Hong and the others said were just polite words, at least it’s a good start.’

’Otherwise, with constant internal conflict, forget about gathering intelligence—the squad would probably fall apart before we even caught a glimpse of the enemy.’

Just then, Little Fatty Liu Feng spoke up. ”Captain, since we’re a team, shouldn’t we have a cooler name?”

”How about... the Death God Squad?” Liang Ziyi suggested.

”No, no, that’s not good. We’re here to gather intelligence, not act as assassins... I think the Flying Eagle Squad sounds better!” said Ling Luoxi.

”We are all students of True Martial Academy, focused on cultivating martial arts. Now, we’ve enlisted as soldiers, and the most important thing for a soldier is to have a martial soul! So... I think we should just call ourselves the Martial Soul Squad,” Huangfu Chongzhi said calmly from the side.

”The Martial Soul Squad, that’s a good one!” Xiahou Xian said.

”Yeah, the Martial Soul Squad. That name sounds great!” Liang Ziyi also agreed. He thought it sounded much better than the Death God Squad.

The others all thought it was an excellent name and chimed in with their approval.

Xu Luo nodded. ”Alright. From now on, our squad will be called the Martial Soul Squad! I hope our team can make a brilliant showing in this war!”

”We will!”

The group of youths was fired up, their blood pumping with passion. At this moment, they probably couldn’t imagine what a dazzling light the Martial Soul Squad—this temporary team formed by a group of youngsters—would radiate in the days to come.

”According to the map, if all goes smoothly, we should be able to enter the Cao Kingdom’s territory by tonight. From that point on, we must be extra careful with everything we do,” Xu Luo said.

”The Cao Kingdom has always claimed to be a vassal state of our Cangqiong Kingdom. Their past Sovereigns were all incredibly humble and gentle. To think they would be the first to stab us in the back...” Xu Jie’s voice was harsh, and a cold killing intent glinted in his eyes.

”’Those who are not of our kind are sure to have different hearts.’ Little Fatty Liu Feng sneered. ’They’ve probably found themselves a new backer.’”

”A backer? In the entire Southern region, the most powerful nation is the Great Yan Empire, right? The Great Yan Kingdom shares very little border with our kingdom. The best way for them to invade us would be to pass through smaller kingdoms like the Cao Kingdom...”

Li Hong stated calmly, ”The Great Yan Kingdom now has 200,000 troops stationed at the border. Marching them through the mountainous terrain of the adjoining region is almost impossible. So, they have likely been colluding with those smaller kingdoms for some time.”

”If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be incredibly easy for the Great Yan Kingdom to attack us in the future?” Ling Luoxi said, somewhat enraged. ”For a tiny nation, the Cao Kingdom has some unbelievable nerve! And that Cao Tianyi—if I get the chance, I’ll kill him myself!”

”If he were that easy to kill, do you think Instructor Zhou would have told us to be so careful?” Liang Ziyi said, shaking his head.

The group chatted as they walked. They were all outstanding students from True Martial Academy and weren’t lacking in worldliness, so naturally, their comments were all insightful.

Xu Luo secretly observed the personalities of his team members. He noticed that Li Hong was cheerful and magnanimous—a rare talent indeed.

Xiahou Xian, Liu San, and Xiaotian were all somewhat cold. Xiahou Xian was the type to be completely engrossed in the Martial Dao and didn’t speak much. Liu San and Xiaotian, on the other hand, had an arrogance deep in their bones, though it wasn’t immediately obvious.

Liang Ziyi had a short temper, but he was straightforward and generous, a good man.

Xu Lingtian was very shy, almost like a girl. His face would blush before he even started talking, and his voice was soft and gentle. If not for his prominent Adam’s apple, Xu Luo would have really thought he was a girl disguised as a man, just like Lin Luoxue whom he had met before.

Ling Luoxi seemed a bit cunning, her eyes constantly darting about. One look and you could tell she was the type with a mind full of schemes.

All in all, aside from his own sworn brothers, these seven other schoolmates from True Martial Academy were all decent people.

At least they weren’t the type of people who would despise you for being weaker than them, or envy you for being stronger.

By dusk, the Martial Soul Squad had smoothly entered the territory of the Cao Kingdom.

This section of the border was a primeval jungle. Although the scenery was exceptionally beautiful, for humans, it was considered a harsh environment.

At the very least, it was impossible for a large army to be stationed here and survive.

Most of the area where the Cao Kingdom bordered the Cangqiong Kingdom was this type of terrain, which in turn provided extremely convenient conditions for that Prince Grand General of the Cao Kingdom.

This kind of place was easy to hide in. They could come and go without a trace, pop out for a sudden attack, and then turn and flee, regardless of success or failure.

In the blink of an eye, they would vanish into the deep mountains and ancient forests. Who could possibly find them?

Who would dare to venture deep inside?

Perhaps the moment you gave chase, you would run into a group of soldiers skilled in this kind of mountain warfare. You wouldn’t even know how you died.

This was the fundamental reason why the Cangqiong Kingdom had found it so difficult to conquer the Cao Kingdom over the years. This jungle was the Cao Kingdom’s natural barrier!

”Alright, everyone make camp here. Be careful not to leave too many traces. It’s highly likely that enemy Reconnoitres are active in this kind of place.”

After giving the orders, Xu Luo called Huangfu Chongzhi aside.

Then, from his ring, Xu Luo took out a large quantity of precious medicinal herbs. Some of them made Huangfu Chongzhi’s eyes go wide with disbelief.

”This... Third Brother, where did you get all this?” Huangfu Chongzhi picked up a stalk of old ginseng that was at least two or three thousand years old and had already taken form. The corner of his mouth twitched as he gave Xu Luo a strange look.

”Heh, Big Brother, don’t ask where I got them. I originally didn’t want to take these out right now, but as you know, the outlook for our mission isn’t optimistic.”

Xu Luo said grimly, ”First, we’re just a group of students who have only trained for a short time. When it comes to this kind of Reconnoitre work, we’re extremely unfamiliar with it, if not completely in the dark. Second, while no one’s strength is weak, you saw it yourself earlier. A Soldier at the level of a Fourth to Fifth Tier Swordsman can easily take down a student who is a Sixth to Seventh Tier Swordsman. They can even take on two or three at once...”

Huangfu Chongzhi nodded and said, ”We haven’t been tempered enough!”

Xu Luo nodded and said, ”Finally, since I’m leading these people on this mission, I hope to bring back the same number of people I left with! So, take these medicinal herbs, refine them into some life-saving Elixirs, and distribute them to everyone. They should come in handy at a critical moment!”

”Third Brother, I’ve noticed you’re becoming more and more thorough in your considerations. You truly are a fine son of a Military Family!” Huangfu Chongzhi said, smiling at Xu Luo.

”Alright, Big Brother, stop teasing me. If you all hadn’t been by my side all these years, encouraging and guiding me, how could I have achieved what I have today?” Xu Luo replied with a smile.

He then walked away to take care of other matters.

Huangfu Chongzhi looked at the bag of medicinal herbs on the ground and couldn’t help but smile, murmuring, ”Third Brother, you’re always full of surprises. Now, even I can’t help but look forward to seeing what kind of waves you, the Seven-Colored Marquis, will stir up in the army this time.”

”Second Brother, these are some Artifact Refining Materials. See what you can do with them. Think you can forge a suitable weapon for everyone? I bet you brought your forging tools with you on this trip, right?” Xu Luo said to a dumbfounded Xu Jie as he poured out a huge pile of various top-grade materials from his ring.

”Third Brother, did you ransack the Royal Treasure Vault?” After a long moment, Xu Jie’s mouth twitched as he mumbled the question.

”Haha, I don’t have that kind of skill,” Xu Luo said with a laugh as he left Xu Jie’s tent.

’That was Master Mao’s doing! Master Mao’s!’ Miaomiao’s voice exploded in Xu Luo’s mind. ’Dammit... bastard! Kid, you gave away all the treasures that I, Master Mao, worked so hard to get! Are you an idiot?! AAAAAAH!’

’Miaomiao, do you even care about the Spiritual Qi in those Spirit Medicines?’

’I don’t... but...’

’Is the Spiritual Qi in those Refining Materials even worthy of your notice?’

’It isn’t... but...’

’Then that settles it. Those Spirit Medicines can be refined into Elixirs to save lives. Those Refining Materials can be forged into weapons to make everyone stronger. Left in our hands, they’re just a bunch of useless things, right?’

Xu Luo cut Miaomiao off twice, saying earnestly, ’Uncle Meow Meow, humans have a saying: ”Even a hero needs a helping hand.” I can’t do anything against the enemy army all by myself.’

’Hmph, you humans are so boring, always fighting and killing all day. It’s utterly dull!’ Although Uncle Meow Meow admitted that Xu Luo had a point, it would never concede so easily.

’Alright, but back when those other Spirit Beasts tried to snatch your Seven-Colored Light, didn’t you also...’

’AAAAAAAH! Don’t mention the Seven-Colored Light, you bastard!’

’Master Mao, can we make a deal?’

’No deal!’

’Star Power?’

’Ugh, fine. I, Master Mao, will reluctantly hear you out...’

’Go and scout a hundred miles around us for me. See if there are any enemy Reconnoitres. You don’t have to engage, just tell me what you find.’

’Hmph. For the sake of the Star Power, I, Master Mao, will reluctantly help you this one time...’

’Also, please stop with the ”AAAAAAAHs” in the future! I’m begging you!’

’I refuse! I, Master Mao, think it feels great! AAAAAAAH!’

Watching the shadow disappear into the jungle like a phantom, a slight smile touched the corners of Xu Luo’s lips.