Chapter 275
**Chapter 297: The Qingmu Camp, the True Spirit of the Yazi**
Creak, creak—
The horse-drawn carriage rolled along the streets of Qingmu City, heading straight for the Qingmu Camp, which was established within the city walls to guard against sudden incidents.
As they traveled, armored soldiers became increasingly common, marching in formation.
“Hiss...”
Little Li sat in the carriage, deep in thought.
“Li brother, are you thinking about how to deal with my military formation later? Feeling nervous, huh?”
Zhong Zhenyue sat confidently, his hands resting on his knees, grinning widely.
In front of him lay a military formation diagram.
After all, Li brother had been looking serious and preoccupied throughout the journey, so he felt the need to adopt a more earnest attitude.
“Well, it’s not just about the military formation.”
“Oh? What else could make you so tense, Li brother?”
Zhong Zhenyue raised an eyebrow, genuinely curious.
“The Ice... Cold Fairy you’ve met.”
“Ah, of course.”
“She looked at me this morning with that kind of gaze.”
Li Mo squinted his eyes, lowering his gaze while lifting his chin, mimicking the expression of the Ice Fairy, capturing about a third of her essence.
The gaze of the Ice Fairy, Little Li edition.jpg.
“Hiss...”
Zhong Zhenyue leaned back, spilling hot tea all over himself.
“Based on your experience with women, what do you think it means?”
“But I don’t have any experience in that area, Li brother.”
“.....”
Recalling the time Zhong Zhenyue was completely taken in by a seductive woman, who didn’t even need to use any enchanting martial arts...
Well, it was pointless to ask him.
This guy probably had nothing but ‘battle, excitement’ on his mind, just like the big brothers from the Gangdou Sect.
Before long, they arrived at the Qingmu Camp. As they waited for the heavy gates to open, the two stepped down to walk, and they could see soldiers engaged in various drills.
Some were new recruits, mostly at the Blood Qi stage, practicing basic thrusts.
Others, at the peak of the Blood Qi stage, were bare-chested, grappling with each other like grizzly bears.
Sweat, muscles, real men in one-on-one combat...
The most elite were the archers, all at least at the Inner Breath stage.
Among them, many had features distinct from the people of Dayu, likely recruited from the southern regions.
“How many troops do we have in the Qingmu Camp? Is that something you can share?” Li Mo asked, gazing at the vast camp.
“Why don’t you take a guess, Li brother?”
“Three hundred thousand?”
Li Mo had seen on TV that armies often numbered in the hundreds of thousands, and given the size of the camp before him, he felt he was being conservative.
“Haha, it’s actually eighty thousand.”
Zhong Zhenyue entered the barracks, his demeanor gaining a bit of authority: “Three hundred thousand would be more fitting for Nanguan City. In the past, Nanguan truly had a million-strong army.”
Li Mo nodded.
He had heard his father boast while drunk that there used to be no Qingmu City; Nanguan was the only barrier Dayu had in the southern regions.
Back then, the beasts of disaster were far more ferocious than today, and Nanguan had faced the threat of collapse multiple times.
“By the way, the Lu Yi you asked me to find hasn’t turned up yet; it’ll take at least two or three days.”
“That’s quite fast. If every garrison were as disciplined as the Qingmu Camp, it would be great.”
“Even the king is powerless.”
Zhong Zhenyue understood Li Mo’s meaning and, after a moment of silence, said:
“The emperor doesn’t value Nanguan as he once did; perhaps it’s no longer necessary.”
Li Mo seemed to grasp something, and after a moment of silence, he smiled:
“This means the southern regions aren’t so easy to conquer anymore, which is a good thing.”
“True enough. Please, Li brother.” Zhong Zhenyue also smiled as they approached his personal guard’s camp.
The spacious training ground was filled with a squad of heavily armored soldiers, numbering around three to four hundred, practicing military formations, each exuding a fierce aura and high spirits.
Commanding them was a striking female general, one hand holding a precious bow and the other a command flag.
“The personal guards are all battle-hardened elites, with an extraordinary killing intent.”
Li Mo felt a stir in his heart.
This was somewhat similar to the aura he sensed from the True Spirit of the Yazi.
“Before they finish their drills, how about I spar with you, Li brother?”
Zhong Zhenyue was eager to try.
“Sure, why not?” Li Mo drew his Chixiao Sword.
It had been a while since he had wielded a sword, and after spending a night with the True Spirit of the Yazi, the swordsman Li Mo felt a bit restless.
The Yazi!
Zhong Zhenyue was drenched in sweat, propping himself up with his spear, his eyes shining.
He had lost, but he had made significant progress.
“So, can nicknames be changed?”
“Of course! What’s your nickname, Li brother?”
“Hmm, the Solitary Odd Sword!”
Li Mo emphasized seriously.
As they were talking, Li Mo suddenly perked up, his ears twitching, but he didn’t move.
Bang—
An arrow struck the ground just three inches from his foot, its fletching quivering violently.
The female general standing on the command platform called out:
“An eleventh-ranked genius of the Qianlong List can’t even dodge a cold arrow? Is it true that you made it onto the list just because of...”
“Wife-boosting?”
Li Mo: “.....?”
Little Li’s face darkened instantly.
Why bring that up now?!
Zhong Zhenyue glanced at Li brother’s sleeve, saw he was still holding the hammer, and breathed a sigh of relief. Then, he sternly reprimanded:
“Zhong Ling, how could Li brother not dodge your arrow? He just doesn’t want to argue with you. Since he’s still holding a sword, hurry up and apologize.”
Judging by her age, the female general named Zhong Ling was likely Zhong Zhenyue’s sister.
“Hmph.”
Zhong Ling shot a glare at Zhong Zhenyue, then turned her gaze to Li Mo:
“Aren’t you challenging my Zhong family’s military formation? I’ll be in command, and Zhenyue will lead the charge. Can the Qianlong Tianjiao dare to accept?”
“Exactly what I intended.”
Li Mo sheathed his Chixiao Sword.
He had planned to use the military’s killing intent to hone himself and better accommodate the True Spirit of the Yazi.
Zhong Zhenyue: “!”
Why do I have to be the vanguard?
I never said that!
Zhong Ling, though usually a bit headstrong, wasn’t reckless; what was going on with her today?
“By the way, how about we add a wager?”
“Sure, if you lose, you’ll have to serve as a cook for the personal guards for a few days.”
Zhong Ling seemed to have thought this through in advance.
“No problem.”
“If you lose, you can never call me the Wife-Boosting Battle Spirit again!”
Li Mo took off his shirt, revealing a physique like a leopard.
His powerful muscles glistened with a dark sheen, radiating a strong aura of martial prowess.
Behind him, a fierce beastly shadow faintly emerged.
The Yazi!
Zhong Zhenyue: “.....”
Is it too late to back out now?
I’m really anxious about this.
---
**Chapter 299: The True Spirit Submits, the Power of a Thousand Men!**
In the central military tent.
Qu Sheng was wrapped in a long robe, his somewhat peculiar attire didn’t seem out of place on him; it exuded both the elegance of a scholar and the weight of authority without anger.
Looking at the recently reported military supply numbers, his brow furrowed into a deep frown.
The generals and aides in the tent remained silent, their expressions filled with indignation.
“Report! The Waye tribe is showing unusual movements; it seems they are converging towards Qingmu City!”
A messenger rushed into the tent.
After delivering the news from the scouts, the sound of a table being slammed echoed in the tent.
“The military funds have decreased again.”
“Hmph, as if that’s not enough! Who knows how many pests have been at work transporting it from the imperial capital to Nanguan, and how much is left by the time it reaches us!”
“The supplies and funds for the eighty thousand troops in Qingmu City already have a portion coming from the prince’s own pocket.”
“What does the emperor mean? Does he want us to abandon Qingmu City?”
“Qingmu City is the barrier of Nanguan. Abandoning Qingmu today means abandoning Nanguan tomorrow. We might as well all lay down our arms and return to the fields!”
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