The Armament Camp, training ground.
Night had sunk into a faint gloom. Only a few torches crackled at the edge of the field, illuminating a figure standing in the center, still and upright as a pine.
Chen Sheng was holding the most difficult and abstruse posture in the Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art—the “Profound Canopy Stance.” His posture was strange, yet the qi and blood throughout his body surged and pulsed like an undercurrent.
Four days had quietly passed since Wu Kuang officially assumed office as the county lieutenant of Changshan County.
Chen Sheng, too, had been appointed as he wished to the post of North City Armament Commander, a proper ninth-rank official.
However, though the appointment had been issued, he had not immediately taken office. Instead, he had immersed all his mind and spirit in cultivation. Nearly two months of uninterrupted bitter training, along with the steady supply of resources such as Blood-Qi Pills, had finally brought him to the moment of harvest.
[Basic Saber Technique: Perfection (25/2000)]
[Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art: Minor Achievement (496/500)]
[Toad-Fishing Force Secret Art: Minor Achievement (2/500)]
[Demon-Subduing Three Ultimates Saber: Minor Achievement (36/500)]
The Basic Saber Technique he had created himself had already reached complete mastery.
This saber art, born from battlefield killing and refined through countless tempering and summations of his own, had no flashy moves, yet it was broad and forceful, balanced in offense and defense, with no shortcomings whatsoever.
Using this profound foundation as a springboard, his comprehension of the saber path had also reached a new height.
It was precisely because of this that, when cultivating the Demon-Subduing Three Ultimates Saber bestowed upon him by Wu Kuang, his progress had been astonishingly swift.
This fierce saber art, obtained from the Buddhist sect, suited his Buddhist body-tempering cultivation method to an extraordinary degree. Though he had not practiced it for long enough to truly reach Minor Achievement, the chilling saber intent it contained—one that slashed down evil spirits and advanced without hesitation—had already begun to take shape, its might astonishing.
What delighted him even more was that the Toad-Fishing Force secret art had finally been successfully initiated, and had broken through to Minor Achievement in one stroke!
Though it was only the initial stage of Minor Achievement, he could already clearly sense the subtle yet transformative effect this secret art had on him—it was fundamentally improving his innate aptitude. Even the circulation of qi and blood and the condensation of inner breath had become a fraction faster than before.
The only thing that made him feel his progress was somewhat slow was the Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art.
Even though he had not slackened in the slightest, he was still missing that final step to break through to the realm of Great Achievement. And the reason he had delayed taking office in the North City for so long lay precisely here.
He knew full well that the North City Armament Camp was tangled with entrenched interests. It was bound to be a dragon’s pool and tiger’s den, filled with arrogant soldiers, fierce officers, and troublemakers planted by local powers.
The Seek Fortune and Avoid Misfortune Heavenly Tome had also given him a clear warning: at the beginning of his term, someone would be extremely dissatisfied with this outsider’s sudden rise to power and would deliberately provoke him, intending to give him a show of force and make him lose face.
And his next task was to stir up waves in the muddy waters of North City and carry out Wu Kuang’s will. That left no room for the slightest mistake.
He needed absolute, overwhelming strength, and with the force of thunder, he had to thoroughly suppress, purge, and reorganize the North City Armament Camp!
The prerequisite for all this was that he had to break through to the middle stage of Foundation Establishment—the Bone-Forging Realm! Only after completing this transformation of the flesh and his strength surged dramatically would he have the confidence to suppress everything.
Therefore, he was extraordinarily patient. No matter how the storm gathered outside, he remained unmoving, devoting himself entirely to assaulting the bottleneck.
Fortunately, his cultivation of the Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art had already reached the final juncture.
By his estimate, he would succeed as early as tonight, or tomorrow at the latest!
At that time, it would be the moment his sharp blade left its sheath and revealed its edge.
In addition, through the scattered prompts from the Seek Fortune and Avoid Misfortune Heavenly Tome over the past few days, he had also roughly figured out Yang Hu’s current situation and thoughts. This man had indeed developed no small ambition, but he had no intention of informing on him to the Seven Star Gang or betraying him. His blood feud with the Seven Star Gang was also genuine.
As for Yang Hu’s view of “Chen Sheng,” it was rather complicated.
There was contempt born of old impressions, but also the affection and respect accumulated over many years toward his former master. Various emotions were intertwined, making his attitude appear somewhat contradictory.
After thinking about it briefly, Chen Sheng could understand. If their positions were reversed, he feared he would be the same.
After all, the last impression the original body had left Yang Hu with was that of a sickly scholar who needed protection. In this world where martial strength reigned supreme, after losing the pressure exerted by his father’s generation and undergoing several months of gangland blood and fire, it was already rare that Yang Hu had not directly harbored malicious intentions.
Not to mention, Chen Sheng might still be connected to a secret concerning some “precious treasure.”
Unfortunately, regarding this “precious treasure,” the Seek Fortune and Avoid Misfortune Heavenly Tome had yet to give any clear prompt. Neither Seek Fortune nor Avoid Misfortune had shown any reaction.
Thinking about it, either the opportunity related to that future had yet to be triggered, or… that piece of warm jade truly had nothing special about it.
“Commander.”
Just as Chen Sheng was circulating his qi and blood with complete focus, Yan Ming’s voice sounded from the side, carrying a few traces of anxious hesitation.
“Mm.” Chen Sheng did not open his eyes, merely responding once.
“Commander, you… when exactly do you plan to take office?”
Yan Ming ultimately could not hold back, and his speech quickened somewhat. “You don’t know, but those people in the North City camp have become more and more arrogant and overbearing after seeing that you still haven’t arrived! Not only are they ostracizing the brothers we brought over, they’re also… they’re also spreading rumors everywhere, saying that you… saying that you’re afraid of those two deputy commanders in the camp and don’t dare show your face!”
The more he spoke, the angrier he became, almost pouring out all the resentment he had suffered over the past few days in one breath.
Unlike Chen Sheng’s calm, Yan Ming and the more than thirty old subordinates assigned to the North City Armament Camp had spent these past few days as though living through years. At first, the other side had still shown some restraint, but later, seeing that Chen Sheng never appeared, they grew increasingly unbridled. As a result, Yan Ming and the others had suffered no end of exclusion and disdain.
This was not the first time he had come to beg Chen Sheng.
He knew full well that with Chen Sheng’s strength, he could absolutely overwhelm those two deputy commanders. He truly could not understand why the commander had continued to endure without making a move.
“I know.”
Chen Sheng’s voice remained calm and unruffled. “Go back for now. Tomorrow, this official will naturally go and take office.”
When Yan Ming heard this, he first froze, then was overjoyed, as if he had instantly found his backbone. He hurriedly bowed.
“Yes! This subordinate takes his leave! I’ll go back right now and tell the brothers!”
The sound of footsteps receded, and the training ground returned to silence.
Chen Sheng’s attention once again focused completely on the qi and blood coursing through his body, and on that thin yet tenacious bottleneck.
[Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art: Minor Achievement (497/500)]
……
[Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art: Minor Achievement (498/500)]
……
[Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art: Minor Achievement (499/500)]
By now, the night was deep, and the bright moon hung high.
Looking at the progress that lacked only the final sliver before completion, Chen Sheng calmed his mind and breath. With practiced ease, he took a blood-colored pill the size of a longan from his robes and placed it into his mouth.
The pill melted upon entry. A scorching yet incomparably pure medicinal force exploded with a boom, surging toward his four limbs and hundred bones like a wild tide!
Chen Sheng did not dare be negligent. He immediately assumed the Profound Canopy Stance once more, guiding this powerful medicinal force to join with his own boiling qi and blood, launching an assault upon the final pass.
An hour later.
The qi and blood accumulated within Chen Sheng’s body had already reached its peak, like boiling lava! Upon the surface of his skin, a dense ancient bronze luster continuously flowed, becoming ever deeper and more restrained, as though hundred-refined steel were undergoing its final forging.
The progress bar that had been stagnant for so long finally jumped lightly—
[Golden Bell Body-Tempering Art: Great Achievement (1/1000)]
Boom!
It was as though a dam had burst, and also like a volcano erupting!
A sense of power far more majestic and vigorous than before instantly swept through his entire body.
The ancient bronze luster around him suddenly drew inward, embedding itself deeply into his skin, membranes, sinews, and bones. The qi and blood within his body surged like a flood with the floodgates opened, crashing through a crucial major meridian, then spreading irresistibly along the bones throughout his body—washing, tempering, and refining them!
Every inch of bone emitted faint yet dense humming, as though repeatedly struck by an invisible giant hammer, expelling impurities, condensing essence, and becoming ever tougher and denser, filled with terrifying power.
Middle stage of Foundation Establishment, Bone-Forging Realm—achieved!
Chen Sheng slowly opened his eyes. A flash of sharp light flickered through them and vanished. Sensing the reborn transformation within his body, the corner of his mouth finally curved into a cold arc.
Tomorrow, the North City Armament Camp would have a new atmosphere.
————
Monthly tickets and recommendation tickets, please.