Immediately, the five hundred warriors raised their fists to the sky in absolute silence. It wasn’t only a signal of readiness for them, but something like a triumphant battle cry as well. No one dared to shout or even speak. Hadjar had promised that he would personally ensure that the one who broke the silence would regret the fact that they hadn’t stayed in the camp.
Everyone believed the General’s word because he had never broken it before. No matter how impossible and insane his promises might’ve seemed to everyone, the General had always kept them.
After waiting for the officer to store the core away in a specially created bag that Serra had enchanted, Hadjar raised his hands in the air and made a few gestures. They were immediately repeated by the officers who showed them to their subordinates. It was a sort of ‘hand radio’.
Go ahead. Carefully. Beasts. Cracks. That was all they could easily explain using just their fingers.
The squad followed the General and the Commander. They walked across the snowy fields like ghosts. They passed over several wide cracks that exuded such a powerful energy that some soldiers had to literally be carried in order to get by them. Awful beasts lived in those unknown depths. It was better not to bother them.
May the Gods be kind, Hadjar hoped that the animal invasion wouldn’t force out the monstrosities that resided among the darkness and rocks. The General thought that they would be no less powerful than Azrea’s mother had been.
Finally, after killing nine more bears, the squad reached the mountain range. The white sky gradually succumbed to the sun’s rays, covering them with a scarlet veil.
Huge gulls circled in the sky above them, each one of them easily capable of effortlessly lifting an adult dog into the air. They flew over the rare vegetation that had survived in such conditions. Mostly withered grass that stubbornly resisted the stones and permafrost.
At the foot of a huge, snowy rock, there was a mountainous area. It was divided into two parts by a frozen waterfall and a frozen stream that normally would’ve disappeared somewhere off to the south. On one side of the stream, there was a cliff that vaguely resembled either a gargoyle or a dragon in shape. Hadjar remembered this landmark from his previous travels.
There was a rock with a flat top on the other side, where the Alpha of the local beasts lay.
It was about twelve feet tall and had a massive lower jaw, a high forehead, and long, black claws. Its white fur was covered in bloody stains, and the monster, whose mind slowly began to awaken as they approached, was holding a club made of ice and... bones. Several skulls taken from small rodents and one sheep hung on its waist, held there by its own fur.
The Alpha’s long arms reached to below its knees. Its feet also had claws, which were shorter than those on its hands, but much wider. Using those claws, it could easily climb even the most inaccessible rocks and glaciers of the region.
Below, under the cliff, a small group of apes was busy with their own affairs. Some of them were mating right in the center of their makeshift camp. The others were grooming each other’s furs, looking for fleas and other ‘delicacies’ that they could pick off.
The weaker ones, the so-called betas and omegas, were manufacturing bludgeons. Apparently, the monsters had hunted recently, which meant that many of them were bruised and no longer had the simple weapons they normally carried.
Hadjar approached his three volunteers and removed his glasses. They did the same. For a while, they just stared at each other. Hadjar tried to find some hesitation or doubt in their eyes, but his warriors were willing to risk their lives.
Nodding, the General made a few gestures and the water skins filled with liquid were brought forward. The warriors slung the bait over their shoulders, saluted, and headed toward the group of monsters.
Hadjar and Nero lay down behind the stones, their blades unsheathed. Behind them, five hundred warriors did the same. The volunteers hobbled toward the apes’ camp, pretending to be weak and exhausted. About two hundred yards from the cliffs, the men cut the water skins.
Human blood poured out onto the snow…
The Alpha ape’s nostrils immediately flared and it sprang to its feet. It stared into the distance, across the snow, until it noticed three creatures, each gushing fragrant, sweet blood. It hadn’t tried such blood before, but the memory of its ancestors recognized its tart smell. They had once hunted for such blood every day, and had drunk much of it in their House.
The ape roared and punched its chest several times. The sound was like a hundred people simultaneously striking huge drums. The echoes thundered through the mountains.
The other apes jumped up. They grabbed their ice weapons and, salivating and snarling, they rushed at the three warriors, who were still pretending to be wounded. The men stood still and looked at the approaching, ferocious beasts who were at such high stages of cultivation.
The closer the apes got, the more clearly they felt their preys’ fear. This feeling intoxicated and stupefied them. Even being well-fed after their recent hunt, they couldn’t resist the temptation of drinking this sweet blood, which the memory of their ancestors lusted after.
They roared and hit their chests. They ran over snow and ice as easily as a man would run over pavement.
Feeling the tension of the warriors behind him, Hadjar raised his hand in the air. It was still too early. The volunteers had known what they were getting into…
When the apes were twenty paces away, one of the warriors threw off his water skin and drew his blade. To the apes, it looked as if the prey had shown its fangs and claws. But the beast was still wounded, and therefore harmless.
The monsters attacked them. The first and most zealous ape immediately received a hammer blow to the jaw and, spraying blood and brains everywhere, flew back. The rest of the species howled and pressed forward regardless.
The soldiers turned and ran for their lives without a word. They rushed toward their army, and Hadjar finally clenched his fist.
Just as silent as before, five hundred warriors charged down the slope. Somewhere on the cliff, the Alpha ape roared, realizing too late that it had been deceived.
Their eyes met—the eyes of a dragon and ones that somewhat reminded Hadjar of human eyes.
Hadjar greeted his new foe with a predatory grin.
Rushing through the ranks of men and beasts engaged in brutal combat, he ran toward the Alpha. The beast within the General was hungry for battle, flesh, and blood. Hadjar saw no reason to deny it.
Chapter 148
Hadjar pushed the nearest ape over. Roaring, it fell, but it managed to lash out at the General’s shoulder as it did so. Its long fangs easily ripped through his fur clothes, leaving long scratches across the General’s skin, but his blood didn’t pour from the gashes as his hand was almost numbed by the terrible cold.
If Hadjar had had time to look, he would’ve noticed that the cuts left behind by the claws ended up covered with a layer of ice almost instantly. The wound was rooted deep in his body. The blue tendrils of cold had penetrated both his skin and blood.
Ignoring the pain, the General charged at his enemy once again.
The Alpha was scattering the soldiers. Each swing of its icy bludgeon sent the hunters flying. Fortunately, they weren’t ordinary people—the blows were softened by protective Techniques or blocked by their weapons each time.
After rolling in the snow, the warriors would immediately jump up and continue to fight the other apes... The Dragon, Traves, would’ve probably noticed the implied mockery of Hadjar’s thoughts there.
Finally, the two leaders met on the battlefield. They stood on the blood-soaked snow. The blue blood of the apes mingled with the red blood of the humans. Hadjar hoped that most of it had come from the water skins and not from his men.
“Scan,” Hadjar ordered.
Instantly, accompanied by a loud click, a table appeared in front of his eyes:
Name
White Ape
Level of cultivation
/> Alpha (2nd stage)
Strength
4
Dexterity
1.6
Physique
4.5
Energy points
6
The beast’s stats were astounding. It was so strong that it could break through the wall of a fort with a single strike. Its skin was so hard that it would be able to withstand a cannon shot. Its energy was easily potent enough to allow it to compete with any of the practitioners in that battle.
Well, no wonder. What else could Hadjar have expected from an Alpha at the second stage? In terms of raw strength, this beast was equal to a Heaven Soldier at the Initial stage. However, it had one weakness—it didn’t know as much about the ways of the Spirit.
The weapon held in its paws was just a simple bludgeon while Hadjar’s blade emitted a slight echo of the Sword Spirit hidden in the river. This aura was enough to make people and animals instinctively shy away from him.
The apes and soldiers formed an arena around the fighters.
“Come on,” Hadjar growled, or maybe it was the dragon lurking behind his eyes. “Attack me if you dare.”
The ape dragged its paws apart and growled loudly. The thunder that burst from its throat made ice spikes fall from the distant rocks above.
It pushed off the ground and soared a few yards through the air before crashing back to the ground like a stone. With both paws, it grasped the handle of its bludgeon, and the icy part of the weapon shone with a blue light.
Hadjar spread his legs shoulder-width apart. He didn’t try to dodge, though he knew one of his biggest advantages was his speed. He didn’t try to use the ‘Calm Wind’ stance, though he knew that one of his other great advantages were the Techniques that he knew.
The fact that he hadn’t managed to kill the assassin had crippled his strong heart. He had to regain his confidence. That’s why he was going to use only his Way of the Sword to defeat his foe in this battle. He was going to use only the skills and knowledge that he’d acquired over the years of training and battles.
Moon Beam lit up slightly, and long cracks appeared in the deep snow around Hadjar’s foot. If a mortal had been anywhere near him, they would’ve had their head cut clean off.
Like a meteorite, the ape crashed down again after its leap. With the force of a mountain descending from the heavens, its bludgeon fell toward the General. It leaned over the ‘little’ man, opened its fanged mouth, and growled. Their collision caused circles to appear in the snow, similar to ripples from a stone thrown into a lake. Ice spikes shot up from the ground, but invisible blades immediately cut them down.
Hadjar’s muscles swelled and his tendons creaked. He felt like he was holding the weight of the whole world up, and the ape never let up. Realizing it wouldn’t be able to pin down its enemy so easily, it swung its hind paw.
Noticing the sneaky trick out of the corner of his eye, Hadjar took a casual half-step to the side. He flicked his wrist, turning his body as he moved.
The claws struck only empty air as the General seemed to float away. As he moved, he turned back to his enemy and traced a circle around himself with his blade. Like a dragon’s tongue, the sword licked against the ape’s paw, leaving behind drops of blue blood. The ape roared with rage rather than pain. Hadjar didn’t stop, however.
He continued to ‘swim’ around the ape, tracing circles with his blade. First, his sword was behind him, then it floated above the ground, brushing the ape’s side before coming back behind the warrior. Hadjar immediately held it in a reverse grip, turned on his heel, and swung again.
His legs never stopped moving, even for a moment. His heels, almost touching, gave the impression that Hadjar had forgotten that he was in a battle, and instead made it seem like he was trying to lose himself in a whirling dance.
A dance that resembled a hungry tiger or dragon circling their prey.
With each new movement of his legs and feet, the General’s sword changed position. He could strike downward, then immediately slash at his foe obliquely before returning the blade to a horizontal position and starting another pattern.
The ape growled and roared, but it couldn’t even touch the edge of Hadjar’s fur jacket. He wasn’t using his dexterity or the ‘Ten Ravens’ Technique. Only his sword and the image of the Spirit of the Sword entrenched in the depths of Hadjar’s consciousness were at work here.
Hadjar swung again, but at that moment, the ape thrust its bludgeon into the snow. Hundreds of thousands of sharp ice shards rose from the ground. The animals and people cried out in unison.
The Alpha ape, furious and bloodied, straightened up and pulled its weapon out of the snow. Using this attack, it had defeated the strongest ice bears and won the right to lead this group of apes.
It blinked. It couldn’t believe its eyes. The small bug, whose body was only covered with a few new cuts and a bit of blood, stood at the tip of one of the jagged ice spears. His ‘claw’ glowed behind him, looking like death incarnate as he held it over the back of his head.
If Hadjar had been a little slower, if his instincts hadn’t been honed through countless battles and training, he would’ve died here, today, to that attack. However, he’d been able to avoid death with only a few cuts and two deep wounds on his thigh to show for it.
He stood at the top of one of the ice shards and looked at his opponent.
“It’s my turn now,” he snarled.
Only a few of the warriors were able to make out what really happened next. All they saw was the smooth yet slow movement of the General’s body and hands. But then the blade cut through the air with brutal speed. The silhouette of a dragon with its mouth wide open seemed to be wrapped around his blade. Ghostly and almost invisible to the eye, it weaved between the ice spears like a snake and wrapped around the ape as it screamed with terror and rage.
It bit into the Alpha’s neck and then disappeared in a light haze.
A moment later, the bludgeon fell from the ape’s grip. Its knees went weak and its powerful body collapsed. The severed head of the beast rolled to the side.
The icy spears fluttered under Hadjar’s feet and turned into a myriad of snowflakes which were immediately picked up by the wind as Hadjar gently lowered himself to the ground.
In that battle, the General hadn’t used any of his Techniques, and he hadn’t spent a drop of energy. He was covered in blood, and his right leg felt like it had been dunked in boiling water, but none of that mattered. He’d done what he had set out to do.
Gripping the hilt of his sword, he was once again confident that he couldn’t be stopped by the Heavens or the Earth, neither Gods nor demons. As long as he had his sword, he could fight. And as long as he could fight, he could overcome any obstacle put before him.
In this moment of insight, the Sword Spirit energy in the depths of the endless river became a little more distinct.
Chapter 149
“And it was just the first battle, too...” Nero sighed.
They stood in front of four funeral pyres. Four warriors had given their lives for the sake of getting 27 cores from Alphas at the first stage and about ten at the level of the Awakening of Power and Mind.
They’d known what they were getting into when they’d volunteered to go on the expedition, but the burden of their deaths was another weight added to Hadjar’s shoulders.
One of them had been in the trio acting as bait before the battle. According to the people who’d witnessed it, he’d fought valiantly and bravely, but at some point, he’d gotten surrounded by three apes. Why had his five hundred comrades allowed that to happen? Their blunder would have to be analyzed later. Right now, the warriors were singing a dirge that Hadjar didn’t want to hear. He had heard it far too often lately.
Leaving the officers to supervise the gathering of the loot and the funeral pyres, Hadjar went over to the lake. After the deaths of the white apes, the ice over it had cracked and the water was once again free. Apparently, it had been the aura of co
ld the beasts’ cores had been emanating that had frozen it.
Hadjar stood alone on the lake’s shore and looked at the distant white caps of the high mountain peaks. The night was clear. The stars were shining, the wind had finally stopped blowing, and it wasn’t snowing. The lake would probably remain unfrozen the entire night before freezing when the next snowstorm arrived.
“We haven’t sparred for a long time,” Nero came up to him and offered him some tobacco.
Hadjar refused. He wasn’t sure he could smoke at the moment. The wounds that the ape had inflicted still hurt, despite all the ointments and medicines that had been applied to them.
“I saw your Giant’s Hand during the battle. I’m not eager to face it,” he said to his friend.
The General had no idea when Nero had found the time to do his cultivation—as he had many duties that demanded his time— but his favorite attack in the form of a huge palm with blades instead of fingers had recently become much more defined. The forearm was now clearly visible above the palm.
Hadjar had seen what it had done to four white apes—it had left behind a mess of snow, bone, and blood. Of course, the General was sure he could’ve handled those apes as well, but not in one single attack…
It would be foolish to deny that the raw power of a heavy sword always won out against a simple, classic blade. It was clumsy, but one strike was usually enough to crush an enemy.
“You didn’t use any Techniques in the battle,” Nero said. “I saw your movements, Hadjar. I can’t do that.”
Dragon Heart: Iron Will. LitRPG Wuxia Series: Book 2 Page 38