The Emperor of the Three Realms
chapter 75
According to Jiang Chen's calculations, although the events in the spirit medicine garden were a bad omen, it was an unfulfilled omen. The most urgent matter at the moment was that Jiang Chen had to immediately return to the capital and complete his mission.
“Xiaoyu, remember my words. Close the plot in that medicine garden and don't let anyone in or out.” In Jiang Chen's eyes, this extremely alarming mark could materialize at any time between two to eight years. There is still time to think about the plan.
He parted from the Redbud region and returned to River Wave City, bidding farewell to Jiang Tong. He brought along a crew of old and new subordinates, setting out to return to the capital.
Along the way, Jiang Chen traveled during the day and oversaw the training of these guards at night, giving them pointers on martial techniques and teaching them formations.
The original three or four-day trip took ten full days before reaching the capital.
Except, during these ten days, whether it was Jiang Chen or the eight personal bodyguards, their level of training had all risen to a higher level.
Returning to the capital, the completion of this mission only took about twenty-six to twenty-seven days.
“Jiang Chen, the second mission of the first rank, recruit eight personal guards. They should be less than twenty years old with a strength higher than six meridians true qi!”
“This is my personal bodyguard list. It also contains information, identity, and their origin.”
Jiang Chen handed over the information of his eight personal bodyguards.
After the verification of the information showed that everything was in order, the examiner continued, “This mission requires that each personal bodyguard also pass the martial arts exam requirements.”
“How will the test be carried out?”
“There are two tests. The first test was that they one by one underwent a test of six meridians true qi. This test is relatively simple.” Examiner answers.
“The second test was that they went to the arena and fought against eight level six wooden puppets. They had to defeat the eight wooden puppets within the allotted time. The given time is quite short, only half an hour.”
The first test was a matter of sets without any skills. When Jiang Chen participated in the basic exam, he also underwent the exam himself.
This procedure is simple and cannot be faked.
The second test is a little more complicated. After all, it was rather difficult to defeat eight wooden puppets, equivalent to six meridians of true qi, within half an hour.
If Jiang Chen did not make preparations and rushed to complete his mission after filling his eight slots, he might fail this test.
But now, Jiang Chen was ready. Not only did he raise his eight personal guards to seven meridians true qi, but he also continued the formation and gave them pointers regarding martial arts techniques.
In this way, they had greater confidence regarding this second test.
Under Jiang Chen's indications, the eight people did not reveal their strength and only released six meridians of true qi on the first test. They stopped when they reached the six meridians and did not reveal all of their hidden cards at once.
A successful decoy.
Princess Gouyu had noticed the entire process, and heaved a sigh of relief when she saw the eight bodyguards Jiang Chen recruited all passed the six meridians true qi test.
He was constantly worried that Jiang Chen's control and charisma would not be enough to recruit the required number of guards. It seems that his worries were in vain.
Princess Gouyu was a bit not worried about the second exam. What kind of character was Jiang Chen? He was able to give pointers even to a true qi master like him. How easy would it be for him to give pointers to a few true qi followers of six meridians?
When he arrived at the arena, Jiang Chen discovered that this location was extremely crowded.
He discovers at the same time that he is not the only one carrying out the mission of recruiting personal bodyguards.
Almost all heirs competing for the position of first rank duke had to carry out the exact same mission. Familiar faces filled the arena, and all forced smiles when they saw Jiang Chen.
In this place, everyone is competing.
The pair of Long Yinye and Long Juxue's brother and sister were naturally found among their ranks.
Hong Tiantong, heir to the rank of a Vermillion Bird duke, was also a loyal supporter of Long Juxue. As one of the heirs of the four grand dukes, he was naturally present in the arena.
In addition, Bai Zhanyun, heir to the rank of a White Tiger noble, and Yi Taichu, heir to the rank of a Black Tortoise noble, were all present and both were well-known heirs in the Eastern Kingdom.
When these people saw Jiang Chen, there were those full of hostility, and there were those who smiled faintly as greetings.
In particular, Yan Yiming, the heir to the rank of a duke of Yanmen, no longer dared to provoke Jiang Chen now. Instead, he turned his head hard and looked the other way, observing but not paying attention to Jiang Chen.
“Foundation, this is what the foundation is called!” Hong Tiantong's imprecise voice rang out behind Jiang Chen. “We first rank dukes have long since completed the task of recruiting eight personal guards, unlike some new rich who, without much foundation, attempted to reach the heavens in one go. They had just successfully completed a mission this late, but it was still unknown if they would pass the second exam or not!”
Bai Zhanyun and Yi Taichu now knew Long Juxue, and understood how foolish they were before for being weapons to Long Juxue.
However, even though Hong Tiantong was unwilling to become a weapon for Long Juxue, he could gladly help.
Even if he did not gain Long Juxue's heart, Hong Tiantong would still happily enrich his relationship with the Soaring Dragon family. He did so not only to curry favor with Long Juxue, but also to put on a show for Long Yinye.
After all, Long Yinye was the legitimate son of the Soaring Dragon Duke, and would definitely inherit his position in the future.
Except, at this moment, Jiang Chen had no interest in verbally arguing with boring people like this.
He handed the test token to the examiner. The examiner looked and said, “Arena seven. Exams will start in an hour.”
“Jiang Chen, Hong Tiantong speak properly. The legacy and foundation of the family clan is still important in some matters. From which nooks and crannies in the remote countryside did you find your personal bodyguard? They look awkward no matter how often I see them. Can these village fighters be reliable and reliable in important matters?”
Long Yinye was different from Hong Tiantong. He will never ramble on about anyone he wants to provoke or press – he will always strike directly on the subject.
“Haha, it will be rather difficult to compare it with an ugly plant that does not grow well. But, brother Jiang Chen, the people you found are really too rude? Oh, this guy seems familiar. Isn't he that guy? Granddaughter of the royal teacher Guo? If I remember correctly, his father is a famous defector in the capital?”
Hong Tiantong sped to a higher level after seeing Long Yinye also take a stance, and walked over as well.
“Hong Tiantong, do I understand correctly that you provoked me?” Jiang Chen smiled lightly.
Hong Tiantong stood behind Long Yinye, and felt the certainty of a strong back so puffing out his chest, “If you really have to think like that, let it be! I can't stand being a rookie like you. People run businesses according to the position they have. On what basis or ability did your Jiang family dare to compete for the first rank position?”
Showing off their qualifications or showing their positions, this was the usual method used by those called nobles.
However, Jiang Chen had never played his cards according to predetermined expectations.
He took a quick glance towards Hong Tiantong, “What's the point of talking so much? You underestimated my personal bodyguard? It's very simple, call your eight personal bodyguards and let's compete a little. There's still an hour until the test. Rather than standing here in boredom and waiting, why don't we provide entertainment for everyone. Aren't you all going to say that?”
How could Jiang Chen not see that Guo Jin's eyes were almost ready to spit fire. Hong Tiantong's assessment of “pembelot” has severely undermined Guo Jin's nerves.
As one's superior, Jiang Chen naturally had to protect the dignity of his subordinates.
"Games?" Long Yinye's eyes sparkled slightly as she looked towards Hong Tiantong, “Tiantong, in the end, the rank of a Vermillion Bird noble yours is one of the four ranks of a grand noble. Are you going to be feared by the lower duke?”
Hong Tiantong's prudence became extremely deep as he thought for a moment carefully. Of his eight personal bodyguards, one was at eight meridians true qi, three at seven meridians true qi, and the remaining four at the peak six meridians true qi.
This kind of allocation was definitely far from Long Yinye's personal bodyguard, but it would definitely not be inferior to the heirs of the other four grand dukes.
Jiang Chen, a second rank duke and hailing from the secluded Jiang Han territory – how many young geniuses could he recruit?
Jiang Chen could not move in a match between personal bodyguards, why should Hong Tiantong be afraid of him?
Now no matter how Hong Tiantong calculated things, he felt that he had full assurance of success. After all, after glancing at them, none of Jiang Chen's troops stood out.
By his side, one true qi of eight meridians was enough to trample three or four six true meridians. He also had three of the seven meridians again, and it was also not easy to defeat.
As his mind wandered, an idea appeared in Hong Tiantong as he revealed a hint of a cynical smile. “Match is not impossible, but the test will start soon. How to handle it if something unwanted happens?”
Long Yinye said impatiently, “ Boxing and legs have no eyes, if something unwanted happens, then you have to admit that you are unlucky, don't you agree, Jiang Chen?”
Even though Long Yinye seemed rude, her thoughts were actually quite evil. He encouraged Jiang Chen to act with sarcasm.
Jiang Chen personally found this funny, but purposely said angrily, “Aui am I unlucky? You guys are just trying to make my dukedom Jiang Han lose face and make me fail the test.”
Long Yinye laughed out loud, “Jiang Chen, admitting your defeat is no big deal if you are afraid of affecting the exam. After all, this match is entirely voluntary, and no one can be forced.”
“To be cold is the action of a coward.” Yan Yiming at the side suddenly interrupted this sentence.
Jiang Chen chuckled, “Hong Tiantong, they pushed you and me onto the grill on the fire, what do you think?”
Hong Tiantong thought that Jiang Chen seemed to change his mind. She was even more proud and smiled, “How could my rank of a Vermillion Bird be so disappointing that it covered everything with a wet blanket? Since people are very interested, let's compete!”
“There's a competition?” Jiang Chen asked, following Hong Tiantong's tone of voice.
"Games!" Hong Tiantong spoke in a heroic manner and glanced towards Long Juxue. He seemed to see Long Juxue's head slightly tilted, seeming to approve of her actions.
With this, Hong Tiantong's fighting spirit became even more excited.
“There's still an hour left. Everyone opened a piece of land. Vermillion Bird and Jiang Han's heir will send their personal bodyguards for a demonstration for everyone's entertainment.”
Long Yinye's words had the effect of clearing the area. Everyone's entourage retreated, emptying a large piece of land.
“What are you all doing? The Hidden Dragon Trials were no trivial matter!” Princess Gouyu appeared with a dignified and imposing manner at the same time.
With eleven meridians of true qi, Princess Gouyu was undoubtedly the best in the kingdom. Its appearance soon led to complex changes in the atmosphere.
Hong Tiantong was originally arrogant and full of fighting spirit, but now he also subconsciously stood behind Long Yinye, hoping to utilize Long Yinye's presence to ward off Princess Gouyu's angry flames.
