In October, Stromgarde is bathed in the rich colors of autumn.
After nearly three months of rebuilding, Stromgarde has forgotten the bloodshed and cruelty of that battle, and is now a scene of utter devastation.
The establishment of the magic school and temple, the formation of the Tyr's Guard, and the subsequent expansion of the Stromgarde Guard have increased the population of Stromgarde by approximately two thousand, bringing it to around seventeen thousand. Although this is only slightly more than that of an ordinary town, people continue to pour into Stromgarde from other places, such as the Fenris Isles, which are experiencing severe population pressure, and Tarren Mill.
This is, after all, a city, a city that has come back to life, the center of the entire Arathi Highlands, and once the capital of a nation.
Once it develops, it will inevitably prosper immensely.
In three months, the Earthen practically transformed the entire city.
The city walls were completely repaired, the city gates were brand new, even the magic academy was built, and the temple was further expanded.
The only thing that hasn't changed is the royal palace.
The place remains unchanged, except that in the center of the palace square, a nearly thirty-meter-high rock statue stands, but it is not a statue of King Thoradin, but a statue of Emperor Thoradin.
Emperor Thoradin, bearing the divine sword Strom'kar, stands majestically. The inscription on his pedestal, personally carved by Jiang Jie, records his achievements in unifying the various human clans, establishing the Emperor Thoradin Empire of Arathor, helping the High Elf defeat the Troll, and sacrificing his life to reseal the servant of the Old Gods, " Zakajz."
I don't know if it's just my eyesight, but some people think this statue looks a bit like Jiang Jie.
It is said that some nobles have expressed their dissatisfaction with this, arguing that Stromgarde is now just an ordinary city, and Grand Duke Nicholas is merely a duke of Lordaeron, so how can a statue of Emperor Thoradin be erected? What does this mean?
Does it intend to annex other countries and rebuild the Empire of Arathor?
But many chose to remain silent, because Jiang Jie had clearly become the second Marshal Lothar, the inheritor of Emperor Thoradin's will, and Stromgarde was the capital of the ancient Empire of Arathor, so erecting a statue of Emperor Thoradin was naturally justifiable.
Even if there were problems, most people were unwilling to offend this rising star of the kingdom. Everyone knew that Grand Duke Nicholas had a wide circle of friends; offending him was tantamount to offending a large number of people—who would dare to provoke him?
Moreover, even Her Majesty the Queen of Lordaeron hasn't said anything, so who else has the right to object?
Jiang Jie didn't need to care what others thought, nor did he need to; he had too many other things to do.
Although the Fenris Isles have a population of 100,000 and Sky City, Jiang Jie shifted his focus to Stromgarde.
On the one hand, it's because the city is rebuilding and cannot be left behind; on the other hand, it's because the area is vast, offering more room for maneuver, and being far from Lordaeron, he doesn't have to worry about the opinions of other nobles, and he can make all the decisions himself.
With the construction of Sky City, the Fenris Isles will slowly disappear. Except for the World Tree Teldrassil at the very center of Lake Lordamere, the entire lake will become a lake. It will also be time for the name Fenris People's Army to disappear.
On this day, Jiang Jie announced that the " Fenris People's Army " would be renamed the " Stromgarde Guard," which was actually Jiang Jie's personal guard. He recruited soldiers from the entire Stromgarde and rewarded all existing members according to their merits. More than a dozen people were made "barons," and each of them owned a large piece of land in the Arathi Highlands.
This caused a huge uproar!
Everyone knows that the Stromgarde Guard is the Duke's most valued, closest, and even personally trained force, and every member of it is the Duke's apprentice.
Didn't you see that they've all been granted fiefdoms and titles, and quite a few have even been given noble ranks?
This treatment is far better than that of magic schools and temples!
This time, the entire population was truly in a frenzy, with a third of the people from Stromgarde crowding into the Royal Palace Square to participate in the test.
The native inhabitants of Stromgarde,
Most of them are ancient Arathi, still retaining the Arathi spirit of bravery, skill in battle, and indomitable will, which Jiang Jie likes very much. Moreover, because Stromgarde has been attacked by Ogres and Troll for many years, the people here pay more attention to physical fitness and combat skills training, and the probability of producing Warrior professionals is higher than in other places, and the average aptitude is also higher than in other places.
"Stand still! Everyone stay still! Line up and walk past the Duke! Yes, just like that!" As the commander of the Stromgarde Guard, seventeen-year-old Darion led his brothers to maintain order.
Seventeen years old, Baron, Colonel, Commander of the Royal Guard. Any one of these titles would be enough to make Old Mograine proud and gratified. He was also the link between Jiang Jie and Old Mograine, Stromgarde and the Scarlet Crusade, and the sole heir of the Mograine family.
When people saw him, it was as if they saw their own future, and their hearts were filled with the hope of being granted fiefdoms and titles.
The selection process for Jiang Jie remains the same as before: a scan and analysis using the game pod to draw a conclusion. Of course, those who are too old are not considered; preferably, they should be under 20. If someone's talent is truly exceptional, the age limit can be extended to 25, but that is the absolute maximum.
The conditions had already been explained, but some people still clung to wishful thinking, hoping to get away with it.
It's nothing serious, not worth Retribution, just ignore it.
But some guys need to be taken seriously, like...
"You, come here!"
Jiang Jie frowned slightly as he looked at the young man, who appeared to be seventeen or eighteen years old. Ivan quickly stepped forward and pulled him out.
"Your Grace, have I passed the selection? That's wonderful! I have an eighty-year-old mother and an unborn son, and they are both hoping that I will pass the selection and become Your Grace's apprentice! By the way, should I now address you as 'Teacher'...?"
The man looked overjoyed, as if he had won five million, but Jiang Jie didn't even glance at him, instead saying calmly, "Left shoulder."
Left shoulder?
Upon hearing this, Ivan suddenly moved.
A dagger appeared in his hand, then he raised it, leaving a blur, and in less than a second, he accurately cut open the man's left shoulder, revealing a mark—the mark of the Cult of the Damned.
This man is a member of the Cult of the Damned!
The man tried to run away immediately, but there was no way he could escape Ivan.
A flash of light, and the sharp blade rested against his neck. The man dared not move, and immediately begged for mercy in agony, "Your Grace, spare my life! I have an eighty-year-old mother and an unborn son; they are all counting on me..."
"Take him away and interrogate him thoroughly," Jiang Jie ordered, a cold smile on his face.
It's normal for members of the Cult of the Damned, the Syndicate, and even demons to be hiding in this city, or to have come here with outsiders; Jiang Jie knew this too.
However, with the great battle just over, "harmony and stability" were the top priority, and Stromgarde's current defenses were sufficient, so they couldn't cause any trouble. Therefore, Jiang Jie had been ignoring it.
But that doesn't mean we'll never pay attention to it.
Now that Stromgarde is stabilizing and becoming increasingly prosperous, it seems time for a cleanup.
However, we can't rush things, and we can't bring it into the open. Let the Assassins' Order carry it out in secret.
As the members of the Cult of the Damned were taken away, many people silently disappeared from the queue in the square—those with guilty consciences.
Others, however, were more focused on Ivan, whose moves were as elusive as ghosts.
This boy, the same age as Jiang Jie, moved with speed almost comparable to a high-level assassin. Carlos, a merchant hidden in the crowd, thought that if they were to fight head-on, he probably wouldn't be a match for that young boy.
If it weren't for the Duke keeping him in Stromgarde, appointing him as the leader of the Stromgarde branch of the Assassins' Order, and ordering him to secretly build the Assassins' Order and investigate the city's hidden dangers, he would have truly abandoned everything and applied to join the Royal Guard.
Because the scanning is continuous, the selection process is very fast.
In the end, several dozen people were selected, which, together with the original members, made a total of one hundred people, and then the process ended.
The quality of an army is more important than its quantity.
After Jiang Jie, his destinations are Molten Core, Blackrock Spire, Temple of Ahn'Qiraj, and Tomb of Sargeras.
These places are too dangerous; ordinary soldiers would be sent to their deaths if they went. Only the elite of the elite are qualified to go.
Moreover, training a martial artist is not easy and requires a lot of resources. Jiang Jie did not want too many people to share the resources, which would slow down everyone's progress.
He hoped that when he finally had to visit the Tomb of Sargeras, he would have a group of Xiantian martial artists under his command, which would greatly reduce his pressure.
Among these people, the worst are all three-star aptitude. As long as they have enough resources and time, plus their own diligence and intelligence, becoming Xiantian martial artist is not a problem. There are also about ten four-star aptitudes who may be able to reach higher levels in the future, but in Jiang Jie's opinion, not many of them have a significant chance of stepping into the Legendary realm.
Darion is one, Lilian is one, and then there's Sven.
Even Ivan has little hope.
The Stromgarde Guard only needs one hundred men, all of whom are Jiang Jie's disciples and true martial artists.
However, if Chinese martial arts are to flourish in this world, they cannot rely on just these hundred people.
Soon, a new order was issued and spread throughout the city:
Every day, a member of the Royal Guard takes turns teaching martial arts in the square in front of the Royal Palace. Anyone can learn for free, with the aim of improving the physical fitness and combat skills of all Arathi, and even all humanity and all intelligent beings in Azeroth.
This move once again caused a sensation.
As a result, the palace square was packed with people every day, and Jiang Jie's fame once again resounded throughout the Eastern Kingdoms.
On this day, Stromgarde welcomed a group of uninvited guests.
Led by Prince Brann, a group of Dwarves crossed the wide central road and entered the palace, along with four Pandaren.
Recommended reading: "Yuan Zun" by Tiancan Tudou, and "Da Dao Chao Tian" by Mao Ni.