Chapter 24: Pre-War Analysis

  Ten more days, and it will be another long wait.

  Nowadays Shendu has enough patience and he doesn't feel anxious at all about the ten-day wait.

  For the past six years, it was probably the lowest point in his life. For every day of the last three years, he had been urging himself not to let go of any time that could be used to practice swordsmanship and to recover his strength as soon as possible.

  In fact, he did it, and his swordsmanship was even better than before. The only thing that made him dissatisfied was the pair of iron arms that had been trained since childhood, which had now lost their power and were no different from those of ordinary swordsmen.

  The more he thought about it, the more he felt an urge to make these arms even stronger and more overbearing.

  "Hey, Shen Dou brothers, are you free?" The newcomer was surprisingly Hei Shen.

  Seeing him with a smile on his face and a relaxed demeanor, Shen said with a bright smile: "Hei Shen big brother, how did you come, what's the matter with me?"

  Hei Shen walked up to Shen Du, and with a punch on his chest, he said with a pleased expression: "Brother Shen Du, isn't it great? I saw everything that just happened. It seems the city master has taken a liking to you."

  Shen suddenly recalled the scene from earlier and it seemed to have that kind of meaning, but Feilu was his lifesaver and in his heart, held a position similar to his grandfather's, both were inviolable existences.

  "What was said, the city master only reminded me to practice my sword well, and then we will welcome the battle with Mado." Speaking of this, it also sparked Shen Du's doubts, and asked: "What is the strength of Mado, compared to the Death City, which one is stronger?"

  Hei Shen's expression turned solemn, his eyes narrowing as he tapped his index fingers together in contemplation. After a moment, he nodded thoughtfully and said, "If we consider the strength of the Sword Guests, Death City should have at least 30,000 swordsmen, over a dozen sword masters, and five sword kings. I heard that some time ago, the national ruler had already broken through the Sword Emperor's barrier, with terrifying strength. As for Magic City, there should be at least 30,000 to 40,000 swordsmen, over a dozen sword masters, and more than five sword kings. The national ruler, Han Xuan, is probably not far from becoming a Sword Emperor either. Overall, the strength of both countries can be considered equal."

  When Shen Du heard these numbers, he wasn't shocked at all. Six years ago in the Imperial Border City, he had already witnessed the terrifying strength of Fu Xingbo's Sword Emperor level with his own eyes. Adding to that was the data analyzed by Hei Shen and Lou Fan from the Great Sword Sect, which was probably far off from the actual numbers.

  Shen Dou speculated from this that Mo Du's strength was probably not just that, and frowned: "Then what is the current strength of Sha Cheng?"

  "On the sandy city, there are only about 10,000 citizens in total. Among them, there are 700-800 disabled soldiers, 7,000 primary swordsmen, 2,000 intermediate swordsmen, 100 advanced swordsmen, and four sword masters."

  Hei Shen gave Shendu the most detailed data, and also a gloomy face.

  Shen Du mentally calculated that the four swordsmen were probably Fei Lu, Hei Shen, Chen Tao, and himself. With such an army, how could they resist the powerful Mo Du? If they couldn't get support from Si Wang's Death City, Sha Cheng would likely become another Shen family, with everyone dying together.

  But will the capital of death really support the small sandy city? Shen didn't dare to pin his hopes on a faint expectation, and asked again: "Does Feilu have a specific battle plan?"

  "I'm not quite sure about this, but this morning Han Xuan's eldest son, Han Yichen, led three hundred swordsmen in a surprise attack on Sha City, which was unsuccessful. I suppose a large army will come to punish us soon. The city lord has always liked to study military strategy, so he must have already made up his mind." said Hei Shen Dao.

  This information was obviously too vague and Shen couldn't put his mind at ease, so he decided to go find Feilu and ask him what's going on.

  But just as he was about to set off, Hei Shen blocked his way: "Shen Dou brothers, what are you going to do."

  "Don't you want to know the city lord's plan?" Shen asked in surprise.

  "Of course we want to, but the city master is currently injured and we can't disturb him." Hei Shen explained.

  I didn't expect Hei Shen to be so big and sturdy-looking, yet also honest and down-to-earth.

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  But also meticulous as dust, Shen was blaming herself in her heart, why didn't she consider Feilu a little more, she was really too tired. First time update.

  "What kind of strength does Han Yichen have now?" Shen Du asked curiously.

  "Han Yichen should be a low-level strong swordsman, but he is arrogant and overestimates himself, so it's not difficult to deal with him." Hei Shen analyzed Han Yichen and added: "The most terrifying one is Han Xuan. Not only does he have a deep understanding of the way of martial arts, but he also has a bloodthirsty nature, known throughout the land. At the age of seven, he learned swordsmanship and killed countless people. On the battlefield, he is an invincible war god, and in the world of swordsmen, he is a calm and wise sword king. He is truly a terrifying existence."

  "In that case, Shazhou's chances of winning are probably less than one in ten." Shen Dou furrowed his brow and said, thinking to himself about how to alleviate Shazhou's worries.

  This disaster was originally caused by Chen Tao, if he didn't die, he would have killed Han Xuan's three sons, and it's unlikely that Han Xuan would have easily sent troops to Sha City, because Sha City doesn't have what Han Xuan wants.

  "It's not that we're invincible, but after all, we have the home field advantage. We know the terrain of the desert better than anyone else, and this is our greatest strength." Hei Shen said confidently.

  "Hmm." Shen Du continued to ponder, even though he was familiar with the desert terrain. However, the Lingzhou continent had always revered the sword, and dealing with an enemy several times stronger than the Sand City would be impossible in a head-on confrontation. He asked, "What are the main geographical advantages of the Sand City?"

  "We are in the desert oasis zone, which is the most suitable place for human habitation. However, around us, there are many crescent-shaped sand dunes with different shapes and yet extremely similar. We can ambush the enemy at a very high rate if we hide deep within the sand dunes." Hei Shen Dao.

  Speaking of ambush, Shen Du always felt that something was off, after sorting out his thoughts, the war on Lingzhou Continent was a war of sword against sword, the stronger the sword energy, the stronger the strength, so he asked again: "How can we hide our own sword energy and not be detected by the opponent?"

  "Haha!" The Black God burst out laughing and said: "This is easy, have you heard of the Hidden Energy Pill? As long as our people take the Hidden Energy Pill, they won't release any sword energy." More chapters please visit.

  Shen Du shook his head and said, "I don't know."

  "It's actually normal that you don't know, the Hidden Qi Pellet is originally only available to the military, all scouts and assassins are equipped with it, so as to more easily complete their missions." Hei Shen said with a smile.

  "What is the effect of Cang Qi Dan?" Shen Dou asked curiously.

  "The Cangqi Dan has its pros and cons. The good thing is that after taking it, no one can detect the sword energy within oneself. The bad thing is that after taking it, one cannot release even a bit of sword energy." said Heishendao.

  "Hmm." Shen Du began to worry, if the assassination of the enemy army failed, wouldn't these people lose their lives in the desert? The thought of being surrounded and killed by hundreds or even thousands of people was terrifying.

  Hei Shen seemed to see the worry in Shendu's eyes, and with a strong pat on Shendu's shoulder, he said: "Don't worry, our assassins are all well-trained veterans who have been lurking and training in the desert for years. They have rich combat experience, and even if they can't use their sword energy, relying solely on their physical abilities and understanding of the desert terrain, they can easily escape."

  "So that's how it is." Shen Du finally put his mind at ease, so their most important enemy was probably still Han Xuan. How could they defeat Han Xuan?

  Six years ago, he had a pair of iron arms that were both offensive and defensive, as well as a sword that was at the Sword King level, weighing over 10,000 catties. These were all powerful trump cards, and when facing opponents who were on the same level as him, he would not be intimidated at all. Even if his opponents outnumbered him by several times, he could still remain calm and composed.

  Now I have lost the Iron Arm and the sword of ten thousand catties, all that is left is this small sword in my hand.

  He felt that his strength was far from what it used to be. On the surface, he had already reached the middle level of a swordsman, but in reality, he was not as good as when he was at the peak of being a sword master.

  "Alas! What a vexing war." Shen Du sighed.

  Hei Shen's eyes sparkled with an inexplicable story, as if he was lost in deep memories, yet also seemed to be anticipating the wars of the future.