Chapter 156: Divine Wilderness Campground
Early in the morning, just as the rooster made its morning call, the Jin Long Wei’s recruits gathered in the square!
Yi Yun was also living in the military barracks. But as a Kingdom Knight, he got his own dormitory and it was in good condition.
Yan Menglong stood in the middle of the square inspecting the new recruit warriors.
“Today is the first day you become a soldier! From today, you will receive tough training ranging from one to six years!”
Many of the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom’s Jin Long Wei would reach the late-stages of the Purple Blood realm, and even more would exceed Purple Blood when they retire.
A late-stage Purple Blood warrior had a lifespan of more than a 150 years, and could stay in their prime to a late age.
A Jin Long Wei could serve for a long time; hence taking 5-6 years of training was nothing much.
“All of you will be divided into three batches to undergo special training!”
“The three batches are… The third batch is to stay in the Divine Capital’s campgrounds. You will be trained in the Divine Capital! After completing your training, you will become Tai Ah Divine Kingdom’s normal soldiers. If you have any meritorious services, you can be upgraded to an elite. Some feats might even make you a Kingdom Knight! Everything will depend on yourselves!”
“The second batch is the Zhong state campgrounds. The Zhong state is the biggest state in the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom. and it is where the imperial city is in. Hence, it is controlled by the Imperial Divine Majesty himself. To enter the Zhong state for training is of utmost glory! Those who undergo special training in the Zhong state would become Jin Long Wei elites upon completion. If there are any meritorious services, they will be made Kingdom Knights!
“As for the last batch, the Divine wilderness campgrounds! Qualified personnels are selected by the military division. They can voluntarily decide to go or not. The training grounds will be in the Divine wilderness ground! There is no shortage of danger in the Divine wilderness grounds, and a place full of death! One has to be prepared to die anytime within the Divine wilderness grounds!”
“The Divine wilderness campground is also known as the death camp, or the death gantry! There is a 15% mortality rate there, and a 5% chance of disability. Together, it’s 20%! Those who train there are the elites among elites. If you aren’t careful, you will be doomed eternally!”
“But if you were to complete your training, you will become an elite soldier of the Divine Kingdom. You can even become a human lord in the future! The Divine wilderness campground is the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom’s goal post. If you can jump across it, you will have eternal glory, but if you fall through it, you will smashed to smithereens!” While saying those words, his focus shifted onto Yi Yun and Song Zijun. Only Yi Yun and Song Zijun, within the entire Divine Capital were, qualified to enter the Divine wilderness campgrounds. As for them to go or not, it was up to them.
“Divine wilderness…” Yi Yun muttered to himself. He had learnt more about the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom in the recent days.
The Divine wilderness did not belong to the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom.
In fact, the Divine wilderness did not belong to any country. Its dimensions were unknown. Its area was more than ten times bigger than the vast Tai Ah Divine Kingdom!
To use one word to describe it, it would be: endless!
Deep in the Divine wilderness lurked real prehistoric giant beasts that had primordial blood. These divine beasts were equivalent to human Sages, and might even be comparable to a legendary great emperors!
The Divine wilderness was without end. The Tai Ah Divine Kingdom had only explored a small area of the Divine wilderness.
Due to the many uncontrollable factors of the Divine wilderness, the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom established a camp in the Divine wilderness. Hence, the danger was obvious.
To say that the Divine wilderness campground was a death gantry was not an exaggeration.
“Dismissed! Yi Yun and Song Zijun, stay behind!”
Yan Menglong was brief. The three camps were distributed in a pyramid fashion. What he was most concerned about was the pinnacle of the pyramid, the Divine wilderness campgrounds!
“Yi Yun! Zijun! I’m sure you have probably guessed the reason for me keeping you behind.” Yan Menglong crossed his arms in front of his chest. He stood with his legs slightly apart and with a grand posture on the stone stage. He overlooked Yi Yun and Song Zijun.
Yi Yun and Song Zijun nodded.
“Entering the Divine wilderness campground is only by choice! If you do not choose to go, you can choose to go to the Zhong state campgrounds. There’s only a 2% mortality rate there. With your strength, you will definitely be the top of the Zhong state campgrounds, and would safely complete your training without any trouble. In the future, you will also get a good position, slowly rising to baron and be a Thousand Households. You can also marry a few wives, and lead a peaceful life as a master, do you want that?” Yan Menglong asked them rhetorically.
Yi Yun and Song Zijun answered at the same time, “We don’t!”
Serving safely in the Jin Long Wei for dozens of years and then be decommissioned; eventually, marrying and having children, living a wealthy squire life before dying after a hundred years. Besides leaving behind bones, nothing was left. Neither Yi Yun nor Song Zijun wanted to lead such a life!
A person had to have dreams and pursue them!
Lin Xintong had such strength, yet she still pursued her terminated meridians. Yi Yun, naturally did the same thing.
“Very good!” Yan Menglong nodded with appreciation. “If you choose the Divine wilderness campground, I have to tell you that there are numerous elites in there.”
“The Divine wilderness campground doesn’t only have the Jin Long Wei. Out of the three campgrounds I mentioned previously, the former two are organized by the Jin Long Wei, but the last Divine wilderness campground is organized by the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom. The Jin Long Wei only comprises about 10% of the people in the Divine wilderness campground.”
“Besides the Jin Long Wei, there are also the Qing Luan (Great Argus) Wei, the Royal guards and children of large family clans and members of the royal family!”
“These troops and family clan elites would all enter the Divine wilderness campgrounds!”
“Once you enter, you will see what it means to be a genius, and what’s monstrous. They have been bathing in drugs from the age of three, reaching Tempered Body at eight years of age. Some might even have a special bloodline, giving them natural strength that makes one envious, and even… there are some geniuses who are considered as youth sages!”
“The Divine wilderness campgrounds has a 20% disability rate and it is no laughing matter. Those who fall are top geniuses. Many geniuses who have died have greater talent than you!”
Hearing Yan Menglong’s words, Song Zijun took a deep breath of air and clenched his fists. He knew that in the Divine wilderness campgrounds, no one was weaker than him. There were even many who were stronger than him!
In the entire Divine Capital city, only two were chosen, Song Zijun and Yi Yun. Song Zijun admitted he was beneath Yi Yun, so he was considered as one of the inferior ones in those who were selected to enter!
By being weak, it would be dangerous. He might end up being one of those in the 20% mortality and disability statistics!
Yan Menglong carried on, “When you go to the Divine wilderness, you will be representing the Jin Long Wei, and representing the Jin Long Wei Divine Capital branch! Do not be an embarrassment for the Jin Long Wei, and do not embarrass the Divine Capital branch. Most importantly, what I want to tell you is… to come back safely. Life is most important!”
Yan Menglong did not bother to make sure if they regretted their decision, because he had found the answer within their eyes.
The Divine wilderness campgrounds was a challenge, but it was also a chance!
The path of practicing martial arts was to go against Heaven. Those who wanted to achieve much, had to charge forward bravely!
“Alright, go back and rest for two days. Early on the third morning, an airship will take the two of you there. Oh yes, I agreed to give you desolate bone relics.” As Yan Menglong said that, he flicked his fingers, and two bean-sized crystals flew into Yi Yun’s hand.
Back then Yan Menglong had said the winner in the competition would receive not only weapons, but desolate bone relics.
“Thank you General!” Yi Yun caught the two relics with delight. These two things were too critical. Yi Yun had already finished all the fierce bone relics he had accumulated back in the Desolate Human Valley.
A warrior’s cultivation needed endless amounts of elixirs and relics. To get a horse to run, it had to be fed.
“Do well! Don’t disappoint me!” Yan Menglong patted Yi Yun and Song Zijun firmly on the shoulders, and left. He left behind Yi Yun and Song Zijun who had mixed feelings.
Song Zijun breathed deeply as he clenched his fists, his fingers trembling.
Yi Yun was surprised at Song Zijun’s reaction and asked, “Scared? Excited?”
Song Zijun sighed with his back facing Yi Yun, “Both I guess…”
“General Yan is right, many of those geniuses who have died from missing the goal post are stronger than me! In fact, my strength is nothing when placed there. It might end up that my name will be on that 20% mortality and disability list!”
Yi Yun nodded. The weaker you were, the easier you would be eliminated.
“In the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom’s 108 states, the Jing state we are in is an average sized state. And just the Jing state, there are 100 provinces! My Song family clan is considered a pretty good family clan in the Jing state’s Nanjun province, but it’s just one of many! I may be not bad in Nanjun, but it’s just not bad. Among the younger generation in the Nanjun, there are many much stronger than me. They just didn’t enter the Jin Long Wei and went elsewhere!”
“Oh…” Yi Yun understood it deeply. The dominating Divine Capital Jin Long Wei recruit camp was nothing much. They were just another division of the Jin Long Wei. They only held a small spot in the Divine Capital, and wasn’t the be-all, end-all. Besides, the Divine Capital was just a big city in the Jing state. Placed in the humongous Tai Ah Divine Kingdom, it was nothing.
This world was too large. What would the Divine wilderness campground with all the young elites of the Tai Ah Divine Kingdom be like?
Yi Yun was full of anticipation!
Yi Yun and Song Zijun encouraged each other. Later, Yi Yun returned to the Soft Clouds Mountain Manor. He had to handle his house matters.
But there was not much to handle. Jiang Xiaorou had settled everything. He only bade farewell to Jiang Xiaorou.
Yi Yun was never at ease with Jiang Xiaorou.
Thinking back, the people in his family were all kind people. They had been carefully selected by himself from the Cloud Wilderness. And because they showed gratitude towards him, they adored Jiang Xiaorou from the bottom of their hearts. So there shouldn’t be any trouble.
On the way back, he entrusted Zhang Tan to take care of the the Soft Clouds Mountain Manor. With Zhang Tan, he could feel at ease.
At the same time, Yi Yun also hired a few martial artists to protect his house. Occasionally, they could teach Jiang Xiaorou and Zhou Xiaoke martial arts.
It was a helpless case. Yi Yun had rushed to the Divine Capital and then rushed to the Divine wilderness. He had no time to train Jiang Xiaorou in martial arts. Besides, he was not a skillful master. If only Lin Xintong could train Jiang Xiaorou, it would be great…
Lin Xintong, I wonder what happened to her. She had said her family had called her back for something. I wonder what happened…