The middle-aged soldier raised his right hand into the air and the surroundings became quiet as all the soldiers stopped speaking.
" What is his ranking?" Xia Lian whispered to Jun Moyin who was standing beside her the whole time.
" He is the deputy-general, Zhuang Hua." Xia Lian nodded her head in understanding.
" It will be a sparring match between our general and the young lady. Both of you take your positions. " Zhuang Hua's deep voice travelled throughout the entire training grounds.
Xuan Li Wei and Xia Lian stood facing each other with about 20 feet distance between them. Two young soldiers handed both of them spears and retreated back.
Xia Lian twirled the spear in her hands to make herself familiar with it. Her movements included spins, rotating the spear in circles along the side of her body. After feeling satisfied, she held the spear in her hand with its blunt end landing on the ground.
Just as the spear touched the ground, waves of sand dust raised from the ground forming a thin barrier around her. On seeing her familiar with a spear, all the soldiers thought that she is trained, but they were still worried about her as she is facing the general.
After seeing the dust rising into the air they were stunned. Only now they understood the force behind her moves and they secretly gulped. How can such a petite girl possess such strength? Some of the clever ones understood that this match is going to be interesting.
Xia Lian removed her hairpin and tossed it to Jun Moyin " Hold on to it till the match is completed. " Xia Lian held the spear in her armpits as she tied her hair into a ponytail with a simple hair knot.
" I am all set now. We can start when you are ready. " Xia Lian looked at Xuan Li Wei.
Xuan Li Wei looked at the girl's relaxed posture with a spear in one hand and the other hand on her hips. She looked like a wild, unrestrained spirit with her long hair dancing along with the wind.
Xuan Li Wei's lips curved up " I am always ready.."
" Let the match begin. " Zhuang Hua signalled with his hand. As soon as his voice fell, the whole training grounds are filled with cheers and encouraging shouts.
All the soldiers were excited as the pitch of their voices increased with each passing second.
.......
" Great one, why is it so noisy today?" Great two asked as he heard the noise coming from the military camp.
"Humph. Don't irritate me. " Great one was upset as his master and his goddess left the place leaving them behind.
" Don't be childish. We have our own duties and so do they. From when did you start disagreeing with the master's views?" Great three rolled his eyes.
This group of six fools stayed behind to clean all the mess left by their goddess.
" Say, our goddess is so fierce. Who would have thought that at such a young age, she is capable of beheading a person without batting an eyelid. " great one was not able to hide his admiration at all.
" Eh?! Another challenge is going on. Let's go and join the fun." great four was excited as the raining grounds came into his view." No... not interested. " Great six lazily replied.
" Oi... It looks like our general and goddess are competing with each other." Great five's keen eyes landed on the two figures who are facing each other.
All the six men paused in mid-air and looked towards the direction where great five is pointing. Just one look and the six figures looked at each other coming to a mutual understanding.
In the next instant, the six figures disappeared from their positions and landed behind Jun Moyin.