Chapter 14: Fighting on First Sight
The Far Northern Border Fortress.
This fortress was the throat of the empire's northern border. On both sides of the fortress stood snow-capped mountains that never melted all year round, with steep cliffs that could only be crossed by flight, no other means could scale them.
The harsh climate of the far north led to a scarcity of resources. The people living in the far north could only survive by hunting. Generations of inherited customs had made the people of the far north fierce and rugged, with both men and women serving as soldiers.
The far north was originally within the empire's territory, but the empire's high taxes caused the far north to break away from imperial control.
The people of the far north, struggling on the edge of subsistence, could not bear such taxes. Rising up in rebellion was inevitable.
The empire, located in the most prosperous central region of the continent, could not tolerate this situation and sent a large army to suppress the far north.
In the empire's view, the far north was just a remote place. Sending out a few hundred thousand troops would easily crush it and also intimidate other foreign races.
But would the people of the far north, who lived by hunting year-round, be weak in combat? Of course not.
The empire's 200,000-strong army collapsed completely within a month. The war of 30,000 against 200,000 seemed absurd, but the far north achieved a great victory.
After this battle, a key figure emerged in the far north: Numa·Seka, known as the Prince of the Northern Foreign Races. Wielding a long spear, he had never been defeated. He was a totemic figure for the people of the far north and also the leader of the Northern Army.
Only 70,000 of the empire's 200,000 troops survived, with 130,000 forever left on this frozen land.
This was a loss the empire had not suffered in centuries. The empire's young, underage emperor was enraged, sending 500,000 troops and deploying the empire's trump card.
At this moment, the empire's 500,000 troops were stationed in the 'Far Northern Fortress,' but the situation was not as optimistic as imagined.
The imperial soldiers, accustomed to a warm climate, began to suffer casualties before the battle even started after arriving in the far north.
Severe frostbite and heavy colds were death-dealing reapers.
Although the empire's medical conditions were advanced, due to the incompetence of the rulers, they were not widespread. Only the empire's high-ranking officials could enjoy excellent medical treatment.
Because of the existence of Imperial Artifacts, the empire did not place much importance on thermal weapons. Thus, the current wars were still cold weapon clashes. Of course, this was also related to the inaction of the rulers.
In the view of the empire's high-ranking officials, soldiers were just pawns to be discarded after use. Issuing them with expensive thermal weapons was a very 'inappropriate' act.
Of the 500,000 troops who rushed to the far north, no more than 200,000 could effectively fight, and this number was decreasing over time.
On the city wall of the Far Northern Border Fortress, a group of soldiers in white winter clothing were on routine patrol.
"This damn place is freezing. When will we ever get to go back?"
A soldier tightened his winter coat, but no matter how thick the coat, it couldn't block the bitter wind of the far north.
"Hurry up and finish this patrol round, then go back and warm up. The entire city wall has been checked, no omissions."
Another soldier spoke. This was a squad of about a dozen people.
"There seems to be someone down below the fortress."
A soldier stood at the edge of the city wall, looking down.
"A foreign race from the far north?"
"The snow is too heavy, can't see clearly."
"Doesn't look like a foreign race. Have you ever seen a foreign race wearing a single layer of clothing? This guy hasn't frozen to death, so his strength shouldn't be weak. Call more people to investigate."
A few soldiers called out to the others and rushed towards the city gate, their steps orderly, their morale high. They dared not slack off because they had a very strict general.
The city gate opened, and dozens of soldiers wielding long weapons rushed out of the fortress.
"Who goes there!"
A soldier shouted loudly.
The wind and snow raged. In this freezing temperature, the newcomer wore a thin, single layer of clothing and exhaled a puff of white breath.
"I was wondering if the Far Northern Fortress is still recruiting. I'm a wandering traveler."
The newcomer had short black hair and a long sword at his waist. The long sword was not ornate, but it was clearly not an ordinary item.
The soldier's squad leader pondered for a few seconds.
"Arrest him first. He might be a spy for the Northern Army. It's wartime, we must not let our guard down."
The squad leader roared, and over a hundred soldiers swarmed forward, their feet crunching on the snow.
Su Xiao, surrounded, frowned. Reincarnation Paradise hadn't provided him with an identity this time, so he had to use the guise of a traveler.
Su Xiao had already thought of an identity that suited his temperament, but he would have to wait until he saw the leader of these soldiers.
"As expected, joining the empire's faction isn't so simple."
Dragon-Slaying Flash left its sheath. Su Xiao prepared to engage the imperial army.
"Wait!"
A female voice rang out. All the soldiers' movements abruptly stopped, their bodies instinctively straightening.
A figure in a white military uniform walked through the wind and snow. The uniform's style was somewhat special, exceptionally seductive. This was a tall woman with long blue hair cascading down her back to her waist. The strong wind blew her blue hair. In the freezing far north, this woman's attire was quite light. Judging by her outfit, she seemed to be a female general.
"What's going on?"
The female general's tone was not very good, as if she had encountered something unpleasant earlier.
"General Esdeath, your subordinate may have discovered a spy from the Northern Army."
The squad leader's demeanor was respectful, his head lowered.
"A spy?"
Esdeath sized up Su Xiao.
"Well... possibly. Your subordinate is only suspicious, after all, it's wartime."
The squad leader recounted the previous situation completely, without adding any personal emotion.
"You did nothing wrong. Although we recaptured the fortress, we cannot be careless."
"Thank you for the praise, General."
Receiving Esdeath's praise, the squad leader was overjoyed and respectfully stepped aside.
"So, how should I deal with this 'spy of the Northern Army'?"
Esdeath looked at Su Xiao with burning eyes and drew the thin sword at her waist.
"If I say I'm not a spy, you definitely won't believe me."
"Heh~."
Esdeath raised her sword and charged forward, her movements exceptionally swift.
Su Xiao's gaze sharpened. He raised Dragon-Slaying Flash and held it horizontally in front of him.
Clang.
Sparks flew high. The blade and thin sword clashed, and the falling snowflakes around them were scattered by the force.
"Interesting. You actually blocked it."
The corners of Esdeath's mouth curled up. There seemed to be icy flames burning in her eyes. This was a sadistic queen who became extremely excited when facing a strong enemy.
"So, can you block this?"
A row of ice blades appeared in front of Esdeath without warning. The ice blades elongated rapidly, stabbing towards Su Xiao.
At this moment, Su Xiao was locked in a weapon clash with Esdeath. These suddenly appearing ice blades were right in front of him in an instant.
Su Xiao's combat experience was extremely rich. The moment the ice blades appeared, he had already reacted.
He tilted his body, twisted Dragon-Slaying Flash in his hand, simultaneously blocking Esdeath's sword and using the blade to shatter the ice blades.
With a crackling sound, the ice blades shattered, and ice shards flew in all directions.
Su Xiao kicked up a large amount of snow to obscure Esdeath's vision, then followed up with a side kick aimed at Esdeath's waist.
Bang.
Su Xiao felt a numbness in his calf. His kick had landed on a layer of hard material.
Crack.
A large crack appeared in the ice wall beside Esdeath, causing her expression to change slightly.
"This strength..."
Esdeath's expression became even more excited. She craved fighting strong opponents, and now she had found one.
At that moment, a sharp blade broke through the snow. Its keen edge made Esdeath dare not underestimate it.
If struck by that, she would pay a considerable price, possibly even die.
After making this judgment in her mind, Esdeath raised a half-meter thick ice wall in front of her.
The ice wall rose, but Su Xiao's descending blade did not stop at all.
Clang.
The half-meter thick ice wall was cut straight through, but Esdeath had already taken the opportunity to retreat.
Esdeath clasped her hands together, and white light shimmered at her fingertips.
"White Ice Thorn Barrage."
Dozens of white ice spikes materialized around Esdeath, these spikes were exceptionally sharp.