"... The Erosion Zone is a transitional space used by the Ruins Realm to invade us, this space..."
"Because of the extreme difficulty of intrusion, the strength of this space is very weak, insufficient to support the existence of high-level Calamity Beast, but the Calamity Beast are not simply letting it run rampant..."
"Then, unlike what you've heard online about dealing with Light Gate, the combat methods within the Erosion Zone..."
As the middle-aged instructor walked forward, he explained the situation of the Grassland Erosion Zone to everyone.
The others followed closely behind.
"Hey, Shuning, the Erosion Zone is really amazing!" Xiao Bai'er whispered from the side.
"Kindness!"
Shen Shuning responded, her gaze also fixed on the side.
You could sense that the people around were still a bit restless, and many were whispering among themselves.
Several soldiers occasionally walked past them.
However, unlike the women who looked at each other with curiosity, most of these soldiers only glanced at each other before looking away.
Suddenly, the voice explaining the situation stopped.
Shen Shuning looked over, then stopped.
Xiao Bai'er, standing to the side, nearly bumped into the person in front of him after exclaiming "Hey!"
"Hey, you--"
The words had barely left his mouth when Xiao Bai'er swallowed them back.
She gazed ahead, at the crowd that, like herself, were looking into the distance.
One after another, soldiers came from the front, some leaning on crutches, some with large bandages around their chests, some with empty sleeves, and some being carried on stretchers...
"This is..."
Xiao Bai'er opened his mouth, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.
She could only stand there and watch, silently watching like everyone else.
The line was very long.
It was so long that it was impossible to count how many people there were.
Shen Shuning stared at the scene before her, her gaze equally heavy.
Although she had heard that the casualties in the Erosion Zone were severe, this was the first time she had ever seen it...
Furthermore, if it wasn't deliberately arranged, then it suggests that the injuries to so many people were likely a one-time event?
Seemingly incredulous, she looked at the line of people slowly walking by on the other side of the road.
After a long while, the instructor's voice came from ahead again.
"Alright, stop looking. If you're lucky, you'll see this kind of thing quite often in the future!"
Shen Shuning tightened her grip slightly, then looked away and remained silent.
The people around also remained unresponsive.
The initial excitement upon entering the Erosion Zone was dampened by what had just happened.
"Instructor," someone asked, "Are those soldiers... wounded and needing to leave the Erosion Zone?"
"Yes, that's right." The instructor nodded and answered calmly.
Upon hearing this, the previously silent team immediately became noisy again.
"No, so many...?"
"I heard the casualties are under control..."
"Control is there, but it's not gone."
The chattering went on for a while, then gradually subsided.
The middle-aged instructor glanced back without much surprise.
The death of a person and the death of a person in front of you are two different things!
He raised his gaze, glanced at the departing procession behind him, and said:
"Just getting out of the Erosion Zone alive is already a miracle."
Silence fell; no one knew how to respond.
Then a clear voice rang out.
"This... is this what you just mentioned, the kind of combat conducted at the legion level?"
The sound came from the side.
Xiao Bai'er turned his head and saw Shuning looking at the instructor in front of him with clear eyes.
Legion-level combat?... Xiao Bai'er withdrew his gaze and pondered.
Ahead, the instructor nodded.
"Yes, that's right."
"If that's the case, could we avoid fighting at the legion level and instead send out a small number of elite troops?" Shen Shuning asked.
"Yes, if that's the case, then there wouldn't be so many casualties, would there?" Xiao Bai'er agreed, her eyes lighting up.
The instructor looked at the two of them.
Do you think we have a choice?
"No?" Shen Shuning frowned, but her gaze did not waver.
There was no response. The instructor slowly turned his gaze and swept it over the crowd.
"What would happen to the Calamity Beast if we sent out our elite troops?"
Everyone frowned and began to ponder.
Shen Shuning also frowned in thought. The answer seemed simple, but the instructor asked...
Beside them, a student raised his hand, somewhat uncertainly.
"Send the same elite troops?"
Shen Shuning glanced at the student who, like herself, came from Northern Martial Arts, then looked away and turned to the instructor in front of her.
The instructor nodded and said:
"Yes, that's certainly possible. But more likely, the Calamity Beast will find it troublesome and simply send high-level Calamity Beast to guard the area. If an elite team like the one you mentioned appears, they will take action and eliminate it!"
"Then we can send higher-ranking officers too!" the man retorted instinctively.
"If that's the case, then what form will the war take?" the instructor asked.
"High-level fighting high-level?" the man asked again, his voice growing increasingly uncertain.
"Hmm, higher-level players fighting higher-level players, and then what was the result?"
"The result, uh..."
The person opened their mouth, but didn't know whether they should continue speaking.
Isn't the result quite simple?
In a high-level battle, it's either kill the opponent or get killed, what else can you do?
But... these successive, clearly meaningful inquiries...
The people around them were also frowning and pondering, unsure how to respond.
The middle-aged instructor didn't urge them on, but waited silently.
Are there three possible outcomes?
A question was asked.
The middle-aged instructor turned his head, looked at the girl standing quietly in place, and smiled.
Which three?
"Either one side is killed, or neither side is killed, or both sides are killed!" Shen Shuning looked back with bright eyes.
"Yes, that's right!" the instructor smiled. "So what's the corresponding result?"
"The first scenario is that one side is wiped out," Shen Shuning calmly explained.
"If the casualties are Calamity Beast, that's fine, it means we've won. But if the casualties are our own people, then the situation is very bad!"
The second scenario is that neither side suffered any casualties.
While this situation won't have a significant impact on us, it also means we won't gain anything.
As for the third type...
Shen Shuning paused here, then said with a clear gaze,
"Even if we successfully kill the Calamity Beast, because our personnel have also sacrificed themselves, we won't be able to retrieve its Calamity Beast. Therefore, the situation is the same as in the first scenario, where our fallen members suffered the same fate!"
"Yes, that's right."
The instructor glanced at Shen Shuning with approval, then looked at the others and asked:
"If war were really like this, what do you think of it?"
There was no response, and the faces of everyone around them darkened.
Shen Shuning's words just now have clearly analyzed all the possible outcomes.
If it really is a high-level battle against a high-level opponent, then out of the three, no, four scenarios, only one would be advantageous to them!
The other three, at best, have no effect whatsoever!
No impact...
Everyone's expression turned somber.
Only at this moment did they understand why the instructor had asked them such meaningful questions.
Based on this analysis, the existing methods of warfare do indeed seem to be the most acceptable form of warfare for them!
"But... that way, at least not so many people would die." Someone raised their hand, unwilling but forced to speak.
"Indeed, that way fewer people would die, but more high-ranking members would die!"
The instructor glanced at the person indifferently.
"Of course, we cultivate these high-ranking members not so they can enjoy a life of luxury!"
But their existence at least gives us the confidence to face some difficult problems in the future!
For example, the sudden appearance of the Erosion Zone more than two years ago. If we didn't have high-ranking members, we could only stay outside and wait for this Ruins Realm to further advance the invasion of the Erosion Zone until the moment it finally descended upon our Blue Star!
When that moment actually arrives, you should know that something might happen...
The instructor paused there, looking at the boy who had just spoken.
Is that the kind of future you desire?
"..."
There was no response; the boy lowered his head, his face somewhat pale.
With a sigh, the middle-aged instructor turned to look at the others.
Fortunately, higher-level Calamity Beast cannot enter, and Calamity Beast that can enter (levels five and six) are also trying their best to avoid this option, as they do not want to die.
So...
"Don't be fooled by the fact that we seem to have a choice about how to wage war; in reality, we never had a choice!!"
Silence, quiet, no one replied.
The clenched hand tightened even more.
A choice that never existed in the first place...?