Chapter 676: Chapter 677: Defeat!
“Without the presence of their commanding officer, they actually managed to calmly spot the weaknesses in the main city and organized a large-scale siege in an orderly fashion—the quality of these Southern Barbarian Soldiers far surpasses that of those from the Central Plains!”

Strong and powerful, strict in giving and following orders, and fearless unto death—these are qualities that the soldiers of the Central Plains lack.

It could even be said that these are qualities the entire Imperial Court lacks. With the main beam crooked, the lower beams are also askew, and with corrupt practices sweeping through, it is natural that the soldiers stationed at the borders have less vigor and exhibit more frailty.

“Winning this battle is going to take some effort.”

Li Xiaobai’s longsword danced up and down in his hand, the eerie pitch-black Sword Qi slashed horizontally and vertically, repelling a group of veteran soldiers and forcibly tearing a gap in their formation. His figure flickered as he dashed out, heading straight for the direction of the city with his sword in hand.

“Stop him!”

“Don’t let him return to the city!”

More than a dozen veteran soldiers pursued him relentlessly. They had all seen the opportunity—if they could delay Li Xiaobai even for a short while, the border city’s defenses could be breached. Once the large forces entered the city and held the civilians hostage, they would have the final say!

However, when it came to speed, they were nowhere near as fast as Li Xiaobai. The powerful Inner Strength that could hard-fight fifteen experts was not something they could catch up to. In the blink of an eye, a white figure had arrived at the base of the city, and the internal force storms he generated along the way robbed many a martial artist of their Inner Strength.

His feet barely touching the ground, he soared upward, feeling as though his entire being was floating.

“Retreat!”

Upon spotting Li Xiaobai’s figure on the city tower, the Southern Barbarian Soldiers decisively fell back, with absolutely no intention of engaging in battle. They took to their heels, leaving nothing but scorched ruins behind.

Li Xiaobai was speechless; the fighting style of these Southern Barbarians was somewhat despicable.

Chen Yu’s complexion was far from pleasant. The direct breach of the city gate at one corner was an immense disgrace for a defender, intolerable yet inevitable. The people under his command were too weak—not only them, but he himself was also weak, beaten without the ability to fight back.

“Young Master Li, I didn’t expect someone so young to possess such a level of cultivation, single-handedly matching fifteen enemy veterans. You can already be called a peerless expert. At this rate, within ten years, the Central Plains will give birth to a high-ranking expert in the Void Merging Realm!”

“Now that the Southern Barbarians are closely watching for any weak points in our borders, we will probably need to trouble Young Master to remain here and oversee things for a while.”

Chen Yu spoke politely, his eyes constantly revealing a sense of astonishment. Clearly, he had not expected Li Xiaobai to have such strength. If Li Xiaobai were truly to step into the Void Merging Realm, perhaps not even the Grand Emperor would be able to control him, right?

“General Chen is too kind. The Void Merging Realm is an incredibly profound and unfathomable state. How could someone as junior as myself hope to grasp it? Besides, I only have the first half of the Cultivation Technique; I haven’t found the second half yet. For now, I can only focus on strengthening myself.”

“As for defending the borders, it’s also what I should do.”

Li Xiaobai replied humbly as well.

In the recent confrontation with the enemy general, he had absorbed quite a few benefits. A few more battles like that would be enough to reach the state of ‘God-Man Unsleeping,’ where the Divine Soul overlooks the Mortal Flesh, and then he could step into the Void Merging and become a true powerhouse.

“As the saying goes, with great power comes great responsibility. Young Master Li understands this profound principle; I admire that in my heart. In the days to come, I’ll have to ask Young Master Li to put in even more effort.”

Chen Yu bowed with his hands clasped, a hint of irony flashing across his eyes.

At this moment, his heart contained only four words: dispose of the worn-out donkey after its service.

He wanted to squeeze every last drop of value out of Li Xiaobai before letting him be crushed by the boundless rage and regret under the Grand Emperor’s grip.

…

Time passed swiftly, and in the blink of an eye, several months had flown by.

Under the guidance of Li Xiaobai, the two hundred thousand soldiers stationed at the border had thoroughly mastered the most basic Spirit Realm Technique, capable of absorbing others’ Inner Strength and using it as their own.

During that period, he repeatedly fought bloody battles with Southern Barbarian Generals, participating in dozens of large and small skirmishes where he alone kept more than a hundred thousand Southern Barbarian troops at bay. He sustained serious injuries countless times, but the benefits he reaped were also immense. Over the course of several months, he had absorbed the inner strength from nearly a million people, boosting his power substantially and smoothly stepping into the Void Merging Realm.

Everything, however, transformed quietly in the dark, noticed by none.

Chen Yu kept sending captives to be drained by the soldiers, and the number of martial artists who had successfully advanced to the Spirit Refining Realm had already broken through ten thousand—a situation unimaginable for the once small troop.

“Many thanks to Young Master Li for the assistance over these past few months, my frontier soldiers are now fully prepared, and we can completely crush the Southern Barbarian Soldiers!”

“Build high walls, stockpile grain, ascend slowly to kingship; the victor becomes king, the loser the outlaw, all decided today!”

“Drive the Southern Barbarians back, kill!”

At Chen Yu’s command, an army of two hundred thousand surged forth, the number of martial artists who had broken through to the Spirit Refining Realm skyrocketing by ten thousand. If they could not defeat the Southern Barbarian Soldiers now, he truly could commit suicide out of guilt.

Witnessing the majestic momentum of the army below, Li Xiaobai nodded. The increase in their strength and cultivation level had given these soldiers tremendous confidence. With those ten thousand Spirit Refining Realm martial artists at the forefront, even the soldiers who lacked the will to fight were now daring enough to charge into battle.

His figure flickered as he swooped down. With a light tap of his feet, Li Xiaobai, as before, charged directly into the Southern Barbarians’ camp, shaking mountains and rivers with his fists, causing fifteen veteran generals to retreat in defeat.

Having their inner strength and Primordial Spirit Power drained multiple times had left them weakened and listless. Faced with Li Xiaobai, who had stepped into a brand new realm, they didn’t have the slightest ability to fight back. In one encounter, their inner strength was sapped, leaving them to collapse, powerlessly watching as the Southern Barbarian Soldiers were drained into husks.

“This…”

“You can convert the absorbed inner strength to your own use?”

“This is the true secret behind your endless supply of inner strength!”

The leading general felt unwilling to concede. In just a few months, the enemy had gone from being their equal to a towering presence far beyond their reach—the gap was too shocking.

It was unfortunate that their realization came too late. Li Xiaobai had already reaped the fruits of his cultivation through their actions, no longer needing them.

“Indeed, I respect you for being true men; compared with these frontier folks, you are the real martial artists, full of blood and spirit!”

Li Xiaobai nodded in agreement, saying there was no right or wrong on the battlefield. However, judging purely on the qualities of being a martial artist, the Southern Barbarians had more dignity and pride, blazing like a ferocious sun. In contrast, the People of the Central Plains were tainted by a decadent culture, descending into senescence.

But soon, the Chen Family would overthrow the Imperial Court and establish a new king. By then, everything should change dramatically, with a new era, untainted and fresh, on the horizon.

“Hurry, kill them!”

“These cannot be left alive!”

Seeing Li Xiaobai chatting leisurely with the local generals without taking immediate action, Chen Yu grew anxious. Strike the enemy when he’s down; now was the prime opportunity to execute the fifteen pillars of the enemy’s strength, who had lost their fighting capability.

With their death, it would be equivalent to declaring their victory.

“Yes!”

A group of soldiers armed with long spears rushed forward, brushing past Li Xiaobai, and impaled the fifteen veteran generals through the heart.

Li Xiaobai’s face remained expressionless, his eyes cold. He realized his mistake; he should not have had any expectations for these frontier soldiers or for Chen Yu—despite their considerable advantage, they had not changed the fact that they were cowards at heart.

After confirming the death of the fifteen generals, the faces that couldn’t wait to express their tension, the faces filled with a sense of relief and smiles, all conveyed their cowardice to Li Xiaobai.

“Let’s hope the new king will get some real work done. This world is far too decayed.”