Riding the Guan Cangma, known for their ability to navigate mountainous terrains and endure hardships, Bai Zhongqi and Ling, along with two young n from Yimoduoya, left Lodanba Town for a more bustling region.
From what he had gathered from Zang Murenqing, Yimoduoya Star actually had only two continents, each spanning tens of millions of square kiloters, besides which there were also several sizeable archipelagos. The technology of the people of Yimoduoya was primitive, not allowing them to traverse the globe. However, they did have ancient maps passed down from ancient tis, which accurately recorded the geological features of Yimoduoya, and these maps were still in use by the people there.
The continent they were on was nad the Sadaching Continent, where people, limited by the terrain and ferocious beasts, were mostly aware only of their imdiate surroundings. For instance, Zang Murenqing was only familiar with so areas in the northeastern part of the continent. The Great Snow Mountain stretched over more than nine hundred thousand square kiloters; beyond it was more land which the people here had not explored. To the south of the Great Snow Mountain, the terrain quickly leveled into vast grasslands that stretched all the way to the densely populated plains along the eastern coast.
"...So estimate that in this northeastern region of the continent, hundreds of territories here have a population of at least three million. And that's not even the impressive part, I've heard from the Alchemists who crossed the Great Cedar Forest and Green Blood River say that the Jiangnan area is the richest on the continent, possibly boasting a population of tens of millions and thousands of lords," Zang Murenqing said, filled with longing; on this planet, travel was a considerably inconvenient affair.
Because of the Era of the Dragon cycle occurring every sixty years, no central ruler had been able to maintain control over a large nation for long. Coupled with isolationism and protectiveness, Yimoduoya fundantally adhered to a lordship system. Lords possessing private armies and wealth would interact and battle each other, vying for more people and resources. But many others led mundane lives without ambition, as no matter what one did, everything would co to naught every sixty years, so they preferred to enjoy life while they could.
Bai Zhongqi smiled and said to Zang Murenqing, "You're quite knowledgeable, you must not be from an ordinary family."
Zang Murenqing admitted, "That's right, sir. I co from the Brezhlin Detach of Ghostwatch Mountain. My father is the Lord of Ghostwatch Mountain. My father has three sons, and he originally favored as his successor. However, I didn't want to cause discord among my brothers. I wanted to find a dragon slayer to save the people of Ghostwatch Mountain and other territories from peril, so I brought my best friend, Ze Pei, to embark on this quest."
From the side, Ze Pei said, "Following Zang Murenqing has been one of my biggest regrets in life."
Zang Murenqing laughed heartily, "One must endure hardships to beco a hero. Besides, without us finding the dragon slayer, where would you have gotten that artifact you now cherish so dearly?"
Listening to his teasing, Ze Pei subconsciously stroked the Rocket Launcher Beast, feeling almost as if the weapon was alive and responding to him. Bai Zhongqi, of course, hadn't told him that the weapon was indeed alive.
Bai Zhongqi felt that Zang Murenqing's character was just like those of the protagonists in novels. The young man was brave, simple, and compassionate, truly a good person.
Then Zang Murenqing apologized to Bai Zhongqi again, "Sir, I'm truly sorry. Due to promoting our cause against the Swarm and my identity as the son of a lord, the Swordsn thought we were tricking them, treating them as tributes for the Swarm, which resulted in you not being able to recruit anyone."
Seated on his horse, Bai Zhongqi waved his hand, "No harm done."
Lodanba had many Swordsn with nothing to do, and Bai Zhongqi wanted to recruit so as the foundation for his own establishnt. However, these n were crafty veterans who, seeing that Bai Zhongqi and his group might actually combat the dragon swarm, suspected they were being tricked into becoming sacrifices and thus no one followed them. But Bai Zhongqi didn't really approve of these idle Swordsn anyway. Their skills might have been decent, but they lacked combat will and were too slippery to manage effectively.
The best warriors were certainly the Enslaved Beasts born from the Zero's Insect Nest, even if they weren't specialized combat-type Enslaved Beasts, just the ordinary Humanoid Beasts whose combat power was unmatched by Swordsn.
Bai Zhongqi said to Zang Murenqing, "You don't need to call lord, my surna is Bai. I am older than you by a bit—just call Big Brother Bai."
Zang Murenqing repeatedly shook his head, saying, "There's a proper order of seniority. We have received much kindness from you and must not overstep."
Bai Zhongqi thought about it and then said, "Don't you want to beco dragon slayers? I can teach you, not only the strategies for slaying dragons but also knowledge that can deepen your understanding, help you understand yourselves better, and improve your lives -- I can teach all this to you."
Zang Murenqing and Ze Pei's eyes lit up. They had long seen that Bai Zhongqi was no ordinary man, not only because he communicated with Zero in a very special language but also because he knew a great deal.
Zang Murenqing and Ze Pei imdiately jumped down from their horses and knelt under Bai Zhongqi's horse, earnestly saying, "We hope the lord will teach us two brothers."
Bai Zhongqi nodded and said, "No need to be so formal, from now on you don't need to call lord—you can call teacher. There's an ancient saying from my hotown, 'when the teacher commands, the disciple takes action', aning that when a teacher assigns a task, the student serves. The great scholar who said this was nad Confucius; he had three thousand students and the finest among them numbered seventy-two. These people were not only his students but also his followers."
Zang Murenqing and Ze Pei hurriedly said, "We will serve with all our heart and follow the teacher, willingly taking on any task."
Bai Zhongqi nodded pleasantly.
Once, he had wanted to follow Earth's own culture and establish the Star Alliance, but he had failed. Now, on his path seeking revenge, he hoped to gain more power. To build his own force, he had to do it himself. Yimoduoya was a fragnted world with a small population and diverse languages and traditions.
Today, Bai Zhongqi had taken in two young n he highly esteed as his students and followers, hoping to spread a civilization through them. He would teach the young n the Chinese language, impart them with Chinese culture, and equip them with various technologies and knowledge. He would lead Zero's Swarm army to defeat the dragon swarm and ultimately control all of Yimoduoya, at which point only the Chinese civilization he brought would prevail on the planet.
For the two young n, although they had been educated among the elite, in Bai Zhongqi's presence, they fully realized the breadth of his knowledge, vast as the universe, and his possession of formidable power. They craved such knowledge and power and also wished to follow Bai Zhongqi to defeat the dragon swarm and save the world.
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