In his youth in Teng Qing Shan, Teng Jia Zhuang and Li Jia Zhuang sent out their best men to compete in three rounds for the right to water.

  That time, Li Jinfu of Li Family Village shocked the people of Teng Family Village. That 122-catty wolf-tooth club, that violent and brutal man, Teng Qingshan still remembers vividly to this day.

  "Teng Dutong, do you know me?" Li Jinfu was somewhat surprised. As for Teng Qing Shan, he certainly understood. Nowadays, Teng Qing Shan's reputation in the Black Armor Army is still very great. Moreover, Li Jinfu has been in the Black Armor Army for many years and has married a wife and had children. After two or three years, he would return home to visit his relatives once.

  As for the genius of the neighboring village 'Teng Qing Shan', he certainly knew.

  However, Li Jinfu did not know how the other party recognized him. He, Li Jinfu, left his hometown at the age of 18 and has been away for almost 13 or 14 years. Teng Qing Shan is only 17 years old this year. In other words, when Li Jinfu joined the Black Armor Army, Teng Qing Shan was only about four years old.

  A four-year-old child, how can he still remember him? And now he can recognize him at a glance?

  "Li Jinfu! In those days, Li's Village and my Teng's Village fought over water rights. You defeated my uncle that time. I remember it clearly." Teng Qingshan said with a smile, "I didn't expect that after so many years, we would meet again here."

  "Heng Dutong, you have a good memory, after all these years, you still remember." Li Jinfu smiled.

  More than a decade has passed and Li Jinfu is no longer that man full of wild beastly aura; he has become more stable.

  "Haha……Qingshan, you and Jinfu are actually from the same hometown!" Ji Hong laughed and said, "Jinfu is the squad leader of my personal bodyguard team, and his marksmanship is quite good. In terms of strength, he can match up to a regular centurion. Alright, let's go, you two can chat slowly later, first go inside!"

  A crowd of people swarmed towards the main hall.

  Heng Qingshan only then realized that Li Jinfu was originally the captain of Ji Hong's personal guard.

  Although it is said that there are 1500 people in one wing, a hundred people team is just a hundred people. However, among the fifteen hundred people teams, there is an elite hundred people team called "Guard Team", which is the commander's personal guard. Since it is a guard, it must be elite! The "Wu Chang" of the Guard Team is stronger than the "Wu Chang" in ordinary hundred people teams.

  ******

  In the spacious hall, more than 80 people gathered together. Ji Hong sat in the main seat, with Guan Lü and Ceng Qing Shan sitting on either side of him.

  In this hall, apart from Ji Hong, Guan Lu and Teng Qing Shan, there were only the hundred officials, the squad leaders of the Imperial Guard, and some high-ranking core disciples, a total of eight people sitting down, while everyone else stood at the sides.

  "Li Jinfu? Haha, I'm Teng Qinghu, from Tengjiazhuang." Teng Qinghu enthusiastically whispered to Li Jinfu beside him, who also seemed delighted to see his fellow countryman and chatted with him in a low voice.

  "Cough!"

  A low, muffled cough suddenly quieted the entire hall. Ji Hong's face was cold as he swept his gaze over the crowd before speaking in a chilly tone: "This time, news of the Scarlet Scale Beast's birth has spread far and wide. Coincidentally, it appeared on Flame Mountain, which is not far from Qingzhou. As a result, the warriors drawn to Flame Mountain are at least top-notch fighters from Yangzhou and Qingzhou! So... when the time comes, we will be surrounded by experts, and as disciples of the Yuan Sect, we must not be arrogant or reckless. Of course, if anyone dares to provoke us, we won't show mercy either! Did you hear that?"

  "Yes!"

  The people present responded with thunderous applause.

  "Hmm." Ji Hong nodded slightly, then looked at Tuan Qing Shan and Guan Lu, a smile appearing on his face. "Qing Shan, Guan Lu, the Sect Master has ordered us to come and seize the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, Black Fire Spirit Root, as well as the Red Scale Beast's scale armor. What are your thoughts? Let's hear them."

  Discussion of methodology and strategy is for high-level personnel.

  Ji Hong, however, clearly regarded Teng Qing Shan as a high-ranking member of this elite team. In fact, although Teng Qing Shan was a Dūtòng, his status was still one level lower than that of Ji Hong and Guan Lü's "leaders". However, Teng Qing Shan's achievement in killing Meng Tian had caused the entire Guiyuan Sect to look at him with new eyes.

  A master of "Di Bang", no longer needs a position to prove his strength.

  "Red Scale Beast's scale armor?" Teng Qing Shan looked at Ji Hong in doubt, "Commander, if the Red Scale Beast has eaten the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, it won't be easy for us to kill it."

  "Haha, Qing Shan. What the master means is that if the Red Scale Beast doesn't get to eat the Black Fire Spirit Fruit, we'll kill it and take its scale armor. If it does manage to snatch the fruit, we'll find a way to get our hands on the black scale armor it sheds during its transformation." Ji Hong explained in detail.

  Hong Qingshan nodded silently to himself.

  "Master Bo Zu!" Guan Lu finally spoke up, her voice cold, with no change in expression on her face. "When are we leaving?"

  "No rush." Ji Hong smiled and said, "According to the news, that Red Scale Young Beast is still in its growth period. At least it will take another month or so for it to mature and reach a height of over two zhang. The Black Fire Spirit Fruit will definitely ripen after the Red Scale Young Beast grows up. This is the rule, so we have at least one more month."

  This world is natural and very mysterious.

  Like the Vermilion Scaled Beast at birth, its entire body is black, and after a day it changes, growing extremely fast, reaching an astonishing size in just a few short months. After eating the 'Black Fire Spirit Fruit', its entire body turns from black to crimson red, becoming a truly formidable and terrifying demon beast that even top-notch martial artists fear.

  The Black Fire Spirit Fruit is also black when it's unripe and turns bright red after it ripens.

  Red scales beast and black fire spirit fruit are born together indeed.

  "Shibo Zu." Guan Lu said, "I think we should go early. Regardless of whether the Red Scale Beast can eat the Black Fire Spirit Fruit or not, we will get black scale armor anyway. So, I think it's best to go early and kill it before the young Red Scale Beast matures! Although the scale armor may be slightly inferior to that of a mature beast, at least we can ensure that the young Red Scale Beast cannot eat the Black Fire Spirit Fruit! Moreover, a two-zhang tall Red Scale Beast is also very difficult to deal with!"

  Ji Hong was taken aback.

  He burst out laughing: "Guan Lu, you're right! Young people's brains are indeed good. Now killing the Red Scale Beast is beneficial and has no drawbacks!"

  Teng Qing Shan looked at Guan Lü with a hint of surprise, and Guan Lü also turned to look at Teng Qing Shan, still speaking coldly: "Marshal Teng, what do you think?"

  "I agree with Guan Tongling's words." Chen Qingshan replied.

  "Everyone present, listen clearly! Tomorrow morning, we will set off for Flame Mountain! Today, everyone rest well. Black Armor soldiers, tomorrow do not wear heavy armor, as it is impossible to ride horses in Flame Mountain. No need to bring horses, no need to wear heavy armor, just wear a light inner armor."

  "Yes." The people present took their orders.

  "Everyone, withdraw." With Ji Hong's order, the group of people in the great hall immediately left, while outside, the mansion's servants led everyone to their respective residences.

  In the hall, only Zhūn Qīngshān, Jì Hóng and Guān Lǜ were left.

  "Great job!" Ji Hong's face was filled with a big smile, and he patted Qing Shan's shoulder beside him. "Qing Shan, this time you've really brought honor to our Guiyuan Sect! You killed a top-ranked 'Dì Bǎng' master, haha... Now, who outside dares to say that the younger generation of our Guiyuan Sect is incompetent? Guan Lu, you should learn from Qing Shan!"

  Guan Lü looked towards Teng Qing Shan and suddenly stood up: "Teng Qing Shan, I've heard that your marksmanship is impressive. I'd like to learn from you!"

  Teng Qing Shan stood up, and with a bitter smile, looked at Ji Hong.

  Ji Hong smiled and said, "Qing Shan, Guan Lu is one of the younger generation's top experts in our Guiyuan Sect. She cultivates the Earth-level secret manual 'Xuanbing Sword Manual'. Her strength surpasses that of Zhuge Yun and Yue Song by a notch. Why don't you spar with her? I also want to see your marksmanship."

  How can the strength of Guan Yu be inferior if he can become the leader?

  "Governor Tong, could you be around thirty years old?" Teng Qing Shan suddenly asked.

  Asking a woman's age is somewhat impolite, so Guan Lü raised an eyebrow and slightly frowned, but Ji Hong said: "Not yet thirty!"

  "General Tong, I'm not a match for you yet, this sword is blind and if it hurts someone, it won't be good. Moreover, we're about to compete for the Black Fire Spirit Fruit soon! It's better to conserve our energy." Teng Qing Shan said, Guan Lü was not even thirty years old, but his name was not on the "Feng Que Bang" list.

  Even "The List of Young Phoenix" couldn't be climbed, and Teng Qing Shan didn't have the interest to compare anymore.

  At the level of Teng Qing Shan, even if he only exerted 50-60 thousand jin of strength, someone like Zhuge Yun or Yue Song would be beneath his notice. It's only when facing someone at Meng Tian's level that Teng Qing Shan becomes interested.

  The ferocity of Xue Yue's sword, Teng Qing Shan still hasn't forgotten until now.

  Compared to his own spear technique, the difference is not great. He was able to slightly gain the upper hand against Meng Tian only because of the advantage in length of his revolving spear, and the fact that he could kill Meng Tian with one move was due to his terrifying brute strength!

  "Hengduo Tong!" Guan Lu's face turned cold.

  "General Guan will set out early tomorrow morning, so it's best to get some rest." Teng Qing Shan turned his head towards Ji Hong.

  Ji Hong understood Qing Shan's meaning and also stood up, smiling: "Guan Lu, what Qing Shan said is also right. Tomorrow we will be busy with the main event. This trial, getting injured is inevitable. Hmm, there are no other matters now, you all go rest."

  Guan Lü gave Teng Qing Shan a cold glance: "After the Black Fire Spirit Fruit matter is settled, I will properly ask for guidance on General Teng's marksmanship. Let's see what kind of tricks General Teng has!" After speaking, Guan Lü strode out of the door in large steps.

  Ji Hong glanced at Guan Lu, who was leaving, and then smiled at Teng Qing Shan: "Teng Qing Shan, you refused Guan Lu this time, it's not a good thing. Is it because she wasn't on the 'Fengchuang List' that you didn't have any interest in competing with her?" Ji Hong was indeed old and cunning, and he had seen through Teng Qing Shan's intentions at a glance.

  Teng Qing Shan looked at Ji Hong and smiled: "General, surely you won't secretly target me?"

  "This won't do." Ji Hong shook his head and then curiously asked, "Qingshan, I heard that Blood Moon sword is with you. Can you lend it to me for a closer look?"

  "No problem." Teng Qing Shan nodded.

  "Alright, take me there," Ji Hong said hastily. "Now?" Teng Qing Shan was somewhat taken aback, but still led Ji Hong to his residence and carefully showed him the 'Blood Moon Blade', a sword with quite a reputation, for this centenarian general to examine.

  （）