Great Captain Position

A month passed. The leaves on the trees fell one after another. Though the weather was still somewhat hot at noon, a chill could be felt in the mornings and evenings.

The farmers had reached the harvest season and began gathering their crops, preparing for winter.

Bang!

A fireball the size of a head slammed into a wooden post, which instantly burst into flames.

"Spells are so hard~"

Jiang Ping An looked at the Fireball Art he had practiced for a month. The fireball he released was only this big, and he could not help sighing.

Half a month ago, he had already used a Qi Gathering Pill to break through to Qi Refining Level 6 and completely open the ten meridians of the Thick Earth Breathing Technique.

Yet even so, his progress with spells still brought him to tears.

This kind of attack might be useless in the decisive battle this winter.

"You should give up spirit cultivation. You have a brighter future if you work hard at body cultivation."

Li Yuntian entered the courtyard, clutching a Wine Gourd and reeking of alcohol.

"Senior." Jiang Ping An hurriedly cupped his fists in salute.

Over the past month, this senior had often come to guide him and tell him stories about the Cultivation World.

He sensed a long-lost warmth from the old man, and even found himself smiling more often.

Li Yuntian took a swig of wine. "Your attainments in body arts are no weaker than Miss Meng Jing's. If you focus on cultivating body arts, you will definitely enter the Martial Master realm before turning eighteen and make your name known throughout Black Wind County."

Only those who had personally witnessed Jiang Ping An's body arts knew just how terrifying his talent for body cultivation was.

According to the terms of their wager, before participating in the Prefecture County Genius Selection Competition, Meng Jing gave Vibration Blade Art to Li Yuntian and asked him to pass it on to Jiang Ping An.

In just one month, Jiang Ping An had mastered the Second Floor of Vibration Blade Art.

In all of Continuous Mountain County, the only people under twenty who had mastered the Second Floor of Vibration Blade Art were Meng Jing and Jiang Ping An.

"I want a few more trump cards," Jiang Ping An replied.

For the time being, he did not want to give up spirit cultivation. Though it was difficult to cultivate, it was highly destructive and could attack from afar.

Li Yuntian smiled. Young people were all like this—confident and unwilling to be controlled.

But that was what young people were supposed to be. If the young were not wild and reckless, could they still be called young? He had been far crazier in his youth.

Li Yuntian set down the Wine Gourd in his hand, and his smile suddenly vanished.

"The General wants you to go to the General's Mansion. There is a meeting you need to attend."

"Senior, is something going to happen at this meeting?" Jiang Ping An noticed the grave expression on his face.

"That's right. The General and I are preparing to promote you to Great Captain, but several people whose strength is close to yours may not accept it."

Hearing this, Jiang Ping An suddenly understood.

"It's fine. I have no pursuit of power. They can have it."

Li Yuntian shook his head. "This is not about power. Only by reaching that position can you receive better rewards after the war ends."

"The Blood Qi Art you are cultivating now is too low-grade and will limit the speed of your cultivation. If the war is won and you hold the position of Great Captain, you can make a request to Black Wilderness County above us and learn a better body cultivation method."

Jiang Ping An finally understood. Status was tied to the allocation of cultivation resources.

If he wanted to grow stronger, he truly needed better cultivation methods.

He had to obtain this position of Great Captain.

"Get yourself ready. Those people are all top-tier warriors who survived slaughter after slaughter. If you clash with them later, it may be settled through a martial contest."

As Li Yuntian spoke, he suddenly thought of something and asked, "What level is your body cultivation at now?"

He knew Jiang Ping An had learned Vibration Blade Art very quickly, so his talent for martial arts should be quite good.

"Great Captain level." Jiang Ping An smiled.

The second level of the Blood Qi Art could make one a Great Captain. The third level of the Blood Qi Art could still make one a Great Captain.

Seeing how confident he was, Li Yuntian guessed that Jiang Ping An's current body cultivation combat strength should be comparable to a cultivator at around Qi Refining Level 6 or 7.

He brought Jiang Ping An to the General's Mansion.

Before they even entered, they heard fierce shouts from inside.

"I refuse to accept this! Letting a fourteen-year-old boy become Great Captain is completely unreasonable!"

"How strong can a fourteen-year-old child be? If it were Miss Meng Jing, that would be one thing. But what is this brat called Jiang Ping An?"

"Besides, this brat is from Continuous Mountain County. We cannot rest easy letting someone like him command the troops!"

Creak~

Li Yuntian pushed open the door and led Jiang Ping An into the meeting room.

A group of soldiers clad in armor, their bodies radiating a grim killing aura, turned to look at Jiang Ping An in unison.

If nothing unexpected had happened, this youth was Jiang Ping An.

These people radiated powerful auras. If an ordinary person faced such pressure, they would lose control and fall to their knees.

Jiang Ping An's expression remained calm as he walked in without hurry.

"Hm?"

Many captains were somewhat surprised to see how composed he was.

Showing no reaction under such immense pressure meant his cultivation was not low.

"I want the Great Captain position. Who's first?" Jiang Ping An said directly.

He did not like wasting time. Becoming Great Captain would grant him better resources, and he needed this position.

He had already learned the Blood Qi Art. To enter the Martial Master level, he needed to learn a better martial cultivation method.

If he wanted these soldiers to submit, he had to be stronger than them.

"What an arrogant brat. I'll go first. As long as you can defeat me, Yang Hu, I'll withdraw from the competition!"

A burly soldier with a face full of beard stepped forward.

"Fight in the courtyard. Stop when the point is reached—do not injure anyone," General Meng Kuo said.

He turned his head slightly and quietly asked Li Yuntian, "Can Jiang Ping An handle it?"

He knew less about Jiang Ping An than Li Yuntian did. He had wanted Jiang Ping An to become Great Captain because he had other plans, and he did not think highly of Jiang Ping An's combat strength.

Who would have thought that the brat would challenge someone the moment he entered, disrupting his plans?

Li Yuntian took a drink of wine and said with a smile, "He has mastered both Phantom Blade and Vibration Blade Art. As long as he is careful, there should be no problem."

Meng Kuo nodded.

As long as there was no problem. Jiang Ping An's talent truly was impressive—he had actually learned both of those blade arts.

Should I betroth my daughter to this brat? They are close in age, and their talents are about the same.

My daughter should be back today. I'll ask what she thinks later.

Yang Hu drew a broadsword from his waist. Unlike an ordinary narrow-bladed shortsword, this blade was exceptionally thick and heavy, with iron rings hanging from it that chimed crisply.

"Brat, don't say that I, Yang Hu, am bullying you. You are still young. The position of Great Captain is not one just anyone can hold."

He had endured for so many years and had finally been on the verge of becoming Great Captain. How could he accept a wet-behind-the-ears brat suddenly appearing out of nowhere?

"I understand. Come on." Jiang Ping An watched him calmly.

"Where is your weapon?" Yang Hu asked.

"I won't use a blade today." Jiang Ping An swiftly retreated, and a ball of flame formed in his hand.

Since he had an opponent today, he could test the results of his cultivation over the past month.

Pfft~

Li Yuntian sprayed out the wine in his mouth, his eyes widening.

"You little brat, are you going to compete with Yang Hu using spirit cultivation?"

If Jiang Ping An used body arts to fight him, he would have had a high chance of winning.

Who would have thought that this brat actually intended to use spells!

Now Li Yuntian had no idea what to expect.

What had gotten into this brat?