Soul Emperor Martial God

Leaving the Royal Capital.

Xiao Yi raced towards Meteor County.

Meteor County was five counties away from the Royal Capital.

On his way, Xiao Yi deliberately sought out a forest, stopping there.

He casually made a cave dwelling and moved in.

He planned on refining elixirs.

He knew the Elixirs he had were not enough for a breakthrough.

But he needed to verify if his previous estimation of the number of Elixirs required was correct.

He took out the Eight Dragons Burning Fire Furnace, along with countless Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

Xiao Yi began the refining process.

...

Two hours later, about nine thousand Seventh-level Demon Beast Cores

were processed into three thousand Pure Heavenly Origin Pills.

Xiao Yi consumed them all at once.

Instantly, a surge of momentum exploded from him.

Of course, he had not broken through yet.

Upon introspection, the 'Golden Core Embryo' inside his Small World was already radiating golden light.

Round, compact, and powerful.

But it was not yet perfect, not fully formed.

"Indeed," Xiao Yi silently noted to himself.

His guess had been correct.

Currently, he was only at the Mystic Breakthrough Realm.

The Heavenly Origin Pill was a Elixir two levels higher than his Cultivation, with immense effects.

The Golden Core Embryo now only lacked a little to be fully formed.

Xiao Yi estimated that he might need several hundred more Pure Heavenly Origin Pills.

That amount was not much.

He could gather what he needed within one or two months.

...

After leaving the cave dwelling, Xiao Yi continued on his way to Meteor County.

Flying at full speed, he arrived in just two days.

The Flame Martial Guards, as the elite Martial Artist force under the King's command,

were distinct from the vastly numerous City Guard Army and regular soldiers.

They were not numerous, but there was a clear hierarchical structure.

At the top, naturally, stood the Great Commander.

Below him were five True Commanders.

And beneath them were twenty-five Deputy Commanders.

The twenty-five Deputy Commanders each oversaw one of the Flame Martial Kingdom's twenty-five strongholds.

Right, only twenty-five strongholds, not thirty-six.

This meant that some counties did not have a Flame Martial Guard stronghold.

And Meteor County happened to have one.

Disciples of the Sky-splitting Sword Sect who left the Sect for experience and joined the Flame Martial Guards

would usually go to the headquarters in the Royal Capital, find a Commander to arrange a position, and undertake missions.

But Xiao Yi did not want to accept a position in the Royal Capital.

It wasn't because he was afraid of the Sect elder that held a position as a Commander in the Flame Martial Guard.

He had a personal letter from Elder Duan Yun and was not worried.

But the waters in the Royal Capital were too deep.

There were some people and things he felt it was not yet time to come into contact with.

Moreover, he was accustomed to acting alone.

...

Meteor County, Flame Martial Guard stronghold.

These strongholds were very secretive.

Usually, apart from the Flame Martial Guards themselves, only the Commandery Princes of each county knew of them.

Before Xiao Yi left the Sect, the Great Elder had informed him of these strongholds.

"Hm? Meteor Trading Company?" Xiao Yi looked up at the building in front of him and smiled faintly.

Clearly, the stronghold was disguised as a trading company.

"Guest, is there anything I can help you with?"

A crisp voice came through.

A maid slowly stepped forward.

The maid had a delicate face and wore a professional smile.

"I need to see your manager," Xiao Yi said softly.

"Oh? Is the item the guest wishes to purchase very precious? Or is it a large quantity?" the maid asked.

"Something like that," Xiao Yi nodded.

Although this place was a Flame Martial Guard stronghold, it indeed also operated as a trading company.

The maids and errand boys were all staff of the trading company.

The maid's eyes lit up, "Please wait a moment, young master."

In her eyes, the trading company had a big customer.

Soon after, the maid and a middle-aged man approached quickly.

The middle-aged man had a solemn and steady face and asked in a deep voice, "May I know what the guest needs?"

"Our Meteor Trading Company ranks among the best in the entire Meteor County."

"We can certainly fulfill your request."

Xiao Yi nodded and said, "Ten Flame Heart Grasses, nine Martial Arts Spiritual Fruits, and eight Six-taste Mysterious Pills."

A servant girl at the side had her eyes shining with excitement, as these were all valuable Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures and Elixir Elixirs, fetching a high price.

The middle-aged man, however, frowned darkly.

"The items the young master requires are indeed precious, please wait in the rear hall's VIP room," the middle-aged man said.

With that, he turned to the servant girl and commanded, "You may leave first, I will take the young master over."

"Yes," the servant girl nodded and left.

Under the guidance of the middle-aged man, Xiao Yi entered the rear hall.

In the rear hall, the middle-aged man spoke in a serious tone, "May I know under which Deputy Commander you serve?"

"Please show your Token first."

Xiao Yi replied indifferently, "I do not possess a Token."

The so-called Token signified one's identity as part of the Flame Martial Guards.

"Hmm?" The middle-aged man's expression changed, followed by a loud shout, "Seize him!"

In an instant, more than a dozen Martial Artists appeared in the rear hall.

All exuding a powerful aura, with commendable Cultivation.

"Hold on." Xiao Yi took out the Sword Master Token from within his robe.

"Sword Master Token?" The middle-aged man furrowed his brows.

With a creak, the door to a room in front opened.

An elder walked out.

"It turns out to be the Northern Mountain Sword Master," the elder spoke solemnly.

The Sword Master Token bore the imprint of the Sword Master's own aura.

The elder waved his hand and said, "Stand down."

Swish, swish, swish...

The dozen Martial Artists vanished in an instant.

The elder, along with the middle-aged man, approached Xiao Yi.

"May I inquire why the Northern Mountain Sword Master has ventured uninvited into the Flame Martial Guard's stronghold?" the elder questioned.

The Sky-splitting Sword Sect was considered a Martial Arts Holy Land.

The thirty-six Sword Masters were indeed the Sect's Heavenly Talents.

Naturally, the elder wouldn't be guarded against Xiao Yi.

"And you are?" Xiao Yi countered the question.

"Vice Commander of Flame Martial Guards, Lin Chong," the elder replied solemnly.

"Deputy Commander Lin," Xiao Yi greeted with a bow and said,

"I am here on the orders of the elders of my Sect to join the Flame Martial Guards."

"Joining the Flame Martial Guards?" Lin Chong frowned.

"If a disciple of the Sword Sect wishes to gain experience through travel, they can hold a post in the Royal Capital."

"Why come to Meteor County?"

Xiao Yi answered, "Even if one holds a post in the Royal Capital, there will always be missions to carry out in other counties."

"It's better to come directly to the outskirts."

"This..." Lin Chong didn't doubt Xiao Yi's words.

Being a Sword Master, in and of itself, was a recognition within the Flame Martial Kingdom.

"Alright then," Lin Chong nodded after a moment.

"Come with me, I'll take care of the paperwork for you, and then you can immediately start taking on missions and go out for your experience."

Typically, disciples from the Sword Sect joined the Flame Martial Guards for the purpose of training.

The middle-aged man bowed and departed.

Xiao Yi then followed Lin Chong into a room.

Inside the room were piles of scrolls, and in the center, there was a table.

The elder took out a Token and said, "Just infuse it with your aura."

Xiao Yi received it and did as instructed.

After a while, the elder began to write.

"It's done. The registry has recorded your identity, and the Token now bears your aura."

"From now on, you are a member of the Flame Martial Guards."

"Go to the Martial Arts Room later and choose your team members, then you can depart to execute your mission."

"Team members?" Xiao Yi furrowed his brows.

"I can't operate alone?"

"No," Lin Chong responded, "The missions of the Flame Martial Guards are always treacherous."

"They have always been carried out in groups."

"Only Captains and those with higher ranks, who possess sufficient strength, are allowed to act alone."

This measure by the Flame Martial Guards was to prevent the arrogantly ambitious from joining and recklessly losing their lives.

The ranks within the Flame Martial Guards were determined by one's achievements—step by step.

Those above Captain were all seasoned veterans—rich in experience and strong in their own right.

Only then were they privileged to act independently.

Such were the rules, and Xiao Yi could do nothing about it.

"Will there be a wait?" Xiao Yi inquired.

The Flame Martial Guards had formal organizational charts.

To form a new squad, one had to go through layers of screening and tests, a hassle indeed.

And it consumed a lot of time.

What Xiao Yi feared most was wasting time.

Lin Chong responded, "No need."

"This month, some new Flame Martial Guards have been added."

"You just happen to have arrived at the right time."

"You can form a new squad today."

...

The first update.