First Battlefield Commander! - Chapter 15
Chapter 15: Ancient Martial Arts
In combat, it's usually the participants who understand best, while bystanders are often confused. Only those actually on the field can immediately sense the changes in their opponent's attacks because they are closer and have the clearest view.
Ji Fangxiao moved quickly, leaving almost no openings, likely anticipating that Zhao Zhuoluo wouldn't strike a fatal blow. And his positioning was well-chosen, making it hard for others to notice.
Lian Sheng had seen many people like this in the army, witnessed all sorts of tactics, and knew exactly what they were thinking.
Wanting to win isn't wrong; everyone wants to win. For soldiers, their entire purpose is to win, because they have no path for retreat if they lose. However, refusing to accept defeat wasn't good.
People who refuse to accept defeat can't recognize their own shortcomings, and... they're an eyesore.
When Lian Sheng spoke, the surrounding people were still applauding. Her voice wasn't loud, and they thought they had misheard. Ji Fangxiao continued walking away.
Lian Sheng slowly rolled up her sleeves and said again, "I want to play too. Ji Fangxiao."
This time, she named him specifically and spoke clearly. The scene quieted slightly, leaving only whispers as everyone's gaze shifted between the two.
Zhao Zhuoluo stopped in his tracks, looking at her with surprise. Instructor Fu, who had been standing at the back of the crowd, quickly walked forward.
Instructor Fu asked, "What? You want a points exchange match with a fourth-year command student?"
"No, just me personally." Lian Sheng extended a hand towards Ji Fangxiao. "How about it?"
Ji Fangxiao turned back and said, "I don't compete against girls."
Lian Sheng immediately turned her head and shouted, "Instructor, he's discriminating against girls."
Instructor Fu: "..."
People nearby booed impolitely, teasing her.
"Don't be like that, little sister, don't bully your senior."
"Ji Fangxiao is already bad with words, don't ruin his chances of finding a girlfriend."
"Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh! Brother Ji happens to be single."
"Eh—? No way? Little sisters play these kinds of tricks now? Let me tell you, Brother Ji likes gentle girls!"
"Can't afford to find love, slipping away, slipping away!"
Several instructors clapped their hands and ordered, "Quiet, quiet!"
Ji Fangxiao smiled, "I can't accept such a heavy accusation. But since you invited me, I should have the right to refuse, right?"
"Of course. But I believe I was second place just now. Since I'm inviting you as the second-place finisher in the exercise, what reason do you have to refuse me?" Lian Sheng said. "I don't accept 'being a girl' as a reason. On the battlefield, if you encountered female soldiers, would you *really* pull the 'I don't fight girls' excuse? If you wouldn't, then it's just an excuse."
Ji Fangxiao frowned slightly, a little displeased.
Instructor Fu stepped forward, hands on his hips, and said, "Are you serious? A points exchange match isn't a joke."
Lian Sheng: "Of course, I'm serious. Otherwise, am I just trying to get some attention?"
Ji Fangxiao looked her up and down. She really didn't seem like much, and he felt she was purely trying to join the fun. "I don't hold back."
Lian Sheng: "Neither do I."
Someone in the crowd shouted loudly, "Accept her challenge! Otherwise, people will really look down on you!"
"Fight, fight, fight!"
Lian Sheng curled her lip. "Hmm? A guy? Can you afford to lose?"
Ji Fangxiao: "Alright."
"Since you've agreed, let's make it bigger." Lian Sheng spread her hands. "One point per match is boring. I can bet all my points."
Ji Fangxiao stated flatly, "No."
Lian Sheng shrugged. "Why not? My points are decent."
"Because the rules don't allow it. The maximum bet per match is ten points." Instructor Fu stepped out, frowning. "Lian Sheng, stop joking around."
Was she eager to give away points? Huh? Was she into this kind of domineering CEO playstyle?
Lian Sheng was somewhat disappointed. But it made sense; if points could be transferred like this, why would things need to be so complicated?
Ji Fangxiao walked back to the center of the field and asked gentlemanly, "Any other conditions?"
Lian Sheng: "Let me clarify first, I won't stop until I hit someone. And I won't stop until I'm knocked down. So, don't think about exploiting openings, and don't try to explain the result later by claiming you held back. Since it's a competition, I only accept a straightforward process and an absolute result."
Instructor Fu cleared his throat.
Who was Ji Fangxiao? Even if he hadn't entered the Command Department, he was practically the top fighter in the Individual Combat Department. If he really landed a solid punch on Lian Sheng, this girl would probably lose half her life.
This condition sounded a bit willful because Ji Fangxiao couldn't possibly strike a classmate heavily, especially a "delicate" female student, but Lian Sheng seemed like she would. Judging by her tone and eyes, there wasn't a hint of mercy.
Ji Fangxiao knew he was at a disadvantage and sensed Lian Sheng seemed to be hinting at something. His expression remained unchanged as he simply said coolly, "Okay."
"The match cannot be stopped midway. Surrender without injury is also not accepted." Lian Sheng pointed to the ground. "Whoever falls first, loses."
Ji Fangxiao nodded.
Instructor Fu walked a circle between them, hands behind his back, frowning deeply as he looked at the two. Finally, another instructor pulled him away, criticizing, "What are you doing? Don't discourage the students' enthusiasm."
Instructor Fu and Ji Fangxiao's supervising instructor stood opposite each other on either side of the field as referees for the exchange match. Several other instructors who were watching the excitement also gathered around, waiting for them to start.
An instructor whispered, "Your platoon has some hidden talents, huh? This skilled? What did she study?"
Someone whose physical fitness ranked last in the platoon, arguably last in the entire company, was actually this bold. Instructor Fu said, "Studied what? Seems like materials?"
That instructor was surprised. "But she looks very confident."
Instructor Fu himself wanted to know where Lian Sheng got her confidence from.
The onlookers could no longer contain their excitement. Was this... an internal duel within the Command Department?
This year's Command Department was truly remarkable. They had swept the top two spots in the first combat exercise, and now the top three were engaging in personal duels. Although Lian Sheng was the most surprising and least conspicuous, she turned out to be the most arrogant among them.
Very interesting!
Lian Sheng stretched her neck and retreated to the edge. Her muscles were still very sore, but she believed Ji Fangxiao couldn't be much better off, considering his activity level far exceeded hers.
She cupped her fist towards her opponent as a sign of respect, then settled into a horse stance and nodded.
Her movements were strange, somewhat resembling stances from ancient martial arts. However, the military typically taught quick enemy-subduing Sanda. Basic training involved some military boxing, and more complex techniques involved other fighting styles. In any case, it wouldn't look like this.
Much of Chinese ancient martial arts had been lost by now, leaving only some empty forms. After all, many ancient martial arts required rigorous training from childhood and considered innate talent. How many parents would be willing?
With fewer people paying attention and fewer learning, how could it grow?
Although they had many variations and schools, later generations lacked the skill to bring out their practical combat effectiveness. After the Alliance merged, they became even weaker. More and more people believed they were merely fantasies derived from the popular martial arts novels of ancient China years ago. Thus, they slowly declined.
For many years, perhaps since he was born, he had never seen anyone use ancient martial arts in a formal setting.
Ji Fangxiao frowned, glanced at her again, and lowered his eyes to think for a moment.
Was she joking?
But since she had initiated the invitation, he wouldn't be polite either.
Ji Fangxiao rushed forward, throwing a tentative punch towards Lian Sheng's face.
His punch wasn't forceful, nor was it fast; clearly, he didn't take Lian Sheng seriously. After all, a person's physique doesn't lie. If Lian Sheng couldn't even dodge this, it really wasn't his fault.
However, to the onlookers, this speed still seemed quite fast. Look, Lian Sheng was still standing there blankly.
Instructor Fu's eyebrows shot up, his heart leaping into his throat in fright. Why wasn't Lian Sheng moving?!
Lian Sheng remained expressionless, her eyes showing neither fear nor killing intent. Finally, just as the opponent was about to hit her, she raised her hand.
One hand blocked in front of her face, while the other slid along Ji Fangxiao's arm, then turned horizontally, chopping at the inside of his elbow and pushing outwards.
Ji Fangxiao didn't feel much force, and in his eyes, Lian Sheng's movements were indeed slow and gentle, but his arm suddenly lost strength and bent on its own.
Ji Fangxiao turned his head slightly; Lian Sheng had already taken the opportunity to escape, re-establishing distance between them.
The crowd booed and jeered: "Ooh—!"
"Hey, hey, hey! Why are you running?"
"Senior, stop showing mercy! What the heck was that just now!"
One person mimicked Lian Sheng in a high-pitched voice: "Chase me, chase me, come and chase me."
Lian Sheng tilted her head, lifted her chin, and glanced sideways, looking much fiercer than before, her entire face written with displeasure. That student immediately shut up.
This exchange was simply baffling. Ji Fangxiao shook his hand and went after her again.
However, it was the same as before. Lian Sheng didn't get entangled with him, disengaging after each exchange. Punches landing on her felt like hitting cotton, softly bouncing back. It was incredibly strange.
Outsiders thought he was playing around with Lian Sheng, but he knew he wasn't. Who had the leisure for that? He subsequently increased his force, getting serious and launching consecutive moves. Lian Sheng continued to dismantle, push, block, and retreat calmly and methodically.
The two engaged in a chase battle across the field, unable to reach a conclusion for a long time.
As time went on, the onlookers started to stir.
They realized it wasn't that Ji Fangxiao was holding back; he genuinely couldn't do anything to Lian Sheng. Lian Sheng seemed determined to only defend and not attack, slowly wearing him down.
Her strange, peculiar stances and soft, seemingly weak movements were incomprehensible to them. What did it resemble? The ancient martial arts concept of using minimal force to deflect great strength?
Now, everyone found it hard to sit still. They stopped watching Ji Fangxiao for entertainment and instead focused entirely on Lian Sheng, trying to figure it out.
Instructor Fu frowned and couldn't help taking a step forward.
Lian Sheng's fighting style was indeed miraculous, but she couldn't afford any mistakes. One slip-up, and Ji Fangxiao would surely end the fight decisively. Continuing this entanglement was also extremely draining physically. In terms of stamina, Lian Sheng definitely couldn't compare to Ji Fangxiao; she should know this herself. So what exactly was she trying to do now?
Although he hoped for it, he really didn't think Lian Sheng could win. Just lasting this long was already unexpected. When Lian Sheng first joined the team, her movements were stiff. These past few days, she had loosened up and become much more flexible. But it still wasn't enough; defeat was only a matter of time.
Defense alone was useless; victory still required offense.
The more Instructor Fu watched, the more anxious he became, tapping his fingers behind his back, completely absorbed.
"Sharp eyes! Stay focused!"
Instructor Fu was engrossed when the sudden shout startled him, making him jump. Turning his head, he realized the crowd of onlookers had grown significantly. There were at least several hundred people spread out far and wide.
Fang Jianchen was sitting with Zhao Zhuoluo. He seemed quite forgiving, cheering for the freshman who had sniped him right at the start.
Instructor Fu pointed to the front and introduced, "Her name is Lian Sheng, a third-year Command Department student."
Fang Jianchen's mouth dropped open as he nodded. "Oh~! Understood! Lian Sheng! Take him down!"
Meng Jiangwu paused for a second, then also started shouting, "Lian Sheng, go!"
They were from the same platoon; how could they not cheer?
A girl fighting like this, how could they not cheer for her?
Thus, shouts of Lian Sheng's name echoed from all sides, cheering her on.
The constant noise reverberating in his ears made Ji Fangxiao increasingly irritated. He clenched his jaw, looking down at Lian Sheng.
Was Lian Sheng skilled? He had to admit it now, extremely skilled. Skilled in a way that shattered his worldview.
What suppressed him was timing.
If Lian Sheng had acted a second slower, his attack would have already formed. If she acted too quickly, he would change his move. Either way, he wouldn't give Lian Sheng another chance to stall. But she grasped the timing too perfectly, managing to hold on.
This precision felt more like an instinct. But without an absolute foundation of experience, how could such an instinct exist?
This realization made him understand there was some indescribable gap between them. Lian Sheng was an even tougher opponent than Zhao Zhuoluo.
Against someone like this, you simply couldn't break down their moves or counter them, because all her actions were reactions specifically targeting you. If you didn't move, she could just stall with you. She could tirelessly annoy you. He believed no man would enjoy fighting such an irritating match.
Ji Fangxiao finally understood the purpose of the conditions Lian Sheng had set at the beginning. The match cannot be stopped midway. Surrender without injury is also not accepted.
Every minute on the field, he hated it immensely. Yet, he couldn't surrender.
...How could such an annoying person exist in this world?
However, it was just useless effort. Ji Fangxiao hardened his resolve.
End this quickly!
Ji Fangxiao kicked forward, then smoothly turned and followed up with a punch. Lian Sheng slapped his hand aside. Ji Fangxiao, having adapted to her push-pull tactics, threw an upward hook with his right hand towards her chin. But she leaned back, nimbly dodging it.
Ji Fangxiao's mouth fell slightly open in surprise, his gaze shifting to his own hands and feet. He moved away from Lian Sheng and began to calmly analyze the situation.
Slow.
His moves were slow.
He had clearly used seventy to eighty percent of his strength, but the execution felt far less smooth than usual. Perhaps it was because he had been running all day and hadn't slept for over thirty hours, so his stamina had decreased...
But the change was too obvious; that clearly wasn't it.
His limbs felt weak and unresponsive, starting to disobey his commands at some point. He touched the joints that had been frequently hit; he could feel a slight stinging pain there, but mostly numbness.
He hadn't paid attention before, but now he realized he might have fallen into her trap.
What was it? Lian Sheng seemed highly skilled in ancient martial arts. What aspect of ancient martial arts could achieve this?
Could it be acupoint striking? Acupoints are located where nerve endings are dense; frequent hits weren't impossible, but being frequently hit itself should be impossible.
Everyone's physique is different, bone lengths vary, and with clothes on, it's hard to see through at a glance. Hitting an opponent's acupoints while they are moving should be even more impossible. Was it more precise than machinery?
How could something only joked about be possible?
This thought flashed through Ji Fangxiao's mind; he vaguely felt it might be the truth, but immediately dismissed it.
Nonsense, right?
Lian Sheng saw his rapidly changing expression and guessed some of his thoughts, but smiled without speaking.
Eyesight doesn't equate to visual acuity. Just like many master archers might not see things clearly up close but can hit a target dozens of meters away just by raising their hand. It relies on that uncanny feeling.
Lian Sheng hadn't reached that level yet and couldn't accurately target subtle and complex acupoints by sight alone. But after touching them firsthand, she could definitely confirm their location. Ji Fangxiao hadn't taken her seriously at the start, which gave her plenty of opportunities.
Dragging this out wouldn't benefit her, nor would it benefit Ji Fangxiao.
Their back-and-forth exchanges made time fly. Instructor Fu pulled out his optical computer and checked the time. This exchange match had already lasted nearly half an hour.
If it continued, he decided he would forcibly stop it. Both showed clear signs of fatigue; they needed rest.
If it happened once or twice, it might just be peculiar. But after nearly half an hour of continuous offense and defense, Lian Sheng remained unharmed, even seemingly at ease, which inevitably made people ponder.
It was as if the opponent's attacks, no matter how fierce, would automatically slow down upon reaching her, constantly repeating the same outcome.
Judging by Ji Fangxiao's expression – frowning, features contorted – he had already forgotten to maintain his usual composure. Although Lian Sheng hadn't attacked, her soft-yet-sharp techniques had completely trapped him in a bitter struggle.
Ji Fangxiao's movements were now clearly distorted. His strength and posture couldn't compare to the beginning. It was evident he had been worn down more severely.
What exactly was ancient martial arts?
Lian Sheng noticed the instructor checking the time and knew it was about time.
The two finally stopped the pattern of attack and retreat; they faced each other directly.
When everyone realized this, they gasped sharply. Even Ji Fangxiao was startled.
Lian Sheng closed in on him, positioning her body slightly to his left. She hooked his left leg with her foot, pulling it aside. Ji Fangxiao seized the opportunity, grabbing her right arm in return.
The crowd held their breath, feeling the outcome was decided. Lian Sheng's sweep had only slightly shifted Ji Fangxiao's leg; his stance was still very stable. And Lian Sheng, with her arm controlled, could hardly pull off any more tricks.
Instructor Fu's heart sank. As expected, this was it. The gap between them was simply too large. Brute force overcomes technique, and Lian Sheng was still so young; how much skill could she possess?
However, Lian Sheng's captured right hand hooked directly, pulling forcefully in the direction he was pulling her, while her left hand pressed down on his shoulder. Pushing off with her foot, she lunged towards him.
Caught off guard, Ji Fangxiao struggled to maintain his balance and fell straight towards the ground. As he fell backward, he didn't let go, forcefully throwing Lian Sheng aside.
Lian Sheng used her knee and hand to brace herself, softening the impact and turning her body to land in a seated position, while Ji Fangxiao's back hit the ground firmly.
Judging by the result, he had lost.
Ji Fangxiao lay on the ground for a moment, staring at the sky above, unable to regain his senses for a long time.
The scene fell silent for a moment, then erupted into thunderous applause.
Ji Fangxiao actually lost? Lost to the seemingly frail Lian Sheng?!
There was surprise, delight, but perhaps mostly confusion.
They had watched the entire thing with their own eyes, yet recalling it carefully, they still couldn't understand from which move, which technique, Lian Sheng had gained the upper hand. Clearly, from start to finish, she had only been defending. Clearly, her muscles weren't strong enough to repeatedly block Ji Fangxiao's attacks. Clearly, someone with that level of skill shouldn't have such a physique. Clearly, Ji Fangxiao shouldn't have weakened so quickly... Yet, somehow, all of this had happened.
The instructors quickly stepped forward, helped both fighters up, and asked about their condition.
Ji Fangxiao waved his hand, indicating he was fine. His feelings were complicated at the moment. Forcing himself to calm down, he walked up to Lian Sheng, extended his hand, and said, "Very impressive. I've never seen those techniques before."
Lian Sheng was rubbing her arm. Ji Fangxiao's desperate grab hadn't held back, and waves of pain were now hitting her.
Ji Fangxiao followed her gaze and was about to apologize when Lian Sheng extended her hand, shook his briefly without saying anything, and retracted it.
Meng Jiangwu and the others applauded enthusiastically, congratulating her. Several instructors clicked their tongues in amazement.
Regardless, Lian Sheng was definitely worthy of admiration. Just grinding down her opponent on the field for half an hour until they broke, while emerging unscathed herself, was impressive enough.
Fang Jianchen slapped Zhao Zhuoluo on the back, laughing heartily, utterly satisfied.
Zhao Zhuoluo lost to Ji Fangxiao, and Ji Fangxiao was defeated by Lian Sheng, which meant Zhao Zhuoluo was effectively defeated by Lian Sheng.
So they were brothers in misfortune!
Ji Fangxiao walked off the field, wanting only to leave this place as quickly as possible. Maintaining his composure, he greeted the crowd and left first. The crowd here also dispersed by more than half. People stood around in twos and threes, talking.
Lian Sheng sat back down in the front row to catch her breath.
The students who had gathered for the excitement weren't satisfied yet, raising their hands and shouting, "Another match! It's a rare opportunity!"
"Another match! Instructor, have a match!"
The crowd immediately got excited again. "Yeah, Instructor, have a match!"
Lu Mingyuan adjusted his pants and walked up.
A boy in the front row covered his mouth and exclaimed dramatically, "Wow—! Another one from the Command Department!"
The words "Command Department" seemed to inject the crowd with adrenaline, and they shouted loudly, "Command Department! Command Department!"
Instructor Fu was surprised. "You want to challenge an instructor?"
Lu Mingyuan shook his head. "No, no, no, I want to challenge Lian Sheng."
Instructor Fu looked at Lian Sheng disapprovingly. "She probably can't participate anymore."
"I can," Lian Sheng asked Lu Mingyuan, "Do you have a lot of points?"
Lu Mingyuan: "Me? Not many points from this exercise, but my total points are quite high."
Lian Sheng stood up again and walked to the center of the field. Seeing this, the students let out wolf howls, shouting her name.
Awesome, Lian Sheng!
Lu Mingyuan happily gestured, "Ten points, okay?"
Lian Sheng nodded in agreement.
Instructor Fu didn't know these two knew each other and felt Lian Sheng was being too reckless. His expression soured slightly, but he still stepped aside.
Lu Mingyuan's physical fitness was slightly better than Lian Sheng's, but they were roughly comparable. He just found it interesting and came up to join the fun, incidentally giving Lian Sheng some points.
The two faced off limply.
Lu Mingyuan walked up to her, assumed a defensive stance, and said, "You go first."
Lian Sheng: "..."
Lian Sheng lightly punched his ribs. Lu Mingyuan stumbled back several steps, eyes wide with exaggerated shock. "Wow—!"
The crowd asked nervously and excitedly, "How was it?!"
Lu Mingyuan said, "Never been hit by a girl before."
Crowd: "..."
A collective "Damn it!" echoed through the air.
If the atmosphere during Lian Sheng's fight with Ji Fangxiao was tense, then her duel with Lu Mingyuan now was a lighthearted, amusing game.
"Didn't expect you to be this kind of senior!"
"Lu Mingyuan, heavens, are you possessed!"
"Control yourself, Senior! Control your single-dog soul!"
"What the heck! Please be serious!"
Lian Sheng hadn't expected Lu Mingyuan to be so childish; he was clearly enjoying himself immensely now. He was very interested in the 'softness overcoming hardness' technique from earlier.
Lu Mingyuan said, "You don't need to be polite with me. Try hitting me with a real punch."
The previous hit was too light; he really didn't feel anything.
Lian Sheng: "Then feel free to attack. Haven't you learned boxing?"
He had definitely learned military boxing. Lu Mingyuan performed a set towards Lian Sheng.
Lian Sheng decided to satisfy his request. After exchanging a few moves, she tapped an acupoint on his abdomen with one finger.
A numbing, stinging sensation spread. Lu Mingyuan bent over, thoughtfully saying, "Oh... so it's like this."
Lian Sheng lifted her foot, casually swept, and knocked him down directly. Lu Mingyuan hadn't had enough fun yet and let out an unexpected "Ah!" as the instructor declared the match over.
Lu Mingyuan was greatly disappointed, rubbing his backside as he walked off the field.
Several others eagerly raised their hands, wanting to enter the field. Lian Sheng looked closely—oh, weren't they the buddies who helped her pick up bullets on the mountain? So she granted their requests.
Racking up points like this felt incredibly satisfying.
However, these individual points exchange matches had strict requirements. Participants had to be from different platoons and different grades. The same person could only be challenged once, and there was a limit of ten matches per day.
The remaining people eyed the last few slots intently, desperately raising their hands to sign up.
Instructor Fu asked Lian Sheng in the center, "How are you doing?"
Lian Sheng said, "Our Daoist philosophy teaches that reaching an extreme leads to decline, and being too full leads to loss. Nine times nine returns to one; it's best not to overdo things."
Instructor Fu: "What?"
Lian Sheng shook her hand. "My hand hurts a bit. I need to rest."
"..." Instructor Fu. "You can step down."
A large bruise had formed on Lian Sheng's hand. She rolled up her sleeve to look, then eventually went around to the medical point to have the doctor treat it.
The infirmary was currently full of students with bruises and injuries from falls and blows, but Lian Sheng's seemed more severe. She took some medicinal wine and sat aside, slowly massaging it.
A doctor walked past, then stopped, saying, "Heard you beat Ji Fangxiao? That impressive?"
Lian Sheng looked up. "What else did you hear?"
The doctor put his hands in his pockets and thought for a moment. "Fought for half an hour?"
Lian Sheng: "...That was me, yes."
The doctor said meaningfully, "Truly, you can't judge a book by its cover."
Because Lian Sheng's battle with Ji Fangxiao was so shocking, it made people forget Zhao Zhuoluo's earlier match. And Lian Sheng's victory seemed somewhat... hard to describe. The whole incident spread even wider.
In short, Lian Sheng became famous, in various senses.
In the military, there are two ways to establish prestige. One is through actual combat achievements, and the other is by challenging someone else's prestige.
The first obviously requires prerequisites. Trust needs to be built through long-term interaction. The second doesn't; it can happen anytime, anywhere, and yields quick results.
Therefore, in their military, they never shied away from duels between the strong. Strength speaks for itself, proving everything.
Ji Fangxiao's defeat was the same; she thanked him for contributing to her progress.
"Rest well. It won't be so easy later. In the Military Academy, points represent everything. Freshman, good luck," the doctor said. "And winning isn't necessarily always a good thing."
After applying the medicine, Lian Sheng placed the items back on the table, bowed to him, and turned to leave.
Lian Sheng took a nap during the noon break. After dinner, she went to the assembly point. Perhaps because the schedule had been compressed, they had a lot of free time, and tonight's arrangements were still relaxed. It involved instructors teaching students military songs, watching the points exchange matches between platoons, and listening to the instructors ramble about their youthful pasts.
The scene was harmonious, so harmonious that Lian Sheng questioned reality.
This exercise always had elements meant to confuse; even though Lian Sheng hadn't participated before, she deeply felt its peculiar nature.
Lian Sheng sat on the ground hugging her knees and turned her head to ask, "What's the schedule after this?"
Meng Jiangwu: "Huh? Schedule? Sleep?"
"..." Lian Sheng. "I mean the training schedule."
"Exercises. Training, then more exercises." Meng Jiangwu paused, finally gathering his thoughts, and rephrased his answer. "In a couple of days, there will be a team exercise against the instructors. Then, near the end, there will be the Red vs. White Faction Battle involving everyone."
Lian Sheng: "Team exercise against instructors?"
Meng Jiangwu: "Yes, similar to this individual exercise, but with more people. It should be team-based. But it changes a bit every year, hard to say for sure."
Meaning, they had to wait for specific instructions.
Ahead, Instructor Fu gave an order, and everyone stood up, running off to compete in singing against other platoons.
Lian Sheng didn't know a single song and severely dragged the whole team down, resulting in Instructor Fu singling her out to learn military songs on the side. Thus, her entire evening was spent like this.
Lian Sheng was greatly displeased.
What kind of nonsense was this? Criticizing General Lian over singing.
After that came showering, washing clothes, and resting for the night.
In the middle of the night, because she had napped sporadically during the day, Lian Sheng felt somewhat awake. Or rather, her body was still very tired, but her mind was alert.
She covered her eyes with her pillow, forcing herself to rest. Tossing and turning, she ended up being tormented by an insect that flew in.
Sitting up and rubbing her head, suddenly a sharp whistle pierced the night sky. The sound grew closer, accompanied by footsteps, finally stopping in front. Several other whistles echoed from afar, rising and falling.
There was a commotion beside Lian Sheng; others were also startled awake, still confused about the situation. Then a deep voice roared, "All personnel! Assemble immediately!"
Lian Sheng crawled out of the tent to check the situation and saw Instructor Fu, fully dressed, holding a flashlight, standing in the middle of the riverbank.
Instructor Fu urged, "Assemble within five minutes, or face punishment! Put on your uniforms, bring your blankets, grab your flashlights, and assemble rapidly! Move, move, move!"
Everyone scrambled back inside to put on clothes and fold blankets.
Instructor Fu walked to a tent that hadn't shown any movement, kicked it, and blew his whistle again. "What are you sleeping for? Get your ass up!"
The person inside finally crawled out a beat later, covering their face and asking, "What?"
Instructor Fu ignored him and walked to the front, waiting for everyone to assemble.
Lian Sheng took a while to find her flashlight, tied her quilt with rope, slung it over her back, and walked out.
Others followed one after another, forming ranks.
Instructor Fu checked the time and counted the personnel again. Fortunately, no one was late. Blowing his whistle, he commanded, "All personnel, left—turn! Forward—run!"
Lian Sheng, completely bewildered, followed him running up the mountain.
Running on a mountain path in the middle of the night carrying a blanket, although they chose a relatively flat main road, Lian Sheng still fell once because it was too dark. A few who were running half-asleep with their eyes closed were finally jolted awake by falls.
Instructor Fu watched from the side of the formation; ahead and behind were students just like them.
After jogging for an hour, Instructor Fu led them back around to the campsite, telling them to put down their blankets and go back to sleep.
Normally, there would have been complaints, but everyone was truly exhausted, immediately taking off their shoes and collapsing into their tents.
Lian Sheng suddenly realized they were quite considerate, even treating insomnia.
...This was simply insane!
The midnight jog seemed to reopen the curtain on the exercise, followed by intense, high-strength training.
Because much of the training involved multi-person cooperation, teams had to be formed. Although not as large-scale as hunting or combat exercises, they still accounted for a significant portion of the points. And most relied purely on physical fitness and stamina.
Many of the points Lian Sheng had earned previously were deducted because she couldn't complete tasks.
Activity teams weren't fixed; later, they began to be randomly shuffled.
First, there was reshuffling within classes, then across majors, and finally, a major mix-up across majors and grades.
The Alliance University's military simulation was precisely this kind of activity: broad participation, focusing on short-term coordination and adaptation. Therefore, opportunities like this were used to make them cooperate more. It also served to clarify everyone's roles, strengths, and specialties.
And members of the Military Command Department were the most despised existence in such exercise teams. If possible, they usually ended up teaming up internally. Thanks to the random mode, they had the chance to plague others.
Lian Sheng became the most brutal one.
People didn't know what expression to wear when facing her. After her moment of glory, they saw her absolute low point. All legends about her seemed to carry thick filters. Her performance always fluctuated between the very top and the very bottom.
Anyway, she was just an unfathomable legend!
After the adjustment period, they faced the second combat exercise: the Students vs. Instructors confrontation that Meng Jiangwu had mentioned.
Everyone assembled, and an instructor announced the rules for this exercise.
A total of eighty instructors from the camp would participate, including privates first class, privates, two sergeants, and technical soldiers assigned for logistics analysis.
Students and instructors followed the same rotation rule as the previous numbering system: the mountain would always maintain 300 students and 40 instructors. The activity would end when the number of students dropped below 200 or all instructors were eliminated.
Activities were conducted in four-person teams, and the team's total points became individual points earned.
Students still started with ten bullets; instructors started with thirty.
There were a few other interesting rules, which Lian Sheng silently mulled over.
After finishing the announcement, the instructor stepped back, allowing the Lieutenant to step forward.
The Lieutenant nodded and announced loudly, "As recognition, the students who placed in the top three in the previous individual exercise will receive a special privilege."
Lian Sheng looked up. She had a privilege?
Lieutenant: "Now, please have the three winners come on stage."
Lian Sheng stepped out of line, jogged up, and stood at the far left of the three.
The Lieutenant turned to them and said, "Now, you may each designate one student to be forcibly bound as a teammate in your four-person squad."
Lian Sheng's eyebrow twitched. This rule was also interesting.
Since they were the winners of the last competition—ignoring the variable that was Lian Sheng—if Zhao Zhuoluo and Ji Fangxiao wanted to choose teammates, most people should be scrambling for the chance. Mandatory binding was only needed for someone's fixed teammate.
In other words, they were meant to poach people.
Ji Fangxiao said without hesitation, "I choose Fang Jianchen."
A famously talkative sniper known far and wide.
In this terrain, snipers were highly advantageous, as the previous exercise had proven. Moreover, by choosing Fang Jianchen, Zhao Zhuoluo lost a solid backup, which would surely give him a headache.
Completely logical.
Fang Jianchen smoothed his hair and sighed. Why was he so popular?
Next was Zhao Zhuoluo. His face was dark, lips pressed together, clearly unhappy.
There were only two skilled snipers he knew of. One was Fang Jianchen, already chosen by Ji Fangxiao. The other was Lian Sheng, currently standing beside him, whom he couldn't choose.
Ji Fangxiao's side had no shortage of people; he had plenty of teammates he could pair up with arbitrarily. Choosing anyone from Ji Fangxiao's usual group was useless; they might even deliberately drag him down.
What else could he do?
Zhao Zhuoluo glanced at Lian Sheng and said, "I choose Meng Jiangwu."
Meng Jiangwu abruptly looked up. "...??"
What?
He... was chosen? And by Zhao Zhuoluo? He was momentarily overwhelmed with flattery, filled with an indescribable feeling. At the same time, he felt a bit guilty and ashamed.
The crowd below looked around, searching for Meng Jiangwu. They were curious about this player exchanged for Fang Jianchen using a precious binding opportunity. Why hadn't they heard of him? Was he a freshman?
Meng Jiangwu puffed out his chest, meeting the gazes of the crowd.
Lian Sheng: "..."
She tilted her head and raised an eyebrow at Zhao Zhuoluo.
What kind of game was this? Ji Fangxiao stole his person, so why did he have to come and steal hers? Mutual destruction shouldn't involve innocent bystanders like this.
Besides... Meng Jiangwu was just one of her randomly assigned teammates; they hadn't even coordinated much. Had Zhao Zhuoluo given up in desperation?
Lian Sheng turned her head slightly and asked in a low voice, "If I choose Cheng Ze from your team..."
Zhao Zhuoluo cut her off, "Then there's nothing I can do either. It's just the rules."
Lian Sheng: "Oh." Afraid he was going to cry.
Lian Sheng raised her hand and announced loudly, "I choose Lu Mingyuan."
The crowd was stunned again.
Lian Sheng's poor physical condition was common knowledge. Everyone thought she would choose someone physically strong to compensate for her weakness. Instead, she chose... a fellow sufferer?
Lu Mingyuan looked at Lian Sheng, his expression also quite blank. Lian Sheng raised her hand, tapped her shoulder towards him, giving a greeting.
Except for Ji Fangxiao, the choices of the other two were truly... incomprehensible.
Hehehe I love this story! So fun
ReplyDelete