Chapter 30: Iron Guard

"Teacher, you've worked hard." Shi Quan raised his hand to help Maerde inside, then turned and hurriedly poured a cup of water for him.

"Haha, not hard at all, not hard at all." Maerde drank the water in the cup in one gulp and pulled Shi Quan to sit down to the side, "Let's talk about the important business first."

"Xiao Quan, look at this, what is it?" As he spoke, Maerde fished a gold medal out from his bosom and handed it over. The style of the gold medal was simple, yet Shi Quan could feel a special flow of energy contained within it; a character for 'Heaven' was carved onto the gold medal.

"This is..." Shi Quan looked at the gold medal in Maerde's hand in confusion.

Maerde said with a smile: "This is the Crown Prince's personal token, the personal symbol of the Crown Prince. Having it means you are the Crown Prince's person."

Hearing Maerde say this, Shi Quan finally remembered that in the original work, Xue Qinghe had also given Tang San an identical token, and this token had played no small role in the later Heaven Dou Imperial Palace coup.

"After the Crown Prince read your theory, he was first amazed, then full of praise. After hearing about your situation, he immediately gave me this token and dispatched dozens of Iron Guards to come and protect you, and he also invited you to Heaven Dou City." Speaking of this, Maerde's voice held a bit more reluctance and worry.

"Iron Guards?" Shi Quan was puzzled again.

"I was afraid something might happen to you, so I came back early. The Iron Guards are still behind; they should arrive in two days. These Iron Guards were sent by the Crown Prince to protect your safety. You only need to use this token to command them." As he spoke, Maerde placed the heavy token from his hand into Shi Quan's.

"If you want to go to Heaven Dou City, this group of Iron Guards will also escort you to Heaven Dou City."

Shi Quan gripped the token in his hand, his expression complex. Maerde was truly good to him, truly teaching him as if he were a personal disciple, considering everything for him first. He said sincerely: "Teacher, please rest assured. I have always remembered your teachings over these years. Even if I leave the academy, you will always be my teacher."

"It is enough that you have this heart." Maerde let out a long sigh. How could he not understand? Nuoding City was ultimately too small; Shi Quan's world was the vast outside.

He also understood in his heart that, in fact, when Shi Quan had asked him to go to Heaven Dou City back then, he had already had plans to go to Heaven Dou City. The knowledge in Notting Academy could no longer help him; if he wanted higher achievements, he had to go out and roam in a broader sky.

Even though Maerde had prepared himself, when he heard Shi Quan say it himself, he still felt a wave of dejection.

Maerde gently touched Shi Quan's head and said kindly: "After you go out, you will have to rely on yourself alone. If you are tired or weary outside in the future, then come back to the academy to take a look. As long as I am here, the academy will always have a place for you..."

Listening to Maerde's words, a wave of emotion stirred in Shi Quan's heart.

"Thank you, Teacher." Hearing Shi Quan's sincere and earnest voice, Maerde's cloudy eyes could not help but turn a little red.

"Let me tell you about Heaven Dou City instead." Maerde wiped his eyes and changed the subject.

It was only from Maerde that Shi Quan learned the specific development of the matter.

When Maerde first arrived in Heaven Dou City, he could be said to have hit walls everywhere. Xue Qinghe was the Crown Prince of a nation, and he was not someone one could see just because one wanted to. After a series of attempts, seeing that he could not see Xue Qinghe,

after some investigation, Maerde set his sights on the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy. He brought the theory to the Heaven Dou Imperial Academy Education Committee, showed them the original draft, and after repeatedly guaranteeing the authenticity of the theory, Maerde finally managed to see Xue Qinghe as he wished and took out the perfected initial theory draft.

The subsequent matters were relatively much simpler. After Xue Qinghe learned of Shi Quan's situation from Maerde, he dispatched his exclusive Iron Guards to Nuoding City to protect him. Just for a theory, Xue Qinghe had dispatched his own personal guards to protect him, which was enough to show the importance Xue Qinghe placed on him.

According to Xue Qinghe's original words, these Iron Guards were bestowed to protect him.

At the same time, Xue Qinghe also extended an invitation to him, inviting Shi Quan to study at the Heaven Dou Imperial Advanced Academy.

As long as he went, Xue Qinghe would arrange a noble status for him and also give him a large amount of rewards.

It could be said that the sincerity was full.

Shi Quan thought for a moment and said: "Teacher, there is still about half a month left in this semester. Let's start and finish well. Once this semester is finished, help me process the early graduation procedures."

"Start and finish well." Maerde laughed loudly, "Good, good, good, what a 'start and finish well'. I really didn't misjudge you."

Two days later.

Clang, clang—a series of low sounds of iron armor clashing came from outside Nuoding City.

A neat and uniform troop of iron cavalry marched toward Nuoding City with strict military discipline.

"What is that?" The guards at the city gate, looking at the Heaven Dou Empire flag held high in the hands of the iron cavalry, were instantly frightened and hurriedly shouted, "Quickly open all the city gates!"

The low sound of the city gate rang out, and the main gate of the city wall was opened all at once.

Watching the group of uniform refined-iron armored cavalry approaching from afar, the guards at the city gate did not even dare to breathe.

They held their breath and watched the armored cavalry enter Nuoding City.

Seeing all the armored soldiers enter Nuoding City, the guards at the city gate only then dared to breathe deeply, wiping the cold sweat from their foreheads, and muttered to themselves: "These soldiers should be from the Heaven Dou Empire, why did they appear in Nuoding City? And with this momentum, they shouldn't be ordinary soldiers, right?"

Wherever the armored soldiers went, ordinary people all scattered, only daring to take a look from far away.

The sound of iron armor clashing echoed continuously in Nuoding City. Led by two iron cavalrymen, the dense crowd of fifty or sixty people marched all the way and soon arrived in front of Notting Academy. The iron-blooded momentum directly scared the gatekeeper at the entrance so much that he dared not move.

"Open the gate." The cold voice of the lead armored cavalryman rang out.

Hearing the cavalryman's words, the Notting Academy gatekeeper's legs trembled as he hurriedly opened the academy's gate.

The armored soldiers walked straight into the academy.

The time was just approaching noon. The students in the academy had just finished class. As soon as they walked out of the classroom, they heard the clanging sound of iron armor in the distance. They were all children; where had they ever seen such iron-blooded soldiers? They were all so scared that they stayed in the classrooms and dared not go out.

Maerde in the office heard the commotion on the Playground, his expression changed, and he hurriedly got up and ran toward the Playground.

Maerde walked quickly toward one of the armored cavalrymen and said at the same time: "Captain Fu, didn't I tell you to wait outside the academy when you arrived? You just came in like this; what should we do if you scare the students?"

The Captain Fu in Maerde's mouth replied directly: "Dean Ma, we are under the Crown Prince's order to protect that lord. Before seeing that lord, we dare not be negligent."

Maerde's expression was ugly, but Captain Fu did not look at Maerde's face. He scanned the academy regardless and his gaze fell on the location of the classrooms, asking: "Is that lord in the classroom?"

As he spoke, the soldiers led by Captain Fu turned and walked toward the classrooms. Maerde hurriedly stopped them: "Xiao Quan is not in the classroom."

"I'm here!" Shi Quan's cold voice came from under the Dormitory building behind the armored soldiers.

Hearing the sound, Captain Fu then turned and looked at Shi Quan, who was holding the Crown Prince's token not far away.

A horse's neigh was heard. Captain Fu rode his horse and quickly turned to arrive not far from Shi Quan. His tall figure looked down at Shi Quan, and the surrounding armored soldiers also quickly turned and surrounded them.

After Captain Fu glanced at the token, he said neither humbly nor arrogantly: "Prove your identity!"

Shi Quan's gaze narrowed slightly. Maerde hurriedly walked over quickly and said: "Xiao Quan, he means he wants to see your Soul Ring."

Looking at the gazes from all directions, Shi Quan slowly raised his right hand. Deep blue light bloomed, Blue Silver Grass appeared in his hand, and beneath him, one yellow and one purple Soul Ring quietly emerged.

"A Millennium Soul Ring!"

For a time, everyone in the entire academy was in an uproar.

No one had expected that the usually low-key Shi Quan had already reached a Breakthrough to level twenty, and his second Soul Ring had actually reached an astonishing millennium level.

Tang San in the classroom was also looking at the millennium Soul Ring at Shi Quan's feet with a face full of surprise.

How could someone with innate level one soul power cultivate so fast?

Didn't the teacher say the limit for the second Soul Ring was seven hundred and sixty-four years?

Isn't it true that only a Soul Elder can possess a Millennium Soul Ring?

All sorts of doubts surfaced in Tang San's mind.

On the other side, Yu Xiaogang was the same; his dead-fish eyes stared fixedly at the two Soul Rings on Shi Quan's body, his expression full of disbelief, while he kept muttering to himself, "Impossible, this is impossible..."

He did not understand how Shi Quan had managed to do it.

Upon seeing the Millennium Soul Rings flickering on Shi Quan's body, the leading Captain Fu's cold gaze gained a bit of luster; he leaped down from his horse, knelt on one knee, and respectfully saluted Shi Quan, saying, "Greetings, my lord. We have been ordered by the Crown Prince to come here to protect you. If you have any instructions, my lord, please feel free to give them."

Clang, clang, clang!

The sound of everyone kneeling in unison rang out, the uniform movement making one's heart tighten.

Shi Quan, however, withdrew his martial soul with an unchanging expression and stared at Captain Fu, saying, "Apologize to my teacher."

Captain Fu suddenly raised his head, his cold gaze looking straight at Shi Quan, but Shi Quan was not afraid in the slightest and looked back at Captain Fu.

"No need, no need." Maerde waved his hands hurriedly, went up to prepare to help Captain Fu up, and mediated, "Captain Fu, just take your men out; as long as you don't affect the students' studies, that is fine."

Shi Quan, however, held Maerde back and stared at Captain Fu, saying, "Apologize."

Captain Fu's expression remained unchanged beneath his iron armor, but a hint of a smile appeared at the corners of his eyes as he said to Maerde, "Dean Ma, this matter was my rashness; I have offended you, please forgive me."

Maerde's expression paused, and he sighed, saying, "Captain Fu, you are being too serious; it was also my arrangement that was not thorough. Let's leave this matter at that."

As he spoke, Maerde patted Shi Quan's hand to signal that it was enough; only then did Shi Quan's expression improve slightly, and he put away the token in his hand and said indifferently, "Get up."

The many soldiers led by Captain Fu then stood up.

(End of this chapter)