Zhan Long

Chapter 763 - The Royal Army's First

“How is it? Not bad right?” Frost smiled as she watched my face.

I nodded, “Yup, it’s the legendary Dragon Knights… they truly do give a different effect…. That’s right Frost. Why don’t you have a mount?”

Frost looked at me and murmured, “If there were enough dragons, I would want one too, however…. Nevermind. I already have the strength of a Vice God, which gives me the power to fly. How about we leave the dragon mounts to the other soldiers!?”

“Right now, how many Dragon Mounts are there?”

“Including Qing Luo’s, there’s fifteen. The other ten Dragon Knights are currently on standby. They’ll only be used when the situation is dangerous. Otherwise, there’s no need to to show off their power.”

Frost’s eyes looked into the distance darkness with a smile on her lips, “I really hope that Gwaine has the guts to appear!”

I felt my heart shudder, “You want to kill him?”

Frost grinned, “There are currently fourteen Hybrid Demon Kings alive; killing one means one less.”

I was speechless.

Right at that moment, one of the soldiers carrying a halberd rushed over. He knelt before us and said, “Lady Frost, the eastern mountain has pressing news. Just outside the Dragon Graveyard, the Blood Giant Kehl is commanding a group of Earth Giants to break through the defense line. We have less than 200 people there. I’m afraid that we’re going to lose the Dragon Graveyard. We need reinforcements!”

Frost stiffened, “The Blood Giant Kehl is attacking the Dragon Graveyard? D*mm*t, why didn’t I think of that!?”

I quickly volunteered, “Teacher, I’ve already taken up the position as the commander of the Tian Ling City Royal Army. This time, I’ve brought five thousand men here. If needed, we are ready for the task.”

Frost raised her elegant brow and said, “The Royal Army’s battle power has never been much to boast about. Plus, it’s known as the Princeling Corps. Are you sure that their legs won’t turn to jelly when they see the fearsome Blood Giants?”

“No!” I confidently smiled, “The Royal Army is no longer the army it was before. Have three Dragon Knights help me stabilize the formation. I’ll lead our troops to the Dragon Graveyard and push back those Earth Giants!”

Frost smiled, “Alright!”

As she said that, she shouted to the sky, “Qing Luo, come here!”

Among the cloudy skies, a dragon screech pierced through the air. Qing Luo and her Crystal Dragon flew down and landed by the observation deck. She smiled, “My lady, I’m here. What orders do you have? Ah… General Dragon Knight has come back as well? Congratulations, I heard that you’ve taken up the position as a commander. Feeling powerful now?”

I was speechless.

Frost replied, “Qing Luo, can you take two Silver Dragon Knights to go with Li Xiao Yao to the Dragon Graveyard? Follow all of his commands!”

Qing Luo nodded, “Yes my lady!”

She then shouted to the distance, “Xin Jia, Yu Ping, we have new orders! Come over here!”

In the distant city, two silver figures flashed through the air. I saw that the two knights riding on their backs were young soldiers. They each carried a dragon lance in their hands.

“Charge with me!”

“Yes my lady!”

……

I bid farewell to Frost and immediately went down from the mountain. Qing Luo brought two of the silver dragons and roamed the sky, ready for my command. Without my orders, she would not leave.

At the foot of the mountain, the Royal Army was on stand by. Once they saw me return, Xiao Lie and Han Yuan both urged their horses forward and asked, “General, how is it?”

I smiled, “Aren’t you afraid of death?”

“Huh….?” The two slightly stiffened and then shook their heads, “We’re not afraid!”

“That’s fine!” I looked over at the Royal Army and candidly said, “Right now, the Hybrid Demons are throwing a siege at the Eastern Defense Line of Dragon City. They’re trying to break through our defenses. Afterwards, they’ll enter from the south and attack. Our mission is to push those Hybrid Demons back. I’m not going to sugarcoat this, this time our enemy is the Blood Giant Kehl.”

“The Blood Giant Kehl?”

One of the team leaders gulped, his face ashen, “I’ve seen that name appear in the history books. The Blood Giant Kehl is one of the Hybrid Demon Kings. He’s lived close to ten thousand years. We… are we really going to fight that devil?”

I nodded, “Exactly. That is our mission as the Royal Army. Do you want to be raised as a princeling, or do you want to fight like a soldier?”

With that arousing, all of the soldiers in the Royal Army pumped their weapons and shouted, “For the empire!”

With a satisfied grin, I ordered, “Set out and follow me!”

I urged my horse up the mountain slope. The five thousand Royal Army soldiers followed me as well. Confidence and excitement filled Han Yuan and Xiao Lie’s face.

Not long after, we reached the peak of the Ice Ridge Mountain. Our horses’ hooves slid several times on the ice. All of the soldiers in the Royal Army were in defensive stances. Suddenly, a scream cut through the silence. One of the knights had slid off the wall of ice and screamed as he disappeared into the darkness. Everyone’s blood ran cold.

I shouted, “Do not look towards the East. Continue forward!”

Xiao Lie wrapped his cloak tightly around his arms and shuddered. Even so, the chilly bitter wind raised goosebumps on his skin. Everyone was holding a flame, a resource for warmth. Unfortunately, it was barely enough to feel.

“It’s too cold here…” One of the knights furrowed his brow, “If my father knew that I was going to such a freezing environment, he’d probably be extremely distressed…”

That comment made a whole group of people laugh. A couple of soldiers who were friends with him teased, “Little Hai, don’t be such a girl. How about you go on back to the city so that you can suck on your mother’s milk again? Why should you come to the Hybrid Demon Territory to die?”

The soldier, Little Hai’s face went red and he clenched his teeth, “You… you… Hmph, I’m not going to argue with you here. Let me tell you now, there isn’t a single soft egg in our Rocklin family!”

“That’s good!” Han Yuan smiled, “Our Lord Commander said our enemy is the Blood Giant Kehl and a group of Earth Giants that he’s leading. I hope that you all won’t wet your pants when you see them.”

I didn’t comment and only continued forward with my Ancient Heavenly Tiger.

……

I heard another scream. A dozen or so soldiers had fallen off the cliff. Even though each scream pained my heart, there was no helping them. This was a part of our training. Destiny isn’t some amusement park, it is filled with conflict and death. Seeing as these people had chosen to join the army, they were destined to be constantly plunged in blood and flames. Otherwise, they could only become a mule to be killed. That was even worse.

Dragon Graveyard. There were a pile of dragon bones piled at the center of the valley. It was a map that I was very familiar with from my training. Coming back now as the Commander of the Royal Army with five thousand troops behind me made my blood boil with excitement. Despite all of my ambitions for the future, I could still feel a small seed of worry. Worry about whether or not this battle in the Dragon Graveyard was a blessing or a curse. This was still my concern.

“Faster!”

I could see the firelight ahead of us. I urged my horse forward, while two thousand cavalrymen followed behind me. A group of Barbarians from the shield formation and foot soldier regiments marched behind them. It took around ten minutes for all of us to reach the valley entrance. The battle there was extremely fierce. Of the two hundred Dragon City soldiers, over half of them had been killed. What was left of the shield formation had been crushed by a group of five meter tall Earth Giants. The dead corpses had been crushed into unidentifiable meat pulp under the Giants’ foot. The scent of raw flesh and fresh blood filled our noses.

“Wu…”

Some of the soldiers in the Royal Army couldn’t stand the smell and began to gag. Han Yuan coldly smiled, “You pansies, how can you fight in that state?”

I raised my sword and ordered, “Shield Camp, trade places with the Dragon City soldiers!”

“Yes sir!”

Xiao Lie gave the command, ordering three thousand Barbarian soldiers to advance and take their place. The Barbarians were around two meters tall, and were already fairly gigantic compared to a normal person. However, before the Earth Giants, they were like children. However, their strength was unquestionable. The shields rammed into the ground one after another, and they were able to withstand the strength of the giants’ continuous charges.

“Peng peng peng….”

One of the Barbarian soldier’s shield had cracked. Even top quality shields couldn’t withstand the pressure from the Hybrid Demons’ savage attacks. The Barbarian soldiers stiffened, and before he could react, one of the Earth Giants let out a roar and swung his steel fists right at him!

“Pu!”

A cruel scream sounded as the Barbarian’s head was smashed in by the Earth Giant. Even as his body fell to his knees, he still gripped his blade. Blood and brains poured out around his body. Almost all of the soldiers in the Shield Camp were stupefied. Who would’ve thought that the Hybrid Demons would be that powerful? Even the cavalrymen were scared witless. They had personally witnessed the strength of the Barbarians. If even the Barbarians couldn’t hold against these demons, how could a normal person?

“Hold your formations!” Han Yuan shouted, “Shield Camp, hold your positions! Use your shields to defend, and your blades to seek the chance and cut through their legs. If you cut their tendons, they won’t be able to move!”

I looked over towards the cavalry camp’s soldiers and shouted, “Raise your flames! Archers, target the Earth Giant’s eyes and blind them! They’ll become headless flies!”

I then charged forward with my sword and threw a [Combo]+[Wind Blade], pushing back one of the Earth Giants. Then, with a slash of my Zhen Yue Blade, I dealt a [Strength of a Thousand Men], crushing the Earth Giant’s legs. Blood spurt out like a geyser. All of the Barbarians around me who were in the Shield Camp were gaping. One of them exclaimed, “Lord Commander is amazing….”

Behind me, I heard the sounds of arrows whizzing through the air. One after another, the Earth Giants cried out as they were being blinded. The Royal Army’s training was very well rounded and complete. These humans learned everything from riding, to swordsmanship and archery. There wasn’t a single job that they weren’t skilled at. Times like these were what truly tested their training.

“Ji ji….”

We heard cries coming from the sky above. Han Yuan looked up and shoued, “What?!”

I quickly warned them, “Careful of an ambush from the skies. It’s the Hybrid Demon Plunderers!”

……