Some had worried that Qin Siyang, who handed out food to them, was a softhearted pushover incapable of shouldering the responsibility of leading an army.
As Qin Siyang walked steadily into the warehouse under the gaze of more than eight thousand pairs of eyes, everyone's doubts swiftly vanished.
Young as Qin Siyang was, he met their gazes without a trace of shyness. Poised, composed, and utterly at ease, he possessed an unmistakable air of distinction.
His bearing and his earlier distribution of food certainly contributed to the admiration his entrance inspired, but the contrast with the others played no small part.
Behind Qin Siyang, Chu Baxing wore a deadened expression as he supported the obese Huo Dangkou, struggling to keep pace. All the while, Huo Dangkou kept drooling onto Chu Baxing's clothes, making a complete spectacle of himself. Veins throbbed at Chu Baxing's temples. Inwardly, he had already cursed Qin Siyang up one side and down the other.
That contrast made Qin Siyang look all the more impressive.
Qin Siyang stepped onto the platform. Chu Baxing dragged Huo Dangkou up after him and propped him against a pillar so he could barely "stand," then stood beside him looking as though he had lost all will to live, doing his best to ignore the drool on his clothes. Wang Defa, Wang Deyou, Wang Dezhong, and She Haqiang stood in a row behind Qin Siyang.
Qin Siyang did not speak immediately. First, he swept his gaze over the crowd, inspecting the selected soldiers.
At a glance, some were tall and strong, others short and frail. But without exception, their eyes held no malice, and they carried no air of wickedness.
They had been selected according to Qin Siyang's requirements.
Physical fitness was unimportant, because awakening a sequence ability would increase their physical