"Die!" While Master Wang was still reeling in shock, the other two seized the moment when another Golden Court expert had been intimidated and attacked without hesitation, striking with all their strength to kill.
By the time Master Wang reacted, the Golden Court expert had already lost his breath.
The surrounding Golden Court soldiers were likewise scattered and slaughtered beneath the charge of the Black Profound Armored Soldiers.
"This is... Killing Intent gathering around his body, manifesting an Army Soul. This is the makings of a General Star!" Master Wu said excitedly as he looked at Jiang Yuan.
Seeing Jiang Yuan weak and listless, he hurriedly pulled a jade bottle from his robes and poured out a crimson pill.
"A Heaven Returning Pill? Old Wu, you're actually willing to use one?"
Old Wu glanced at him. "This is a General Star seed. Do you understand what that means? And he may even be a High-grade General Star!"
Within the army, high cultivation alone did not qualify one to serve as a general.
In this world of supernatural power, an army's strength was not merely a matter of numbers. There was another vast power within it.
Those who commanded that power were known as General Stars.
The General Stars here could be considered cultivators of a special kind of martial art. It was not an entirely separate cultivation system; this world's cultivation system would forever have martial artists at its core.
Those with the potential to become General Stars were few and far between. Every General Star seed was more precious than a Transformation Force expert, while someone like Jiang Yuan—who had instinctively gathered an Army Soul at the Qi and Blood Stage and killed a Transformation Force expert across a realm—was an exceptional seed one could only dream of finding!
"A seedling like this should be sent back to the Imperial Capital and properly nurtured. In the future, he might become a top-tier general."
Old Wu spoke with visible excitement.
At that moment, the third man, who had remained silent at the side all along, looked at Jiang Yuan, who had already fallen into a half-conscious state.
After watching Old Wu feed the pill into Jiang Yuan's mouth and seeing Jiang Yuan's breathing gradually steady, he said, "If he can gather an Army Soul, isn't this a fine opportunity for us?"
"What? You mean..." Old Wang was only just catching on.
"No! I don't agree! Brother Cai, this is an outstanding seed!" Old Wu froze, then hurriedly protested.
"What use is an outstanding seed? Is the army short of such seeds? The matter at Black Dome Valley was personally entrusted by the Imperial Preceptor! It concerns the contest of national destiny between our Great Shang and the northern Golden Court! He is merely a General Star seed." Brother Cai spoke calmly and coldly.
"The Imperial Preceptor has already deployed the Nine Directions Sky Prison Array. Martial artists above the Qi and Blood Stage simply cannot enter!"
"Once the Nine Directions Sky Prison Array is activated, apart from people like us holding Array Tokens, all martial artists above the Qi and Blood Stage are forcibly squeezed out of this space! Only those two Northern Barbarians fighting us remained because they were within the range covered by our Array Tokens and were not expelled."
"However, the Great Barbarian Witch of the Golden Court is said to possess divination techniques capable of observing the workings of Heaven. Though he does not know the Imperial Preceptor's plan, he can still make arrangements. Those two Transformation Force experts were likely his handiwork, and there are probably ambushes waiting at Black Dome Valley as well."
"We must prepare ourselves. This seedling must go straight onto the battlefield. Besides, it is only a precaution. Within the Nine Directions Sky Prison Array, aside from us holders of Array Tokens, the only ones capable of wielding strength beyond the Qi and Blood Stage are High-grade General Star seeds who can gather Killing Intent around their bodies and manifest Army Souls at the Qi and Blood Stage. There may well be High-grade General Star seeds at Black Dome Valley. The three of us might not be their match."
Jiang Yuan slightly opened his eyes to a narrow slit. The pill he had just swallowed was sending warm currents through his body from his stomach, and his body was slowly recovering.
This pill... was something unheard of in the Hundred Cities Domain.
Jiang Yuan calmly and carefully listened to the three men's argument and discussion, not missing a single word.
The surrounding Golden Court army had already been routed. The Black Profound Army occupied the entire battlefield, while the Golden Court troops had retreated.
The Black Profound Army soldiers were now clearing the battlefield.
From time to time, several soldiers who looked like officers came over to question the three Transformation Force experts. Yet upon seeing the identity plaques they produced, their pupils shrank, and they immediately became incomparably respectful.
These three men had taken command in an instant.
From the soldiers around him, Jiang Yuan learned that the army's high-ranking generals had suddenly vanished, and the same seemed to have happened to the Golden Court forces.
It was precisely because the generals and officers had disappeared that the battlefield had descended into utter chaos. Some commanders with Qi and Blood cultivation were leading their troops to fight separately.
Now that three Transformation Force experts from their own side had suddenly appeared, even though these three were not military men, they belonged individually to a certain special military force of the Xuan Shang Empire. Military authority was immediately gathered into their hands.
"Enough! I am from the Supervision Department, directly under the Imperial Preceptor. No matter what, I must carry out the Imperial Preceptor's orders. Old Wu, although you are a Royal Court Enshrinee, you should know the Imperial Preceptor's wisdom as well. This sudden war may be a game of chess between the Imperial Preceptor and the Great Barbarian Witch. We need not think about anything else. We only need to be good chess pieces and strictly carry out the Imperial Preceptor's commands!"
"Besides, there may not even be danger this time. Bringing this boy along is merely a precaution. If there is danger, then once he gets through it, he can soar straight to the clouds. Wouldn't that be wonderful? What success in this world ever comes without danger at its side?"
After the three argued for a long while, Jiang Yuan had sorted several things out in his mind.
Master Cai was from the Supervision Department, which sounded like some special institution. Master Wu belonged to the royal family, while Master Wang was a pure military man.
Master Cai insisted on bringing Jiang Yuan into the mission to guard against unforeseen changes. Master Wu believed there would be no more surprises and wanted Jiang Yuan sent back to preserve such an excellent seed. Master Wang had remained silent throughout, without making the slightest sound.
"Boy, you've listened for so long. What is your decision?" Just as Jiang Yuan was still thinking, an abrupt voice came from beside his ear.
Jiang Yuan did not panic in the slightest. He raised the broken spear in his hand, spat out a mouthful of clotted blood, and the aura throughout his body began to flow smoothly again. Jiang Yuan cupped his fists and said, "This junior is willing to carry out the mission together with you, my lords."
A smile appeared at the corner of Master Cai's mouth. Master Wu also smiled faintly, while Master Wang remained silent.
The three men's reactions made Jiang Yuan pause, before he gave a bitter smile.
It seemed their earlier discussion had all been for Jiang Yuan's benefit, meant to make him understand the situation and then willingly join the mission.
All three were elites dispatched by the empire. How could they possibly argue over Jiang Yuan on the eve of battle?
That performance had merely been to make Jiang Yuan volunteer.
Jiang Yuan had no regrets whatsoever, and his gaze was frank.
Master Wu patted Jiang Yuan on the shoulder. "Once this mission is complete, I will personally recommend you to the Imperial Military Academy. There, you can receive the finest General Star training. After that, you will rise straight to the clouds."
Master Wu's earlier words had indeed contained genuine appreciation for Jiang Yuan's talent.
Jiang Yuan cupped his fists, indicating that he was willing to obey orders.
Seeing Jiang Yuan remain so calm, the three men's appraisal of him rose several notches.
Though it was dangerous, Jiang Yuan was living a simulated life. He could overturn everything and begin again infinitely many times. That was the trump card that kept him utterly unruffled.
"A General Star seed who can gather Killing Intent around his body and manifest an Army Soul at the Qi and Blood Stage appears only once in decades. A General Star seed who can rely on an Army Soul to kill a Transformation Force expert across a realm at the Qi and Blood Stage appears only once in centuries. The Xuan Shang Empire has none, and to my knowledge, neither does the Golden Court. But our opponent is the Great Barbarian Witch, whose methods emerge one after another without end. Boy, you must be prepared."
Jiang Yuan had no memories of this world and knew nothing of the Imperial Preceptor or the Great Barbarian Witch. Yet from the three men's words, he could hear their respect and reverence for the Imperial Preceptor, as well as their wariness toward the Great Barbarian Witch. Though they had no concrete information, they were certain that the Great Barbarian Witch still had another move in reserve.
At this moment, Jiang Yuan somewhat wanted to witness these two peerless figures for himself.
Mounting a warhorse with a brand-new spear in hand, Jiang Yuan glanced at the sea of black-armored troops behind him.
A perfectly ordered, majestic, iron-blooded army—an army formed from a full three thousand Late Qi and Blood Stage martial artists—and all of them were his subordinates.
This was the military authority granted to him by the three Transformation Force experts. Only by relying on an army could a General Star unleash his greatest power.
And the vast Black Profound Army behind him was his strength.
A surge of heroic spirit suddenly rose in Jiang Yuan's heart. He raised his spear high and shouted, "Move out!"
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