The First Sage of Military Strategists

At his level, ordinary armor has become useless; a single movement can tear it apart. Only armor made of special materials can withstand it.

However, such armor is extremely rare, and the number of people capable of crafting it is even smaller.

In ancient times, there were armor blacksmiths who specialized in forging armor for martial saints, but this technique has been lost to time. At least, he has never seen an armor blacksmith of this caliber in the outside world.

Before long, the three arrived deep within the inner city, where they found themselves on a solitary island surrounded by a red river with its waters surging.

"This is the residence of my family's Supreme Elder. Young Master Han, please wait a moment. If you wish to enter, you must follow the rules and procedures. A boatman will come to ferry you there shortly," Kun Wuji said, turning around.

"Why is it so complicated? Although this Red River is wide, we are saints, we can just fly across. Why do we need a boatman?" Yan Qiuling had a fiery temper and immediately showed a lot of dissatisfaction.

Kun Wuji nodded slightly: "Miss Yan, please calm down. This is a rule set by our ancestors. To enter, one cannot fly; one can only cross the river by boat."

Han Qing interjected, "Qiu Ling, it's alright to wait a bit; it's not something that can be done right now."

Yan Qiuling said no more.

With nothing to do, Han Qing summoned the Seven Killings Stele. A panel appeared on it, displaying a martial art called the True Realm of the Sun, which was marked as "not yet mastered."

He didn't waste any time while waiting for Kun Wuji in the house. Instead, he summoned the Buddhist Sound Bone Scripture and recorded this most powerful barrier sealing technique into it.

"The Taiyin True Realm and the Taiyang True Realm are known as the two strongest sealing techniques. I hope they won't disappoint me," Han Qingxin thought.

There were still some soul light spots around the Boundless Monument. With a thought, he absorbed these light spots one by one, and then immediately selected martial arts skills and transferred their proficiency to the True World of the Sun.

The mastery of the True Realm of the Sun began to slowly increase. After about half an hour, all the soul light points had been absorbed, and the mastery of this spell had reached the entry level.

Han Qing closed his eyes slightly, and a lot of information about this spell appeared in his mind one after another, churning endlessly.

With a thought, numerous magical thoughts converged in his palm to form a golden lotus flower, which possessed the unique ability to seal away all things.

Han Qing exerted force with his palm, and with a bang, the golden lotus collapsed and dissipated, turning into a gust of wind and scattering away.
With another thought, his thoughts converged once more, coalescing again into a golden lotus.

After repeating this process many times, he became proficient and able to perform this secret technique quickly and skillfully.

"It's just the beginning; the sealing power of this True Sun Realm isn't strong enough yet."

"No rush. Kill a saint, seize his secret techniques, and use them as nourishment. We can quickly advance the True Realm of the Sun to perfection," Han Qingxin said.

At this moment, Kun Wuji had already left, and Han Qing activated the Boundless Stele and entered the space inside the stele.

With a wave of his hand, puppets from all directions flew over.

"I always felt that the mark belonging to Xiang Ying inside the Eight Directions Puppet had not been completely removed. Now that I have become a Saint of the Golden Body Realm, I can take this opportunity to examine it carefully."

As Han Qing spoke, he probed the Eight Directions Puppet with his spiritual sense, examining it carefully from top to bottom and inside to outside, but found nothing unusual.

Still not at ease, he suddenly unleashed a secret technique: the True Realm of the Sun.

Strands of magical thoughts converged to form a golden lotus, sealing the puppets from all directions within.

In that instant, Han Qing noticed something amiss; indeed, there were still wisps of magical intent remaining deep within the Eight Directions Puppet.

These thoughts are extremely subtle and hidden deep within, and cannot be discovered without careful examination.

If it weren't for the sealing technique of the True Realm of the Sun, these magical thoughts would have to remain hidden within it for a lifetime, which would have been a huge hidden danger.

"seal up!"

In an instant, Han Qing's magical thoughts that had invaded the Eight Directions Puppet transformed into rays of light, enveloping the cluster of magical thoughts from Xiang Ying from all directions, and forming a golden lotus flower that sealed it within.

These thoughts converged into Xiang Ying's phantom image, which suddenly roared, but there was only movement and no real sound was heard; it was completely silent.

Bang!
At a certain moment, the golden lotus vanished, along with the phantom image of Xiang Ying inside.

With this, Han Qing was completely relieved. This Eight Directions Puppet now belonged entirely to him, and no one could take it away.

...

Tongzhou.

Deep within a majestic volcano, lava flows and heat waves roll.

A deafening roar suddenly echoed from inside the mountain.

"My Eight Directions Puppet!"

"what!"

"Han Qing, you're asking for death!"

Xiang Ying sat cross-legged on a large rock in the middle of the lava sea, his eyes bloodshot and flashing with madness, as he let out a shrill roar to the sky.

Hearing the commotion, a huge figure descended from the sky above the crater. It was the Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit. Lin Motong stood on the top of the Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit, his gaze sweeping back and forth over the crazed Xiang Ying, a hint of suspicion in his eyes.

Xiang Ying took a deep breath, calmed himself, and said in a deep voice, "Just now, the mark I left in the Eight Directions Puppet has completely disappeared."

"Hmm? That mark was left in the Eight Directions Puppet with the help of the Grand Master, and covered by the Taiyin True Realm seal. Unless one is above the third level of Incense Realm and has the secret technique of the Taiyang True Realm, it is impossible to erase. Based on this, it is likely that Han Qing has a master at the third level of Incense Realm assisting him." Lin Motong pondered.

"Damn it! If that mark hadn't been discovered, I would have had a chance to take back the Eight Directions Puppet in the future. Now, that hope is even more remote." Xiang Ying's face was gloomy.

"Now that the Eight Directions Puppet has been lost, let's not dwell on it anymore. The most urgent task is to refine the Heavenly Dragon True Blood within this Heavenly Dragon Remains as soon as possible and fully activate the Wild Dragon Devouring Armor." Lin Motong said, his gaze turning to a corner deep within the volcano next to him, where a huge dragon skeleton remained, looking ferocious and terrifying.

Suppressing her hatred for Han Qing, Xiang Ying suddenly soared into the air, reached out and grabbed, her magical thoughts converging to form a ball of flame that enveloped the massive remains of the Heavenly Dragon.

Crackling!

With a series of cracking sounds, specks of light shot out from the bones, transforming into a beam of light that entered Xiang Ying's pale armor.

As time went by, more and more points of light flew out from the dragon bones and successively entered Xiang Ying's armor, causing the latter to undergo a silent transformation.

At a certain moment, the transformation ended, and Xiang Ying suddenly unleashed an astonishing aura. Spikes extended outward from the armor, making it even more ferocious and terrifying, and intricate patterns appeared on it.

"It really works! Hahaha! What powerful strength! No wonder it's the famous armor from ancient times!" Xiang Ying laughed loudly, his voice echoing through the heavens and earth. Lin Motong also nodded slightly, a look of joy appearing in his eyes.

"The Manglong Devouring Heaven Armor is the legacy of the ancient Manglong Emperor. A month ago, the Grand Master accidentally discovered an ancient book in a scenic spot. It contained a method to use the essence blood of the dragon race to perfect the Manglong Devouring Heaven Armor and unleash its full power. Unexpectedly, it really worked."

Xiang Ying suddenly soared into the air. Without needing any magical power, he could fly between heaven and earth simply by relying on the power of the armor itself.

"With this armor, my combat power has doubled. How can I not kill Han Qing? He stole my Eight Directions Puppet, I will definitely take it back and make him shatter to pieces!" Xiang Ying lowered his voice.

He suddenly soared upwards, transforming into a streak of light, leaping out of the volcano's crater and disappearing into the world.

In the corner, the essence of the ancient dragon's remains had completely dissipated, leaving only a pile of fine powder.

The Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit, who had remained silent all along, suddenly said in a deep voice, "Young Master, the Manglong Devouring Heaven Armor is one of the three strongest ancient battle armors. When worn, it can change size at will, is impervious to water and fire, allows one to fly and escape into the earth, and can even turn the enemy's power into one's own. Why don't you take action and snatch it? In the past few days, I have observed Xiang Ying. Although he has extraordinary martial arts talent, he is too arrogant and his temperament is average. He will hardly achieve great things in the future, nor is he a wise ruler."

Lin Motong shook his head: "This is the Grand Master's arrangement; we only need to follow his orders."

"Very well." The Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit said no more.

"Two of the three ancient battle armors have now appeared, and the other one is in the palace. It is the Imperial Dragon Armor. When worn, it will give you the power of the Heavenly Dragon and grant you amazing close combat ability."

The last one, I've heard, is in the Black Sparrow Alliance. It's called the Yuanjing Star Armor, and it can absorb the power of celestial stars to heal itself. It possesses the power of immortality. "Lin Motong said.

“Well, if you have the chance, young master, you could visit the Black Sparrow Alliance’s ancestral land. Perhaps you could obtain the third piece of the Supreme Divine Armor,” the Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit suggested.

Lin Motong shook his head: "It's not easy to enter the Black Sparrow Alliance's ancestral land. Besides, the relationship between my Mo family and the Black Sparrow Alliance is just so-so. This matter depends on fate."

As he spoke, he leaped up and stood atop the Vermilion Bird Giant Spirit's head. The latter flapped its wings and suddenly soared into the sky, creating a gust of wind and rising into the heavens. In an instant, it burst out of the volcano's crater and disappeared into the sky.

...

“Young Master Han, I am Jia Shiyi, a guard of the Black Sparrow Alliance’s ancestral land. Please come with me to meet the Supreme Elder. However, I must remind you that there are still trials along the way. To enter the ancestral land, you must have sufficient strength to gain the approval of the elders of the Black Sparrow Alliance,” Jia Shiyi said.

"A test? Fine, I'd like to see just how strong the Black Sparrow Alliance really is." Han Qing was fearless. With his current strength, he had nothing to fear, not even a leader of a Holy Land.

He led Yan Qiuling and stepped onto the small boat ahead.

Suddenly, Jia Shiyi pushed off with the pole, and the small boat slowly drifted towards the opposite bank of the river.

Reaching the middle of the river, Han Qing frowned, suddenly sensing a faint but palpable killing intent emanating from below.

"So this is the Black Sparrow Alliance's test, arranging for assassins to kill guests. Interesting!"

Han Qing made a joke, then suddenly raised his hand and slammed it onto the river beside him. The force of his palm surged, and with a boom, the river churned. The four figures could no longer hide and leaped out from within.

The four men simultaneously drew their swords and thrust them at Han Qing. Han Qing suddenly drew his blade and slashed out in all directions with incredible speed. The blade flashed like a shadow and instantly wrapped around the four longswords.

With a series of clanging sounds, the four swords shattered almost simultaneously, turning into fragments that scattered in all directions.

Han Qing didn't go all out. Since Jia Shiyi had said in advance that there would be tests later, this was just a friendly spar.

After the four men broke their swords, they fell into the river and disappeared without a trace, saying nothing more.

"Young Master Han's strength is indeed formidable. We, the Black Sparrow Alliance, revere the strong, and this test was set up to eliminate some of the weak."

"The weak are not worthy to set foot in the ancestral land of my Black Sparrow Alliance!" Jia Shiyi declared loudly, his words filled with pride.

"Is the test over already?" Han Qing asked rhetorically. It was far too easy. He had roughly assessed the strength of the four people. Any Martial Saint could pass the test, just not as easily as he had appeared.

"It's over." Jia Shiyi responded, then suddenly exerted force with his arms, accelerating the boat and swinging it rapidly toward the opposite island.

Before long, Yan Qiu had already set foot on the island.

He felt that the layout of this ancient city was quite peculiar, with islands within the city, a pattern he had never seen before.

"Young master, please come with me!!"

Jia Shiyi led Han Qing along a road ahead, and soon they arrived at the center of the island, where there stood a dark palace built of massive black stone.

The palace is surrounded by a large number of houses of varying heights, with a rather primitive architectural style, consisting of either wooden or stone houses.

Han Qing's gaze swept across the area and landed on a wooden house directly in front of him. On a flat piece of land paved with gray stone slabs, there was a long table with many fruits and snacks on it. An old man sat next to him, along with a tall figure dressed in heavy armor.

Yan Qiu's gaze was first drawn to the heavily armored figure. The armor was covered with beautiful bauhinia flower patterns, and the face was completely covered by the armor. He was holding a huge and heavy chain hammer, naturally exuding a terrifying aura like Mount Tai pressing down.

Upon seeing this person, a name immediately came to Han Qing's mind: Meng Chong, the number one martial saint of the Great Yu Dynasty, who specializes in martial arts and does not cultivate magical powers.

He had heard that the armor this person was wearing was called the Purple Thorn Divine Dragon Armor, which was also a very famous ancient armor, but it was not the most advanced and belonged to the second tier.

It was also said that Meng Chong had never taken off this armor since he was twenty years old, whether he was eating, sleeping, marching, fighting, or meeting guests. He didn't know the reason why.

When their eyes met, he saw a pair of deep and resolute eyes through the purple mask. The aura emanating from him suddenly increased several times. Han Qing was neither humble nor arrogant, and he also unleashed an aura. The two auras collided from a distance, stirring up a gust of wind on the ground.

"Ahem!"

The disheveled old man next to him coughed, and Han Qing felt a sense of unease, suppressing the outward surge of power emanating from within him.

Meng Chong was the same, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

A person's aura can reflect their strength, and just now, when the two auras clashed, Han Qing was actually on par with him. This was much more impressive than the description of Han Qing's strength in the information he had previously received.

"I am Geng Buxiu, the Supreme Elder of the Black Sparrow Alliance. Han Qing, your strength has far exceeded my expectations." The old man exhaled and spoke, playing with a bronze dagger in his hand. He had a rather unruly air about him, unlike a leader of a great holy land, but more like a rogue.

"Elder Geng's name is renowned, it's an honor to meet you!" Han Qing cupped his hands in greeting. "This must be Meng Chong, General Meng."

"Indeed, it's me. You're Han Qing, the prodigy of Shu? Your reputation has soared in recent years; I never imagined you'd possess such formidable strength. Truly impressive," Meng Chong said.

"General Meng commands 300,000 troops to guard the border, and Han Qing has the utmost respect for him," Han Qing said loudly.

Meng Chong nodded slightly. In just a few words, he expressed his extreme satisfaction with Han Qing's performance. Han Qing possessed both unparalleled genius strength and a lack of arrogance, displaying only composure, confidence, and politeness. (End of Chapter)