Chapter 2383: The Strongest Squad

Ye Liuyun stretched out his hand, pulled the Storage Ring toward him, and immediately poured out all the items inside.

He displayed the resources to the soldiers.

"Violations will be punished, good performance will be rewarded! See what's inside for yourselves.

I'll hold onto them for now; once you complete the training mission, these resources will be yours!"

After making an example, Ye Liuyun gave the soldiers some hope, shifting their attention.

Then he began training the soldiers again.

The training formation was entirely the Holy Land Dynasty's standard formation, with none of his own formation incorporated.

However, the training process was quite strict.

Ye Liuyun also explained clearly to them that being stricter in training would give them more chances to survive in future battles.

He ate, lived, and trained together with the soldiers, sharing any money with them, so the soldiers had no complaints about him.

Ye Liuyun killed a soldier and immediately went to Yuan Hu to make up the numbers.

During training, whenever a soldier was eliminated, he promptly asked for replacements without any hesitation.

Whenever he requested men, Yuan Hu obliged without ever asking why, showing absolute trust in Ye Liuyun.

In fact, he had been watching Ye Liuyun all along, already aware of his abilities and very satisfied with him.

Moreover, Yuan Hu was sent by the Holy Land Dynasty.

He didn't need to consider which faction Ye Liuyun belonged to.

As long as they were of the Holy Land Dynasty, he didn't mind.

He never imagined that Ye Liuyun was actually not of the Holy Land Dynasty.

Ye Liuyun performed earnestly while also looking for a chance to get close to Yuan Hu.

However, Yuan Hu's guard squad was highly alert, and since Yuan Hu now communicated little with Ye Liuyun, there was no suitable opportunity.

Yuan Hu gave the new recruits ample training time; nearly two months later, he evaluated each squad's training results.

The assessment was simple: designate a small battlefield and have two squads fight each other.

Hundreds of squads participated in this confrontation.

However, any squad that faced Ye Liuyun, whether in direct brute force or strategic combat, was completely outmatched.

In most squads, 30% to 50% of the soldiers were killed, and the rest surrendered.

In the end, the ferocious reputation of Ye Liuyun's battle team spread, and no one dared to fight them, opting to surrender outright.

During the battles, Ye Liuyun also seized personnel, taking the good ones into his own forces; after the assessment, his team had grown to three hundred members.

He also seized resources, not just people.

As a result, his unit profited abundantly.

The other squads could only be angry but dared not speak up.

Ye Liuyun also made a name for himself in this new army; none of the new recruits or some minor leaders opposed him.

So when Yuan Hu selected the leader of the ten‑thousand‑strong unit, Ye Liuyun was naturally elected by the crowd as Leader.

And everyone wanted to join Ye Liuyun's team.

Following Ye Liuyun, not only did the soldiers' combat power increase, but Ye Liuyun also distributed resources to everyone—a rare opportunity.

Thus, without Yuan Hu's intervention, Ye Liuyun was directly promoted to Deputy Leader, consolidating a force of thirty thousand.

Afterwards, Yuan Hu did not meet Ye Liuyun in person, but instructed him to reorganize the troops and continue training.

Ye Liuyun, unabashed, used the military funds to name his army the Shangwu Corps, had all soldiers sign loyalty contracts, and earnestly trained to boost the force's combat power.

During training, he also persisted in cultivation together with his clone.

At the same time, he continued seeking a chance to approach Yuan Hu.

After the army's training was nearly complete, Ye Liuyun took the initiative to approach Yuan Hu: "Without real combat, the soldiers' improvement is limited.

I want to find some real‑battle opportunities!"

Yuan Hu, upon receiving Ye Liuyun's request, actually smiled.

"I've been waiting for you to ask that!"

Yuan Hu said to Ye Liuyun.

"But who shall we fight?"

The Holy Land Dynasty was peaceful everywhere; even where bandits appeared, they were small gangs not worth deploying troops.

Yuan Hu didn't answer directly, but asked, "I heard you had the soldiers sign loyalty contracts?"

"Yes! When I cannot help but want to fight, someone among them would stab me in the back."

Ye Liuyun admitted.

This is also a common practice among many large armies, and Ye Liuyun need not conceal it.

Because after doing this, as long as the Leader lives, the soldiers won't voluntarily surrender.

Yuan Hu nodded and continued, "I can understand why you do this, but you must know that your army is the Holy Land Dynasty's army, belonging to no individual.

The Holy Land Dynasty's orders must be obeyed absolutely."

"Of course."

Ye Liuyun didn't know what Yuan Hu meant by that.

"Just know it's fine.

I have received two missions from the Holy Land Dynasty that can provide you with real‑battle opportunities; consider them!"

Yuan Hu said, handing a piece of paper to Ye Liuyun.

At the same time, he waved his hand, sending his nearby guards to wait outside the main tent.

The paper prominently listed the names of Wan Wei Hou and Zhenxing Wang.

"Is this a test?"

"Test what?"

"Do I accept or not?"

Ye Liuyun's thoughts shifted rapidly upon seeing those two names.

Yuan Hu stared at Ye Liuyun's face, watching his reaction.

"These two people are completely opposing forces."

"Is he testing me, to find out which faction I belong to?"

"Or testing whether I am loyal to the Holy Land Dynasty?"

Ye Liuyun looked at Yuan Hu, asking with some confusion: "If this truly is an order from the Holy Land Dynasty, I would set out immediately."

"But wouldn't that cause panic among the common people?"

Yuan Hu replied to Ye Liuyun: "Of course this is an order from the Holy Land Dynasty."

These two great forces clash with each other, even being manipulated, causing the annihilation of a 200,000-strong army, and to this day no one knows who did it!

Therefore the Holy Land Dynasty wants to strike these two major factions, making them understand that backstabbing each other will cost them.

Their positions are granted by the Holy Land Dynasty, which can revoke them at any time.

Even if the populace panics and chaos ensues, it will only be temporary.

"Eliminate them, and replace them with a new wave of nobles, and it will be resolved immediately."

"Since that's the case, I'll dispatch troops at once!"

Ye Liuyun agreed.

Yuan Hu waved his hand, stopping Ye Liuyun: "But the Holy Land Dynasty certainly can't claim it wants to eliminate the nobles it itself dispatched."

Ye Liuyun was also stunned, asking Yuan Hu: "Are we to disguise ourselves as bandits?"

"And after we complete the mission, how will the Holy Land Dynasty deal with us?"

Yuan Hu smiled: "Indeed, you're quite clever."

If you serve the Dynasty, there is no reason for the Dynasty to wipe you out.

When you eliminate them, you are bandits; don the Imperial uniform, and you become our soldiers."