Chapter 11: Dare to Climb to the Blue Sky?

  At dawn, the red sunrise spilled across the entire campus, looking full of life. However, the thousands of Tiger Leopard soldiers seemed like a cold and dark abyss, making the whole campus feel desolate.

  Tang An walked on the school grounds, feeling the aura of over a thousand tigers and leopards, only to feel as if his chest was being pressed down by a massive boulder. He subtly adjusted his breathing after circulating his Qi, before returning to normal.

  "These over a thousand Tigers and Leopards, if any one of them were to be pulled out alone, I would have the confidence to defeat. But with these thousand people together, they formed a single rope, their spirit and energy seemingly merged as one, even from a distance, just in terms of momentum, completely suppressing me, making it impossible for me to muster up the will to fight. The combined attack tactics of the military are indeed formidable, completely different from ordinary Jianghu people! If those over a hundred Shu Mountain disciples were replaced with over a hundred Tigers and Leopards soldiers, even if their individual strength was similar, I would definitely be the one to lose."

  Tang An remained silent and followed the crowd, walking towards the school field. Over ten thousand people surged into the school field, with yellow sand filling the air behind them, and banners fluttering in the wind.

  As the crowd of over 10,000 people entered, more than a thousand Tiger and Leopard Warriors turned their heads to look at them. Their eyes were filled with confidence, as well as provocation towards these outsiders. They were all seasoned veterans, proud warriors who had returned from the borders, and naturally they looked down on these newcomers in front of them as tender shoots.

  "Haha......"

  A burst of loud laughter suddenly came from the thousands of tiger and leopard soldiers, Tang An followed the sound to look over, only to see in the distant training grounds, three robust men wearing black cloaks riding horses side by side, under the scorching sun on this summer day, they had achieved inner strength and didn't feel any heat.

  They were the three thousand men of the Tiger and Leopard Brigade, but now they had suffered heavy losses, with only 300 brave warriors left under each of their commands. The one who let out this loud laugh was a burly man who looked the most rugged among them. This big man had a tiger's back and bear's waist, with a square face and sharp facial features, a thick beard on his chin, but his eyes were an emerald green - he was actually a mixed-blood! However, in the border regions, it was not unusual for barbarians and foreigners to intermarry, so having mixed-blood children was not surprising.

  "Second Brother, I heard that this martial recruitment includes three of the world's top swordsmen?" The blue-eyed giant spoke up from a distance. "My men were ambushing Righteous King You's route and clashed with his Blood Drinker Guards, killing six hundred men. Even if these three top swordsmen were all mine, I still wouldn't have enough under me."

  The other thousand-year-old general on his right side coldly said with a face that had not changed for thousands of years, "Boss, this time it's not just your subordinates who suffered heavy losses. Speaking of which, I have lost seven hundred men. Even if we are to divide the spoils, you should give me priority first. Don't forget, those three hundred Blood Drinking Blade Guards, I alone took down half of them!"

  That blue-eyed big man suddenly couldn't speak, and only emphasized: "I can give up the other two, I just want that sword Tang An! I, Luo Hu, am known as the [Great Desert Crazy Knife], but this person is even crazier than me, killing over a hundred people with one sword. Good fellow, I, Luo Mou, admire him extremely, and must bring him under my command! You are not allowed to compete with me for him!"

  The cold-faced man nodded, but the thousand-year-old general on Luo Hu's left side hurriedly shouted: "No! Boss, you're cheating, and second boss, you can't agree! This time, Ming Xiao and Xie Shi Yi are just here to meet with the heroes of the world, not really wanting to join my Tiger Leopard Army. Now, there is only one person, Tianjian Tang An. I heard from Yuan Tongling that Tianjian Tang An seems to have a great feud with Shu Mountain and also has connections with Yangzhou Jun Tian Jiao. Our next goal isn't these two major sects? I guess he must join my Tiger Leopard Army. Otherwise, how can he alone resist these two major sects?"

  The eldest was hit right in the heart, his face turned awkward, and he could only laugh embarrassingly. The second elder's face turned even colder after hearing this, and he stopped talking as well. The third elder took off the windproof hat on his head, revealing a metal mask underneath.

  The stage is set, and over 10,000 people have been divided into ten groups to participate in the preliminary rounds. The content of the preliminary rounds includes internal skills, archery, horsemanship, and past experiences. As for Tang An, Ming Xiao, Xie Shi Yi, and dozens of other renowned masters, they do not need to go through these rounds and will directly enter the final showdown.

  This is to select the military generals for the army. This time, 20 hundred-man commanders were lost in the Tiger and Leopard Army. The martial arts competition will also produce the strongest 20 people, who will take on the position of hundred-man commander. If the soldiers of the Tiger and Leopard Army are confident, they can participate voluntarily. Of course, this hundred-man commander is only temporary. Military positions not only look at personal bravery but also military achievements. If the masters who come out of this martial arts competition have no achievements in half a year, and their subordinates do not obey them, they can be reported to the thousand-man commander for judgment.

  Three thousand husbands, led by the eldest, Luo Hu, marched onto the school grounds. Luo Hu was as fierce as a tiger, with an extremely robust physique, and carried a Qinglong knife across his horseback, its blade emitting a cold glow.

  Lao Er's face was cold as frost, his body lean and agile, skilled in wielding the yin-yang twin blades.

  Lao San's origins are shrouded in mystery, his name unknown. He wears a metal mask every day and is skilled with a curved bow. One arrow can decide life or death! He is the greatest archer in the Tiger Leopard Army! If we talk about speed of killing on the battlefield, even Luo Hu and Leng Wuji combined cannot compare to him. The entire Tiger Leopard Army addresses him as "Master Wú Cháng". Black and white, Master Wú Cháng's arrow can capture a person's soul!

  The three thousand husbands entered the crowd one by one and soon dispersed. They each had their own people they were interested in.

  Lao Da Luo Hu went to find Tang An, Lao Er Leng Wu Ji went to find Xie Shi Yi, and Lao San Wu Chang went towards Ming Xiao instead.

  Tang An saw a man with a leading appearance walking towards him, and heard the soldier next to him shouting "Lord Luo", his heart skipped a beat, and he began to size him up. "The Tiger and Leopard Army, the highest position is the Grand Marshal Yuan Wanli, followed by the three Thousand-Man Commanders. Yuan Wanli is a strong man in the Heavenly Realm, I naturally can't compare to him. But I don't know, how does the actual strength of Luo Hu San Ren compare to mine?"

  Tang An dared not be arrogant, after all, the nine states were full of masters. He had seen famous Xia and Xie Shiyu, who were no worse than him, and these masters who had killed their way out of piles of corpses must have had their own methods! In the midst of life and death battles, they gained profound insights, and it was easy for them to comprehend the boundaries and enter the realm of heaven. What methods they had, it was really hard to say.

  Just then, someone suddenly shouted "Tang An" and Tang An turned his head to see a burly man with a curly beard. The man's face looked somewhat familiar, but for the time being, Tang An couldn't recall who he was.

  "Tang Shaoye, I, Li Yong, have come to pay my respects. On that day at the Tiger and Leopard Regiment's enlistment office, Tang Shaoye saved my life, a debt I can never repay. If I am lucky enough to join the Tiger and Leopard Army this time, I am willing to serve as Tang Shaoye's vanguard! Is Tang Shaoye willing to accept me as his subordinate?" As soon as he finished speaking, the burly man with a thick beard knelt down on one knee, clasped his fists, and begged Tang An to agree.

  Tang An suddenly remembered that he was the unlucky guy who was almost killed by Wang Feng on that day. Tang An looked at Li Yong's sincere appearance, and was somewhat caught off guard. He had never encountered such a thing before.

  The young man bowed his head and worshipped, which seemed like a very absurd thing. However, at this moment, others who heard that the young man in front of them was actually "Tianjian Tang An", the famous figure in the capital recently, were shocked and then suddenly understood.

  At this moment, Luo Hu finally saw Tang An. In his eyes, he was a young and reckless teenager, probably only fifteen or sixteen years old. Yet at this age, he already had the title of Tianjian (Heavenly Sword), whereas when he himself was that age, he was still struggling to fill his empty stomach.

  Tang An looked at Li Yong and shook his head, saying: "The path I'm going to take isn't suitable for you. If you just want to find someone to protect you for the rest of your life, perhaps you should look for Ming Xiao instead. He's a good person, but I'm not."

  Lu Hu heard Tang An's words and burst out laughing: "Well said!" Then, Lu Hu took another look at the treasure sword in Tang An's hand and asked with feigned ignorance: "Brother Tang, is that sword of yours Frost Condensation?"

  Tang An nodded: "Not bad. It's Frozen Frost."

  Lu Hu's face revealed a smile, and he asked loudly: "Frost condenses into snow, dare you ascend to the blue sky?"

  This loud and bold declaration made Tang An's heart skip a beat. The "heavenly intention" in Luo Hu's words was a metaphor for the realm of high-level cultivators. This question was asking whether he had the confidence to enter the heavenly realm.

  Tang An replied in a low voice: "On June 6th, if you don't ascend to heaven, then you'll fall into hell!"

  Lu Hu's pupils suddenly contracted violently, and his heart also started racing wildly. He suddenly remembered the rumor he had heard that morning.

  "Red Broadsword King Ruitu, on June 6th, outside the capital city of Yanjing, I challenge Tianjian Tang An to a duel, for the sake of avenging my son!"

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