With Yuelong joining the battle, the frontline was once again reinvigorated with a fresh injection of morale. The soldiers, having run out of bullets and arrows, resorted to picking up swords and blades to hack away at the giants that threatened to destroy them.
Yuelong was a talented general and his experiences in the South Aislan Continent had only served to sharpen his talent. He possessed the innate ability to rouse morale, identify weak points, and make instant split-second decisions. With his return to the frontlines, the originally faltering defence instantly solidified.
Unlike the previous times, Yuelong did not rush forward to personally engage the enemy. He had to be mindful of his stamina and internal energy consumption, minimizing the exhaustion of both to the minimum. As such, Yuelong only personally acted when the situation required him to act. That said, every time that he did act, it was with thunderous impact and lightning efficiency.
The Scarlet Demons did not have any obvious weaknesses for the Mu Household soldiers to exploit. Their only fault, if it could even be called that, was that their hulking size made it possible for more enemies to assault them at the same time. However, their armour forged from abyssal metals rendered them immune to most such attacks.
Soon, the light of the sun faded away as evening shifted to night. Yuelong finally received a moment of respite as the enemy slowed their offence; for all their strengths, the Scarlet Demons, fortunately, did not possess night vision. One could only imagine the horror if they did.
With both sides seriously impaired in sight, the battle stalled; though, this was only the case for the normal soldiers.
Cultivators possessed enhanced physiques, and one of the advantages of having such a physique was that their vision was far greater than the average person's. And while it was not true night vision, it proved sufficient to engage in night-time battles.
Night-time was precisely the stage for the cultivators of both sides to participate in the battle. The previously resting and recuperating practitioners of the Mu Household arrived and took centre stage; similar movements also occurred on the enemy side.
The genetically modified Scarlet Demons were NOT cultivators; they couldn't be. The price of attaining such an abnormally strong physique was being robbed of the chance to walk the Paths.
As such, the cultivators on the Scarlet Demon Army's side more or less looked normal.
Knowing that his time had come, Yuelong also walked forward. He took a glimpse into his Core and noted that he had less than half of his internal energy remaining. While it wasn't ideal, it would make do for tonight.
Amongst all factions engaged in the war for unification upon this continent, there was a tacit understanding and agreement that cultivators exceeding Rank 5 would not directly participate in battles.
As such, the highest 'useable' asset that both sides possessed was a practitioner of the Fifth Rank. Yuelong, who possessed great inheritance and power, was a notable anomaly as he had the power to challenge a Rank 5 cultivator as a Rank 4. Alas, although he had defeated and outright killed a few Rank 5 cultivators with his amazing skills and strength, it would be foolish to engage a superior practitioner of a higher rank in direct, fair combat.
Hence, Yuelong stuck to fighting against similarly ranked cultivators, leaving the enemy Rank 5 to a similar cultivator on his side.
A whooshing sound of an arrow being released into the air marked the start of the nightly battle. Having chosen a target, Yuelong wasted no time in exchanging pleasantries and went straight for the kill.
Yuelong cultivated the [Sword Path] as an auxiliary path; more specifically, he cultivated the [Quick Draw Sword Path] that originated from the Eastern Archipelagos. This Path sought the 'One Strike, One Kill' principle.
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As he closed the distance, Yuelong kept his sword sheath. His left hand loosely hung at his side while his right hand rested atop the handle of the sheathed sword. This current stance, coupled with his roughish handsomeness, gave him the appearance of a wandering, free-spirited devil.
The opposite cultivator wielded an axe and greeted Yuelong with a mighty swing. He knew of the fearsome strength of his opponent and therefore pulled all stops. A bloody red haze accompanied the axe's swing and a bright crimson crescent was drawn upon the dark canvas of the night.
Yuelong remained casual and loose. Just as the bloody axe was about to touch his right shoulder, a soft 'chi-chink' sound echoed. Yuelong casually leaned to the right and the bloody axe harmlessly passed him by the side.
The enemy cultivator continued forward, his charging momentum causing him to arrive a few steps behind Yuelong. He was unclear about what that sudden sound was or how he had missed his attack on the young heir but did not stay on such thoughts. A battle of this level demanded the greatest concentration from him.
He spun around and slashed out with his axe, another crimson stroke being added to the night… only, the enemy cultivator found himself unable to move.
In his confusion, he looked down to gaze at his legs, only to find the world in his eyes tumble upside-down. His detached head fell on the ground and rolled away, taking a final glance at his stiff, headless body standing in the distance.
He had died.
After killing that enemy cultivator, Yuelong inhaled deeply. His sword-drawing arm was under deep stress as it bulged with soreness and bruises. The skin of his arm had turned completely red, resembling the shell of a boiled lobster. White steam rose from within the pores of his skin with even a few of his minute hairs suffering from singes.
Being used to this, Yuelong was calm. He rotated the sword sheath and had it appear under his left arm, inverting his previous stance.
Right arm handing loosely in the side and left arm resting atop the sword's handle, Yuelong continued like before; seeking another opponent.
---
The night soon passed and neither side managed to claim overwhelming victory over the other. The cultivators of the Mu Household were well-equipped and strong, however, their opponents in the Scarlet Demon Army weren't any lesser either. With both sides losing two dozen men during the night, the situation for the Mu Household grew ever dimmer.
Yuelong returned to his tent. His body was a steamy, filthy mess. Both of his arms showed signs of abuse, evidence of his overuse of his sword technique.
His Core had been depleted once again and would require at least six hours to be refilled; six precious hours that his army did not have.
The Scarlet Demons' assault had begun with the crack of dawn and the loyal soldiers of the Mu Household rushed to desperately hold them off once again. They all knew, however, that defeat was not far off.
Just as Yuelong was about to enter meditative recovery, he heard the screech of a bugle tear through the air. Shocked at the suddenness of this sound, he noted that three short screeches followed the initial sound.
In that instant, Yuelong's face paled. He immediately rushed out of his tent and screamed at the top of his lungs. "EVERYONE! SEEK COVER IMMEDIATELY!!"
His echoes resounded throughout the mountains and five breaths later, the reason for his sudden command appeared.
---
"Fire indiscriminately?" asked the heroic-looking general, helplessness apparent on his face. "My Lady, what if we hit our allies?"
"They were sufficiently warned," replied Tianfei, unbothered.
"Warned? But we did nothing except sound the horn—"
Feng Tianfei interrupted him and said, "That was the warning. Do not fret, general. Yuelong will understand."
She then looked at the distant mountain ravaged by blood and war and said, "Tell the archers to fire."
The heroic-looking general despondently hung his head and instructed the archers to fire. At his order, the first light of dawn was instantly overcome by a cloud of darkness. Innumerable black-coloured arrows rose from the earth, gained the blessings of heaven, and indiscriminately fell to slaughter the men gathered atop the mountain.
Seeing this scene of slaughter, an excited light gleamed within the depths of Feng Tianfei's eyes.
---
"EVERYONE! SEEK COVER IMMEDIATELY!!"
As someone present on the battlefield, Blazing Steel, War Commander of the 14th Division of the Scarlet Demon Army, also heard Mu Yuelong's urgent warning. His sharp mind instantly turned and knew that the warning had to do something with the sudden horn that screamed a few instant ago.
The Mu Household's soldiers did not question their leader's decision and immediately dove to hide under the nearest covert; this be trees, rocks, shrubs, etc.
Seeing this scene, Blazing Steel decided that the odds of this sudden horn and warning being a trick of the enemy were infinitely low and therefore roared a similar instruction. Unfortunately, what this younger general had overlooked was that the Scarlet Demons were unlike the enemy soldiers.
With a height and size that rivalled the trees which surrounded them, just where would they seek cover?
Before any elaborate defences could be made, the arrows shot by the Heavenly Spirit Empire faction's Archers Division arrived. And the battle instantly took a turn for worse…
… for the Scarlet Demon Army.