Cannon fodder in the Interstellar

To outsiders, it looked as if Ruo Manni was overpowering the commander, who seemed to struggle with dodging her attacks, leading everyone to believe the commander was at a disadvantage.

In reality, the situation on the field wasn’t as simple as it seemed.

The commander’s level was only at the early stages of Level 6, two minor levels below Ruo Manni’s, giving her a definite advantage in rank. However, the commander had over a century of experience and a solid foundation, with a combat capability that couldn’t be easily matched by someone like Ruo Manni, whose skills were “fast-tracked.”

Though the commander was indeed being held back from attacking by Ruo Manni, she wasn’t able to defeat him quickly, creating a stalemate.

After half an hour of this back-and-forth, the commander’s defense held strong, and Ruo Manni still couldn’t break through it. Since she was the one pressing the attack, her mental energy was being consumed much faster than the commander’s stamina. At this rate, things weren’t looking favorable for her.

Just as Ruo Manni was preparing to increase her attacks to decisively defeat the commander, his fighting style suddenly changed. His initially defensive approach turned into a reckless offense, with one bold slash after another, displaying a fierce determination to take both of them down if necessary.

Ruo Manni’s instincts warned her that something was off. She had chosen to use a long whip today for two reasons.

First, she didn’t want to draw blood. While she could defeat her superior, seriously injuring him would look bad.

Second, she wanted to avoid close-quarters combat, fearing he might have tampered with his weapon.

Now, seeing the commander’s all-out assault, Ruo Manni knew something wasn’t right. She became especially cautious, determined not to let him land a blow.

To the spectators below, the situation on the field suddenly reversed; it now appeared that the commander was on the offensive, launching fierce attacks while the young lady dodged and weaved, her situation looking perilous.

Both Vice Officer Ma and Vice Officer Tong had noticed something off about the commander early on, and they were on high alert, ready to intervene at a moment’s notice if things took a turn for the worse.

For them, the safety of the young lady was their top priority. As long as she was unharmed, they could always make up for any losses later.

However, Tamaki Kazia and Sheila, along with the other two, didn’t pick up on this. They were quite familiar with Ruo Manni’s combat style and could tell that, despite how dangerous her situation seemed, each of her evasions was effortless, and she still had plenty of energy left. She wasn’t merely coping under pressure, so they didn’t feel overly anxious.

Only the members of the Mecha Battalion’s Third Company showed signs of tension, while those from the garrison battalion, who were leaning towards the commander, wore looks of satisfaction. The vice commander was particularly fixated on the commander’s blade, wishing fervently for the next strike to draw blood from the young lady.

As a mid-to-high-level telekinesis user, Ruo Manni had exceptionally sharp perception. Although the commander’s attacks were fierce, she could sense their direction as soon as he launched them, allowing her to evade effortlessly. It was as if she had a premonition, which made the evasion seem easy.

Just like before, when everyone thought Ruo Manni was in control, the tables had turned, and now it seemed the commander had the advantage. In reality, he found himself in a difficult position.

This back-and-forth was exhausting the commander physically, so Ruo Manni decided not to strike back, opting instead to drag out the battle and wear down his stamina.

Gradually, many spectators began to see through the pattern, and they exchanged glances in disbelief. This back-and-forth of attacks and dodges had created an equilibrium, leading them to suspect that they could watch for another half hour without a clear outcome.

The audience was almost desperate for a real fight, hoping for genuine weapons to clash. While this was tense, it simply wasn’t thrilling enough.

Unnoticed by anyone, Ruo Manni’s evasions were actually part of a plan. She used the opportunity of dodging to gradually retreat without leaving a trace, eventually finding herself at the edge of the arena.

When the commander lunged forward again, bringing his large blade down toward Ruo Manni’s shoulder, she suddenly stopped retreating. Instead, she executed a swift sideways spin, maneuvering to the commander’s right side, and wrapped her long whip around his thick waist.

The commander hurriedly swung his large blade to cut the whip, but Ruo Manni gave a strong flick, sending the commander’s hefty body flying forward by five or six meters. The whip slipped free from his waist, and the commander fell directly off the arena.

While everyone had been watching the commander attack fiercely, with Ruo Manni forced to dodge, the outcome shifted in an instant. The unexpected turn left the entire arena in stunned silence.

Most of the forces in the garrison battalion were aligned with the commander, so they couldn’t cheer for Ruo Manni’s victory. Although the members of the Mecha Battalion’s Third Company now supported her, they dared not openly cheer for her, as doing so would be a direct slap in the commander’s face.

After all, the commander was their immediate superior, and while Ruo Manni was unafraid of him, the commander could easily assert his authority over them.

The commander wasn’t injured; although he had fallen off the arena, he landed on his feet and maintained his composure, so he didn’t look disheveled at all.

Ruo Manni saluted the commander, who wore a complex expression, and said, “Thank you for your guidance.”

Then she saluted the two commanders of the Mecha Battalion, said her goodbyes, and straightforwardly led her team from the Third Company away, not taking the opportunity to further humiliate the commander or mention the two remaining challenges.

Ruo Manni felt that she had made a name for herself in the garrison battalion, achieving the goal she had been striving for. She didn’t want to come across as overly assertive or disrespectful, as that could backfire on her.

The members of the Third Company remained silent on their way back from the arena, but once they returned to their camp, they couldn’t help but start quietly discussing amongst themselves, their gazes toward Ruo Manni filled with admiration.

Unlike the lengthy speeches she had given the day before, Ruo Manni kept it short and to the point. She had said what needed to be said and temporarily gained their respect. She then directly announced the start of the training session.

Ruo Manni first divided the original members of the Third Company into four groups based on their cultivation levels.

The warriors above level five trained under Tamaki Kazia. There were only fifteen soldiers and officers at this level, making the Third Company the one with the fewest level five warriors in the Mecha Battalion, while the First and Second Companies together had over forty level five warriors.

The soldiers at the late stage of level four trained under Sheila. There were a significant number in this group, totaling twenty-three, and they would be the first batch of key trainees for Ruo Manni.

The remaining soldiers were at the mid and early stages of level four, totaling eighty in number. Ruo Manni divided these eighty soldiers into two teams, led by Pan Shaolu and Marcus Wright, respectively.

Ruo Manni said to the vice company commander, “You’ve been stuck at the mid-level for a long time, haven’t you? You should train with Second Lieutenant Kazia first to see what your limits are. Once we have the data, I will formulate a targeted training plan for you.”

Not only did Ruo Manni efficiently help him resolve his previous issues, but she also defeated the commander of Topaz Star army, who ranked among the top ten in strength. The vice company commander was now completely convinced by her abilities.

Having witnessed the extraordinary talent of Ruo Manni, the vice company commander didn’t dare to underestimate Tamaki Kazia, who was just coming of age and already had the same level of cultivation and rank as him. Therefore, he was willing to train alongside this young man without any complaints.

After everyone from the Third Company went off to train, only Ruo Manni and her two aides remained. Officer Tong made a gesture indicating that they needed to have a private discussion. The three of them returned to Ruo Manni’s office and activated the soundproofing device to talk.

“Miss, did that commander smear something on his big knife?” Officer Ma said fiercely. He had been wanting to ask this for a long time but had held back due to the situation.

Despite not being able to do anything openly, he had plenty of ways to discreetly deal with that commander if he dared to act recklessly in front of them.

“It looked that way at the time, but my instincts felt something was off,” Ruo Manni said as she carefully recalled the situation.

“That commander’s offensive was one where he was willing to get hurt just to injure me. In such a reckless situation, he should have been very anxious, mixed with a bit of fear or agitation. Given my background, he wouldn’t dare to ambush me without any burden. However, I didn’t sense any of those negative emotions from him; instead, it felt like he was putting on a show. It seemed that what he did wasn’t to hurt me but to perform for certain people. So I believe his big knife wasn’t smeared with anything,” Ruo Manni analyzed her feelings from that moment.

Officer Tong nodded, “The vice commander’s expression was very strange. When that commander was fiercely attacking you, he seemed very excited, as if he couldn’t wait for the commander to eliminate you. After the commander failed, the vice commander looked completely disappointed, his cold gaze fixed on the commander, as if he had developed suspicions about him. That definitely doesn’t seem like the expression of a subordinate.”

Ruo Manni’s expression grew serious. She carefully recalled her conversation with the vice commander yesterday and seemed to have a realization: “The vice commander may be the most loyal lapdog of the Seventh Army.”

Officer Tong agreed, “Interestingly, that commander seemed to be the one at a disadvantage. Given his cultivation level, you shouldn’t have been able to defeat him so quickly. It was his reckless fighting style, with numerous flaws, that allowed you to seize the opportunity. Did you notice that after his defeat, although his expression was dark, he showed no anger, hatred, or frustration? That’s not a normal reaction.”

Ruo Manni nodded, “I noticed that too. This is also one of the reasons why I suspect that the commander didn’t smear anything on the road.”

“From now on, we need to pay more attention to those two commanders. If what we suspect is true, things will be much easier to handle,” Officer Ma said thoughtfully.

“What do you think about the two commanders from the Mecha Battalion?” Officer Tong brought up the other two individuals.

“I feel like those two are just fringe figures; they don’t seem to be particularly close to the two commanders. Yesterday, they made a point to stay away, probably because they didn’t want to get involved in the competition for the commander of the Third Battalion, which they likely couldn’t control in the past. Moreover, the vice commander yesterday brought us directly to the Third Battalion without mentioning anything to the two battalion commanders,” Ruo Manni said, not having had much time to observe the two, but simply voicing her doubts.

“They’ve been closely watching you. When they saw you defeat the commander, a glimmer of light flashed in the vice commander’s eyes,” Officer Tong shared his observations.

“So, these two battalion commanders don’t belong to the commander’s faction, and the First Battalion isn’t united,” Officer Ma analyzed.

“They might not belong to the Seventh Army’s faction, but that doesn’t mean they’re aligned with Uncle Lin either. Uncle Lin has a weak grip on the First Battalion, and the position of the First Battalion Commander is not low,” Ruo Manni explained.

Officer Tong nodded and said, “Those two commanders should be more complex than we see on the surface. However, there’s still too little evidence right now; these are just our guesses based on our brief encounter. It’s enough for you to be aware of it, but don’t rush to conclusions. We need to observe and probe carefully before making a final decision.”

Ruo Manni had deeply experienced the extraordinary talent that her uncle provided and, often advised by Officers Tong and Ma on how to conduct herself, she understood this well and expressed her awareness.

“Once we train those soldiers from the Third Battalion and get some results, we should be able to figure out a few things,” Officer Ma said.

“In the next few days, you two should focus on gathering the physical data of these soldiers. This way, we can identify those who are most likely to break through immediately and make a strong impression on the First Battalion,” Ruo Manni instructed.

Each battalion is not located in the same place, but the soldiers’ dormitories are in one area. After ten years of service, everyone is already quite familiar with each other.

That evening, the soldiers from the other two companies of the Mecha Battalion returned to their dormitories at the usual time and noticed that no one from the Third Company had come back. The soldiers from the other two companies couldn’t help but gossip about the match between the new commander of the Third Company and the battalion commander that day.

After an hour, the soldiers realized that the Third Company soldiers still hadn’t returned, prompting more speculation among them.

“The new commander is so capable! Those people in the Third Company were discussing how to make things difficult for him the other day. They probably plotted against him and ended up getting punished instead,” said one soldier who enjoyed reveling in others’ misfortune.

By now, everyone in the First Battalion knew that the newly appointed commander of the Mecha Battalion’s Third Company belonged to Topaz Star. The young lady, living up to her reputation as a genius, had actually defeated the battalion commander, who was originally the highest-ranking in the First Battalion. Now, who would dare to underestimate her?

“Not necessarily. They might still be training and haven’t been able to come back yet. Didn’t you hear those people from the Third Company saying that the young lady brought back a set of training equipment from the Imperial Capital Star? I heard it cost ten million credit coins, and she paid for it herself. What a bargain for the Third Company!” remarked another soldier, envious and jealous.

“Not only that, our young lady graduated from the Xuan Gu Military Academy. She definitely knows some special training methods. Just wait and see, the cultivation levels of those in the Third Company will surely skyrocket.” It was obvious this soldier was a local from Topaz Star and had a good impression of Ruo Manni.

“Your young lady? She’s the daughter of a noble family from the Imperial Capital Star, not just any young lady from Topaz Star.”

“She is our young lady! The people of Topaz Star recognize her as such. After she left Topaz Star, she didn’t forget her roots and did so much for us. We’re all very grateful to her. No matter what her background is, in our hearts, she is our young lady…”

“Right, the young lady has greatly improved our family’s lives. She never forgets her roots, and we just really like her…”

Most of the soldiers from Topaz Star felt this way to varying degrees. The soldiers from other planets, after hearing enough about how good this young lady was to Topaz Star people, couldn’t help but feel admiration and jealousy toward Topaz Star people’s fortune, which in turn improved their impression of Ruo Manni.

No one would truly dislike someone who is grateful and remembers those who helped them, especially if that person is a beautiful and highly capable young woman.

That night, the soldiers of the Third Company returned a full three hours later than usual. They looked quite unwell, struggling to walk and supporting each other as they made their way back.