CHAPTER 316: CHAPTER 176: KILLING AND ARSON BRING FORTUNE

The road here is wider, but there are few pedestrians. Looking out, what catches the eye is a large number of infantry soldiers and armored tanks, stationed nearby, undergoing daily training.

Just from what Ye Qingzhou saw, there are thousands of people, enough for the formation of a brigade, a grand spectacle. If not for the news of peace nationwide, Ye Qingzhou would have thought war was imminent.

"Haha, Ye Qianlong is quite surprised?"

The burly man in the passenger seat, Zhang Hong, smiled and explained, "As the year-end approaches, the Southwest Military Region is conducting internal routine exercises. By the fifth day of the new year, the army gathers, and the exercise of one hundred thousand people will raise dust that obscures the sky, that’s what truly calls for grandeur."

Ye Qingzhou nodded repeatedly, as today, Blue Star’s Dongji Kingdom’s army is unquestionably first.

Just the Southwest Military Region alone has nearly one million troops.

Basically, cities with Grotto Heaven Secret Realms station a batch of conventional garrisons. Aside from being equipped with high-tech weaponry for large-scale combat missions, the proportion of Martial Artists in the military is astonishing; the military has its own Professional Level and Master Level Martial Artists.

Dongji Kingdom can remain stable and harmonious even after the emergence of Grotto Heaven, precisely because of those who bear burdens while advancing.

Ye Qingzhou and his party soon turned northward along a highway, delving into the interior of West Xiang.

The further north they went, the higher the terrain gradually rose, and the surrounding landscapes became more rugged.

Finally, the car drove through a winding road circling a hillside, and the mountain range shrouded in clouds appeared in front of Ye Qingzhou.

"Wulong Mountain Grand Canyon."

Ye Qingzhou gazed far ahead, overlooking the undulating terrain before him.

Wulong Mountain Grand Canyon is a full fifteen kilometers long, and there are over two hundred caves along both sides of the canyon, earning it the title of "Museum of World Caves."

This place lies at the junction of Xiang, E, and Yu provinces, with a total area of 41 square kilometers.

The West Xiang area has a complex terrain, sparsely populated, yet the concentration of Primordial Qi is extremely high. It is likely because it is close to Jiuli Grotto Heaven, with many regions already "Secret Realmified," resulting in various aberrations.

Within Ye Qingzhou’s field of vision, beyond ten miles or so, the most majestic peaks of the continuous mountain range were almost entirely covered by clouds, revealing only parts of their true selves.

Among these peaks, clouds swirl, and exotic birds and beasts can occasionally be seen flying out, resembling an Immortal Family holy realm.

"These peaks are all Secret Realms, and typically, some newly entered Professional Level Martial Artists are arranged to undergo training here. On the one hand, it’s to hone their abilities, and on the other, it allows them to periodically harvest exotic treasures from the Secret Realms, preventing some dangerous exotic birds and beasts from breaking out and harming nearby human cities."

Zhang Hong explained to Ye Qingzhou.

Grotto Heaven and Secret Realms bring various benefits, but are extremely dangerous themselves, especially for ordinary people, who often lack the power to resist exotic birds and beasts.

Therefore, regular hunts effectively control the population of exotic birds and beasts within the Secret Realms, confining them here.

Ye Qingzhou finally understood how the various exotic treasures he regularly received were "produced."

Dongji Kingdom’s Professional Level Martial Artists are, to put it frankly, a group of advanced "industrial workers," mainly responsible for "producing" various exotic treasures.

And the Master Level, having superior strength, is akin to a security chief + foreman + general manager, stationed at one grotto heaven in a rotational manner, maintaining stable "production."

This system of Dongji Kingdom is now running increasingly smoothly, and the process has become extremely formalized.

The only issue is the number of Master Level Martial Artists.

Though the martial arts world of Dongji Kingdom has thrived over the past decade, with many young civilian martial arts talents emerging, the growth in the number of Masters remains slow.

Coupled with casualties from exploring Grotto Heaven Secret Realms, the gap has instead widened.

This led to the situation where, after the deaths of Songg Yanhai and Lii Yaoping, Junshan Association exploited it to pass the buck, leaving Zhao Zhiyi with a headache; he had no choice but to select Ye Qingzhou to replace Lii Yaoping, to guard Jiuli Grotto Heaven.

The car soon drove for over ten miles, passed through a gigantic mountain gate stone monument bearing the characters "Jiuli," and underwent the guard soldiers’ identity verification.

Ye Qingzhou finally reached his destination.

"Ye Qianlong, follow this road up, and you’ll reach the Martial Arts Association’s station here; Governor Wang should be waiting for us. Please follow me up the mountain."

Zhang Hong smiled broadly, with a tone full of flattery.

Regardless of Zhao Zhiyi and Wang Anyuan’s dissatisfaction with Ye Qingzhou, it’s an indisputable fact that Ye Qingzhou’s future is limitless. Thus, no subordinate wishes to offend Ye Qingzhou.

After all, Zhao Zhiyi’s presidency has five years remaining, while Ye Qingzhou’s strength will only continue to grow stronger; hence the wisest course is not to offend anyone.

"Alright, please lead the way."

Ye Qingzhou looked up at the towering mountain, his heart calm.

"Follow this road up, and at the summit lies the Martial Arts Association’s established observation post, equipped with all life’s facilities, so there’s no need to worry about daily life issues."

Zhang Hong introduced as they walked, while Ye Qingzhou casually listened, following him, his peripheral vision continuously surveying the surroundings.

The road up the mountain was very wide, but quite steep. However, for Ye Qingzhou and Zhang Hong, both possessing cultivation, it made little difference to flat land.

Gradually, through the sharp perception of Cicada Awakening, Ye Qingzhou noticed the changes in the surrounding environment.

"The Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi on this mountain is many times richer than down below."

Ye Qingzhou remarked with slight surprise.

"Haha, Ye Qianlong felt it?"