The dawn mist hung thick over the province of Ginah, clinging to the towering silhouette of the Great Mud Wall. Beyond its ramparts, an army stirred. General Lu Sang stood atop the central watchtower, his keen eyes surveying the horizon where dark shapes loomed. The barbarian horde had arrived.

  Through the early haze, the first signs of the enemy became clear—rows of warriors cd in tattered furs, their faces streaked with ochre war paint. They rode atop towering beasts, creatures tamed from the wilds of the northern steppes. Some resembled massive horned lizards, their scales glistening under the rising sun. Others were six-legged behemoths, their tusks thick as tree trunks, armored in crude iron pting. The ground trembled beneath their approach.

  Lu Sang turned to his officers. "Sound the horns. Prepare the men."

  With a sharp nod, Captain Wei raised a conch shell to his lips, blowing a deep, resonating note. Drums thundered across the ramparts as soldiers scrambled into position, gripping their spears and nocking arrows. The garrison, now one hundred and fifty thousand strong, stood ready. Alongside them, newly recruited warriors infused with the power of the Lesser Cultivation Pills exuded a newfound vigor, their bodies stronger, their senses sharper.

  The barbarians halted at the foot of the wall, their leader emerging from the throng—a towering figure draped in the bckened hide of some long-dead beast. His helmet bore the fangs of a dire wolf, and in his massive grip, he wielded a bone-carved war axe nearly as tall as a man.

  "I am Urath Skullbreaker!" his voice bellowed across the battlefield. "This wall will not stop us! Surrender now, or we will reduce Ginah to ashes!"

  Lu Sang stepped forward, his own voice firm. "This wall has stood for five generations, and it will stand for five more. If you dare to test its strength, come and break yourselves upon it."

  A guttural ugh rumbled from Urath’s throat. He raised his axe high, and with a thunderous roar, the barbarian horde surged forward.

  The First Csh

  The beasts led the charge. Monstrous reptilian mounts smmed into the wall, their armored heads battering against the thick cy defenses. Archers atop the ramparts unleashed a deadly rain of arrows, striking riders from their saddles and piercing the eyes of their war beasts. Fmes erupted as siege engineers ignited oil-drenched boulders and unched them from trebuchets, engulfing the battlefield in fire and chaos.

  Urath himself led a contingent of berserkers armed with massive hooked chains. With the might of their mounts, they tched onto sections of the wall and pulled, straining against the very foundation of Ginah’s greatest defense. The mud walls groaned, but they held—just as they always had.

  From behind the fortifications, Lu Sang’s voice rang clear. "Release the dragon spears!"

  Along the ramparts, soldiers wielded newly forged weapons—long nces tipped with barbed steel heads, crafted specifically for piercing through thick hides. With a coordinated cry, they hurled them into the ranks of the enemy. The beasts screamed in agony as the spears found their mark, skewering their thick-scaled bodies. The assault wavered, but Urath roared in defiance, rallying his forces once more.

  The Breakthrough

  For hours, the battle raged, neither side yielding. But the barbarians had not come unprepared. From their rear ranks, shamans in bone-carved masks raised their staffs high, chanting in guttural tongues. A dark energy crackled in the air as storm clouds gathered unnaturally above the battlefield.

  Then, with an earsplitting crack, the sky split open. A bolt of eldritch lightning struck the wall, sending a tremor through its foundation. With a deafening groan, a portion of the southern rampart crumbled, leaving a gaping breach.

  Urath grinned savagely. "The wall falls! Charge!"

  The horde surged forward, pouring through the breach like a flood. Ginah’s defenders met them head-on, swords fshing and spears thrusting. Captain Wei and Cao Suyin led the counterattack, their weapons carving a path through the invaders.

  But even with their enhanced strength, the sheer number of the barbarians threatened to overwhelm them. Lu Sang knew this was the moment that would decide the battle.

  The Final Stand

  "Hold the line! Do not let them through!" Lu Sang bellowed, his own bde cutting down a beast-rider that lunged for his throat. He turned to his elite guard, warriors who had consumed double the cultivation pills and trained relentlessly for this very moment. "With me! We must kill Urath Skullbreaker!"

  Through the chaos, Lu Sang and his finest warriors pushed toward the barbarian leader. Urath saw them coming and leaped from his mount, meeting the general with a bone-rattling csh of weapons. Axe met sword, sparks flying as they exchanged blow after blow.

  Urath was monstrously strong, his strikes sending shockwaves through the ground. But Lu Sang was faster, his cultivated power allowing him to move with superhuman agility. He sidestepped a killing swing and drove his bde deep into Urath’s side. The barbarian chief staggered, roaring in fury, but before he could recover, Cao Suyin’s spear found his throat.

  Urath Skullbreaker fell.

  With their leader sin, the horde faltered. The momentum shifted. The defenders pressed forward, driving the barbarians back. As the sun dipped below the horizon, the remnants of the enemy fled into the wilderness, their invasion shattered.

  Victory and Aftermath

  As the fires of battle smoldered and the cries of the wounded filled the air, Lu Sang stood atop the breached wall, surveying the battlefield. Bodies of men and beasts y strewn across the pins, but the Great Mud Wall had endured. Ginah was safe.

  Captain Wei approached, blood still staining his armor. "The day is won, General."

  Lu Sang nodded. "Yes. But we must rebuild. The enemy will return, and next time, we must be stronger."

  From the capital, a message soon arrived. Queen Pan Lian had heard of their victory, and her response was swift and decisive. Reinforcements and architects would be sent to fortify the Great Mud Wall, ensuring it stood taller and stronger than before.

  As the first stones of the new defenses were id, Lu Sang knew that history had been written this day. The Empire had endured. The wall had held. And so long as they stood united, Ginah would never fall.