When Teng Qingshan was young, the Teng Family Village and the Li Family Village once sent their best fighters to compete in three matches over water rights.
It was during that contest that the Li Family Village’s ‘Li Jinfu’ shocked the Teng Family Village clansmen; Teng Qingshan still remembers vividly that man with the savage aura wielding a 122-jin wolf-tooth club.
“Commander Teng, you… you know me?” Li Jinfu was somewhat astonished. Of course, he knew of Teng Qingshan. Teng Qingshan was quite famous in the Black Armored Army even now. Furthermore, after Li Jinfu had joined the Black Armored Army, gotten married, and had a son, he returned home to visit relatives once every two or three years.
He certainly knew about the genius from the neighboring village, ‘Teng Qingshan.’
However, Li Jinfu couldn’t fathom how Teng Qingshan recognized him. Li Jinfu had left his hometown at eighteen and had been away for nearly thirteen or fourteen years, while Teng Qingshan was only seventeen this year. This meant that when Li Jinfu entered the Black Armored Army, Teng Qingshan was only about four years old.
How could a four-year-old remember him? And recognize him instantly now?
“Li Jinfu! Back when your Li Family Village contended with my Teng Family Village for water, you defeated my uncle. I remember it perfectly clearly,” Teng Qingshan said with a smile. “I never expected we would meet again after all these years.”
“Commander Teng, you have quite the memory; you still recall after all this time,” Li Jinfu laughed.
More than a decade had passed, and Li Jinfu was no longer that brute filled with beastly aggression; he had become composed and steady.
“Haha… Qingshan, so you and Jinfu are from the same village!” Ji Hong laughed heartily. “Jinfu is a squad leader in my personal guard detail, and his spear skills are quite good too. In terms of strength, he rivals an average Centurion. Alright, come inside, you two can catch up later!”
A throng of people bustled toward the main hall.
It was then that Teng Qingshan realized Li Jinfu was actually a squad leader in Ji Hong’s personal guard.
Although a Commander led 1,500 men, and a squad (or Hundred-Man Unit) comprised one hundred men, among the fifteen such squads, there was one most elite unit, known as the ‘Personal Guard.’ This unit served as the Commander’s personal retinue. Being the personal guard, they were naturally elites! A ‘Squad Leader’ (Wuzhang) in the Personal Guard was significantly stronger than a ‘Squad Leader’ in a regular Hundred-Man Unit.
In the spacious main hall, over eighty people were gathered. Commander Ji Hong sat high in the main seat, with Commander Guan Lü and Teng Qingshan seated on either side of him.
In this hall, besides Ji Hong, Guan Lü, and Teng Qingshan, only Centurions, the Squad Leaders of the Personal Guard, and some high-ranking core disciples—a total of eight people—were seated; the rest stood along the periphery.
“Li Jinfu? Haha, I am Teng Qinghu, from the Teng Family Village,” Teng Qinghu said warmly, speaking quietly with Li Jinfu beside him. Li Jinfu was clearly delighted to meet a fellow townsman, and they conversed in low tones.
“Ahem!”
A low cough silenced the entire hall instantly. Commander Ji Hong swept a cold gaze over the assembled crowd before stating coldly, “This time, the news of the infant Scarlet Scale Beast’s emergence has spread wildly. Furthermore, the infant beast appeared in Flaming Mountain, which is not far from Qingzhou. The martial artists attracted here must be experts from at least the regions of Yangzhou and Qingzhou! Therefore… when the time comes, the experts will be numerous. Our Guiyuan Sect disciples must not be arrogant or overbearing, but naturally, if anyone dares provoke us, we need not show mercy! Do you hear me?”
“Yes!”
Everyone present responded in unison.
“Good,” Ji Hong nodded slightly. He then glanced at Teng Qingshan and then at Guan Lü, a faint smile appearing on his face. “Qingshan, Guan Lü, the Sect Master has ordered us to seize the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, the Black Fire Spirit Root, and the Scarlet Scale Beast’s scales. What are your thoughts? Share them with us.”
Discussing methods and strategies was the prerogative of the higher-ups.
And Ji Hong clearly regarded Teng Qingshan as part of this elite team’s high command. In truth, although Teng Qingshan held the rank of Commander (Dutong), he was still one rank below the ‘Commander’ (Tongling) status held by Ji Hong and Guan Lü. However, Teng Qingshan’s feat of killing Meng Tian had made the entire Guiyuan Sect view him in a new light.
A master on the Earth Ranking (Di Bang) no longer needed a formal title to prove his strength.
“Scarlet Scale Beast scales?” Teng Qingshan looked questioningly at Ji Hong. “Commander, if that Scarlet Scale Beast consumes the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, killing the beast ourselves seems quite unlikely, doesn’t it?”
“Haha, Qingshan. The Sect Master means that if the Scarlet Scale Beast has not eaten the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, we slaughter the beast to take its scales. If it manages to snatch the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, we must devise a way to obtain the black scales it sheds during its transformation,” Ji Hong explained in detail.
Teng Qingshan secretly nodded.
“Grand Martial Uncle!” Guan Lü finally spoke, her voice cold and her expression unchanging. “When do we depart?”
“No rush,” Ji Hong smiled. “According to the intelligence, that infant Scarlet Scale Beast is still in its growth phase, needing at least another month to mature and reach a height of two zhang. The Black Fire Spirit Fruit will certainly only ripen after the infant beast has grown. This is the natural pattern, so we have at least a month’s time.”
The workings of heaven and earth were truly marvelous.
For instance, the Scarlet Scale Beast was born entirely black, then changed daily, growing rapidly to achieve a terrifying size in just a few months. Upon consuming the ‘Black Fire Spirit Fruit,’ its entire body would change from black to crimson red, becoming a ferocious monster that even Innate Realm masters would fear.
And the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, too, was black before maturity and only turned bright red upon ripening.
The mutual dependence of the Scarlet Scale Beast and the Black Fire Spirit Fruit was indeed genuine.
“Grand Martial Uncle,” Guan Lü insisted, “I believe we should go sooner. Regardless of whether the Scarlet Scale Beast consumes the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, the scales we seek are black scales. Therefore, I suggest we go early and, ideally, slay the infant beast while it is still immature! Although the scales might be slightly inferior to those from the mature stage, at least this guarantees the infant Scarlet Scale Beast cannot consume the Black Fire Spirit Fruit! Moreover, a Scarlet Scale Beast grown to two zhang is incredibly difficult to deal with!”
Ji Hong paused for a moment.
Then he burst into hearty laughter. “Guan Lü, you are absolutely right! Young minds are indeed sharper. Killing the infant Scarlet Scale Beast now certainly has more benefits than drawbacks!”
Teng Qingshan glanced at Guan Lü with slight surprise. Guan Lü, at that moment, looked back at Teng Qingshan, still maintaining her icy demeanor. “Commander Teng, what is your opinion?”
“I concur with Commander Guan’s assessment,” Teng Qingshan replied.
Ji Hong immediately announced loudly, “Everyone present, listen clearly! We depart tomorrow morning for Flaming Mountain! Today, everyone should rest well. Black Armored Army soldiers, do not wear your heavy armor tomorrow; it is entirely useless for riding horses in Flaming Mountain. Do not bring horses, and there is no need for heavy armor—only wear an inner vest.”
“Yes,” everyone present acknowledged the order.
“You may all withdraw,” Ji Hong commanded, and the crowd immediately filed out of the hall. Servants from the mansion were already on hand to guide everyone to their respective lodgings.
Only Teng Qingshan, Ji Hong, and Guan Lü remained in the hall.
“Guan Lü!” Ji Hong’s smile widened. He slapped Teng Qingshan on the shoulder. “Qingshan has brought great honor to our Guiyuan Sect this time! Killing an expert on the Earth Ranking, haha… Who outside dares to say the younger generation of our Guiyuan Sect is incompetent now? Guan Lü, you need to learn well from Qingshan.”
Guan Lü looked toward Teng Qingshan and suddenly stood up. “Commander Teng, I hear your spear technique is formidable. I wish to request your guidance!”
Teng Qingshan rose slowly, looking somewhat exasperatedly at Ji Hong.
But Ji Hong laughed. “Qingshan, Guan Lü is one of the top masters among the younger generation of our Guiyuan Sect. She cultivates the Earth Grade secret manual, the Profound Ice Sword Canon (Xuan Bing Jian Dian), and her strength surpasses that of Zhuge Yun and Yue Song by a noticeable margin. Go on and spar with her. Besides, I am eager to see how your spear work is myself!”
How could Guan Lü, who held the rank of Commander, possibly be weak?
“Commander Guan, are you under thirty?” Teng Qingshan asked abruptly.
Asking a woman her age was somewhat impolite, and Guan Lü’s brow furrowed slightly. Ji Hong, however, interjected, “She is not yet thirty!”
“Commander Ji, it is better for Commander Guan and me to hold off on comparing for now. Swords and blades have no eyes; if someone gets injured, it would be unfortunate. Moreover, we are about to leave to contend for the Black Fire Spirit Fruit! It is best to conserve energy.” Teng Qingshan spoke. Guan Lü had not reached thirty, yet her name was conspicuously absent from the Fledgling Phoenix Ranking (Chu Feng Bang).
Since she didn't even make the Fledgling Phoenix Ranking, Teng Qingshan lost all interest in sparring.
At Teng Qingshan’s level, even exerting only fifty to sixty thousand jin of force, he barely considered masters like Zhuge Yun or Yue Song. It was only someone at Meng Tian’s level that genuinely piqued his interest.
Teng Qingshan had not forgotten the might of the Blood Moon Blade.
In terms of blade technique alone, it was not much inferior to his own spear technique. He had only narrowly defeated the heavily injured Meng Tian by leveraging the advantage of his Reincarnation Spear’s length. Killing Meng Tian in one strike relied purely on terrifying brute strength!
“Commander Teng!” Guan Lü’s expression turned cold.
“Commander Guan, we depart early tomorrow morning; it is best to rest early,” Teng Qingshan turned to address Ji Hong.
Ji Hong understood Teng Qingshan’s meaning and stood up as well, saying with a smile, “Guan Lü, Qingshan is correct. We have important matters tomorrow, and injuries are unavoidable during a spar. Well, since there is nothing else for now, you should both go and rest.”
Guan Lü shot Teng Qingshan a frosty look. “Once the matter of the Black Fire Spirit Fruit is settled, I will certainly seek instruction on Commander Teng’s spear technique and see what methods you truly possess!” With that, Guan Lü strode out the door.
Ji Hong watched the departing Guan Lü, then turned to smile at Teng Qingshan. “Qingshan, rejecting Guan Lü this time might not be a good thing. Is it because you noticed she isn’t listed on the Fledgling Phoenix Ranking, leaving you uninterested in the match?” Ji Hong, being an old fox, immediately grasped Teng Qingshan’s implication.
Teng Qingshan looked at Ji Hong and chuckled, “Commander Ji, surely Commander Guan won’t secretly target me, will she?”
“That won’t happen,” Ji Hong shook his head, then curiously added, “Qingshan, I heard that Blood Moon Blade is with you? Could you lend it to me so I can examine it closely?”
“No problem,” Teng Qingshan nodded.
Ji Hong immediately urged, “Very well, take me to your quarters then.” Ji Hong seemed quite eager. “Now?” Teng Qingshan was slightly taken aback but still led Ji Hong to his residence and allowed the centenarian Commander to meticulously examine the famous ‘Blood Moon Blade.’