Desire

Every conscript on the drill ground went utterly wild, their eyes blazing with yearning for military merit.

Seeing their reaction, Wang Xuanshan's lips curled slightly, while the formal Battle Soldiers wore meaningful sneers.

The Barbarians were brutal. Even among formal Battle Soldiers, few could kill three Barbarians.

These men dreamed of soaring to the heavens in a single step. It was nothing but wishful thinking.

If someone truly could kill three Barbarians, it would prove their strength on the battlefield and show they were qualified to join the Battle Soldiers.

It would both encourage the conscripts to fight desperately without regard for their lives and select capable elites to replenish the Battle Soldiers, who had suffered grievous losses. The best of both worlds.

Li Xuancang's eyes shone brightly. To others, this promise was a temptation; to him, it was a ladder he had to seize.

He had been away from home for two years. His parents were old, his younger sister still young, and his whole family was trapped in the countryside, tormented daily by taxes and corvée labor.

As long as he became a formal Battle Soldier, he would have a salary, military registration, and the army's protection. With a single document, he could protect his family from harsh taxes and spare them from the harassment of rogue soldiers and bandits.

Killing three Barbarians seemed harsh, but it was his only way out right now.

Wang Tianshan's gaze was sharp as he swept it over the trembling crowd and barked sternly.

"Fear death, and you'll only die faster!

"Take up your weapons, defend the camp, kill Barbarians, earn military merit, collect your pay, and enjoy military authority."

"Either survive bathed in blood and fight for a chance to rise above others."

"Or wait cowardly for death, become dry bones in the wilderness, and feed demons and beasts."

"Everyone, rush to the city walls and take up positions at once. The Barbarians are coming. Prepare to fight to the death."

The order was issued, cold and merciless.

The conscripts were forced onto the walls, picking up battered blades and spears to face the Barbarian army about to bear down upon them.

But this time was different from before. Hope had appeared in their eyes, and they fantasized about killing enemies and earning merit.

The cold wind howled, and black clouds pressed down upon the city.

A dense Barbarian army appeared at the end of their sight, a vast black mass radiating towering Baleful Intent.

Li Xuancang stood at the battlements, staring fixedly at the surging enemy.

"Woo, woooooo..."

The horns wailed mournfully across the wilderness. It was the signal for the Barbarians to attack.

On the horizon, the Barbarian army surged forward like a black tide, their beast-hide armor glinting coldly beneath the dim sky.

Their heavy footsteps pounded the earth as they roared and charged toward the walls of Lakeside Station.

The Barbarians fought ferocious beasts all year round. Every one of them was powerfully built and savage by nature, their combat strength far surpassing that of the Great Flame Dynasty's troops.

On the ruined city walls, the conscripts' faces were deathly pale. Their hands shook without stop around their weapons, and many of their legs trembled so badly they could barely stand.

Even though they had survived quite a few battles, most of them still feared the Barbarians deeply.

Forget these conscripts—even most of the formal Battle Soldiers were afraid.

Faced with the Barbarians' impending all-out assault, the fear in their hearts had long overwhelmed their desire for military merit and official military registration.

The hot blood from earlier had been doused by a basin of cold water, leaving behind nothing but boundless fear.

"Hold the line! Anyone who dares retreat will be executed on the spot."

Wang Tianshan stood high atop the city wall with his blade in hand, his eyes icy.

Behind him stood his personal guards with blades drawn. If any soldier dared shrink back even half a step, their blades would fall without hesitation.

Military discipline in chaotic times had never known mercy. There was only iron-blooded suppression.

Li Xuancang stood beside the battlements, gripping that broken iron spear tightly.

The wound on his shoulder throbbed faintly from the force, yet there wasn't a trace of fear in his eyes. Instead, they brimmed with intense longing.

The daily 1% increase in strength had long since made his physique surpass these ordinary conscripts, far exceeding the person he had been yesterday.

Kill three Barbarians, enter the official military rolls, receive a salary, and exempt his family from corvée labor.

That thought was branded into his heart, supporting him as he faced the mountain of corpses and sea of blood before him.

"Charge! Kill all these Great Yan pigs!"

The Barbarian army arrived in an instant. Ladders were set against the walls, and fierce Barbarian soldiers scrambled up them madly, curved blades flashing in their hands.

"Loose arrows! Loose them now!"

The crude earthen walls couldn't stop the Barbarians' charge. Everyone hurriedly fired arrows to keep them from approaching.

"Whoosh, whoosh-whoosh-whoosh..."

A rain of arrows poured down, but the Barbarians feared no death. Many took several arrows and still howled as they charged upward.

In only a short while, Barbarians had climbed onto the walls, swinging their blades at the Great Flame soldiers around them.

"Pfft!"

"Ah!"

"Urgh!"

"..."

As blades met at close quarters, screams rang without end.

Blood splashed everywhere. One conscript didn't even have time to resist before a curved blade severed his neck, and his body crumpled limply to the ground.

The stench of blood spread through the air, completely igniting this savage battle of attack and defense.

A Barbarian soldier with a face full of bristling beard, his entire body stained with blood, fixed his vicious gaze on the seemingly slender Li Xuancang. With an angry roar, he rushed straight at him with blade raised.

"Die!"

The curved blade tore through the air with savage force, cleaving straight for Li Xuancang's crown. The Barbarian clearly intended to kill him in a single strike.

The surrounding conscripts could barely fend for themselves. No one came to help him.

Li Xuancang's gaze turned cold. Rather than retreating, he advanced.

After the increase in strength, his body's reaction speed and explosive power were no longer what they had once been.

He stamped his foot down and abruptly shifted sideways, precisely evading the fatal blow.

The Barbarian soldier's slash missed. His force had been spent, exposing a fleeting opening.

Now!

A cold gleam burst from Li Xuancang's eyes. The muscles in both arms tightened as he poured every ounce of strength in his body into the iron spear.

There were no flashy moves—only pure brute force from his body as he thrust the spear out savagely.