ad-fusion Chapter 469 - 343: Prince Cui’s Review, The Two Armies Face Off! (Double-Length) (Part 2)
Chapter 469 - 343: Prince Cui’s Review, The Two Armies Face Off! (Double-Length) (Part 2)
The ten Centurions at the rear, too, were brimming with battle spirit, baring their teeth and rubbing their fists fervently.
However, their own Commander had little desire for battle, watching the clash between the two armies with a tranquil heart.
Though Song Changming was not afraid of battle, he was not as fierce as they were.
In less than two hours, this battle had reached its end.
Such a one-sided situation ended quickly, without much tension.
On the mountain peak stands.
Chu Tianquan’s eye twitched slightly, having just witnessed his own army’s defeat, his expression was unpleasant, but he forced himself to say, "Marshal Hu trains his troops well, I concede."
"You flatter me, Marshal Chu," Hu Xuzhi replied calmly from his seat.
Suddenly, a majestic voice drifted from the throne.
"Chu Tianquan, I am somewhat disappointed."
Upon hearing this, Chu Tianquan’s face changed immediately, and he stood up to salute, "It’s my failing, I willingly accept punishment."
"You are fined three years of salary, and one pearl is removed."
Upon hearing this, Chu Tianquan’s heart sank heavily, and he gritted his teeth in acceptance.
"Yes."
No further sound came from the throne, the gleaming gold backrest shielding Prince Cui’s expression from the view of the other Grand Marshals.
Chu Tianquan sat back down, closed his eyes, and fell silent, completely losing his mood.
The fine of three years’ salary didn’t matter much to him; backed by the Chu Family in Core City, he naturally didn’t care about this amount of salary.
But the penalty of removing one pearl was unexpectedly harsh.
Marshals are ranked by nine pearls.
The position among the forty-eight Main Flag Masters was also assessed by this.
One pearl being the lowest, nine pearls the highest.
Originally a three-pearl Marshal, now due to this disappointing performance in parade, he was reduced to a two-pearl Marshal.
It must be said, the loss was considerable, nearly relegating him to the bottom among the forty-eight Main Flag Masters overnight.
If he wasn’t careful in the future and lost the remaining two pearls, his position as a Marshal would be jeopardized!
"It seems this parade was rather stringent."
The other Grand Marshals also became alert, none wished to lose their hard-earned Marshal Pearls just like that.
Some were worrying inwardly, aware of their own army’s combat ability, knowing encountering a formidable opponent meant the scene wouldn’t be pleasant.
Meanwhile, on the plains, the second confrontation had already begun.
The various Grand Marshals now intensely focused on the battle situation, no longer as leisurely and relaxed as before.
The atmosphere grew somewhat tense and solemn.
This battle didn’t have such a vast disparity in military strength; they fought back and forth for a long time, only deciding the outcome by the afternoon.
Song Changming originally thought today it wouldn’t be their turn.
But unexpectedly, for the second battle in the afternoon, the troops hadn’t even finished their dry rations when they were summoned.
"Next battle, 41st Army against Fifth Army!"
"Next battle, 41st Army against Fifth Army!"
"Next battle, 41st Army against Fifth Army!"
...
Above, a dozen large white doves flew over the Military Array, speaking human language, repeating this line.
"Fifth Army?" Song Changming raised his eyebrows, put down his crossed arms.
Beside him, Guan Yuntai drew a sharp breath and widened his eyes slightly, saying, "Really unlucky, to have drawn such a tough nut to crack."
"I heard the Fifth Army is quite strong," Song Changming remarked, glancing at the messenger pigeons flying overhead.
He actually didn’t know much about the Fifth Army, having never interacted with them directly, only having heard some information, knowing this army belongs to the strong ranks, similar in strength to Hu Xuzhi’s Ninth Army from this morning.
"Who’s their Marshal?" Song Changming asked his Deputy General Guan Yuntai.
With a background in the Guan Family, and having been through the military for over a decade, Guan Yuntai knew far more about military affairs than he did.
"Core City, Meng Family, Meng Kunlun," Guan Yuntai shook his head, spreading his hands.
"So it’s him, no wonder," Song Changming murmured.
This Meng Family member was also a renowned strong figure in the military, with remarkable achievements, with few in the Military Department who could compare.
Their Grand Marshal Wang Tianshuang wasn’t bad either, but couldn’t match him in military prestige.
"How do they compare to the Ninth Army?" Feng Xingzhuo asked.
"Hard to say, probably evenly matched," Guan Yuntai said seriously.
Feng Xingzhuo nodded, this at least gave him a rough idea of the opponent’s strength level.
After all, everyone just witnessed the Ninth Army’s performance.
As Guan Yuntai said, it was indeed a tough nut to crack.
The war drums beat, the horns blared, Song Changming raised his black long knife.
The thousand-strong team behind him, faces tightened, began brewing their aura, battle spirit like potent wine, gradually becoming boiling and fervent!
"Fight!"
A thousand voices called out in unison, to boost morale!
The long spears and swords in their hands, like Song Changming’s long knife, were all made of black material, the edges weren’t sharp.
This battle was a drill, not a deadly fight, such weapons were Military Department special issue, limited in power not to injure easily.
Besides these weapons, each person was equipped with a Talisman Stone.
Once activated, the Talisman Stone would form a protective layer on the body surface, when this protective layer shatters, the participant is deemed to be killed in action, must voluntarily leave the battlefield, not linger.
Simply put, this protective layer of the Talisman Stone was like a personal Blood Bar.
In the upcoming clash between the two armies, how to protect their Blood Bar from being emptied became the critical matter.
Without much talk, Song Changming directly led his troops to the central battlefield.
Simultaneously, the military, including eleven other troops led by Xing Tiexin, set out one after another.
On the high-viewing stand.
"Who would have thought the first battle would be Meng Kunlun’s Fifth Army..."
Upon learning this news, Yang Zhen and others’ expressions changed, worried and helpless, their spirits dampened.
"Just hope not to lose too badly, otherwise not only would the Grand Marshal be punished, it won’t be good for us either," Yan Dingjin sighed.
"..." Yang Zhen couldn’t find words to counter.
Despite his confidence in his own army, he wasn’t blindly confident, aware that this battle was dangerous with slim hope.
As Yan Dingjin said, losing less was winning.
Gao Shuxi glanced lightly at Yang Zhen, without saying anything.
The commander’s chairs already had some schadenfreude gazes cast on Wang Tianshuang.
"Tianshuang, are you alright?" A Grand Marshal asked with a smile.
"Perfectly fine," Wang Tianshuang stated expressionlessly.
Not far away, Meng Kunlun didn’t show any reaction, not even opening his eyes, seemingly napping.
Soon, the two armies lined up, standing according to the predetermined Military Array.
Song Changming’s troop formation was on the army’s left wing, tasked with flanking the enemy.
As for the troop led by Xing Tiexin, it was in the army center, responsible for frontal assault.
Song Changming looked up.
Not only were there officials recording the battle on the mountaintop, but above in the sky, there were also hundreds of Prince’s Mansion inspectors supervising the proceedings.
Any breaches of rules or malicious harm would be severely punished upon discovery.
This was somewhat akin to a referee’s role.
Currently, the battlefield plains were barren, the original vegetation destroyed by previous battles.
When it was Song Changming’s turn, the terrain was left with a rugged, sandy environment.
"What to do, feeling a bit nervous."
"What’s there to fear, back in the days I fought the Demons without panic, this isn’t a life-and-death fight, nothing to fear."
"Exactly, newbie, just get it done!"
"The Battle Array is crucial, don’t let it scatter, hold firm, fighting alone only brings defeat faster!"
"The Great King and Grand Marshal above are watching, stay sharp!"
"Anyone slacking today, I’ll crush his balls when we return..."
"..."
As the two armies confronted each other, an overwhelming pressure loomed, combined with the natural killing field atmosphere, causing some recruits to panic.
The veterans on the side, seeing this, used various methods to encourage the new recruits.
At this moment, when all is set aside, only unity can lead to victory!
...