Peacekeeping Vanguard

"Seventh Master, you seem to be in a good mood!" Feng Yunjie rode his horse alongside Dug, glancing at him with a smile.

"I felt my previous plan was a bit rough, and just now I thought of a new idea. I was so overjoyed I couldn't help myself, but I didn't expect the Third Young Master to notice. It just goes to show I'm still not mature enough to hide my emotions!" Dug turned to look at Feng Yunjie and chuckled.

"What's the new idea?" Feng Yunjie asked with a laugh.

"The Qiao Family gave me inspiration." Dug tugged on his reins, slowing his horse. "Back then, Qiao He was a chivalrous and righteous man who helped many sects improve their martial arts manuals. He eventually earned the reputation of being the top martial arts family, a reputation that has lasted for centuries. Why can't we learn from him?

The Feng Family is too small right now. Even if I fully support it, it won't grow very fast. But if the Feng Family grows into a behemoth, it's a different story. With the power of the Feng Family, upholding justice in the martial arts world and maintaining peace, I can't imagine how strong I'd become. With me protecting it, let alone a century-old family, a millennium-old family might even be possible..."

"How do we learn?" Feng Yunjie was momentarily captivated by the wonderful vision Dug painted, but then, remembering reality, he became a little dejected. "Qiao He was invincible the moment he emerged; we don't have his strength."

"Third Young Master, that's not quite right. In the past hundred years, there has only been one Martial Saint, and it cannot be replicated. But one person's power is ultimately limited. We must learn to leverage the power of a team. We can take a different path," Dug said.

"The power of a team?" Feng Yunjie was stunned.

"Exactly," Dug said. "I plan to establish an organization to eliminate harm for the people, punish evil, promote good, and dedicate ourselves to combating the dark forces in the martial arts world and upholding martial justice. Our organization will attract more righteous heroes to join, eventually growing stronger and bigger. We'll gain recognition throughout the martial arts world, and when people recognize us, our influence will be established. I've even thought of a name for this organization: the Peacekeeping Vanguard..."

"The Peacekeeping Vanguard?" Feng Yunjie was taken aback.

"Precisely," Dug said. "Upholding peace in the martial arts world and advocating for justice within it, abbreviated as the Peacekeeping Vanguard."

"But where will we attract righteous heroes from?" Feng Yunjie asked.

"Seventh Master, this so-called Peacekeeping Vanguard has already separated from the Feng Family, hasn't it?" Feng Shiyi said.

Both voices spoke almost simultaneously.

One was questioning, the other was cold.

Feng Yunjie suddenly understood and frowned as he looked at Dug.

Zhang Han glanced at Dug, then quietly rode his horse to block Dug from behind.

The three members of the Feng Family surrounded Dug in a triangle formation, subtly blocking all his escape routes.

Feng Shiyi looked at Dug and continued, "Seventh Master, you wouldn't be planning to use the Feng Family's influence for your own personal gain, would you?"

"Second Boss, you underestimate me." Dug seemed oblivious to his predicament and chuckled, "What does a martial arts family or sect rely on to establish itself or gain fame in this world? Martial arts?"

"Isn't it?" Feng Yunjie asked.

"Of course, martial arts are fundamental for survival, that's undeniable," Dug said with a smile. "But besides martial arts, there must also be a unique characteristic. Let me ask you, why is the Beggar Gang the largest gang?"

"Because there are many beggars in the world?" Feng Yunjie asked, puzzled.

"Yes, that's one aspect," Dug said, looking at them appreciatively. "The barrier to entry is low; anyone who is a beggar can join the Beggar Gang. This is occupational uniformity. From no bag to nine bags, the promotion ladder is clear; this means there are proper channels for advancement. After joining the Beggar Gang, even vagrants have basic living and security guarantees; this means logistics are well-managed..."

He paused. "This is the Beggar Gang's unique characteristic. When someone wants to challenge the Beggar Gang, they have to consider whether they can afford to provoke such a behemoth. Other sects are the same. For example, the Taishan Sect, their members are all Daoists, holding the title of a religion. The River Transport Gang controls water transport... What does the Feng Family have?"

Feng Yunjie fell into thought.

"Third Young Master, you don't even have a recognizable nickname in the martial arts world, do you?" Dug asked with a smile.

Feng Yunjie shook his head awkwardly.

"Then have you found a commonality among these famous sects?" Dug asked again.

Feng Yunjie shook his head once more.

"Characteristics, ideals, beliefs," Dug said. "The Beggar Gang maintains occupational integrity, the Taishan Sect ensures integrity of belief, the Emei Sect is all women, ensuring gender integrity; the Blood Saber Gate has assassins, meeting the needs of people with specific psychological traits. These characteristics naturally attract similar individuals to join.

Therefore, the Feng Family must establish its own unique characteristic. Only then can it take the first step towards becoming a century-old, or even millennium-old family. Otherwise, even if I secure martial arts manuals for the Feng Family and recruit many Heavenly Demons, it will just be a nouveau riche family in a county town. A storm could sweep through, and perhaps nothing would be left."

"But what does this have to do with the Peacekeeping Vanguard? We can start with the Feng Family!" Feng Shiyi said.

"Second Boss, a small family making such a call won't attract people. But a new organization is different," Dug said, beaming. "This is called a reverse merger, or split development. We'll start small, without ties to any forces in the martial arts world. Once our reputation is built up, and the Peacekeeping Vanguard is recognized by the martial arts world, when the Feng Family merges in, won't it still be the Feng Family? Sometimes, large forces don't necessarily have to be overt."

"What is the Peacekeeping Vanguard's philosophy?" Feng Yunjie asked.

"Didn't I just say?" Dug said. "Justice. There's never a shortage of hot-blooded young heroes in the martial arts world."

"That does make some sense," Feng Shiyi mused.

"Second Boss, I wouldn't harm the Feng Family," Dug said, looking at Feng Shiyi and shaking his head with a smile.

Witnessing Feng Jiu narrow the path of the Taotie that morning, Dug began to reflect on whether he was also narrowing the path of maintenance.

Then.

He thought of maintaining peace and justice, grand and broad concepts that clearly yielded greater benefits than maintaining the interests of a small family.

He even considered maintaining national sovereignty, but in this Simulation Arena world, the martial arts realm was dominant, and the concept of nations was infinitely diluted.

Unlike The Legend of the Condor Heroes or Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils, where there was great national righteousness and no foreign invasions, he could only regretfully abandon his grand aspiration of maintaining national stability.

Otherwise, he would have done anything to be a great hero like Guo Jing!

Nevertheless, Dug felt that by maintaining peace and justice throughout the martial arts world, his top achievement in this Simulation Arena would be secured.

The reason he hadn't revealed this plan to the Feng Family was because Dug preferred Feng Shiyi, the overthinker, as it was he who proposed the concept of Mandate of Heaven, filling in the gaps in his story. Feng Shiren was too conservative and shrewd, making communication with him too difficult.

"Seventh Master, where will we find people to join this so-called Peacekeeping Vanguard?" Feng Yunjie asked the same question again.

"Aren't we looking right now? If we can find other Heavenly Demons to join, that's best. If not, we'll start by doing things. Once we start doing things and our reputation spreads, heroes will naturally join," Dug said. "Didn't we just discuss the Beggar Gang? The Beggar Gang has disciples all over the world and controls the power of public opinion. We can use the Beggar Gang to spread our prestige. Third Young Master, don't worry about this; I'll arrange the specifics of how to execute it when the time comes..."

"But who will we fight?" Feng Yunjie asked awkwardly. "None of the dark forces in the martial arts world are ones the Feng Family can afford to provoke."

"Do not commit evil, however small; do not neglect good, however small," Dug said with a smile. "Third Young Master, trickling streams form an ocean, and tiny dust particles accumulate into a mountain. Are bullies who dominate markets and bandits who block roads not dark forces? We'll start with small matters; starting with them is the same."