Li An walked slowly toward Xia.

The poor woman had tense shoulders and a look of defeat in her eyes.

"Was this all planned by you?" Xia asked with a sigh.

Li An nodded at her. "Yes, everything until now was just a test. I needed to see if you were the person I was looking for as a Corporal."

"A test?" Xia's eyes widened. "The time limit you gave me, killing your entire squad, using the ambush as a trap... this was all for a test?"

"Yes and no."

Li An smiled faintly. "I had to give you a time limit to know when you would act, so that was not part of the test. However, you passed with flying colors!"

"What do you mean I passed?" Xia frowned. "You had me in the palm of your hand from the beginning."

"That's natural. You were going against me after all. You passed because you never let go of your goal, no matter what happened. I want someone who can give up everything to achieve her goals," Li An said.

Xia was someone competent, and that's what Li An treasured.

"Speaking about competent, I wonder who that squad leader was." Li An's eyes narrowed. The young man was actually smart enough to retreat in that situation. She missed the opportunity to grab the heads of two strong cultivators above her realm.

"But the enemy corporal was tough. I hit her with my full-strength swing and she only received a deep gash. I better be careful next time we meet."

Xia's legs gave way, and she fell to her knees, her head tilted back as she cried out to the heavens, "Is this my fate? To fail my revenge?"

Li An shook her head.

"There's no such thing as fate. Only our own actions. Even luck can be accounted for. The Gods can do nothing for you, only you can."

Xia looked up at Li An with a dull gaze. "What are you saying?"

"Join me." Li An's stare pierced daggers into her soul. "Not the Skyshadow Sect, not the Black Lotus Cult, but my side. I can guarantee you'll get to kill many people from both sides."

Xia's face hardened. "How?"

"Watch."

As Xia watched, Li An's body began to draw in pure spiritual energy from the surroundings like a black hole. Her cultivation surged rapidly, and within five minutes, she broke through to the third stage of the Spirit realm effortlessly.

Xia gasped. "How did you do that?"

Even if she was on the border between second stage and third stage, it would take at least half a day to finish the breakthrough. Her cultivation speed was impossible.

Li An replied by extending her arm toward her. "Join me, Xia. Together, we'll make our own path."

Xia hesitated. She could hear the voices of soldiers approaching from afar after noticing the sounds of the explosions.

Her lips twitched and she took Li An's hand with a new resolve in her gaze.

Li An helped Xia to her feet. "Good. Now, let's get started. There's much to be done."

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·

Li An stood calmly as the soldiers of the cult approached her. They were not amateurs, but battle-hardened veterans who wouldn't hesitate to kill her at the minimal sign of resistance. Luckily, she had no plans to resist.

The elite soldiers were mounted on demonic horses, creatures with black, smoking manes and eyes that glowed an eerie red. The horses snorted and pawed at the ground, their breath coming out in plumes of dark vapor.

They investigated the battlefield for a while before one of the soldiers glared at her. "You're to come with us to the Major General's tent," he barked.

Li An agreed, her expression unreadable. She glanced at Xia and gave her a slight nod before mounting one of the spare demonic horses. Some elite soldiers stayed behind, keeping watch over the area, while she rode with the others.

The ride to the Major General's tent took less than fifteen minutes.

The black armored soldiers guarding the tent stood rigid. Muscles tensed beneath their uniforms, and their hands instinctively moved closer to their weapons. At the group's arrival, the soldiers snapped to attention.

"Code!" the one on the right shouted.

"Demonic Heart."

"It's not a very good code," Li An mused to herself.

Inside, the atmosphere was even more charged. Military officers sat around a large obsidian table with auras of at least peak Core Formation realm. Their jaws were clenched, and their eyes narrowed, fingers tapping impatiently on the table. The room felt suffocatingly tense.

At the head of the table sat the War Demon, Major General of the Fifth Area in the Crimson War.

Li An could feel his piercing yellow eyes on her ever since she stepped inside. It was a cold and threatening glare.

"Looks like the War Demon wants to play a game." Li An met his stare with a raised eyebrow, her lips curling into a slight smile.

A flicker of interest flashed in the Major General's eyes, but he didn't break the gaze.

One of the officers, his face flushed with anger, pounded the table. "These dogs think they can just ambush our squads and get away with it? This is unacceptable!"

Another thin officer leaned forward, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the table. "Corporal Li, explain yourself! What happened in the encampment?"

"Such uncouth swine. Can they not see the amusing game unfolding before them? Were I their leader, I would decree their tongues be torn from their mouths." Li An remained silent, her smile never faltering.

She could see the amusement growing in his eyes, but he remained impassive.

Rather than envisioning themselves surrounded by the islands called 'officers', it was more apt to see the War Demon and herself as inhabitants of the same isolated island, with their hearts residing on an island within that island. The insignificant voices of the officers were mere echoes, drowned by the vast, endless ocean between.

"Have you nothing to say for yourself?" An officer with a scar across his cheek demanded, his voice rising in anger. "Maybe you are the traitor! We demand answers!"

"Argh, their clamor is unbearable. Enou—"

"Enough." The single word from the Major General silenced the room. He leaned forward, his eyes locked onto Li An. "You have one chance to explain yourself, Corporal Li. Choose your words wisely."

Li An chuckled. "What is there to explain? I killed them all."

The officer with the scar furrowed his brow.

"We need to understand the situation from the beginning to judge what to do with you."

Li An rolled her eyes. "If you insist."

The officer turned red with fury and wanted to choke her to death, but a casual glance from the War Demon was enough to turn his face back to normal.

"That night, we were all preparing a meal together in the camp, just like a familial gathering. However, Sergeant Feng refused to partake in the food he helped prepare, deeming it fit only for peasants." Li An closed her eyes and shrugged her shoulders. "I couldn't help but fantasize about cracking his skull open and using it to flavor the stew. Alas, he was my superior, and such thoughts had to remain idle fantasies."

"You do realize that voicing such thoughts is tantamount to treason, correct?" The scar-faced officer asked with a dumbfounded face. "Superiors in war must be respected at all times."

"Let me speak, old man," Li An chided him. "I found his behavior suspicious, so I decided not to eat the stew. Instead, I took some spiritual bombs from an inheritance I found and planted them in the privates' tents. This way, I—"

"Wait, wait! Why go to such lengths? Wouldn't it have been simpler to inform your squadmates of your suspicions?" he interjected.

Li An cast him a disdainful glance. "Old man, why should I concern myself with the lives of those fools? Do I look like a charity owner? Telling them the truth would have provided me no benefit. Kindly refrain from adopting such a self-righteous tone. You are a demonic cultivator, right?"

The scar-faced officer felt the weight of intense gazes upon him and shrank back in his chair. He had somehow transitioned from interrogator to interrogated.

"Stop glaring at Colonel Zhou. He is not a spy." The Major General turned to Li An with an amused smile. "And you, cease sowing discord among our troops. Just continue your story."

Li An nodded with a respectful bow.

"As I was saying, I hid the spiritual bombs and spent the night observing Sergeant Feng. Around midnight, I witnessed him entering Private Xia's tent and stealing her dagger," she sobbed dramatically and wiped her dry cheek. "Both Private Wang and Private Hu were murdered before they could react, so I left the encampment while he was dragging their corpses."

The War Demon blinked slowly while resting his head on his right fist.

"Your story is nice and all, yet it fails to explain why the enemies died before our soldiers arrived," he said.

"They probably told him through mind communication," Li An thought. She was already expecting it, though.

"Yes, about that. As the enemies surrounded Private Xia, who had managed to wake up, I detonated the spiritual bombs, blinding them all in an instant. In their confusion, I dispatched them with my scythe."

Colonel Zhou eyed her with suspicion. "You are only a third-stage Spirit cultivator. That's hard to believe."

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"It is understandable that one of your limited intellect would find it so." Li An chuckled.

"You insolent wench! I will kill you for your impudence!"

"You are too loud, Colonel Zhou," the Major General commented with a frown.

Zhou slammed his fist on the table. "But Major General, she—"

"You are too loud."

Before Zhou could utter another word, his body was flung across the room, cleaving the obsidian table in half and crashing against the floor with a resounding thud.

"He is still alive... I think," the War Demon said softly. "But, Corporal Li, there are inconsistencies in your account. How is it that Private Xia remains unscathed while the others were left with their eyes burned to gaping holes?"

Li An tilted her head to the side. "Luck?"

"Luck?" The Major General's eyes widened before he burst into laughter. "Luck, is it? How amusing. Yes, perhaps it is luck, hahahah!"

Li An joined in his laughter, her voice ringing out amidst the stunned silence of the officers. It felt as though they were mere spectators in a private exchange between the two.

And then the laughter stopped and the War Demon's aura erupted in the tent, forcing everyone inside to kneel in order to not have their legs crushed. He was displaying his full cultivation of low Nascent Soul realm.

He glared down at Li An with a stern face.

"Answer this one final question, and I shall permit you to leave here alive."

Li An managed to lift her neck with some difficulty. The smile... had not disappeared.

The War Demon frowned. "Why was Sergeant Feng killed rather than captured? He was found without his eyes, so I am sure you could have restrained him."

Li An executed a practiced bow even while kneeling. "Major General, it seems there has been a misunderstanding. I was simply weeding out the weak. Isn't it unpleasant to let a weakling order you around? This is the very essence of our cult."

The War Demon's gaze bore into hers, searching for any sign of fear or remorse. Finding none, he leaned back in his chair and his aura dissipated.

"Good," the War Demon declared, his expression a curious blend of satisfaction and annoyance. "Here are my orders. Promote Corporal Li to Sergeant Li. As for Private Xia, it shall be at the new sergeant's discretion whether she remains a private or ascends to the rank of corporal..."

"Perfect," Li An cheered inwardly. "Everything has gone according to plan—"

"...Additionally, Sergeant Li is now my personal disciple."

Li An's smile died for the first time since the meeting started. "I am unworthy, Major General. Please reconsider—"

"This is an order." The War Demon's voice was cold.

Li An's heart raced. "This is bad." She knew she would die if she dared to question the Major General again. "I underestimated him."

The Major General had no intention of mentoring her; this was a calculated move to exert control. It was a threat disguised as a blessing.

By making her his disciple, the War Demon ensured that any betrayal by Li An would grant him the right to hunt her down, bypassing the constraints of war laws. In the Forsaken Region, no one would risk defending a demonic cultivator marked by a Nascent Soul master's death grudge.

"I won a promotion, but I lost part of my freedom." Li An gritted her teeth as she left the tent. "This is not favorable for me. My plans must change."

· · ────── ·𖥸· ────── · ·

In the ensuing weeks, the weather gradually warmed, announcing the advent of summer. The Red Plains became adorned with a blanket of red roses, prompting Li An to ponder the biological concepts behind the crimson hue of these fields.

There had been no news from the unnamed central region of Mi Wu Island. However, Li An found this unsurprising.

Firstly, the three sects aware of the scythe concealed within her ring had no access to the northern forest, a domain controlled by the Gentle Sword Sect. Even if they did, they would never collaborate with a demonic cult, nor would they divulge any information about the scythe, given they are the weaker party.

Secondly, the Gentle Sword Sect remained oblivious to the existence of the scythe. They believed the other sects to be responsible for the loss of many disciples, including Li An. Consequently, they had no reason to search for her.

Thus, Li An knew she had ample time before any information about her reached the organizations within the Forsaken Region.

"Let us make good use of this time," she mused.

Rising from a fallen tree trunk, Li An made her way toward the large, black tent of her squad. Soldiers bustled around her while running and chatting, the encampment sprawling sideways far beyond where the eye could see.

"Though I have been promoted, my squad is no longer independent. The Major General has placed us under the command of a higher-ranking officer," Li An thought with a frown. She loathed the prospect of obeying orders from someone she knew nothing about.

Entering the military tent of squad 112, she found the ten new recruits engrossed in a game of poker, using the gold coins they had earned as farmers and villagers. Corporal Xia was leaning against a wooden pole, her gaze blank and detached as she observed the recruits.

The moment they noticed Li An, a bulky man with short brown hair tumbled from his chair, while the others hastily stood and saluted, ignoring their fallen comrade.

"We greet the sergeant!"

Li An's eyes fell on the burly man. "Private Lu, why are you still on the floor?"

"I'm perfectly fine, Sergeant Li! In fact, I've never felt better!" Lu scrambled to his feet and saluted, beads of sweat trickling down his forehead. He recalled their first meeting when he had dared to provoke her, mistaking her petite stature and youthful appearance for weakness. She had quickly showed her strength by effortlessly swinging him around like a ragdoll, leaving craters in the ground.

"Good. It would be a shame if you fell on the battlefield and died before I had the chance to deal with you myself," Li An remarked coldly. "You are not permitted to die unless you take at least two enemies with you."

The recruits smiled. Even though the sergeant had been very harsh with them in the last few weeks, it was clear she didn't want them to die. Perhaps she wasn't as terrible as they had initially thought—

"If you have time to play poker, then you should let me join."

Their smiles withered. Twenty minutes later, Li An had pocketed all their gold coins, leaving them penniless.

Li An's gaze was stern as she addressed them. "If you have time for poker, you have time for cultivation." She sneered. "Weaklings..."

The recruits dared not utter a word, though their unshed tears spoke volumes.

Their sergeant was a demon.

"Xia," Li An continued, "I instructed you to ensure these idiots don't freeze when faced with a blade. How is that progressing?"

Xia glanced at the frozen recruits. "I can't guarantee anything, but I will drive a sword up their arses if they dare to freeze in fear."

The soldiers began to shiver, one of them even protectively placing a hand over her rear.

"That's good enough," Li An said, waving her hand dismissively. "There are limits to what can be achieved without true battlefield experience. Perhaps we will—"

Toooooot!

The blaring sound of horns echoed across the plains.

The recruits turned paler than ghosts. They all knew the meaning of that sound.

The voice of the Major General thundered through the camp.

"Blow the horns! Beat the war drums! Make the Skyshadow dogs tremble at the mere mention of our names! War is upon us."

Li An was the first to react. She seized her resting green scythe from the weapon rack at the edge of the tent.

Seeing her laid-back attitude, the recruits steeled their faces. How could a young girl have more courage than them?

One of the younger soldiers grabbed his spear from the rack. "Haha, I was growing weary of waiting for the righteous scum to show. Now I can finally avenge my sister."

Although he said so, his hands were trembling and his smile was a bit shaky.

No one called him out.

"Stop acting like chickens or you will die before even arriving at the battlefield," Li An threatened with a glare.

The recruits chuckled nervously and quickened their pace. It was reassuring to have such a formidable sergeant, especially one who was the personal disciple of the War Demon.

"I don't understand why you look so fragile," Li An said, tilting her head with a wide grin. "We are not marching to the battlefield to just fight. We are going to get rich!"

Their eyes brightened.

"Ten merit points for a Foundation cultivator, one hundred for a Spirit cultivator, and a thousand for a Core Formation cultivator. Who here is eager to hunt a Core Formation dog today?" Li An teased.

The recruits let out their bloodthirsty grins. Raised in the domain of a demonic cult, the promise of riches stirred their hearts more than any fame or honor.

They exited the tent as a group, heading towards the front of the encampment where the army would assemble. As one of the newest squads, Li An's unit was tasked with securing the left flank of the army alongside forty-nine other squads.

She found a short, stout woman with blonde hair and blue eyes shouting orders on the way. "Lieutenant Fang should know more about the situation." She was Li An's direct superior, and she had access to more information than her.

"I might as well make use of my newly acquired authority."

"Greetings, Lieutenant Fang." Li An saluted respectfully. "Might I inquire about the current status of the enemy?"

Fang knew she was the personal disciple of the War Demon and adopted a softer tone. "Ordinarily, I am not permitted to disclose such information, but I shall make an exception for you, Sergeant Li. An army of ten thousand is advancing upon our southern frontlines. Our scouts estimate their arrival in approximately ten minutes."

"Ten minutes, uhn?" Li An was still unfamiliar with how cultivators waged war, but it was normal that the pace was faster. After all, even first-stage Foundation cultivators could traverse distances five to ten times faster than mortals.

She bowed gracefully toward Lieutenant Fang. "I shall not forget this favor."

They exchanged knowing smiles before parting ways. While her new status as the War Demon's disciple had placed certain constraints upon her freedom, Li An was determined to leverage the War Demon's name to her advantage.

Xia moved closer to her. "What do you think about this battle?" Her expression remained as lifeless as ever.

Li An heard the underlying question: How many can we kill? Xia only cared about killing as many people as possible, to punish those who instigated the war and shattered her reason for living.

Most people would become empty shells when their purpose was stripped away, but there were exceptions. Li An had been one, and Xia was another. They were the kind of abominations who, instead of succumbing to despair, consumed it and spread its poison throughout the world to quench their own thirst.

"The Black Lotus Cult is going to suffer greatly," she replied.

Xia lifted an eyebrow. "Are you sure? We have twelve thousand soldiers in our ranks."

Li An shook her head, a sigh escaping her lips. Xia's lack of military experience was evident. While their numbers were greater, the majority were just farmers and villagers. Adding insult to injury, around sixty percent of the army were fully-fledged demonic cultivators—individuals who lacked loyalty, coordination, and any semblance of war training or strategy.

"Numbers alone do not guarantee victory," Li An explained. "Especially in the realm of cultivators. You must shed that villager mentality if you don't want to die a quick death. A single General would be enough to annihilate our entire army."

The only reason such powerful figures remained inactive was due to the immense casualties and destruction that neither the righteous sect nor the demonic cult can afford.

Xia nodded and fell back to her spot behind Li An. Her question had been answered.

"The Major General will likely choose to meet attack with attack," Li An thought. "Demonic cultivators are not suited to holding a defensive line. A defensive strategy would lead to a resounding defeat."

Her eyes reflected the light from the afternoon sun. "This is a good opportunity to show my value to the higher-ranking officers."

She was far from satisfied with the mere rank of Sergeant. There were many above her, and her next goal was to become a Lieutenant, responsible for a platoon of four squads.

The Major General had no qualms about promoting her because he understood that only Core Formation cultivators could attain the rank of Lieutenant. In this world, cultivation realm outweighed feats when determining a soldier's rank.

She scoffed in her mind. "It's a shame that he doesn't know about my artificial meridian system. As long as I obtain enough resources through killing and plundering, the Core Formation realm is within my grasp. In fact, even peak Core formation is easy to reach!"

Li An did not fear the war; rather, she feared the absence of it.

She turned to face the recruits. Everyone could feel the different atmosphere around their sergeant. One glance from her was enough to make them feel as if a thousand ants were crawling all over their skin.

Xia straightened her posture and stepped beside Li An. "The Sergeant will now make a speech."

Li An cast a glance at the approaching mass of enemies and smiled.

"Listen well, soldiers."

Her voice carried an enigmatic charisma that made even the other soldiers stop in their tracks to listen.

"Do not hesitate. Show no mercy. If there is an enemy, crush them. If there is an obstacle, obliterate it. Think not of honor or reputation; we are beyond such petty concerns."

Everyone who heard her felt their blood boil. They were demonic cultivators, and they reveled in it! Let the world deem them evil—they embraced their true nature with pride.

Li An placed her hands behind her back and lifted her chin.

"If peace is a shackle that binds our potential, then war is the blade that cuts us free," she continued. "Without war, we stagnate. Without death, we weaken. Without the thrill of the hunt, we lose our edge. Look around you—the world is ripe with resources, treasures waiting to be claimed, and power ready to be grasped. But these cannot be obtained through idle means. They must be taken, wrested from the hands of the weak, the unworthy."

Her voice swelled with the rising murderous intent of the soldiers.

"WHO ARE THE STRONG? WHO ARE THE WORTHY?"

Nearly five hundred soldiers struck their weapons against one another or against the ground, a cacophony calling for the blood and death they would face as members of the demonic faction.

Their voices merged into a single, thunderous roar, for they were the ones who defied the heavens!

"WE ARE THE STRONG! WE ARE THE WORTHY!"

Li An began cackling like madness incarnate. "Do not suppress your desires, my soldiers. Let them roar like a raging inferno. Your hunger for power, your thirst for revenge, your lust for domination—these are not sins, but the truest expressions of your strength."

Whether privates, corporals, sergeants, or even lieutenants, all were captivated by her words. She spoke the truth of their hearts, and that was all that mattered.

"Let your rage guide your hand and your hatred sharpen your blade. When you strike, do so with the fury of a storm, leaving nothing but destruction in your wake. The world condemns us for our ferocity, but it is they who are weak, cowering behind their laws and morals. We are the wolves in a world of sheep, and it is our right to hunt, to kill, and to claim our territory." Li An spread her arms wide, her eyes gleaming with joy as she welcomed the horizon filled with enemies.

The demons cheered. Their laughter and chants took over the entire left flank of the army.

They leered at the righteous forces with greed drowning their thoughts.

Li An pointed towards the opposite side and chuckled.

"Behold, my soldiers, the sheep approach for the slaughter."