A formal letter of challenge referred to a request that saw two parties agreeing to a fight under a specific set of conditions such as format, time of day, specific troop types, etc.
Formal letters of challenge could not be refused as it would indicate that the refusing party was not confident enough to face the opponent under the proposed conditions. Such cowardice was especially fatal during this era as it would severely impact the morale of one's own soldiers.
As such, from the moment that he was presented with the parchment, Alexandros was in no position to refuse the challenge. Had the challenge been blatantly unfair, Alexandros could've clamoured about it and used it to incite anger within his men and effectively raise morale.
However, the other side's strategist and leader was Feng Tianfei, and she saw no reason to give her opponent any advantage.
The proposed challenge was simple; Come dawn, the cultivators of both sides will participate in a duel as a show of respect and tradition. The duels will take place out in the open for everyone to see and neither side's army will intervene before the duels draw to a natural conclusion. After the duels were over, the two armies could duke it out to decide the final victor of the war for unification.
Concise and clear with no loopholes to exploit and no trickery to be hidden. However, it was exactly this clear challenge that grasped the South Aislan Empire's fatal point.
Alexandros exhaled heavily and put down the letter of challenge. "They know of our weakness and have expertly grasped it."
For all its strengths, there was one aspect in which the South Aislan Empire was clearly lacking; top-level combat power!
In other words, they did not possess enough high-ranked practitioners to fight with the enemy.
A cultivator was the product of many years, even dozens of years, of wealth and effort. They require a great deal of investment and nurture, and even then, the final quality of the product will be dependent on luck and a few other factors.
The South Aislan Empire had a long-standing history and was known for its strength and valour. They possessed their own cultivation schools and unique training methods, born from generations of accumulation and effort. Or at least, that had been the case in the past.
Starting from Alexandros' grandfather's generation, imperial power in the South Aislan Empire took a sharp and tyrannous turn. Alexandros Centinni the Tenth saw these independent cultivation schools as an eyesore and wanted to incorporate all of them under one power; the imperial power.
Driven by his ambitions and greed, a great turmoil occurred. Eventually, owing to the incredible and brutal strength of the empire, he was successful but only partly; only a minority of schools were integrated while a great majority either died during the turmoil or moved away to other continents.
While imperial power in the continent had been consolidated, the price was the near-complete depletion of top-level combat power. The depletion had been so severe that it was still to recover even during the current period.
Moreover, the war for unification waging across the continent also did not help in their recovery and only resulted in further depletion and exhaustion.
Meanwhile, on the other side, it was the Heavenly Spirit Empire; the haven of cultivation. There were also the two Sovereigns' successors; whose abilities were on an entirely different level.
In terms of low and mid-level troops, the South Aislan Empire was a match for the Heavenly Spirit Empire faction. However, they were completely outclassed by top-level combatants.
In short, accepting this challenge would definitely result in the empire's defeat. And with their defeat, the morale of their soldiers would fall and following the fall in morale, the outcome of the final battle became difficult.
None of the people present in the tent were fools. The instant they laid eyes on the contents of the challenge letter, they arrived at the same conclusion as the young emperor.
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"This… Brilliantly done."
"A Sovereign's successor is incredible after all."
One of the younger officers, whose insight wasn't as penetrating as some of the older members, couldn't help but ask. "I don't understand. Can't we simply use those Hielanders to fight in our steed?"
His question immediately earned him the irksome stare of his colleagues. Some of them even looked at him as if they were staring at an alien creature.
Fortunately, General Matthias proved to be kind enough to offer him an explanation. "There is no doubt about the strength and ability of the Hielanders. That said, let me ask you this; do you view them as a person of the empire?"
The young officer immediately understood. What General Matthias meant was that while the Hielanders were in a cooperative relationship with the empire, they weren't the empire's subject at the end of the day. Most of the empire's loyalists did not view them as their fellow kin and brethren either.
Even the fact that no Hielander was invited to his meeting further highlighted their subtle alienation within the empire.
"Perhaps, by having the Hielanders fight in our steed, we might be able to secure a victory. However, by doing so, we are announcing to our men that we need to rely on barbarians and savages to emerge victorious. The effect such a decision can have on men can only be… disastrous."
"This officer thanks Lord General for his teachings," replied the young officer with a bow.
In the face of this difficult issue, the tent quietened as each person fell into ponderous thought. As time slipped by and the day turned into night, the flaps of the tent flipped open once again as another messenger arrived.
"Venerable Emperor, there is a person here to see you. They brought this," he said, handing over a letter to the emperor.
Alexandros received the letter. The moment he took a look at it, his shoulders noticeably relaxed and a smile appeared on his face. After finishing reading the letter, all worries seemed to have disappeared from his face as he cheerfully said, "Invite that guest."
The messenger obeyed with a bow and left the tent. A moment later, a cloaked figure entered the tent.
Seeing this figure, Alexandros rose from his seat and performed a slight bow in greeting. The other officers and advisors were startled by the emperor's respectful greeting and hurriedly followed.
The cloaked figure returned the bow earnestly, lowered the hood covering her head, and coolly said, "Fairy asks Venerable Emperor for an opportunity to participate in the final battle for unification."
"To be recommended by the Imperial Tutor is the highest assurance that *We could ever ask for," replied Alexandros, using polite speech that he hadn't used in a long time. "We will count upon Fairy Baixue."
Baixue nodded her head, satisfied. Inwardly, she was filled with much excitement as the opportunity that she had been desperately searching for had finally arrived; a chance to make herself well-known.
After sending her off and making arrangements for her stay within the camp, Alexandros turned around to address his officials. Just as he was about to begin his speech, he noticed most of them weary empty, dazed expressions on their faces, still staring at the spot where Fairy Baixue had been.
It was only then did he realised that these men had been so enchanted by that woman that they had lost themselves to fantasy for a moment.
Unhappy with their indecent appearance, Alexandros struck the table before him twice to awaken them from their dazed states. He then heavily said, "I shan't tolerate any disrespect toward the Fairy. You will treat her as you will treat a member of the imperial family!"
The faces of the others paled as they immediately nodded their heads in understanding.
Having dealt with that, Alexandros raised his voice once more and continued, "Now, about this issue that we are facing…"
"There is a solution."
---
"We received a reply from the natives," said Tianfei.
"That letter is too long for mere acceptance. What do they want?" asked Yuelong, noticing the densely scribbled contents in her hands.
"It's mostly just useless words and sophistry, however, the point is that they want to change the format. Instead of a duel between all cultivators, they want a duel with only the strongest on both sides."
"Given the unspoken norms, that would be Rank 5 practitioners." He then paused for a second before asking, "Are you going to accept?"
"I have to," said Tianfei. She then glanced at him and explained, "Given the disastrous result that your Mu Household faction has suffered, this is the only remaining opportunity to redeem your reputation a little."
"I didn't know you cared so much about me," Yuelong snidely commented.
"On a personal level, I don't," Tianfei casually replied. "However, from an official perspective, I have to. Regardless of my personal opinion, you ARE my fiancée after all. Your reputation directly affects mine."
"Your performance this time is sure to leave many people back home disappointed. Some snakes will even use this opportunity to question your ability and claw for greater authority. As such, it is imperative that we use this opportunity to redeem some of your disgraces."
Getting up from her seat, Tianfei placed her hands behind her back and started to walk away. "Whoever they send tomorrow, you will fight; and I hope for your sake and mine that you will emerge victorious."
"Failure will not be tolerated." With those parting words, she left the room, leaving Mu Yuelong alone in the darkness.