Chapter 52 : The First Day
Morning fog still obstructed the vision when the order arrived, "Form up.”
The soldiers of Han Defu’s private unit gathered near the outer lines of the garrison.
A group of ordinary looking boys moved around the soldiers, they carried swords, shields, spears, bows and other weapons on their backs.
In front of each boy, who carried weapons, there was a boy who carried a paper.
The boy arrived at each soldier and asked, "Name"
"Noor" the soldier replied.
"Do you need a weapon? " The boy asked.
" Yes"
The boy went to the other one carrying weapons, and got a sword, handed it to Guda.
And even for those who said No, the boy inspected the weapons, and handed new ones.
He also handed shields to those who are part of infantry.
There are multiple boys like them working together to armor the soldiers.
When it was Yan's turn, he said "No"
The boy inspected the sword that Ren gifted him, and handed it back to Yan, also provided him a shield.
Soon they completed their work and left the place.
Around him the men tightened straps and adjusted belts.
"I will eat all the breads my wife made after I come back" a fat guy around Yan said.
"Fatty, you should control your hunger, else you will die young" the other person around commented.
"I am not going to die young, I will outlive you" the fatman replied.
"Sure..sure..you are.."
" Ha..ha"
laughter rose and fell in small pockets of conversation. No one truly believed they would return unchanged.
Chen Yu stood a few steps away. His eyes drifted toward Yan once again before quickly looking down.
Soon the unit began to march, They moved through the outer gates and into the open fields beyond Golden Eagle City.
The land stretched wide and uneven.
Dry grass covered much of the plain, though patches of dark soil appeared wherever earlier troops had already passed.
The ground was rough with shallow ridges and soft depressions where rainwater once gathered.
Ahead of them the army of Noir formed a long iron line.
Rows of soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder, wielding their weapons.
Across the wide field stood the army of Shin.
Their banners flickered in the wind like dark wings.
Between the two armies lay empty ground that would soon turn to blood ground.
Yan studied the terrain quietly as they advanced.
The grass was thin.
The soil beneath it had already been loosened by thousands of marching boots.
Chen Yu swallowed as he trembled.
“This… is larger than I imagined.”
Yan observed.
"Attack"
Orders passed through the lines, Luma arrived on the horse beside them "Move at the front"
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Yan and others obeyed, Han Defu’s soldiers pushed toward the forward ranks until they stood near the front of the formation.
One of the men beside Chen Yu muttered under his breath.
“See, they are taking us cannon fodder again”
Chen Yu did not reply, his eyes were fixed on the enemy that was approaching them as soon as the horn sounded.
The war had begun.
The sounds of footsteps echoed, Chen Yu did not move for a moment.
"What are you doing? Attack" Luma shouted at Chen Yu.
"Snap outt of it"
"Attack"
Chen Yu finally held his sword tightly and moved forward.
The distance between the armies vanished quickly.
When they collided the sound was like stone shattering.
Steel struck steel.
"Arrrr"
Men shouted.
Spears splintered.
The ordered lines dissolved into scattered fights across the field, Yan did not rush forward but observed.
The battlefield roared with noise, but beneath it the ground told a quieter story.
Then he moved, he arrived at his right where the fat man Guda was already struggling.
The Shin soldier facing him pressed forward aggressively. Each strike drove Guda a step backward.
With each strike, Guda was being pushed back.
"Clang"
Guda's sword moved away, exposing himself to the the enemy, immediately, the enemy lunged, his blade arrived at Guda.
Yan moved and intercepted the blade and traded two quick strikes with the soldier before him. Their swords clashed loudly.
"Thank you" Guda breathed heavily as he knelt while his fingers rested on his knees and looked at Yan.
Then the Shin soldier lunged again toward Guda.
Guda opened his eyes wide...
But the foot of the enemy came down hard on the churned soil, the earth had been crushed beneath thousands of boots that morning.
And he slipped. His balance faltered for half a breath.
Guda reacted instantly.
His sword thrust forward and pierced through the skull of the enemy.
"Damn, you almost made me die young" Guda said as he pulled the sword out and then he lunged at another enemy.
Meanwhile, Yan stepped away as if repositioning within the chaos.
Further down the line Chen Yu was fighting desperately, his opponent moved faster, pressing forward with sharp strikes.
Chen Yu’s guard began to break.
He parried a blade aimed at his shoulder and forced his opponent to his right side, slightly back of him with a shove, the opponent moved again, he was about to turn, but his foot right at the moment made a mistake.
His foot slid wrong and he slipped.
Chen Yu’s sword cut across his throat bringing mercy to his life as the blood sprayed across the soil.
Chen Yu froze for a moment and then his eyes flicked toward Yan.
Yan was already engaged with another soldier just like another man struggling in the chaos.
The battle continued.
Hours passed beneath the burning sun, the dust clung to several soldiers, but the battle was still continued.
Yan fought and sweated heavily just like others on the surface.
Meanwhile, peculiarly, at this part of the unit, whenever a person from Han Defu Unit is almost about to be defeated.
Somehow the enemies fell or moved wrongly and died by the hands of the unit.
Slowly the soldiers of Han Defu’s unit noticed the oddness, but they still focused on the enemies.
By late afternoon the battlefield had become churned mud and broken grass.
Yan was fighting with another spiritual foundation realm cultivator for more than three hours.
They had clashed many times throughout the day.
Each time the fight ended without resolution.
The cultivator sneered, “Running all day… is that your strength?”
Yan said nothing.
They circled one another among scattered bodies, the enemy's attacks intensified but they were never able to overcome Yan.
Then the horns sounded again, first from Noir then from Shin.
The first day of war was ending.
"Retreat" Luma shouted.
Units began withdrawing from the field.
But some fights had not yet stopped.
Including the one with Yan.
The Shin cultivator lunged forward more aggressively, Yan moved back making a distance between him and the enemy.
The man planted his foot hard to launch another strike, and his legs betrayed him.
His back foot shifted little, his balance broke.
The first second Yan’s blade moved, and the next second the head of the enemy was already on the soil.
Then Yan turned and walked back with the retreating soldiers.
Night settled over the temporary garrison and small fires burned across the camp.
Soldiers gathered around them, eating simple meals from wooden bowls.
Yan and the others from Han Defu’s unit sat near one of the fires.
For a while no one spoke as they watched the flames crackle softly in the darkness.
Finally one of the soldiers broke the silence.
“Did anyone notice something strange today?” one soldier asked.
Another man looked up.
“What strange?”
“The Shin soldiers,” he said slowly. “They kept losing their footing.”
A third soldier nodded.
“I saw that too. One of them slipped right before I stabbed him.”
Guda joined in.
“Same near me. I thought it was mud.”
They spoke quietly, remembering the strange moments scattered throughout the battle.
Moments when the enemy had nearly won and then suddenly faltered.
Chen Yu listened.
The firelight flickered across his face and glanced once toward Yan who was listening to whispers attentively as if it had nothing to do with him.
Chen Yu looked back at the others and said,“Maybe it was just the terrain.”
“The field was soft. Thousands of men ran across it today. Anyone could lose balance.”
Several soldiers nodded.
“That makes sense.”
Chen Yu shrugged slightly.
“Or maybe the mysterious senior cultivator who saved us in the forest is still nearby and helped us.”
Guda laughed.
.
“That would explain our luck.”
“Yes… we were lucky.”
The conversation slowly faded, then one by one the soldiers drifted away to sleep.
And Yan stood and walked away from the fire as Chen Yu watched his back.
"Can I be like him one day?" Chen Yu muttered.