Endless Winter: My Camp Upgrades Infinitely

Chapter 1662: Chapter 525: Unable to Fight, Eager for Battle

The war drum of Great Xia stands two meters tall, with a diameter of three and a half meters. The drum’s body and stand are crafted from Shocking Soul Wood, and its surface is sewn together from the skin membranes of three Beast King Level Thunder Kui.

The Thunder Kui is an extremely formidable Cold Beast in terms of defense. Moreover, the war drum is made from Beast King Level Thunder Kui Skin Membrane; if you don’t have strength over 30 mane, you simply can’t make it sound.

When the war drum was first developed two years ago, some soldiers in Xia City, skeptical of its power, tried striking it with a mallet using over 20 mane of strength. The result was a powerful rebound from the drum surface, causing them to vomit blood uncontrollably, and they had to stay in bed for over half a month to recover.

The demanding conditions for striking the drum naturally result in an extremely astonishing momentum.

Great Xia previously conducted experiments showing that after the Thunder Kui Battle Drum is struck, the sound can travel up to five kilometers. Within a three-kilometer radius centered on the drumbeats, everyone’s internal energy and blood are affected by the drum’s sound. Within ten meters of the drumbeats, anyone without strength over 20 mane could even be directly shocked to death.

In an extremely cold icy landscape like the Ice Abyss, normal sounds find it hard to travel far. Just like in Great Xia, even today when the Xia people hunt in the Snow Forest, the Bone Whistle remains an indispensable piece of equipment.

“Dong dong dong dong…”

The war drums of Great Xia signify different commands with different rhythms:

A slightly slower rhythm with only nine beats represents the Gathering General Drum, meaning an order from the main commander for all Colonels and above to gather at the main tent immediately;

A slightly slower but continuous rhythm signifies the Gathering Soldiers Drum, meaning the entire army must assemble quickly. The Gathering Soldiers Drum only sounds three hundred times from beginning to end. Anyone not present in front of the army by the end of the drumbeats commits a grave offense, punishable under military law with fifty strokes;

The fastest rhythm is called the Enemy Defense Drum, meaning the enemy is attacking, and everyone must immediately enter combat status at their current positions;

…

In marching, sieging, retreating, including entering battle, the army is inherently a collective action organization, assembling the entire army is not an uncommon task. The Gathering Soldiers Drum, which sounds the most, is naturally the drumbeat all soldiers are most familiar with.

Fu Tiandu and the five others, all serving as Flag Commanders of the Tiger Leopard Army, were already fully armed. Upon hearing the drumbeats, recognizing them as the Gathering Soldiers Drum, they immediately leapt from the tower and quickly returned to the Tiger Leopard Army’s muster point.

“Captain Helian, aren’t we going to fight?”

The position of Flag Commander is not low in the military, so Fu Tiandu was quite familiar with the ten Colonels of the Tiger Leopard Army. After returning to the ranks, he had not been there long when he noticed the gloomy face of Captain Helian Ba from the Reconnaissance Camp approaching, causing him to hesitate for a moment before hastily asking.

The earliest founder Commander of the Tiger Leopard Army was Luo Yuan, but Luo Yuan held the position of Hunting Department Director, and as the population of Great Xia grew and the affairs of each department became more complex, he had little time to lead the army while attempting to reach the Xianyang Level last year, so he simply relinquished the position of Tiger Leopard Army Commander.

The current Commander of the Tiger Leopard Army is Helian Shan, a disciple of Mu Longhe. Helian Shan joined Great Xia after the cleavage at Border Mountain two years ago. At 78 years old, he had only 41 mane of strength when he first joined Great Xia, but in two years, he advanced rapidly, with his strength now at 61 mane. Rumor has it he is on the verge of achieving the Xianyang Level, just a step away.

Helian Ba joined the Tiger Leopard Army with his father. His current strength is 52 mane, serving as the Colonel of the Reconnaissance Camp in the Tiger Leopard Army.

Upon hearing Fu Tiandu’s question to Helian Ba, Meng Tian and the other three Flag Commander Deputy Envoys immediately looked over, along with the other nine Colonels of the Tiger Leopard Army, all turned their gaze in this direction.

Not just Fu Tiandu, the entire Tiger Leopard Army, even Luo Yuan’s central 40,000 strong army, was filled with a strong desire for battle upon learning of the fall of Dragon Valley and Beishuo.

Outside of wartime in Great Xia, the threshold for gaining military merit is exceedingly high. After Great Xia successively annexed the territories of Bashang, Jiangxia, Muyin, and Chui Mountain towns, the total population now exceeds six million, yet there are still fewer than 500 Nobles.

From this astonishing proportion of Nobles, one can see how difficult it is to gain military merit outside of wartime.

When a battle finally looms, following the army northward, everyone’s spirits were high, ready to seize wealth and glory with their lives. However, four days in, not a single battle has been fought.

Not to mention slaying the enemy, they haven’t even seen the enemy yet.

“We’re not fighting!”

Helian Ba, noticing everyone’s gaze upon him, wore a more sullen expression. After giving his answer, he sighed slightly: “In the main tent just now, the main commander instructed that as long as the 50,000 strong army in East Valley City doesn’t leave the city, we won’t act, just keep a watch.”

“What, not fighting?”

“Wuchuan Town only has a slightly decent Xuan Armor Army of 10,000, the other 40,000 are just ordinary Defensive Army. Aren’t they a piece of cake for us?”

“We’re already at East Valley City’s doorstep, how could the main commander order us not to fight?”

“With Dragon Valley lost, Beishuo fallen, Yangqu surrounded by Director Yuan’s rear army, they might already be fighting. The Dragon Martial Army on the right is evenly matched with the Cloud Dragon Army, with Yuwen Sizheng’s strength so great, Jinshan Town won’t likely be ours to conquer. Wuchuan is our only opportunity for engagement, if we don’t fight, isn’t this trip wasted?”

“Conquering the city without a fight grants more military merit, but Wuchuan doesn’t seem like it wants to surrender. If we keep delaying, the forces from the other three routes will come. With so few merits, how can we split it among so many people?”

“First to climb, breaching formations, decapitating generals, capturing flags, and slaying enemies; the forces of the other three routes are ready to engage, while we’re just onlookers here?”