Chapter 64: 64 Commander

A group of about a hundred Slaves marched in a grand procession along the main road of Muma City toward the wilderness.

With this group in tow, Luoning's return journey could not be fast; he had to account for the Slaves' pace. They were all bought with real gold and silver, and he did not want several to die before even reaching Shanlin Town.

Fortunately, he had made ample preparations before coming to Muma City this time, and his Space Ring contained enough rations to ensure these Slaves could eat and drink their fill.

At first, the Slaves were trembling with fear, terrified that this master before them would beat, scold, or torture them at the slightest provocation. They never expected that after following him for two days, not only had the other party never beaten or scolded them, but he even provided sufficient bread at every meal, and occasionally, when game was hunted, he would share a bit of meat broth for them to drink.

Although they had to walk quite a distance every day, they had not experienced days where they could eat their fill for a very, very long time.

So much so that when they took their first bite of fresh bread, they were so moved that they knelt on the spot to thank Luoning, triggering a collective reaction that left them all in tears.

Those who knew understood that Luoning was a benevolent lord; those who did not might have thought Luoning had frightened this group of Slaves into kneeling and begging for mercy.

On the evening of the fifth day, before the mountains that marked the entrance to Shanlin Town, Luoning's party set up camp.

Luoning left the management of the Slaves entirely to Tangmu, Jialun, and the four Guards. He did not need to handle these trivial matters, nor was there any need to show his face to the Slaves for no reason.

Over these past few days, whenever Luoning had time, he practiced the three spells: Wind Blade Technique, Fireball Technique, and Small Fireball.

As an entry-level Fire Attribute Magic, Small Fireball was the simplest. This spell only formed a tiny flame at the fingertip, just like Aierlong's Flash Spell. Luoning mastered it almost on his first attempt.

Fireball Technique was a Level 2 Magic; its power was much the same as Wind Blade Technique. If one had to distinguish them, perhaps Fireball Technique had a wider range, while Wind Blade Technique had stronger concentrated damage—each had its own characteristics.

At this moment, in an open space, Maiken and Ruidar, two Advanced Knights, were engaged in an intense clash.

Both were very much looking forward to this sparring match, which had been set for several days but only officially began today. While on the road, Maiken and Ruidar had even asked about it intentionally or unintentionally.

Luoning had only delayed it because the location was unsuitable; it was not until today, in this flat area before entering the mountains, that he allowed the two to begin.

Of course, it was only sparring, emphasizing stopping at the right moment, and it could not consume too much energy.

Although Luoning had given instructions beforehand, once two Advanced Knights started fighting, the intensity was still quite impressive.

Even the Slaves in the distance could not help but look over, wondering what the master of the Slaves was doing and why his two subordinates were fighting.

Maiken held Along sword, his Battle Qi erupting and condensing into an earth-yellow armor on his body, which looked quite defensive.

This was the Battle Qi Armor that a Knight could use once they reached the Advanced level and their internal Battle Qi became thick. It had no attribute requirements, and basically every Advanced Knight could use it.

It was just that, relatively speaking, the Battle Qi Armor condensed from Earth Attribute Battle Qi had stronger defensive capabilities.

"I'm coming!"

Maiken shouted, his feet stomping hard on the ground, trampling a large chunk of mud, and he shot out like a cannonball, his momentum fierce and unyielding.

Ruidar's expression was quite serious; his entire body was wrapped in red Battle Qi Armor, and his aura was far more violent than Maiken's.

"Come on!"

Facing Maiken's shocking attack, Ruidar sank his body, neither dodging nor evading, meeting the collision of this first strike head-on.

With a shocking boom, the Knight Commander swords of the two Advanced Peak Knights touched, and the erupting Battle Qi formed a huge gust of wind that even Luoning and the others, a hundred meters away, could clearly sense.

"The sound of this collision is like a heavy hammer striking my heart!"

Tangmu, who was watching the battle, was left with lingering fear from the collision just now; if he were facing this strike, he feared his sword would break and he would die.

After the head-on collision, what followed was close-quarters combat as rapid as a storm.

During this time, Luoning had been learning footwork and sword techniques from Maiken, and he had a deep understanding of the latter's close-quarters combat situation.

In regular practice, if Maiken brought out his full state, Luoning feared he would not be a match for even one exchange.

But at this moment, facing Maiken's attacks, Ruidar responded with ease; his footwork was more flexible and swift. No matter where the opponent's sword came from, he could perfectly dodge, parry, and then launch his counterattack.

This kind of battle lasted for a full minute. Seeing that he could not break through and was becoming increasingly suppressed, Maiken used the force of his opponent's counterattack after one strike to create some distance.

He stomped his foot, injecting Battle Qi into the ground, kicking up countless clods of earth, and then swung his sword. Wrapped in yellow Battle Qi, these earth pellets flew toward Ruidar like buckshot.

This was a Battle Technique he had acquired after being promoted to an Advanced Knight.

Looking at the whistling sound of the air being torn, Luoning had to believe that if such clods of earth hit him, he feared his bones would be broken.

Ruidar flipped the long sword in his hand and slashed out; a curtain of fire like a woven net gathered all these earth pellets within it.

The momentum of the two's colliding Battle Techniques became increasingly deafening, especially the scorching heat wave brought by the Fire Attribute Battle Qi after the collision, which made everyone watching feel a sense of danger.

"My turn!"

Ruidar chuckled, actually sheathing his long sword. He launched himself toward Maiken like a projectile, scorching Battle Qi surging over his fists, forming a huge flame fist.

"Boom!"

Ruidar threw a punch, and the flame fist rushed toward Maiken, after which he threw a second punch, a third punch...

"This is, Flame Fist Bombardment!"

Luoning recognized this Battle Technique at a glance, but he did not expect the other party to use this move continuously.

Facing the opponent's first active attack, Maiken's expression was serious. He changed his position at high speed, quickly dodging the opponent's successive fist shadows.

When his movement was truly blocked by the opponent and he could not dodge, he relied on an Earth Wall to defend.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Ruidar transformed into a bomber, bombarding at high speed as if his Battle Qi were inexhaustible, not considering consumption at all.

And with a little observation, it was not hard to see that while bombarding, Ruidar kept changing his position and attack angle, making the opponent's situation increasingly dangerous.

Maiken was panting heavily, his face covered in sweat. On this smoke-filled battlefield, he knew that if he continued to defend like this, he would be defeated sooner or later.

"Hah!"

He roared, Battle Qi surging onto his fists to meet the incoming Battle Qi fists, while simultaneously stabbing his long sword into the ground, Battle Qi flowing rapidly to Ruidar's feet.

That patch of ground suddenly surged, the nature of the soil changed, and one Earth Spear after another poked out from the ground at high speed.

Ruidar's heart tightened. Almost the moment the Battle Qi reached his feet, he sensed it, and at the same moment the Earth Spears poked out of the ground, he leaped up.

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh~"

The Earth Spears all missed. As Ruidar's body landed, the soles of his feet carried the shockwave formed by Battle Qi, trampling the Earth Spears until they broke.

On the other hand, the Flame Fist Bombardment collided with Maiken's Battle Qi-condensed fists, setting off a huge shockwave. Under the violent impact, Maiken staggered and retreated violently.

"Boom!"

Another Flame Bombardment fist landed on him, sending him flying directly, the Battle Qi Armor on his body dissipating with the sound, bringing this sparring match to an end.

Luoning spurred his horse forward and clapped in praise, "As expected of an Advanced Peak Knight, your combat truly opened my eyes!"

"Brilliant, truly brilliant!"

Aierlong and Tangmu also couldn't help but clap along; this sparring match was indeed brilliant and had opened their eyes.

"You flatter me, my lord."

Ruidar steadied his breathing; the wild, violent air from just moments ago had vanished, replaced once again by his relaxed and confident demeanor.

Luoning looked toward Maiken at his side, "Guard Officer, how are you holding up?"

Maiken was somewhat disheveled at the moment, mainly due to the dust on his body and face; he coughed the dust out of his mouth, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Rest assured, my lord, I am not injured."

As he spoke, he looked at his opponent, "Ruidar is too formidable; whether it is a clash of strength, close-quarters combat techniques, or the application of Battle Qi and Battle Technique, I am no match for him."

Ruidar laughed, "After all, you haven't reached the true peak yet; if your strength were to improve a little more, it wouldn't be so easy for me to handle."

The two exchanged a round of polite flattery; the sparring had a winner and a loser, but it did not affect their relationship.

Luoning could tell that even if Maiken's level progress were full, he likely still wouldn't be Ruidar's match; in the sparring just now, Maiken had used nearly his full strength, while Ruidar had clearly held back quite a bit.

As expected of the Commander of the Flame Expeditionary Army, Ruidar's aptitude and status could reflect many things.

"Then, Ruidar."

Luoning tugged on his reins, facing the Knight who had won the sparring match, "From this moment on, you are the Commander of my Shanlin Town!"

Ruidar knelt on one knee, "I am happy to serve you, my lord!"

(End of this chapter)