Chapter Seventy-Two: Military Orders and Missions

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A month had passed since the 172nd cohort of veterans set out for Shanlong Pass.

News from the front reported that the first defensive counterattack had barely succeeded.

The coalition of the Four Nations paid a price of more than ten thousand soldiers to drive the fiends and ghosts beyond the safety line of the High Wall Fortress. Among those lost, over six hundred were elite soldiers endowed with guardian spirits—almost the total number of elite recruits from two classes at the Military Academy in a year.

Most of the casualties were from the Chiyu Dynasty’s forces, primarily those from the provinces of Zhili, Long, and Ying.

Commander-in-chief Baileywall of the Four Nations Coalition publicly accepted responsibility and announced that the Anglo Empire would send another five thousand reinforcements to help Chiyu through this crisis.

Shanlong Pass marked the beginning of the northern Changyuan and was the gateway to the three provinces of Ying. If the Pass was breached, the fiend army would pour in and invade Pingliao Province directly.

For Zhang Shichang, this was a battle that could not be lost, no matter the cost.

He urgently redeployed garrisons from three provinces, organizing two mixed brigades, each with over ten thousand men, and dispatched them to reinforce Shanlong Pass.

The 173rd class of new recruits at the Military Academy trained even harder, fearful that they too might be sent to the front. Every ounce of extra effort in training might mean a better chance of survival on the battlefield.

“April 21st. My height has reached 1.8 meters, weight up to around eighty-three kilograms, body fat maintained at eight percent. In resistance tests, I can snatch 270 kilograms, squat about 600, my martial arts power has reached the ‘integral force’ realm, and my fusion with ghost-human transformation has broken through to thirteen percent.”

Dormitory.

After training, Du Huaishan sat at his desk, carefully reviewing the day’s summary, especially his physical stats.

His strength could no longer be measured by the usual standards for his height and weight. Across the globe, he was an unrivaled existence.

Indeed.

Du Huaishan’s normal strength had not only surpassed the limits of earthly humans but had left them far behind.

His arm circumference had already exceeded forty centimeters.

In fitness circles, forty centimeters is considered a watershed. Yet Du Huaishan hadn’t trained for aesthetics but for combat effectiveness. And with a body fat rate of eight percent and well-defined muscles, this arm size was pure, functional power.

The next morning.

Du Huaishan was still asleep. His eyeballs twitched beneath his lids as if sensing something silently approaching, bringing with it a delightful fragrance.

This scent—

It wasn’t anyone from Class Eight!

He shot out from under the quilt like a startled tiger. With a metallic clang, he instantly entered a ghost-human state—boom!

A thunderous blast.

Du Huaishan vanished from his spot.

The entire bed was torn to shreds by the force of his movement, cotton fragments swirling through the air.

Shadow Step!

When he reappeared four meters away by the wall, a flash of cold light gleamed—his military knife was already in hand!

Clang!

Just as Du Huaishan prepared to lunge, a streak of pinkish red flashed by.

He suddenly saw none other than Zhou Zhong’ai, her figure alluring, pink eyes and red lips, approaching with a bewitching smile.

The sounds had startled the others in the dorm. Tan Hai and the rest shuddered.

“Who is it? Raising a ruckus this early—can’t a guy get some sleep—my god!”

Yang Anfu scratched his face in irritation, but as he turned, he caught sight of Zhou Zhong’ai standing before Du Huaishan in her thick military coat, pink eyes enchanting, a fluffy white tail swaying, Chang Sui’an at her side.

His face blanched in terror, and he cried out.

“Good morning, Instructor!”

Wu Ming and the others, ignoring the chaos, hurriedly leapt from their beds, standing straight to salute.

Tan Hai, seeing Du Huaishan in his ghost-human state with a knife in hand, dumbly facing Zhou Zhong’ai, was at a loss. “Instructor Zhou, what’s wrong with him?”

Zhou Zhong’ai exhaled, retreating a step. Watching Du Huaishan, whose body was taut and wreathed in a black, pestilent aura, poised like a tiger ready to pounce, she was inwardly shocked.

She had only intended to play a prank, sneaking silently closer.

She hadn’t expected Du Huaishan’s alertness and explosive reaction to be so intense—he entered ghost-human form in an instant, snatched a weapon, and almost attacked before she could react.

Indeed.

Had he already held a weapon and chosen to attack immediately,

She would have been killed on the spot.

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Without Red Marrow Armor, and without activating ghost-human form, their bodies were little stronger than ordinary people—a knife slash would spill their guts just the same.

“Du Huaishan is under the effect of my awakening technique, Allure. He should be experiencing an illusion right now,” Zhou Zhong’ai said.

In Du Huaishan’s eyes, Zhou Zhong’ai had come close, extending a glossy, silk-clad leg to slowly caress him.

“Instructor Zhou, you—?”

“Hush.”

Zhou Zhong’ai pressed a finger to her red lips, blowing a gentle kiss with a flirtatious smile.

Instinct told Du Huaishan that, alluring as she was, Instructor Zhou was not a frivolous woman.

Something was wrong!

He shoved Zhou Zhong’ai away, and as expected, a cold flash streaked past.

On reflex, Du Huaishan slashed with his knife, striking Zhou Zhong’ai’s neck. Blood splattered over him.

“Ah! Du Huaishan, what are you doing?”

At the dormitory door, Xu Yuan gasped, rushing over to support the collapsing Zhou Zhong’ai, pressing her neck and choking back sobs. “Instructor Zhou! Instructor Zhou!”

“Xu Yuan? Listen, it was Instructor Zhou who—wait, why are you in the men’s dorm?”

“Instructor Zhou is dead…”

Xu Yuan was wide-eyed with terror. She quickly stood, grabbing Du Huaishan’s hand. “Never mind that! Du Huaishan, before the Academy finds out, let’s run!”

No, that can’t be right.

Xu Yuan had seen him kill Instructor Zhou yet, without asking for context, immediately chose to stand by him and flee together.

It made no sense.

Moreover,

With Xu Yuan’s temperament, she only lost composure when facing fiends; nothing else shook her like this. And Instructor Zhou was much stronger than him—she couldn’t be killed so easily.

Suddenly, Du Huaishan realized.

It was all an illusion!

He closed his eyes, calming himself. Faintly, he heard Tan Hai’s voice at his ear. When he opened his eyes again, he saw his Class Eight roommates and Zhou Zhong’ai and Chang Sui’an standing in a row.

“Instructor.”

Du Huaishan quickly stood at attention, his right hand holding the military knife upright at his side, his left fingers pressed to his heart in a knife salute.

“Well, well, a knife salute. Not willing to let go of your weapon and not returning to normal—still wary of me, aren’t you?” Zhou Zhong’ai smiled with red lips.

Exposed, Du Huaishan scratched his head in embarrassment, exited his ghost-human state, and sheathed his knife. “I was afraid it was an enemy’s trap. Sorry, Instructor Zhou. I’m too jumpy.”

A flicker of awe flashed through Tan Hai and the others’ eyes.

Who would have thought Instructor Zhou’s Allure technique was so formidable, forcing Huaishan to be so cautious?

“It’s good to be vigilant. The rest of you should learn from Du Huaishan. If this had been an enemy attack or a fiend incursion, you’d all be dead by now!” Chang Sui’an’s voice was stern and earnest. “Du Huaishan, get dressed and come to logistics with us.”

“Yes, sir!”

Du Huaishan quickly grabbed his uniform.

“Huaishan, what did you see in Zhou Jie’s Allure? Was it a bunch of gorgeous women throwing themselves at you?”

After Chang Sui’an and Zhou Zhong’ai left, Wu Ming sidled over.

“No, it’s more subtle. It manipulates your emotions, traps you in an illusion, and leaves you no time to think.”

“Huaishan, why do you think they came for you so early?”

Du Huaishan shook his head.

It wasn’t until the morning’s training session that, seeing Du Huaishan in his thick military uniform, shoulder bearing the rank of second lieutenant, a bronze star and a medal on his chest, that Tan Hai and the others realized the instructors’ early visit was to issue him his dress uniform.

“My god, Du Huaishan looks amazing!”

“Promoted to second lieutenant at sixteen? A limitless future—he might become a regimental commander someday!”

“Short-sighted! At least a major general, minimum!”

“I wish I could be that cool one day…”

…

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Du Huaishan stood nervously beside Chang Sui’an.

He couldn’t understand why they had to personally take him to logistics so early just for a dress uniform, make him change on the spot, and display him to the elite trainees.

“Du Huaishan is the only new recruit among you to be promoted to second lieutenant,” Chang Sui’an finally spoke as the excited discussion continued. “See the star and the medal on his chest? They signify that Du Huaishan slew a fiend and completed a third-class merit. These are all recorded in the honor rolls of the Ying Army.”

“It is not only an honor. It can also be exchanged for rewards—a residence, a large sum of silver, energy potions, weapons and armor, fiend soul spirits—you name it!”

The crowd burst into exclamations.

Even Du Huaishan raised his eyebrows.

Unexpected bonuses?

He’d thought the second lieutenant promotion was the reward; he hadn’t expected there to be more.

Thinking it over,

He’d been promoted for rooting out the Society of Light infiltrator, recovering the Ying Army’s fiend-force training data, and providing several sets of flight instructor aids.

The bronze star and medal were for slaying the insect-headed fiend and rescuing trainees and instructors without gas supplies.

“These honors are available to all of you!” Zhou Zhong’ai added at the right moment. “From today, your internal training at the Academy is over. You will now officially begin live combat mission training.”

Combat?

The trainees exchanged glances.

Chang Sui’an took out a large notice and a stack of sheets. “These are incident reports submitted to the Academy by the military administration of the three provinces. We’ve classified them by difficulty and noted the required number of teams. Each team chooses freely; assignments are first-come, first-served. Once you reach your target site, veteran soldiers will guide you.”

“Remember, you are soldiers. Once you accept a mission, you cannot abandon or shrink from it. Any deserters will be expelled and court-martialed. Now, each team send a representative to collect an incident sheet.”

After all teams had received their assignments,

Only one was left. Chang Sui’an handed it to Du Huaishan, his fiery red eyes lingering on him. “Be prudent in all you do. Never act rashly.”

Du Huaishan knew he referred to the Qingshi Mountain incident, and nodded. “Don’t worry, Instructor Chang, I will obey your teachings.”

“Return to your team.”

“Yes, sir!”

Back in formation, Tan Hai, Li Anqi, and the others crowded around. “Du Huaishan, let us see the mission slip!”

The other teams were just as eager.

“Huaishan, everyone’s excited about the combat missions this year, but it’s much earlier than usual. On New Year’s Eve, the summer veterans said winter recruits don’t start combat training until summer. We should be waiting until then!” Tan Hai had chatted at length with Chen Fatty and the others that night.

“The situation has changed,” Du Huaishan narrowed his eyes. “The counteroffensive in the north has tied up too many of the Ying Army’s forces. Redeployments from local garrisons mean less manpower for regional patrols. They must be overwhelmed with incidents and can’t spare enough people, so they’re handing these messes to us.”

“On one hand, it relieves the pressure on the local garrisons; on the other, it accelerates our hands-on combat experience, shortens the time to maturity, and gets us into battle faster.”

“Huaishan, which mission are you guys going to take?” Wu Ming asked, passing by.

“I think this one’s good—fiend incursion outside East Yan Town. Two fiends, both under disaster level fifteen, one training team needed, four-day deadline, reward is a third-class merit medal,” Li Anqi said, waving the incident slip. “Yan Town is a fief town under Fenghou City, close to the garrison city—not far, not hard, and the reward is good: a medal and two stars.”

“That one’s probably already taken,” Tan Hai grumbled, nodding toward the instructors.

Sure enough, just as they’d gotten the slips, a crowd of trainees was already clustered around Chang Sui’an and Zhou Zhong’ai, eager to submit their choices.

One red circle after another was drawn on the notice board, marking the tasks that had already been claimed.

“Ah? Then we have to hurry!” Li Anqi’s eyes darted over the incident sheets. “Du Huaishan, how about this one? Fiend incursion on the trading route outside Tieshan City—four fiends, two at disaster level fourteen, two at level twenty, three teams needed, one-week deadline, reward: three third-class merit medals.”

“Tieshan City is just north of Pingliao, bordering my family’s Jiwu to the south. I went hunting there with my father once, so I know the way. We can team up and call in Tingyu’s squad.”

Wu Ming was interested in this mission.

But the next moment, Zhou Zhong’ai marked it with a red circle.

“Damn! Snatched away again! Du Huaishan, say something!”