The Avalon Of Five Elements
Page 525Chapter 525: Xing Shan’s Target
Translator: Cynthia Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit
Xing Shan’s mount was an ardent flower night wolf which was as big as a hill and even taller than a horse. Its black hair was shiny like grease and the scarlet flower-pattern traces all over its body were beautiful and harmonious. Its ash-like eyes exuded a wolf’s perseverance and ferocity. It curled back its lips to reveal its sharp teeth every now and then.
It was more than just a mount; even on its own, its fighting capacity was already amazing.
The mounts of the men behind Xing Shan were all doughty ardent flower night wolves.
Xing Shan had been a butcher before blood refinement, but after being infected with blood poison, he showed a surprising gift and was noticed by the god priest in his area. That priest had recommended Xing Shan to the Beast Venom Temple for blood refinement and he soon broke the previous record.
Twelve times.
His record went unbroken for a very long period of time, until the Red Devil appeared and created a record of receiving blood refinement twenty-one times with one hundred and eight kinds of beasts’ blood. It had shocked everyone in Blood of God, including the Holy Emperor.
With such a record, the Red Devil, a poor wretch who’d had nothing, soon rose up and set up his own palace.
Xing Shan could not reach such a level, but going through blood refinement twelve times was enough to get him a seat among the top fighters of Blood of God. He didn’t continue further, as he felt he was close to collapse by the end of the twelfth blood refinement.
After the blood refinement at the Beast Venom Temple, he joined the combat divisions and was promoted due to his outstanding achievements.
At the beginning of God Nation’s establishment, the most important task the Holy Emperor gave to Ye Baiyi was to set up their system of combat divisions.
Ye Baiyi lived up to expectations. He created the combat division system and designed tactics according to the features of god elementalists. The massive combat division system currently in use was completely created by him.
The combat division system of Blood of God consisted of three parts: the Sacred Heart Division directly controlled by the Holy Emperor, the subordinate combat divisions attached to each palace, and the god blood combat divisions. The god blood combat divisions were the most important and mainly consisted of six god divisions: God Dragon, God Tiger, God Wolf, God Shaman, God Demon, and God Spirit.
Each god division had two direct subordinate combat divisions, all of which were collectively called the twelve blood divisions.
The system made up of six god divisions and twelve blood divisions seemed similar to the Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements, but were totally different in essence. It was Ye Baiyi’s understanding of war and the embodiment of his experience and wisdom.
The Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements were separate, but the blood divisions could be a strong supplement for the god divisions. Besides, each blood division had two beast camps as its reserves.
Due to this perfect layer system, the fighting capacity of the combat divisions were largely improved. Even if they encountered any loss, they could soon be supported and reinforced. The combat division system of the Avalon of Five Elements, however, lacked subordinate layers and reserves. Once the elite troops suffered severe losses, the division almost had to be rebuilt, as had been the case with the Sky Edge Division and the Infantry Division.
Each god division and blood division possessed five thousand people respectively, while a beast camp possessed ten thousand.
That was to say, a complete god division consisted of fifty thousand people.
The Holy Emperor placed great trust in Ye Baiyi. He not only dubbed him War God and built a War God Palace for him, but also granted him the power to lead the six god divisions.
Until the appearance of the Red Devil, when Ye Baiyi took the initiative to submit a request stating that he was overwhelmed with the responsibility and hoped to transfer three god divisions for the Red Devil to lead.
The Holy Emperor rejected his request.
This was because the Holy Emperor knew that Ye Baiyi was the head of the Icy Flames Division when he’d been with the Avalon of Five Elements, and was thus the one who best understood military organization in God Nation at that time. Red Devil, on the other hand, was far braver and stronger than the others, but it would take time to prove his military astuteness.
Ye Baiyi didn’t fail the Holy Emperor’s trust.
He executed a rotation system in the frontline, which meant the six god divisions would fight against enemies one by one in the battle to improve their fighting capacity.
That was how the Blood of God could be equipped with such a strong military force today.
Xing Shan joined the combat division when Ye Baiyi just began to set up the six combat divisions. He was strong and good at fighting, and soon won recognition from Ye Baiyi. With his accumulation of achievements in the battlefield, he became the division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division which was subordinate to God Wolf Division, and was regarded as a strong competitor for the next head of God Wolf Division.
Even though the ardent flower night wolf he was riding was running fast, Xing Shan’s body was steady and still. He was tall and strong, with a brutal-looking face. His eyes looked gloomy and frightening.
Zu Chun, the deputy head who was riding beside him, suddenly laughed and said, "Senior, you are so wise. I heard that Shi Xueman and Karakorum Polaris are both rare beauties…"
The obscene laughter gave rise to chaos among the others.
Xing Shan said indifferently, "You can do whatever you want to Karakorum Polaris, but I need Shi Xueman for my own use."
The others cheered, "Senior, you are so wise!"
As if hearing nothing, Xing Shan continued, "But let me make it clear first. If anyone hinders us, don't blame me for being merciless."
The others immediately became silent, as they knew that he really meant it.
Only a few including Zu Chun looked as if they were absorbed in thoughts. They were clearly aware that their division head was not just impulsive and violent as others thought. He was actually as cunning as a wolf.
Xing Shan did have his own intention, or he would not take the initiative to start the fight. His target was Shi Xueman.
Among all the targets, Shi Xueman was undoubtedly the most valuable one. The Judgment and Dread Divisions were too tough for him to deal with. He would never attempt a stupid thing like crushing a stone with an egg.
Neither the Infantry Division nor Sky Edge Division could be compared with Shi Xueman, the former successor of the Great Elder.
Moreover, her father just gave Sir Ye Baiyi a staggering blow. If he could capture Shi Xueman, he could gain not only fame, but also the admiration of the former members of the Icy Flames Division, who, Xing Shan clearly understood, had the closest ties to Lord Ye Baiyi. If he could build a connection with them, it would be helpful for his future promotions.
But he had to win the battle first.
Although he appeared to be scornful of Shi Xueman in the camp, he was only doing this to deceive the others. In fact, he did not underestimate Shi Xueman at all, but paid her great attention. He had carefully studied the reports of the survivors without any negligence.
The cooperation between the Sky Edge, Infantry, and Spear of Heavy Cloud Divisions was ingenious. Besides, they had more people than him.
Nevertheless, Xing Shan was confident with his Ardent Flower Division. They had been through many battles and were experienced enough.
Moreover, he had one advantage; no one knew that his target was only Shi Xueman.
He said coldly, "Order the soldiers to throw away their loads and march forward at the fastest speed!"
Zu Chun was surprised. "Are we starting our long-range raid so early?"
The long-range raid was a strategy that the Ardent Flower Blood Division was good at, as the ardent flower night wolves could run ten days and nights without stopping, but it was seldom used in actual combat because if they started too early, both the soldiers and wolves would become too tired. Plus, since no loads could be carried, they had to march forward without any burdens, which meant that once they encountered any accidents, they were likely to fall into a difficult situation due to a lack of supplies.
Xing Shan simply said, "Speed is the most important in a war."
Zu Chun was alerted and replied, "Got it!"
After Xing Shan’s orders were announced, the soldiers began to feed their wolves with blood crystals, and also loaded themselves with blood crystals. All the carriages were left aside and no one gave them a second glance. They were well-trained soldiers. Their faces looked indifferent, but their figures exuded a brave and agile aura.
Having completed preparations, the Ardent Flower Blood Division was silent. Even the wolves did not make a sound.
Xing Shan noticed the concerned look of Zu Chun, but he chose to ignore it.
This move was risky indeed, but Xing Shan knew that he must reach the battlefield and finish everything before the two horrifying combat divisions, Judgment and Dread, finally arrived. Otherwise, there would be no chance for him.
A ferocious look flickered in his eyes. He hit the wolf with his legs and said decisively, "Move!"
No one responded. Silence was flowing like a river.
…..
"Ahhhhhhh…"
The eardrum-piercing screams could be heard here and there in the Pinwheel Sword. Even those who tried their best to restrain themselves looked extremely pale. Their faces were twitching.
The ground was getting closer and closer at an amazing speed.
Closer and closer!
The screams suddenly became sharp and miserable as if there was a conductor commanding them.
Boom!
With a huge blare, everyone felt as if they were bumped by a running rhinoceros and their minds went totally blank. They plummeted down, but were fortunately suspended by strong and tough vines tied to their bodies. Unfortunately, the vines tied them so tightly that they almost cut into their flesh.
After some time, someone began to groan. Then, with incessant groans, people came to life one after another.
"Oh my god. Am I still alive?"
"I feel like I’m dying."
...
It was all dark except the light above their heads. It was like they were standing inside a dry well.
The Pinwheel Sword hadn’t been properly controlled just now. It plunged into the ground and rushed over dozens of meters before it stopped.
The strong impact left them dizzy. Everyone sat there, weak, limp, and unwilling to move at all. To protect them from possible dangers during the horrifying Pinwheel Sword’s training session, Ai Hui had specially wrapped them with the old vines.
This was "due to safety reasons", Ai Hui had said .
Clang, clang, clang.
High above their heads came the sound of an iron spoon hitting an iron basin. It sounded far away from them.
The absent-minded crowd seemed to wake up all of a sudden. Those who had closed their eyes to refresh their spirit suddenly opened them, as if they had been cheered up by some stimulant. The desperate look flickering in their eyes changed into the light of hope and desire. They untied the vines in a great hustle.
"Why is this so tight?"
"Oops! Who is stepping on me? Again!"
"Don’t even think that you can get ahead of me!"
...
Like agile apes, the crowd of people tried their best to climb up along the vertical Pinwheel Sword. Their faces looked savage and the scene was really spectacular.
In front of Lou Lan’s elemental soup, friendship and relationships meant nothing.
"You all worked very hard!"
Hearing Lou Lan’s vigorous voice, no one stopped their steps. They were like wolves with green light flickering in their eyes, rushing towards their dishes.
Ai Hui had already taken enough soup. He said slowly, "Take it easy. You can take your time."
He was totally ignored.
Gu Xuan was the last one who climbed up. He was in low spirits, as he’d been the sword operator just now.
Ai Hui called the person who flew the Pinwheel Sword the sword operator. A sword operator who failed to complete the whole flying process would be punished, and therefore, he didn’t get any elemental soup.
Ai Hui walked to Gu Xuan who was dejected and downhearted, patted him on the shoulder, and encouraged him, "Old Gu, come one. Try again next time!"