Making History, Forging the Inner Realm with Armor

"Lost again."

After a long struggle, Zhong Ling finally let the chess piece slip from her fingertips. She had seen through the game now.

Truth be told, her defeat had been sealed fifty moves ago. Every move after that was merely the opponent guiding her toward an inevitable checkmate.

At this moment, Zhong Ling deeply understood why this young woman, barely in her late teens, could overshadow the formidable Li Mo, securing a place in the top ten of the Hidden Dragon Ranking at an unprecedented age and earning the title of "Fairy."

"Um..." Zhong Ling was about to speak.

"Did we win?"

But then, the ever-curious Li Mo had somehow sidled up behind Ying Bing, peering intently at the board. His words, spoken a little too close, brushed against her ear.

The composed and seemingly invincible "Frost Fairy" subtly tensed, her neck slightly recoiling.

No mistake about it—Ying Bing’s fingers trembled, and a black piece slipped onto the board.

Yet, her voice remained cool and detached:

"Yes, just a casual game with Zhong Ling."

Li Mo tilted his head. "Weren’t you two using chess to spar with military formations?"

"How did you know...?" Ying Bing blinked in surprise.

"Commander Qu mentioned that your command over battle formations is peerless. Poor Zhong Ling here was crushed so thoroughly she’s questioning her life choices."

"......"

Ying Bing lowered her gaze slightly. "She’s not bad. If I gave her a seven- or eight-stone handicap, she might not lose."

Zhong Ling: "......Too kind."

"That impressive?!"

Li Mo only needed one look at Zhong Ling’s expression to know it was true. He studied the board carefully before giving the "ice block" a thumbs-up, earning a faint, exasperated glance from the Frost Fairy.

He didn’t understand a thing about Go.

But he sure knew how to hype people up.

"In that case, I’ll entrust the warriors of the Greenwood Battalion to Fairy Ying’s command."

Qu Sheng handed over his command flag.

"How many units should we test first?"

"Ten should be manageable. We can adjust upward if needed."

Li Mo glanced at the forest of spears below, feeling a surge of ambition—this was what it meant to be a true man. Every fiber of his being thrummed with excitement.

Was it battle lust? Or just nerves? Hard to say.

"Starting with ten right away?" Qu Sheng raised an eyebrow.

The gathered officers exchanged uneasy glances. Even the strongest among them, at the third layer of the Inner Realm, had struggled to command even a single unit during their first attempt.

To bear the weight of an army alone was no small feat.

Yet Ying Bing took the flag without hesitation, her gaze steady as she met Li Mo’s eyes. "Go ahead. Give it your all."

"!"

Just like that, Li Mo felt all his doubts melt away.

With her backing him, what was there to fear?

He strode confidently into the formation, his seven Mystic Cores resonating within his dantian. Behind him, the phantom of a giant ape materialized, its eyes blazing with golden fire.

Li Mo called out:

"Who among you will stand with me in this formation?"

"Count me in!"

"Young Hero Li holds nothing back—how could we refuse?"

"Fighting under Young Hero Li’s banner? Hah! This’ll be a story to brag about over drinks!"

The sergeants and squad leaders clamored to join, eager to secure a spot. Ten units? They could’ve mustered twice that.

In the end, only the most elite warriors remained at Li Mo’s side.

"Begin!"

As the command flag fluttered above, Ying Bing seamlessly adapted the military tactics she’d gleaned from Zhong Ling while mastering the art of troop coordination.

One breakthrough unlocked countless insights.

Battle formations were, at their core, a martial art—just one meant to be wielded by many.

Under her command, the thousand-strong formation moved like a single, flawless machine.

"So this is the power of a battle formation..."

In an instant, Li Mo felt an overwhelming surge of energy.

The divine markings of the Moon Goddess and the Stone Monkey blazed across the miniature figure in his dantian.

The auras of armored warriors poured into him through the formation’s core, refined by his will and merged into his very being.

"It’s similar to channeling the world’s energy, yet different—more violent, steeped in the aura of war."

"Would mastering the Extreme Soldier Slaughter Body achieve something like this?"

His blood roared like a tidal wave. With a thought—

Boom!

A massive piece of coral stone crashed onto the field—a gift from Guo Jing in gratitude for saving his life, though Li Mo had insisted on trading fairly for it.

"Whale’s Breath Coral? A piece this size is rare indeed."

"Is Young Hero Li testing his offensive power?"

"Tsk tsk tsk. To fully integrate ten units’ worth of military might... He’s got the makings of a great general. Has anyone ever done this before?"

"Fairy Ying’s command is terrifying in its own right."

The officers watched in awe.

"Ancient legends speak of a Conqueror with the Heaven-Defying Tyrant Body," Zhong Zhenyue murmured. "At sixteen, he was already a match for ten thousand. I wonder if Brother Li can reach such heights."

"His limits are still unknown," Qu Sheng mused, glancing between Ying Bing and Li Mo.

"But they’re certainly not here."

BOOM!

The phantom of the Water Ape pounded its chest—

Upon the whale-breath coral, a thunderous explosion erupted as the stone struck the ground, taking root and causing the earth to tremble. Its color rippled like water, staining thirty percent of the coral.

Purple!

This meant Li Mo’s casual strike, executed without any martial technique, rivaled the power of an Inner Realm attack.

"Not enough!"

Li Mo felt the shadow of Wuzhiqi growing more solid behind him, his voice booming across the training grounds.

"How many more units?" Qu Sheng shouted in response.

Ying Bing lowered her gaze, locking eyes with Li Mo.

"Thirty units!" they declared in unison.

"Thirty units at once?"

The field fell silent. The soldiers wondered if they had misheard.

Qu Sheng took a deep breath, sensing what the young pair intended.

"First Battalion, Second Battalion, Third Battalion—advance in order!"

"Orders received!"

Three thousand armored soldiers marched forward in disciplined formation, preparing to enter the array.

"Uncle Qu, adding thirty units at once—isn’t this too bold?" Zhong Zhenyue asked anxiously.

Zhong Ling watched the sea of iron-clad warriors below, equally stunned.

This was four thousand soldiers!

Wait…

Despite the winter chill, Qu Sheng felt his body burn with excitement, his voice trembling.

"You don’t understand what they’re doing. They’re making history—military formation history!"

"Making history?" Zhong Zhenyue echoed, bewildered.

Zhong Ling turned to Ying Bing, who had released the command flag, replacing its signals with radiant light. Suddenly, she recalled the Frost Fairy’s words:

Wind, Forest, Fire, Mountain—each complements the other.

"Is she planning to simulate a domain with forty units of military formation? Using four thousand soldiers to construct an Inner Realm for Li Mo?"

"Forging an Inner Realm domain with soldiers?!"

Zhong Zhenyue’s scalp tingled.

No one had ever done this before—or if they had, none had succeeded.

What kind of genius could conceive such a thing? And what alignment of opportunity, terrain, and unity would it take to turn theory into reality?

His heart pounded. He knew the implications.

If they succeeded, the annals of military strategy would be rewritten.

A soft exhale escaped Ying Bing’s lips. Her ice-mirror eyes reflected the unyielding spirit of the young man in the formation. With a graceful wave, she stirred the clouds.

The radiant phoenix aura shifted hues, transforming into the swift cyan of the wind.

"Wind!"

...

PS: The flu’s been going around lately—take care of yourselves, folks! This little scribe is off to a hot bath, hoping to feel better tomorrow. Goodnight, mwah~