Clan Building System: I'm not the Protagonist?! - Chapter 279

279: 279- War Cry.

279: 279- War Cry.

Lin Zhaoyue’s dagger danced in her hand, each slash carving through armor, steel, and flesh as though the soldiers before her were made of wet parchment.

The Saberfangs rampaged alongside her, titanic paws smashing formations apart, their roars scattering men like frightened insects.

Yet amidst the slaughter, her eyes narrowed as she found the whole situation strange… Where were the generals?

Not a single commander of note had stepped onto the battlefield, ones that could likely pose a threat to her and her beasts.

It was only waves after waves of nameless foot soldiers that were rushing in to die in droves.

Her grin faltered as she muttered.

“What are you people hoping to achieve?

You’re being used as sacrifices at this point…” The thought gnawed at her as another Saberfang’s swipe sent a dozen men tumbling through the air like dolls.

But it didn’t take long, shortly after, soldiers began breaking ranks, panic spreading like wildfire.

Some threw down weapons, some screamed prayers, others fled toward the edges of the battlefield in blind desperation.

Lin Zhaoyue slowed her mount, raising her free hand.

The Saberfangs halted with its massive tails lashing the ground, nostrils steaming with blood-scent.

She let the deserters run.

She did not see them as cowards, she only felt pity for them, they were fools who had charged toward their own deaths to satisfy the whims of their masters.

But then, the ground suddenly trembled and a low hum rippled through the air, rising like the groan of an ancient beast awakening.

The edges of the battlefield shimmered and then walls of translucent light erupted from carved runes hidden in the soil.

The deserters who had reached the perimeter slammed into it headlong, screaming as they rebounded, some crumpling with broken bones.

A dome of pale-blue light locked shut overhead, sealing sky and earth alike.

Lin Zhaoyue’s eyes widened.

Her breath hitched as, in the same heartbeat, she felt her qi vanish.

“-!” The vibrant current that always pulsed within her went dead.

Her veins felt hollow and her meridians unresponsive.

She tried to will even the faintest spark into her dagger, but the blade remained cold, unlit.

Her lips parted in disbelief.

“My… qi…” It was gone, completely cut off.

She clenched her jaw, pulling Xiao Bai’s fur as she pressed low against him.

The Saberfang beneath her growled uneasily, sensing the shift.

The other three beasts stirred restlessly, tails slamming the ground.

“What kind of barrier is this…?” Her eyes darted to the glowing lines crawling along the soil, interwoven glyphs forming a net of script as she felt it.

Every drop of spiritual energy inside the barrier was being devoured, locked away, leaving only the option of a physical fight.

Lin Zhaoyue’s throat tightened.

“So… that’s your plan.” She pressed her palm flat to Xiao Bai’s back, steadying him, forcing her grin to return though her pupils trembled.

Trapped in a cage with tens of thousands of soldiers.

“Hubby…” she whispered under her breath, a manic spark in her tone, “looks like your little wife just walked into a trap.” Outside the barrier, the dome of light shimmered like a second sky.

Qin Qishi Shi, stood tall upon the command ridge.

His royal armor gleamed beneath the moonlight, gold and black plates etched with dragon motifs that seemed to move with every breath he took.

He watched the chaos within the dome for a long moment, before he raised his sword high, its edge catching the glow of the barrier, reflecting it like captured lightning.

His voice boomed across the plains, deep and imperious, each word heavy with the weight of command.

“Soldiers of Tharz!” he thundered.

“Those within the barrier, pick up your blades!” The sound of his declaration rippled through the camps, reaching even the terrified ranks trapped inside.

“Those beasts are no longer gods upon this earth, they are flesh and bone!

Their fangs no longer blessed, their claws no longer divine!” He took a step forward, the wind billowing his cape behind him.

His eyes burned with regal ferocity, the gaze of a man born to command nations and spill blood in the name of empire.

“They have lost their qi!” he roared.

“Strike them down!

For Tharz, for the honor of your kin, for the glory of your emperor!” His sword came down in a sweeping arc toward the dome, like a decree of execution.

Inside, the trapped soldiers, once trembling with fear, slowly turned as one.

Their faces, resolve and grip on their weapons hardened.

Their voices rose with the first cries being of renewed courage echoing across the enclosed field as men began to charge once more, this time toward the beasts that could no longer crush them with spiritual might.

Outside, Qin Qishi Shi watched it unfold, a grim smile curving his lips.

“Let the fang family learn,” he murmured coldly, “what happens when arrogance meets a king’s will.” From across the plains, beneath the glow of the same barrier, Shu Ji Shi, stood as he watched Qin Qishi Shi rally his soldiers.

The distant roar of the Tharz army rolled like thunder across the battlefield.

Shu Ji Shi narrowed his eyes, a faint smirk curling his lips.

In a single, fluid motion, he rose from his seat making his robes sweep behind him like wings of fire.

He stepped to the edge of his pavilion, his voice sharp and commanding as he pointed toward the barrier.

“Azure Phoenix soldiers!” His words crashed through the camp like a hammer against steel.

“Will you let those Qin dogs outshine you?

Will you let them steal your glory?” The soldiers outside the barrier, though separated by distance, straightened as his voice reached them.

Those trapped within heard him even clearer, his tone burning with challenge and pride.

“Inside that barrier are beasts stripped of their divine strength, prey ready to be felled!

Slay one, and I will see your name sung in every city of our kingdom!

Bring me a Saberfang’s head, and I shall make you a general!”