CHAPTER 605: CHAPTER 369 I’M USELESS TO YOU_2

Every word Yan Xiaobao spoke deeply shocked the experts. To them, their lives were of paramount importance. They were still striving to become truly supreme cultivators and hoped to break through the bottlenecks they had encountered. Training and reaching the pinnacle of power to become Saints, like their respected Lords, was their ultimate goal.

When they heard Yan Xiaobao’s words, their hearts trembled. The fact that they were willing to trade their lives deserved respect and was certainly something they had to acknowledge.

"If you want to survive, if you want to win this war for your Lords, then you must ensure that every group of five works together. Work collectively to maintain vitality while evading the army. We all hope to survive and cultivate after the war, but not everyone will. However, we can work together to reduce the number of casualties."

The initially reckless experts, who had been staring at Yan Xiaobao, started nodding their heads. Their hearts were filled with unwillingness and trampled dignity, but now they were filled with vigilance and anxiety. If the war was truly as dangerous as Yan Xiaobao described, it was clear they needed to alter their usual combat methods.

When they heard about the tactics the Siban Empire might employ, even the Saints listening felt fear. Waves of human soldiers could be resisted, but only up to a certain point. Utilizing martial power to kill many men might be a possible solution, but their attacks could only reach a limited number at once. Placing five Kings together to protect one another could indeed reduce their army’s casualties. Listening to Yan Xiaobao thus far, the experts finally began to understand why only Kings were elevated to become Great Marshals. This young man seemed to be a cultivator like everyone else, but he understood how an army thinks and operates, something the Emperor had to admit they themselves didn’t grasp.

After persuading the Emperor that the Five Nations Group must fight together to win this war, Yan Xiaobao no longer needed to deal with each King individually. They would be handled by the Emperor, most likely in a manner similar to how Yan Xiaobao had convinced him.

"Tomorrow, I want to address the entire army," Yan Xiaobao said. His voice resonated throughout the area, and everyone nodded in agreement. Unnoticed by all, the young man whom they once looked down upon was now an entity they revered. Upon reflecting, they couldn’t understand how this youth had changed their minds with just a few sentences, but his words made sense. They felt as though they had been reprimanded; their way of life had been shaken.

They realized their previous lifestyle was the cultivator’s way, but now their eyes had been opened. It was not the only path in life. The values they respected were not universal truths; others might assess things differently.

To them, despite being soldiers, they knew they weren’t being asked to permanently change their values but only to set them aside temporarily during the war. In this conflict, survival outweighed fair combat; if they wished to win, they had to embrace the lifestyle of ordinary soldiers. For their Lords, this was something they could do.

Seeing the change in the Emperor’s eyes, Yan Xiaobao felt satisfied. He nodded, smiled, and left the Emperor, heading to the room where he had been cultivating. Yan Xiaobao was ready for the next day; however, he was still excited and curious about how he would stand before forty thousand Kings and the Emperor.

Sitting in his room as the sky darkened and the moon rose, Yan Xiaobao sighed with emotion as he thought about how the Siban Empire was preparing for war. After achieving King-level, he was now allowed to leave the Divine Domain. Yet, although he longed to go to Sun City, the young man chose not to. Instead, he stayed to ensure the war proceeded as planned. He yearned to return, but he was even more eager to succeed in bringing this war to a victorious conclusion.

It had been a long time since he last saw his friends. That year, in the Shrine, and during the months spent in the Divine Domain, he had constantly been training. But when he finally achieved King-level, he did not head to the Capital as he had imagined. Instead, he was now occupied with planning a war, something he had never thought he would do.

The night passed like any other. The blue cloud enveloped the young man, enhancing Yan Xiaobao’s cultivation speed. Sitting under the moonlight, the young man refined his energy to the best of his ability. His eyes were closed, and he appeared like a handsome figure as if from a Master craftsman’s painting. Only upon careful observation could one see this handsome man breathing, proving he was a living being rather than a mere artwork.

Yan Xiaobao spent the rest of the night cultivating. When he woke, he prepared for the most significant day of his life—the day he would address the entire army for the first time. Ready, the young man left his room, only to find two Saints standing outside his door. Although both were Saints, he could tell that neither were Lords, and both seemed to possess power equivalent to Lan Feng but in a weakened state.

Yan Xiaobao was surprised to see the two Holy Name Experts at his doorstep. He became even more perplexed when the two Saints bowed deeply before him, and the first one spoke: "Lord Xu, we come from the Forest’s Shadow. Our task is to ensure you suffer no misfortune while preparing for the war. Do not worry, you will never notice our protection. We will not interfere with your daily life."

Upon hearing this, Yan Xiaobao was astonished but felt grateful to Wan Qiao, as he was certain it was she who had assigned the two Saints to take care of him. As for the Forest’s Shadow, Yan Xiaobao didn’t know what it was. He guessed it was a group of experts dedicated to protecting key figures.

When the two Saints vanished into thin air, a third shadow appeared, and all three disappeared without a trace, leaving the young man under the protection of two new experts.

Walking out of the castle, Yan Xiaobao felt a strange calm descend upon him. Maintaining tranquil eyes, he traversed the city and moved toward the outer regions.

As Yan Xiaobao walked through the city, he noticed a buzz of activity. The townspeople were energetic, with smiles and excitement on their faces. The children and their parents seemed comforted by the notion that the beasts would go to war; they felt assured that their living space would expand. They would be able to travel freely once again.

Though many beasts had always lived in the Divine Domain, many had heard stories from their grandparents, tales of a time when beasts roamed freely across the continent. Lives were spent in freedom, not restricted to a single Kingdom or confined to the forests. This hope gave the beasts dreams of living alongside humans again or at least being allowed to leave the Divine Domain. The guardians brought hope to the citizens.

Back in the Capital, Yan Xiaobao overheard various discussions surrounding him, truly understanding what Wan Qiao had meant. He had seen Wan Qiao and many experts yearning for freedom and more territory, but as Great Marshall, he knew winning this war wouldn’t be like a stroll in the park. Sighing, Yan Xiaobao was filled with complex emotions. He wanted to help the beasts achieve their dreams, to leave the Divine Domain once more; but to do so, he needed to succeed in the campaign. Although he had managed to convince the commanders of his army, persuading the forty thousand experts awaiting him was another challenge. Convincing them to set aside their morals and become soldiers, if only temporarily.

Snickering faintly, Yan Xiaobao decided that while this would indeed pose a problem, it wasn’t entirely his responsibility. His task for the day was to divide the army and assign which guards would be under the command of which experts. As for persuading the Kings and the Emperor that they needed to unite against the humans they were destined to encounter in this war, Yan Xiaobao decided this mission belonged to their commanders.

As he walked and thought simultaneously, Yan Xiaobao suddenly found himself at the city gates. He paused for a moment, closing his eyes to take a deep breath. When his eyes reopened, an expression of unparalleled determination emerged on his face. His back straightened, and he held his head high. Though he was merely a King-level expert, he was the only one who had engraved the "War Art" into his mind. He was the sole individual who had ever studied war and its strategies. He was the chosen one of all the Forest Kings. Even if his individual strength was weak, his mind was held in high regard, and two shadows lingered behind him. No matter what the future held, these two Holy Name Experts would protect him.

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