On the way, it was the polar opposite of what they saw on their way here. Instead of the scenic beauties worth enjoying, it was just the parched and sweltering desert. The glaring sun, the merciless sandstorms, no water or food resources besides the ones they brought along. Even though their cultivation should suffice to ignore the temperature changes in the surroundings, the heat was still getting to them.
Beads of sweat were forming beneath the armor of the soldiers, the armors were light to them and proved no trouble, but it was causing their sweat to stick onto their skin. They felt uncomfortable, yet they were left helpless about it.
"Hey, do you think that we should ask the general if he has a way to deal with this? It might not affect me much, but the fatigue and heat might cause me to be unconcentrated if a fight breaks out."
"You probably should, I"m sure that our brothers will agree with you as well." The soldier replies through his dehydrated voice.
At this point of time, their body wasn"t just reeking with sweat, cracks were forming on their lips in just the matter of a few hours. If this keeps up, they might be able to keep themselves conscious through constant hydration, but that"s only a temporary measure which won"t last long.
"Alright, I"ll go ask the general for a method to keep ourselves hydrated on behalf of everyone." The soldiers replies weakly as he approaches Nightin with slow steady footsteps.
Every step felt like him taking another step into h.e.l.l even though there"s a path known as heaven just beside it, but he wasn"t doing it just for himself, he was doing it for his comrades as well.
Plucking up his courage, he calls out "General, can you help everyone out?"
Nightin turns around, half curious and half unbothered by why the soldier called him, his eyes telling the soldier to speak up.
"General, most of us are dehydrated and if this continues, I"m afraid that most of us won"t even make it to the bandits main headquarters before fainting." The soldier explains briefly, hope reflecting in his eyes. Not those that begs for a.s.sistance, but one of trust that their general will do the best for them.
Smiling at the soldier, he says "Don"t worry, I may be unable to utilise the forces of the cooling ice or the soothing water, but I have the ability to command for the breezy wind which should be more than enough."
Before the soldier can even react, cooling wind enveloped them. Their hair swayed along with the prevailing wind direction, their face shows a form of peace and unexpected tranquility.
The soldier who spoke to Nightin was about to get everyone to thank their general, but Nightin pats on his shoulder and whispers "Don"t let anyone know, I don"t need everyone to think that I"m doing this just to help them because of my status."
Ash knows as he says through telepathy "Your soldiers are lucky to have a general like you."
"Haha, then aren"t your soldiers lucky that they have a general like me as well?" Nightin laughs back openly without any regard, his soldiers looked at him in curiosity, but none of them asked him why. They knew their general was sane and that"s enough, as a soldier, their only obligation is to fulfill the given orders.
"Your soldiers, if only mine can match up to yours in temperament and behaviour." Ash sighs, but his head is still raised and facing the front, his undaunting face making him seem courageous and brave but clueless about his future.
"But mine has already been with me since some time ago, even though I wasn"t there with them when they won the battle, it was me who reignited the flames within their heart and won them the battle, it was me who gave them light, it was me who lead them towards the grand future." Nightin says with a smile.
"You have been with this army before you even entered the Voyager kingdom? I guess it makes sense then. I may be gaining the recognition of my soldiers, but it"s still the first time they"re under my lead and my initial experience in leading an army to the battlefield.
"Don"t worry, I"m sure that you"ll make a great general." Nightin replies back, rejecting the notion of telling Ash that he has been with the army since his time in the lower realm. He trusted him, but sometimes secrets should be left untold or they might bring about misfortune to those close to him, those who could have been safe if he didn"t let them know about it.
"Argh!"
"What"s wrong?" Ash asked out loud in concern while getting the soldiers to keep on heading towards the destination.
Nightin right palm was covered over his right eye, his breathing was ragged but soon calm, he then told Ash "It"s fine, just that I recalled some nightmares."
Walking ahead, Ash followed up but kept silent, Dark Fang was still with the army and as for Matthias, he"s still back in the Voyager Army to settle some matters and if all goes well, he might be promoted to the position of guardian, giving him the leaders.h.i.+p and authority to command ten thousand soldiers of his own.
Cordelia, just where is the Undead King you mentioned and where can I find him? Nightin asked within his heart, trying to forget about the matter. Attempting to change his mindset and the tense atmosphere in the air, he asks Ash "Just how did you get the authority to lead ten thousand soldiers initially including the eight thousand soldiers that joined your later on?"
"My master dealt with the pressure coming from the higher-ups by putting his position of general on the line and even a.s.sured them that unless changes arise, me working together with you can prove that even if we have a much weaker cultivation base, we can still prevail against three Great Saints in war."
"Careful!" The commander of the three tailed fox platoon surrounds his platoon with a magical sphere pulsating towards the exterior, sounds of clas.h.i.+ng could be heard from the sound waves transmitted and amplified. Based on the frequency and sound, they knew that it wasn"t the bandits who attacked them, but a few Skyhawks.
Nightin was about to get his soldiers to calm down when his chest tightened, the system message then followed to alert him. "The Sky Eyas has evolved past the Skyhawk species it belonged to and is now the Hurricane Arkhawk. Also known as Arkhawk in simple terms.
Diving into his consciousness in which the Arkhawk is trying to break out of, Nightin was amazed by its dazzling feathers, its razor sharp claws coupled with its eyes that seem to foresee the future tells you one thing, it definitely isn"t simple and you wouldn"t want to mess with it unless you"re forced to your wits end or have absolute confidence in your strength.
The Arkhawk standing before him isn"t just the creator of its own race, it"s also a young bird who has yet to go. Just like how animals and humans are supposed to be independent after a certain age, the same applied to the Arkhawk before him. Even though it might only be around three years old in terms of human age, it was already ready to lead its race and find another bird to mate with to continue his legacy. A male Arkhawk at the Exotic tier with the Demon Saint middle stage realm will lead its own race to greater heights and glory than others.
"You think of the future too easily, if you really think that you"re that amazing, then why don"t you deal with the impending threat first, you"ll also get to leave my consciousness finally after three long years." Nightin says, half pacifying, half baiting.
Even though he has the wish to tame this Arkhawk to serve under him and sign a contract with him, he knows that he doesn"t deserve it. He may have helped the Sky Eyas to evolve, but in return of that was its suffering of being alone for three years. He had no one to talk to, no one to dance with, no one to argue with.
It"s these little things in life that we take for granted, but it"s also these mundane world ways which we see as pointless, but only after we experience loneliness for ourselves will we understand.
"Leave you? I may have experienced loneliness all this while, but I"ve been seeing and experiencing the world from your point of view ever since you captured me and to put things straight, I"m indebted to you and you expect me to leave? It"s also thanks to you that I learnt the language of humans and study how others such as your friend Dark Fang take on the human form."
The Arkhawk answers back in a way which Nightin has never antic.i.p.ated, it plans to follow him on his voyages.
"The only reason it took you longer than two years to communicate with me again is because you were undergoing an evolution?" Nightin asked as he unsheathed his samsara sword.
"Now then, let"s see how you"ll convince those Skyhawks to retreat or I might have to make a move myself."
"Haha, I"m afraid that you won"t get the chance!"