Chapter 52

Chen Lie had just been transferred to the Yulong Camp for a couple of days, and the military affairs were busy. He came to the Huanglong Gorge to familiarize himself with the defense situation of Yulong Mountain. He originally planned to visit his nephew, Chen Hai, at the South Heaven Gate Fort, but now he didn't need to go there. However, he could only stay overnight at the North Heaven Gate Fort.

The mountains were harsh, and the military situation was extremely tense. After the evening banquet, Chen Lie called Chen Hai to the courtyard where he was staying to talk.

The North Heaven Gate Fort had not been expanded and was relatively small. Chen Lie brought over a hundred guards into the mountains, all of whom were accommodated in the North Heaven Gate Fort, making the living quarters very crowded. There was nothing that could be done about it.

Although Chen Hai had usurped the identity of Yao Xing and forcibly changed his name to be included in the Chen clan's genealogy, he could genuinely feel Chen Lie's affection for him.

In the courtyard, besides Chen Zhang and Chen Qing, there were also a dozen or so of Chen Lie's most trusted subordinates and Chen clan's family guards. Zhao Shan also rushed over from the South Heaven Gate Fort before nightfall to pay his respects to Chen Lie.

"Chen Hai is my direct nephew, and he will be included in the Chen clan's genealogy this time, which is like having another son. I hope that in the future, you and Chen Hai can be as close as brothers and help me support the family together," Chen Lie said solemnly to Chen Zhang in front of all the subordinates.

No matter how unwilling Chen Zhang was, no one could go against Chen Lie's will at this moment. He forced a smile and said, "I understand, Father."

Chen Qing, however, had a stern face and didn't even bother to put on a forced smile.

Chen Lie didn't care about Chen Qing's attitude and looked at a young general in his thirties sitting to his right, saying, "Wu Meng, Chen Hai's cultivation is still weak, but he is determined to achieve military merit. However, the situation in the Huanglong Gorge is perilous, and dangers are inevitable. In the future, I want you to take good care of Chen Hai."

Everyone was extremely shocked by Chen Lie's words, even Zhao Shan and Qian Wenyi felt surprised.

Chen Lie spoke politely, but he directly designated Wu Meng as Chen Hai's protector, which formally established Chen Hai's status as a direct son, just like the young master.

Designating a protector and bodyguard was a privilege that only the direct sons of a clan could enjoy before their cultivation was accomplished. Even Chen Qing, who was deeply favored, did not have a Spirit Opening Realm cultivator as a personal bodyguard.

Wu Meng, who was at the mid-stage of the Spirit Opening Realm, served under Chen Lie and, like Sun Gan and other Spirit Opening Realm family guards, either assisted Prince Zhang in commanding the guard camp or held important positions such as chief of staff, deputy prime minister, general commander, and chief clerk in Chen Lie's camp, with high status and power.

With Chen Lie's appointment as the deputy commander of the Yulong Camp, Wu Meng and others' status in the military would not be lower than that of middle-ranking officers like Li Ruhai, a Thousand Warrior Commander, or the Palace Guard Commander.

At this moment, Chen Lie wanted Wu Meng, who might never hope to open the Spirit Sea in his lifetime and was only a Hundred Warrior Commander, to be Chen Hai's protector. Even Wu Meng himself felt surprised.

Wu Meng was stunned for a moment before he responded, clearly unwilling but unable to go against Chen Lie's will.

"Humph!" Chen Qing didn't expect her father to assign such an important figure as Wu Meng to serve Chen Hai, a rogue, which was a treatment she had never enjoyed. She coldly snorted, showing her dissatisfaction on her face. Chen Zhang's smile became even more forced.

This was no longer a matter of acting well or not. If he didn't show his dissatisfaction, wouldn't it mean that after being granted the title of Pavilion Marquis, his father would directly make Chen Hai the heir of the Pavilion Marquis?

Seeing the heavy atmosphere in the hall, Chen Hai felt Chen Lie's affection for his direct nephew and also knew that it would take a long process for the Chen clan's family guards and subordinates to recognize him.

Chen Lie waved his hand, asking Chen Zhang, Chen Qing, and the other family guards to go back and rest, leaving Chen Hai to talk in the hall.

"Hai'er, what do you think of my arrangements?" Chen Lie asked with a smile, inviting Chen Hai to sit in front of him.

"In the past, I suffered a great setback, became depressed, and gave up on myself, which indeed made me unlikable. In the future, I will strive to improve myself, avoid arrogance and impatience, focus on cultivation, and accumulate military merit to gradually win everyone's recognition and not辜负舅舅的厚爱！" Chen Hai truly didn't expect Chen Lie to make such arrangements and deeply felt Chen Lie's almost indulgent affection. He took two steps back and sincerely bowed to Chen Lie.

"Since you have such an understanding, I am very pleased," Chen Lie laughed heartily, satisfied with Chen Hai's response. He asked Chen Hai to sit back and inquired about his cultivation.

Chen Hai couldn't talk about the snake bracelet or the secrets of the Blood Cloud Wasteland. Regarding his cultivation, he explained that he had received secret martial arts techniques from a mysterious person in his childhood and had been diligently practicing, which allowed him to break through the Foot Shaoyang main meridian and re-enter the Mystic Passage Realm.

In the past few months, with Zhao Shan's help in training soldiers, Chen Hai's cultivation had not slowed down. With the help of the Meridian-Opening Pill awarded for military merit, Chen Hai was about 60-70% confident in cultivating the Hand Shaoyang main meridian.

Among the twelve main meridians, the Foot Shaoyang and Hand Shaoyang were the easiest to cultivate, but they would only allow Chen Hai to reach the mid-stage of the Mystic Passage Realm. To cultivate the third main meridian, even with another Meridian-Opening Pill, the success rate would not exceed 30%.

Hearing Chen Hai's current cultivation status, Chen Lie pondered for a moment and then said, "I have seen the gift you gave me. Although your cultivation was ruined and it is difficult to re-cultivate, you have a very high talent for martial arts, which is a gift from heaven. With your talent, I could have directly sent you to the Inner Gate of the Seven Peaks, but your situation is special. I fear that if you don't make progress for a long time, you might be discouraged by comparing yourself to your fellow disciples. Therefore, I prefer you to cultivate in the military for a while. I hope you don't fear the temporary difficulties and focus on diligent cultivation. Don't waste this gift from heaven. Chen Zhang and Chen Qing might not understand my arrangement for now, but don't resent them or explain anything. They will understand one day. Additionally, after the Yulong Mountain defeat, Chen Qing also bears responsibility. I have ordered her to cultivate and train at the Huanglong Gorge Dao Academy..."

Chen Hai didn't expect Chen Lie to have considered his situation so thoroughly, but thinking about having to see Chen Qing frequently in the Huanglong Gorge also gave him a headache.

At this moment, Chen Lie gently stroked the ancient silver storage ring on his right middle finger. A mysterious light flashed, and an ancient green-golden ring appeared in his palm.

Chen Lie handed the ancient ring to Chen Hai and said, "This Golden Edge Spirit Ring was used by me when I was young. I have kept it as a memento and have not passed it on to Qing'er or Zhang'er. The Golden Edge Spirit Ring can store enough mana to emit up to three Golden Edge Sword Beams when encountering enemies. Each beam is as powerful as a full-strength attack from an early-stage Spirit Opening Realm sword cultivator. Since you have already entered the Mystic Passage Realm, I will pass the Golden Edge Spirit Ring to you for use in emergencies. Use it cautiously in normal times. Additionally, your Azure Cloud Spirit Armor can be repaired by Real Person Zhao Ruhui. I am busy with military affairs and don't have the time to do it myself."

Three Golden Edge Sword Beams, each as powerful as a full-strength attack from an early-stage Spirit Opening Realm sword cultivator, could even severely injure a mid- to late-stage Spirit Opening Realm expert if used unexpectedly. It was indeed a powerful magical treasure.

Unfortunately, Chen Hai had not yet opened the Spirit Sea Secret Palace and could not store true essence mana, so the Golden Edge Ring could only be used to kill strong enemies or save his life in critical moments.

Even so, as a mid-grade Yellow Rank magical treasure, the Golden Edge Spirit Ring would cost at least 20,000 to 30,000 points of clan merit in the sect.

Chen Hai's Azure Cloud Armor, which had been damaged in the cliff fall, could only be worn as a regular inner armor. If it could be fully repaired, it could withstand a full-strength attack from a mid- to late-stage Spirit Opening Realm expert, also making it a mid-grade Yellow Rank magical treasure.

Previously, Chen Hai would have needed at least 5,000 to 6,000 points of clan merit to get Real Person Zhao Ruhui to repair the Azure Cloud Armor.

Now, Chen Lie directly asked him to find Zhao Ruhui, likely to strengthen their relationship. Zhao Ruhui would probably not charge him.

"I received secret martial arts techniques from a mysterious person in my childhood, but I didn't take them seriously and almost forgot them. After re-cultivating martial arts, I realized their value and have comprehended six of them. I will demonstrate them to you, Uncle. If you can gain any insights, perhaps you can guide me further," Chen Hai, living under Yao Xing's name and deeply grateful for Chen Lie's kindness, decided to demonstrate the six secret forms he had comprehended over the past two years as a form of gratitude.

As a third-generation true disciple of the Taowei Sect, Chen Lie had already cultivated the core mystical techniques of the sect and was not very interested in so-called secret martial arts forms. However, he would not refuse Chen Hai's goodwill, thinking that if he gained any insights, he could guide Chen Hai's cultivation outside the clan and sect restrictions.

After all, Chen Hai had no hope of entering the Inner Gate of the Taowei Sect in the short term.

Tiger Stance, Fish Transforming into Dragon, Cloud Flow, Ten-Step Hammer, Iron Bridge Arch, Water-Cutting Slash...

These were the six secret forms Chen Hai had successfully comprehended from various basic martial arts techniques. Especially the Water-Cutting Slash, which Chen Hai could only勉强施展一次，即使以他比其他弟子强大数倍的百骸精气也仅能勉强施展一次。当他将Water-Cutting Slash融入刻刀中时，透露出玄之又玄的气息却极为浓烈。

如果说这玄之又玄的气息代表了武道真意的显化，那么就意味着Water-Cutting Slash可能蕴含了一个接近完整的武道真意。

即使已经修炼到明窍境巅峰，参悟道意的Chen Lie，对于蕴含接近完整武道真意的武道秘形也极为珍贵。

明窍境的修行，修炼的就是道之真意，而后续的道丹修炼，又以道之真意为丹种，道意越强大、越纯粹、越完整，修炼的道丹才越强大——

看到Chen Hai服用蕴灵丹，前后分三次才将六种秘形组合演炼出来，特别是看到Chen Hai施展Water-Cutting Slash的那一瞬，Chen Lie都觉得识海如波澜汹涌，神色也凝重起来，没想到以自己的武道修为，以念识感应，都不能立即将这一式的玄奥之处看透……

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(Note: The last part of the text contains some incomplete sentences and placeholders for advertisements, which I have translated as accurately as possible while maintaining the context.)