Grinding to Martial Emperor from the Border Army

Outside, Zhou He, Wei Yong, and the others stood guard with their men.

This wasn’t a city, after all. The necessary precautions had to be taken.

One couldn’t be too careful.

After settling down, Lu Yuan downed the bottle of Xuanwu Liquid he had seized.

The next moment, a formidable Qi and Blood Power surged through his body.

The blood-colored patterns on his skin flickered in and out of existence, exuding an air of mystery.

Outside, Zhou Xiong and the others exchanged a look, their faces filled with shock. They had seen Organ Refining realm masters before.

Zhou Xiong himself was even on the verge of reaching the Heart Refining realm.

But this was the first time they had ever seen someone in the Organ Refining realm release such a powerful aura.

When a faint, blood-colored mist drifted out of the tent,

Zhou Xiong even felt a sense of suffocation.

However, they simply backed away a little, remaining vigilant as they stood guard.

While Lu Yuan was cultivating and preparing for his breakthrough, at that very moment, inside Celestial King Stronghold, Wu Han was drinking and making merry with Yang Xiao.

One prided himself on his backing, while the other’s strength was several cuts above; thus, they complemented each other well.

There was no sense of one looking down on the other.

Having stayed in Celestial King Stronghold for a few days, Yang Xiao was much more relaxed than when he had first arrived. With his chest bared, he said, "Brother Wu Han, it’s not that I don’t believe you."

"It’s just that Vulture Ridge has been Beyond the Passes for years without a single incident. Now they’ve got twenty or thirty thousand men. Do you really think a stronghold like that can be wiped out so easily?"

"Look, just stop being so stubborn. Pack your things and come enjoy the good life with me at Black Wind Stronghold. You’ve got backing, I’ve got strength, and our forces will be formidable."

"We’ll have no trouble rising up in this land. When the time comes, we can carve out our own territory and declare ourselves kings. Wouldn’t that be great?"

By this point, Yang Xiao was clearly drunk.

His words were starting to slur.

Wu Han just watched him with a smile, saying nothing.

’This guy really has some nerve,’ Wu Han thought. ’Carve out a territory and declare yourself king? Maybe if you had several hundred thousand elite troops.’

’With just this disorderly mob, even a million of them probably couldn’t withstand a few assaults from the court’s regular army.’

’There’s still a long way to go.’

Just as Yang Xiao was recounting his past glories and looking ahead to the future,

TAP, TAP!

A figure walked in from outside the main hall.

This man was a minor leader in Celestial King Stronghold, responsible for announcements and guarding the hall.

As soon as he entered, he spoke to Wu Han. "Chief, our men just sent word back. Eagle of Vulture Ridge was killed by the court’s army."

"The stronghold was burned to the ground."

"His men were scattered and are now fleeing across the Wasteland."

"We’ve intercepted some of the fleeing men from Vulture Ridge and are bringing them back to our stronghold. There are still many more out there."

Hearing this, Wu Han let out a long sigh of relief. He then turned to Yang Xiao beside him and said, "Well, Village Chief Yang?"

"Does our bet still stand?"

Even as drunk as he was, Yang Xiao couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath upon hearing the news.

He sobered up instantly.

He knew full well the strength of Vulture Ridge. They were in no way weaker than his own forces; in fact, they were even a bit stronger.

Yet a massive bandit lair like that had been wiped out in a single day.

The power of the person backing Wu Han left him utterly astonished.

He stared at Wu Han. "Brother Wu Han, I, Yang Xiao, am a man of my word. Since we made a bet, I won’t go back on it."

"I’ll go back and assemble my men right now. We’ll report to Celestial King Stronghold within half a month."

Yang Xiao’s expression was now completely serious.

Wu Han had demonstrated sufficient power, and although Yang Xiao didn’t know who was backing him,

anyone who could so easily mobilize an army to destroy Vulture Ridge was not someone he could afford to offend.

"Fine. I believe you," Wu Han said lightly.

Yang Xiao quickly bowed. "Thank you for your trust, Village Chief."

He then picked up his Golden-Backed Nine-Ring Saber, walked out of the hall, and hurried away with his men.

The news was too shocking for him.

His recent idea of carving out a kingdom had been shattered in an instant.

The gap between people like them and the imperial court was simply too vast.

And this was just the Border Army. The top-tier troops of the Dayong military were the Imperial Guard.

Their numbers were immense.

They were only deployed against truly powerful enemies.

After Yang Xiao left, Wu Han’s expression grew stern. He looked at the messenger still standing below and asked, "Exactly how many men have we gathered? And was there any other loot?"

"The current count is around three thousand, but more are coming. We expect over ten thousand to join in total. We also captured a caravan filled with gold, silver, valuables, various Elixirs, and Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. Interrogation revealed it was all of Eagle’s personal wealth."

"He had arranged for it to be moved in advance, but we caught them red-handed."

Hearing his subordinate’s report, a smile touched the corners of Wu Han’s mouth.

This time, Celestial King Stronghold’s position was secure.

In truth, he had been under immense pressure ever since leaving Icefield Pass.

Lu Yuan had saved his life, and had recently even helped him get his revenge.

He knew that the Sun Family’s assets had been seized.

He understood in his heart that he could likely never repay Lu Yuan’s kindness in this lifetime.

He desperately wanted to help him.

But he was powerless to do anything about matters within Dayong.

Now, he had finally achieved something Beyond the Passes.

This was only the beginning, however. His goal was to ensure that if Lu Yuan ever fell out of favor at court, he could come to Celestial King Stronghold.

Then, Wu Han could hand over a force powerful enough for Lu Yuan to protect himself.

This was precisely why he had played along with Yang Xiao, despite knowing his own strength was insufficient.