Relishing It Like Honey

"When did I gain a talent like this?"

"Could it be...?"

At that moment, Li Dingguo guessed something. He simply walked up to the other two Spirit Beast Warhorses in turn and tried patting their big heads.

Just as expected, those two magnificent Spirit Beast Warhorses also showed affection toward Li Dingguo.

Although that was partly because these Spirit Beast Warhorses had already been tamed and were relatively docile, it still proved that Li Dingguo possessed this special talent.

He hurriedly led the Big Black Horse he had chosen aside. As he continued familiarizing himself and interacting with it, he spared a thread of attention to sink into his mind, where he found that his Cheat System panel had changed again:

"Host: Li Dingguo

Age: 10

Realm: Martial Dao First Level Early Stage (first limit-breaking of qi and blood)"

Physique: 10

Mental Energy: 5

Talents: Innate Divine Strength+ (Intermediate), Spirit Beast Affinity+ (Beginner) (This talent is a hidden talent. It will activate once certain prerequisites are met. Mental Energy +1, Fortune Value +2, Talent Panel activated.)

Skill: Tiger Roar Fist+ (Beginner)

Cultivation Method: Circumstellar True Scripture+ (Beginner)

Fortune Value: 12 (If Fortune Value reaches zero, calamity will surely strike.)

Star Destiny: Army Breaker (Not activated)"

"Th-this... I really have the Spirit Beast Affinity talent?"

Li Dingguo was both startled and delighted. He secretly mused, My Cheat System is genuinely impressive.

"Now that it is only beginner-level Spirit Beast Affinity, it will probably be difficult for me to gain the affection of mid- or high-level Spirit Beasts."

He truly had not expected that he possessed another hidden talent. Not only had it activated the Talent Panel, it had also given him one additional point of Mental Energy and two points of Fortune Value. The harvest could be called enormous.

For now, this beginner talent was useful, but its immediate use was not particularly great.

At present, the Fortune Value in his attribute panel could be used for cheating, whether on talents, skills, or cultivation methods.

Li Dingguo did not intend to do so right away.

Fortune Value was too precious. While he could still diligently cultivate and rapidly improve the various cultivation methods and skills he had learned, recklessly upgrading them and easily using up the little Fortune Value he had obtained with such difficulty would be far too wasteful.

Keeping these precious Fortune Values for now and selectively adding points to upgrade when necessary was the wise choice.

At this point, it was Liu Wenxiu and Zhang Huier's turn to step forward and choose their Spirit Beast Warhorses.

In the end, Liu Wenxiu chose the white horse, while Zhang Huier made no choice. With a delighted expression, she led away the remaining yellow piebald horse with the help of a soldier.

The four Spirit Beast Warhorses here were all low-grade Flood Dragon Scale Horses. None could be called the strongest; they should all have been more or less the same.

The warhorses Li Dingguo and the others had chosen were merely the ones each of them liked best.

The Spirit Beast Warhorse selection was complete. Next, they would naturally practice horsemanship, familiarize themselves with their own warhorses, and build a tacit understanding with them.

Under the guidance of Zhang Xianzhong and several soldiers skilled in riding, Li Dingguo, Ai Nengqi, and the other two youths began their formal horsemanship training.

Dingbian City lay within Yansui Town of the Nine Border Garrisons. Ordinary horses were plentiful, and there were countless men who knew how to ride.

The soldiers, including Zhang Xianzhong himself, were all skilled riders. They had ample experience to teach Li Dingguo and the other four youths.

Li Dingguo carefully stepped into the stirrups and managed to sit steadily in the saddle. He felt somewhat nervous inside.

In his previous life, he had ridden horses a few times in parks, but that could not be considered riding. Someone had merely led the horse as it walked for a while. He knew nothing at all about horsemanship and was a complete outsider.

The original owner of this body had begged and wandered since childhood, with no chance to ride a horse. He was equally clueless when it came to horsemanship.

Fortunately, Li Dingguo now possessed the beginner Spirit Beast Affinity talent. With the Big Black Horse's patient cooperation, he was soon able to ride it at a light trot.

That was the wondrous aspect of Spirit Beast Warhorses.

Their spiritual intelligence had awakened, and they could understand human intent. So long as one of them acknowledged you, horsemanship training was not too difficult.

Ai Nengqi, Liu Wenxiu, Zhang Huier, and the others practicing nearby did not learn horsemanship nearly so smoothly.

A full two hours later, they were still trembling as they sat atop their horses while someone led them along.

The facts proved that learning horsemanship from scratch was not so easy to grasp.

It was a skill that took a long time and required great patience and talent.

Of course, courage was the most important thing.

So long as one was bold enough and patient enough, getting started was not too difficult.

Like Li Dingguo, Ai Nengqi and the other two had sufficient courage. Because they enjoyed it, they also did not lack the patience to learn horsemanship.

Moreover, they had already become Martial Artists. They were agile, had decent Mental Energy, and none of them was stupid. Thus, under the continual guidance of Zhang Xianzhong and the soldiers, learning horsemanship was not too difficult for them.

However, learning to ride a horse did not mean one could fight on horseback. That was an entirely different method of combat.

Everyone present, Li Dingguo included, would need a long time to practice horsemanship, grinding away with time before they could become true cavalrymen.

This process would likely have to be measured in months.

By noon, Li Dingguo and the others had finished their first horsemanship training. Led by Zhang Xianzhong, each personally led the Spirit Beast Warhorse they had chosen to a stable beside the courtyard.

Using spirit grass, spirit beans, and drinking water that Zhang Xianzhong had ordered someone to deliver, they fed their respective Spirit Beast Warhorses until they were full. They then fetched well water to groom them before leaving the stable.

This was the time to build a bond with their Spirit Beast Warhorses. Beginners had to do it themselves to speed up their horsemanship training.

That afternoon, these talented youths once again began earnestly cultivating the Tiger Roar Fist.

Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi had already begun cultivating the True Scripture Cultivation Method. Their progress in Tiger Roar Fist cultivation increased at a visible rate, far surpassing Liu Wenxiu and Zhang Huier.

The sight made Zhang Xianzhong, watching nearby, increasingly delighted.

Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi truly are monstrous geniuses among Peerless Prodigies!

Zhang Xianzhong secretly thought, With ample cultivation resources, they will likely break through to the Martial Dao First Level Middle Stage within ten days, barring any surprises.

If they work hard enough, breaking through to the Martial Dao First Level Late Stage within half a month is not impossible either.

At this rate, in two or three months, the two of them may very well charge forward at breakneck speed and break through to the Martial Path Third Realm, becoming mainstay generals of the Rebel Army.

By then, they should be able to serve some purpose. There will be no problem in having them act as the commanding generals of this Youth Camp made up of orphans.

The astonishingly rapid progress of Li Dingguo and Ai Nengqi's cultivation, cultivation methods, and skills was not only due to their outstanding cultivation aptitude and talent, but also Zhang Xianzhong's selfless, wholehearted nurturing.

He gave so much willingly, relishing it like honey.

To lead this Rebel Army, which he had only recently founded, to grow strong as quickly as possible—and all the more so to completely control it in the future—the ambitious Zhang Xianzhong had his own measure in his heart.