Drums of War

by Tinalynge

Some beasts entered the tall walls from the towers while others descended from the skies above. Soon a desperate battle broke out on the city walls. The ten-meter wide wall was filled with all types of beasts and humans. Some were alive, others were wounded, and quite a few had long since drawn their last breath. It was apparent that the battle today was far more challenging than it had been before, but, strangely enough, the beasts were not showing any signs of despair; instead, their faces were filled with killing intent. Sinister and excited smiles were seen on their faces as flashes of golden light appeared from the humans while from the beasts flashes of many different colors of mist energy flooded forth.

  Hui Yue stood on the ground looking up at the city walls. He was waiting for the gates to open, but it seemed as though none of the beasts had yet managed to jump into the city below and open up the gates. As for why they hadn’t finished the task yet, Hui Yue could only guess that all the beasts were fighting to the best of their ability on the narrow city walls.

  Even the flying beasts who should have been able to bypass the city walls were being kept at bay by a few ballistae which had survived Wan Qiao’s destruction were located within the city which would aim at any beast who tried to enter their sanctuary. Seeing this, Hui Yue nodded his head slowly. It made sense that the humans were not as simple to beat as he thought. They knew about warfare something the beasts lacked. Defending a city was definitely not an easy task, but they had an advantage because the beasts used small groups to attack. They were incapable of making their entire army appear where the humans were.

  “Be patient. Be patient!” Hui Yue scolded himself as he observed the fighting. He could send a Saint, but he also knew that Saints were waiting within the city itself so sending one would be suicidal. Sending many would still be unwise considering they did not know how many Saints the opponent had. Both sides were keeping their saints behind waiting for the other side to bring them out first. Truth be told, the entire war was riding on the back of the Saints. Although the Kings and Emperors were fighting each other fiercely, Saints had the ability to turn the war in one side’s favor. Even if the Kings and Emperors won, as long as the Saints were victorious the lower ranked had no way to defeating Saint ranked experts unless it was one thousand soldiers to one Saint.

  Hui Yue’s eyes were still focused on the top of the city walls. The beasts had an advantage with their raw strength and nimble movements over the humans who were almost stacked on top of each other. Beasts succumbed to the sheer amount of humans, yet some of the beasts used their nimbleness to avoid death, others used their pure strength, while the ones with wings used their ability to fly to defeat the enemies in front of them.

  Summoning his Wu Wei wings, the young man took to the skies to keep watch over the intense fighting that was raging on the walls. Hui Yue could see that although the beasts had the advantage, more beasts fell today than had in all the days before. These opponents were definitely stronger than the humans they fought outside the city. Considering this fact, Hui Yue was proud of the beasts and their performance. They fought all day long, and as the sun started to set in the horizon, a thundering horn was be heard. This was the horn of retreat, and all beasts did what they could to swiftly climb down the towers, fly their way, or even jump down the city wall to escape the humans that seemingly gained energy as they saw the beasts retreat.

  Hui Yue waited for all the soldiers to return. Some were lightly wounded, others were seriously wounded and carried by beasts, while some were completely fine. Seeing the Wood elemental beasts start healing the most severe damages, Hui Yue was greatly satisfied. He saw how, although they had substantial losses, the losses were fewer than what he expected. Walking through the campsite, Hui Yue greeted one beast after another.

  “You did well today,” He said to one expert. “Keep up the good work,” Was said to another. “We appreciate all the hard work you’ve done,” Was said to a third expert, and while walking through the camp, he greeted all the beasts he saw. He also shared some provisions with the beasts. As night descended upon them, Hui Yue himself was a part of the first group of soldiers to keep watch.

  Hui Yue felt somewhat useless. Although he was the Grand Marshall, he felt as though he was not doing anything. When he volunteered for guard duty, at first the Saints had been against it, yet when they saw the unhappy expression on the young man’s face they all suddenly agreed that allowing him to be a lookout would be fine.

  Hui Yue stayed up all night and what he saw was small campfires both on top of the city wall but also in the beast camp. Some beasts spent the night cultivating while others spent it relaxing. Some were eating, and others were sleeping. Tension hung over the camp. Some beasts were still rushing around, using their energy to heal other beasts. These experts would be incapable of participating in the war the following day, but their healing would ensure that within a few days two experts would return to battle instead of just one.

  “It looks like a real battlefield,” Hui Yue mumbled to himself. Although he was the Grand Marshall, everything he knew about war was from what he studied back in his old world. It was all knowledge gained from books. Knowledge from the books that described ancient battles and tactics was all good and well, but knowledge gained from actually fighting was much more useful, and that was something Hui Yue did not have. The tension made his heart quiver. Everything depended on him and his ability to decide the correct strategies. The pressure on him was immense, and the air was filled with killing intent alongside the scent of blood and rotting flesh.

  Everything was so different from the books. “Pull yourself together!” Hui Yue scolded himself as he slapped his cheeks hard with his two palms. Although he did not hit himself as hard as Wan Qiao did, he still felt blood in his mouth. He could not afford to second guess himself. He needed to be decisive.

  Standing still for some time, he came to a conclusion. Although he did not wish to start the Saint battle just yet, he had one thing he needed to accomplish.

  “Wan Qiao, please come here!” He called out, and the woman was instantly by his side. “I have a job for you,” He said, and the woman listened intently. As he finished explaining his plans, a large smile was evident on the young-looking woman’s face. She was clearly thrilled to be part of the plans the following day.

  Seeing the smile on Wan Qiao’s face, Hui Yue could not help but smile as well, yet inside he decided that he needed to prepare for the worst. “Everyone gather up!” He called, and all the Saints did just that. All of them stood in front of him, and he gathered them in a circle.

  “Tomorrow I have one task for Wan Qiao to deal with. There is a chance that the Siban Empire will reply to our attack with their Saints. Should this happen then all of you are to join the battle and hold off the Saints. Kill them if possible, if not keep them busy until you can gang up on them and kill them that way. Remember, this is not a fair duel where you exchange pointers. This is a war where you do anything to win.”

  Hearing his words, the Saints all nodded showing a patient expression. They had heard Hui Yue mention this over and over again, yet even still he never once allowed for the Saints to forget that this was not the time for duels. In spite of his constant insistence of this point, the Saints were not insulted they were relieved that their Grand Marshall constantly thought about how to win the war.

  Having finished talking with the Saints, Hui Yue stepped away from where all saints were and once more went to patrol the grounds. He fulfilled his duties as a night’s watch perfectly. Walking around, Hui Yue was attentive to everything around him, and after a while, he finally managed to feel at ease as he walked through the dark surroundings. He heard how the soldiers chatted with each other or celebrated that they were still alive. The whole campsite was bustling with life, although it was the middle of the night. Everyone was feeling jubilant for some odd reason. The tension which had been there earlier slowly vanished. As the night ended, the air was filled with excitement. This was the second day of the Siege for the ca
pital of the Siban Empire. This was a war which would be talked about for ages to come, and today was going to be especially interesting due to the job Hui Yue gave Wan Qiao.

  Chapter 79 – Wan Qiao’s Task

  Standing in the morning mist, their shoes were wet from the dew on the ground. Everyone was completely silent. The beasts woke at dawn and had finished their daily necessities. They eagerly found their position in line ready to move towards the city walls for the second day of the siege.

  None of the beasts were aware of the task Hui Yue gave to Wan Qiao, but they all felt a shiver run through their bodies as they saw the grave expressions on the Saints in front of them. No smiles were visible on their stern faces. The eyes of the Saints were focused on the city walls in the distance. They were vigilant, so much so that the air around them was humming from the energy continually rotating within the bodies of these experts. It was obvious to anyone that they were getting ready for a fierce fight, and seeing this the beasts went wild. They had roared before, they had howled and screeched, but seeing the Saints standing in front of them stretching their ancient bodies getting ready to fight, caused energy to flood out from their bodies unconsciously. The beasts now roared far louder than ever before. Their battle cry was so loud that even a distance away, at the city walls, all the soldiers felt the shockwave. Although it had lost a lot of energy while traveling to the city, some strength remained. It slammed into the front lines causing everyone to take a few steps backwards before they stabilized themselves.

  The soldiers, who were forced backwards, swallowed nervously as they realized that the roar of the beasts was enough to push them back. Still they quickly steeled their determination and once more regained their position as they stood patiently waiting for the opponents to come.

  The ground trembled as the weaponry was once more dragged towards the tall walls. The ballistae were constantly shooting massive arrows one after another into the city wall and the city gate with the intent of destroying them. Another benefit of these massive arrows which were now firmly stuck in the walls and the gate was that some beasts used them to climb the walls. After making it to the top, they threw themselves into the desperate battle for survival. Beasts descended from the skies; beasts flooded out of the towers, and others jumped up using the massive arrows. This made it so the beasts were capable of appearing at various places on the walls which allowed for them to create pincer attacks, killing off whole areas at once.

  The humans used tactics as well causing one beast to fall after another, but the loss of life was always far greater on the human side. Looking at the many beasts and their desperate fight, Hui Yue nodded his head unconsciously as he turned around and looked to Wan Qiao. The woman stood right behind him, and her shape was that of the One-Horned Jasmine Eagle. She stood there with her massive body; her wingspan was twenty meters long. Looking at her, Hui Yue felt a sense of comfort, and he gently patted her head before he realized what he was doing.

  Smiling awkwardly, the young man turned back towards the war and heaved a heavy sigh. The task he had given Wan Qiao was in no way simple, and he knew that there was a chance she might not return, yet this was war. “She is the strongest of them all,” He mumbled to himself, “She’ll be fine.”

  Closing his eyes for a moment to control the emotions in his heart, he then opened them again and the hesitation that was hidden deep within was now gone. His eyes shone with determination and his back was straight as he called for Wan Qiao, “It’s time.” He said slowly as he narrowed his eyes. “Remember that safety is the most important. If you see multiple Saints coming for you, then make sure to fall back. Information is second most important,” He continued, “If you can tell me what it looks like then I will be grateful, and finally if you can do anything about it then everything will be perfect. But I don’t think you will be able to do anything about it before the Saints come after you.”

  Turning towards the many Saints behind him, Hui Yue continued speaking, “Wan Qiao has a mission taking her into the city walls. If you hear her in trouble, enter the city and assist her. Only escape, do not battle. If Wan Qiao manages to escape on her own and Saints pursue her then make sure she is not captured. If they pursue you past the city walls, then give them a fight. If you cannot win against your opponent, then drag out the fight as much as possible so that others can come and assist you, or flee. I’ve said it before, and I will say it again this is war. Don’t be nice to your enemy, kill them by any means even underhanded ones. You can’t help your fellow beasts if you’re dead. Survival is the most important aspect of this battle.” Hearing the words Hui Yue spoke, everyone nodded their heads with serious expressions. They all understood what he said, and they would all strictly follow his words.

  “Well then, I’ll get going,” Wan Qiao said with an excited voice and moments after her wings flapped a few times. The massive bird took to the sky. Her speed so incredibly swift that Hui Yue had to focus to be able to see her.

  ….

  “Lord!” A servant yelled out loud as he scrambled to his feet after falling through the door to the house where the Grand Marshall was currently located. “Lord this is terrible! A large bird is coming our way, far larger than any of the beasts we have fought before. I believe it is a Saint!” The servant was completely petrified by the thought of Saints joining the war because it meant that the soldiers on the wall would surely be slaughtered. Although it seemed that they could hold out against the beast horde, it would be completely different the moment Saints joined the fray.

  The moment the words left the lips of the servant, all the figures within the house looked at the servant. The faces of four of them were filled with excitement while the fifth frowned. The four experts who were excited all looked toward the fifth person, filled with expectations, but he said nothing for a moment. Closing his eyes it was clear he was thinking things through.

  “My lord, the Saint is flying fast we need to act now,” One of the four urged. His eyes were constantly darting from the pondering man towards the door of the room; his behavior clearly showed that he was on the edge ready to ignore orders and rush outside, but his loyalty made him stay within the room.

  “You can go,” The thoughtful man said, but as soon as the four experts were close to the door, the man opened his mouth once more, “You are only allowed to follow the expert to the gates. Do not leave the city. I don’t know what this beast army has planned.”

  “They are beasts,” One of the four mumbled, “What can they plan with those underdeveloped brains of theirs.” Hearing his mumble the man felt his face go red from anger, and he rose from his chair, “You know nothing about warfare, but this Grand Marshall of theirs definitely knows what he is doing. For him to lure our Saints out this early in the war, it’s obvious that he has something planned. Now go chase the Saint out of our city!” He said as the four experts left the room.

  “Should we bring the others?” A woman asked. She had previously been drinking tea. She had been seemingly carefree and not too interested in what was happening, yet right now, her eyes shone with interest, and a smile was on her beautiful face.

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s just a single Saint. The four of us are more than enough to deal with him.” The tall man said with a laugh as he patted the woman on the top of her head as though she were a dog. The woman quickly swatted his hand away and pouted afterwards, saying no more.

  At the front the four men, a short young man was standing. He seemed to be around fifteen years of age, a few years younger than Hui Yue, yet there was ice in the air surrounding him.

  He was the only one of the four who was not smiling. His eyes were focused on the figure in the sky, and suddenly a sharp epee appeared in his hands. The young man stomped the ground and shot towards the massive flying bird with, the epee in front of him ready to strike

  “There he goes,” The tall man said with a smile on his lips. Shaking his hands and rolling his shoulders, the tall man loosened his muscles before he too st
omped hard on the ground following behind the young man towards the flying eagle. Only a short moment passed before the final two copied the previous ones’ actions and flew into the skies above.

  ….

  Wan Qiao was in the air and quickly arrived at the city walls; however, unlike what the soldiers on top of the wall expected, Wan Qiao flew right over them and swiftly headed towards the city gates. Flying low she looked at the city gates from the inside, and her eyes widened in surprise as she saw that a massive stone blocked the gates.

  “That goddamn kid, how could he have known that they would block it with a stone…” Wan Qiao’s voice trailed off as she felt astonished. Hui Yue said that this would probably be how they reinforced the city gates, and if this were the case, then they would have problems when it was time to finally enter the city because the gates would be much harder to open. Truthfully a stone like this was easy to destroy by a Saint or an Emperor, but destroying it might not be that much of a benefit. If it were destroyed the debris would stay in place and continue to block the entrance. They needed to find a way to remove both stone and debris to ensure that it was no longer was in their way. Another option was to get everyone to enter the City by crossing the city walls, however to do that, their forces were likely to suffer greatly.

  “Oh, company?” Wan Qiao said as she saw a figure flying her way. Her eyes narrowed, her muscles tensed, and her blood started to boil within her veins. This was war! It was finally her time to shine, but just as a vicious smile appeared on her face, it twisted to annoyance. “Escaping is important since he needs this information,” She grumbled and swung her wings changing the direction she was flying. Within a few flaps of her wings, she had exited the capital city.