"The month is up, Lin Tian, and our agreed time has arrived. Do the men you've trained have the confidence to face mine?"
Ning Ku had paid attention to Lin Tian's training.
He knew Lin Tian's training was not simple and was incredibly arduous.
He hadn't stopped it, and in fact, he inwardly approved.
Because he knew Lin Tian's training was about enhancing individual combat power, a type of training suitable for a select few.
But whether Lin Tian's training had been successful, he did not know.
Now was the time to truly test it.
"Naturally, we have confidence!"
"It's good that you have confidence, then let's try!"
"However, I can also see that your training is not simple, so I will add a little difficulty for you!"
"In this competition, the men you've trained must fight one against five. Each of them must face five opponents. In other words, your ten men will have to compete against fifty!"
Fighting one against five was undoubtedly an extremely difficult challenge.
Few could achieve it, except for those with extraordinary talent and overwhelming martial prowess.
Even someone as battle-hardened as Ning Ku wouldn't claim a hundred percent certainty of being able to fight one against five.
The reason for making Lin Tian's trained men fight one against five was to teach them a lesson, to let them know the might of an army and that they shouldn't excessively idolize individual strength.
In Ning Ku's opinion, only when Lin Tian realized this would he avoid many detours.
However, Lin Tian did not agree with his words.
"Doctor Ning, Wang Wu and the others haven't been training for long, only for a month!"
"But I believe they are all outstanding soldiers. Fighting one against five is not suitable for them. Let's make it one against ten!"
"One against ten? You want them to fight one against ten? Do you know what fighting one against ten means?"
This was a perfectly normal question, but after asking, Ning Ku felt it was incorrect.
Lin Tian had previously single-handedly eliminated nearly a thousand men, so of course he knew what fighting one against ten meant.
Therefore, Ning Ku quickly changed his tune.
"Although you've trained Wang Wu and the others, Wang Wu and the others are not you. They cannot fight one against ten!"
"Having them fight one against ten is more like child's play!"
"Whether it's child's play or not, we'll only know after we try!"
Lin Tian's tone was very calm, as if he were stating something very ordinary.
This calm demeanor made Ning Ku look at him strangely.
After a moment of thought, Ning Ku surprisingly did not refute Lin Tian's words.
"Alright! Let's give it a try!"
After saying this, Ning Ku went to call people.
Soon, everyone in the recruit camp gathered.
One hundred elite recruits were selected to compete against Wang Wu and his men.
Opposite them stood Wang Wu and his ten men.
The feeling of ten men on horseback facing a hundred men on horseback was different.
The other recruits in the camp felt the pressure just seeing Wang Wu and his ten men standing there.
"They're really going to fight one against ten!"
"Ten men against a hundred, who can win this!"
"That's right! Tie Zhu and the others are the strongest recruits in the camp. Not only are they strong, but they also train hard. They've never lost in cavalry charges!"
"Alas! I hope Wang Wu and the others don't lose too badly, or they'll be utterly humiliated."
No one had high hopes for Wang Wu and his men fighting one against ten.
Some who were friendly hoped Wang Wu and his men wouldn't lose too miserably.
More people, however, were there purely for entertainment, watching with amusement.
The next moment, the competition began directly.
There were no tricks or stratagems, just a direct confrontation between armies.
Both sides used wooden weapons and, mounted on horseback, charged forward.
Despite being only ten men, Wang Wu and his group's charging momentum was no less than that of the hundred-man formation.
Their shouts also rang out thunderously.
"Kill!!"
With these battle cries, everyone immediately felt the spirit of Wang Wu and his men.
They advanced fearlessly, their morale soaring.
To possess such spirit while fighting one against ten was already astonishing to everyone.
When the fighting began, it left many dumbfounded.
As the two sides collided, Wang Wu and his men drew their swords.
Their speed was so fast that it felt like a mere shadow flashed by, and one person was struck in the neck.
The intense pain immediately made this recruit realize that if it had been a real sword, he would have already been dead.
Dejected, he dropped his wooden sword and retreated sadly.
Wang Wu and his men, however, paid no mind to his reaction. Led by Wang Wu, they plunged directly into the hundred-man cavalry.
The real battle began.
Their movements were extremely swift, so fast that one could only see the afterimages of their wooden swords.
Wherever they passed, enemies were struck down, each hit in a vital spot.
Few of the recruits who fought them could withstand more than three moves.
Such swordsmanship astonished many.
Many veteran soldiers who trained recruits were amazed.
"This, this is too formidable! How can their swordsmanship be so powerful?"
"Their sword strikes are fast, accurate, and fierce, directly targeting vital points. This is clearly swordsmanship designed solely for killing!"
"Can such fierce swordsmanship truly be learned in just a month? How do I feel it's more brutal than my own swordsmanship after five years of battlefield combat?"
Wang Wu and the others' swordsmanship shocked many.
They couldn't believe that Wang Wu and his men had reached such a level in just one month.
But they knew Wang Wu and the others very well from a month ago, so they understood that all of this was real.
This made many look at Lin Tian with a different kind of gaze.
The slaughter continued, and Wang Wu and his men were charging rapidly.
This rapid charging momentum made many recruits' hearts burn with passion. They saw familiar figures of themselves in Wang Wu and his men.
That figure was Lin Tian.
Lin Tian had fought with similar ferocity when he charged into the enemy forces that had entered Guanzhong.
His speed was astonishing, and he defeated enemies in a single move.
Wherever he went, no enemy could withstand a single blow.
Such performance directly made him an object of reverence for countless recruits.
Although this was not Lin Tian's full combat strength, it was enough to make all of them genuinely impressed.
The combat effectiveness displayed by Wang Wu and his men now bore a resemblance to Lin Tian's.
Especially Wang Wu, who was at the forefront, was like an invincible general.
This charging momentum also put immense pressure on the remaining dozens of elite recruits.
However, among them were not a few brave individuals.
Li Tie Zhu, in particular, could be considered the foremost among them.
His family had a history of butchers, generations of pig slaughterers. He not only possessed a robust physique but also a courage that ordinary people lacked.
Facing the rapid charge of Wang Wu and his men, he showed no fear.
"Die!"
Li Tie Zhu charged towards Wang Wu like a madman.
He raised his wooden sword high and then brought it down heavily on Wang Wu.
His technique was simple, relying on brute force to overcome skill.
The powerful sword strike forced Wang Wu to respond.
"Clang!"
"Crack!"
The sounds of wooden swords colliding and then breaking rang out.
The strength of Li Tie Zhu and Wang Wu was too great; their wooden swords simply could not withstand it.
After just one collision, both wooden swords snapped into several pieces.
However, Wang Wu and Li Tie Zhu paid no attention to this. With their wooden swords broken, they dismounted and engaged in hand-to-hand combat.
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
"Thump!"
The sounds of fists and feet colliding clearly reached everyone's ears, making many of the onlookers feel a chilling sensation.
Just hearing the sounds, they knew that if such blows landed on them, they would be severely injured, if not crippled.
The power contained within was self-evident.
However, Wang Wu and his men exchanged over ten rounds of blows.
It was only after Li Tie Zhu's limbs began to feel weak and his muscles ached all over that a victor emerged from this exchange.
Ultimately, Li Tie Zhu was defeated by Wang Wu.
Lying on the ground, Li Tie Zhu clearly found it unbelievable.
"This, how is this possible? I never heard that you were that strong before. How do you have such immense power today?"
Li Tie Zhu knew Wang Wu relatively well.
They were all disciples from Guanzhong, and he had heard of Wang Wu's reputation to some extent, but Wang Wu was not known for his strength.
Therefore, Li Tie Zhu could not understand why Wang Wu possessed such power in his fists and feet.
At this moment, Wang Wu replied with a cold expression:
"If you had endured the same hardships as I did, you might have become even stronger than me!"
After speaking, he no longer paid attention to the defeated Li Tie Zhu, picked up another sword, and continued to fight.
It had to be said that Wang Wu and his men's training had been very effective.
With increased training intensity and adequate nutrition, their strength had soared.
Now, even ten of them facing a hundred could still cut through the hundred-man formation.
Injuries were inevitable, but judging by the results of the competition, Wang Wu and his men had achieved a complete victory.
The ten of them, after a month of training, had defeated enemies ten times their number.
Such combat effectiveness left even Ning Ku speechless.
He looked at the results of the competition, remained silent for a long time, and then spoke to Lin Tian:
"Xiao Tian, please also train them in their future endeavors. I don't expect them to be as formidable as Wang Wu and his men, but I only hope that more of them can survive on the battlefield!"
"They are all fine sons of Guanzhong!"
This was Ning Ku's request.
...