I Don't Agree to the Terms
Chapter 493 - 272: The Aftermath of Returning and Consecutively Conquering Three Cities_2

Chapter 493: Chapter 272: The Aftermath of Returning and Consecutively Conquering Three Cities_2

In truth, Gu Shanhai’s concept for the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers revolved around one thing: disgust. When the enemy struck a Heart Demon Dao Soldier, they would suffer a series of backlashes, as well as face their own burgeoning desires and emotions. When the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers counterattacked, they would directly utilize these desires and emotions to inflict massive damage and additional harm.

The enemy would feel disgusted attacking the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers, but when the Heart Demons struck back at the enemy, not only would it be disgusting, but it would also cause severe damage.

Moreover, all their abilities were specifically designed to mess with the opponent’s state of mind. Fighting too much with Heart Demon Dao Soldiers, or being attacked too much without dying, could not only lead to a mental breakdown but might also result in decreased intelligence.

Whoever it was would certainly be repulsed, and even more importantly, Gu Shanhai was training the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers along the lines of hexagon-shaped warriors. They could fight while also providing support, with high agility, high health, and strong defenses—the epitome of disgusting tactics designed to break the enemy mentally.

The philosophy was all about attacking the mind first.

If Daoist Soldier abilities were insufficient to break the enemy’s morale, then they would physically strike at the enemy’s heart.

Gu Shanhai also envisioned a Daoist Soldier type capable of great offensive and defensive capabilities. However, there were two possible outcomes to such training: one could either blunder their way through the world, or simply not be able to outdo others.

Given the resources at Gu Shanhai’s disposal, if he did have to choose, it would most likely be the latter outcome because such Daoist Soldiers truly required substantial resources, which Gu Shanhai didn’t have in abundance.

Of course, Heart Demon Dao Soldiers were more suitable for Gu Shanhai. After all, he possessed Divine Skills and could coordinate them with Heart Demon substitutes and Heart Demon Guardian Demons.

In regard to truly cultivating Heart Demon Dao Soldiers, becoming stronger was one aspect, but Gu Shanhai also planned to use them as a life-saving measure. For instance, by using a Heart Demon substitute, he could create a new means of taking his place in death or injury, allowing the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers to take on damage and death on behalf of Gu Shanhai.

This way, a Heart Demon Dao Soldier equated to an extra life for him. The Guardian Demons pervading his body, once they took on the form of Heart Demon Dao Soldiers, could become another life and safeguard for Gu Shanhai.

Even more extreme, the snatch body ability carried by the Heart Demon substitute itself could enable Gu Shanhai to reincarnate even after death.

At Gu Shanhai’s current stage, the requirement wasn’t for high health and strong defenses anymore, but rather for having many lives and being difficult to kill, with methods to keep coming back to life even after death.

Otherwise, why would he invest so much in the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers project? Because it was a prerequisite for many other projects, including the growth of the White Tiger Companion Spirit Beast, the development of the Nine States Instrument, and the completion of the Four Saints Beasts System, among others.

It was an indispensable foundational project.

"Mr. Gu, the Commander has sent me to deliver the latest intelligence to you."

Gu Shanhai looked up and spotted a Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier—belonging to Jiang Lu’s personal troops.

"Bring it here."

After taking and glancing at the intelligence, it roughly stated that the allied forces had been blocked by a Commander outside Taihe Pass.

Taihe Pass was the necessary route to Yong’an; to advance to Yong’an, the allies would have to break through Taihe Pass or take a detour. However, given the large scale of the allied forces, a detour might result in their supply lines being cut, and running out of provisions would be akin to half a defeat. Therefore, the best approach would be to conquer Taihe Pass.

Unexpectedly, they had been stopped.

"Hundred Battle Daoist Soldiers and Bloodbath Daoist Soldiers," Gu Shanhai murmured softly. The Commander who blocked the allies was named Du Wei, and while the details were unclear, his forces consisted of a combination of Hundred Battle Daoist Soldiers and Bloodbath Daoist Soldiers. The former grew stronger with each battle, and the latter grew stronger with injury. Their current enhancement limits were unknown.

But somehow, Du Wei, with a hundred thousand Hundred Battle Daoist Soldiers and fifty thousand Bloodbath Daoist Soldiers, had blocked the allied forces at Taihe Pass.

Clearly, this person must be a trusted confidante of the Commander occupying the national capital, Yong’an; otherwise, he wouldn’t have been assigned to defend it.

For a time, the allied forces were caught in a dilemma.

"This is akin to gifting one’s reputation," sneered Gu Shanhai. Could the allies truly not defeat them?

That was impossible. The reason they were blocked was because nobody wanted to be a stepping stone or cannon fodder. Against these two kinds of Daoist Soldiers, one must either overwhelm them with sheer power or tire them to death.

Yet, both approaches would result in casualties, and none of the allied Commanders wanted to chew on this tough bone themselves—they only wished to partake in the spoils.

"But it probably won’t hold them off for long, someone will get restless eventually."

If no one bites into this tough nut, then nobody should dream of sharing in the spoils; at most, it’ll be a few months before they break through. At the very least, they might resort to some underhanded tactics.

"Having money is really advantageous," Gu Shanhai couldn’t help but remark.

Jiang Lu and the others only chose a single type of Daoist Soldier, not because they were focused, but because they were poor.

Not everyone is like Qiao Xuan, who specializes only in Swift Shadow Daoist Soldiers.

Most Soldier Masters specialize in one type of military tactics and have a secondary focus on several others. Military tactics aren’t limited to just one kind, and neither are Daoist Soldiers confined to only one type.

Different types of Daoist Soldiers can complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses, and the diversity in military tactics can also be mutually beneficial.

Even Gu Shanhai had considered, after perfecting the Heart Demon Dao Soldiers, developing additional types to complement them. However, this was an extra project, to be tackled only when he really had nothing else to do or when he had the leisure to pursue it.

"How does Jiang Lu see it?" Gu Shanhai asked the Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier after reviewing the report.

"The Soldier Master didn’t say anything," the Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier responded.

"Alright, it seems he’s not too concerned about this matter," Gu Shanhai said, putting the report aside, "If there’s nothing else, you can go back to your duties."

Sun and Moon Daoist Soldiers were actually quite busy; besides daily training, they also had to study literature, learn to read and write, and oversee city patrols and defenses.

Regular soldiers were more like auxiliary forces, which only states of modest power like Liang State would consider a main force. In states with greater strength, they really only served as support, and the number of soldiers would be fewer as well, since maintaining regular soldiers also required the provision of pay, military provisions, and other resources.

The expenditures for regular soldiers truly couldn’t compare to Daoist Soldiers, and correspondingly, neither could their effectiveness. They fell into the category of something of marginal utility.

"Yes, Mr. Gu, there’s one more thing. The Soldier Master would like to invite you to a dinner at your residence the day after tomorrow," the Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier mentioned.

"Who else will be there?" Gu Shanhai asked.

"Lord Zhan and Mr. Li, as well as the Family Heads of the three cities," the Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier replied, not hiding anything since it wasn’t necessary to keep such matters secret—they weren’t of great significance and could even be inquired about by anyone interested.

"Hmm, I’m aware, I’ll be there on time," Gu Shanhai responded, happy to consider the invitation as an opportunity for a free meal.

He knew this was Jiang Lu’s way of sending a message to the noble families—play nice or don’t bother returning from what could end up resembling the infamous Hongmen Banquet.

"But come to think of it, why invite me today for a dinner the day after tomorrow?" Gu Shanhai was puzzled, suspecting that the lad might have other plans he hadn’t shared.

But the Sun and Moon Daoist Soldier had already left, and it wasn’t right for him to pursue the question.

He wasn’t particularly concerned with what Jiang Lu’s plans were, as long as they didn’t involve him working.

In any case, these machinations weren’t targeted at him. What did he have to worry about?

"Forget it, I shouldn’t fuss over it. All I need to do is show up, eat and drink. If there’s serious talk, it will be led by Jiang Lu with Li Yu and Zhan Yan assisting. They probably just want me there to lend weight to the proceedings," Gu Shanhai thought, concluding that it indeed wasn’t suitable for him to handle such matters.

Jiang Lu was unlikely to be mad enough to con him into working... right?

At this thought, Gu Shanhai felt a sudden lack of confidence. Between free food and not working, he would definitely choose not working. Food could be had anytime, but work, if possible, should be avoided at all costs.

"I’ll be cautious when I go the day after tomorrow. If they really try to make me work, I’ll just slip out the back door," Gu Shanhai decided, not caring about face—as long as you have the upper hand, that’s what mattered. He rarely paid attention to these things unless there was a true benefit.

So making him work? Out of the question!

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