Chapter Thirty: Zhang Lu's Fatigue

  This time, Liu Bang gave me the rewards of "having private soldiers", "systematic soldier nurturing", "infinite conscription" and "forced loyalty". The first two have been mentioned before, now let's talk about "infinite conscription" and "forced loyalty".

  Infinite Recruitment: There is no recruitment limit within one's own territory, and it is even possible to recruit more troops than the population of the territory. Of course, this cannot exceed one-tenth of the national population. 10+ level domestic governance skills.

  Forced Loyalty: Once a player joins, they can never betray on the battlefield. If betrayed, they will forever lose the opportunity to gain any experience points and attribute upgrades. The system will inform the player before joining. 10+ level war skills.

  I couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. Liu Bang's mission was really too strong.

  This made me more enthusiastic about doing Liu Bang's task. I gladly accepted the next task - to meet Zhang Lu.

  Unexpectedly, this time seeing Zhang Lu was very similar to the last time I saw Sun Jian. I had just strolled around on the street for half a day, which is about ten minutes in real life, and Zhang Lu had already personally brought people to welcome me. Although I was puzzled in my heart, as soon as Zhang Lu spoke, I understood.

  It turns out that this incarnation inherited the special skills "Fan Pu Gui Zhen" and "Tong Guang He Chen", which are the top-level cultivation skills of Taoism. Ordinary people may not feel anything, but Zhang Lu is a third-generation descendant of Zhang Tian Shi, and he had already sensed it in the government office, so he personally brought people to pick me up.

  Although I felt surprised, being able to complete the task smoothly still made me very happy. I was also thinking of taking a look at the legendary "tired" Zhang Lu, so I followed him with a swagger to do some guest work.

  After three rounds of wine, Zhang Lu suddenly became articulate. I thought he was chanting scriptures, but after listening carefully, he was reciting the "Longzhong Dui". He repeated it over and over again when he reached the part that said "Liu Zhang is weak and Zhang Lu is exhausted", his voice getting louder and louder.

  "I was shocked: 'Master Tian, how did you know what happened afterwards?'"

  Zhang Lu stopped reciting and looked at me with a smile: "I am the Heavenly Master, can I know what strange things will happen later?"

  I also suddenly realized. If the Heavenly Master wasn't this awesome, this title wouldn't have any meaning.

  "Since it's like this," I inquired, "does the Master know of a way to break through after knowing what comes later?"

  Zhang Lu sighed and said, "Knowing is one thing, finding a solution is another. Although I know what will happen in the future, I am unable to escape my fate. Now that I see you possess the ultimate skills of our moral ancestors, I specially invite you to come and teach me."

  I nodded: "Tian Shi, I just recited 'Zhang Lu's fatigue', can you tell me the reason?"

  Zhang Lu said, "Lu also seriously studied the events that occurred later. Although the history of later generations says that Lu employed treacherous and evil people and did not tolerate good generals, in fact there were other reasons. The defeat of Lu was not due to the distinction between good and evil, but because the army was weak. Mr. Kongming had already thought of this a long time ago."

  I nodded again: "That's right. The soldiers of Hanzhong are here to follow the famous Tao, and they are not very enthusiastic about the matter of knives and guns. Once on the battlefield, how can they resist those fierce warriors? If the Heavenly Master wants to change his fate, the most important thing is still to enrich the people and strengthen the army."

  "Good, enriching the people and strengthening the army."

  "But," Zhang Lu said dejectedly, "in the past, everyone knew this principle, but didn't know how to put it into practice."

  I curiously said: "Isn't there a general under Tian Shi who knows how to use formations?"

  At this moment, a scholar stood up and bowed, saying: "I am Yan Yun, and I have met you before, sir."

  "Yan Yun?" I exclaimed in surprise, "I've long heard that you're assisting the Master of Heaven here. Logically speaking, you should be familiar with military strategy and troop deployment."

  Yan Yun said again: "Mr. what you expected is not different. But there is one thing, Yun has always wanted to teach the formation method, but the response from the soldiers is not very enthusiastic."

  "I wondered: 'Why is this?'"

  Yan Yun replied, "Although the soldiers are indeed warriors, they are all cultivators. Cultivators fear being disturbed by external objects; unless it's for the safety of the sect, they wouldn't even want to hold a weapon. Now, letting them immerse themselves in military tactics and formations every day is even further away from what we're seeking."

  I nodded and said: "That's right. I wonder if Master Tian and Military Adviser are willing to let me try?"

  Zhang Lu was overjoyed: "Today I invited Mr. to come, originally had this intention, since Mr. is willing to help, Lu and others are grateful here."

  I hastily pushed back and said, "Master Tian doesn't have to be polite. Since I have a connection with the founder of Taoism, helping Master Tian is my duty. Please also ask Master Tian and General Wu to lead the way."

  Zhang Lu said no more, made a slight bow, and rose to his feet, leading me to the front of the Hanzhong army.

  At first glance at Zhang Lu's large army, I gave his troops a nickname - the Ant Army. Historically, Zhang Lu's army should have been around 200,000. But now, due to the general increase in troop numbers in the game, Zhang Lu's army has over 10 million. Since Zhang Lu was defined as "exhausted" by Zhuge Liang and there are no battles to fight at present, almost no players join this army. With no players, yet an army of 10 million, the number is still astonishing. So now in Zhang Lu's military camp, from a distance, it looks like a crowd of ants.

  But looking at it again, I also have doubts about this nickname. After all, when ants move their homes, they are still organized. These armies are simply like children playing house, and even worse than ants. If they go to war, they will definitely be beaten. Fortunately, these soldiers look spirited and do not seem to be the kind of cowards who flee in battle.

  At this time, Zhang Lu suddenly took a deep breath and shouted in a low voice: "Everyone has worked hard."

  This voice was full and clear, and ten million people heard it clearly. Originally noisy, suddenly all quieted down. Immediately afterwards, these ten million soldiers shouted in unison: "Tian Shi, Tian Shi, Tian Shi..."

  But then Zhang Lu raised his hands, and the shouting stopped. Then Zhang Lu continued: "Everyone, today I'd like to introduce you to Mr. Nan Ke from the south, who has received the true teachings of our Daoist ancestors. Our Daoist ancestors felt that our military strength was not strong enough, so they specially sent Mr. Nan Ke to guide us in our martial arts training."

  At this point, Zhang Lu made a "please" gesture to me. I followed Zhang Lu's gesture and stepped forward, shouting in a low voice, but found that my voice was too small. Zhang Lu smiled slightly, and a thick true energy entered my body. When I shouted again in a low voice, I could already be heard by everyone.

  I asked Zhang Lu's soldiers: "Everyone, why did we become soldiers?"

  "All soldiers exclaimed: 'Defend the sacred land of Hanzhong.'"

  I nodded: "The moral ancestor told me that there are 3,600 kinds of Dharma gates for cultivation, and the martial way to protect the Taoist gate is only once in 3,000 years. Everyone must cherish this opportunity."

  As the crowd no longer made a fuss, but quietly listened to me speak, I continued: "In the past, the moral ancestors brought their disciples to the mortal world together to enlighten ordinary people. Among them, Sun Wuzi established the way of the military. Unfortunately, after that, the way of the military was used indiscriminately by the people of the world, resulting in very few truly mastering the way of the military. We are all cultivators of the Tao, and today we have obtained a rare opportunity that is hard to come by in a thousand years, so let's not miss it again. Military advisor Yan Pu is a disciple personally selected by the moral ancestors among the disciples of the military way, I hope everyone will follow the military advisor and study diligently."

  This remark was obviously met with a puzzled expression from the soldiers. I only started from Zhang Lu's one sentence and took advantage of the momentum to guide them. Now it seems that the effect is still quite good.

  Seeing the soldiers still staring at me, I continued: "From now on, General Yan will first train the generals, and then each general will train their subordinates. Finally, all soldiers will participate in the training. However, when it comes to training the soldiers, it may have to wait until a year later. Within this year, you soldiers need to explore the way of martial arts by yourselves. When your cultivation reaches a certain level, you can attain enlightenment and understand the Tao."

  Now, all the soldiers stood up in reverence. Obviously, I had deeply moved them. My political offensive was effective.

  As expected, the system gave me a political and article reward. Fortunately, it wasn't full, so I don't feel that perverted.

  At this time, I suddenly turned around and asked Yan Yun: "Are there any players among the soldiers of Hanzhong?"

  Yan Wan replied: "There are about ten players."

  "Alright, bring them here to me."