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

It is twenty li north of Yuzhou City.

A rolling forest rustled in the autumn wind, and withered yellow leaves covered the forest path, making a soft crunching sound when stepped on.

The mountain wasn't high, and the slope wasn't steep, but as far as the eye could see, there were ravines, weeds, and not even a decent road.

Three hundred soldiers stood in formation on an open space at the foot of the mountain.

They were all strong and robust, with sharp eyes and a fierce aura emanating from them.

Some were veterans who had fought alongside Qin Hao for many years, some were key members of the cook battalion trained by Su Mu, and others were outstanding individuals selected from the Qingfeng Battalion.

You Zhongyi, Gu Changfeng, and Zhao Tieniu were also in the group.

These three were personally selected by Su Mu later.

Zhao Tieniu stood there like an iron tower, his large, round eyes looking around with a face full of confusion.

"Brother Gu, what exactly happened?" Zhao Tieniu scratched his head and asked in a loud voice, "I was leading the new recruits in sword practice when I suddenly received orders to assemble here. It was all so mysterious, they didn't even give me a reason."

Gu Changfeng shook his head, equally confused.

"I don't know either, but since it was General Qin who gave the order personally, he must have his reasons."

"But look at this place..." Zhao Tieniu pointed to the surrounding barren mountains and wilderness, his brow furrowed. "There's no village or shop in sight. What did you call us here for? To hunt? Or to dig for wild vegetables?"

Hearing their conversation, You Zhongyi turned around and laughed, "Brother Tie Niu, don't guess. Although I don't know exactly what they're going to do, I've heard rumors that this is Old Su's idea."

"Old Su?" Zhao Tieniu's eyes lit up. "Really?"

You Zhongyi nodded and lowered his voice, saying, "Think about it, what kind of person is Old Su? Would he do something meaningless? He must have his reasons for transferring us out of the various battalions."

Gu Changfeng nodded thoughtfully: "Brother You is right. Old Master Su's actions have always been unpredictable. Let's just wait and see."

Behind the ranks, the other selected soldiers were also whispering and discussing amongst themselves.

"Why do you think the generals singled us out? And sent us to this desolate wilderness?"

"I don't know."

"Me too! I thought I had done something wrong and was going to be punished!"

"Dispose of you? Dispose of you means you'll be carrying knives and guns? Don't get the wrong idea."

At this moment, Su Mu appeared riding his Ferghana horse.

The crowd fell silent instantly.

Instantly, three hundred pairs of eyes turned to him.

"Old Su? It really is Old Su!"

"So it was Old Master Su's arrangement! I knew it! Who could pull off such a grand spectacle!"

"Old Su has come in person; this must be something big!"

Su Mu pulled on the reins, the Akhal-Teke horse stopped, and then Su Mu dismounted.

He looked at the crowd before him, remained silent for a moment, and then spoke:

"You must be wondering why I was called here."

"I'm telling you today that you three hundred men are the elite selected from an army of thirty thousand."

Some people in the group straightened their backs, while others smiled smugly.

"But..." Su Mu changed the subject, raising his voice a few decibels, "Being good at fighting alone isn't really being good. On the battlefield, you're not facing just one enemy, but tens of thousands of enemy troops."

"I will select a group of people from among you to form a special unit."

"A sharp blade that appears and disappears without a trace, a dagger that can move freely amidst a vast army!"

A barely suppressed commotion arose in the ranks.

"The elite of the elite?"

"In the midst of a massive army? Isn't that like what happened to Elder Su?"

"My God, can we finally learn real skills from Master Su?"

Su Mu raised his hand to silence the commotion.

"From today onwards, we are a shadow force."

"Normally, you are centurions, captains, and the backbone of each battalion in the army. You lead troops and train them as needed."

"Once assembled, you will be a sharp blade drawn from its sheath, appearing and disappearing without a trace, striking fear into the hearts of the enemy."

He paused, then asked loudly:

"Is it possible?"

"able!"

Three hundred people roared in unison, their voices echoing through the mountains and forests.

"Don't agree too soon. Whether you can achieve this goal depends on whether you can endure hardship and persevere. My training is not as simple as practicing swordsmanship and archery."

He turned around and pointed to the rolling mountains behind him.

"See that mountain? Go over it, then back over it, it's thirty li."

"Each person carries 50 pounds of weight, and the last 50 people to arrive will be eliminated."

These words caused an uproar in the team.

"Thirty li? Carrying fifty jin of weight?"

"Final fifty eliminated? Are they serious?!"

Zhao Tieniu's eyes widened in utter shock: "Thirty li? A mountain road? And I have to carry fifty jin? I may be strong, but this is too much..."

Gu Changfeng frowned and said in a low voice to You Zhongyi, "I've never heard of this kind of training before. The army emphasizes swordsmanship, spear fighting, and archery, and trains formation coordination. Why does Elder Su want us to cross mountains and valleys?"

You Zhongyi shook his head, also looking puzzled.

"I don't understand either."

The two looked at each other and fell silent.

Qin Hao and Zhou Huchen arrived behind Su Mu on horseback at some point.

The two stood quietly to the side, arms crossed, watching the three hundred elite soldiers with bewildered expressions. They exchanged glances and saw the same confusion in each other's eyes.

"General Qin, what do you think Old Master Su is trying to do?" Zhou Huchen lowered his voice and whispered in Qin Hao's ear, "Training soldiers, not with swords and spears, not with horsemanship and archery, but making them carry heavy loads over mountains? What kind of strategy is this?"

Qin Hao shook his head, equally confused.

"I don't know either. But since Old Su is doing this, he must have his reasons. Let's just wait and see."

Zhou Huchen nodded and stopped talking, only squinting his eyes, waiting to see what Su Mu was going to do.

Su Mu ignored the discussions and questions.

He mounted his horse, and the Akhal-Teke steed raised its head and neighed, its front hooves raised high.

"Listen up, everyone! Pack your bags, line up in a single file, and follow me into the mountains!"

"Don't blame me for not warning you, anyone who dares to slack off or cheat will not be treated kindly!"

He paused, his eyes scanning each face.

"Set off!"

The Akhal-Teke horse galloped away into the mountains and forests, its hooves flying.

Three hundred elite soldiers gritted their teeth, shouldered their heavy backpacks, and followed the white steed into the forest, traversing the rugged mountain path.

"Hurry! Hurry! Don't fall behind!"

"Keep up! Keep up with Elder Su!"

"My goodness, this backpack is so heavy!"

Some people ran briskly, some staggered, some gritted their teeth and remained silent, and some cursed as they ran.

The mountain path was rugged, with jagged rocks and a thick layer of withered branches and leaves, making it slippery to walk on, and one could easily slip and fall if not careful.

They had only run for less than five miles when the line stretched out, and some people had already fallen behind.

"I can't...I can't...my legs...my legs are going weak..."

"Get up! Get up now!!"

His comrade grabbed him and, gritting his teeth, continued running forward.

Qin Hao and Zhou Huchen rode behind the column, looking at the exhausted and disheveled elite soldiers, and exchanged glances.

"General Qin," Zhou Huchen swallowed hard, "how many of these three hundred men do you think will last until the end?"

Qin Hao was silent for a moment, then held out one hand, showing five fingers.

"Fifty?"

Zhou Huchen gasped.

Su Mu, riding on his horse, glanced back at the long procession behind him, a smile playing on his lips.

The first lesson for special forces has begun.