Chapter 27 Preliminary Integration

  A crowd of mountain bandits stared blankly at the elite of the Blood Kill Camp, listening to their slogans shouted with unprecedented momentum, and their hearts were all shaken. Fighting against the Xiongnu? In the Eastern Han Dynasty, in the hearts of all Han people, no matter how weak they were, there was a conviction to fight a decisive battle with the Xiongnu people. After all, the accumulated hatred between the two sides was too deep. Every person who resisted the Xiongnu was a hero in the eyes of the great Han people!

  He looked down at the bandit leader and asked, "What's your name?" The bandit leader panted heavily and said, "My name is Dali." Ao Lie smiled and continued, "Do you want to join me? Become a great Han soldier like them?" Dali nodded hastily and said, "I do! As long as there's food to eat, no one wants to be a mountain bandit, let alone fight against the Xiongnu people."

  Ao Lie burst out laughing and said to the mountain bandits, "Now, I'll give you one chance. As long as you meet my conditions, I can let you surrender to me. The prerequisite is that you must tell the truth."

  He paused for a moment, then Ao Lie shouted loudly again: "All those who have killed people and seen blood, step forward!"

  Out of the more than 400 mountain bandits, more than 200 people walked out hesitantly and stood in four rows in front of Ao Lie. Ao Lie glanced at these more than 200 people and shouted loudly: "Those who have stained themselves with the blood of poor civilians, step forward!" Among the more than 200 people, more than 30 people took a few steps forward.

  Ao Lie's face turned cold, and he said in a low voice: "Now I will teach you the first rule of becoming an elite, that is, those who oppress the common people will be killed without pardon!" As soon as Ao Lie finished speaking, more than 30 elite cavalrymen rushed out from behind him, charging towards the more than 30 mountain bandits who had lined up. Before anyone could react, the more than 30 Blood Kill Camp elites simultaneously drew their steel knives and struck down in unison.

  A flash of blood filled the sky. One knife! To be exact, one knife per person, accurately and flawlessly cutting off the heads of over thirty mountain bandits. The entire process was smooth and swift, completed in the blink of an eye.

  Looking at the more than 30 headless corpses, Ao Lie said coldly: "As a great Han elite soldier, you must always remember to take the safety of the Han people as your own responsibility!" Afterwards, Ao Lie's tone softened, looking at the over 160 mountain bandits who had surrendered for the first time, including Da Li, he said: "From this moment on, you are all soldiers under my command. However, if you want to become true battle-hardened elite soldiers, there is still much that you need to learn and strive for. In a few days, you will understand."

  Afterwards, Ao Lie turned to the more than 200 mountain bandits who had not surrendered and said: "You are all from poor and humble origins, unsuitable for being soldiers. It's better for you to return to your hometowns and live a simple life." Among these more than 200 people, someone said: "Please accept us, General! We may not have killed before, but we also want to become great Han Dynasty elite soldiers, real men! Please believe in us!"

  Ao Lie couldn't help but hesitate. All along, he had been used to fighting with elite troops, and suddenly taking in so many people with poor military quality was too much for him. Ao Lie didn't have a lot of patience to train them, after all, he himself still had to undergo King Ao's harsh training every day! Where would he find the time to train new recruits?

  Just as Ao Lie was hesitating, Xun Yu came to his side and said in a low voice: "My lord, although the quality of this army is poor, it has the advantage of being usable, and after training, it may not be impossible to become an elite soldier." Ao Lie nodded when he heard the words, turned his head to Zhang Liao and asked: "Wen Yuan, do you have confidence in turning these people into elite soldiers in a short period of time?" Zhang Liao opened his mouth as if to respond, but then shook his head. Ao Lie was amused by Zhang Liao's actions and laughed, asking: "What does Wen Yuan mean exactly?"

  "If you want to achieve quick results, there is a way, but this method goes against the main general's principles of leading troops. Therefore, Liao dares not respond to the main general." "Oh?" Ao Lie asked curiously: "What method?" Zhang Liao replied: "There are still several mountain bandits lurking in the territory. If you want these new soldiers to mature quickly, you have to train them through battle! Let these new soldiers go and eliminate other mountain bandits, but this will inevitably lead to casualties. The main general has always cherished his soldiers, so Liao dares not respond."

  Listening to Zhang Liao's words, Xun Yu hastily said: "My lord, those who achieve great things do not bother with trivial matters. War is originally a matter of military might and danger, how can everything be perfect?" This time it was Ao Lie's turn to be speechless. In fact, Ao Lie also knew these principles, but as a modern-day transmigrant, the thoughts of modern people still occupied a large part of his mind. He couldn't bear to watch tens of thousands of people die in front of him with an unchanged expression. However, there was no other way out now. If he wanted to occupy a position in the chaotic Han dynasty after Emperor Ling's death, it was impossible without being ruthless and cunning.

  He let out a sigh, and Ao Lie said to the more than 200 mountain bandits who had surrendered: "All of you are new recruits who haven't undergone systematic training. If you want to become elite soldiers, you must pay the price of hard work, even with your lives. This is something I must make clear to all of you. Now, whoever still wants to join my ranks, step forward."

  No one hesitated, no one lingered, and the new recruits, who were not much different from ordinary civilians, took a step forward at the same time. Ao Lie also stopped entangling this matter, turned his head and pointed to Zhang Liao, saying: "This is General Zhang Liao Zhang Wen yuan, from now on, he will be your commander."

  After settling all the good things, Ao Lie left the army to Zhang Liao, Xun Yu and Tian Chou, and rushed back to the government office first. Because, there was a pile of homework waiting for him at Master Wang Ao's place.

  For the next two months, Ao Lie returned to his peaceful life, continuing to endure the pain and happily accept Wang Ao's strict training. During these two months, Zhang Liao integrated the Blood Kill Battalion and eliminated several mountain bandits, causing the new soldiers in Red Stone Valley to grow rapidly, but at a great cost. More than 300 new soldiers were left with only over 200 people after several fierce battles, with a casualty rate of nearly 30%! In contrast to the huge casualties, the more than 200 surviving new soldiers had already shed their rookie title, although they still hadn't reached the elite level of the original Blood Kill Battalion veterans. However, their combat strength was growing rapidly, and it was believed that it wouldn't take long for them to complete their transformation into crack troops. After these two fierce battles, Zhang Liao selected some robust prisoners of war and supplemented them to the Blood Kill Battalion, bringing the battalion's number to 800 people.

  Along with the growth of his forces, Ao Lie began to worry about military equipment again. Fortunately, two months ago, he had let Shuang'er guide Yu Zhu and four other women in learning how to make golden silk leaves. After selling all the golden silk leaves stored by the five women, Ao Lie was able to scrape together a sum of money, solving the equipment problem for the Blood Kill Battalion. Uniformly following the old soldiers' equipment, each Blood Kill Battalion warrior was equipped with willow leaf iron armor, steel knives, crossbows, and warhorses. Under Zhang Liao's careful guidance and strict training, these eight hundred Blood Kill Battalion warriors, whether old or new, had all mastered the Blood Kill knife method, and were even more familiar with various formations, whether it was cavalry or infantry battles, they could conduct battles in an organized manner.

  Just as Zhang Liao was about to lead his troops to attack the bandits outside of Ji County, Ao Lie hastily stopped him. There was no other reason, he had run out of money and couldn't afford to support any more soldiers. Therefore, Zhang Liao had no choice but to temporarily suspend the campaign and focus on training his troops instead. Ao Lie then proposed a suggestion to Zhang Liao: actual combat drills! What is actual combat? It means dividing the 800 elite soldiers into two teams of 400 each, with Ao Lie and Zhang Liao in command, and engaging in real-life combat training with real swords! Although it was actual combat, they couldn't actually have anyone get hurt or killed, so the armor worn by the soldiers were the usual willow leaf iron armor, but the steel knives in their hands had been replaced with wooden knives of similar weight.

  At first, Ao Lie relied on his innate divine power and extraordinary martial arts, plus the military strategy he learned from Wang Ao, to easily win no matter which team he led. Later, Zhang Liao also learned his lesson and refused to face Ao Lie alone, instead pulling in Xun Yu and Tian Chou to confront Ao Lie together. As the saying goes, three cobblers are better than one Zhuge Liang, let alone Zhang Liao, Xun Yu, and Tian Chou, who were all famous figures later on? So, it was no longer easy for Ao Lie to respond, even using some suitable tactics from later generations, yet still winning less and losing more. In the end, Ao Lie could only resort to desperate measures, relying on his experience and knowledge from later generations to outmaneuver Zhang Liao and the others, but every time he racked his brains to come up with a clever move, narrowly defeating Zhang Liao and the others, within a few days, they would figure out a corresponding countermeasure, resulting in Ao Lie suffering a crushing defeat.

  So, Ao Lie had to think of new ways again and again, but no matter what clever moves he made, they would be solved by the three in just a few days. In the end, Ao Lie simply brought his master Wang Ao into the game as well, with the two of them working together against Zhang Liao's trio, which finally ended in a draw. During this process of mutual confrontation, Ao Lie's endless stream of moves not only made Zhang Liao and the others gasp in amazement but also left Wang Ao sighing in admiration. These people inspired and motivated each other, deepening their emotions and further strengthening their sense of belonging and identity as members of the Blood Kill Camp, making them proud to be part of it.

  It's almost the end of the year. A piece of news has attracted everyone's attention in Ao Lie. After Wang Ao Lao Zu sent a letter to Tong Yuan, inviting him to come to Ji County for a meeting, nearly four months have passed. Now, Tong Yuan finally brought a letter through someone, saying that he received Wang Ao Lao Zu's letter and originally planned to come immediately, but because two of his disciples were at a critical moment in their cultivation, he had to postpone the trip. However, he guaranteed that he would definitely come to meet with Wang Ao Lao Zu before the New Year, and also heard that Wang Ao Lao Zu had accepted Ao Lie as a disciple, so this time he came with two proud disciples, which is good for the younger generation to learn from each other and make progress together.

  There is another good news coming. Liu Yu led Ao Lie to eliminate all the mountain bandits in the territory of Ji County, which coincided with the court's wishes. Emperor Ling Liu Hong was overjoyed and publicly praised Ao Lie in front of all civil and military officials. Originally, Ao Lie's achievements were not that great, and he had only eliminated six or seven dens of bandits, totaling around 5,000 mountain bandits. However, because of the Yellow Turban Rebellion, Liu Hong was deeply traumatized and became extremely cautious about any uprisings from the people. Moreover, with the eunuchs and external relatives fighting for power, Liu Hong intentionally promoted a group of capable and accomplished imperial relatives to maintain the Han dynasty. It happened that at this time, Liu Yu's memorial arrived, and Liu Hong took the opportunity to promote Ao Lie, who had already changed his surname but still had the bloodline of Emperor Wu in his body and was also the son of Prince Liu Yu.

  Then Liu Hong immediately agreed and appointed Ao Lie as the Tiger General, and granted him the title of Marquis of Baishengting. In this way, Ao Lie, who was only ten years old, became a newly appointed general and marquis of the new generation.