The Rise of the Black Plain

After seeing this flashy advertisement, the soldier who had just taken Teri's empty space in front of that mural and quickly read the information.

According to what was written in that announcement, a selection would be made among soldiers who were already in the 5th stage of cultivation in about a year.

In this selection, 20 Sergeants would become the first members of the elite group of the Black Plain Army, which in addition to having more responsibilities in the future, would also have even better salaries, as well as techniques and weapons!

Those selected would receive a three-year training in a specific location, where they could not leave before completing this period, not even to see their families.

But in this period, they would have the chance to cultivate in a much better location than the army headquarters' cultivation tower while receiving new techniques.

The salary paid would be 50% higher for each hierarchy these soldiers were in, and they would receive medium-level grade-2 weapons before they 'graduated.'

Seeing this information on the paper, that soldier almost let out a cry of shock as he felt an urgency growing in his heart. 'Shit! I'm still at level 35. If I don't make it to level 40 by the time of this selection, I'll miss an amazing opportunity!'

This was the soldier who had fought Minos, right back then when the young Stuart had fought against several soldiers, betting on a Silver-grade technique with them.

And, he, Grym, had managed to do well against Minos at that time and earned the right to learn a Silver-grade technique. Now, Grym was at level 35 and had been cultivating diligently, working as a Corporal in the army of Minos.

And as someone who had learned a Silver-grade technique, Grym knew all too well the value of such a thing. Therefore, he felt that he would be left behind by missing this precious chance to learn new techniques from that rank!

'I'm going back to my training!' He thought as he pressed his right fist tightly, leaving that place behind.

Meanwhile, other people also found out about the news that would happen within a year, causing a huge commotion inside the headquarters buildings.

This was information that Minos had asked Dillian to release in the period that he would be traveling to rescue Peter.

They had already discussed when would be the best time to send people to the Spatial Kingdom. Minos decided that this would happen almost a year from now when he would be even stronger, just as there would be a more significant number of soldiers in the army.

With that, combined with the three years that the 20 soldiers would spend training in that place, this would give the young Stuart enough time to reach the Spiritual King stage, as well as he could count on a mighty, proficient squad.

Minos and Dillian knew it wouldn't be that long before news of the Black Plain's recovering spread. And at this time, they would have to be prepared to fight and protect this place against countless enemies.

In this case, just increasing his soldiers' cultivation speed could allow Minos to succeed in this task.

Of course, he was not going to let any soldiers know about the Spatial Kingdom. The selection would choose the most reliable and talented ones. They would be kept long enough in that place that they would be closely monitored and observed so that there were no leaks.

Thus, Minos and Dillian hoped that these 20 soldiers would become crucial members of the Dry City in the short term, which could more substantially increase the power of the organization created by the young Stuart.

The Black Plain Army was also unable to arm all soldiers in the 5th stage of cultivation with low-level grade-2 weapons. Consequently, this was also a measure to select those who would have the preference over this type of item!

Finally, the Elite Squad would be a special unit responsible for dealing with assassinating enemies and defending territory and army bases, such as the port that Minos had already constructed on the Black Plain's coast.

But they were not going to become rulers under any circumstances. Their work would be related only to strength and quick responses when the need arises. Otherwise, soldiers trained for leadership would be responsible for this kind of responsibility in the future.

There was not yet a division within the army to train the future rulers, as a few people were suitable for this type of work. Minos wanted the future Black Plain's rulers to be, at least, people with Black talent and have been fully nurtured by the army since their earliest days on the cultivation journey.

This would enable them to go much further, while people's loyalty would be even higher!

But there were few people like that in Minos' forces. In fact, only Lee and Alison met these requirements. And for that very reason, the young Stuart had not yet created a division for future leaders within the army.

It didn't make sense to do something like that, to train only two people!

He could prepare Lee and Alison himself, the way he had already started to do it. But he intended to do something like a management school within the army when there were other qualified youths.

As for the Elite Squad soldiers, initially, it would have been better if only people with Black talent were part of this force. Still, they could not afford such a luxury right now.

There were not many people with this degree of talent within the army's ranks. At the same time, their enemies were powerful and could not be neglected.

The growth of the Dry City had been impressive, and when it leaked out, Minos territory would need all kinds of strength to resist external threats.

Then, Minos and Dillian could not just wait to have more talented people to send to the Spatial Kingdom. They had to work with the 'resources' they had on hand to be prepared for the chaotic future!

However, as more soldiers with Black talent join his forces in the future, the Elite Squad's current rules will be changed to accept only new members with this degree of talent!

...

While the Black Plain Army's soldiers were agitated by this chance that would come in a year or so, in another part of the Central Continent, the mood of certain people was not so good...

In the Cromwell Kingdom, in the northwest region, near the branch base of the Chambers family, the sky was completely overcast, with gray clouds darkening the place. At the same time, the occasional sounds of thunder rang in the air.

The atmosphere in that part seemed to be in a bad mood, as well as many people in that region.

On the one hand, there were the captives who had been receiving the standard treatment for people in this condition: daily beatings, lack of primary hygiene conditions, poor food, confinement.

On the other hand, several Kevin's pursuers were still in that region as they camped around that base, waiting for a chance.

The Spring of Life was too valuable for those people to give up right away, so they were still insisting on staying in those areas. Who knows, Kevin would be an idiot and leave the protection of that place...

But waiting here was not easy. Each of these pursuers had to be aware not only of the entry and exit of people from that Chambers base but also of their competitors.

Even if Kevin put himself at risk and missed the Spring of Life, these stalkers would still try to get this item from whoever might have managed to take it!

So, the mood of those people was not at all good as they waited to see what would happen.

Anyway, in one of the camps established around that base, two people were talking right now.

One was a middle-aged man, who wore noble armor, was watching the region he was in, along with the only visible entrance to that base.

The other was a young woman with brown hair, dressed casually, how a lady would dress if she were camping. She was sitting in a wooden chair while having her midday meal.

And at that moment, she finally muttered something when she had finished eating the last part of her meal. "If only we had a Spiritual King around here, we could destroy that low-level grade-2 array and invade that place..."

The Chambers family base in this region had a defensive item to protect that place from invaders. Of course, this was not a base with great relevance to that power, as this place had been built a short time ago and was only being used as a stopping point.

It was not cheap to buy a medium-level grade-2 array either, and that's why the Chambers family only used this type of item in their headquarters and places of extreme importance, not a newly established place, without a great use at the moment!