The old things I repaired have become fine

Chapter 737 National Destiny vs. Immortal Arts: Who is Stronger? Who Will Win?

This battle is likely to be lost.

Shen Le stared blankly at the giant dragon coiling and roaring in front of him.

It was old, it was weary, its scales were covered in grime and even had many tears. But it was still a dragon—

It is a dragon that is unique in this era.

The soldiers opposite were the last vestiges of the Han Dynasty, a mixture of the strongest and most capable men from the Imperial Guard, the border troops, and the local armed forces.

The commanding generals, the organization and training of the army, and the mid-level and lower-ranking officers all maintained a very high standard, which is why the army's spirit was as powerful as a dragon.

Meanwhile, the Yellow Turban Army, including its so-called thirty-six leaders...

Shen Le turned to look at his own camp. The distance was too close to see clearly, but he could still see clumps of yellow clouds churning and rolling above the camp, never quite coalescing.

Thirty-six chieftains... "More than ten thousand in large areas and six or seven thousand in small areas," each region and each group was led by its own chieftain.

Aside from their shared belief in the Way of Peace and their reverence for the Great Virtuous Teacher, they had no bond of life-and-death trust with each other, nor any strict discipline in obeying each other's orders.

In fact, today alone, Shen Le has treated no fewer than ten cases of injuries caused by fights between different teams...

He sighed, took a few steps to the side, and continued gazing into the distance. With all his might, he finally discerned something within the yellow clouds:
This one looks somewhat like a tiger, this one a bit like a wolf, this one quite like a wild boar, and this one, with its two faintly curved horns, can only be described as resembling an old ox...

Different teams were distributed in different places. Outside Guangzong City, there were thirty-six chieftains, and a total of eighteen of them arrived.

This battle will likely be one that shakes the world and determines the fate of the Yellow Turban Army. However, until now, morale has failed to rise...

As the sun rose above the treetops, it cast long shadows on the aged and weary dragon and on the rolling yellow clouds.

A faint drumbeat could be heard from the opposite side, one after another, deep and resonant, making his chest feel slightly stuffy.

As the drums sounded, the city gates opened, and the army began to leave the city and camp, forming ranks. The gleaming armor and weapons reflected a cold light.

Meanwhile, on the Yellow Turban Army's side, smoke rose from the chimneys as the soldiers wolfed down their food before the battle, desperately trying to fill their stomachs.

The military aura fluctuated slightly, seemingly becoming more cohesive, but the distance was still too great to truly manifest its form and confront the giant dragon opposite them…

Shen Le frowned, looking around expectantly and worriedly.

In no time, drums sounded in the Yellow Turban army's camp, and carts were quickly pushed to the front of the battle line, where craftsmen swiftly assembled a high platform.

Before long, Zhang Jiao, holding a nine-section staff and dressed in a solemn apricot-yellow Taoist robe, slowly ascended the platform, facing the 100,000 Yellow Turban soldiers. The moment he stood there, a deafening roar erupted from below:

"A great and virtuous teacher! A great and virtuous teacher!"

"General Tiangong!"

"The Blue Heaven is dead! The Yellow Heaven shall rise! The Blue Heaven is dead! The Yellow Heaven shall rise!"

The morale of the troops surged rapidly, converging from the high platform towards the center of the battle line. Shen Le narrowed his eyes, feeling a glimmer of hope for the first time:
If this military morale can be pushed a step further and maintained, perhaps there is still a possibility of fighting.
As for how to take it a step further...

"Disciples! Soldiers! People of the Yellow Heaven!" Before he could finish speaking, Zhang Jiao had already uttered a grand voice, like thunder, rumbling across the entire battlefield.

Shen Le didn't even need to use his mental power to feel the fluctuations of the spell, which carried Zhang Jiao's voice.

Yes, this "Thunder Sound Technique" is recorded in the 59th volume of the 170th volume of the Taiping Jing, which was secretly taught by Zhang Jiao. Shen Le himself has also learned it, but he still cannot cast the spell very easily.

Below the high platform where Zhang Jiao stood, a disciple stood at each of the four corners, their yellow flags billowing straight in the wind. Perhaps one of the senior disciples was helping with the spell?

He even had such wild thoughts, while the Yellow Turban Army below the stage had already started shouting fervently, and the yellow clouds above the camp were also boiling with the shouts, rising higher and higher.

After a moment, Zhang Jiao raised his nine-section staff and pressed it down. Miraculously, everyone below the stage fell silent and listened intently.

"Lift your heads! Look around you! Who are you all? Are you just like us, farming, fishing, mining, making tofu, all suffering people who work like beasts of burden for others!"
Look ahead, look across—who are those? Those are government troops!
It was the government troops who came to our door to support the yamen runners and collect our rent when we were starving!

They were the government troops who wanted to arrest and behead us when we couldn't stand being bullied anymore and killed the officials!

Why did they come? Why are they blocking our way here? Because we don't want to starve! Because we want food to eat and clothes to wear!

We want to live like human beings, but they won't allow it. They want to arrest and kill us all so that the poor people of the world won't dare to rebel!

"Are you willing to let them kill you?!"

"I don't want to!"

"I don't want to!"

"No way!!!"

Yellow flags waved, and people dressed in yellow robes formed a cloud-like formation. A dozen or so clusters of yellow luck gathered again, almost forming a complete whole!

Wow… Shen Le silently gave Zhang Jiao a thumbs up. That speech was really good! Quite persuasive!

Even the speeches he saw in old movies, from cadres who went down to the countryside during the land reform, didn't exceed this level!
"Over the years, there have been floods, droughts, locust plagues, and epidemics, year after year, without any respite. What does this mean?"
This is Heaven's anger! This is Heaven saying, "The Emperor has lost virtue, the Han Dynasty has lost virtue! The Han Dynasty's fate is sealed!"

A roar was heard, and even the ancient dragon opposite trembled, its scales dimming slightly. Meanwhile, the Yellow Turban army's shouts grew even more fervent:

"The Blue Heaven is dead! The Yellow Heaven shall rise! The Blue Heaven is dead! The Yellow Heaven shall rise!"

The yellow clouds completely condensed into a ball, rapidly contracting inwards. A body materialized, along with a neck, head, and limbs.

Shen Le glanced back quickly, then turned back, pretending to join the crowd in their excited shouts. Zhang Jiao continued shouting:
"In front of us are government troops coming to kill us! Behind us are our parents and children, and the food we just received to survive!"
We won a battle against them a few days ago, and today we must win another one! Only by driving the government troops back can we survive, and only then can the poor people of the world survive!
In the year of Jiazi, great fortune will sweep the land! The time has come for a reversal of destiny!

He suddenly raised his nine-section staff, and with a huge roar, eight Yellow Turban warriors appeared in front of him.

The shouts of thousands in the camp merged into one. Shen Le suddenly turned around and saw that the rolling yellow clouds had condensed into a somewhat rough and blurry, but clearly recognizable, Qilin!
We can fight!
Shen Le shouted in his heart. On the high platform, the nine-section staff pointed, the war drums beat, and the army marched out, crossing the high platform where Zhang Jiao stood, and rumbling forward! Shen Le was soon called to the edge of the high platform to accompany Zhang Jiao, serving as a reserve for medical treatment or spellcasting.

Unfortunately, even with a favorable position, he still couldn't quite grasp the overall situation of the battle:

After all, Li Xingtang was just a soldier who followed Li Shimin to charge through Hulao Pass, but he didn't cultivate any strategic vision in Shen Le.

If Shen Le wanted to determine which side had the advantage simply by observing the movement of troops, he estimated that he would probably have to follow a general and diligently learn from him for several years.

Right now, all Shen Le can see is one team being sent out, then another team being sent out, and then yet another team being sent out.
On the other side, teams were also being sent out one after another. There were troop movements, fierce battles, and some retreating. The Qilin stood quietly, and the giant dragon circled wearily, neither showing any intention of charging in to fight.

...So, will we be able to decide a winner today?
Shen Le quickly stopped thinking about these things. More and more wounded soldiers were brought in, and he was so busy cleaning, stopping the bleeding, and bandaging them that he didn't even look up.

By the time he caught his breath, the sun was high in the sky, and fearful whispers filled the air.
"I can't stand it anymore!"

"It seems they can't hold on any longer!"

"General of Heaven, I beg you, use your divine magic to make our brothers invulnerable to swords and spears!"

"May lightning strike them dead!!!"

Pairs of expectant eyes, cries of fear, even despair.

Shen Le suddenly looked up, glanced left and right, then leaped and climbed onto the high platform. This time, he finally understood the battle situation:

The front lines, where the Yellow Turban Army and the government forces were locked in a fierce battle, were visibly faltering and retreating, and it was unclear when they would collapse.

He turned around abruptly. The newly formed Yellow Heavenly Qilin, its body composed of yellow clouds, was constantly fluctuating and twisting, as if being torn apart by an invisible force. Compared to before, it had become much dimmer and blurrier!
On the opposite side, the ancient dragon, though weary, gleamed with an even colder light in its scales. It hovered high above the government army's formation, roaring.

The roar, though silent, made Shen Le feel a tightness in his chest and his legs feel unsteady. If he felt this way, then what about Zhang Jiao, who would directly withstand such an aura…?

Before Shen Le could even turn around, he saw ranks of Yellow Turban soldiers crashing through the ranks of government troops. A Yellow Turban general roared hoarsely:
"Hold it! Hold it!"

Blood splattered everywhere. They even attacked and killed the retreating soldiers, but they still couldn't stop the tide of defeat.

One by one, the formations crumbled, and wounded soldiers retreated in droves, bringing bloodshed and panic to the remaining formations in the rear, adding even more fluctuations and bloodshed to the yellow clouds that formed the Qilin.

"Great and wise teacher! Please cast a spell! Cast a spell!"

"General of Heaven! Save our brothers!"

Waves of pleas surged toward the high platform. Shen Le hesitated, treating the patient while constantly glancing up at the scene.

Zhang Jiao's face was ashen, his fingers gripping the nine-section staff so tightly they turned white. Suddenly, he slammed the staff down heavily, and Shen Le felt a chill run down his spine.
it has started!

That strange energy, that power triggered by the human heart and connected with heaven and earth, began to converge violently once again!
Compared to when Zhang Jiao used beans to create soldiers, this was far more magnificent, but also far more restless...

"Heaven above, earth below! Your disciple Zhang Jiao respectfully beseeches the Three Great Emperors to bless my people and help them defeat this wicked villain!"

This time, Zhang Jiao's voice was no longer amplified by the Thunder Sound Technique, but echoed heavily across the battlefield, as if resounding directly in the depths of everyone's minds.

He raised the nine-section staff high, then swung it down heavily:
"The wind is coming!"

A sharp shout rang out. In an instant, a fierce whirlwind suddenly arose from his direction, howling towards the government troops' lines.

The wind did not harm the Yellow Turban soldiers, but the government troops at the forefront were blown so hard that they had to cover their eyes with their hands, and even had to kneel or lie on the ground to steady themselves.

As the wind howled, several Yellow Turban soldiers threw their torches forward with all their might. The flames caught in the wind and suddenly flared up, engulfing the government troops who were charging at them and pulling them directly into the sea of ​​fire!

The effect was immediate. The officers and soldiers let out a terrible scream, their formation in front collapsed, and they were swept back.

But what are the costs and consequences of this spell?
What will happen if this spell is broken? All previous spells will dissipate before the army...

Shen Le quickly turned around, retreated to Zhang Jiao's side, and placed a palm on his back. A warm current flowed in, and the back under the apricot-yellow Taoist robe trembled repeatedly, revealing a sharp and frail quality.

After a long while, Zhang Jiao finally caught his breath, a flush rising on his pale face, as he barely managed to suppress his cough.
"I'm fine. I...I'm fine. Back off...don't let them see..."

Before Shen Le could dissuade him, he slammed his nine-section staff down heavily once more:
"Earthquake!"

"Thunder comes!"

The earth trembled, and thunder roared. The Yellow Turban army's morale soared. With a shout, they seized the opportunity of the government troops' confusion and charged forward, actually pushing the battle line back for a time!
The Qilin's form solidified, and it even raised its head to let out a provocative low growl at the dragon.

do not do that!
This is too much of a drain!

You will die!

Shen Le didn't even have time to be excited about this outstanding magic—this large-scale spell, capable of changing the course of the battle, was solely focused on stopping Zhang Jiao's actions.

However, at that very moment, a desolate yet powerful bugle call rang out from the government army camp opposite!

Shen Le suddenly looked in the direction of the sound and saw an old man, whose beard and hair were all standing on end, pointing his sword at the sky, beneath the central banner!

The ancient dragon, which had been circling and defending, seemed to receive a command and let out a roar that shook the heavens and the earth!

The roar was silent, but to those with spiritual power and magic, it was earth-shattering.

It carried the heavy afterglow of the four hundred years of the Han Dynasty's national destiny, and the strict will of iron-blooded military discipline, crashing down like Mount Tai!
Shen Le's eyes widened suddenly. A golden wave of energy, a vast and powerful golden wave that was visible even to the naked eye, crashed down from the direction of the giant dragon!

The gale subsided, the earthquake died down, and the lightning vanished without a trace. Zhang Jiao, on the high platform, was struck as if by a heavy blow, spitting out a mouthful of blood and swaying precariously!
The spell has been broken!
The Han Dynasty is still the Han Dynasty. At this point in time, the Han Dynasty has not fallen, nor has it perished!

Its final national fortune and military morale were still able to withstand and crush the magical spells launched by Zhang Jiao!

(End of this chapter)