After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

In the eyes of the world, a martial arts master is someone who can kill several or even a dozen people with a single sword strike, and who seems to be able to enter an empty battlefield.

In fact, strong people need to consume internal energy to fight. Chen Futu's team, including himself and Ake, has five people above the Grandmaster level, and most of the others are innate or eighth or ninth grade. Such a team seems strong, but in reality, it is impossible for them to kill 20,000 soldiers, because everyone gets tired and their internal energy will be greatly consumed.

Assuming Ake goes all out and, with the help of others, can defeat these 20,000 men, the area is too close to a major town. If they cannot break through the battlefield in a short time, they will be surrounded on all sides, with no way out and no way to escape. In the end, only defeat and death will remain.

To take a recent example, there's Qiwen, the renowned Peach Blossom Sword, also known as the Peach Blossom Sword Saint. But even though he's incredibly powerful, when he went to assassinate generals of the Daqian army and scouts of the Northern Frontier army, he always resorted to sneak attacks, never daring to fight openly. Even when he went to the royal court to seek revenge, he would strike from the shadows, eventually taking important figures hostage and plundering a lot of money before safely leaving the grasslands.

Thinking of this, Chen Futu decisively ordered Hua Yu to escort the carriages and horses away first.

"Your Majesty, you should also evacuate quickly."

Dian Wei was worried that the king might be harmed.

Chen Futu calmly said, "My life is in the hands of Heaven. How could I possibly harm a mere Liu Bainian?"

"But……"

"My mind is made up, there is no need to say more."

Chen Futu interrupted Dian Wei, who, knowing Chen Futu's character, remained silent.

On the other side, the brothers Sun Wei and Sun Feng returned, accompanied by two generals.

Chen Futu asked, puzzled, "Didn't we tell you to leave?"

Sun Wei said in a deep voice, "Young Master Qin has shown us such great kindness that we have no way to repay it. How can we just stand by and watch you personally brave arrows and stones to act as bait and buy time?"

“You two brothers have the spirit of Sun Chengzong, so stay here and dampen Liu Bainian’s arrogance.”

Chen Futu wanted to test the two brothers' abilities. If they were capable, he could give them some attention and make proper arrangements for them when they returned. If they were not, it would be fine to let them pursue a literary career.

Ultimately, the foundation of this world largely comes from the system. In fact, Chen Futu sometimes couldn't help but feel anxious. What if the system suddenly went mad and took back the powerful generals? He would be left with nothing but helpless stares.

Therefore, reserving some foundation for this world is necessary; there's no harm in it.

As they pondered, a massive, dark army pressed forward.

Everyone immediately gripped their weapons.

Chen Futu not only didn't feel nervous, but actually seemed excited.

He hadn't fought in a long time, and his body was practically rusting.

Dian Wei grinned wildly, "Good timing! I haven't had a proper chance to enjoy myself since I advanced to Grandmaster. I can brag about it to my horse when I get back."

Azi admonished the Zhongnan Mountain disciples around her: "The battlefield is different from the martial world. You must always be wary of hidden swords, spears, and arrows. Remember not to let yourself be surrounded on all sides. You must cooperate with other disciples to fight together and try to conserve your true energy for a protracted battle. This way, you will have a greater chance of survival. This is also an opportunity for you to gain experience."

"I've noted it down."

The disciples of Zhongnan Mountain rarely venture into the world, and even less often engage in combat. Now, facing an army of 20,000 on the battlefield, it's like a young woman getting into her bridal sedan chair for the first time. It's impossible not to be nervous.

If they perform well in this battle, the King will surely think highly of Nanshan, instead of giving them preferential treatment because of the Master's relationship with him. Presumably, the Master will also feel honored at that time.

"Wind, wind, wind—"

The shouts of the Daqian soldiers were uniform and overwhelming, and the murderous aura was terrifying.

Chen Futu frowned slightly. "They really are elite troops. It seems Liu Bainian isn't as useless as the rumors say."

With the two sides no more than a hundred meters apart, a young general in black armor rode out on horseback. He scanned Chen Futu and his group and shouted, "Are you remnants of the Sun family?"

Chen Futu reined in his horse and stepped forward, saying, "We are just merchants traveling by; we never expected to encounter the elite of the Great Qian Dynasty."

"Stop with your empty talk. You are guards of the Sun family. Is this true?"

"Since the young general already knows, there's no need to ask. However, I see that the young general has an extraordinary bearing. May I ask your name?"

"I am Cui Zhengyu of Tianyang!"

The young general's roar was like a muffled thunderclap, his rolling aura carrying a dense bloodlust that pressed down upon them. Dian Wei's expression changed slightly, and he thought to himself, "Your Majesty, this kid is actually a Grandmaster!"

"Grandmaster..."

Chen Futu suddenly felt something was off. It seemed that as the system upgraded, the enemies he encountered were getting stronger and stronger. Not long ago, a saint was born, and now a young grandmaster had appeared. Judging from his demeanor, he was much stronger than Chu Jiang, who was just a half-baked genius with superhuman strength.

Sun Wei, who was standing to the side, exclaimed in surprise, "So it was him! I heard he was the little devil from Tianyang Academy."

"Tianyang Academy?"

Chen Futu's heart skipped a beat, and he subconsciously reached for his waist. Inside was the azure token that Zhou Qingzi had given him before leaving the Northern Frontier. It was said to be a token of Tianyang Academy. If he encountered any big trouble in the future, he could hand the token over to Shouyang Mountain, and Tianyang Academy would step in to solve the problem. He never expected to encounter a disciple of the academy on the battlefield.

"System, what is the background of Tianyang Academy? At first I didn't think much of it, but now it seems that this organization is pretty impressive."

The system has no comment.

"Tch, that same line again."

Chen Futu didn't expect to get any useful information out of the system, so he greeted Cui Zhengyu: "Young General, we have a history. I am also from Tianyang Academy. Why don't we find a place to sit down and have a chat?"

"Nonsense! If you were from the academy, why wouldn't I recognize you!"

Choi Jung-woo wasn't so easily fooled; he glared at him as if he wanted to devour him.

Chen Futu grinned and said, "How could you recognize everyone? I left Shouyang Mountain a long time ago, so you wouldn't recognize me."

"You dare to lie to me? I'll send you on your way!"

Cui Zhengyu had a fiery temper. He drew two iron whips from behind his back and charged forward on horseback, seemingly able to see through the special rules within the system.

Seeing this, Dian Wei went to meet them, and the first clash between the two peerless warriors was truly eye-opening.

Cui Zhengyu was young, but his strength was truly outrageous. He held his own against Dian Wei, and even shouted that he was having a great time while fighting. He swung his double whips, making Dian Wei's double halberds buzz.

Dian Wei gritted his teeth and said, "Boy, my young master is somewhat interested in you, which is why I took you under my wing. Don't be ungrateful."

“Big guy, you’re quite strong. You’re wasting your talents as a guard. Why don’t you come and work for me? At the very least, you can become a lieutenant general.”

"Hey, you've got a hard time with your grandpa Dian! Take this!"

Dian Wei rose up, his blood energy surging forth, and his halberd technique was unstoppable.

Cui Zhengyu laughed and said, "What a monster! I'm not afraid of you!"

He wasn't just tough; he continued to confront things head-on.

Chen Futu clicked his tongue in amazement. Dian Wei had at least used eight-tenths of his strength, yet this kid was still able to hold his own. He was truly a prodigy. It seemed that Tianyang Academy was no ordinary institution. But why were the academy's disciples in the Daqian army camp? Did the academy intend to uphold justice and oppose the Northern Frontier?

Thinking of this, Chen Futu's expression turned somewhat grim.