114: Summon 100,000 believers

Shen Xiaochuan walked down the high platform at dawn. The wind was slightly calmer than it had been during the night. The copper gear on his sleeve rubbed against his work clothes, making a rustling sound. Every step he took on the gravel road was steady.

As he rounded a corner of the ruins, his communicator vibrated. It wasn't a group chat message, but a System prompt. He pulled it out to look, and a line of text popped up on the screen: "[Yue Zhengzhong] has sent you an item. Please check and receive it."

Below it was a package icon that read: "Jade Marrow Fruit: Rare Healing Saint Grade."

Shen Xiaochuan clicked confirm. His palm warmed, and a milky-white fruit appeared in his hand. The skin of the fruit glowed faintly, as if something was flowing inside. Without a second look, he turned and walked quickly toward the secret room.

The secret room was on the third basement level of the Dragon City Main Hall. There was a metal door at the entrance, with two guards standing on either side. When they saw Shen Xiaochuan, they immediately raised their hands in salute. Shen Xiaochuan nodded and went inside, walking down the slope. The air grew colder, and the sound of his footsteps echoed off the walls.

Tang Long lay in bed, covered with a gray blanket. Anna sat nearby, holding a recording board, her pen still moving. She looked up and saw Shen Xiaochuan, immediately standing up.

"How is the situation?" Shen Xiaochuan asked.

"Vital signs are stable," Anna said. "Breathing is normal, and his heart rate has risen from forty-eight to sixty-two. But he hasn't woken up yet."

Shen Xiaochuan walked to the bedside, looking at the Jade Marrow Fruit in his hand. It emitted a faint glow. He whispered, "General Tang, this fruit will help you recover." Then, he gently pried open Tang Long's mouth and placed the fruit pulp inside.

The fruit melted the moment it touched his tongue, sliding down his throat. A few seconds later, Tang Long's chest began to rise and fall more noticeably, and color returned to his face.

Anna's eyes lit up, and a smile appeared on her face. "It really works! That's wonderful."

Shen Xiaochuan, however, frowned and spoke in an urgent tone. "General Tang must wake up as soon as possible. The situation is very tight right now; we don't have time to wait."

After saying that, he turned and walked out. Anna opened her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she remained silent. The sound of the door closing echoed in the corridor for a long time.

Outside, the sun had already risen a bit higher. Sunlight shone on the ground of the training ground, which was covered in cracks and scorch marks. Array patterns were carved in the center, crooked and unused for a long time. Shen Xiaochuan stood on them, feet apart, and closed his eyes.

He opened the Faith Mall interface. After scrolling a few times, he found a scroll—"Basic Believer Summoning Scroll (Batch Type)." Price: 100,000 faith points.

He glanced at his balance.

+1 +1 +1... the numbers were constantly rising. From last night until now, he had finally saved up enough. He clicked to redeem it.

The System popped up a prompt: "Confirm use? This operation is irreversible."

He clicked "Yes."

The next second, his chest felt tight, as if someone had given him a shove. 100,000 faith points instantly dropped to zero. The ground began to vibrate, and the array patterns beneath his feet lit up with a dark red glow. A hundred thousand points of light appeared in the air, dense and numerous, falling like rain.

Each point of light turned into a person as it hit the ground. They wore uniform gray cloth armor and carried wooden spears and iron shields. They didn't stand very neatly, but no one moved out of turn or spoke. Their eyes were a bit vacant, but they followed the rules well enough.

A System prompt popped up: "100,000 Believers have been generated, basic combat power 30-35, ownership bound." Shen Xiaochuan opened his eyes and scanned the area. There were so many people that he couldn't see the end of the crowd. But he knew that these people now followed his orders.

"Form ranks!" he shouted.

His voice wasn't loud, but it exploded across the field. A hundred thousand people moved simultaneously, their footsteps hitting the ground with a thunderous boom. The front row crouched and raised their shields, the back row leveled their spears, and they aligned themselves left and right. Within three minutes, they had formed a neat combat square formation.

"Three-shift training!" Shen Xiaochuan continued to command. "Practice physical fitness, combat, and formations together! Test combat power three times a day; the bottom one thousand will be eliminated and replaced with newcomers!"

As the orders were passed down, the Acting Commanders began to group the people. These were veterans who had survived earlier, understood the rules, and knew how to manage others. They led the recruits to spread out—some ran, some sparred, and others practiced advancing with a shield wall.

Shen Xiaochuan remained standing on the high platform. He pulled out his communicator and connected to the logistics channel, speaking urgently. "Logistics, transfer all Excellent-grade beast meat in stock. Prioritize delivery to the training ground—one portion per person, no exceptions."

The other side responded, "A-class meat: 8,300 jin, B-class: 27,000 jin. If we transfer it all, the time it will take..."

Shen Xiaochuan frowned and interrupted directly. "Don't calculate the time. Send it immediately. The faster, the better. I want it now!"

He hung up and looked toward the training ground. The recruits had already started eating breakfast. Pieces of meat were served in iron trays, one for each person. They devoured it ravenously, their faces flushing and the veins on their arms slowly bulging after finishing. This was a sign of their Physique improving.

He knew this meat was very expensive. A single jin of A-class meat was worth a thousand faith points, which he had saved up bit by bit in the past. But now, he couldn't afford to be frugal.

"Wa State won't sit idly by," he thought. "They lost the Kings Domain; they will definitely fight to take it back. We must be faster."

He stepped down from the platform and inspected the First Legion's training area, carefully observing every soldier. A group was practicing a charge, shouting cadences as they rushed forward. The sound of shields clashing rang out. A young man fell, but he immediately scrambled up and continued running. Shen Xiaochuan stopped to watch for two seconds, said nothing, and moved on.

The Second Legion was practicing combat. They were in pairs, forbidden from using weapons and forced to fight bare-handed. Some were knocked down, their noses bleeding, but they didn't cry out in pain. An instructor roared from the side, "Fall ten more times and your dinner tonight will be halved!"

The Third Legion was practicing formation transitions. They moved from a square to a wedge, then to a goose-wing formation, practicing repeatedly. Their movements were still unpolished and they often got stuck, but no one was slacking off.

He walked to a corner and found a few recruits huddled together, looking down at something. As he approached, they immediately scattered. A piece of paper was spread on the ground with a simple formation diagram drawn on it. A skinny kid was crouching there, holding a charcoal stick and modifying the lines.

Shen Xiaochuan frowned and asked softly, "What are you doing?"

The person looked up; his face was dark, but his eyes were bright.

"What is your name?" Shen Xiaochuan asked.

"Li Erniu, from Cangnan Village."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded and said concisely, "Fine, we'll do as you say. Report to the Fourth Acting Commander and be assigned to the Tactical Group. From now on, submit an improvement plan every day. If you write well, there will be rewards."

Li Erniu was stunned, then he suddenly stood up straight. "Yes!"

Shen Xiaochuan continued walking. He arrived at the central sand table, where a makeshift command post had already been set up. Small flags were stuck into the sand table, marking the positions of each legion. He picked up a red pen, drew a circle on the eastern side, and said to a staff officer, "The enemy's main force is very likely to come from this direction. Defensive deployment must be completed within three days. Take that down."

The staff officer nodded. "Understood, Sir."

Shen Xiaochuan added, "Notify all departments to initiate the '72-Hour Strengthening Order.' From now on, all resources are to be prioritized for the training ground, and all non-essential projects are to be suspended. I want to see combat power rising every single day."

The staff officer's expression tightened. "Understood! I'll see to it immediately."

He knew these people were very weak right now. With a combat power in the thirties, they couldn't even defeat an ordinary beast. But he also knew that with their numbers and intense training, as long as they survived the first three days, they would become a proper army.

He also understood that Yue Zhengzhong's gift of the Jade Marrow Fruit wasn't just to save Tang Long. It was a stance, a gesture of support. The higher-ups were starting to believe in him. His next moves had to be even faster and more ruthless.

He touched the copper gear on his sleeve; it still held his body heat.

Shen Xiaochuan frowned and said loudly, "Check the detection barriers in the direction of Wa State once more. Report any movement immediately!"

The other side replied, "X-07 is already monitoring; it is currently calm."

Shen Xiaochuan nodded. Calm was the most dangerous state.

He looked up at the sky. There weren't many clouds, and the sunlight shone directly down. Dust flew over the training ground as a hundred thousand people moved, shouted, and practiced. Flags hung from poles, flapping loudly in the wind.

He took a deep breath, walked to the edge of the high platform, and shouted, "Listen up! Right now, you are nothing. You have no fame, no merit, and your equipment is poor. But you must remember—your life is your own!"

No one below spoke.

"Wa State killed our people, seized our lands, and even erected a monument that says 'Forever Suppressing the East.'" Shen Xiaochuan's voice rose. "Now, we have taken it back. But they won't admit defeat. They will strike back. When that time comes, will you be able to hold them off?"

Someone roared, "We can hold!"

Another voice: "We aren't afraid to die!"

Then came a wave of shouting.

Shen Xiaochuan raised his hand, and the entire field fell silent.

"I don't need you to be unafraid of death," he said. "I just need you to remember—whoever makes you bleed, you make them bleed more. Whoever destroys our home, you trample their stronghold. We cannot afford to lose this battle."

After speaking, he turned and walked toward the command post.