The battered tents flapped as the people walked fast through the small spaces. Zhi Rui sat down in the middle of the tribe on the alpha's throne as the people bustled and hustled She was laid back leaning her face on her hand.

While cannibalism was common in the barbarism, The tribe lived near the forest, and too far away from other settlements. So they didn't need to eat humans and rarely fought another tribe. They practiced battle and had skirmishes between themselves but never had a full on war.

Loud laughter rang out, to alleviate their anxiety feelings.

The clock ticked away, it was already ten hours in the night, Sandworm who went out in the noon hadn't come back yet.

Zhi Rui sighed and kept watching the warriors. There were around thirty people able to fight. Half of them showed fear and restlessness, the rest knew how to hide it well. Only a small bunch seemed to not mind and was eagerly preparing themselves.

'Neither of them has the demeanor of a survivor' Zhi Rui thought and frowned.

"I know each one of them, let me lead and I'll get them into shape." Blue amethyst in a leather armor spoke beside Zhi Rui.

Zhi Rui grinned. "Not today, but you'll lead them soon."

She didn't expect that answer. Blue-amethyst frowned. The bond of a competent general and their soldiers are intimate, giving that away is the same as giving her their loyalty.

A horn rang out from outside Zhi Rui turned to look.

"Alpha, They are back."

Zhi Rui got up and walked outside the tribe. Blue amethyst followed.

Zhi Rui stood ahead of everyone and looked at the group of men bearing torches. 'twenty more men.. Two of three tribes accepted, more then I expected'

Zhirui turned around. "Stand ready for March!"

They got on their positions.

Sandworm who was leading approached first.

There was no greeting from the tribe to him.

Zhi Rui looked at his stern eyes and chuckled. she spoke in a voice only he could hear. "If you missed the chance to ran away, don't worry you'll have another soon."

Sandworm's face scrunched. He swallowed the provocation and reported calmly

"The tribe of cold accepted without much talk, the tribe of beetles refused at first, but when my team turned around to leave they suddenly changed their mind and decided to accept. And the tribe of rocks refused."

Zhi Rui nodded, She waved her hand. Starting their march in the direction of the tribe of rock.

"Blue amethyst, Sandworm, follow me." Zhi Rui said and led the way through the sand.

Blue Amethyst looked at the stern Sandworm while grinning. He scoffed at her and followed Zhi Rui.

Her lips curved upwards in a smile.

Each stood on a side of Zhi Rui.

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"HAHA, Sandworm! you're really bold! To think that you'd actually came back here with that misery quantity of men!" laughed a man with a skull hanging from his neck. fifty warriors stood behind him.

On Zhi Rui's right side, Sandworm showed no reaction. while Blue amethyst smirked maliciously.

"The enemy has fifty motivated warriors, and since they are the one defending, they have the moral and terrain advantage." Zhi Rui's voice softly reached Sandworm and blue amethyst.

"We have thirty warriors that had not fought another person in years. And the enemy just showed they are ten men short of doubling our numbers. In this situation, how do we defeat them?"

Blue amethyst's eyes turned sharp. "Annihilate them. Following the barbarian laws of course. Leaving everyone under fifteen and any elder above fifty alive. Everyone else, we kill. Using this tribe as examples for others."

Zhi Rui said nothing.

Sandworm opened his mouth.

"Rather than defeating them and creating animosity. We show them that we already allied with two different tribes, that would intimidate them and if they still refuse, we go away and find allies with other tribes and eventually they would be overwhelmed with dread. They'd be terrified and would offer themselves to us. And we wouldn't have to give them anything. This way, we don't antagonize and in the end, we'll amass almost everyone as allies."

Zhi Rui sighed and shook her hand at their answers.

They frowned.

"One is too extreme another is too passive. Blue-amethyst, The objective is to shake the core of the system, to that we have to shave the bottom of it. And these people are victims, the bottom of the system.

If we wantonly kill we'll become tyrants and they will have fear instead of the hope of gaining better lives. fear is useful, but not good for long term dominance. Look at the churches, Rather than force a group of people, they convinced them slowly until the majority believed and then when most people believed their instruction and beliefs became the truth, and until today their reign stand firm."

"Sandworm, again you're too passive, do what you say and tribes would know that we did nothing against those who refused and opposed. They would be encouraged to do the same. And we'd have to waste a lot of time and when we finally complete the alliance with everyone they would be complacent as they would believe they were equals they would discuss and disagree until everybody is satisfied. Wasting more time and being crushed by the enemy for it. and even more than that. Shove this in your head, Compromise is a last case scenario. when you compromise you're automatically lowering your stance

His eye twitched "Then how do we do it?"

Zhi Rui spoke slowly

"Beat them, then reward them." She smiled.

It was too vague for them to understand.

Zhi Rui raised her hands. The troops stayed in attention.

The ignored alpha man gave the order and they stood defensively.

In the tribal wars, is to each his own, they go all out individually.

But Zhi Rui's troops were dived into groups of five people. One group held shields and wore thick leather armor. followed by another group using spears and short swords.

On the other side, a group wearing heavy armor made out of rock and leather were wielding heavy and long weapons like scimitars maces and war hammers followed by agile dagger-wielding warrior man and woman.

the last ten stayed behind with Atlatls and bows.

"Do As I taught you earlier. Now charge, if you try to run away you will be killed." Her words were enveloped in stern killing intent.

They trembled, the warrior that had only one training in organized warfare looked at Zhi Rui trembling. but her dark red eyes shone ominously. The image of her smashing and tearing down men like they were nothing crossed their minds.

"HAHHHHH!!!" The shield beares bolted forward, right behind them The ones holding spears and swords followed

"FIGHT!!!" the tribe alpha of the other side yelled. They ran forward like a horde. The shield bearers went in and ruthlessly smashed through them. creating a small division in their midst the spear-wielding cam in and covered each other's flanks and the back of the shield bearers, they were barely keeping the formation but they fought the enemies off. They couldn't understand how. but they were standing their ground.

soon they were encircled. They were sweating, praying for the strategy to work.

Zhi Rui waved her hand again. The heavy armored warrior slowly ran towards the enemies. they swung their maces, smashing skulls and limbs the rogues cut people with their daggers and used the heavy armored as a shield.

One swung a heavy rock Warhammer and slammed two people away. They started gaining morale, the blood splashed, and what was fifty men turned into a flustered bunch. panic entered their midst as their numbers were reduced,

Blue-amethyst and Sandworm looked on in a daze. They never saw this kind of tactic before.

Zhi Rui Nodded to herself. 'The war tactics scroll was worth its price.'

The arrows and light spears rained down. Their numbers plummeted.

when only twenty-four men left. Zhi Rui raised her arms. The men with bows and Atlatls stopped shooting.

"Cease," Zhi Rui said.

Her warriors stopped, the enemy ran away some deserted to into the desert while others simply ran inside the tribe.

Zhi Rui walked forward on their camp, she stood in front of the alpha.

"The barbarism became stagnated and stale, by its own powerhouses I'm gathering allies to fight for the sake of freedom. Will you Become my ally and prosper?"

The people inside the tribe trembled, a little flame of hope shone in their eyes.

The alpha looked at his twenty-some lost warriors. his defenses reduced by half. He didn't have a choice but to obey. He absentmindedly nodded.

Zhi Rui smiled. She took a storage pouch and threw it at him. "There's plenty of food there. you can freely indulge the whole tribe, I'm giving one of those every two weeks. I'm sure. you have a lot to do. So Just choose ten warriors to come back with me. Then we'll be on our way.

The men looked inside the pouch and froze. He looked a the smiling Zhi Rui and then at the pouch. He didn't understand. It was already weird that she didn't finish them off but she even treated them like allies and gave them the payment.

A weird feeling arose inside him. 'Maybe if I act right, we won't become mere cannon fodders...'

He suddenly smiled with happiness, "Thank you. I, pebble, will never forget this favor." He said and bowed his slightly fat body.

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Zhi Rui came back with ten more me on their tribe. zhi Rui only had to avoid the death of four people on her side A spear wilder that failed to protect a shield bearer. And another who wasn't used to heavy armor and fell down leaving a rogue to be cleanly cut down. Zhi Rui repassed the image on her mind. 'With daily training, no small tribe can content with us.'

"Why leave the alpha alive? He can simply leave with his people or collude with another tribe to take us down." Blue-amethyst said frowning.

"Agree, if we offend then we should kill them and tie all loose ends" said Sandworm.

frustrated Zhi Rui spoke. "He's already colluding with another tribe. how do you think he got twenty men more than us? "

Feeling they arising surprise Zhi Rui sighed. "What's is important is the message. 'We punish but we're not tyrants', other tribes will think they can't avoid a fight with us so they might well as seek profit by joining. They didn't come today, but around tomorrow the lizard tribe will retaliate. then again, We'll defeat them and sent back the borrowed warriors, the word will spread through them about my way of doing things, Then more allies will come. That's what I need. "

Zhi Rui sighed and started thinking again.

'With some fights, the word of why I'm fighting will spread and common interest will arise. they won't be united merely by benefits anymore. For a people full of beliefs like the barbarians, it's possible.' Zhi Rui smiled.

'In three months I need to take hold of the weak to overwhelm the strong and by the sixth month, I need to destroy my father's frontline. I'll have power in the barbarian lands and the empire. The mortals will be in my hand." Zhi Rui's eye Shone.

'Then only the high-level cultivators will be in my way, and that I'll solve inside the underworld.'

Zhi Rui smiled. she turned around to Blue-amethyst and Sandworm.

"From tomorrow onwards only sent a single messenger to the similar poor tribes around with the deal." Zhi Rui threw another five pouches for them and led the way back.