"Zhong Shi," Qin Cha tightly gripped his surprising discovery; the True Qi within him seemed entirely absent, completely undetectable, not even a trace of vital energy could be felt.

This realization shook Qin Fen to his core. After half a month of life-or-death combat, his martial path should have seen enormous progress. Divine Beast Warriors might be able to suppress him, but absolutely nothing could prevent him from summoning even a sliver of True Qi.

Although the liquid metal sphere was infinitely miraculous, Qin Fen couldn't believe it possessed the ability to suppress all of his True Qi. Yet, he genuinely couldn't sense or feel any vital energy whatsoever.

"Technology" truly was astonishing! Qin Fen finally had to admire the sheer high-tech wonder of this liquid metal sphere. He couldn't fathom how it managed to stimulate the brain, perhaps temporarily sealing some part of the pituitary gland, causing one to be completely unaware of their innate True Qi.

The silhouette of the Light Man flashed once more before Qin Fen, its voice cold and lifeless as it commanded: "Survive, and death will cease to exist."

The command issued, the Light Man vanished again. Qin Fen didn't even have time to utter a single word, suddenly regretting his habitual silence.

If Xue Tian were here, Qin Fen was certain that the moment the Light Man appeared, Xue Tian’s mouth would have already been firing dozens of rapid-fire questions before the figure could even speak, at least venting his confusion and frustration even if he got no answers.

There was no time for lingering conversation. The thunderous booming of colossal war drums surged toward the heavens, accompanied by deep, echoing horn calls that reverberated across the vast battlefield.

Qin Fen found himself clad in simple cloth garments, gripping a rather unremarkable long spear. Those around him wore expressions of tense anxiety, their weapons trembling to varying degrees in their hands.

This was a raw army! Qin Fen frowned slightly. Being assigned to a newly formed unit was never a good omen; their morale was weak, and there were serious questions about their combat effectiveness.

Too little time for Qin Fen to complain. He noticed the troops beside him were already moving. Opposite them, the massive city gates were flung wide open, a single figure on horseback, spear in hand, charging out, followed by rows upon rows of soldiers.

The gleam of their battle blades and the piercing killing intent—even before contact was made—told Qin Fen that the opposition consisted of seasoned veterans, perhaps even near-elite troops.

The formations of both armies began to advance. Qin Fen soon realized that although the armies appeared to march shoulder-to-shoulder, they maintained subtle order, subtly forming an ancient military array!

The pace of the march seemed slow, but the distance separating the two forces was not vast; as both sides moved forward together, the gap closed rapidly.

No enemy commander rode out to challenge their counterpart to a duel. When the rhythm of the war drums abruptly shifted, the archers on both sides loosed a synchronized volley toward the sky. Arrows poured down like rain.

Thwack, thwack, thwack...

The rain of arrowheads instantly buried itself in the bodies of the raw recruits flanking Qin Fen. Some, like Qin Fen, tried to deflect the shafts with their spears or short blades. The opposing force was clearly well-drilled, and their equipment was far superior to Qin Fen’s side. Soldiers in the front ranks promptly raised their shields, blocking the majority of the incoming fire.

The first collision involved the commanders, where broadswords met silver spears, sparking dazzling flashes. The soldiers then crashed together like a tide. Qin Fen met the eyes of his opponents, which blazed with ferocious killing intent, yet beneath it lay a faint thread of pride.

Yes, he had grounds for pride. As a battle-hardened veteran facing a unit of fresh recruits, one accustomed to slaughter and gore, he knew better than anyone that hesitation bred death in such places.

Therefore, he was not afraid to die. At the very least, he needed to project an image of fearlessness to crush the seemingly green opponents with sheer morale. He raised his blade and hefted his shield, pointedly keeping the shield away from his front, as was his custom. A single swing should be enough to kill the terrified new recruit.

But he was wrong. As he began to raise his blade, two sharp glints of light erupted in his pupils. This fierce light vanished in an instant, and a searing, painful sting flared in his throat. In the next moment, blinding red blood erupted from his neck, and his body slumped forward weakly.

The veteran fell. The few veterans beside him displayed expressions of surprise. That thrust had been fast, accurate, steady, and ruthless—not the kind of blow a raw recruit could deliver.

Qin Fen didn't retract his spear immediately. Even without True Qi, his martial intuition remained; his abnormal stamina and strength were undiminished, and his understanding of the body’s fragile points hadn't faded in the slightest.

The shaft of the long spear flickered in mid-air, executing four dazzling spear blossoms. Before four more veterans could fully raise their shields, transparent holes were pierced through their throats.

Survive! At this moment, Qin Fen dismissed all other thoughts, eliminating anyone near him who harbored hostility or killing intent.

Across the vast battlefield, saturated with countless murderous auras, discerning which ones were directed specifically at him—and which were mere instinctual releases due to war—presented a significant challenge for Qin Fen.

A standard soldier’s spear, with a wooden shaft and an iron tip, was completely soaked crimson in mere minutes. The metal point had long since dulled, no longer sharp, looking more like a solid block of iron. In these few minutes, everyone beside Qin Fen had been killed. On a massive battlefield, no one would waste effort fighting to the death against a single foot soldier.

The veterans also understood that life was precious. The raw recruits near Qin Fen, witnessing him slaughter like a raging demon, found their morale soaring instantly. Their once stiff postures began to loosen and become fluid.

Another thrust. Qin Fen frowned slightly, but instead of retracting the spear lodged in the enemy’s throat as he usually would, he paused.

This spear point was truly blunt. Using it further would only be a liability. Time to switch weapons.

With a sudden burst forward, even without True Qi’s assistance, Qin Fen moved before the fallen opponent could completely collapse. He snatched the knife that had slipped from the dead man's grasp and flung it backhand!

On the battlefield, no one paid attention to what a mere foot soldier was doing. But soldiers did watch what their generals were doing. The two vanguard commanders locked in fierce equestrian combat never suspected that a foot soldier had crept close in the interim, nor could they have anticipated the knife flying out like lightning.

It happened too suddenly. Qin Fen’s knife struck like a thunderbolt, piercing the enemy general’s chest before being cleaved in half by Qin Fen’s own commander’s sword.

As the armies engaged, the sudden death of the enemy general, followed by the severing of their banner by a thrown blade, caused an immediate and drastic shift in momentum.

Qin Fen surged forward with the tide of soldiers, smashing through the enemy lines, but they did not manage the lucky break of entering the city. The towering city walls had already slammed their iron gates shut, completely ignoring the allies trapped outside.

Tall city walls were not something an army without scaling ladders could conquer. The army Qin Fen belonged to temporarily chose to retreat.

A simple military camp became Qin Fen's lodging. His stellar performance in the battle earned him an immediate promotion to Squad Leader, granting him a slightly better environment for rest.

The battle ended, but the Light Man did not appear, clearly unwilling to conclude this trial immediately. Qin Fen could only sit in his sparsely furnished tent, desperately trying to sense his True Qi. If he could recover his vital energy, what were the surrounding army and city worth?

Late into the night, Qin Fen wrapped his clothes tighter around himself. He realized for the first time how utterly reliant he was on True Qi. Once he lost it entirely, he might still be a strong individual, but he was absolutely no longer the kind of powerhouse capable of dictating the flow of events—not even the flow of a battle between two armies.

Morning arrived with the lighting of fires for cooking. Donning the leather armor of a Squad Leader and hefting a comparatively superior battle saber, the army once again formed its ranks.

Not long after, troops emerged again from the enemy city, their numbers surprisingly matching yesterday’s deployment.

Qin Fen had no time for wonder about how many soldiers such a massive city concealed. The armies of both sides once again collided fiercely.

A moment of life or death! Qin Fen battled through the carnage for another full day. This time, his thrown knife did not prove as effective as it had yesterday.

The soldiers guarding the enemy vanguard general were constantly alert to changes on the field. Qin Fen's flying knife was stopped entirely by a soldier who sacrificed his shield and his life to intercept it.

In this engagement, Qin Fen only managed to overthrow the enemy general after stealthily closing the distance to his side, once again reversing the tide of the battle with a single swing.

The fighting seemed endless. In the span of a mere seven days, Qin Fen had lived through this meat-grinder of a war, and his military contribution had advanced from the initial Squad Leader rank to General commanding five thousand men.

In seven days, Qin Fen had gradually adapted to life without True Qi. While combat was incredibly arduous, it also cultivated a sense of overall strategic awareness on the battlefield.

This strategic awareness—Qin Fen realized—was something he had previously overlooked. It didn't just influence the flow of armies; it was vital training for the martial artist himself.

From the grand strategy, one could discern the subtle details! This wasn't just applicable to armies; it belonged to everyone. Even in a duel between two individuals, there existed both a grand picture and minute particulars.

Today, Qin Fen rode his warhorse; he was the vanguard General. Gazing at the city gates opening in the distance, seven Generals suddenly materialized within!

Qin Fen recognized all seven of them. His own promotion to General had been bought with the lives of these seven. And now, all seven were alive!

Qin Fen’s heart constricted slightly. If he released his True Qi, even all seven attacking together would be useless. But without True Qi, he could at best handle three Generals, and these Generals were no fools.

"What is happening to me?" Qin Fen quietly observed the seven Generals in the distance. "Why? Why do I lack confidence? When I was merely a One-Star Warrior, with almost no income, I never doubted myself. I reached the Tiangang realm, yet now I doubt myself? Am I insecure? Is my confidence derived only from my Tiangang True Qi, and not from my own self?"

"No! I believe in myself! Even when I was weaker, I never doubted myself. I grew stronger, and now I begin to doubt? Trusting in strength, trusting in myself?"

In an instant! Qin Fen felt the True Qi he hadn't been able to sense for so long surge throughout his body! The power of the Tiangang realm had returned! (To be continued)