Volume 32, Chapter 417.3: Being a Soldier Feels Good
Huo Yuhao’s soul power undulations didn’t leak out at all. With his current physique, he would have no problem standing for three days and three nights. Since he had decided to present himself as “Tang Dong”, he wouldn’t use his abilities as a soul master unless absolutely necessary, but Huo Yuhao had absolutely no trouble standing out and performing better than normal soldiers with his strength, his experience in combat, and his physique.
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Most of the remaining recruits couldn’t take it after yet another hour passed. Recruits dropped to the ground one after another around them, while Huo Yuhao and the other recruit with a grave look on his face remained.
That recruit was sweating profusely, and when his body felt very uncomfortable, he would quietly circulate soul power and readjust his condition. Using that method, he could also keep himself in this position for a very long time. He glanced at Huo Yuhao from time to time, attempting to sense Huo Yuhao’s soul power undulations, but he couldn’t discover anything at all.
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Four hours had now gone by. The sun was starting to dip over the western horizon, and it was just one hour away from evening. Most of the recruits who had collapsed to the ground were treated and sorted by the army medics. They were given a little salt water, and most of them recovered after resting. They stared at Huo Yuhao and the stern-looking youth who were still standing, and couldn’t help but admire them. In the army, the strongest individuals were the most respected and admired.
Even some of the the recruits in Huo Yuhao’s bunk who still resented him felt their resentment slowly dampen. He’s so powerful. No wonder he can become a private first class, and he can stand longer than everyone else even though he’s wearing leather armor. Leather armor provided decent protection on the battlefield, but it had some weight. Leather armor was also good at “keeping warm” when a soldier was standing at attention.
A clattering of horse’s hooves were heard. Furthermore, these horses were coming towards them, and the recruits all turned and looked in the hoofbeats were coming from.
Two horses arrived side by side. Zhuang Tian, their large team leader, sat on one of these horses, while another high-ranking commander in plate armor sat on the other horse. Almost everyone’s eyes widened when they saw this commander. They were incredulous, and some were even a little mesmerized.
Yes, this high-ranking commander was a lady, and a beautiful one, at that. She had large eyes, and her golden hair draped and fluttered behind her head. She was slim, and her body ratios were good. Her plate armor seemed to have been tailor-made to her frame, fit tight to her, and brought out her figure.
Her skin couldn’t be considered fair, but had a healthy wheat color. She seemed valiant and heroic as she sat on her horse, and was truly enchanting. Everyone could tell from the white cap behind her back that she was a battalion commander. Battalion commanders were considered mid-level ranks in the military, and if she could be promoted to a division commander, she would officially be a high-ranking officer.
At the same time, battalion commanders were considered natural moats for many lower-level officers. Many large team leaders would put in a lot of effort throughout their entire careers, but never get beyond that rank.
The appearance of this beautiful battalion commander who looked only a little older than twenty instantly ignited these recruits’ hormones. Those who were sitting on the ground and resting didn’t need their superiors to order them; they swiftly got to their feet one after another and stood at attention. However, their bearing wasn’t proper, and their appearances still reflected the state they were in before this.
The two horses arrived in front of everyone in the blink of an eye. Zhuang Tian was a little surprised when he saw that two recruits were still standing. Quite some time has gone by. These two recruits have quite some discipline and quality to remain standing after more than four hours while burning under the sun! Zhuang Tian focused, and Huo Yuhao was the first person he noticed, before he glanced at the grave-looking youth behind him.
The beautiful battalion commander and Zhuang Tian stopped at the same time, pulling on their reins.
The three medium team leaders swiftly stepped forward and saluted the lady battalion commander. They raised their voices and said, “Greetings, battalion commander!”
The beautiful battalion commander had quite a demeanor. She only nodded in their direction before she waved at Zhuang Tian to signal something.
Zhuang Tian shouted, “Assemble, everyone!”
All the recruits ran over as rapidly as if they had been pumped with adrenaline, and formed up. The beautiful lady’s charm seemed to transcend the large team leader’s majesty and intimidation, and those recruits’ exhausted bodies were replenished by the force of their hormones.
Everyone could see the battalion commander’s beauty more clearly as they came closer. Her nose bridge was sharp and straight, and her rosy lips were wet. Her face was a little skinny, but her large blue eyes were sparkling with energy and spirit. Even though her figure wasn’t exceptionally stunning, the lines on her armor perfectly brought out her mesmerizing female charms.
Zhuang Tian was relatively pleased with his recruits’ behavior. He surveyed them as he raised his voice and said, “Let me introduce everyone. This is the battalion commander of the Seventh Division’s Third Battalion within the Sixth Reserve Legion, Xu Yun. If you guys can pass all your tests, you will become a warrior under Battalion Commander Xu’s wing. Raise your weapons and greet Battalion Commander Xu.”
“Greetings, battalion commander…”
“Greetings, Commander Xu…”
They were recruits after all, so even their exclamations were mixed up.
Huo Yuhao had been observing this battalion commander ever since she arrived. Such a beautiful lady appearing in an army camp was probably a little abnormal.
Huo Yuhao wasn’t deliberately controlling his spiritual power, but even then, he could automatically cover almost a hundred meters around him. He discovered that when this battalion commander appeared, the expression of the youth behind him changed conspicuously, and his blood flow increased rapidly, while his emotions became a little excited.
He was also the first person that the battalion commander paid attention to when she arrived. When her eyes swept over him, a faint look of disdain and contempt flowed from her eyes. Even though this look only flickered once before it disappeared, Huo Yuhao still managed to capture her expression clearly.
“Large team leader Zhuang, how is this batch of recruits?” Commander Xu finally spoke, and her voice contained the kind of bravery that only female soldiers could have. Her voice wasn’t very gentle and tender, but it was still melodious.
“They’re alright. Even though these recruits are of average quality overall, there are some who have potential. Soldiers don’t just need talent; as long as soldiers are willing to put in effort, a little lack of talent isn’t considered much. You can still become a good soldier!” Zhuang Tian was very satisfied with the fact that Huo Yuhao and the stern-looking youth could stand until the very end. They boosted his impression before the battalion commander.
“You and you. Step out.” He pointed towards Huo Yuhao and the other guy.
Huo Yuhao grasped his spear with one hand as he took two steps forward. He was still standing very straight.
The stern-looking youth hurriedly followed suit. However, he didn’t continue standing behind Huo Yuhao, and walked up next to him. Even though he was playing it cool, Huo Yuhao could clearly feel that his emotions were very excited, and a little unstable. He was putting in a lot of effort to control himself, and only then could he avoid glancing towards the battalion commander.
“Your performance is impressive. Are you both from the First Bunk?” Zhuang Tian asked.
“Reporting! Yes, sir,” the stern-looking youth responded without waiting for Huo Yuhao to speak.
Huo Yuhao’s expression didn’t change, and he answered with one word, “Yes.”
Zhuang Tian said, “Alright. From now on, Tang Dong – you will be Small Team One’s leader, and all thirty recruits from your bunk will temporarily become Small Team One. This arrangement has three times as many people as regular small teams, so you’ll have to perform well.”
“Yes, sir!” Huo Yuhao’s answer was still as simple as it could be.
Zhuang Tian turned towards the stern-looking youth and said, “Dai Luoli, you will be Small Team One’s vice-team leader, and you are promoted to Private first Class. You will assist Tang Dong in managing Small Team One.”
Dai Luolin was momentarily stunned, but he was still standing at attention as he answered, “Yes, sir!”
“Back into formation.” Huo Yuhao and Dai Luolin returned to the group. However, Dai Luolin glanced at Huo Yuhao when they were returning, and his eyes were different from all that coldness from before. His eyes now burned with passion, a passion that came from competitiveness.
Huo Yuhao was laughing inside. He could judge from the situation that Dai Luolin should know that beautiful battalion commander personally. Was he joining the army as a soul master for this battalion commander? This youth was a soul master, he wouldn’t be resigned to his fate as number two. It was normal that the youth wanted to take over Huo Yuhao’s position.
The three medium team leaders subsequently made their reports and arranged a small team leader for the remaining nine bunks.
“You have to remember that you are all just recruits. You have become small team leaders because you performed well before this. However, your position as small team leader isn’t fixed, and you may be replaced at any time. Becoming a small team leader is very simple, and anyone can do it. As long as you perform sufficiently well during training, you will have a chance. Do you guys understand?” Zhuang Tian admonished everyone at the end.
“Understood, sir!” the recruits answered loudly.
Zhuang Tian nodded satisfactorily as he turned towards Xu Yun and asked, “Do you have any instructions, battalion commander?”
Xu Yun said plainly, “No. You guys can go, and we will assemble for training tomorrow.” She turned her horse and waved her whip as she uttered her last words, before riding her horse off into the distance.
Zhuang Tian watched her leave earshot before he raised his voice and said, “Disperse! Dinner will be in one hour!”
Huo Yuhao turned and gestured to the First Bunk’s recruits to form up and return to camp. Dai Luoli was very cooperative about this, and stood next to Huo Yuhao as he led the remaining twenty-eight people back to the First Bunk.
Xu Yun is a little interesting, Huo Yuhao smiled faintly. The battalion commander was also a soul master, and her cultivation rank wasn’t weak. Huo Yuhao could sense that she had at least four soul rings, and she was only about twenty years old. The fact that she had such a cultivation rank was quite impressive for her age. Dai Luoli was a little weaker, but he should be younger than Xu Yun was.
Dai Luoli… this name seems to feel very familiar.
The recruits were beyond exhausted after training for the entire afternoon. They conversed a lot less than they had when they first arrived, and everyone returned to their bunks after dinner. Quite a few people just collapsed onto their beds and quickly dozed off.
Huo Yuhao sat down on his own berth, and began to daydream as he listened to the other recruits’ snoring. For him, it was luxurious to even have time for daydreaming. However, he was contemplating a lot of things even as he was daydreaming...