After leaving the City Lord's Mansion, Yi Tian had hot pot at the apartment with Bai Qiu Li, Ye Xiu, and Jiang Che.
It served as a celebration of their first team operation.
Before entering the secret realm, Ye Xiu and the others had run dungeons until they were utterly exhausted. Now that they had successfully secured the secret realm, it was time to relax.
So, at Yi Tian's suggestion, everyone took the afternoon off and enjoyed a good meal.
Wan Jiang, however, did not join them.
His leave from the army was strictly limited. Even counting every available hour, he only had two days.
He rarely had a chance to return to Qingcheng, so as soon as the secret realm was over, he went straight home to visit his mother.
After achieving something, what a child wanted most was still their parents' approval. Unfortunately, Wan Jiang's father was missing, so he could only share his success with his mother.
"When will I finally find Father?"
Late that night, after having dinner with his mother, Wan Jiang lay alone in bed, staring absently at the ring on his hand.
He felt lost.
If I'm lost, then I'll get stronger!
With that thought, Wan Jiang's fighting spirit rekindled, and he prepared to challenge thousand-jun body tempering again!
After the secret realm, he had reached level 22. Combined with the attributes provided by thousand-jun body tempering...
[Two-hundred-seventy-jun body tempering: Strength +50, Constitution +50, Spirit +20]
His attributes had soared. On top of that, the mystery box his boss had given him yielded a legendary piece of armor: [Coiling Dragon Armor].
Compared with his first attempt at thousand-jun body tempering, his attributes had more than doubled!
If he attempted thousand-jun body tempering now, he might even have a chance of reaching the perfect result of a thousand jun!
With a thought, Wan Jiang vanished from his room and teleported directly into the ring's space, appearing at the center of the Demon-Sealing Tower's first floor.
"Challenge thousand-jun body tempering!"
As soon as he spoke, the tower answered his request: [The second thousand-jun body tempering challenge begins!]
The next moment, an invisible crushing pressure gathered instantly.
This time, it started directly at his previous record of two hundred and seventy jun.
But with his physical attributes increased severalfold, Wan Jiang no longer felt any pressure at all.
Five hundred...
Six hundred...
Eight hundred jun...
The pressure kept mounting toward his limit. Wan Jiang felt as though countless chains bound him, and every inch of his muscles was being torn apart.
Yet his willpower held taut like a bowstring, forcing his body to endure.
A thousand jun!
Under a thousand jun of crushing pressure, an ordinary person of the same level would have been reduced to a bloody pulp on the spot.
But Wan Jiang held on!
A moment later, a gleam flashed across his body, and his aura abruptly changed, as though a mountain had risen from the earth!
[Thousand-jun body tempering challenge complete. Perfect body tempering achieved: One thousand jun!] [One prerequisite for forging a transcendent physique has been fulfilled.] [Perfect thousand-jun body tempering-Strength +150, Constitution +150, Spirit +50, Agility +50! Physical capabilities greatly increased. Vitality surges like a dragon, and recovery is greatly enhanced. Even severe injuries can heal within a short time.]
"I did it!"
His clothes soaked through with sweat, Wan Jiang gulped down air, restoring his body's vigor.
"Phew!"
His Strength and Constitution had each increased by 100, while his four attributes had gained a total of 280 points!
Now, at level 22, his attributes already surpassed those of a level 40 Epic-Class Professional.
Wan Jiang grew even more eager to discover what the Demon-Sealing Tower had in store:
"The condition for unlocking the second floor... kill demon monster-class Evil Demons. I'll aim to get that done soon!"
Apartment 502, Green Mountain Apartments.
After their meal, Yi Tian and the others lounged on the large living room sofa and chatted.
Ye Xiu had decided to form a pioneering team with Jiang Che and his two siblings. It neatly solved both Ye Xiu's problem of being alone and the siblings' lack of an expert on their team.
Just then, a notification suddenly appeared before Yi Tian:
[You have shared employee Wan Jiang's talent: Perfect thousand-jun body tempering!]
In an instant, his physical capabilities were enhanced. Even sitting still, his vitality blazed like a furnace!
"Who switched the air conditioner to heating?"
Jiang Che fanned his collar, looking puzzled.
Bai Qiu Li stared at Yi Tian from the other end of the sofa, feeling that he had somehow grown stronger.
Ye Xiu also looked at Yi Tian and could not resist teasing him:
"You're still young, Boss. Getting all worked up this late at night. I'm usually only like that in the morning..."
"???"
Yi Tian had not expected Wan Jiang's perfected thousand-jun body tempering to be so effective either, but Ye Xiu's remark still made the corner of his mouth twitch.
Before long, midnight arrived.
The Management Log refreshed and settled its rewards.
However, since everyone had mostly been resting after clearing the secret realm that day, there was little to report.
There were only the few dungeon runs everyone had completed while leveling before the secret realm.
They yielded a total of 2.8 in funds.
Compared with the enormous earnings from clearing the secret realm that day, this was merely a little extra.
Current fund balance: 97.1.
The next day.
Wan Jiang's leave was over, and he drove back to the border army's camp in Dingcheng.
Yet the moment he arrived in Dingcheng, the border army's emergency mobilization sent a jolt through him.
"What's going on? Why are we suddenly on combat alert?"
Wan Jiang hurried to find the Vanguard Regiment's commander and learned what was happening-
A new demon tide had appeared!
And it was even larger than the previous one-at least a medium demon tide!
"Why is this happening so suddenly? The last demon tide only ended recently!"
"Source Energy! Someone activated the Evil Demons' Source Energy, causing the Evil Demons to gather rapidly and form a demon tide!"
Chang Wei, commander of the Vanguard Regiment, snorted. "It must be those bastards from the Yagu Dynasty!"
Evil Demons origin energy was a unique item that acted like a stimulant for Evil Demons. Once activated, it would trigger a demon tide!
Wan Jiang's expression immediately filled with fury.
A medium demon tide already posed an enormous threat to the border defenses. Repelling it head-on would inevitably come at a cost.
And this time, the Yagu Dynasty had triggered a medium demon tide without warning!
For the unprepared border army, it could prove a devastating blow. Who knew how many soldiers along the defensive line would be killed or wounded...
Seeing Wan Jiang's furious expression, Commander Chang Wei gave a faint chuckle and reassured him:
"But there's no need to worry too much. The man in charge warned us yesterday."
Wan Jiang froze. "Elder Wei? Yesterday? He warned you!"
Recalling the orders Wei Yuan had issued the day before, Commander Chang Wei could not help feeling admiration.
[The Crimson Emperor is hot-tempered, easily angered, and unwilling to accept a loss. He is bound to resort to vicious means. The border forces are to enter combat readiness and begin patrols immediately!]
"As soon as the secret realm ended yesterday, Elder Wei issued the combat readiness order. Dingcheng was already prepared."
Wan Jiang was shaken, his emotions surging.
Commander Chang Wei raised a finger and pointed upward, signaling for him to look at the sky...
A figure hovered in midair, overlooking the borderlands.
It was Wei Yuan. Faint starlight shimmered around him, and his robes snapped in the gusting wind. His refined, reserved face bore a mountain's unshakable composure.
The Other Races, who had intended to pull a few tricks under cover of the medium demon tide, all restrained themselves the moment Wei Yuan appeared.
Had Yi Tian been there, he would surely have marveled-Now that's a [Pillar of the State]!
"That's why he's the one in charge!"
Commander Chang Wei sighed in admiration and patted Wan Jiang's shoulder. "You should learn from him!"
Wan Jiang nodded silently.
Then Chang Wei assigned him a mission.
Although Wei Yuan had anticipated it, the threat posed by a medium demon tide was still very real. The border army had to respond cautiously; there was no room for complacency.
"You won't be returning to the reserve unit. Join the guerrilla squad!"
"Yes, Commander!"
Before you continue