Instructor Fu Lei of Yellow Springs Training Camp scanned the recruits like a predator sizing up helpless lambs, delivering a cruel truth in a mocking tone.
His words landed like a boulder crashing into a still lake, stirring an uproar.
"Instructor! What do you mean by 'losing our recruit status'?"
Someone worked up the courage to ask.
"You came here as volunteers for the Great Expansion Movement, but the battlefield doesn't need cannon fodder sent to their deaths."
Fu Lei clasped his hands behind his back. His powerful muscles strained against his camouflage uniform, radiating explosive strength.
"If you fail to pass the training camp's assessment, you won't be sent to the battlefield on missions.
"But White Poplar Fortress City has limited supplies, and can only prioritize frontline soldiers."
Fu Lei strode among the ranks, built like a giant bear from the frozen north.
His Life Force radiated without restraint, surging in wave after wave that left them breathless.
"Simply put, White Poplar doesn't care about the feelings of useless trash. Got it?
"If Yellow Springs Training Camp washes you out, you'll have to make a living with your own two hands. You could work in logistics, picking up trash after each advance, or serve as a camp follower or maintenance worker."
Every word from Instructor Fu Lei was like a sharp blade, stabbing deep into their hearts and leaving their nerves taut with pressure.
"My nickname is 'Butcher.' I used to be an instructor at Yellow Springs Training Camp, and I loved sending rookies to the battlefield so they could experience death firsthand and temper their will.
"Of course, that violated Eastern Xia Military Department regulations and the principles of humanitarianism, so I kept getting demoted, from two gold branches and two stars to one silver branch and one