Rear Guard

"Catch up to them. Leave none alive."

The Barbarians roared as they charged toward the fleeing Battle Soldier Camp. More than a dozen Shadow Wolves gave off chilling auras, relentlessly tracking the Battle Soldier Camp's trail.

"This is bad, the Barbarian army has caught up!"

"Damn it, what are we supposed to do now?"

"What do we do? Think of something, quick!"

"..."

As the Barbarian army drew closer and closer, everyone trembled in fear, their hearts burning with anxiety.

If the Barbarians caught them, their chances of survival would be slim.

Wang Xuanshan looked back at the pursuing Barbarian army, his face dark. His gaze shifted, and he quickly made a decision.

"Zhao Changlin, Feng Long, immediately lead your men and cover the rear."

At this critical moment of life and death, Wang Xuanshan chose to sacrifice Zhao Changlin and Feng Long for his own safety.

Zhao Changlin and Feng Long froze upon hearing this, their eyes filled with disbelief.

Feng Long especially had never imagined that Wang Xuanshan would sacrifice him.

Just moments ago, he had forced the Conscripts' Camp to cover the rear. Now the same fate had fallen upon him. It all seemed so laughable.

"Yes, sir."

Zhao Changlin accepted the order in a low voice, jolting Feng Long out of his daze.

Military orders were as unyielding as mountains. Neither of them could disobey.

The imperial court treated its soldiers generously, but it was also exceedingly strict.

If a soldier defied military orders on the battlefield, not only would he be punished, but his family would also be implicated.

Even for their families' sake, neither of them dared disobey the order.

That way, even if they died in battle, their families could continue enjoying their privileges.

"Follow me!"

Zhao Changlin roared sharply. With the resolve to die, he led his hundred-man unit to stop fleeing.

Li Xuancang was among them, his expression incomparably grim.

"Facing the Barbarians, staying behind to cover the rear is nothing but a dead end."

Li Xuancang calmly assessed the situation. Whether in numbers or strength, they were inferior to the Barbarians.

Even if two hundred men fought to the death without retreating, they couldn't possibly stop the Barbarians.

He wanted to kill enemies, earn merit, and rise through the ranks quickly, but he didn't want to throw his life away.

"What? They're making us cover the rear? Isn't that sending us to our deaths?"

The soldiers of the two hundred-man units turned pale, unable to accept the order.

Seeing the crowd in uproar, with some even preparing to flee regardless of the consequences, Zhao Changlin shouted loudly.

"You are all Battle Soldiers registered by the imperial court. Your families enjoy privileges. If you dare defy military orders, not only will you die, but your families will be implicated as well."

The moment those words fell, the clamorous crowd fell silent.

The soldiers who had wanted to flee immediately abandoned the idea. They knew very well what awaited deserters.

For their families, even if they had to die, they had to die on the battlefield.

"Fight the Barbarians!"

"At worst, I'll die. Eighteen years from now, I'll still be a good man!"

"Fight the Barbarians to the death! Killing one breaks even, killing two is blood profit!"

"..."

Knowing they were doomed to die, the men no longer felt fear. They were ready to risk their lives against the enemy.

After they died in battle, their families would still receive compensation. This was the last thing they could do for them.

"Half an hour. We only need to hold for half an hour, then we can withdraw on our own."

Zhao Changlin shouted loudly. They still had a sliver of hope.

But trying to hold out for half an hour while surrounded and slaughtered by over a thousand Barbarians—how could that be easy?

"Hahaha, kill them all!"

With the resolve to die, the men formed a simple defensive formation as the Barbarian army bore down upon them.

Bang!

Splurt!

Agh!

"..."

The two sides clashed at close quarters, and after a single exchange, the Human Race forces nearly collapsed.

"Hold the line! All of you, hold the line!"

Feng Long and Zhao Changlin shouted themselves hoarse as they desperately slaughtered enemies.

A trace of hope remained in their eyes. They hoped they could last half an hour and find a chance to break out.

"Agh! I'll fight you to the death!"

"Barbarian scum, die!"

"Let's go to hell together!"

"..."

Driven into a corner, the Human Race army erupted with combat strength far beyond anything they had shown before.

They no longer hesitated or feared. Their eyes were bloodshot, and they wanted only to drag enemies down with them.

Splurt!

A Human Race soldier had just chopped off a Barbarian's head when another Barbarian's spear pierced through his chest.

"Agh!"

The Human Race soldier endured the searing pain. Ignoring the blood pouring from his wound, he used every last ounce of strength to turn around and slash his blade across the Barbarian soldier's face.

"Agh!"

The Barbarian soldier screamed miserably and fell to the ground, twitching.

"Haha... Hahaha..."

At the sight, the Human Race soldier laughed as blood spilled from his mouth. Wearing a satisfied smile, he fell into a pool of blood.

"Don't let them stall us. Leave half our men behind to eliminate them. The rest, follow me and pursue. We must leave none of the Lakeside Station army alive."

The Barbarians intended to wipe them out completely, leaving not even chickens or dogs alive. They immediately left half their men behind to surround and kill the two hundred-man units, while the rest bypassed the rear guard and continued pursuing Wang Xuanshan.

Though the Barbarians split their forces, the pressure on the men did not lessen.

Enemies were everywhere in all directions. The men were surrounded so tightly that not even water could leak through.

"Hold on, everyone! We still have a chance to leave alive."

Seeing the Barbarians divide their troops, Zhao Changlin and Feng Long regained hope and encouraged everyone to endure.

Li Xuancang was also fighting fiercely. In that short time, more than a dozen Barbarians had already died by his hand.

"Xuancang, stay by my side."

Zhao Changlin shouted, telling Li Xuancang to remain close to him.

Li Xuancang was powerful and utterly loyal to him. He was one of Zhao Changlin's greatest supports on the battlefield. Li Xuancang would still be needed when they broke out later, so Zhao Changlin wanted to keep him at his side.

"Yes, sir."

Li Xuancang had no objection. Staying beside Zhao Changlin gave him a greater chance of surviving.

"Die!"

The Barbarian cultivators charged toward Zhao Changlin and the others. To capture bandits, one first captured their king—they wanted to kill their leaders.

As soon as Zhao Changlin died, the Human Race army would collapse instantly.

"This is bad!"

Seeing more than a dozen Barbarian cultivators charging at them, Zhao Changlin's heart sank to the bottom.

The two leaders were at the Late Body Tempering Stage. Even with everything he had, he could only deal with two of them. If the other Body Tempering Realm cultivators rushed him together, he wouldn't be able to withstand them.

The Squad Leaders and Five-Man Leaders of the hundred-man units were also held back by other Barbarians and couldn't come to his aid.

"Xuancang, I'll hold off those two Late Body Tempering Stage cultivators. You stop the others."

With matters having reached this point, Zhao Changlin could only place his hopes on Li Xuancang.

Holding back two Late Body Tempering Stage cultivators was already Zhao Changlin's limit. Whether they could stop the others and buy enough time to withdraw depended entirely on Li Xuancang.

Li Xuancang looked at the twelve murderous Barbarian cultivators charging toward him. His expression turned cold, but his heart was unwavering.

At this moment, he had no other choice. If he stopped the enemy, he had hope of living. If he failed, he would die.

"Yes, sir!"

Li Xuancang shouted, sweeping his spear sideways. The spearhead flashed with deadly cold light as it pointed at the charging Barbarians.

Kill!

Zhao Changlin let out a piercing cry and took the initiative to charge the two Late Body Tempering Stage Barbarians.

Boom!

Li Xuancang followed close behind, thrusting his spear forward and taking on all twelve Barbarian cultivators.

"Courting death!"

"Arrogant!"

"You overestimate yourself!"

"..."

Seeing Li Xuancang actually charge at them alone, the Barbarians flew into a rage. In their eyes, this was outright provocation.

"Kill him! Hack him into minced meat!"

The Barbarians erupted with thunderous fury, monstrous rage blazing in their eyes as they sought to tear Li Xuancang into ten thousand pieces.