Chapter 834: Chapter 282: Three Armed Forces_2
“Why don’t you follow me into the secret chamber for cultivation, and we can secretly study how this Military Heart works together?”
Her eyes burned with intensity as she stared at Ning Zhuo, her ulterior motives as clear as day.
Ning Zhuo was speechless for a moment, secretly finding the girl’s forthrightness somewhat endearing.
After pondering briefly, he finally said, “The greatest contributor to your ability to form the Military Heart this time is none other than Senior Li Xiangshang.”
“I shall host a banquet for you and him, as a celebration for your success.”
Qing Chi saw that she couldn’t deceive Ning Zhuo into a private meeting and pouted reluctantly, “As for Senior Li Xiangshang, I will thank him myself. Let me first thank you alone because if it weren’t for your ‘Commanding Soldiers to Bear Evil Technique,’ I wouldn’t have formed the Military Heart so quickly.”
This conversation made Sun Lingtong laugh so hard on the bull’s back that he rocked back and forth.
Through the Life Hanging Thread, he constantly received information from Ning Zhuo’s side and, enjoying the spectacle, egged him on, “Little Zhuo, just agree and see how she plans to thank you! Hehehe.”
Ning Zhuo transmitted thoughts through Divine Sense, sternly refusing, “I am not Jiao Ma; why deceive an innocent girl? Qing Chi would be immensely hurt if she discovered the truth. I am not one to take advantage of others in a crisis.”
Unable to persuade Ning Zhuo due to his refusal, Qing Chi had no choice but to agree to Ning Zhuo’s banquet.
Although Li Xiangshang was the main contributor, he was the last to learn about the formation of the Military Heart.
He wasn’t upset at all; he was very pleased.
At the dining table, he still fought for Qing Chi, persuading Ning Zhuo to return to her.
Ning Zhuo refused, “Becoming a male concubine is a demand of the Jiao Family. The progress I’ve achieved in cultivation owes much to the family’s support, and I cannot sacrifice public duty for personal affection.”
Qing Chi didn’t want to hear such words and immediately retorted, “Little Ma, then why did you gift me the ‘Commanding Soldiers to Bear Evil Technique’?”
Ning Zhuo sternly met Qing Chi’s gaze with no hesitation or retreat, bluntly saying, “My gift wasn’t out of personal affection but for the greater good.”
“With Senior Li’s help, you’re the most likely to successfully form the Military Heart. I did this for the whole White Paper Immortal City!”
Feeling heartbroken by Ning Zhuo’s attitude, Qing Chi stood up and approached him, “Little Ma, why have you become like a stranger!”
“Have you forgotten our promises?”
“We were by the riverbank, looking at the rare full moon, pledging to be with each other for life!”
“Have you forgotten such vows?!”
Ning Zhuo’s scalp tingled as he coldly raised his hand to warn, “Qing Chi, if you continue to force me, I will leave immediately, and we will never meet again.”
Startled by Ning Zhuo’s demeanor, Qing Chi stood in place, fists clenched, unwilling to sit down, her eyes quickly reddening.
In the Netherworld, Sun Lingtong laughed on the bull’s back, almost falling off.
Li Xiangshang hurriedly intervened to soothe Qing Chi and ease the tension.
Ning Zhuo brought up the main topic, “Senior Li, now that Qing Chi’s Military Heart has formed, what should be the next step?”
Li Xiangshang looked at Qing Chi, “With the Military Heart formed, the next step is to evaluate the military situation.”
“With the Military Heart, Qing Chi can assess more military intelligence by listening to the voices of the heart.”
“This ability to evaluate will improve rapidly with practice.”
“Once the evaluation and mastery of military intelligence reach a certain level, Qing Chi will discover from within how to create different military units.”
Ning Zhuo asked with concern, “How long does this step take?”
Li Xiangshang said, “It varies by person. Some achieve it instantly, while others may take years. It mainly depends on the army’s size, complexity, and the abilities of the leaders.”
At this point, Li Xiangshang took another look at Qing Chi, “Based on my estimate, Qing Chi’s mastery of military intelligence shouldn’t take long.”
“First, the Qing Family Ghost Clan is very simple, with only two to three hundred people.”
“Second, the entire Qing Family Ghost Clan greatly acknowledges Qing Chi, and the Military Heart naturally prevails.”
Li Xiangshang sighed, “This situation is actually quite rare.”
“Qing Chi, you should be thankful to your father, who willingly gave up his position to give you this opportunity.”
“Logically, it should have been your father serving as the leader.”
“Parents’ hearts, their love for their children is profound; this is the first time I’ve truly felt it.”
“By the time I gained wisdom, my parents had already passed away. In fact, for carp, parents in this conventional sense do not exist.”
“Since the beginning of my cultivation, it’s all thanks to the support of Lord Dragon.”
Ning Zhuo’s heart rippled with emotion.
Li Xiangshang’s sentiment about parents resonated with Ning Zhuo deeply.
From a certain perspective, Ning Zhuo lost his father before birth and his mother at a young age, making him quite understanding of Li Xiangshang’s feelings.
Ning Zhuo felt some compassion for Li Xiangshang, “In comparison, my situation might actually be slightly better than his.”
“Sigh, there are always people more unfortunate than myself in the world.”
“My greatest happiness is having the Elder nurture me. Now, even if my mother has passed, there is still a faint hope of her revival!”
Ning Zhuo didn’t want to see Li Xiangshang dejected and immediately encouraged him, “Li Xiangshang practiced tirelessly alone; although strong individuals supported you, ascending from the depths of the Ruishui River to the surface required utmost effort and struggle to succeed.”
“Such indomitable resilience is a model for all of us!”
“The heavens are indifferent yet fair; they often take away some things only to grant others.”
“Perhaps if you had both parents, Senior Li might not have achieved what you have now.”
Li Xiangshang looked at Ning Zhuo gratefully, “Jiao Family lad, your words are heartening.”
“But you might be overestimating me a bit.”
“The main reason I could ascend from the Ruishui River is that the waters weren’t entirely weak.”
“Every once in a while, fresh water is introduced into the deep pool to dilute the weak water.”
“And my ascension was due to seizing every opportunity this introduction of fresh water presented.”
Qing Chi was hearing these details for the first time and immediately asked, “Why introduce fresh water?”
Li Xiangshang explained, “As the saying goes, water flows to lower places. Maintaining pure weak water requires significant resources. Without proper solutions, pure weak water dilutes naturally over time until its concentration aligns with its surroundings.”
“Cultivators wanting a low-cost maintenance of weak water will actively dilute it, thereby introducing fresh water to stabilize its concentration to be similar to its surroundings.”
“If it was purely weak water, I would just be a carp and couldn’t possibly swim upstream to eventually breach the water’s surface.”
Li Xiangshang shook his head and added, “There wouldn’t be any chance.”
The banquet ended, and Ning Zhuo took the initiative to tell Qing Chi, “Since you’ve formed the Military Heart now, there’s no need to visit the South Gate.”
“You should wholeheartedly focus on mastering military intelligence and understand the direction of your military units.”
Qing Chi was, of course, unwilling, but Li Xiangshang persuaded her secretly, “Qing Chi, Jiao Ma has his own difficulties. Forcing it might not be wise.”
“According to me, if you manage to lead the only army of the White Paper Immortal City, your status will rise. To ask the Immortal City Lord for a male concubine would be easy, wouldn’t it?”
Qing Chi’s heart skipped at his words, “Great idea!”
“I want to become strong, lead the army, and win Jiao Ma back!” The Ghost Clan girl clenched her fists and brimmed with fighting spirit.
Her enthusiasm was fully ignited, and she focused entirely on mastering military intelligence.
Li Xiangshang’s estimation wasn’t wrong; in just a day and a half, she mastered military intelligence and discovered three directions for military units.
Unit one was named Paper Money Communication Soldiers.
Unit two was called Yin Talisman Suppressing Evil Guards.
Unit three was Ghostly Cry Gatekeeping Troop.
Qing Chi found herself amidst the dilemma of choosing and was momentarily at a loss for what decision to make.
Ning Zhuo had been keeping an eye on her and, upon learning about this, pondered inwardly, “In the beginning, the Three Generals Camp was newly established with no choice of units, everything was convenient!”
So, which one should be chosen?