Yang Tianfeng thought to himself, and an unconscious smile appeared on his face.
"Good! Good! Good!"
"I never expected that you'd give me such a huge surprise right after joining the camp!"
"You've rendered such great merit that you should have been richly rewarded. But you're still a recruit and haven't officially joined the camp, so it wouldn't be appropriate for this Centurion to promote you directly!"
"Here are one thousand taels of silver, a personal reward from this Centurion. As for your merits, once you pass the recruit assessment and join the camp, this Centurion will convert them into military merit and reward you separately. How does that sound?"
Yang Tianfeng patted Wang Xuan on the shoulder and laughed heartily as he spoke, pulling a stack of banknotes from his robes that totaled exactly one thousand taels.
Wang Xuan's heart leaped with joy upon hearing this.
One thousand taels of silver—this was an enormous sum!
It was enough for him to move his household into the county town.
Wang Xuan accepted the banknotes and respectfully said, "Thank you for your reward, Lord Centurion. I'll follow all your arrangements!"
Yang Tianfeng nodded.
The look in his eyes as he regarded Wang Xuan grew increasingly pleased.
Neither arrogant nor impetuous, and outstandingly capable!
This was precisely the kind of person he admired most!
Seeing Yang Tianfeng praise Wang Xuan so highly, the soldiers who had followed him over could not help but begin turning their thoughts over.
Yang Tianfeng appeared mild-mannered, but he was extremely harsh toward his subordinates in the camp, beating or berating them at the drop of a hat.
Very few people could earn such importance in his eyes.
Yet Wang Xuan had only just reported in and had already gained Yang Tianfeng's favor. In the future, he would surely become one of Yang Tianfeng's trusted favorites!
I have to build a good relationship with this guy!
The same thought rose in everyone's heart.
Chen Feng watched from the side, his expression extremely complicated.
He had struggled for two years to climb into the position of Banner Officer, yet Wang Xuan had earned Yang Tianfeng's regard in just a single day.
Banner Officer was definitely not Wang Xuan's endpoint!
Of course, beyond envy, Chen Feng felt even more happy for Wang Xuan.
"Centurion Yang, since you're here, I'll leave this mess for you to handle!"
Li Qingyi spoke coldly at this moment.
Yang Tianfeng nodded. "Rest assured, Young Master Li. Leave the remaining matters to me!"
Li Qingyi did not linger any longer. Turning around, he transformed into a streak of sword light and vanished from everyone's sight in an instant.
Watching Li Qingyi leave as a streak of sword light, Wang Xuan's eyes filled with envy.
"A flying sword..."
"How dashing!"
Li Qingyi had used a flying sword to deal with Zhou Bapi earlier, and now he had ridden his sword away. Wang Xuan was envious to the extreme!
"One day, I'll be able to do that too!"
Wang Xuan's heart brimmed with envy.
Flying on a sword!
He was practically like an immortal!
"Tonight was dangerous, but fortunately, the gains weren't small. The Mountain Severing Saber Art has reached perfection, and I've broken through to the Iron Skin Realm!"
"I even gained over a hundred Attribute Points!"
"If I use them all in one go, could I directly rise to the Dragon Serpent Realm?"
Wang Xuan's heart could not help but stir restlessly.
He looked toward the Crimson Data Panel.
Intermediate Archery: Mastery, Current Progress 3980/6400
Mountain Severing Saber Art Perfected (100 Attribute Points may be spent to break through)
His gaze stopped on the line after Mountain Severing Saber Art.
100 Attribute Points may be spent to enhance it.
"Enhance it... could the Mountain Severing Saber Art become even stronger?"
"I'll study it properly after I get back!"
Wang Xuan did not immediately enhance the Mountain Severing Saber Art. He would consider it carefully after returning home.
After Li Qingyi left, Yang Tianfeng immediately arranged for his men to deal with the corpses of the Pity Life Sect's Demon-Humans, while asking Wang Xuan about the course of events.
Naturally.
He did not reveal anything about breaking through with the panel, instead brushing it off with other explanations.
"You brat really have a life of iron!"
"If it were anyone else, they'd probably have died long ago!"
After hearing the full account, Yang Tianfeng could not help but sigh.
Surviving a punch from a Dragon Serpent Realm Demon-Human was simply having a life of iron!
If it had been anyone else, they would likely have gone cold long ago.
"Alright, this Centurion will handle what remains. You two rendered great merit today and have been working through most of the night, so go back and rest first!"
"Oh, and don't forget to report to the recruit camp tomorrow!"
After finishing his questions, Yang Tianfeng let Wang Xuan and Chen Feng leave.
"Thank you, Lord Centurion. Then I'll be going first!"
Wang Xuan cupped his fists toward Yang Tianfeng and returned to the village with Chen Feng.
Along the way, Chen Feng could not help asking, "You brat, didn't I tell you to wait until reinforcements arrived before making a move?"
"Do you know how scared I was when I came back with people and found you gone?"
"If the lord from the Demon Slayer Division hadn't been here today, you'd probably already be dead!"
Wang Xuan helplessly shrugged at this.
"I didn't want to make a move either, but you didn't know the situation then. If I hadn't intervened, those young girls and children would have died."
Chen Feng shook his head, his eyes showing envy. "Today was dangerous, but you still rendered great merit!"
"Just for killing so many Demon-Humans, according to the camp's military merit calculations, you'd already qualify to become a Chief Banner!"
Wang Xuan smiled. "So from now on, when you see me, you'll have to call me sir?"
Chen Feng froze at those words.
The next moment, Chen Feng slung an arm around Wang Xuan's neck. "Not bad, kid. You're already putting on airs with me, huh?"
"Then Lord Wang, please give me plenty of guidance in the future!"
"Easy enough, easy enough!"
Wang Xuan replied with a solemn face.
The two bantered all the way and soon returned home.
From afar, Wang Xuan saw candlelight glowing in his home.
Lu Yao was standing at the doorway, anxiously looking around.
"Sister-in-law, why are you still awake so late? What are you doing out here?"
Wang Xuan asked as he approached.
Lu Yao looked anxious. The instant she saw Wang Xuan, she rushed straight at him.
Her soft body fell into his arms, carrying a fragrant breeze.
Lu Yao wrapped her arms around Wang Xuan and said tearfully, "Y-you... where did you just go?"
"I heard the sounds of wild beasts in the mountain forest earlier, and I thought demons had come. Then I discovered you weren't home!"
"I went to ask Uncle Chen and the others. They said you and Chen Feng had gone to deal with demons. Do you know how worried I was about you?"
Lu Yao's voice trembled, and she burst into tears.
Faced with this sudden embrace, Wang Xuan froze and instinctively wanted to push Lu Yao away.
But after hearing her words, his heart warmed. He realized that the commotion he had caused while hunting Qian Tong had alarmed Lu Yao.
Wang Xuan patted Lu Yao's back and comforted her. "I'm fine, Sister-in-law. Haven't I come back safely?"
Lu Yao's sobs gradually stopped. She slowly raised her head and said, "Don't do this again in the future. If something happens to you, what am I supposed to do?"
She looked up at Wang Xuan, her eyes filled with deep concern. That pitiful, tender gaze made Wang Xuan's heart tremble.
"Alright, I promise I won't do this again."
Wang Xuan comforted her.
"Oh, right, Sister-in-law. I have some money here. I'll be reporting to the military camp tomorrow, and I won't be able to leave before the assessment."
"Take this money and go with Uncle Chen and the others to see whether there are any suitable residences in the county town. Rent one directly."
"Then we can move straight into the county town."
Changing the subject, Wang Xuan took out the one thousand taels in banknotes Yang Tianfeng had just given him.
He kept five hundred taels for himself and gave all the rest to Lu Yao.
Looking at the five hundred taels in banknotes in her hands, Lu Yao's eyes widened, and she asked in shock, "Y-you... where did you get so much money?"
Five hundred taels of silver would be enough for them to live in the village for more than ten years!
Wang Xuan said, "Lord Centurion rewarded me with this silver, so don't worry."
Hearing this explanation, Lu Yao did not press him further.
After chatting a little longer, Wang Xuan sent Lu Yao back inside to sleep. He himself did not rush to rest, instead standing in the courtyard with an excited expression.
"The Mountain Severing Saber Art can be enhanced further. I wonder what kind of effect it will have after enhancement!"
Wang Xuan felt somewhat excited.
"Crimson, enhance the Mountain Severing Saber Art for me!"
Wang Xuan shouted inwardly.
The Attribute Points section on the panel rapidly changed. His original 163 Attribute Points directly became 63.
And in the martial arts section.
The four words Mountain Severing Saber Art rapidly twisted and changed, turning from their original white into crimson red!
Wang Xuan felt as though a scorching, powerful force was being born within his body!
Mountain Severing Saber Art enhancement in progress...
Enhancement complete!
Mountain Severing Saber Art enhanced—Seventh Grade Martial Art, Ten Sun Blazing Saber
Martial Art: Ten Sun Blazing Saber (Not Initiated)
Before you continue