#430 - Tens of millions of young soldiers
When Jun Wu Xie desperately rushed back to Great Zhou, Great Zhou was experiencing a brutal war filled with blood and flesh.
Hundreds of millions of Xiling troops were stationed outside the city, their military camps stretching as far as the eye could see.
The Xiling army launched a siege every day.
Fortunately, the capital city was strongly fortified, with defensive runes on the city walls and gates.
The siege weapons of the Xiling Continent were difficult to deploy effectively.
Their only option was siege ladders.
The densely packed Xiling army formed square formations, holding heavy shields and advancing in an orderly manner.
On the city walls, Great Zhou soldiers fired arrows, crossbow bolts, and stones in volleys.
The entire battlefield stretched for dozens of miles, filled with the smoke of war.
The sound of arrows cutting through the air, the booming of stones crashing down, and the shouts of soldiers shattered the sky.
One siege ladder after another was pushed to the city walls by the Xiling army, and they swarmed upwards, only to be smashed down by falling stones or shot down by crossbows, while those behind continued to charge forward.
Some Xiling soldiers managed to climb onto the city walls and engaged in close-quarters combat with the Great Zhou soldiers.
Everywhere one looked, up and down the dozens of miles of city walls, was a scene of flying blood and flesh.
Behind the attacking Xiling army, hundreds of thousands of archers stood in neat rows, drawing their powerful crossbows.
"Release!"
Under the command of the Xiling generals, the crossbow bolts howled through the air, emitting a sharp whistling sound.
The sky instantly darkened, obscured by the dense mass of arrows.
A rain of arrows blanketed the sky, shooting towards the city walls!
"Raise shields!"
The Great Zhou general commanded calmly in the face of danger.
The defending soldiers immediately raised their large shields.
The powerful crossbow bolts rained down densely, piercing through the shields.
Each volley caused significant casualties among the Great Zhou soldiers.
Both sides, one attacking and one defending, suffered heavy losses.
Every day, the battlefield was littered with a large number of corpses.
The casualty ratio between the two sides was roughly two to one.
The defenders had the advantage, while the attackers were at a disadvantage.
But even so, after only two days, the capital's garrison had lost more than half its strength!
Xiling was trading quantity for quantity.
However, Great Zhou's garrison only numbered five million.
In just two short days, it was reduced to around two million.
Newly recruited soldiers, after only two days of intensive training, were rushed to the battlefield.
As a result, the casualties were even greater, with the losses in each battle reaching a ratio of almost one to one.
"The capital city probably won't be able to hold out for more than a few days…"
In the city, atop a tall building, Yan Qingcheng's purple hair danced in the wind as she surveyed the battlefield situation, sighing helplessly.
"It seems we overestimated the Blood Ignition Technique. Although our sect has a secret method to allow recruits to burn their life essence, forcibly reaching the peak of the Houtian realm, we overlooked the difference that combat experience makes…"
The strong cultivators of the Demon Appearance Sect looked solemn.
"Let's do our best. Once the city falls, we will step forward and have the person behind Xiling come out to talk, to see if we can save the lives of the Great Zhou people."
Mu Xuelan's eyes drifted slightly. Where was that hateful little thief?
If he came back, what would he do in this situation?
In her mind, she couldn't help but recall his resolute and unyielding figure on Soul Refining Mountain when facing the great beast kings.
Mu Xuelan's heart trembled slightly.
"You must not come back…"
She murmured in her heart, secretly praying, not wanting to see that figure who made her both hate and unable to hate, and who often appeared in her heart, at this time.
In this defensive war concerning the survival of Great Zhou, millions of Great Zhou soldiers sacrificed their lives every day to protect it.
The entire battlefield was incredibly tragic.
Over the next few days, Great Zhou's soldiers were almost completely wiped out, and the subsequent replenishment of troops was severely insufficient, unable to keep up with the war's demands.
And now, it had only been five days since Jun Wu Xie rushed back from the Ancient City of the Eastern Wilderness!
On this day, Ji Liufeng appeared.
Accompanied by Long Yi, he appeared in the sky above the center of the city.
"My people of Great Zhou, I am not a qualified ruler. I am guilty of failing to provide you with a safe and peaceful country! Now, the mountains and rivers of Great Zhou are broken, and we have reached the point of national demise! The fall of the capital is a foregone conclusion, but the bloodline of Great Zhou cannot be cut off. Everyone, move into the deep mountains to preserve the bloodline, so that we may rise again in the future! Our soldiers will use their lives to buy you the last time to evacuate. Everyone, act quickly!"
"Your Majesty, we will not leave!"
"Your Majesty, this is the land where our ancestors have lived for generations. We will die here!"
"We will fight those Xiling barbarians!"
"Fight!"
"We swear to coexist with the capital!"
"No! You can't do this. People of Great Zhou, listen to me, go to the deep mountains to avoid disaster! As long as you live, Great Zhou can preserve its bloodline! Otherwise, on the day the city falls, the Xiling barbarians will surely massacre the city!"
The people of Great Zhou were silent.
One after another, people began to pack their belongings and, under Ji Liufeng's arrangement, retreated to the deep mountains.
The capital city, as well as all the cities, towns, and villages behind it, were emptied.
People evacuated quickly, heading towards the deep mountains to avoid disaster.
"Sanwa, why aren't you leaving?"
Before a certain deep mountain, a middle-aged woman covered in dust looked at her youngest son.
"Mother, the environment in the deep mountains is harsh. You and everyone else must take care!"
"Sanwa, you…"
The middle-aged woman's weathered eyes gradually moistened as she looked at her thirteen-year-old son, her lips trembling, unable to speak.
"Mother, your son is unfilial!"
Sanwa knelt on the ground and kowtowed three times heavily: "In the next life, your son will repay your kindness in raising me!"
After he finished speaking, he resolutely turned around and ran towards the capital city. He dared not look back, fearing that if he did, he would be reluctant to leave.
"Mother, take care of yourself. Your son is unfilial, wanting to go to the battlefield to kill the enemy and defend our mountains and rivers!"
Before this deep mountain, in the retreating crowd, countless young men knelt on the ground to bid farewell to their mothers.
Their fathers had died in battle, their older brothers had died in battle!
Now, it was their turn!
Before the deep mountain, a group of women and children cried incessantly, but no one stood up to stop them.
Tears streamed down their faces as they watched their children, only a little over ten years old, embark on a road of no return.
…
At the West City Gate of the Great Zhou capital, the battle had reached a precarious stage.
The number of defending soldiers had sharply decreased, making it difficult to resist the Xiling army's attacks.
More and more Xiling soldiers were climbing onto the city walls.
The Great Zhou soldiers fought them in close combat. When their weapons broke, they used their teeth to bite, holding them tightly and rolling down the city walls together.
"Great Zhou is finished. It will be captured today…"
Yan Qingcheng and the others watched the tragic and heroic battlefield, sighing deeply.
"Look!"
Su Ji suddenly pointed towards the rear of the capital city.
There, many figures appeared, coming from different directions.
"They…"
"They are the young men of Great Zhou!"
"The bravery of the descendants of Xuanyuan has never been extinguished, but they are still just children…"
The Sect Master of the Medicine King Sect's voice trembled slightly.
…
"We want to join the army to defend our country's mountains and rivers!"
Inside the city, at various troop recruitment points, a large number of children aged twelve, thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen gathered.
"No, you are too young. How can you go to the battlefield!"
The recruiting general looked at this scene in shock.
"Why can't we? This is the land where our ancestors have lived for generations. Only by driving away the enemy can our mothers and sisters live a peaceful and stable life!"
"What if we're young? We can still go to the battlefield to kill the enemy. We want to let the Xiling barbarians know that we Great Zhou men will never surrender!"
"You…"
The recruiting general's eyes moistened.
Looking at these young faces, he thought of his own children, who might also be registering at a recruitment point at this moment.
"Do you know that if you join the army now, there will be no time for training. You can only rely on the Blood Ignition Technique to forcefully increase your strength. The consequence of this is that even if you survive on the battlefield, you will be forever crippled!"
"We know!"
"Then do you know that facing the Xiling army, once you go to the battlefield, you will never come back…"
"We know, we are not afraid to die!"
"Alright, come and write down your names, and the names of your parents! If the capital city is defended, the country will definitely take good care of your families!"
…
On the high buildings in the city, the higher-ups of various forces witnessed these scenes and felt very emotional.
"Looking at these children, I feel ashamed…"
Su Ji mocked himself: "What have we been cultivating all these years? Powerful as we are, compared to these mortals, we are far less courageous. Years of cultivation have made us lose our bravery and courage, always considering the consequences…"
The other strong cultivators were silent.
At this moment, they felt deeply.
They suddenly felt that they were not as good as these mortals, not as good as these children in their teens.
They did not have their bravery, did not have their courage!
The original persistence in their hearts had been gradually abandoned over the years, compromised for various reasons.
How should one choose in life, and what kind of path should one take to live a wonderful life, not in vain?
"He's right. Is there any real meaning in living if we lose the innate emotions of human beings?"
Mu Xuelan whispered in her heart.
Just like those young men, their lives had only just begun, and were about to end, but they were blooming with the most brilliant light of life.
What is the meaning of life, what is the meaning of cultivation?
…
War is cruel.
In the following days, Great Zhou's side was almost entirely made up of boy soldiers.
Their bodies were unable to wear adult armor, so they went into battle in cloth clothes, with almost no protection except for shields.
But even so, they held the capital city day after day!
The city walls had long been a river of blood.
Many elderly people returned during the evacuation to join the logistics efforts of the defending army.
Inside the city, the streets were filled with corpses.
They were all children of ten years and older, their bodies mangled, almost none with complete corpses. Some had enemy ears and noses in their mouths, while others clutched enemy eyeballs tightly in their hands, impossible to pry open!
Street after street, corpse after corpse of young boys, lined dozens of miles of the main street.
People wept as they tidied their remains, piecing together severed limbs.
… …
"Kill!"
"Fuck these barbarian bastards to death!"
On the city wall, two blood-soaked figures roared, frantically killing the Xilin soldiers climbing up.
"Baldy, I've never killed so many people in my life, but it's really damn satisfying!"
"Grave robber, stop talking nonsense, save your strength and kill a few more..."
Kong Xu was covered in blood, even his bald head was crimson.
They had been fighting continuously for several days, without a moment's rest, their physical strength overdrawn, and their true energy almost exhausted.
"Ye Qian Ge, are you alright?"
They looked at the Great Zhou Marshal, who was leaning against the wall, supporting his body with a Mo blade, and asked, panting.
"I can still kill several thousand more Xilin barbarians!"
Ye Qian Ge wiped the blood from his face and grinned, blood slowly oozing from the wounds on his body.
He had been hit by an arrow from a Xilin powerhouse.
Someone had ambushed him from a great distance with a spiritual weapon bow.
"You two guys remember, when you sweep my grave next year, bring me a few more jars of wine!"
Ye Qian Ge laughed twice and charged towards the Xilin soldiers climbing the city wall, immediately causing blood and flesh to fly everywhere.
"We won't forget!" Xu Daoling and Kong Xu grinned, their eyes filled with tears, and then charged towards the Xilin soldiers: "Kill!"
… …
On the border of Great Zhou, three carriages sped through the air.
Ten days!
Was the capital still standing?
Jun Wuxie was anxious, looking at the broken mountains and rivers below, prefecture after prefecture, almost turned into dead lands.
Everywhere were white bones, rotting corpses, vultures circling, and crows cawing.
When passing through Ningyuan Prefecture, in that cruel battlefield, he saw the Xuanjia Army's corpses all over the ground.
Among them was a Xuanjia Army general, standing on a mountain of corpses piled up by Xilin soldiers, his body pierced by several war spears, just standing there, the scattered hair, congealed with blood, covering half of his face.
"Wei Yang!"
He plunged down.
Wei Yang, a high-ranking general of the Xuanjia Army!
He had drunk with him before; he was a very good, passionate man with outstanding military talent!
To meet again, but in such a scene… …
"Xilin! Soul Hunting Hall!"
His voice was like an angry true dragon roaring, shaking the mountains and fields.
