At 100 years old, he joined the army in place of his granddaughter, and became a national war god.

Side Mission: Build a special operations force for the era of cold weapons!

[Mission Objective: Within three months, select elite personnel from the military to form a 50-strong special operations force, complete basic training, and acquire the capability to independently carry out missions such as reconnaissance, harassment, and decapitation strikes.]

[Mission Rewards: 3 years of reverse aging, 100 days of lifespan, and a set of Xuan Iron Armor!]

[Friendly Reminder: Upon accepting the mission, the host will immediately receive one blueprint for an ancient special operations weapon and one ancient special operations training plan. These blueprints and training plan have been optimized based on the actual conditions of this world and can be used directly.]

Su Mu's eyes lit up, and he was extremely excited.

Special operations forces in the era of cold weapons.

Su Mu had actually been pondering this idea for ten days after recapturing Yuzhou City.

He came from the modern era. Although he was just an ordinary person before he transmigrated, he had seen too many reports about special forces on TV and in books.

Those elites among elites, though few in number, can play a crucial role in turning the tide of battle at critical moments.

Reconnaissance, infiltration, harassment, decapitation, sabotage of enemy logistics...

These tasks cannot be accomplished by simply having a large number of people; they require small, elite teams that are well-trained, well-equipped, and work in perfect harmony.

Now, the imperial court will not send reinforcements. There are 50,000 enemy troops pressing in from the north, while they only have less than 30,000 men, and most of them are new recruits.

A head-on confrontation would not yield much of a chance of victory.

But if we could build a special forces unit, like a sharp dagger piercing the enemy's heart, the situation would be completely different.

Therefore, he was naturally happy to accept this task.

[Ding! Host has accepted the side mission: Build a special operations force for the era of cold weapons!]

[Received: One special operations weapon blueprint and one special operations training plan. These have been stored in system space and can be viewed at any time.]

Su Mu pointed his withered finger in the air, and two yellowed drawings unfolded in his consciousness space.

The first drawing depicts three types of weapons.

The first type is the Mo Dao (陌刀).

The blade is narrow and straight, with an extremely long handle, and the entire blade is nearly ten feet long. It is double-edged.

The blueprints show detailed dimensions: the blade is eight to ten feet long, weighs fifteen to twenty catties, and is made of refined steel with an extremely sharp edge.

"When used in foot combat, it can be cleaved and thrust; a single strike can sever a horse's leg and kill a cavalryman. When the Mo Dao formation is complete, no cavalryman dares to approach."

Su Mu nodded in satisfaction.

The Mo Dao, a famous blade from the Tang Dynasty, was a powerful weapon against cavalry in the era of cold weapons.

Once the Mo Dao formation is complete, cavalry charging into it is like moths to a flame.

The second type is the hand crossbow.

It is much smaller than a regular crossbow, can be held in one hand, and can be hidden in a sleeve.

With a range of 100 paces, it can fire three arrows in succession. Reloading requires a foot pedal or winch, but it is extremely stealthy when firing, making it suitable for close-range surprise attacks.

The third type is the numbing knife.

The blade is curved like a crescent moon, with the cutting edge on the inside, and a long hemp rope is tied to the handle.

When using it, lie behind a shield, wait for enemy cavalry to charge close, and then swing your sword to slash the horse's leg; one strike can sever it.

After reviewing the weapon diagrams, Su Mu then began to study the special operations training plan in detail!

……

Meanwhile, on the training ground of the Great Qian Vanguard Battalion.

Qin Hao and Zhou Huchen are training new recruits.

"Thrust! Retract! Thrust again! Retract again! The blade must be swift, the force powerful, without hesitation!"

"Raise your shields! Don't you know how to dodge arrows?"

"Archers, fire! Fire again! Don't stop!"

Under the instructors' commands, the new recruits repeated the movements over and over again, their backs soaked with sweat, leaving deep footprints in the sandy ground.

"Report!"

A fast horse galloped in from the direction of the camp gate.

The scout rushed to Qin Hao, knelt on one knee, and panted heavily.

"General! Urgent report from Qingzhou: 20,000 Northern Di cavalry have arrived in Qingzhou!"

"The two great warriors of the Northern Barbarians, Man Tu and Man Xiao, are leading the troops! Twenty thousand iron cavalry have already entered Qingzhou and joined forces with the original garrison!"

Qin Hao's expression changed drastically.

Zhou Huchen was instructing a new recruit on swordsmanship when he heard the news. His hand trembled, and he almost dropped the sword.

"How much? Twenty thousand?"

"How long has it been? It's been less than a month since we recaptured Yuzhou, hasn't it? How come the Northern Di reinforcements arrived so quickly?"

Zhou Huchen asked in surprise.

The scout caught his breath and continued, "Reporting to the Commandant, this is absolutely true."

Qin Hao waved his hand, signaling the scouts to leave.

He turned around and exchanged a glance with Zhou Huchen; both of them had extremely gloomy expressions.

"Sigh..." Zhou Huchen sighed deeply. "Look at the Northern Di King. He immediately sent reinforcements after his defeat, dispatching 20,000 iron cavalry at a moment's notice. And look at our Emperor. We won a battle, recovered Yuzhou City, and killed Yeluqi. Such great achievements, yet we haven't even received a word of commendation, let alone reinforcements."

He shoved the knife into the ground, put his hands on his hips, and his chest heaved violently.

"Qingzhou originally had 30,000 garrison troops, and now with the addition of 20,000 cavalry, that makes a total of 50,000 troops! And what about us? We've fought so many battles, suffered considerable casualties, and have less than 30,000 men at most, half of whom are new recruits. How... how are we supposed to fight this battle?"

Qin Hao frowned and remained silent.

His heart was also filled with disappointment with the court, worry about the situation, and concern for the future of his soldiers.

But he can't show it!

He's a general. If he panics, what will happen to his men?

He then took a deep breath, suppressing his agitation, and spoke in a calm voice:

"Let's go and have a talk with Old Su."

Zhou Huchen pulled the knife out of the ground and nodded.

The two strode towards Su Mu's tent.

……

Inside the tent, Su Mu was sitting at the table, his body hunched over, his withered fingers holding a pen, sketching on the paper.

"Old Su," Qin Hao called softly.

Su Mu looked up, saw the two of them, and smiled:

"General Qin, Commandant Zhou, come and sit down."

Qin Hao spoke first.

"Elder Su, an urgent report has arrived from Qingzhou. The Northern Di have reinforced with 20,000 iron cavalry, led by the two great warriors of the Northern Di, Man Tu and Man Xiao. They have already entered Qingzhou. Now there are a total of 50,000 Northern Di troops in Qingzhou, and their morale is high."

Zhou Huchen picked up the conversation, his voice filled with anxiety: "Elder Su, the Northern Di are determined to fight us to the death. Fifty thousand against thirty thousand, and most of our soldiers are new recruits. How are we supposed to fight this? The imperial court hasn't made a move at all. We can't just sit here and wait to die!"

Qin Hao also said, "Elder Su, I think that instead of waiting for the Northern Di to attack, we should strike first and take advantage of their recent gathering and unstable foothold. We might still have a chance of winning. What do you think..."

Su Mu's expression remained calm and composed.

"No rush."

"It is precisely in times like these that we must remain calm and composed."

Su Mu pointed to the few sheets of paper spread out on the table with his finger.

"Take a look at this first."

Qin Hao and Zhou Huchen leaned closer and looked down.

The paper shows three weapons, with clear labels indicating their size and shape...

Qin Hao's pupils contracted slightly.

He had fought in battles for half his life and had seen many weapons, but he had never seen a knife like this before.

It's nearly ten feet long and has two sharp edges; how can this be a knife?

This is practically a spear with a long blade!

Zhou Huchen looked up, his face full of confusion.

"Elder Su, I have never seen these three weapons before. The Mo Dao, the hand crossbow, and the Ma Zha Dao are all names I have never heard of."

Qin Hao also put down the blueprints, looked at Su Mu, and waited for him to explain.

Su Mu smiled slightly and replied, "It's not surprising that you haven't seen it before."

"These weapons were learned from a wandering weapon craftsman when I was young. It is said that they existed in ancient times, but the technique was later lost."

"I've pondered this for a long time and drawn up some blueprints. They should be usable."

He pointed to the blueprints for the Mo Dao (陌刀).

"What is the most formidable aspect of the Northern Di cavalry? It's not their individual combat ability, but their ability to charge in swarms."

"Once the warhorses charge, the infantry simply cannot stop them."

"But what if we had a weapon that could cut off a horse's leg from ten feet away?"

His fingers moved to the crossbow.

"When cavalry clash, they often exchange arrows."

"But bows and arrows require both hands, and you need to draw the bow and nock the arrow, which is very inconvenient on horseback."

"The crossbow can be fired with one hand, and it can fire three arrows in quick succession, making it impossible to defend against at close range."

Finally, he pointed to the numbing knife.

"As for this, it's for the infantry."

"When the Northern Di cavalry charge, the front-line swordsmen and shieldmen can't stop them, but what if there are several swordsmen wielding machetes hidden behind them?"

"When the warhorse charged, he slashed it down, breaking the horse's leg. The rider fell off, and the infantry behind him swarmed forward."

Qin Hao's eyes gradually brightened.

He had considered ways to deal with the cavalry, but all he could come up with was to prepare more bows and crossbows, dig more trenches, and use more chevaux-de-frise.

However, the three types of weapons proposed by Su Mu directly countered cavalry from the perspective of weaponry, and it was a systematic countermeasure.

"Master Su, I understand." Qin Hao clasped his hands in a fist and said, "I will immediately arrange for all the blacksmiths in Yuzhou City to work day and night to make a hundred pieces each to test the effect. If they work well, then we will mass-produce them."

Su Mu nodded.

"good!"

"There is something even more important."

"Go to the army and select three hundred men for this old man who meet three conditions..."

Su Mu extended three withered fingers.

"First, young and strong, able to lift at least 300 jin (150 kg) and swing a knife 100 times in a row without getting out of breath; second, able to ride a horse, not just the kind where you can just get on, but you have to be able to slash and shoot arrows on horseback; third, have a martial arts background, whether it's practicing fists and kicks or swords and spears, you have to have at least a basic level."

Zhou Huchen scratched his head, looking puzzled.

"Mr. Su, what are you doing?"

Su Mu smiled, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes.

"Do as I say, and you will know in due time."

"Elder Su, this humble general understands." Qin Hao clasped his hands in a fist salute.

"This humble general will go and select the men immediately."

After saying that, the two strode away.

Su Mu looked in the direction the two had left, his eyes filled with anticipation.

He was also very curious to see what kind of effect this special forces unit from the era of cold weapons would achieve!