Chapter 38

"Young master, what do you want?"

The shop owner's voice pulled Mu Yi back to reality from his thoughts.

"I want something that lets me learn the Court's battle formations!"

Mu Yi waved his hand to close the panel; these sacred artifacts can indeed grant great boosts, but they are external, and he needs a more fundamental power.

"One Red Soul!" The shop owner didn't seem surprised by Mu Yi's choice, and a secret manual silently appeared before Mu Yi.

Book: "Training Soldiers Chronicle"

Item Level: Level 1

Quality: Purple Epic

Type: Book

Description: This is a book that records a renowned trainer's special techniques and experiences in troop management and training; after reading, a character can quickly learn the knowledge it contains.

When a character finishes reading, the book's inherent spirit will completely vanish; the book can still be read, but it no longer provides the rapid learning bonus.

"I'll take it!"

The shop owner smiled brightly, extended her hand that supported her head, and the Red Soul on Mu Yi immediately flew out, landed in the shop owner's hand, and then vanished.

"Your Blue Soul can also be exchanged for a sacred artifact!"

The shop owner seemed to intend to drain Mu Yi directly, or perhaps to let Mu Yi taste the sweetness of sacred artifacts so that he would trade with her more in the future.

Mu Yi did not refuse and directly chose a sacred artifact he saw in the list.

Lightning Lock:

Quality: Light Gold

Type: Sacred Artifact

Effect: Inputting energy can summon lightning; while summoning lightning, it greatly increases the lightning damage you deal, and during consecutive attacks it can draw lightning to strike.

A sacred artifact that can be used together with his formation blade, further raising his burst damage, and also a surprise he prepared for the Jia Xian pursuers later.

"We'll meet again!"

The shop owner's voice faded away, Mu Yi was dazed for a moment then came to his senses, finding himself still on the road ahead, as if everything that just happened were merely an illusion.

But the Lightning Lock and the military manual in his hand clearly told him that what just occurred was real.

Just now the whole world's time seemed to have been paused; Mu Yi's second Elite Talent began to activate, and Mu Yi clearly felt his own time flow disconnect from the surrounding environment.

"Terrifying..." Mu Yi muttered, gripping the thing in his hand tightly, as the opponent's great power surpassed his imagination.

But now he finally has the capital to stand on the starting line and chase.

"Boss Mu? Are there enemies ahead?" Lin Jie looked at Mu Yi, who had suddenly stopped, with some confusion.

"Nothing much, keep moving forward!" Mu Yi shook his head; sometimes knowing too much isn't a good thing.

He had already guessed the opponent's identity, but he couldn't say it; for Lin Jie and the others, the White Lotus Sect and the Court were already an insurmountable mountain, and telling them would only add three more points of despair.

Mu Yi and his party's arrival did not surprise the townsfolk; they were already accustomed to people fleeing from the north, and in fact most of them had come from the north.

Escaping is shameful but useful; at least they escaped Nuan Xue's threat and have been able to thrive in this region.

Originally they kept fleeing as Nuan Xue expanded, but in recent years Nuan Xue has not continued to expand, and they have established a town on this feng shui treasure land.

But recently Nuan Xue's domain has begun expanding again, making people's hearts uneasy and fearful.

…

Mu Yi, with boundless inner fire, opened the "Training Soldiers Chronicle"; if he remembered correctly, this military book was authored by the Ming dynasty famed general Qi Jiguang.

In reality he had indeed read military texts such as "The Art of War", but his attempts at battle formations ended in a mess, which Mu Yi could only attribute to the lack of Transcendent elements in the degenerate world.

Now, in this world that possesses Transcendent elements, he has obtained a genuine military book, finally able to fill the last shortcoming.

Mu Yi slowly turned the pages of the book in his hand; the square characters transcribed by Zongwang Prompt gradually unveiled the world of the Military Strategist for him.

In fact, "General: Understanding Your Profession" has already mentioned many things.

But it only mentioned those technical terms, and for Mu Yi it was still a blank stare, like knowing an idiom without understanding what it represents.

Whereas the "Training Soldiers Chronicle" breaks down those basics, then explains in an accessible way a series of Military Strategist knowledge about battle formations, Cloud Energy, talents, and so on.

It was like a tailor-made primer for Mu Yi, finally giving him thorough answers, allowing Mu Yi to successfully transform from a nominal Military Family Descendant into a true Military Family Descendant.

The moment Mu Yi closed the book.

An invisible, vibrant force began to sprout from his mind.

He felt his mind racing, as if glimpsing countless flashes of insight.

In a daze, he saw Qi Jiguang training troops, and saw soldiers linking their breaths together to suppress the enemy.

Eyes: I see!

Mind: I understand!

Mu Yi returned to reality, brewing his emotions for a moment.

"I've realized! General, I've realized!"

Battle formations, now in Mu Yi's eyes, are like the circuitry of a circuit board, the sigils of a magical array, or the muscles when the body exerts force.

In short, a battle formation integrates the essence, spirit, and will of everyone in the array, then creates Cloud Energy, using that Cloud Energy to suppress, empower, or destroy as needed.

Although it combines everyone's power, it's like a circus clown constantly tossing balls; the clown only needs to keep two in hand while the rest circulate continuously.

The extracted power remains within the formation, and the soldiers won't feel obvious weakness; they may even gain greater strength because the power keeps flowing.

"Zongwang Prompt: By reading the book, your understanding of battle formations deepens, successfully mastering battle formations."

"You have acquired the skill: Military Strategist - Battle Formation."

Military Strategist - Battle Formation:

Type: Profession Skill

Current Level: Level 1 (currently can be upgraded up to Level 5)

Description:

After a standard action, the character can maneuver the formation, completing the integration of formation power.

When the formation is formed, the character gains Cloud Energy (varying according to formation quality, troop competence, morale, and number).

Consuming Cloud Energy can apply enhancement, destruction, or suppression effects.

"By reading the book, you have obtained the Yuan Yang Formation."

"The other formations have been added to the Military Strategist's universal skill pool; unlocking them costs Zongwang Disaster Coin and Universal Experience."

Yuan Yang Formation:

Quality: Purple Epic

Type: Profession Skill

Current Level: Level 1 (subject to the Profession Skill Military Strategist – formation level limit; the current maximum can be raised to Level 5).

Formation Effect 1: When Cloud Energy is consumed for enhancement, a suppression effect can be applied simultaneously.

Formation Effect 2: When maneuvering Cloud Energy, the amount of Cloud Energy increases by an additional 50%.

Formation Effect 3: After the formation is set, all soldiers' attributes increase by 10%.