chsdbacks Chapter 12 was quite fruitful.
Chapter 12 was quite fruitful.
"These scouts didn't enter the village; they probably robbed a small caravan. They didn't have much stuff, but they had a lot of money," Zhou He said with a grin, quite satisfied with the ambush.
Each entry into the country earns two merit points. He killed two, along with some ordinary scouts, earning six merit points. Adding the valuables these people carried, his gains were considerable.
What surprised him most was Lu Yuan's swordsmanship and military formation. This was the first time he had seen the other party make a move, and he actually managed to gain an absolute advantage by directly clashing with the heavy weapons of the Northern Barbarian cavalry. His swordsmanship must have reached perfection. Thinking of this, Zhou He couldn't help but gasp.
This guy's talent is incredible.
Then there's the military formation. Judging from his skill level, he's achieved a minor mastery of the "Spearhead Formation." He's practiced formations for so many years, but he's only at the beginner level. His own uncle only achieved a minor mastery a while ago.
As a military commander, besides martial arts skills, the most important thing is the control of the military formation.
The higher one's skill in military formations, the more powerful one's subordinates can be in combat on the battlefield.
It is said that those famous generals could borrow the power of their subordinates and the mountains and rivers to achieve the power to defeat enemies of higher ranks.
Before this, he was somewhat surprised as to why his uncle wanted him to pay more attention to Lu Yuan. Now it seems that the older generation's judgment was indeed sharp.
Meanwhile, the other party didn't think much of it; he had gained a lot this time.
Putting everything else aside, five warhorses from the Northern Barbarians are a huge gain; next time we go out, we won't need to borrow horses from the armory.
Also, the five sets of leather armor and weapons on the barbarians, although damaged, can be exchanged for some silver each after they are taken back. The Merit Hall will check the damage.
After searching their bodies, Lu Yuan found some jewelry, which they had probably stolen, as well as more than twenty taels of silver. What pleased Lu Yuan the most was that he also found a secret manual called "The Wolf-Chasing Arrow Technique".
It wasn't really anything valuable; it was just some archery techniques practiced by the Northern Barbarian warriors.
The manuals were in the armory of Dayong, but he only had one chance to choose one.
In military operations, the bow and arrow are the best long-range weapons for killing enemies.
However, very few people can actually master it, because as one's cultivation level increases, it becomes increasingly difficult to kill enemies with a bow and arrow.
However, Lu Yuan didn't believe it. In his opinion, if he couldn't kill a master, it was still his own problem. Think about Hou Yi shooting down the suns. Weren't his opponents powerful? He still managed to kill one sun with one arrow.
There are no bad techniques, only bad people.
After putting the manual away, he looked at Old Huang beside him: "How's the harvest?"
"I'm not strong enough, so I didn't get anything," the other person said, scratching his head.
"Here, this is for you. Finding the person this time is all thanks to you." After Lu Yuan finished speaking, he threw out a silver ingot that had just been found, which weighed about three taels.
Zhou He turned around and said, "Yes, you've been very useful. I'll give this to you too."
After saying that, he grabbed some loose silver and put it in Old Huang's hand, which was probably two or three taels.
As for the others, there's nothing they can do if they don't find anything; they can only wait until next time.
However, they were not discouraged, especially Lu Yuan's men. Zhang Gun killed an ordinary scout and his face turned red with joy. In the past, killing bandits could earn them some silver, but they did not earn them any merit.
This is absolutely true.
Moreover, there was armor and warhorses; it could be said that this harvest was equivalent to several previous ones.
The armory inside the Hall of Merit regularly collects warhorses from the Northern Barbarians, each costing fifteen taels of silver.
"Alright, everyone get ready to leave. We'll rest at Gujingzhuang for the night and head back tomorrow," Zhou He said with a smile.
After tidying up their belongings, the group headed towards Gujing Village.
Thanks to Zhou He's Bone Forging ability, no one died, but several were injured.
After arriving at Gujingzhuang, the village chief warmly offered to vacate his house, heated water, and found the village doctor to bandage the wounds of the injured.
As a squad leader, Lu Yuan occupied a room by himself.
After resting for a while, I opened the system data.
Name: Lu Yuan
Age: 16
[Technique: Eight Forms of Breaking the Edge (2012/30000 Perfected)]
【"Tiger-Taming Stance" Body Tempering (271/1000 Minor Success)】
【Golden Bell Cover (478/1000 Minor Success)】
【Wedge Formation (134/1000 (Minor Completion))
Upon seeing the data, Lu Yuan's lips curled up. Combat was indeed the best way to increase proficiency.
Moreover, the influence of "Golden Bell Cover" and "Crouching Tiger Stake" is significant. The two complement each other, and their growth rate is almost comparable to that of taking elixirs.
This trip out of the city seemed to have opened a new door for Lu Yuan.
It's just fighting with the northern barbarians, anyone can do that.
Then, he began his cultivation practice again.
Nothing more was said that night, and the next morning, everyone headed back into the city.
Upon arriving at the Hall of Merit, Lu Yuan beheaded himself, exchanged his head for seventeen taels of silver, and gained eight merit points, as well as five warhorses.
He kept two of the best-quality horses for himself and exchanged the other three for forty-five taels of silver.
Five sets of leather armor yielded a total of fifty taels of silver.
Including the silver he captured, he now has a total of over 120 taels of silver, making his pockets bulge after just one battle.
At the very least, I can buy elixirs now.
There aren't enough merit points to redeem it yet, but you can buy it in the armory.
After spending fifty taels of silver to buy a bottle of Body Tempering Pills, Lu Yuan bid farewell to Zhou He and left the courtyard of the Merit Hall.
They were stopped by Wei Yong and others.
"Sir, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have earned so much silver this time. I'll treat you to a drink, and the offal restaurant will serve you as much as you want."
Zhang Gun said with a smile.
He made quite a bit of money this time.
With nearly thirty taels of silver in his pocket, he was overjoyed.
Now, he has great respect for Lu Yuan.
The other person then looked at Old Huang, who was not far away.
Zhang Gun was a smart man. He immediately stepped forward and quickly walked over, pulling Lao Huang aside and saying, "Brother Huang, let's get together. What happened last time was my fault. Give me a chance to apologize."
Wei Yong chuckled and said, "Brother Huang, let's go together. I'm sorry about what happened last time, let's just talk it out."
Old Huang scratched his head, not paying any attention.
He nodded and said, "Okay, let's have a drink together."
After he agreed, Zhang Gun and the others looked at Lu Yuan expectantly.
"Let's go, someone's treating, might as well go."
After he finished speaking, Wei Yong and his companion breathed a sigh of relief and headed towards the beef offal restaurant.
On the way, Zhang Gun pulled Wei Yong, who had a worried look on his face, and whispered, "Don't worry, our squad leader won't have any designs on Guo Xiu. Who is she? She wouldn't look at a widow's daughter."
If we're quick-witted today, we can salvage some face for Lao Huang and make amends, then the matter will be over.
Otherwise, it won't look good if Old Huang tells the adults about it later.
"Since the squad leader doesn't know about Widow Li's tantrum towards Old Huang, we've done what we should. They won't bother with small fry like us."
Wei Yong nodded: "What you said makes sense, but I'm bound to lose face."
"What face do you have in front of the squad leader? Didn't you see it this time when we went out of town? We're not even in the same league as him. Just follow the adults and you'll have a future."
Zhang Gun patted the silver pouch at his waist.
At the same time, Zhou He went into his uncle's house.
Zhou Xiong glanced at him and said calmly, "What is it?"
"Uncle, I went out with Lu Yuan these past two days. He's really skilled. He withstood a spiked club from the Northern Barbarians and even managed to kill them."
His swordsmanship should be perfected, and I think he's also reached a minor level of mastery in the "Spearhead Formation." His talent is truly remarkable.
After Zhou He finished speaking, he picked up the tea on the table and drank it all in one gulp.
Zhou Xiong glanced at him and said, "If that's the case, he is indeed a talented person. It's been a long time since the border has produced such a talented young man. I'll go see the young lady tomorrow."
Let's see if Lu Yuan can become a member of our Zhou family.
The others are manageable, but this military formation is the most difficult. To have mastered it in such a short time, I think it's worth cultivating.
Don't be too slow and someone else will snatch it away.
Zhou He nodded, turned and left.
At this moment, Lu Yuan, surrounded by the crowd, arrived at the beef offal restaurant.