Protect Our Patriarch
Chapter 48: Create! The Strongest Militia in History

...

With Wang Anye's loud announcement, the recruitment event for the [Changning Wang's Clan Militia Regiment] officially began.

Wang Anye didn't need to personally oversee the specific recruitment process; he just needed to preside over it from the high platform. The detailed matters were naturally handled by other clan members, managers, and family guards of the Wang's Clan.

Since the procedures were pre-arranged and rehearsed, everything was handled in an orderly manner without any chaos.

The recruitment news had been released early on, and by now, a dense crowd had gathered outside the recruitment point's fence, creating a spectacular scene.

If it weren't for the large square in the center of Xinping Town, it might have been too crowded to accommodate everyone.

Thanks to the immense prestige the Wang's Clan had accumulated over the years in Changning Garrison, the crowd on the square, though large, remained orderly. Many young people eager to participate in the preliminary selection, along with their elders who accompanied them, stood in place, chatting idly while nervously and excitedly waiting for the selection to begin.

If Wang Shouzhe were here to witness this scene, he would likely be filled with emotion.

Because the atmosphere was strikingly similar to the scenes from his previous life, where parents sent their children to take the college entrance examination.

The same tension, excitement, anxiety, and anticipation.

For many of them, this day might be a turning point in their lives.

In the crowd, a middle-aged man dressed in a tight outfit, holding a sword, was calmly instructing a group of juniors behind him on what to pay attention to once they entered.

His appearance showed signs of aging, with a face marked by the ravages of time, but his back remained straight like a sheathed sword, exuding a restrained sharpness that commanded respect.

This middle-aged man was Wang Zhong, an old family guard of the Wang's Clan.

Back when Wang Shouzhe first became the clan head, Wang Zhong often accompanied him, making him one of Wang Shouzhe's trusted family guards. The most prestigious family guard, Wang Mei, was recommended to Wang Shouzhe by him.

A hundred and fifty years had passed, and the once young family guard had become a venerable figure over 180 years old, with his strength reaching the Celestial Realm, and a large number of descendants.

Now, surrounding him were young people aged fifteen to thirty-five from his descendants, all looking spirited, numbering around twenty to thirty.

They stood with their heads bowed, obediently listening to the elder's instructions, nodding after each sentence, their eyes filled with reverence and admiration.

As they were speaking, a familiar voice called out from the side.

"Brother Zhong?"

Wang Zhong turned his head to see another middle-aged man, slightly younger in appearance, walking towards him from the crowd.

This man was also dressed in a tight outfit, holding a sword. Although his appearance was different, his aura was similar to Wang Zhong's, both exuding a sense of killing intent.

Behind this middle-aged man was also a group of juniors, roughly seventeen or eighteen in number.

Such a large group moving together was quite imposing, causing the surrounding crowd to unconsciously give way, creating space for them.

"Brother Yong, it's you~ It has indeed been a long time." Wang Zhong smiled as he saw him, a smile breaking the seriousness of his face.

This middle-aged man was Wang Yong, another old family guard of the Changning Wang's Clan.

"Since you were transferred to the Northwest Five Garrisons, this is the first time we've met, right?" Wang Zhong laughed, patting Wang Yong on the shoulder. "Your aura doesn't seem much weaker than mine. You should be close to the second level of the Celestial Realm, right?"

"Brother Zhong, you have a keen eye." Wang Yong laughed. "I'm already at the peak of the first level of the Celestial Realm. If it weren't for the recruitment coinciding, I'd be in seclusion preparing for a breakthrough. Honestly, a hundred years ago, I wouldn't have dared to dream of reaching this point."

"Indeed~ At our age, if it weren't for Master Wang Shouzhe's foresight, leading the clan to soar, we might have been in the ground for over a hundred years by now~~"

Wang Yong was only slightly younger than Wang Zhong and had also followed Wang Shouzhe around back in the day.

They had witnessed firsthand how the Wang's Clan grew from a ninth-grade clan to its current stature, even participating in many events.

However, as the Wang's Clan's enterprises grew, requiring more places to be overseen, these old family guards were naturally assigned to different locations, reducing their chances to meet.

Now, it was a rare occasion for old comrades to reunite, and they were filled with emotion.

As they spoke, other old family guards noticed them and brought their juniors over to greet them.

"Ah Wu, Xiao An, Xiao Qiang, you're here too."

Wang Zhong greeted them one by one, engaging in lively conversation.

When Wang Shouzhe took over as clan head, the Wang's Clan had few members, with only nine adult family guards remaining. Wang Wu, Wang An, and Wang Qiang had followed Wang Shouzhe since then, with Wang Qiang being one of the few female family guards.

Later, three of the original nine passed away due to old age, leaving only six alive. Apart from Wang Mei, who had no descendants, the remaining five were all present.

Of course, the three deceased old family guards left behind many descendants, who were now considered old family guards with significant status in the Wang's Clan, and most of them were present today.

These family guards and their ancestors had dedicated their lives to the Wang's Clan.

Now, these surviving old family guards held high status in the Wang's Clan, with even some direct descendants addressing them respectfully as "Old Zhong," "Old Yong," and so on.

Their descendants had also integrated into the Wang's Clan's family guard system, continuing to contribute to the clan's various enterprises.

Besides these old family guards, other familiar faces gathered spontaneously, sharing the excitement and anxiety of sending their children to participate in the preliminary selection.

Among them were many emerging clans that had risen in the past century, such as the descendants of Ouyang Junyan, now the eighth-grade Xin'an Ouyang Clan, and the Xinping Dongfang Clan, which had started as traveling merchants and were now also an eighth-grade clan.

Additionally, there were individuals like Sun Xiaole, who had graduated from the Wang's Clan School and were now mid-level cadres in the Wang's Group, bringing their outstanding descendants along.

However, compared to the old family guards, the number of young people with them was much smaller.

There were also families like Zhuge Liangcai's, where only one member qualified for the selection, and such families were not uncommon.

The Wang's Clan's efforts to develop the local economy over the years had led to increased income for the local populace, resulting in the emergence of many new families like mushrooms after rain.

If someone were to conduct a detailed survey, they would find that the overall quality, cultivation level, education level, and personal abilities of the young people born in Changning Garrison in the past century were steadily improving.

Given time, the era of universal cultivation envisioned by Wang Shouzhe might truly come to pass.

But that's a story for another time.

Currently, the young people about to participate in the preliminary selection were excitedly chatting, sharing the rumors they had gathered.

The countless voices merged into a torrent, filling the entire square with a buzzing sound.

Amidst the noisy chatter, the fence at the recruitment point finally opened.

The crowd, which had been waiting for a long time, immediately surged into the fence. The scene was as spectacular as a floodgate opening.

After about half an hour of jostling, all the young people participating in the preliminary selection had "flowed" into the fenced area.

Outside the fence, only the parents who had come to "send off" their children remained, significantly reducing the crowd and making it less crowded.

At this time, on the high platform in the center of the square, a valiant female general was already standing with a group of family guards.

The leading female general wore a silver light armor, with a bright red cloak fluttering in the wind, her appearance cold and her aura fierce.

She didn't do much, just stood there with her hand on the sword hilt, and the overwhelming presence of a mid-stage Celestial Realm expert spread out, creating an incredibly strong aura.

The young people entering the venue were intimidated and fell silent before even getting close.

This female general was Zhou Qingning, the wife of Wang Shoulian, the sixth of the "Shou" generation.

Born into a military family, she had learned from her father since childhood. Although she hadn't mastered any advanced strategies, she had a good understanding of military training.

After marrying into the Wang's Clan, she resigned from her military position according to family rules, but she didn't remain idle. Instead, she began participating in the training of the Wang's Clan's family guards and soldiers. Thanks to her outstanding performance, the discipline and combat capabilities of the Wang's Clan's family guards and soldiers had significantly improved over the years.

Now that the militia regiment was established, Wang Shouzhe appointed her as the "chief instructor" for training the first batch of new recruits.

Naturally, she was in charge of this preliminary selection.

Seeing that everyone had arrived, she announced the specific projects and rules of the preliminary selection with a stern face.

Under her arrangement, the Wang's Clan family guards, who also served as "instructors," quickly divided the young participants into groups, selecting them based on their qualifications and age.

Thus, the first round of selection for the "Changning Wang's Clan Militia Regiment" began in an orderly manner.

...

Meanwhile

In Shouzhe's Small Courtyard, the scenery remained enchanting.

However, this blooming courtyard was just the tip of the iceberg of Wang Shouzhe's private garden.

The small portable cave mansion acquired from the Shenwu Royal Dynasty's new recruit training camp was temporarily placed in a corner of the study, allowing for easy access to the space portal, serving as a private space for Shouzhe.

However, this portable cave mansion was relatively small, functioning as a semi-fixed, semi-mobile private villa. Although it could grow some spiritual herbs and rice, its limited environment didn't yield much value.

The Jiangshan Map obtained from the Blood Venerable's relic, on the other hand, had several hundred acres of top-quality Yao soil spiritual farmland, now serving as the background in Wang Shouzhe's study, allowing for easy access.

The top-quality spiritual farmland was incredibly valuable, capable of producing top-quality spiritual rice, which contained immense energy and could significantly replenish a cultivator's qi and blood.

For a Purple Mansion Realm cultivator to consume rice cooked from top-quality spiritual rice was an extravagant act, greatly increasing qi and blood, aiding in faster cultivation.

For Wang Shouzhe, his staple food was top-quality spiritual rice.

By maintaining three meals a day, consuming only a few pounds of rice cooked from top-quality spiritual rice each meal, along with some fifth or sixth-grade spiritual meat and vegetables, he had enough qi and blood to support rapid cultivation, without needing to consume large quantities of low-grade spiritual rice and meat like a glutton.

Meanwhile, Wang Shouzhe also consumed a fourth-grade spirit pill called [Great Soul Nourishing Pill], which was highly effective in strengthening and solidifying the soul, an enhanced version of the regular [Soul Nourishing Pill].

However, this pill was expensive, with each one costing thirty to forty thousand Qian gold, equivalent to a fourth-grade [Tianling Dan]. Typically, only late-stage Purple Mansion Realm cultivators with the potential to reach the Divine Realm would use it.

Back when the Wang's Clan was still weak, Wang Shouzhe was overjoyed to acquire two [Tianling Dan] through a series of plans and Wang Mei's efforts.

But now, Wang Shouzhe could consume a Great Soul Nourishing Pill every eight days, totaling over forty pills a year. The annual expenditure on pills alone amounted to over a million Qian gold.

Combined with the cost of top-quality spiritual rice, fifth and sixth-grade spiritual meat and fish as staple foods, the total expenditure was over two million Qian gold annually, nearly equating to a daily expense of ten thousand Qian gold.

Most Divine Realm cultivators in the world couldn't match Wang Shouzhe's level of daily expenditure.

This massive expenditure contributed to Wang Shouzhe's rapid cultivation speed in the early stage of the Purple Mansion Realm, steadily progressing towards the mid-stage.

However, the several hundred acres of top-quality spiritual farmland in the Jiangshan Map were not much for the entire Wang's Clan.

Through the development of outer regions and extraction of spiritual veins, the Wang's Clan had integrated spiritual farmland, now possessing 3,600 acres of top-quality spiritual farmland of various attributes, totaling 4,000 acres with the addition of these several hundred acres.

Most of it was planted with long-term profit spiritual herbs, while the remaining portion was used to grow various top-quality spiritual rice.

The mention of top-quality spiritual rice was due to its strong strategic significance, serving as a high-quality staple food for Divine Realm cultivators, enhancing their cultivation speed.

However, if a Void Realm cultivator still consumed top-quality spiritual rice, they would be considered a poor Void Realm cultivator, as it only maintained their body's massive qi and blood consumption.

To improve in the Void Realm, one needed to consume holy-grade spiritual rice and seventh or eighth-grade meat long-term, ideally eating celestial-grade spiritual rice for significant benefits.

Yet, the royal family and sacred lands only had ten acres of holy-grade spiritual farmland each, insufficient to meet the consumption needs of Emperor Longchang or Jiang Zhencang, and they were too poor, needing to exchange some holy-grade spiritual rice for scarce resources from the Celestial Dynasty.

Therefore, most of the time, they lived in poverty, consuming top-quality spiritual rice, occasionally tasting holy-grade spiritual rice.

Why did Emperor Longchang linger at the Wang's Clan?

Besides the favorable conditions, it was mainly because the Five Elements Gathering Spirit Array, with Wang Lixian at its core, nurtured several hundred acres of holy-grade spiritual farmland and twenty acres of celestial-grade spiritual farmland.

Eating holy-grade spiritual rice every now and then, and celestial-grade spiritual rice during festivals, was a heavenly lifestyle, and even if forced to leave, he wouldn't.

The Jiangshan Map.

It had become one of Wang Shouzhe's experimental fields. After becoming a peerless expert and advancing to the Purple Mansion Realm, his bloodline reached the seventh stage, and he inherited the [Green Emperor's True Art].

The Green Emperor's True Art, in Wang Shouzhe's hands, exceeded expectations, proving highly efficient in cultivating top-quality spiritual grains on a small scale.

By focusing the cultivation range within one acre of top-quality spiritual farmland, he could shorten the growth period of [Top-Quality Yao Crystal Rice] from a year to just a few days, reducing the growth time by about a hundredfold.

If Wang Lixian assisted him, the growth speed could be halved again.

With this ability alone, Wang Shouzhe possessed strong production capabilities, capable of earning tens of millions of Qian gold annually from the several hundred acres of top-quality spiritual farmland in the Jiangshan Map.

However, as the head of the Wang's Clan, Shouzhe couldn't spend all his time farming in the Jiangshan Map. Thus, the greatest use of the several hundred acres of top-quality spiritual farmland was cultivating and evolving spiritual plants.

Wang Shouzhe's vast divine sense enveloped an acre of mature top-quality Yao Crystal Rice plants. Among them were 713 plants, each about seven feet tall, with soil-colored spheres the size of a baby's fist growing on them.

These spheres were the husks of Yao Crystal Rice, with ten to thirteen grains of Yao Crystal Rice seeds growing beneath each husk.

Typically, this acre of top-quality spiritual farmland could produce about 300 pounds of Yao Crystal Rice, enough to feed Wang Shouzhe for a month. However, Wang Shouzhe didn't grow these top-quality Yao Crystal Rice for consumption.

Under the influence of his divine ability [Evolution], at least ten percent of the Yao Crystal Rice plants underwent some unpredictable mutation, with a much higher probability than natural mutation.

However, not every mutation was beneficial.

Some plants became sturdier, but the Yao Crystal Rice grains were smaller. Some plants became slender, as if they would topple with a gust of wind, indicating degenerative mutations.

Yet, there were some beneficial mutations, such as a plant producing larger Yao Crystal Rice grains, which could be cultivated into a relatively high-yield grain variety.

The problem was that even if a high-yield grain variety was cultivated, it could only be planted internally and couldn't be widely promoted, as buyers could save seeds after purchasing once.

Any grain variety sold externally had to be sterile in the second generation, or the effort would be wasted.

Wang Shouzhe's family was small, with many clan members to support, and he hadn't reached the point of sacrificing family interests for the world.

His current goal was to prioritize finding a grain variety with controllable second-generation sterility.

Unfortunately, he failed again this time.

Wang Shouzhe collected some promising varieties and seeds from other plants, preparing for the next experiment.

No matter, he had plenty of time to experiment slowly, as the main battlefield didn't yet require top-quality spiritual rice.

In both the Great Qian and other countries, as well as the high and mighty Celestial Dynasty and Demon Dynasty, the most produced were still ordinary rice and low-grade spiritual rice.

The future of the Wang's Clan and even the entire Great Qian lay in these two main battlefields, crucial for the Wang's Clan's rise and the Great Qian's future.

As for the ongoing [war], it was merely an insignificant episode for Wang Shouzhe.

Wang Shouzhe leisurely emerged from the Jiangshan Map, brewed a pot of tea, and took a nap in the afternoon sun. His long life and extended years had taught him to enjoy a slow pace.

Today was a rare occasion, as Emperor Longchang had gone to form a militia regiment with Anye, sparing him from the noisy card games.

After a brief rest.

The voice of the Spirit Artifact Xue'er sounded in his ear: "Master, Wang Gui requests an audience. Would you like to see him?"

"Wang Gui?"

Wang Shouzhe was momentarily lost in thought, then waved his hand, saying, "That old fellow hasn't visited me in over a decade. Let him in."

"Yes, Master."

As Xue'er's voice faded away, Wang Gui soon entered with a sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy, who bore a slight resemblance to Wang Gui in his youth.

"Master... it's been a long time."

Wang Gui, now with white hair and showing signs of aging, approached excitedly to pay his respects, tears welling up in his eyes, as if choked with emotion.

The young servant who once served by Shouzhe's side had, under Wang Shouzhe's care and the benefits of the Wang's Clan's rapid development, gained the potential of a minor prodigy, barely having a chance to reach the Celestial Realm.

However, his comprehension and talent were not strong, and whether he could reach the next step remained uncertain.

"You rascal." Wang Shouzhe teased with a smile, "It's been over a decade, why haven't you come to see me?"

"Master." Wang Gui wiped away his tears, grinning cheekily, "You're a big shot now, with precious time. How could a humble servant like me dare to disturb you without an important matter?"

Wang Shouzhe glanced at the nervous young man behind him and smiled lightly, "In that case, Wang Gui, you must have a reason for visiting today. Sit down, have some tea, and tell me what's going on."

Shouzhe was a sentimental person, and Wang Gui had served him as a young servant for many years. Though he had no major achievements, he had diligently worked for the Wang's Clan for over a century, now considered a senior figure.

"Yes, Master. By the way, don't bother brewing tea, let's not waste it." Wang Gui, thick-skinned as ever, sat down and stopped the maid from brewing tea, skillfully packing the leftover tea leaves from Shouzhe's pot, scraping the bottom clean.

"You're still as shameless as ever." Wang Shouzhe sighed, patting his forehead. This rascal had always been thick-skinned. In his youth, he often took the leftover spiritual tea leaves to brew tea and cook rice.

But he was clever too. What level of tea did Wang Shouzhe drink? It was celestial tea that even the Emperor would shamelessly beg for. Even the leftover tea leaves were treasures.

"You're my master, Wang Gui, what do I have to be ashamed of in front of you?" Wang Gui grinned cheekily, "These are priceless treasures, brewing tea and cooking rice with them can prolong life."

"Alright, tell me why you came to see me this time." Wang Shouzhe didn't mind giving him some new celestial tea, but Wang Gui was always tactful and wouldn't accept it.

"Master, this is my great-grandson, Wang Xiaofu. At seven, he was tested with innate qualifications of lower-grade B. After selling everything I had to improve his bloodline, he's now middle-grade B." Wang Gui spoke with excitement and hope when mentioning his great-grandson.

"Oh? That's not bad." Wang Shouzhe said, "How's he doing in the Clan School?"

With a nudge from Wang Gui, Wang Xiaofu hurriedly stepped forward and bowed, "Xiaofu greets the Master. I was once classmates with Young Master Ningxi, but he was so outstanding that he quickly skipped grades. However, Xiaofu is now in the intermediate education course of the Clan School, ranking around fifteenth in the class."

"That's quite good." Wang Shouzhe appraised him, then congratulated Wang Gui, "You've done well, raising an excellent talent for the Wang's Clan."

Wang Xiaofu's qualifications weren't bad, and his academic performance was even better. Don't think ranking fifteenth in the class was easy; the competition within the Wang's Clan School was intense, and graduating smoothly was considered a talented achievement.

Not everyone in the world was a peerless genius like Wang Ningxi. Reaching Wang Xiaofu's level, he was already a young man with great potential outside.

"All thanks to the Master's nurturing." Wang Gui beamed with joy, hesitating for a moment before expressing his dilemma, "Coincidentally, the Wang's Clan is recruiting, and I want to secure a position for Xiaofu."

"Recruiting? This child's qualifications and education are good; he can apply on his own." Wang Shouzhe said.

"Master, you don't know how fierce the competition is now." Wang Gui explained, "I heard that the newly formed militia regiment has only thirty-nine positions for major team leaders, including deputy team leaders, totaling seventy-eight."

"We don't expect to compete for the thirteen battalion commanders and thirteen deputy commanders, but I hope the Master can help Xiaofu secure a major team leader position."

"The requirements for a deputy team leader seem to be the potential to reach the ordinary prodigy bloodline, right?" Wang Shouzhe pondered, "As for the major team leader, the potential should be at least a prodigy C. Wang Gui, you don't need to pull strings; you can let Xiaofu apply for the major team leader position. If he passes, his potential should be around prodigy C."

Wang Shouzhe valued the first regiment highly, collaborating with the Sacred Land's Alchemy Peak to acquire some Wuji Baodan, Xisui Dan, and a batch of Marrying Blood Gu from the Blood Venerable's relic.

He aimed to create a regiment comparable to the regular troops of the Shenwu Royal Dynasty.

The competition for major team leader, deputy team leader, and commander positions would be fierce, as once selected, Wang Shouzhe would invest a massive amount of resources into them.

As for the designation, it didn't matter.

A militia regiment was fine; strength was the foundation of everything.

Just as Wang Gui was about to speak, the cheerful voice of his brother-in-law Chen Fangjie came from outside Shouzhe's small courtyard: "Shouzhe, is Shouzhe home? Your brother-in-law is here to pull some strings. Thirteen battalion commanders, two for your brother-in-law shouldn't be a problem, right? They're all your sister's descendants, your nephews."

As Chen Fangjie's voice fell, another deep voice sounded: "Fangjie, you're here to pull strings with Shouzhe too?"

"Ancestor Mang! And Master Yan... you came too?"

Ancestor Mang chuckled, "The first militia regiment in history, how could my Gongsun Clan fall behind? Shouzhe, you must give me face, or I'll go to your madam."

"Today is quite lively." Lu Xiaoxiao's sweet voice chimed in, "Cousin Shouzhe, our Lu Clan also wants two commander positions."

"Brother-in-law, my dear brother-in-law, good brother-in-law... is everyone here?" Liu Yuanhui's voice echoed, "I'm here to visit my dear sister Liu Ruolan, and our Liu Clan doesn't ask for much, just two commander positions."

Wang Shouzhe couldn't help but slap his forehead. He never expected these in-law families to be so enthusiastic about a small militia regiment, all coming to pull strings.

...

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