The First Sage of Military Strategists

Chapter 109 A combination of kindness and power
"Among the three battalions, the Tiger Might Battalion has the strongest soldiers. I didn't expect Han Qing to be able to outmaneuver me and get me assigned to the Thousand Bull Battalion."

“Young master, please calm down. Although there is a difference in the strength of the two battalions, the key lies in how to train them,” said an old man in blue robes beside him.

In the room, besides the old man, there were no fewer than twenty martial artists, all of whom were physically strong and had the aura of wolves and tigers.

These people were all servants of the Chen family and trusted confidants cultivated by Chen An.

The Chen family is a powerful clan in the capital, and Chen An, as the young master of the family, naturally has his own power base.

Chen An stood up and paced around the room, a cold smile on his face.

“You’re right. This trip to the Northern Camp is crucial for me. If I perform well, the next head of the Chen family will be in my hands.”

A few days ago, the Luo family sent someone to me, asking me to find a way to create an accident in the army and kill Han Qing.

If things go well, the Luo family will fully support my bid for the position of family head.

Therefore, for the sake of my grand ambition, Han Qing has no choice but to die!

"Uncle Heng, I'm leaving this matter to you. Keep a close eye on him during this time, and report to me immediately if there are any unusual movements."

"it is good."

The old man in the blue robe nodded slightly, then turned and left the room.

...

Three days later.

Han Qing, carrying out military orders, arrived at another camp more than ten miles away from the Yinshan camp, which was the Tiger Might Camp.

The camp where Cao Zhen was stationed was the central camp of Yinshan, the largest in scale and with the most troops stationed there. From this camp, there were many other camps scattered around, some far apart and some with varying numbers of troops stationed there.

Accompanying them were the Thirteen Guards of Baiyun, who had come from Tianxiong City.

As Qian Hou mentioned before, all thirteen guards of Baiyun had trained in the Northern Camp for a period of time and were quite familiar with military affairs.

At this time, Han Qing was in need of capable helpers, so he directly transferred these thirteen people over.

Although Yue Xiaobiao was shrewd and cunning, he was not good at military affairs, and so was Qiu Da.

Among the Thirteen Guards of Baiyun, the leader was named Baiyunfei. He was a man of few words but with a wealth of knowledge. As Han Qing rode his horse along the way, he asked Baiyunfei about various matters in the army. Baiyunfei could often point out the key points to Han Qing in just a few words and explain them clearly, which made Han Qing quite satisfied.

Not long after.

The group entered the Tiger Might Camp, where most of the soldiers were new recruits, and their numbers were small, making it far less imposing than the Yinshan General Camp.

Han Qing went straight to the central tent of the camp and first summoned the three centurions and thirty platoon leaders.

Among these people, some were veterans from other camps who had accumulated military merits during the war until they reached the point where they could be promoted and became centurions or chiliarchs in the Tiger Might New Battalion. Others, like Han Qing, came to the camp to serve as officers with letters of recommendation. Even if their strength was average, they had powerful backers and backgrounds, so they could not be underestimated.

Whenever scions of prominent families come to the army for training, they are often accompanied by numerous martial artists.

Even if this person seems to be of average strength, his followers are not necessarily weak, so they should not be underestimated.

Han Qing sat upright in a large chair in the central tent, flipping through a document in his hand. It was intelligence sent by Cao Zhen.

Although Cao Zhen is a strict and impartial person, he is still a member of the Qi family. As long as there is no obvious violation of the rules, he will still provide him with various benefits and assistance. For example, this intelligence document in his hand records in detail the background and origin of the more than 30 people in the Tiger Might Battalion.

Han Qing carefully reviewed them. About three-quarters of them were veteran soldiers who had risen through the ranks based on their military merits, while the remaining quarter relied on their family background.

This proportion is already extremely high. Normally, there wouldn't be so many disciples from aristocratic families coming to the army for training. But these are extraordinary times. For many people, this great battle between Emperor Yu and the Northern Lands is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

If one achieves merit in the Yinshan camp, one will have the opportunity to participate in this great battle, and may even rise to prominence and be granted a title of king or marquis.

While Han Qing was calmly reviewing the documents, the leaders in the tent were also sizing him up.

Many of the veterans who had fought their way up from the mountains of corpses and seas of blood felt a sense of contempt when they saw that Han Qing was only eighteen years old.

The military reveres the strong, especially these brave veterans who have tasted blood on the front lines.

Han Qing put down the documents and glanced at the expressions of the thirty-odd people. Many of them had their contempt written all over their faces.

Han Qing remained calm upon witnessing this scene. He understood that to gain respect, one had to rely on strength, ability, and cunning.

To gain the respect of the people and to effectively command an army, relying solely on Qi Wufeng's background is not enough.

Han Qing completely ignored the martial artists with disdain on their faces, only lingering a few more glances on a young man with high cheekbones and a pockmarked face.

This person was Wang Tonghai, who secretly maintained close ties with the Luo family.

The others looked at him with disdain, but Wang Tonghai's gaze held a hint of murderous intent.

Although he remained calm and concealed his true feelings well, Han Qing was a military strategist who cultivated the spirit and practiced the first classic of military strategy. He was extremely sensitive to killing intent, and no matter how he tried to hide it, he could not completely conceal it.

A murderous intent and rage arose in Han Qing's heart; in his eyes, Wang Tonghai was already a corpse.

No one with any connection to the Luo family can remain in the Tiger Might Camp, otherwise he will have no peace of mind.

What angered him was that the Luo family was truly a persistent ghost; even after entering the Northern Camp, they still tried every means to target and scheme against him. He would not be a gentleman if he did not avenge this grudge.

Many thoughts flashed through Han Qing's mind, but his expression remained unchanged, and no one could discern his joy or anger.

"Announce to the entire camp that roll call is tomorrow. Anyone who is late will be severely punished!"

"Let's break up!"

Han Qing closed the book and waved his hand.

"Yes!"

More than thirty leaders, both big and small, responded with a shout and turned to leave the camp.

Inside the tent, only Yue Xiaobiao, the Thirteen Guards of Baiyun, and a large group of Han Qing's confidants remained.

"Young master, I noticed that many people were dissatisfied earlier. I'm afraid some might cause trouble during tomorrow's roll call," Qiu Da said in a low voice.

Bai Yunfei said in a deep voice, "Young Master, remember not to be weak tomorrow. Otherwise, even if General Cao supports you in the future, you will not be able to continue as the battalion commander."

Han Qing stood up, hands behind his back, his eyes flashing with cold light: "Am I, Han Qing, a weak person? Tomorrow I will show these people why I am sitting while they are standing!"

...

The next day.

The sky is bright.

On a spacious drill ground of Tiger Might Camp, Han Qing stood with his hands behind his back, with the Thirteen Guards of White Cloud lined up behind him, and Yue Xiaobiao beside him, also with a solemn expression.

Ahead of him, the entire battalion of three thousand men was rapidly assembling.

"The time has come!" someone shouted.

Han Qing's sharp gaze swept across the crowd, and found that a third of the more than thirty leaders, both big and small, had not arrived on time, along with hundreds of soldiers who were also absent.

Han Qing's mind raced, and he realized that someone had secretly conspired to give him a hard time, or even to force him to leave.

He had anticipated this, after all, it was going to be a war, and if the commander was incompetent, the people below would surely suffer heavy casualties.

He was only twenty years old, and many people were worried about his abilities and wanted to force him to leave and replace him with a leader.

Han Qing couldn't leave in such a dejected manner. Since he had come, he was determined to make a name for himself and let Liu Yue and Qi Wufeng see his abilities.

"The Thirteen Guards of Baiyun!" Han Qing shouted.

"Here you are! Bring all the late centurions and sergeants here!"

"Yes!"

The thirteen people immediately sprang into action, their figures blurring into the night.

Before long, eleven leaders, including Wang Tonghai, were brought to the drill ground.

These eleven people showed no sign of panic, standing tall and looking directly at Han Qing, seemingly fearless.

Han Qing coldly demanded, "Bai Yunfei, tell me, according to the military regulations of the Yinshan Camp, what punishment should be given for being late for roll call?"

"Twenty to eighty strokes of the cane, and those who commit serious offenses will be beheaded!" Bai Yunfei shouted.

"Lord Han, as a commander, you should be kind and benevolent. We are first-time offenders and should be exempted from punishment. If you impose severe punishment, it will be difficult to convince the public. We will definitely file a joint complaint with Lord Cao and even the military headquarters to seek justice," Wang Tonghai suddenly shouted.

"Indeed, Lord Han, you are young and it is alright if you do not understand the rules of the army. Just do not act on your own."

"Lord Han, you should really think this over!"

...

These eleven people spoke one after another, their words full of threats, both overt and covert, attempting to unite and force Han Qing to back down.

If Han Qing is weak-willed and has doubts and wavering in his heart, he is very likely to back down.

However, Han Qing's mind was as firm as steel, his gaze was cold, and his face showed no superfluous expression.

"Nonsense! Kneel down!"

He shouted loudly, and Yue Xiaobiao, who was standing to the side, had already secretly launched his deceptive technique.

In an instant, a cold wind howled, and a tall god statue appeared behind Han Qing, several dozen feet tall, towering into the sky and exuding overwhelming pressure.

This oppressive force was beyond what ordinary people could withstand, no less than what they felt at Jiannan Pass, and perhaps even stronger.
So, with a whoosh, the three thousand soldiers on the training ground were all terrified, as if a huge mountain was pressing down on their shoulders. Their minds were shaken and filled with fear, and a large number of them knelt down in an instant.

The eleven leaders' expressions changed drastically; they had never experienced such power from Cao Zhen before.

"Is this a demigod? Or a saint?"

"Damn it! How could a cultivator with such terrifying strength be appointed as the commander of the camp?"

"Could this young man be some hidden old monster? He just uses a secret method to change his appearance so that no one can see his true strength?"

...

"Kneel down!"

With a second shout, Han Qing drew his sword, unleashing his surging killing intent without reservation. The eleven men standing before him suffered a double blow and finally collapsed to their knees.

"Tell me, who gave you the audacity to do this?" Han Qing demanded.

One of them pointed first: "It's Wang Tonghai!"

“That’s right, this thief is encouraging us to join forces against you, sir, and he even said that the Luo family will reward you handsomely if we succeed,” another person said.

"Indeed, it's a pity I was deceived by this scoundrel and fell for his trick, failing to recognize the true face of a hero!"

...

At this moment, ten out of the eleven leaders turned their anger towards Wang Tonghai; they were truly afraid.

Although Han Qing appeared to be a young man, they had heard that many high-level cultivators had the ability to change their appearance, so they were quite worried and fearful and dared not treat Han Qing as a young man anymore.

Wang Tonghai's face turned extremely ugly in an instant. Just as he was about to explain, Han Qing made his move, suddenly slashing out with his sword. The bright blade flashed and disappeared in the moonlight.

Wang Tonghai's head fell to the ground, his blood and qi surging upwards.

In an instant, all ten leaders, big and small, were terrified.

They didn't expect Han Qing to act so decisively and resolutely.

"Sir, spare your life!"

"Sir, spare your life!"

As the first person cried out for mercy, the rest of the people followed suit.

Under the terrifying pressure, even these ten veterans who had fought on the battlefield for many years could not withstand the pressure and their spirits collapsed.

Han Qing wanted this effect, and said loudly, "Wang Tonghai is the mastermind. This traitor has confused the army's morale. How can I let him go? You few were temporarily blinded by him, so I can spare your lives and not kill you for now. However, you may be spared the death penalty, but you cannot escape punishment. Guards, give him eighty strokes of the cane!"

"Thank you, sir!"

The ten people shouted in unison, all of them breathing a sigh of relief.

They were afraid that Han Qing might act impulsively and kill them all.

It's not unacceptable that he'd be beaten eighty times.

So, the ten men were taken to an open space and placed under Bai Yunfei's personal supervision. Ten strong men carried out the punishment, wielding thick iron wooden clubs and smashing them hard on the buttocks.

For a moment, the training ground was filled with muffled crackling sounds.

These ten men are all strong and healthy. They won't die from such a beating, but they won't be able to sit up for at least half a month.

On the school field.

The other leaders, witnessing this scene, couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.

Wang Tonghai had also contacted them privately, promising them great benefits, hoping to join forces to force Han Qing to leave.

However, for various reasons, they did not agree, and now they feel a sense of lingering fear.

Han Qing's strength and temperament far exceeded their expectations. Now they could not see through Han Qing at all, and they were very afraid of him, no longer showing any contempt.

Han Qing glanced around, taking in the expressions of the soldiers' leaders on the training ground, and felt very satisfied.

He understood that the "killing the chicken to scare the monkey" had worked; these people were all shocked and would no longer face any obstacles in their future actions.

However, punishment alone is not enough; there must also be rewards.

"Bring the stuff up!"

After the eighty lashes were finished and the ten leaders returned to their posts, Han Qing instructed Bai Yunfei and the others to go back to the barracks and bring out two wooden boxes.

"I, Han Qing, am a man of clear rewards and punishments! Now that the punishments are over, it's time to reward!"

"Everyone who is present for roll call today will be rewarded!"

As Han Qing spoke, he turned around and lifted the two large wooden boxes. The left box was filled with gleaming silver, while the right box contained many medicine bottles.

"Bai Yunfei, distribute this silver. Everyone who is on duty without being late will receive five taels!"

"Yes!"

For a time, some people in the square were happy while others were sad.

The more than two thousand soldiers who arrived on time for roll call all had happy expressions on their faces.

Five taels is no small sum.

The more than 800 soldiers who were late all looked regretful, and their eyes held more dissatisfaction as they looked at their superiors.

The ten leaders felt the accusations and angry gazes pouring in from all directions, and were filled with regret.

If Wang Tonghai were still alive, they would love to rush up and tear him to pieces.

If it weren't for Wang Tonghai's nonsense and attempts to mislead people, they wouldn't have ended up like this.

The ten thousand taels of silver were quickly distributed, and the soldiers looked at Han Qing with more gratitude, greatly increasing their loyalty.

Han Qing nodded slightly. He had seen this scene and didn't feel any pain at spending ten thousand taels of silver; he felt it was well worth it from the bottom of his heart.

When people are united, things will be easier to do in the future.

Moreover, these people are mostly poor, downtrodden people. This money was extracted from the people by that scoundrel Wei Qiong, who squeezed them dry. So, his actions can be considered as taking from the people and using it for the people.

Then, he got up and took out many medicine bottles from another large wooden box, distributing them to the twenty-odd centurions and chiliarchs who hadn't been late. Each person received two bottles; the quantity was small, but the quality was quite high. These were extremely precious qi and blood-nourishing medicines, and the twenty-odd men's eyes lit up as they received them, feeling immense gratitude towards Han Qing.

"Thank you, sir!"

More than twenty people shouted in unison.

Han Qing stood with his hands behind his back, his gaze sharp, and shouted loudly: "Gentlemen, a few taels of silver are nothing to me. In the future, I will lead you to achieve great things and may even be ennobled and appointed as generals!"
Those who perform exceptionally well in the camp in the future will be richly rewarded by me, Han Qing!
Anyone who disobeys military orders and disrupts morale will be executed without mercy!

"We are willing to serve you to the death!" a centurion shouted first.

In an instant, everyone else on the training ground also reacted and shouted in unison.

"I am willing to die for you, sir!"

"I am willing to die for you, sir!!"

"I am willing to die for you, sir!!!"

...

Three thousand people shouted in unison, each shout higher and louder than the last, surging like a tidal wave.

At this moment, Han Qing could feel that these three thousand people were no longer a disorganized bunch, but had begun to unite as one, with a momentum soaring into the sky. This was an extremely good start, and he believed that it would not be long before this new army would become an elite force, a fierce and powerful force.

The leaders, both high and low, felt the deafening shouts and gained even more respect for Han Qing.

They had thought that Han Qing was too young to command three thousand soldiers, but today's meeting made them look at him in a completely different light.

He combines kindness and severity, and is ruthless and decisive—a quality far beyond that of a young man.

In an instant, they were completely convinced, truly convinced, and acknowledged Han Qing as their young leader.

"Starting tomorrow, there will be a small training session every three days, a large training session every seven days, and a rest day every ten days. You will have meat every day. I want you to undergo a complete transformation within a month and become a truly elite force!" Han Qing said loudly again.

On the day.

The soldiers began practicing their military formations, and the camp was filled with thunderous shouts.

With the assistance of the Thirteen Guards of Baiyun, Han Qing trained his troops effortlessly.

noon.

Many soldiers began to rest and eat lunch.

Inside a barracks.

Han Qing, Bai Yunfei, and a group of others were also eating.

“Young Master, I was worried that you wouldn’t be able to control these people, but I didn’t expect you to have such skills. After you’ve dealt with them, the entire camp is completely under your control,” Qiu Da said.

“I have read a lot of military strategy in General Qi’s mansion, so this kind of trick is nothing.” Han Qing’s gaze swept over Yue Xiaobiao, who was standing to the side. “Yue Xiaobiao, your trickery has done a great job. This bottle of calming pills is a reward for you.”

Yue Xiaobiao caught the medicine bottle that Han Qing threw to him, his face full of flattery: "It's all thanks to your skillful methods, Young Master. My magic is just the icing on the cake. Even without me, with your abilities, Young Master could have easily subdued them."

The young master is so young, yet he is already the commander of a battalion. This is a sign that the heavens and earth have bestowed upon him good fortune.

Xiao Biao asserted that this trip to the North would surely make the young master famous throughout the land, and achieving sainthood or even immortality was not impossible.

Qiu Da and the others standing nearby were filled with admiration; Yue Xiaobiao's flattery was truly effortless.

Han Qing knew Yue Xiaobiao's personality, and his heart remained calm: "Become a saint? One day I will definitely become a saint and experience the strength of all the heroes in the world. That day is not far away."

Upon hearing this, Bai Yunfei and the others held Han Qing in even higher esteem.

When Han Qing said these words, he had a genuine confidence that came from within, and it was by no means a pretense.

Becoming a saint? How difficult that is! Yet Han Qing has an unwavering belief that he will become a saint. How could such a person be an ordinary person?

in the afternoon.

The shouts continued in the camp.

After inspecting the troops, Han Qing was very satisfied with their condition. Everyone was practicing diligently, and if this momentum continued, it wouldn't be long before this army would evolve into an elite force.

He returned to his quarters in the center of the camp, a small courtyard guarded by soldiers.

"Practice martial arts!"

Han Qing will not forget his purpose. He became a commander so that he could kill enemies on the battlefield and use the Seven Killings Stele to plunder their skills. His ultimate goal was to improve his strength.

"Now that my Supreme Mystic Turtle Technique has been perfected, there's no need to rush. As long as I kill a few powerful martial artists, I can break through quickly."

"The fifth chapter of the Zhige Jing is still in the introductory stage, and progress is quite slow. In addition to more meditation, we also need to search for a cultivator of the spirit."

"As for combat, I am still at the beginner level with the Phantom Thousandfold Blade technique. I need to improve it to the advanced level as soon as possible."

As Han Qing pondered, a thought flashed through his mind, and the Seven Killings Stele appeared in his mind, with points of light floating up and down around it.

These points of light were accumulated when he helped Huang Xiao deal with Wei Qiong. At this moment, he still had more than twenty points of soul light left, enough to last for a while.

Today, another spark of inspiration has been added to Wang Tonghai's soul.

Han Qing chose to absorb the light spot first, and many images immediately appeared before his eyes.

Before long, the image disappeared, and a cold glint flashed in Han Qing's eyes.

"Chen An! This Wang Tonghai was actually instigated by this scoundrel. Chen An colluded with the Luo family to try and kill me in order to seize the position of head of the Chen family. What a vicious and treacherous person he is."

Since that's the case, I can't just sit here and wait to die; I must strike first.

With this in mind, Han Qing called Yue Xiaobiao over.

"Yue Xiaobiao, I'm ordering you to do something for me."

"Sir, please give your orders!" Yue Xiaobiao nodded repeatedly.

"The commander of the Thousand Bulls Battalion is named Chen An. Keep an eye on him and report any unusual movements to me immediately!" Han Qing said in a deep voice.

"Don't worry, young master, this is not difficult for me." Yue Xiaobiao patted his chest and turned to leave.

After Yue Xiaobiao left, Han Qing continued practicing martial arts.

He put Chen An's matter aside for the time being. Inside the camp, Chen An couldn't do anything to him, but once outside the camp, it would be a matter of each person relying on their own abilities. Hunter and prey are inherently one, and he believed that Chen An would definitely regret cooperating with the Luo family and making him his hunting target.

Suppressing the many distracting thoughts in his mind, Han Qing saw a large amount of information before him, all of which was about Wang Tonghai's martial arts skills.

He first chose a second-rate sword technique with mastery, called Wind and Mist Blade, and then immediately transferred his proficiency to Phantom Thousandfold Blade.

With the help of the Seven Killings Stele, Han Qing practiced this sword technique repeatedly in the courtyard, and his proficiency began to rise rapidly.

...

Fifteen li south of the Yinshan Grand Camp, there is another camp called Qianniu Camp.

In the center of the camp, in a house.

Chen An sat in the chair, listening to the report from the old man in blue in front of him, his brows furrowed.

"Young master, Han Qing has killed Wang Tonghai and subdued the three thousand soldiers in the camp."

"There's another point," the old man in blue added. "The aura he exudes is as majestic as a mountain. Even the spies we planted among them couldn't withstand it. His strength is probably even greater than it appears."

"Useless! This Wang Tonghai took so much silver from me, and he's just going to be beheaded like this?" Chen An frowned, his face full of anger. He swept the porcelain bowls and teacups on the table to the ground, and with a series of crisp sounds, the bowls and cups turned into pieces on the ground.

The many servants around him all lowered their heads, afraid of offending Chen An.

"Young master, please calm down. There will be plenty of opportunities to deal with Han Qing in the future!" the old man in blue advised.

Chen An got up, paced around the room, wandered around a few times, and then sat back down in his chair. A servant had already come forward to clean up the scattered pieces on the floor.

Chen An calmed down and sneered, "You're right, but killing Han Qing is a small matter. Making military achievements is the real important thing. All of you, go down. I need some peace and quiet!"

Yinshan General Camp.

Inside the commander's tent.

"Lord Cao, this is a document submitted by Han Qing, the commander of the Tiger Might Battalion. The centurion Wang Tonghai, who incited unrest in the army, has been beheaded."

Cao Zhen, dressed in black casual clothes, had his hand on his sword and was resting with his eyes closed.

Upon hearing his aide's report, he slightly opened his eyes, took the document, glanced at it, and said in a deep voice, "That's right! Wang Tonghai deserves to die!"

"Mr. Wen, how was the situation when I asked you to lead a patrol of the Third Battalion today?" Cao Zhen asked in a deep voice.

A hunchbacked middle-aged man stepped out from behind and bowed, saying, "Sir, Han Qing has completely taken control of the Tiger Might Battalion. He trains the soldiers day and night, and their morale is rising day by day. The area is thriving."

Chen An of the Thousand Bulls Camp also performed well. The Chen family was powerful and had a large number of experts with them, so they easily intimidated the leaders of the camp.

Only the Third Battalion, Xuanwu Battalion, was in a slightly worse situation. Although Deng Weitong was quite skilled in martial arts, he was not good at managing people's hearts and minds, and his reckless and irritable nature led to a united resistance from the battalion's leaders, and now Xuanwu Battalion had become a disorganized mess.

Cao Zhen nodded slightly. As the commander-in-chief of Yinshan, he was naturally responsible for every soldier.

Although Han Qing and the other two were appointed as commanders, they would be subject to a long probationary period. If they were not capable of leading the battalion, they would be replaced.

"Of these three, I was least optimistic about Han Qing. He was too young and would definitely be looked down upon by the elite warriors in the camp. But I didn't expect him to be so capable and perform the best. I underestimated him."

“Deng Weitong, this boy is a member of the Deng family. If I replace him directly, I might offend the Deng family. How about this, you take a few people to Xuanwu Camp and help Deng Weitong stabilize the situation.”

"Two months later, I will order the three battalions of soldiers to enter Yinshan to defeat the enemy. If Deng Weitong performs poorly, I will replace him, and the Deng family will have no grounds to complain to me," Cao Zhen said in a deep voice.

The Yinshan camp is now a melting pot of various factions, and as the commander-in-chief, he has to be careful at every step. These commanders, and even centurions, all have powerful backers. Although some of them are of lower rank than him, he dares not provoke them.

"Yes."

The hunchbacked middle-aged man bowed and left the room.

...

Time is long.

A month has passed in the blink of an eye.

"Hey!"

"what!"

In the Tiger Might Camp.

Han Qingmai walked across the training ground, his hand on the hilt of his sword, his eyes gleaming, exuding a heroic air. Behind him followed Lin Yueqiu, the Thirteen Guards of Baiyun, and a group of his trusted confidants.

Half a month ago, after he had completely taken control of the Tiger Might Camp, he ordered Lin Yueqiu and others to take the treasure into the camp under cover of night and quietly transfer the five war puppets from Tianxiong City to the camp's treasury.

In this way, Lin Yueqiu, this capable assistant, no longer needs to guard Tianxiong City.

"Young Master, in just one month, the soldiers in the camp have undergone earth-shattering changes. I can already feel an aura of military might permeating the world," Lin Yueqiu exclaimed.

Han Qing nodded slightly; he had lived a very fulfilling month.

They patrol and practice martial arts during the day, and meditate and concentrate their minds at night.

The soul light points within the Seven Killings Stele have been completely exhausted. His Phantom Thousandfold Blade has successfully reached the mastery level, allowing him to connect many basic moves and greatly increasing his combat power.

The Supreme Mysterious Turtle Technique has also improved, with proficiency reaching 94%, and it will soon be perfected.

The progress in Zhige Jing is the slowest; it's still at the beginner level.

There are too few cultivators of spirit. In the past month, out of more than thirty soul light spots, he only inherited one spirit cultivation method of average quality. This means that the improvement of the Zhige Jing depends almost entirely on Han Qing himself, and the speed of progress will naturally be extremely slow.

The Tiger Might Battalion has indeed undergone a complete transformation, a significant improvement from the disorganized state it was a month ago.

As he walked forward, he observed the surrounding soldiers, noting their vigor and imposing presence.

The soldiers looked at him with gratitude and awe.

Han Qing was very satisfied; this new army already possessed considerable combat power.

"Bai Yunfei, you really have a knack for training troops. You deserve a lot of credit for achieving such a transformation!"

Bai Yunfei, naturally aloof, said expressionlessly, "Without your financial support, young master, even if I were skilled in training troops, I could not have achieved such an astonishing transformation."

Han Qing did not refute. In the past month, tens of thousands of taels of silver had been spent to ensure that the soldiers had meat every day, so that they would not develop any problems during training.

The army is indeed a money-devouring beast.

He had accumulated over 100,000 taels of silver along the way, but at this rate, it could only last for three months at most.

"Yesterday, Commander Cao sent someone to inform me that next month, the entire army will launch an attack to enter Yinshan and defeat the enemy. This will be a great test for our Tiger Might Battalion."

According to past practice, if the first battle is poorly performed, the commander will be replaced. Therefore, this battle is of paramount importance! Han Qing pondered again.

"My lord, we have a detailed map of Yinshan. There's no need to wait another month. Why don't we send troops now, capture a few small strongholds, and gain practical experience?" Lin Yueqiu suggested.

"That's exactly what I was thinking too," Han Qing nodded.

After completing this round, Han Qing returned to the central compound with a group of trusted confidants.

He took out a map of Yinshan from a wooden box in the room and slowly spread it out on the table.

Over the past month, he has examined the map multiple times, memorizing all the details. He has also sent people to verify the information from various sources, confirming that the map is genuine, or rather, that more than 90% of the information is true.

He was even more grateful to Qian Hou; this map was invaluable.

"The Yinshan Mountains have a complex terrain, with high mountains and dense forests, and are deep and mysterious. Many forces are hidden within them, ranging in number from tens of thousands to only a few hundred."

As Han Qing spoke, he reached out and pointed to a corner of the map, which was named Niu Tou Zhai.

“This stronghold has over a thousand bandits in a secluded location to our northwest. The stronghold leader, Chu Shijian, is skilled in swordsmanship and secretly colludes with the northern demon tribes. I’ve decided to take this bandit down first to give the new recruits more combat experience!”

For the past month, he had been screening targets, sending people into the mountains in secret to investigate and gather intelligence. Finally, he set his sights on Niutou Village.

He wanted to master the Phantom Thousandfold Blade technique as soon as possible, and those sword masters were the targets he couldn't let slip.

Secondly, Niu Tou Zhai is not too far from Hu Wei Ying, so keeping it around would ultimately pose a threat.

Secondly, the strength of this stronghold is not too strong, and it is completely within the range that Tiger Might Battalion can handle. This way, we can gain experience without suffering too many casualties.

Lin Yueqiu and the others also examined the map, sensing the confidence and determination in Han Qing's tone. They knew that Han Qing must have made preparations in advance and was already confident, so they did not raise any objections.

That night.

Han Qing then submitted documents to the Yinshan camp, requesting permission to lead troops out of the camp to attack Hutou Village.

The next morning.

Cao Zhen sent a reply, granting permission to send troops.

Han Qing immediately summoned all the leaders and announced that the entire camp should assemble and enter the mountains to capture the stronghold.

For a while.

The atmosphere in the camp was solemn, and the soldiers were eager and full of confidence.

Another day.

Before dawn, a thin mist floated over Yinshan Mountain, making everything in the forest appear and disappear.

Accompanied by a series of light and disorderly footsteps, Han Qing led three thousand soldiers of the Tiger Might Battalion out of the main gate and headed straight for Tiger Head Village along the winding forest path.

Han Qing had memorized every detail of the map perfectly.

(End of this chapter)