Calculated against the unsuspecting, the operation to sweep up the remnants of the Zijing Tribe went exceedingly smoothly. With
The Jing family's remnants were hunted down one by one and thrown into prison.
Meanwhile, the Jiang clan's pre-assembled forces moved in to occupy the Zijing Tribe's territory.
Though jealousy simmered, everyone knew that within the Jiang family, Jiang Yu was the person closest to Jiang Chen.
Watching Jiang Chen crush the various tribal chiefs with thunderous authority and quell the Zijing Tribe's rebellion, the young retainers who had followed him were quietly delighted. So young, yet possessed of such skill and such resolve—they felt they had chosen the right master to serve!
Inside the Jianghan Manor's martial training grounds, the eight personal guards Jiang Chen had newly recruited stepped forward one by one to demonstrate their martial techniques. Now that they were comrades-in-arms, none of them wanted to appear weak. Each wished to showcase their strength before the others, lest they be looked down upon.
Jiang Chen watched silently, offering no comment.
After the demonstrations concluded, a plan had already formed in his mind.
"From today onward, the eight of you eat from the same pot. I won't make excessive demands of you—I'll remind you of just one thing. You may keep your own personalities, you may keep your own thoughts, but from this moment on, you are aboard the same ship and must weather the storm together. On the battlefield, you are comrades—partners who can entrust your backs to one another. If anyone cannot do that, speak now. It's not too late to withdraw!"
Jiang Chen's tone was grave.
What were personal guards? In plain terms, they were death warriors—beings willing to die at a moment's notice for their master. And personal guards were invariably the ones a master trusted most and could place his deepest faith in.
Among personal guards were the most intimate of comrades, bound by a single purpose, able to rely on one another and share the burden of life and death!
No one stepped back. Every face was etched with resolve.
"Good. That is precisely why I chose you. I only hope that none of you will disappoint me."
"And I, Jiang Chen, will absolutely not disappoint you!"
Jiang Chen spoke with calm confidence, his gaze sweeping across all eight faces. "To prove that your choice was correct, I have decided at this very moment to give you a welcoming gift."
A welcoming gift?
Qiao Shan scratched his ears and grinned sheepishly. "My uncle said the young marquis was unfathomable. Looks like he wasn't lying to us!"
Guo Jin, for his part, was indifferent to gifts of any kind. From the moment Jiang Chen had burned incense and bowed before his ancestral tablet, his heart had already sworn a death oath—to follow this master to the very end.
The others, though faint anticipation flickered in their eyes, maintained their composure.
Jiang Chen nodded. "Remember this—once you accept my gift, it is as though my brand has been seared upon you. And this gift, even your closest kin must never be told of without my express permission. Should that happen, I will execute the leak with my own hands."
Hearing the gravity in Jiang Chen's voice, the eight exchanged puzzled looks. Was a welcoming gift truly this serious? But seeing the young marquis so solemn, a tightness seized their chests. They vaguely guessed that this gift was anything but ordinary.
"Don't overthink it. The magnitude of this gift is far beyond anything you could imagine. In fact, in the entire Eastern Kingdom, no second person could afford to give it."
What?
Every one of them was shaken. No one in the entire Eastern Kingdom could afford it? Could even the royal family not manage it?
What on earth was it?
Qiao Shan, monkey-natured and impatient, stared at Jiang Chen without blinking, his eyes blazing with eagerness.
"Right now, each of you possesses Six-Meridian True Qi. And I can help you break through to Seven-Meridian True Qi within ten days!"
"What? Break through to Seven-Meridian True Qi in ten days?" Qiao Shan was the first to shout. "Young marquis, you can't be pulling my leg—I've been stuck at Six-Meridian True Qi for over half a year already!"
Even the gentle and refined Wen Ziqi let a flash of disbelief shine in her bright eyes.
Guo Jin, however, having grown up in the Royal Capital and heard countless rumors about Jiang Chen in recent times, was somewhat inclined to believe it. "Since the young marquis has spoken, how could it be false?"
"Six-Meridian True Qi—each of you spent anywhere from two or three months to half a year, even a full year, reaching this stage. Why couldn't you break through? There's no mystery to it. You simply couldn't perceive the seventh True Qi acupoint. There is a threshold between entering the True Qi Realm and reaching the advanced stages of the True Qi Realm. That threshold takes time to grope toward and time to comprehend. You've all stalled at Six-Meridians because you cannot locate the seventh True Qi acupoint—is that not so?"
"That's exactly it!" Qiao Shan exclaimed.
"The seventh True Qi acupoint is elusive and ethereal—truly very difficult to perceive." Guo Jin nodded as well.
Wen Ziqi said nothing, but her contemplative expression spoke volumes.
The rest all nodded in agreement.
"I possess a method that can teach you how to pinpoint True Qi acupoints. From now on, your cultivation within the True Qi Realm will no longer be hampered by the difficulty of perceiving acupoints. With this method, you can locate True Qi acupoints effortlessly, doubling your progress on the path of cultivation!"