"Since the lord has spoken, I'll begin selecting the troops."
Luo Dongquan's gaze swept slowly over the Hundred-Household Officers gathered in the command tent.
Xiong Qiu'an, Liu Jinkui, and the others all lowered their heads.
No one wanted this kind of assignment.
There was a reason it was called Night Patrol—those who went often didn't return.
Before long, Luo Dongquan said, "Liu Jinkui, Chen Sanshi—you two will each select ten men from your subordinates. The three of us will depart for the grasslands in one month to investigate the Xi River tribe's real strength."
Thousand-Household Xiang Tingchun had just lifted his teacup to drink when he heard the names. His brow furrowed slightly, but he didn't interrupt.
"Your subordinate… accepts the order."
Liu Jinkui reluctantly bowed and replied.
Chen Sanshi wasn't the kind to double-standard military rules.
Orders were orders—he'd obey without question.
Still, the fact that Luo Dongquan insisted on going along was suspicious. That man was definitely scheming something.
"Let me go instead!"
Wang Zhi suddenly stood up. "I've reached perfection in tempering bone—am I not stronger than him?"
"Hundred-Household Wang."
Luo Dongquan's tone turned cold. "This isn't your place to speak."
"I wasn't talking to you!"
Wang Zhi turned toward the head of the room. "Thousand-Household Xiang, that Luo bastard's up to no good!"
"Fatty Wang, what the hell's that supposed to mean?!"
Luo Dongquan glared at him. "You think I'd secretly plot against Hundred-Household Chen?"
"You know damn well what you're thinking."
Wang Zhi didn't back down. "Thousand-Household Xiang, I'm not trying to play favorites here. Chen Sanshi can go, but Luo Dongquan can't. The two of them can't be in the same squad!"
"Wang Zhi, are you defying a direct order?"
"Shut your damn mouth! You think being Deputy Thousand-Household makes you something special?"
"Believe it or not, I'll report you to the Ministry of War!"
"Go ahead! You think I'm scared of you?"
"Enough!"
Xiang Tingchun's fist slammed down on the table, the sound echoing through the tent. "Wang Zhi! You'll accompany Chen Sanshi as part of the Night Patrol!"
"Brilliant decision, my lord!"
Wang Zhi immediately switched faces, grinning as if nothing had happened. "Your subordinate guarantees the mission will be completed!"
With the orders set, the officers dispersed.
"Old Luo."
Once the tent was quiet, Xiang Tingchun spoke without opening his eyes. "We agreed it'd be Feng Yong, Zhao Kang, and Liu Jinkui. Why did you change the list on your own? I told you before—after spring, do what you want with him. But right now, I still need that man."
"My lord, I was wrong."
Luo Dongquan knelt with one knee to the ground. "But my lord, with the Sun siblings around, and Prefect Ji Guangxian trying to recruit him too, if I wait until later, I'll never have another chance to act."
"Wait."
The wrinkles at Xiang Tingchun's eyes deepened, then smoothed out again. "At the very least, he dies on the battlefield—understand?"
"Yes, my lord."
Luo Dongquan bowed his head low.
…
"Damn that Luo Dongquan!"
The moment they left the tent, Liu Jinkui started cursing. "I treated that bastard to meals for years, and now that he's been promoted, he sticks me with this death mission!"
"Just because he's reached the beginner stage of tempering organs, he thinks he's untouchable!"
Wang Zhi spat on the ground. "If this were before, I'd have split him in half right then and there."
Zhao Kang and the others pretended not to hear, slipping away one by one.
Xiong Qiu'an muttered angrily, "I knew that snake wasn't any good."
"Don't worry, Shitou."
Wang Zhi smirked. "I'm going with you. That bastard Luo won't dare pull anything."
"Thanks, Fatty Wang."
Chen Sanshi clasped his hands in thanks.
With him along, at least he didn't have to worry about being ambushed on the way.
'Still… I'm too weak. If I were stronger, no one would dare scheme against me.'
Complaining was useless.
He could only train harder.
And with the journey to the grasslands approaching, he needed to prepare thoroughly.
Chen Sanshi returned to the training ground and began selecting the men who would serve as his Night Patrol unit.
"Zhu Tong, Zhuang Yi, Zhao Qiao, Li Dazhi, Xia Erniu."
Chen Sanshi named his five men. Wang Zhi picked another five.
"My lord, what about me?"
Wang Li was caught off guard. "Let me come too."
"You're staying," Chen Sanshi said calmly. "While I'm gone, you'll assist Xu Wencai in drilling the formations."
Wang Li was a quiet one—rarely spoke, but his cultivation progressed steadily. He had kept up closely behind Zhu Tong. More importantly, he was dependable, followed orders without question, and never caused trouble.
"Yes, sir!"
Wang Li saluted immediately.
"You five," Chen Sanshi continued, "head to the stables later. Someone will train you in Horsemanship."
They were going to the grasslands. Without horses, that would be suicide.
The matter settled.
Days passed quickly.
Chen Sanshi followed his usual routine—training, brewing medicine.
After tempering bone came tempering skin.
But tempering skin wasn't something that could be done just through cultivation. It required enduring pain—grinding, tearing, and healing again and again.
There were two main tools for this process: coarse sand mixed with rock salt, or fine iron sand.
Each produced very different results.
Naturally, Chen Sanshi chose iron sand.
He filled a large wooden barrel with special-grade black iron sand, stripped off his clothes, and stepped in.
Instantly, his body felt like it was being thrown into a pit of blades and fire.
Even though he had prepared himself mentally, the pain was unbearable. His face twisted, veins bulged, and his breath came out ragged. After barely holding out for ten minutes, he leapt out of the barrel—his entire body raw and bleeding, not an inch of skin intact.
He immediately reached for the ointment.
Black Jade Body-Protection Salve.
It cost a fortune—five hundred taels of silver per box, and one box barely lasted twenty days.
Even just at the bone-tempering stage, the cost of maintaining cultivation was astronomical.
No wonder so many talented martial artists willingly became servants or dogs to noble families or martial halls.
For soldiers, there was at least hope of trading merit for resources. But for free-roaming fighters of the jianghu, such luxuries were impossible.
He spread the black ointment across his skin. It felt cool like ice, and waves of medicinal energy sank into his flesh, repairing the torn wounds and knitting them together.
This brutal process didn't harm the skin—on the contrary, it toughened it, making it smoother, denser, and more resilient than before.
It was worth its price.
After all, every herb in it was rare and precious.
Chen Sanshi had already deciphered the formula and managed to make a single extra box from the leftover materials.
But that was all.
The herbs he'd taken from the Medicine Valley were mostly ingredients for Bone-Replenishing Soup and medicinal baths, not this kind of ointment.
When it ran out, he'd have to borrow some from Brother Liang again.
He made a mental note of it.
[Technique: Undying Golden Serpent Spear (Upper Scroll) — Mastery]
[Progress: 105/1000]
Too slow!
His biggest cultivation boost still came from the spiritual grain.
But the absorption rate was maddeningly inefficient.
Originally, he had estimated that in four months, he could reach the organ-tempering stage—if he kept consuming spiritual grain continuously.
But the longer he trained, the more cautious he became.
The toxin lingering in his meridians was no joke.
"Forget it…"
"No point rushing."
He exhaled, forcing himself to calm down, packed up his gear, and headed out of the cave toward home.
It was dusk.
The setting sun painted the clouds crimson, and the garrison settlement lay quiet and peaceful. Families were cooking dinner; trails of white smoke curled lazily from the chimneys, drifting upward like serpents rising into the evening sky.
"Shi ge'er, you're back."
Gu Xinlan came out to greet him. Beside her stood Xu Bin's pregnant wife, Madam Tong, who bowed slightly. "Good evening, Hundred-Household Officer Chen."
"Shi ge'er, Sister Tong invited you over for dinner. She's got wine and dishes ready!"
"Shi ge'er, what are you looking at?"
"My lord Chen… what's so interesting about the chimney smoke?"
"…"
Neither of them got an answer.
Chen Sanshi's eyes were fixed on the horizon, his expression suddenly grim.
Among the drifting white trails of smoke, a dark column was rising—thicker, darker, unnatural.
That wasn't chimney smoke.
It was a signal fire.
Wolf smoke.
Poyang's Thousand-Household Division hadn't seen real warfare for years. The sudden plume of black smoke caught even the soldiers' families off guard.
They hadn't yet realized what it meant.
"Wooooom—"
"Enemy attack! Enemy attack!"
"All troops—assemble! Assemble now!"
The command echoed through the garrison, accompanied by the thunder of hooves and the shrill call of horns. The long-dormant camp had just been awakened by the first fire of war.