In this chaotic world of vying for power, I can become stronger by marrying a wife.

A black arrow, with a piercing whistle that tore through the air, arrived first despite being launched later.

"puff!"

The barbarian soldier's head exploded on the spot, like a smashed watermelon.

Murong Yan and her few remaining subordinates were stunned.

They looked in the direction the arrow had come from.

At the edge of the woods, a young soldier carrying a huge black bow on his back slowly lowered the bow, half-closing his eyes as he looked at them, a lazy, roguish smile on his lips.

"Hi." Su Ming raised his chin at her.

"You're Murong Yan? You don't seem very capable."

Murong Yan's phoenix eyes narrowed instantly, the chill even more intense than a blade.

"Which battalion are you from? Why are you acting without authorization? Who is your centurion?!"

He asked three questions in a row, his voice stern and imposing, carrying the unquestionable authority of a superior.

As the daughter of Murong Tuo, a famous general in the northern frontier, and the youngest female centurion in the army, she was used to obeying orders without question.

Even though it is now in a precarious situation, its momentum remains undiminished.

Su Ming seemed not to hear, and raised his hand to nock another arrow.

"collapse!"

The bowstring twanged again.

A black arrow whistled out and precisely pierced the throat of another barbarian soldier who was trying to ambush the scout.

"You're talking too much nonsense."

"You!" Murong Yan felt a tightness in her chest from anger, and the wound on her arm seemed to hurt even more.

She had never seen such rude soldiers!

Su Ming ignored her.

"Trying to leave?"

A cruel smile curled at the corner of Su Ming's lips.

He drew five arrows from his quiver in one go and nocked them on his bow.

"Buzz—!"

The bow is drawn to its fullest extent, and five arrows are released simultaneously!

Five streaks of black light traced five different paths through the forest, as if they had eyes, each chasing in one of the five directions.

"Puff puff puff puff puff!"

Five muffled thuds were heard almost simultaneously.

The five fleeing barbarian soldiers fell to the ground, all of them with arrows piercing their backs.

Murong Yan and her remaining four scouts were completely stunned.

One bow and five arrows, scattering in a fan shape, and yet they can accurately hit a moving target?!

What kind of sorcery is this?

Murong Yan, in particular, comes from a military family and has extremely high standards.

"I don't care who you are, or how skilled you are at archery," she said coldly. "You disobeyed orders and deserted the ranks without permission. According to military law, you should..."

"As what?" Su-Ming interrupted her, picking at his ear. "As what?"

He laughed, a laugh full of mockery.

"Then come and kill me?"

"How dare you!" a scout behind Murong Yan shouted angrily.

Su Ming's eyes instantly turned cold as he glanced at the scout.

"Squad leader! Most of the barbarian soldiers in the village have been wiped out. We have been ordered to come and provide support!"

This scene completely stunned Murong Yan and her men.

What rank?

Who is this guy who looks like a thug?

And the group of people behind him...

Murong Yan's pupils suddenly contracted.

She recognized him.

Clad in dark, close-fitting armor, exuding a calm aura and sharp eyes… this is the Personal Guard Battalion under the command of Captain Xiao Qingtian, one of the three main combat battalions of the Jing'an Army!

Of all the Jing'an Army, only Xiao Xiao's personal guards possessed this battle-hardened and elite quality!

A squad leader of a personal guard battalion?

How could this be! She knew almost all the squad leaders in the Imperial Guard Battalion, but she had never seen this person before!

Wei Lang knelt on the ground, and out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of Murong Yan, who was disheveled but still exuded a heroic aura, and was slightly taken aback.

"Centurion Murong?" He recognized her.

Murong Yan ignored Wei Lang, her gaze fixed on Su Ming, and asked, word by word, "You are the squad leader of Captain Xiao's personal guard battalion?"

"Is there a problem?" Su Ming asked back.

"Impossible!" Murong Yan said decisively, "There is no one like you under Commandant Xiao's command! Who are you? Why are you impersonating a military officer!"

She felt she had caught the other party red-handed.

He was too lazy to explain, so he took out a token from his pocket and casually tossed it over.

See for yourself.

Murong Yan caught it instinctively.

The token felt cold to the touch; it was made of black iron. The front was engraved with a menacing "Xiao" character, while the back had three smaller characters: "Personal Guard," "Squad Leader," and "Su Ming."

The edge of the token still retained the domineering aura of Xiao Qingtian's internal energy.

It can't be faked.

Murong Yan's expression instantly became incredibly interesting.

It turns from green to white, and from white to red.

it is true!

He really is the newly appointed squad leader of Captain Xiao's personal guard!

[Ding! New Bond Character: Murong Yan has been unlocked!]

[Current favorability: -20 (Extreme disgust)!]

[A strong conflict has been detected between the host and the character with whom the bond exists. The first step of the hidden quest chain "Conquering the Iceberg" has been activated: Shut her up.]

[Task Reward: ???]

Upon hearing the system notification, Su Ming's smile widened.

Jing'an Army Camp.

When Su Ming and his group of thirty-one riders appeared in front of the camp gate, the guards on the gate instantly tensed up.

That murderous aura, almost solidified, could be felt even from a hundred paces away.

"Who goes there! State your name!" the captain of the guard shouted sternly, his hand already on the hilt of his sword.

Wei Lang spurred his horse forward, flashing his token: "Squad Leader Su Ming of the Captain's Personal Guard Battalion, returned from suppressing bandits!"

Royal Guard Battalion?

The captain of the guards was taken aback. When his gaze passed over Wei Lang and fell upon the thirty black-armored soldiers behind him, who looked as if they had been pulled from a pool of blood, his heart trembled even more.

Was this some kind of bandit suppression operation? People would believe it if you said they massacred an entire city!

"Open the door!"

The camp gate slowly opened.

Su Ming took the lead and silently drove into the camp with his men.

Wherever they went, everyone instinctively made way, their eyes filled with suspicion as they watched this menacing group.

"What happened? Isn't this Captain Xiao's personal guard battalion? How did it get like this?"

"My God, what do they smell like? How many people did they kill?"

"I heard... they went to wipe out a barbarian cavalry force of three hundred men..."

Three hundred people? Just those thirty? Are you kidding me!

Amidst the discussions, Su-Ming's team had already arrived at the Imperial Guard Battalion's encampment.

A burly figure was already waiting there.

It was Captain Xiao Qingtian.

His gaze was as sharp as a hawk's, instantly sweeping over Su Ming's team.

Thirty-one people, not one missing.

He nodded, his face revealing neither joy nor anger.

"Mission complete?" His voice was deep and powerful.

Su-Ming dismounted, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Reporting to the Commandant, all three hundred Northern Barbarian cavalrymen have been executed."

"Leave no one alive."

A glint of light flashed in Xiao Qingtian's eyes.

He knew Su Ming was strong, but he didn't expect him to be this strong.

Thirty men against three hundred elite cavalry, with no casualties, were completely annihilated.

This is no longer a record, this is a legend.

"Very good." Xiao Qingtian uttered two words, his gaze falling on Wei Lang and the others behind Su Ming.

He noticed that the proud and fierce soldiers he had personally selected were now looking at Su Ming with eyes filled with almost blind worship and awe.

His heart skipped a beat.

This kid can not only kill, but also calm people down!

Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from behind.

Murong Yan arrived with her four disheveled scouts.

As soon as she saw Xiao Qingtian, she immediately dismounted, knelt on one knee, and spoke in a hoarse and urgent voice.

"Captain Xiao! I have urgent news to report! Your personal guard sergeant, Su Ming, he...he..."

For a moment, she didn't know how to organize her thoughts.

Should we accuse him of disregarding military law, or should we accuse him of being cruel and inhumane for illegally building a mound of skulls?

Xiao Qingtian frowned and looked at Su Ming.

Su Ming didn't even lift his eyelids, but simply spoke in a calm tone.

"Wei Lang".

"exist!"

"Let the captain inspect the goods."

"Yes, sir!"

Wei Lang turned around and waved his hand sharply towards the back of the group.

Two guards pushed a cart that had been following at the back of the procession up.

The vehicle was covered with a huge tarpaulin.

When Wei Lang yanked open the rainproof tarpaulin—

"Splash!"

Countless unseeing heads, mixed with congealed black blood, rolled off the cart and piled up into a small mountain at Xiao Qingtian and Murong Yan's feet.

The intense stench of blood and death instantly ignited the entire arena.

Murong Yan's scream was stuck in her throat.

Xiao Qingtian looked at the mountain of heads, and at Su Ming, who stood in front of the pile of heads, his expression indifferent as if he were looking at a pile of rotten watermelons.

He was silent for a moment.

Then, he laughed loudly, looking up at the sky.

"Haha, good! Good! Good!"

"What a shrewd Su Ming! What a magnificent mound of skulls!"

He patted Su Ming's shoulder suddenly, his eyes blazing with unprecedented admiration and fervor.

"I knew I hadn't misjudged you!"