Chapter 95: Two Armies Collide They stood facing the rear, their backs to the refugees scrambling up the slope. But then, one man, sprinting past Officer Xiao, suddenly lunged. From his waist came the glint of a dagger, driving straight for the cavalry officer’s exposed neck. Even armored head to toe, Officer Xiao’s throat was bare. The sky was already very dark. The attack came without warning, and the gap between them was barely above a meter, meaning that it was too close for his guards to intervene. From his position just behind and to the side of Officer Xiao, He Lingchuan caught the flicker of steel in the dark and knew instantly what was coming. He sprang forward, but it was already too late. He could only watch as a brilliant saber light cleaved through the night, and the attacker’s head separated cleanly from his shoulders. Strictly speaking, the slash swept up from low on the left, carving through from rib to opposite shoulder in a single stroke. When the body hit the mud, it was already in two halves, blood flooding out in a hot torrent. He Lingchuan froze. The strike’s blinding speed, its ruthless decisiveness, brought back that same shiver he had felt in the Panlong Illusion Realm, when he had stood opposite Nian Songyu. For all his diligence, he had never once touched upon this kind of saber intent. Officer Xiao lowered his weapon, droplets of blood pattering from the tip into the mud. Rain coursed over his face, mingling with the splatter there, but he made no move to wipe it away. Why bother? There would be more killing before long. “Sir...” One of the guards’ voices was thick with guilt. A raised hand cut him off. “Stay alert.” 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂 “Great swordsmanship,” He Lingchuan murmured. “Heaven helps those who save themselves; always keep eyes on the back of your head.” Officer Xiao’s glance flicked over him. “Not bad, yourself.” “I’m still too slow,” He Lingchuan admitted, ashamed. The assassin had fallen to the cavalry officer alone. The clever bastard had switched to a refugee’s rags to slip in and go for the enemy’s head. Had it worked, the defense here would have crumbled in short order. One look at the cavalry officer’s smooth, practiced execution was enough to know how dangerous this battlefield truly was. “You’re a civilian, not a soldier.” In the next flash of lightning, a hundred-odd riders were storming toward them from the distance. Officer Xiao kept his eyes on them while saying to the group, “Perform well, and you’ll be taken into the city garrison, with which you will receive first pick of rations and housing.” In wartime, the strongest always ate first. No one argued. An idea sparked in He Lingchuan’s mind, and he asked, “Could I join the Gale Army?” Every recruit turned to look at the commander. Clearly, they all wanted to know. A faint smile curved Officer Xiao’s mouth. “Nice try, but you’re not quite there yet.” Between Panlong City’s garrison and the Gale Army that roamed the wasteland, there was a gulf as deep as a canyon. Disappointment rippled through the group until another Gale Army rider said, “What’s wrong with garrison duty? A steady wall under your feet. If the Gale Army’s moving, it’s because things have turned dangerous.” His tone carried quiet pride for all his words. One of the new men asked, “Will someone teach us how to fight?” “Of course.” Officer Xiao added, “Every ninety days, we will carry out drills together. If you’re lucky, you might even see the Red General teach in person.” The Red General! The name alone was enough to stiffen spines and kindle eyes. Spinning his saber in an easy flourish, Officer Xiao said, “My swordsmanship was once personally corrected by the Red General himself.” He Lingchuan could hear the pride in his tone. Just from receiving a few pointers from the Red General, you actually managed to cultivate such lethal swordsmanship? Afterward, the hundred-odd fast riders came thundering in from the opposite side. Officer Xiao did not raise his blade. Instead, he ordered the gap in the wagon barricade widened. They were allies. The newcomers charged up the slope, dismounted, and immediately began helping close the gap again, arranging the wagons into three staggered lines, then slotting themselves into position with practiced precision. The moment they arrived, the air reeked of blood. On nearly every man’s armor, He Lingchuan could see smears of red and half-closed wounds. The officer of the group that just arrived clasped hands with Officer Xiao, who grinned. “You actually made it back alive. It looks like those Baling dogs didn’t get their fill today!” The officer, still catching his breath, shot back, “If you’re thinking of snatching all the credit, forget it! The seven hundred chasing us are just a detachment under Zuo Qin.” “Any civilians left behind?” “Those still breathing should have all made it back. We lost six brothers.” The unspoken truth in that first sentence sent a chill through the gut. On the battlefield, civilians were nothing but expendable. He Lingchuan had witnessed the season of mad sand, seen wrathful souls surging out of the pool, most of them still wearing civilian garb. Refugees who died along the road would simply be left to rot in the wasteland, never counted in any tally. The Gale Army was long inured to such bleak realities; a few jokes and the next instant, the enemy was on them, flooding into the gorge. The drumbeat of hooves shook the ground, dense ranks in bright armor. He Lingchuan glanced back. Even with the reinforcements, they had barely a hundred men, barely a seventh of the enemy’s numbers. But of the Baling force, only two hundred were cavalry; the rest were foot soldiers, rushing in with lowered pikes, looking to vault the barricade. Horses could not pass, but men could jump. As they closed, Officer Xiao’s hand flicked upward, and arrows poured down from the slope and the trees. Since the allies’ arrival, he had repositioned more men with bows, bringing the number of archers to eleven. Eleven archers, sixteen arrows loosed in that instant—some carried crossbows and could shoot twice in quick succession. Thanks to Commandery Administrator Sun’s crates, there were more than enough arrows and bolts to spend freely. But against seven hundred armored troops, the volley was too thin to be truly suppressive. In that moment, He Lingchuan could not help but long for Panlong City’s artillery. Those could truly shred a charging line in one shot. Officer Xiao’s roar split the rain, “Go! Leave none alive!” The Gale Army bellowed in unison, surging forward. A pale yellow light burst from each of them. Officer Xiao had activated his mandate token, lending every man in his command an edge. Here, each man had to take on at least seven foes, so every bit of advantage shaved down the burden. Across the field, the Baling troops gleamed with pale green light, proof that their officer’s rank was below Officer Xiao’s, or that their morale lagged behind. However, a mandate token was only a multiplier. In other words, if your base strength were zero, then no matter how many times it was multiplied, it would still be zero. And this, He Lingchuan understood as well as any soldier. History was full of battles proving that tokens could turn the tide, but never win the war alone. The Baling soldiers did not falter before the barricade; they came on without fear. The two forces slammed together in a crash of steel and rain. Officer Xiao stood right behind the foremost line of wagons, meeting the first wave head-on. If the Baling army was a wall of pikes, he was the unyielding bedrock, holding the line without budging an inch. At his side, He Lingchuan brought his saber down on the first enemy to vault the barricade. It was his first taste of a mandate token’s magic. The most immediate sensation was raw power in his limbs, his movements sharper and faster. A single lunging step carried him farther than he had expected, spring-loaded, enough to startle even himself.