Chapter 635: Chapter 384: Staying Away from War
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After a while, Yan Xiaobao let out a deep sigh, feeling his rational thoughts take over. He calmed his heart and managed to distance himself from the war. No matter what happened, he would follow the beast tribe. If they lost, he would die with them; if they won, he would celebrate with them. Tension would help no one, and Yan Xiaobao decided to seize the opportunity to meditate. It was a chance to refine more of heaven and earth’s essence while calming his mind, rather than allowing his doubts to grow and overwhelm his thoughts.
The entire camp buzzed with noise; all the beasts were brimming with energy and excitement because they knew the next day was when they would face the enemy. Even the Saints carried sly smiles as they walked around. Some sat together, eating their dinner, others trained in solitude, while some quarreled with one another. Observing the Saints’ reactions, which radiated bloodlust into all their strength, the lower-ranked experts quickly understood they were very close to the human army of another kingdom. They were nearing the start of the war they had long desired.
This night was not as calm as previous ones; all the beasts were restless with unease. As time wore on, the camp silenced. Everyone sat motionless, counting down the minutes until the sun rose into the sky. No one spared effort, and hardly anyone tended to farming; most simply sat waiting for the first ray of sunlight so they could break camp and prepare for the war after nearly a month of marching.
Yan Xiaobao soon abandoned the idea of cultivation; instead, like the others, he sat and waited for the new day to emerge, so they could begin marching again. Unlike the beasts, Yan Xiaobao knew the likelihood of fighting the day after reaching the capital was extremely low.
Yan Xiaobao knew that although his army had trained together for some time and understood the necessity of war, they were far from being experienced soldiers who had mastered the War Art learned from youth. Thus, the battlefield was bound to be chaotic. A sinister smile crept across Yan Xiaobao’s face as excitement for war filled him. Although his soldiers were not the best-trained, they possessed strength and determination. They would certainly cause significant destruction and bring chaos.
With the sun peaking over the horizon, the camp of silent beasts moved faster than on any other morning. Everyone was eager to begin the march; everyone understood today marked their first face-off with their opponent. It was the day they would first see the human army and finally comprehend how the war would unfold.
The scenery before them was flat. Plants grew along the sides of a vast road, a road usually bustling with life but now empty as everyone had fled before the beast tribe’s arrival.
Now, four hundred thousand beasts moved slowly down the wide road. The landscape was no longer sparse vegetation but vast fields of crops. As farmers fled, corn and rice had been abandoned, yet the army did not stop to harvest anything. If they won the war, Yan Xiaobao resolved to remember to assign some of these fields to the beasts as a reward for their hard work. After all, the lives of some beasts were very similar to those of humans. Eating grains was something they did not mind, but it required fertile soil to cultivate. In the Divine Domain, there was some agriculture, but it was limited due to the overwhelming presence of jungles everywhere.
Though some beasts still curiously looked around, the entire army remained tense and uneasy. As they scanned the horizon for movement, signs of the Imperial Capital, or even better—the army they were set to fight—they stayed alert.
With the sun rising high in the sky, a pagoda finally emerged in the distance. As they approached, tall structures began to join the pagoda. Soon, city walls came into view, and as they drew nearer, they could see a sea of humans stationed beyond the surprisingly massive walls.
Looking at the towers created by Yan Xiaobao, the young man let out a sigh of relief. He was pleased to have constructed towers tall enough to reach the tops of these walls. At first, he considered whether he truly needed to make them as large as he had; however, upon reflection, everything in this world seemed grander and more astonishing than in his old world. Thus, he had ultimately increased the size of all the mechanisms, and now he was grateful for the decision he had made.
The sea of humans kept stirring. Fierce ripples broke across the ocean until it finally fell silent. The army ceased all movements; instead, the horizon was now filled with stern and anxious soldiers. All of them feared the beasts before them, but as the beasts approached, traces of recognition flickered in their eyes. Though these beasts remained terrifying, they were not as formidable as the soldiers had heard—they lacked knowledge of warfare. After all, they were simply beasts.
That was precisely what the Great Marshall of the human army believed. He was convinced these beasts knew nothing of war, but upon hearing that a man named Yan Xiaobao was leading them, he grew somewhat uneasy. A human might know something about war, but to him, Yan Xiaobao was merely a king’s subordinate, and despite his astonishingly young age, he was far from achieving the rank of a Saint. This made the entire situation bizarre. If it were true, this young man had indeed persuaded these bloodthirsty beasts to allow him to lead their army.