Chapter 50: The psychological barrier that must be overcome "Xu..." "Do you see this dilapidated village in front of us, shrouded in black fog?" "This is the destination of this actual combat training!" Zhang Xianzhong reined in his horse with one hand, and he stopped at the lead horse, turned around and shouted to the young man behind him. His tone was much more serious than yesterday, and he was obviously worried about whether there would be casualties in this actual combat training. Because the distance was not far, and we did not have to leave the original official road all the way, it was just that at the last leg of the journey, the main road turned into a small dirt road and we turned a corner. It took the team less than half an hour from the time they left the city to reach their destination. These young soldiers, who had just stopped their horses, hurriedly looked in the direction pointed by the Eighth King Zhang Xianzhong. What I saw was a small village in front of me, surrounded by a low wall, and it was serene.
There was no trace of anyone, nor could any sound be heard. Yes, there was not even any livestock or poultry to be seen, it was completely dead silent. In this small village, there was a faint black fog visible to the naked eye, as if a vague black veil was covering the entire village. Li Dingguo and his companions, who had just arrived, felt an inexplicable sense of desolation in their hearts and could not help feeling a chill down their spines. "You little guys, remember this: this faint black fog is a symbol of the area where evil spirits are lurking." Zhang Xianzhong went on to explain, "This black fog is also called Yin Qi. The thicker the black fog covers an area, the thicker the Yin Qi is." "The more yin energy there is in a region, the more evil spirits there are, and the more powerful they are." "Fortunately, the Yin energy here is not originally present in this village. It is formed after the evil spirits invaded and settled here. Because of their special characteristics, they attracted the scattered Yin energy within dozens of miles around this area." "Of course, there is a special kind of ghost place in this world, known as the forbidden area for flesh and blood creatures. It is difficult for ordinary people to see it." "From this thin shroud of Yin energy, an experienced warrior can tell that the ghosts lurking in it are only first-level evil spirits, and there are only one or two peak first-level evil spirits among them at most." "With your current cultivation level, and now that it is daytime, the evil spirits cannot exert their full strength. With full preparation, you have the strength to kill all the evil spirits here." His expression became more and more solemn. He looked at the silent faces in front of him and continued, "Ghosts below level 4 have not awakened their innate skills, and do not have those strange and unpredictable methods." "But from now on, if you encounter a Level 4 or higher level monster whose body is as real as a substance, you must be more careful." "That kind of weirdness is much more powerful than low-level evil spirits." "Human warriors of the same level would generally not be able to defeat such beings in a one-on-one situation." At this point, Zhang Xianzhong paused and continued, "I told you yesterday that the best way to deal with evil spirits, in addition to the bloody evil energy stimulated by the military formation, is for warriors to use their own blood and qi to disperse their souls and kill them completely." "After being killed, evil spirits will leave behind a soul bead, which is a good thing." "Soul beads of different grades can be used as the central energy source for various magic arrays. They can also be used to prepare different grades of nourishing soups, which have a very good auxiliary effect on improving the spiritual power of warriors." "The method of preparing the nourishing spirit soup is recorded in some miscellaneous books in the small library you usually go into. I'm sure many of you have read it."
"After you kill those low-level evil spirits, remember to collect the soul beads they drop. This will be used to count your achievements." "In the current Ming Dynasty, if soldiers fight against ghosts, soul beads are the only evidence used to calculate military merits, which are higher than the military merits of killing enemies in ordinary battles." "Alright, you guys start dismounting now and get ready for battle." "After an incense stick of time, form your formation and attack immediately!" As soon as Zhang Xianzhong finished speaking, Li Dingguo, Ai Nengqi and sixty-four other young warriors dismounted from their horses one by one. They first checked their weapons and equipment, and then, under the command of the four team leaders, they quickly lined up with serious faces and waited for orders. An incense stick of time passed quickly. Li Dingguo, Ai Nengqi and other four team leaders looked at each other and shouted in unison, "All team members, stimulate your own qi and blood power!" "March in four columns, and do not leave the team without permission!" "Those who disobey orders will be killed!" Yesterday, Zhang Xianzhong deliberately gave them targeted training, so they were not completely clueless about how to kill the evil spirits. Due to the particularity of this type of battle, and the fact that it is a group operation, the formation must be strictly maintained to avoid being taken advantage of by evil spirits. Therefore, strict military discipline is essential. Zhang Xianzhong has emphasized many times that military orders are as heavy as mountains. Once someone violates them, the commander must kill him on the spot without hesitation to avoid causing chaos in the military and bringing about irreparable consequences. If this happened to any army during a battle, the consequences would be disastrous. After a while, according to the plan that the teams had discussed yesterday, Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi acted as the spearhead, while Liu Wenxiu and Zhang Huier led twelve talented warriors to protect the two wings of the team. The remaining forty-eight young warriors lined up in the middle, arranged in four columns. Everything was ready. Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi, who were in the lead, waved their empty right hands forward without even turning their heads! Following the sound of orderly and light footsteps, this fledgling team of young men quietly moved towards the entrance of the small village ahead. Zhang Xianzhong himself, along with three of his trusted subordinates and a dozen soldiers from the logistics camp, stayed behind to wait. Even Zhang Xianzhong himself did not go to observe the battle situation this time. He knew very well that actual combat experience, especially this battle with evil spirits, would be of vital help to the future growth of these young warriors. It would be best if they could pass through victoriously. If there were serious casualties, it would be their bad luck. In this regard, even Zhang Xianzhong could not help them. Without passing this stage, this youth camp will never grow. Killing the enemy is secondary. The key is to let these young warriors overcome the fear in their hearts. If you cannot overcome the fear in your heart, you will not be able to become a decisive soldier, and your help to the rebel army in the future will be dispensable. Even if you have good martial arts skills, it's useless. Zhang Xianzhong stood where he was, watching this group of young soldiers marching with firm steps towards the entrance of the village about a mile ahead. Although he was a little worried in his heart, his eyes were determined. We can only hope that they have better luck and perform better on the spot. Especially the four people he had high hopes for: Li Dingguo, Ai Nengqi, Liu Wenxiu and Zhang Huier.
After this actual combat training is over, he can let them grow up on their own without having to continue to care for their growth like a wet nurse. Today may be the most important transformation in the lives of these young warriors. (End of this chapter)