Xiulan was no tactician but even she knew that something was off about the battlelines that had lined up on either side of the canal. Lijuan’s brother had brought perhaps a thousand cultivators of various sects not even bothering to bring any of the legions ostensibly available to the crown of the Blue Crane Kingdom.
They had all formed a lose cluster on the South Side of the canal. Their weapons were drawn but no clear leadership structure could be determined apart from their subservience to King Ye.
Xiulan had assumed that a military action would be far more organised but it seemed that with individual cultivators with their own egos the battle formation was more individualistic.
The man himself was bedecked in an absurd suit of steel armour. The armour was more of a showpiece than any real protection against any cultivator above foundation establishment. It was made from normal unenhanced steel. If Fu Jinjing had put it together then perhaps it would make sense as he could have infused his own qi into the metal.
On the north side of the canal was a far more orderly crowd of people. In total fifty thousand people had come to support the Princess. The vast majority of those people were first or second level qi gathering cultivators from the Combine or the other average citizenry.
Two thousand were comprised of the cultivators of the Golden Hand and Xiulan’s Guards. On average the cultivations levels of the much larger crowd were lower than the Capital cultivators on the other side.
Still, it had been two weeks since Lijuan’s crowning, and Xiulan had used the time productively. She had purchased a few combat techniques to close the gap. Xiulan herself was not a part of the crowd. Instead, she was standing further back. The plan was to eliminate people judiciously if the situation called for it.
Lijuan’s brother stepped forward and shouted across the channel, “very impressive sister. You managed to find some rabble to oppose me. Numbers only make a difference when the gaps in cultivation are not so large. I alone could tear through this mob of peasants like cutting wheat. I wonder how long their courage will last when the full might of the Capital bears down on them.”
Lijuan was decked out in a far more practical battle garment of fine chain links. Fu Jinjing had managed to craft the links to fine that the armour was behaved almost like cloth. It could also be infused with qi to strengthen it further. The armour was not in principle supposed to stop massive blunt force blows from an opponent with comparable strength. Rather it was designed to mitigate the damage of incidental arrows or weaker attacks by third parties.
The newly crown queen stepped forward and returned, “try it brother. I would stop you before you could challenge the people. I unlike you believe that a monarch should p[protect their people. How many of your ‘army’ even came willingly to this battle. We will win because we have something to fight for.
The King sneered and replied while flaring his level two golden core cultivation, “in front of strength all causes and reasons fade away.”
The King’s cultivation hit everyone assembled like a strong wind. The Golden core stage was a massive shift in the power of a cultivator. It would not be an overstatement to say that one cultivator at the first level of golden core stage could fight 100 energy storage cultivators.
The king looked smug when he noticed the visible effect his display had on the assembled company, but his face went red with fury when Lijuan responded by pushing back with her own first level golden core cultivation. She and Xiulan had broken through last night.
Lijuan’s qi did not feel as oppressive as her brother’s. Her qi felt comforting and buoyed the spirits of those on her side.
The King stuttered, “imposable. I was years ahead of you in cultivation. Your bodyguard was stronger than you when you left the capital. How could you have possibly reached the golden core stage. You much be taking some medicine to artistically raise your cultivation.”
Lijuan shrugged, “you always have been arrogant Ye. Believe whatever you want but this is not a fight that will go will for you.”
The king scoffed, “I am still your superior both in cultivation and skill.”
The Cultivators with the king seemed a little less certain now that they saw that there was a golden core cultivator on the other side.
Xiulan called out over the armies, “are you done trying to impress us all with your majesty oh grand king. I for one would like to get this battle over with sooner rather than later. Time is money.”
King ye looked like he was going to have a stroke he was so angry. He ignored Xiulan and continued to address his sister, “is that the whore you have taken up with? You truly have brought shame to the royal clan.”
While he was talking one of the cultivators from his side quickly made his way across to join the Princess. Closer inspection revealed that he wore the same sect robes as elder Xin.
King Ye gave the man a death stare and asked, “do you want me to eradicate the Thunder patriarch”
The man shrugged and said, “I have never known the old man to be wrong. If he thinks you will lose, then so do I. Good news for us too. I am pretty sure you were going to enslave us anyway. Nice to have another option.”
Ye looked like he was warming up to another rant, so Xiulan decided to start for him. She directed her parrot to begin with a whistle and the bird divebombed one of the King’s cultivator’s. The parrot ripped out the man’s throat and squawked in victory as it flew up and away. The two sides paused for a heartbeat and then all hell broke loose.
Xiulan was no tactician but even she knew that something was off about the battlelines that had lined up on either side of the canal. Lijuan’s brother had brought perhaps a thousand cultivators of various sects not even bothering to bring any of the legions ostensibly available to the crown of the Blue Crane Kingdom.
They had all formed a lose cluster on the South Side of the canal. Their weapons were drawn but no clear leadership structure could be determined apart from their subservience to King Ye.
Xiulan had assumed that a military action would be far more organised but it seemed that with individual cultivators with their own egos the battle formation was more individualistic.
The man himself was bedecked in an absurd suit of steel armour. The armour was more of a showpiece than any real protection against any cultivator above foundation establishment. It was made from normal unenhanced steel. If Fu Jinjing had put it together then perhaps it would make sense as he could have infused his own qi into the metal.
On the north side of the canal was a far more orderly crowd of people. In total fifty thousand people had come to support the Princess. The vast majority of those people were first or second level qi gathering cultivators from the Combine or the other average citizenry.
Two thousand were comprised of the cultivators of the Golden Hand and Xiulan’s Guards. On average the cultivations levels of the much larger crowd were lower than the Capital cultivators on the other side.
Still, it had been two weeks since Lijuan’s crowning, and Xiulan had used the time productively. She had purchased a few combat techniques to close the gap. Xiulan herself was not a part of the crowd. Instead, she was standing further back. The plan was to eliminate people judiciously if the situation called for it.
Lijuan’s brother stepped forward and shouted across the channel, “very impressive sister. You managed to find some rabble to oppose me. Numbers only make a difference when the gaps in cultivation are not so large. I alone could tear through this mob of peasants like cutting wheat. I wonder how long their courage will last when the full might of the Capital bears down on them.”
Lijuan was decked out in a far more practical battle garment of fine chain links. Fu Jinjing had managed to craft the links to fine that the armour was behaved almost like cloth. It could also be infused with qi to strengthen it further. The armour was not in principle supposed to stop massive blunt force blows from an opponent with comparable strength. Rather it was designed to mitigate the damage of incidental arrows or weaker attacks by third parties.
The newly crown queen stepped forward and returned, “try it brother. I would stop you before you could challenge the people. I unlike you believe that a monarch should p[protect their people. How many of your ‘army’ even came willingly to this battle. We will win because we have something to fight for.
The King sneered and replied while flaring his level two golden core cultivation, “in front of strength all causes and reasons fade away.”
The King’s cultivation hit everyone assembled like a strong wind. The Golden core stage was a massive shift in the power of a cultivator. It would not be an overstatement to say that one cultivator at the first level of golden core stage could fight 100 energy storage cultivators.
The king looked smug when he noticed the visible effect his display had on the assembled company, but his face went red with fury when Lijuan responded by pushing back with her own first level golden core cultivation. She and Xiulan had broken through last night.
Lijuan’s qi did not feel as oppressive as her brother’s. Her qi felt comforting and buoyed the spirits of those on her side.
The King stuttered, “imposable. I was years ahead of you in cultivation. Your bodyguard was stronger than you when you left the capital. How could you have possibly reached the golden core stage. You much be taking some medicine to artistically raise your cultivation.”
Lijuan shrugged, “you always have been arrogant Ye. Believe whatever you want but this is not a fight that will go will for you.”
The king scoffed, “I am still your superior both in cultivation and skill.”
The Cultivators with the king seemed a little less certain now that they saw that there was a golden core cultivator on the other side.
Xiulan called out over the armies, “are you done trying to impress us all with your majesty oh grand king. I for one would like to get this battle over with sooner rather than later. Time is money.”
King ye looked like he was going to have a stroke he was so angry. He ignored Xiulan and continued to address his sister, “is that the whore you have taken up with? You truly have brought shame to the royal clan.”
While he was talking one of the cultivators from his side quickly made his way across to join the Princess. Closer inspection revealed that he wore the same sect robes as elder Xin.
King Ye gave the man a death stare and asked, “do you want me to eradicate the Thunder patriarch”
The man shrugged and said, “I have never known the old man to be wrong. If he thinks you will lose, then so do I. Good news for us too. I am pretty sure you were going to enslave us anyway. Nice to have another option.”
Ye looked like he was warming up to another rant, so Xiulan decided to start for him. She directed her parrot to begin with a whistle and the bird divebombed one of the King’s cultivator’s. The parrot ripped out the man’s throat and squawked in victory as it flew up and away. The two sides paused for a heartbeat and then all hell broke loose.
