My strength increases by one percent every day; I can destroy stars with my bare hands.

"My lord, we have killed the Liangzhou army. The Liangzhou army will not let my brother and me go. Please take us in."

Ouyang De looked at Li Xuancang with hopeful eyes, for Li Xuancang was the only one in the entire Liangzhou who could protect them.

The two brothers were not afraid of death, but they were afraid of implicating their mother.

"You all attack me with all your might."

Li Xuancang did not give the two a reply, but instead first verified their strength.

"My lord, please forgive me."

Upon hearing this, the two brothers did not hesitate and charged at Li Xuancang from the left and right with all their might.

Ouyang Meng was the first to make a move. He was burly and gave the impression of being clumsy, but when he struck, he was as swift as a rabbit and extremely agile.

"Bang!"

His strength was astonishing; he shattered the air with a single punch, and even before his fist arrived, his sharp edge was already hurtling towards him.

Li Xuancang remained still, and only when Ouyang Meng's fist was about to fall did he slowly extend his palm.

Li Xuancang's movements appeared slow, yet he firmly caught Ouyang Meng's fist as it landed.

"Bang!"

Ouyang Meng's powerful punch was caught by Li Xuancang with ease, all the force disappearing without a trace as if it had vanished into thin air.

"what!"

Ouyang roared and slammed out his other fist.

With a gentle push from Li Xuancang, Ouyang Meng was forced to retreat uncontrollably, each step crushing the ground and leaving deep footprints.

"Whoosh, whoosh whoosh whoosh..."

As Ouyang Meng was forced back, hundreds of sharp sword energies pierced through the air.

Li Xuancang remained motionless, raising his left hand slightly to create a barrier of energy that blocked all the incoming sword energy.

"boom!"

The two brothers attacked together, but Li Xuancang casually waved his hand, sending a wall of energy forward.

"puff!"

"what!"

The two collided with the air barrier, and immediately coughed up blood and staggered backward.

The two quickly steadied themselves, their faces filled with terror.

They knew Li Xuancang was strong, but they never imagined he could be this powerful.

They could sense that Li Xuancang was holding back; otherwise, the two brothers wouldn't have survived a single move.

"Your Excellency's divine might is truly awe-inspiring; my brother and I are filled with admiration."

The two were completely convinced and wanted to join Li Xuancang's ranks.

"From now on, you two will serve under my command, temporarily holding the positions of centurions!"

The two are quite strong, and when they join forces, they can even put up a fight against someone in the mid-stage of the Qi Refining Realm.

Li Xuancang was currently lacking strong men, and the two of them were just the right people to solve his urgent problem.

As for the Liangzhou army, Li Xuancang did not take them seriously.

This is Ganquan County, and he is the garrison commander of Ganquan County; he is the boss.

Upon hearing this, the two brothers were overjoyed.

"Thank you, sir."

The two men paid their respects to Li Xuancang with great ceremony.

"Get up! You have three days to settle your families. If you are worried, you can bring your mother to the naval base. No one can act recklessly there."

Upon hearing this, the two brothers' eyes turned red with gratitude towards Li Xuancang.

They were not afraid of death; their only worry was their mother who had raised them with such hardship.

If Mother could move into the garrison, they would have no more worries.

"We brothers will never forget your great kindness and virtue."

The two brothers were extremely excited and left satisfied.

Ten days later, this grand selection process, which shook the entire county, finally came to an end.

"My lord, a total of 3,500 people passed the selection: seven in the Blood Condensation Realm, 159 in the Bone Forging Realm, and the rest in the Body Tempering Realm."

Wang Xiaoniu reported to Li Xuancang.

Nearly 10,000 people came, but only a little over 3,000 stayed.

This number may not seem like much at first glance, but it is quite astonishing.

The weakest cultivator is at the Body Tempering Realm; just thinking about it sends chills down your spine.

"Some people were incorporated into the army to serve as squad leaders, sergeants, centurions, and battalion commanders, while the rest were all left behind to form the Martial Champion Battalion."

With only five thousand men in Ganquan County and limited positions for generals, Li Xuancang could not assign all of them to his own army and had to form a new one.

"The people of the Martial Arts Camp distribute resources based on cultivation level and strength."

Although the Wu Kui Battalion could not command combat troops, their treatment was no different from that of squad leaders, platoon leaders, centurions, and battalion commanders.

"Yes, ma'am."

Wang Xiaoniu and the others quickly went down to make arrangements.

As the news spread, the entire Liangzhou was shaken by Li Xuancang's major move.

"Is Lord Li about to make a big move?"

"The garrison commander is no small fry."

Is Liangzhou about to undergo a major upheaval?

"..."

Li Xuancang invested heavily in reforming the army, and everyone knew he was bound to make a groundbreaking move.

Many forces are filled with fear and unease, hoping that they will not be affected.

"Outrageous! Li Xuancang has privately established the Martial Champion Camp. Does he even respect the Liangzhou Army? Does he even respect the imperial court?"

"Li Xuancang has formed an army without authorization, which is an unforgivable crime. I want to impeach him."

"Report this to the imperial court immediately, and make sure Li Xuancang suffers the consequences."

"..."

Many generals of the Liangzhou army had long been dissatisfied with Li Xuancang, and now they finally found an opportunity to kill him in one fell swoop and cut him off his horse.

Inside the garrison headquarters, Shen Chongyuan was discussing Li Xuancang with several trusted confidants.

"My lord, Li Xuancang has immediately begun reforming the army upon arrival; his intentions are clearly hostile!"

A captain looked worried; Li Xuancang was likely coming for the Liangzhou army.

"My lord, we cannot stand idly by and watch Li Xuancang grow stronger, or our position will be in jeopardy!"

The Liangzhou army was able to do whatever it wanted, even outwardly complying with the imperial decrees while inwardly defying them, because their position was irreplaceable.

The imperial court needed them to guard Liangzhou, keep the nomads out, and protect the peace of the north.

Now Li Xuancang has arrived, and he's making a big show of recruiting soldiers.

If Li Xuancang's Ganquan Camp were to grow stronger, it would block the passage of the grassland people into Liangzhou.

The Liangzhou army would lose its greatest value, and the imperial court might not be able to tolerate them then.

"Don't worry, Li Xuancang is just a mere Qi Refining Realm cultivator, he can't cause any trouble."

Seeing the worried faces of the group, Shen Chongyuan remained unconvinced.

No matter how much Li Xuancang struggled, he was still only at the Gangqi Realm and could not defy the heavens.

Shen Chongyuan changed the subject, saying, "However, we can't let him get too arrogant. It's time to teach him a lesson and make him realize his place."

Although Shen Chongyuan didn't take Li Xuancang seriously, he couldn't tolerate Li's antics and constant commotion.

"Contact the grassland people and ask them to teach the reckless Li Xuancang a lesson."

Shen Chongyuan's words were astonishing; he could actually mobilize the power of the grasslands.

If someone were to overhear this, it would surely shake the imperial court.

But the expressions of the people in front of him did not change at all, as if they had already gotten used to it.

Shen Chongyuan operated in Liangzhou for decades, not only supporting bandits for his own power but also colluding with the nomadic people of the grasslands.

Over the years, both sides have had a tacit understanding, each getting what they need.

Shen Chongyuan used the grassland people to eliminate his rivals and help him completely control Liangzhou.

The nomads from the grasslands frequently invaded, but the Liangzhou army only made a show of it, ensuring that the nomads returned laden with spoils each time.

Decades later, both sides made a fortune, but the only ones who suffered were the people of Liangzhou and the merchant caravans.