Chapter 162: Last Large-Scale Mandatory Training Ends, Zhao Xing is Seized

"Is there really a dumbing-down spell in this world?! One by one, they're all turning stupid!" Xia Jing shook his head as he watched people holding their heads, foolishly drooling.

"I never want to participate in these mandatory training sessions again. I don't know how much longer I can last."

Cao Shuang shook his head back and forth, as if trying to shake off all the stupidity from inside his skull.

"Zhao Xing, if I start acting stupid like these martial artists later, just knock me out!"

Cao Shuang said to Zhao Xing, who was standing nearby.

Xia Jing became displeased: "What do you mean by that? Are you looking down on us warriors?"

"What's wrong? Yes, I am looking down on you. What are you going to do about it?!" Cao Shuang retorted angrily.

"Do you want to die? I'll chop you down right now!" Xia Jing drew his sword.

"Come on!" Cao Shuang jutted out his neck and gestured, "Chop here! If you don't chop, you're a son of a bitch, Xia Jing!"

"I'll f*** your mother!" Xia Jing's sword whistled as it was drawn, instantly slashing towards Cao Shuang's neck.

"Pfft!" A hand blocked Cao Shuang's neck. Blood flowed as it gripped the sword.

"Brother Xia, calm down." Zhao Xing slowly lifted Xia Jing's sword upward. Although blood was flowing, he still moved the sword away from Cao Shuang's neck.

"Damn it, you really tried to chop me? I'll fight you!" Cao Shuang immediately spewed a line of fire, furiously charging at Xia Jing.

"Bang!" "Ugh..."

Zhao Xing's hand chop was swift, knocking Cao Shuang unconscious. The fire he had spat out swirled, only curling Xia Jing's hair before Zhao Xing absorbed it back.

"You scoundrel, how dare you burn my head with fire! Get out of the way, I'll chop him!" Xia Jing, whose sword was already raised, was about to bring it down again.

"Smack!" Zhao Xing delivered a hard slap to Xia Jing's forehead, causing his Niwan Palace to vibrate and dispelling a golden aura. "Are you calm now?"

"Hiss..." Sanity returned to Xia Jing's eyes.

"Smack!" Zhao Xing, still thinking Xia Jing hadn't recovered, slapped him again.

"Stop! That's enough, Brother Zhao, I'm awake now!" Seeing Zhao Xing about to strike a third time, Xia Jing immediately threw his sword down, signaling he was free from the spell's influence.

"Alright, let's discuss a strategy." Zhao Xing pointed to the sandbox nearby. "During this joint military exercise of the various departments, our new recruit camp has very few high-ranking commanding officers left."

"We need to quickly gather these remaining scattered troops and break through. Otherwise, whether you're a warrior, an agricultural officer, or an engineer... none of us will achieve good results in this training."

Xia Jing rubbed his cheeks, then lifted the tent flap to look outside.

Outside the barracks, one group was fighting, another lay on the ground, and a third squatted, drooling and playing with ants.

Among the familiar faces from the four major martial divisions, Zhang Jie was unashamedly defecating, Chen Fang was watching him, and while some still retained their sanity, there was a confused look in their eyes.

Chen Fang, wrapped in medical bandages, was lying on a chair, groaning.

This was a large-scale mandatory training, simulating real combat, set in the 'Heavenly Gate Peaks' near Daofeng Mountain.

Reserves from within the Ten Sun Grotto-Heaven, including the Martial Division, Agricultural Directorate, Heavenly Craft Workshop, and Divine Temple, jointly participated.

A total of over 150,000 people from the four divisions were involved!

Their opponents numbered only 30,000, but these 30,000 were all drawn from the nine regular armies within the Ten Sun Grotto-Heaven.

This mandatory training truly taught the reserve recruits a good lesson.

150,000 against 30,000, with no other objective than to break through.

Yet, after half a month, even the most elite new recruit camps, with their brilliant combinations like Xia Jing, Zhao Xing, and Cao Shuang, hadn't managed to break through.

Xia Jing's recently lifted spirits dropped again.

Who knew what they had endured these past few days?

First, there was the "Night Parade of a Hundred Ghosts," where the Divine Temple's ritual masters commanded tens of thousands of mountain spirits to raid the new recruits' encampments.

This was followed by seven days of indiscriminate bombardment using barbarian Five-Element catapults.

Five more days passed, and natural disasters followed one after another: great floods, earthquakes, scorching heat, insect swarms... all the insect-beasts from the Heavenly Gate Peaks were driven towards them.

In recent days, ritual cultivators were sent to cast "dumbing-down spells," "counter-espionage spells," and "goading spells" on the new recruits.

The goading spells caused many new recruits to break from their combat formations, charging like madmen towards the veteran encampment.

Chen Fang was an example of the counter-espionage spell's effect; he was jointly beaten by Zhang Jie, Hu Bing, and ten other afflicted warriors, and he was still groaning there.

Throughout this period, the "dumbing-down spell" remained active, leaving them agitated and unable to think calmly.

Xia Jing even wanted to cut Cao Shuang down with a single sword stroke just moments ago.

"How do we fight?" Xia Jing looked up at the sky, speechless. "The marching tents and military flags can't protect everyone. A few of us designated main generals can stay in the command hall, where ritual masters' spells can offer some isolation, but once we step out, we're affected by these spells."

Zhao Xing, whose palm was bandaged, walked out: "There's no way, but we have to create a way to break through. It's not that the spells are intermittent; both ritual cultivators and ghost-controlling ritual masters have a cooldown period for these large-scale spells."

"Brother Xia, take a look."

Xia Jing followed Zhao Xing's gaze to the sandbox inside the tent.

"In the Heavenly Gate Peaks, the distance between mountains and the craftsman's arrays between each peak all have gaps and weak points, which are our breakthrough points for the new recruit camps."

"Welcome Peak, Longevity Peak, Sanqing Mountain, Jade Curtain Waterfall, Carefree Valley, A Line of Sky Gorge, Nanqing Garden... all forty-six of these locations can be broken through."

"We are following the route through Longevity Peak, A Line of Sky Gorge, and Jade Curtain Waterfall. Based on previous breakthrough experience, the spell intervals along this path are: Ghost-controlling obstacles begin at 11:45 PM and last until 7:00 AM."

"Natural disaster obstacles: beginning at 8:45 AM and ending at 3:45 PM; one of eighteen types of natural disasters will randomly appear. My brothers from the Agricultural Directorate and I can give early warning."

"The three spell blockades from the ritual cultivators: beginning at 6:00 PM and ending at 11:00 PM. The three spells cycle intermittently with occasional surprise attacks, but we also get breathing room."

"At the weak points, the soldiers' combat strength is deliberately set to be relatively weak. As long as we can reach those spots, we can charge through..."

Listening to Zhao Xing's explanation, Xia Jing's eyes lit up: "Yes, we can go there! Zhao Xing, you truly have the demeanor of a great general. I can't believe you've thought of so much!"

Zhao Xing smiled bitterly and shook his head: "Brother Xia, this was a joint decision by all nine of us. We are already in the process of breaking through. This is the forty-seventh time I've told you these things."

Xia Jing was startled, then said: "Yes, I remember now! You, me, Cao Shuang, Chen Fang, and Zhang Yi, we all thought of it together."

"How many times have I been hit by the 'Forget-Sorrow Spell'? Are there any other important decisions I've missed during this time?"

"I can't remember either," Zhao Xing said, pulling out a roll of yellow paper. "But Zhang Yi recorded everything on a Sacred Page; you can take a look."

"Where are the others?" Xia Jing asked.

"Resting nearby," replied Zhao Xing.

"Engineer Wang and Engineer Qi are repairing the flying boats," Zhao Xing said. "In another hour, the people in the camp will regain their senses. But you and I need to act quickly and wake them up ahead of time. Otherwise, we won't have much time left for travel, and we'll fall victim to the next large-scale spell, trapping us in a vicious cycle."

"I understand," Xia Jing said, glancing at the map. "We've reached Hukou and are close to a successful breakthrough. Let's split up now. If you feel something is wrong or you can't hold on, return here quickly."

Xia Jing looked at Cao Shuang lying on the ground and said sadly: "If all our high-ranking generals are wiped out, there will be no hope of breaking through. It's unlikely we'll pass this training."

Jingxin Calendar, Year 17, February 19th.

Heavenly Gate Peaks, Nanqing Garden.

Beyond Nanqing Garden was a desolate area.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh."

One after another, dilapidated flying boats swayed high in the sky, bobbing up and down, left and right, as if drunken strongmen were piloting them.

"Buzz."

Finally, one flying boat couldn't hold on any longer, letting out a wail as it crashed headfirst into the ground. Fortunately, the forced landing wasn't from a great height, only kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Cough, cough..."

A hand gripped the edge of the shattered flying boat, revealing Zhao Xing's face.

"Damn it, Che Shihai, can you even pilot a flying boat?! Isn't your surname Che (meaning 'vehicle' or 'cart')? This boat was piloted so roughly I thought my bones would shatter!"

Zhao Xing cursed, reached back, and pulled Che Shihai up.

Che Shihai, disheveled and still bleeding, couldn't help but protest: "Can you blame me? Can you blame me for this?"

"Boss, you have to blame Engineer Wang! He didn't repair it properly. My piloting skills, no matter how good, were useless!"

A panel from the flying boat fell off, as if confirming Che Shihai's words.

At this moment, more people crawled out.

Among them, a half-bald young man holding a craftsman's hammer limped over.

Wang Ji, one of the top-tier geniuses of the Heavenly Craft Workshop.

"Che Shihai, don't you dare speak against your conscience, you son of a bitch!"

"The military's Swordfish flying boat is a peak fourth-tier artifact, and its formation drives 49,000 pathways. It was flattened by the barbarians' Five-Element catapults earlier. Besides me, who else has the skill to make it fly?!"

"Go ask around at the Heavenly Craft Workshop—how many people could do that?!"

"How come Cao Shuang's flying boat landed safely, and you still say it's not your fault?"

"I haven't even settled accounts with you yet! What kind of rubbish piloting was that? You scraped off a patch of hair from my scalp!"

Wang Ji was a stickler for details. Seeing Che Shihai shift the blame, he immediately became displeased and launched into a furious tirade.

"Engineer Wang, let it go, let it go." Zhao Xing quickly intervened, stopping Wang Ji.

"If you hadn't stopped me, I would've given him a good whack with my chisel!" Wang Ji grumbled, clutching his head. "I don't have much hair to begin with, and now another patch is gone."

"Heh heh, Engineer Wang, don't be angry. It's my fault, I was wrong," Che Shihai said with an awkward smile. He had thought Wang Ji wasn't on this particular flying boat, so his attempt to shift blame had failed.

"Military doctor! Where's Doctor Yuan?! Quick, come take a look at Engineer Wang!" Zhao Xing used wind magic, projecting his voice to cover the surroundings.

"Stop shouting, I'm... ugh, I'm right under your feet..." a weak voice came from the sandy ground.

"Huh?" Zhao Xing was startled and quickly jumped away, then saw a head sticking out of the ground.

"Ah, I'm really sorry about that."

"'Rift of Splendor, Rise!'" Zhao Xing pointed a finger, and Yuan Yang's body floated up from underground.

"I'm really impressed," Yuan Yang said, looking at Zhao Xing resentfully. "My head was moving the whole time. Didn't you feel something was off?"

"Well, Brother Yuan's head is like steel. I thought I was stepping on a rock," Zhao Xing said awkwardly. "Here, Brother Yuan, let's get you cleaned up first."

Suddenly, a large column of water descended from the air, encircling Yuan Yang.

"Wash him too; he's sticky with sand, which makes it hard to apply medicine," Yuan Yang said, pointing at Wang Ji's head.

"No problem."

Zhao Xing then rinsed the engineer Wang Ji's wound.

Afterward, Yuan Yang pulled a plaster from his medicine box and slapped it onto Wang Ji's head.

"There, in half a month, your hair will surely grow back!"

While they were talking...

The other flying boats landed, and many people ran over.

"Are you alright?" Xia Jing quickly walked over, looking at Yuan Yang. "Is anyone severely wounded?"

If there were severe injuries, they would have to call the Joint Exercise Department to have the severely wounded withdrawn.

After all, they couldn't actually have fatalities.

However, common fractures or losing a piece of flesh were not considered severe injuries.

"No one needs to withdraw," Yuan Yang said, scanning the group. "I haven't detected any signs of severe injuries."

The constitution of all living beings in the world should inherently be perfect. If significant damage occurred, this "state of incompleteness" would be as clear to a physician, especially a military doctor, as a bright moon in the night.

Sensing injuries was the military doctor's most crucial skill.

"That's good," Xia Jing sighed in relief. "We've made it this far; it would be too unjust to withdraw now."

Indeed, Xia Jing and his group had already completed their breakthrough. There were no more 'enemies' ahead; they just needed to reach the designated location to complete this mandatory training.

"Zhao Xing, should we order a short rest?" Xia Jing asked.

Initially, Xia Jing, the marquis's heir, was elected as the camp's main general, with the others serving as deputies. But half a month later, Zhao Xing's influence had grown significantly.

The position of main general had, in effect, become Zhao Xing's.

"You are the main general, so you give the order," Zhao Xing said with a faint smile. He had no desire to compete for power; given how miserable the training had been, what was there to covet? "We're probably the first camp to break through, so a little extra time won't hurt."

"Alright," Xia Jing said. "Then let the brothers rest for half an hour. We've already passed the Nanqing Garden boundary; another fifteen minutes of walking will conclude the special training."

Jingxin Calendar, Year 17, February 19th, 5:30 PM.

Led by Zhao Xing, Xia Jing, Cao Shuang, Wang Ji, Yuan Yang, Zhang Yi, and others, the New Recruit Camp 19, comprising a total of 1,500 people, completed their breakthrough mission on the seventeenth day of the training.

Based on their breakthrough performance and various measured indicators, New Recruit Camp 19, being the first to break through, earned an 'A' grade evaluation for all its members!

Among them, Zhao Xing, Xia Jing, Wang Ji, Yuan Yang, and a total of twenty-nine individuals demonstrated their talents and perfectly fulfilled their roles in this performance, earning an 'A+' evaluation.

In early March, the other new recruit camps gradually completed their breakthroughs.

On March 15th, the final large-scale training session within the Ten Sun Grotto-Heaven concluded.

All reserves from the nine garrison armies would depart the Ten Sun Grotto-Heaven in April to assume their designated positions. If they successfully completed their assigned tasks, they would officially obtain military ranks.

This time, life and death would no longer be guaranteed.

Meanwhile, Zhao Xing, the agricultural officer of the Divine Might Army, who had repeatedly earned 'A+' evaluations in mandatory training sessions and completed all seventeen selective training courses over the past six months, became highly sought after.

Especially after the last large-scale training concluded, immediately upon Zhao Xing's return to the Agricultural Directorate...

...envoys started arriving at his door.

The first envoy was even a 'familiar face'.

"Zhao Xing, I am Helian Lie, the Valiant Commander of the Blazing Sun Army. At the Marquis's instruction, I've come to invite you to join our Blazing Sun Army."

"If you agree to come, you can choose any of the Blazing Sun Army's ten elite battalions, and the Marquis is willing to grant you a territory in the Jiutian Yingyuan Prefecture, equivalent to the fiefdom standard for a third-rank count!"