Staying Alive Cautiously in the Celestial Realm and Becoming the Strongest

Formally joining the Blood Cloak Guard did not mean that Wang Chen could immediately don the flying fish suit and carry the Goose-quill Saber to pursue the rebel fiends.

He still needed to undergo three months of training, and only after passing the assessment would he qualify to undertake missions.

On the fifth day after arriving in Jiangyuan City, Wang Chen went to report to the Iron Furnace Camp outside the city.

The Iron Furnace Camp was ten miles from Jiangyuan City, a large military camp built beside a mountain and near water, equipped with fortresses, barracks, martial arts fields, lookout towers, beacon towers, among other structures.

Here, Wang Chen, along with eighty-nine other apprentice members of the Blood Cloak Guard, began their arduous training.

The identity of the Blood Cloak Guard was special, possessing much authority; even the apprentice members ranked one tier above the lowest-level officials, making it exceedingly difficult to enter their ranks.

However, the enemies faced by the Blood Cloak Guard were also exceedingly fiendish and powerful, with a consistently high casualty rate, thus constantly requiring fresh blood to join.

Most of these apprentice members of the Blood Cloak Guard were from humble families or noble clans, primarily legitimate or collateral members who, lacking the qualification to inherit their family businesses, joined the Blood Cloak Guard to seek a career.

It's known that even the Junior Flag rank of the Blood Cloak Guard was typically from the martial officers of the Seventh Regular Rank, and after stepping down, they were more than capable of serving as a County Magistrate.

And their status was in no way inferior to that of a Regular Seventh Rank County Magistrate!

Many apprentice members of the Blood Cloak Guard were in their late teens or early twenties, with the lowest cultivation level being a Second Order Samurai; most of them had a deep family heritage in the martial arts and were quite talented.

Now, gathered at the Iron Furnace Camp for training, everyone was secretly steeling themselves.

Because even the official Blood Cloak Guards were divided into Copper Badge, Silver Badge, and Gold Badge tiers, and after passing the assessment, the apprentice members could get at least a Copper Badge title.

But the three best performers would receive Silver Badge awards, which meant starting a tier higher than their peers.

Under normal circumstances, the Junior Flag rank was primarily promoted from among the Gold Badge Blood Cloak Guards, followed by the Silver Badge. The chances of extraordinary promotion for Copper Badge holders, unless they performed a great feat or had a very strong background, were practically none!

With ninety apprentice members in this cohort and only three Silver Badges available, one can imagine the intense competition.

Right on the first day everyone settled in the Iron Furnace Camp, the competition had already begun!

There were five instructors responsible for training and guiding the newcomers, among them the Chief Instructor, surnamed Wang, was a white-haired, hunchbacked old man who usually appeared smiling and kind.

But after a few days, nearly every one of the apprentice Blood Cloak Guards felt intimidated upon seeing him!

The only exception was probably Wang Chen.

After all, he wasn't truly a teenager; his experiences and insights were incomparable to others, so the seasoned and scheming teaching methods of Chief Instructor Wang could hardly make a deep impression on him.

However, Wang Chen didn't underestimate these battle-hardened and experienced instructors.

He humbled himself and devoted himself, acting like a recruit entering the army camp for the first time, learning earnestly the various skills and knowledge taught by the instructors.

Tracking and surveillance, stealth and concealment, espionage and assassination, administering and counteracting poisons, wilderness survival...

The skills needed by the Blood Cloak Guard were quite varied, and to learn all the knowledge taught by the instructors in just three months was nearly impossible.

Many times, the instructors would only explain the content once, at most demonstrating it in person once.

As to whether the new recruits could learn it, it was up to their own abilities.

This allowed Wang Chen to quickly stand out among the apprentice members!

Although he had transmigrated into this world, his experiences far surpassed those of the other new recruits, and combined with the high innate talent of his body, his ability to learn, understand, and master various skills was incredibly fast.

Most importantly, Wang Chen didn't feel that learning these skills, insignificant in the Haotian Realm, demeaned his status as a Golden Core True Person!

This one point was precisely where Wang Chen differed greatly from many cultivators who descended to the Lower Realm!

Wang Chen hailed from a relatively egalitarian world of technology, understood the value and importance of knowledge, and, with the enhancement of his external plugin, had thrived in the Cultivation World with a cultivation speed far surpassing others.

Advancing realms too quickly could indeed lead to an unstable foundation, but conversely, it allowed Wang Chen to always retain a pure heart, preventing complete assimilation by the Cultivation World.

Thus, he did not look down upon the beings of the Cangqing Domain from a lofty position.

This was exactly why Wang Chen could integrate into this world at the fastest speed!

Since Wang Chen did not intend to keep a low profile, and showed off his sharp edges, in less than half a month, he had earned appreciation and praise from all instructors, including Chief Instructor Wan.

He had evidently become the number one among this batch of Blood Cloak Guard apprentices!

Also, Wang Chen was very handsome. Based on the principle of same-sex repulsion, it was no surprise that he was secretly targeted and isolated.

Among the groups of Blood Cloak Guard apprentices, Wang Chen roamed alone and had few friends.

But Wang Chen didn't think there was anything wrong with this, as he could devote all his time to study and cultivation, saving him the trouble of socializing and entertaining.

However, some people clearly did not want him to continue like this!

That evening, just after Wang Chen had finished studying and returned to his camp dormitory, ready to take a bath and change clothes before dinner, three new apprentices appeared at his room doorway.

Wang Chen raised his eyebrows and asked in a deep voice, "What's the matter?"

He recognized all three people but had no close ties with them. Seeing their aggressive demeanor, they obviously brought no good news.

The leading new apprentice was burly, big-waisted, and round, standing at the doorway with his head almost touching the frame, giving off a considerable sense of oppression.

He glared at Wang Chen and asked hoarsely, "Ling Zhiyuan, about that matter I mentioned last time, how have you thought it through?"

Wang Chen replied indifferently, "I remember I replied to you at that time, I'm not interested."

This group also was a small clique among the new apprentices, led by Jin Yingjie from the Jin Family of Jiangyuan City.

The Jin Family was one of the famed noble clans of Jiangyuan City, and for Jin Yingjie, a chief descendent, gathering a team within the Blood Cloak Guard was not a difficult task.

Jin Yingjie was also an outstanding individual, but his brilliance was completely overshadowed by Wang Chen.

And this scion of the Jin Family wanted to pull Wang Chen into his team.

Wang Chen had refused at that time.

Unexpectedly, the other party was persistent and sent someone to harass him several days later.

"Heh!"

The burly new apprentice flashed a fierce look, "If you don't drink the toast, you'll have to drink the forfeit!"

Before the words fell, he suddenly swung his fists, smashing fiercely towards Wang Chen's face.

At the same time, the two new apprentices standing behind the burly one kicked out their left and right legs toward Wang Chen.

The three acted in unison, coordinating extremely well and fully utilizing the cramped space of the single dorm room.

Full of malice!

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First update delivered.