Martial Cultivator

Autumn stood in place, her eyes snow-white, without pupils, just like the drifting wind and snow at this moment.

Azuresky came to Autumn’s side, first bowing to this princess of the demon race, and then asking softly, ”Your Highness, this time going to the desolate north, is it because some formidable figure from Great Liang has arrived?”

The path of cultivation was that the further one went, the harder it became. That was why Nepenthe cultivators in this world were already rare, and those at the end of Nepenthe were even more few and far between.

Though Autumn had only recently stepped into the end of Nepenthe, the demon race was naturally far stronger than humans. Now that she had reached the end of Nepenthe, she was destined to surpass most human cultivators at the same level. Her personal arrival here could only mean that Great Liang had sent their strongest.

Autumn glanced at Azuresky; the whiteness in her eyes faded, returning to normal.

“Who do you think it might be?”

Autumn looked calmly at the desolate north, as if observing an ordinary place.

Azuresky had never been to the human lands, and he actually did not know much about the situation over there. But the human cultivators were always roughly the same powerhouses, especially those at the end of Nepenthe; there were hardly any.

“Could it be the new Temple Master of the Infatuation Daoist Temple? I heard this person just broke through to the end of Nepenthe. Would they really appear here in the desolate north?”

Although the Infatuation Daoist Temple hadn’t appeared in the desolate north all these years, it was still the leader of the cultivators from the foreign lands, and the demons certainly could not be unaware of it.

Autumn glanced at Azuresky but said nothing.

For a moment, Azuresky didn’t know what to say. Everyone in the Demon Realm knew their princess was famously aloof. If she didn’t want to speak, others really wouldn’t know what to do.

“Your Highness...”

Hesitating for a moment, Azuresky spoke again.

Autumn looked at him calmly and said, “How things were in the past, they are now. Do you think you can change anything? As for other matters, you need not worry.”

It was as if she could know exactly what Azuresky was thinking, speaking directly to voice his concerns.

“If something happens, Your Highness, could you say a few words for me in front of His Majesty...”

Azuresky was very clear about his current situation. He was already at the edge of a cliff, one more step backward, and he would truly fall.

Autumn said calmly, “If your merits can offset your faults, then there is reason to live. If not, what can I say for you?”

Once these words were spoken, Azuresky could not think of anything more to say.

Autumn ignored him and walked forward alone, arriving at the passage they had just opened. She narrowed her eyes. Her trip to the desolate north this time was calculated, she knew that person would definitely come.

She had already made up her mind: as long as she saw that person in the desolate north, she would kill him.

What had failed last time, this time would likely succeed.

After breaking through her realm, Autumn had fully refined those sword qì. Now, her killing power was terrifying, far beyond that of an ordinary cultivator at the end of Nepenthe.

Among the demon lords in the Demon Realm, very few would dare to underestimate this daughter of the Demon Emperor.

Thinking this, Autumn lifted her brow, no longer hesitating, and stepped into the desolate north.

......

......

Long ago, the desolate north did have mountains, but not many. The plains, however, truly stretched endlessly.

This grassland, though always called the desolate north by humans, actually had little to do with wilderness. It had once been the human realm’s largest horse pasture. Human dynasties rose and fell, power shifted, all inseparable from war. Cavalry always held a decisive role in warfare: aside from sieges, in open-field battles, whichever side’s cavalry was stronger could gain a great advantage.

And the most important part of the cavalry was the warhorses.

The previous Great Qi Dynasty in the past rose to power thanks to an invincible cavalry trained on the grasslands of the desolate north, sweeping across the world, unstoppable, and directly taking control of the entire Nine Provinces.

In the subsequent dynastic changes, anyone who wanted to overthrow the previous dynasty first demanded control over that stretch of the desolate northern grasslands.

It wasn’t until later, when the desolate north’s thirty thousand li were invaded by the demon race, that humanity permanently lost this grassland capable of breeding the best warhorses in the world.

Now, the Great Liang frontier army’s cavalry may still have respectable combat strength, but if they still held that stretch of desolate northern grassland, they would likely enjoy several advantages on the battlefield.

However, for Great Liang, the main issue in reclaiming the thirty thousand miles of the desolate north was not merely to rebuild an unparalleled cavalry, it was the shame of having ceded that land to the demon race, a burden so heavy it felt like a mountain pressing down, making people unable to lift their heads.

Unable to straighten their backs.

Before the Northern Frontier Great Wall, a cavalry unit slowly rode out of the city. The numbers were not many; around three thousand. But the riders were mostly weathered veterans, their faces covered in scars.

Generals who had spent years in military life understood one truth: numbers on the battlefield were not always decisive. History records countless examples of smaller forces defeating larger ones. One general, extremely skilled in warfare, had once achieved the glorious record of thirty thousand defeating six hundred thousand.

The key reason that battle succeeded despite being outnumbered was that the general commanded thirty thousand seasoned veterans, while the sixty thousand on the other side were mostly newly raised recruits.

On the battlefield, when experienced generals select their troops, they favor veteran soldiers above all else. Plainly put, one veteran could be worth five new recruits.

However, it was rare for an army to consist entirely of veterans. Usually, it was a mix of old and new.

But this unit of three thousand cavalry, once out of the city, revealed something striking: almost none of the riders on horseback had inexperienced faces.

Three thousand veterans?

Undoubtedly, the commanding general must have arranged this in advance; otherwise, such a situation would have been impossible.

Although these three thousand riders did not speak, their eyes conveyed complicated emotions, and many gazes were fixed on the young commander in the distance.

Their mixed emotions were not because the commander was too young. After all, the northern frontier had many young generals. Gao Xuan, Gao Xuan’s peers, and others had already proven themselves capable of being generals.

What puzzled and even angered them, however, was because their general was... a woman.

In the over two hundred years since the founding of Great Liang, the Northern Frontier Army had seen countless generals and commanders, but never a female leading troops.

This was unprecedented.

If these soldiers weren’t military men, their first reaction upon learning this would probably have been to drop their weapons and walk off.

Even now, they still didn’t believe anyone leaving the Northern Frontier Great Wall this time would come back alive.

The person in front of them was not only a woman, but it was her first time on a battlefield.

Who could feel at ease with that?

The wind and snow hit their faces, flakes falling relentlessly. The woman, clad in ordinary armor, sat expressionless on her horse. Soon, someone rode up beside her.

When he appeared, many of the soldiers’ eyes held newfound respect.

He was also young. In terms of cultivation and combat power, he wasn’t particularly outstanding among the new generation. But in terms of commanding troops in battle, no other young general could compare, even if all of them were stacked together.

Talented leaders are easy to find; gifted commanders are rare.

Gao Xuan was definitely a gifted commander of this generation.

He rode up beside the woman, reined in his horse, glanced toward the distance, then smiled. “First time leading troops. Most would feel nervous or excited, but I don’t think that’s how you feel.”

Xie Nandu said softly, “I will achieve the greatest results at the smallest cost.”

The two statements didn’t exactly match, but Gao Xuan was already used to her temperament. He patiently continued, “We didn’t give you the most crucial position. Firstly, because it’s your first time on the battlefield, and we genuinely don’t feel at ease. Secondly, because we value your life too.”

Xie Nandu said calmly, ”I got it.”

Gao Xuan often felt helpless at her reactions. Many comforting words he could offer seemed to make no difference for her.

“I will do what I am supposed to do.”

Xie Nandu glanced at him, then suddenly smiled. “Afterwards, I might appear elsewhere.”

Gao Xuan paused, then gave a bitter smile. “You still aren’t taking my words seriously?”

“On the battlefield, the main commander’s orders are important. I will not disobey, rest assured.”

Though Xie Nandu had many plans and ideas, she also understood that the Northern Frontier was not the academy, not the Divine Capital, and not the Xie Family. She had a sense of propriety on what she had to do.

Gao Xuan sighed. There were still many things he wanted to say, but now he could not. He just shook his head.

Xie Nandu nudged her horse and slowly rode into the snow. The cavalry behind her followed silently.

Gao Xuan sat high on his horse, watching the riders disappear into the distance. Though the great battle hadn’t truly begun, he knew clearly: from now on, a story belonging to Xie Nandu was beginning to be written here.

And it would definitely be magnificent.

That woman, in his eyes, was never someone who only talked strategy on paper. He had no worries about her commanding troops; his only concern was that Xie Nandu might take a reckless path and seek danger on her own.

“Everyone, don’t think too much. Don’t worry just because she’s a woman. After this battle, you’ll definitely see her in a whole new light.”

Gao Xuan suddenly spoke, shouting to the cavalry, “After the battle, I’ll hold a victory celebration for everyone!”

......

......

At the same time, the young man in black who had entered the Northern Frontier with the hanging saber came across a great demon from the demon race in a fissure.

They exchanged a glance. The great demon narrowed its eyes, sensing the extraordinary aura of the young man in black.

The young man pressed his hand against the saber hilt at his waist and grinned.

Time to kill demons again.

It had been so long since he last did this, he wasn’t even sure if his skills had gotten rusty.