This is a simulation, but also a contest between Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan and Sean Xuan. Both chose the blue team, both chose to attack Skyvault Palace. Now it’s a matter of who can cross Serena Feng’s newly upgraded Road of Death at the lowest cost.
In this area, Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan has no particular advantage. After all, he’s never actually set foot on a battlefield before. This is their first time. Oh...
Wait—Serena Feng, too. It’s her first time commanding a battle. Don’t forget, even though she spent time on battlefields before, she was just a regular military doctor. She never had the chance to lead troops, and during combat she was always the one being protected, only showing up when the fighting was nearly over.
This entire battle is fought by four young people who don’t really know war. Honestly, it’s kind of interesting. At the same time, you have to admit—they’ve got guts.
Aside from this drill, it’s their first time commanding a real battle—and they’re going up against a coalition from three nations. Sure, it’s only a small part of the allied armies, but the power of a three-nation coalition is enough to make most people tremble.
But they aren’t fazed at all. Not just by a small coalition—if all four kingdoms and nine cities attacked Skyvault Palace at once, the four of them wouldn’t flinch. They’d fight to the very last second.
"Move out!"
At Sean Xuan’s order, blue flags whipped through the air. War chariots bearing blue banners surged out from both sides—creaking and rumbling—over a thousand chariots flooding into view, stretching as far as the eye could see.
Even for a drill, this was a massive operation. The only difference was that the chariots didn’t carry soldiers, but sheep—herded and managed by shepherds.
Of course, the sheep weren’t meant to charge into battle. They were stand-ins for soldiers, used to test the traps’ power. Behind the chariots came the real force: thirty thousand troops. As soon as they appeared, their battle cries shook the sky.
"Kill!"
"Kill!"
Just one word, but the sheer momentum could pierce the heavens. It made everyone tense up, bodies taut with anticipation. This is cold weapon era combat—no tanks, no planes, no machine guns—just a raw, terrifying force.
This is a battlefield—the opening act of a life-and-death struggle. No need for contact; the war has already begun. The blue team’s momentum soared.
The formation alone delivered a powerful visual shock. In the cold weapon era, battle was all about momentum and numbers. Winning with fewer against more wasn’t impossible, but it required perfect timing and terrain—conditions that were rarely met. Usually, the side with more troops won. The brave won.
This kind of battle, Serena Feng had never seen before. What she was used to was bullets spraying, enemy planes bombing overhead, bombs being air-dropped. That’s true gunfire and danger at every step—but it lacks the imposing force and shock of cold weapon warfare.
To Serena, this was real hand-to-hand combat.
Feverish!
Yes—beyond everyone’s expectations, faced with Sean Xuan’s challenge, Serena Feng didn’t show a hint of fear. Instead, she looked feverishly excited, her eyes burning.
Her fighting spirit was blazing.
“This girl’s not bad. If the old Palace Master’s wife had this kind of presence, I wouldn’t care if she was Emma Lu or Irene Lu—I’d accept her.” The white-bearded mechanism elder stroked his fine beard, nodding in approval.
For a fight like this, it’s not just Serena Feng—even these old-timers, who’ve weathered countless storms, couldn’t help but show a little fear.
Sean Xuan’s momentum was overwhelming.
Whew... Serena Feng wasn’t unaffected. But for her, those feelings only fueled her fighting spirit—the stronger the opponent, the more interesting the battle.
"All units, prepare for battle." Serena Feng’s icy voice carried her command, unexpectedly steadying those who felt uneasy.
Unlike Sean Xuan’s overwhelming momentum, Serena Feng was calm and efficient.
"Team One, stand by for my command. Team Seven, cover Team One. Team Two, redirect hidden weapons toward the southeast." Serena pointed at the map, quickly adjusting the layout to match Sean Xuan’s army formation.
Don’t forget—she’s on defense, Sean Xuan’s on offense. Of course she needs to adjust her strategy based on the opponent’s moves.
"Yes!" The moment her command was received, her people sprang into action, and Serena’s command flags were swiftly distributed.
On the battlefield, neither Serena Feng nor Sean Xuan was idle; meanwhile, on the sand table, Ninth Royal Uncle Nolan and Wang Jinling’s contest never stopped. To avoid being affected by the main battle, they’d already started early.
"Five hundred vanguard troops." This was Nolan's first wave of attack. Though called vanguard, they were actually being sent to die—these five hundred would fall in the flames of battle, and sure enough...
"Quicksand trap, plus the power of gunpowder—activate at the seven-li mark." Wang Jinling arranged his formation unhurriedly, knowing victory was already on his side. Now, it was just a matter of how many he could wipe out.
"Three hundred vanguard troops—attack!" At this moment, Sean Xuan gave his first attack order. Compared to Nolan, he favored a more cautious advance.
Three hundred men were replaced by three hundred sheep. Under the shepherds' direction, the sheep charged toward the first line of defense on the Road of Death. With the vanguard clearing the way, the war chariots followed at a slow pace, keeping more than fifty meters' distance.
Sean Xuan hadn't forgotten—the explosives had a range of ten to fifty meters. He couldn't risk the lives of his entire army.
On the battlefield, fodder had already been prepared to guide the sheep forward. Once off the chariots, the sheep would follow the food, never stopping. As Sean Xuan's three hundred vanguard rushed into the Road of Death, Serena Feng made no move—instead, she let them go on.
Hmm? What was Serena Feng planning?
A flicker of confusion passed through Sean Xuan's eyes. But he knew—the first trap on the Road of Death was quicksand and gunpowder. As soon as enemy troops arrived, they'd be sucked under by the sand, and once the gunpowder was triggered, they'd be blown sky-high.
Sean Xuan sacrificed three hundred lives to break open the first stretch, only to find the road completely unobstructed. What was going on? Had the quicksand trap failed?
How could that be possible?
Of course, that wasn't possible. When the three hundred sheep hit the second wave of traps, they were unlucky—each one fell straight into the trenches dug ahead of time.
Given the depth and complexity of the trenches, three hundred sheep weren't enough to fill even a gap. As soon as they fell in, there were no traces left—the trap was reset instantly.
"Interesting." At this point, Sean Xuan noticed something—but...
Those three hundred vanguard troops had died for nothing. With that time, Serena Feng could easily reset the second round of traps.
"Brilliant." Even the veteran mechanism masters couldn't help but praise Serena Feng's move. The wooden planks laid over the quicksand looked like a small change, but the effect was astonishing.
With fewer attackers, the planks wouldn't break—they could cross the first stage safely. But if the numbers increased, the first stretch would cost the attackers dearly.
After sacrificing three hundred men, Sean Xuan understood. Based on his scouts and what he'd just seen, he ordered the second wave: "Five hundred—charge!"
Thud, thud, thud...
The second wave of attack began—what would the outcome be this time?
Wang Jinling couldn't help but look toward that stretch of road in the distance—five hundred men, exactly the same as Nolan's first choice. Was there some special reason for this?