On the third day after her parents refused to drink water, the Spirit Maiden descended. She brought sweet rain, reviving the withered crops in the fields and saving the lives of their entire family.
So when Wang Dashan declared, “I would die for the Young Mentor,” his words were heartfelt and genuine, as pure as the drought-stricken land of Sancha that had seen no rain for half a year.
As his voice rang out, even the wind and rain seemed to pause for an instant, and the silence that followed grew even deeper.
That was because Yue Fuguang had just, by the same method, halted the wind and rain in this very place.
That she succeeded on her first try surprised even Yue Fuguang herself. She had simply wanted to test her abilities, and to her astonishment, it worked. Upon closer reflection, it seemed she hadn’t expended much energy at all.
The word “domain” flashed through her mind, but before she could dwell on it, the soldiers who had witnessed the sudden stillness of wind and rain in this small pocket of the world first stood in shock, then, just like Wang Dashan, began shouting at the top of their lungs: “I would die for the Mentor!”
“I would die for the Mentor!”
“Mentor, my name is Li Erniu, and I would die for you!”
The crowd’s faces darkened; many wanted to drag this Li Erniu, who had broken formation, out of the ranks.
Someone started kicking Li Erniu from behind, while others began blurting out their names. “My name is Zhao Dazhu, I would die for the Mentor!”
“Thank you, Mentor, for bringing rain to our hometown folks. I, Qian Youcai, would die for the Mentor!”
“I…” One after another, names and place names—all places Yue Fuguang had traveled to, passed through, and blessed with rain—filled her ears. Listening to their simple, unadorned words, she felt the same sincerity as those curling incense offerings and rustic expressions of gratitude.
Her mission seemed to have taken on a deeper meaning.
When the crowd finally fell silent again, Yue Fuguang’s voice remained as calm as before. “I have taken all your words to heart!”
She swept her gaze across the gathered soldiers, recalling the secret letter she had received from the emperor yesterday. The 150,000-strong army had already been secretly mobilized while Dayan and Nanyue were discussing a marriage alliance. War between the two kingdoms was imminent.
And when that time came, the land of Sancha would no longer be a place of peace. With Dayan and Nanyue at war, Beili and Xiqiang would not simply stand by.
Given the chance, they would surely come in for a bite, and Sancha, as tempting as a piece of fat, would be their first target.
These young soldiers, in the near future, would face their first true battle. “A great drought plagues the entire realm; only Dayan has rain. By now, Dayan must be seen as a fat target by others. Even if they have no opening, they will create one to take a bite.
You are Dayan’s first line of defense. As they say, ‘A thousand days to raise an army, one day to use it.’ The first battle here will fall to you!
Are you afraid?”
“No fear! No fear!”
“No fear! No fear!”
“Fight back!”
“Fight back!”
Yue Fuguang nodded. “Good. You are all fine sons of Dayan!”
A twelve-year-old girl, standing before soldiers who were at least seventeen or eighteen, praising them as fine sons like an elder—it might have looked odd to an outsider.
Yet neither the speaker nor the listeners found anything strange about it.
On the contrary, at her words “fine sons of Dayan,” the already ramrod-straight soldiers unconsciously straightened their backs even more.
War in the age of cold weapons was a meat grinder, and she couldn’t help but add a few words of advice. “I only hope you stay calm and train hard. As the saying goes, ‘Better to sweat more in peacetime than bleed more in battle.’”
“We will remember your teachings, Mentor! More sweat in training, less blood in battle!”
Yue Fuguang cast a look of approval at Wei Huaping. Truly, like father, like son—he had summarized it perfectly!
Wei Shouyi, watching his son standing at the very front of the ranks, resolute and steadfast, felt immense pride swelling in his heart as a father.
He and Shen Jian, along with the others, had also received the emperor’s secret letter about the impending war with Nanyue. They knew that Sancha would soon be coveted by Beili and Xiqiang because of the conflict, perhaps not through a full-scale war, but through constant skirmishes.
“Today, there’s an extra meal for the entire army. It’s on me!” After all, she had already performed enough ‘miracles’—adding one more, like ‘sleeves that hold the universe,’ wouldn’t matter.
“Thank you, Young Mentor!”
“Thank you, Young Mentor!”
The crowd cheered with excitement, but their formation remained orderly. Only then was Yue Fuguang completely satisfied.
Setting aside the actual combat effectiveness of this army, the discipline and bearing they displayed were clearly not something trained overnight just to impress her.
“Dismissed!” At her command, the soldiers filed out in an orderly fashion.
[Host, does this seem a little familiar?]
For a moment, Yue Fuguang felt dazed. “Mm.” A single word summed up all the complicated emotions churning inside her.
Yue Fuguang followed the others to the meeting hall.
“Zheng Feng, Wei Huaping, Bao Qianjun—you’ve all done very well.”
From the state of these soldiers, it was clear that Zheng Feng and Wei Huaping had put considerable effort into training and discipline.
And seeing that all ten thousand-plus men were strong and healthy, she knew her silver had been properly used by Bao Qianjun to feed the troops.
“And Second Brother, Wei Yan, Cai Bing, Huo Sui, Lin Huaijing…” She called them out one by one, and each named wore a look of delighted surprise.
“I would die for the Mentor!” Cai Bing shouted, sounding like a young hothead.
Huo Sui secretly reached behind his back and pinched Cai Bing’s arm. Always jumping the gun, stealing my lines—what am I supposed to say?
The two, who used to fight at every meeting and once nearly killed each other over a woman, had now become “booze buddies.”
“Just do your jobs well—no need to die for me.” Yue Fuguang smiled as she watched them pinch and nudge each other, wondering faintly if one day they might actually end up developing feelings for one another.
Well, never mind. She wouldn’t meddle in other people’s ‘relationships.’
“I am clear in rewards and punishments. Since you’ve done well, you’ll be rewarded!” She swept her hand across the large table before her, and in an instant, a dozen small wooden boxes appeared upon it.
The crowd accepted her ability to conjure objects out of thin air—well, “accepted” was generous.
Everyone’s eyes went wide and their jaws dropped in astonishment. If it weren’t for Yue Fuguang’s status and gender, Wei Yan and the most mischievous among them would have turned her upside down to search for the trick.
Right now, their eyes held not only wonder and reverence but also a blatant plea—do that again!
Yue Fuguang ignored their wordless, conflicted faces as they almost asked and then held back, while Yu Boming had already been pushed to the front by his companions.
Yu Boming: This is my sister’s secret; there’s no way I can ask for you!
“This one is for General Zheng Feng.” Starting with Zheng Feng, Yue Fuguang distributed the small boxes to everyone at the table.
[Master, what did you put in there?] the system asked, though it already knew.
Everyone had already noticed the shimmering, radiant orb in the Mentor’s hand. So this was the true form of the divine artifact?
No wonder it was called the World-Shattering Orb—just by its appearance alone, it was clearly extraordinary.
[Master, look at these people—their eyes are turning green staring at Little Bead. Are they coveting my body?]
The crowd: !!! Don’t come any closer! JPG