Chapter 188: Kunwu Training Camp
Di da da!
There was a huge crowd within the capital. Group after group of steeds galloped out from the capital’s East, West, and North Gates. Riding on these steeds were neither the members of the Imperial Army nor the troops of the border regiments; rather, they were the haughty scions of Great Tang.
Son of nobles, wealthy merchants, powerful generals, prestigious clans… Figures from different powerful clans could be seen on the backs of the horses.
“Hahaha, how lively!”
Wei Hao laughed excitedly from the back of his horse when he saw this sight.
“Wang Chong, look, there are so many people!”
“Un!”
Wang Chong nodded but a slight frown appeared inconspicuously on his forehead for an instant. Perhaps his presence had changed this world far much but he realized that the Three Great Training Camps were vastly different from how he remembered it to be.
Back then, the Three Great Training Camps didn’t attract the attention of so many people when it first opened, and there were only a handful of people who registered for it.
On top of that, the number of personnel accepted was significantly greater than that in his previous life.
“Looks like everything has changed!”
Wang Chong thought. It seemed like his actions didn’t come without a cost, and this cost wasn’t just limited to the ‘World Constraint’.
At present, it was hard to tell whether these changes were good or not.
But regardless, he didn’t have a choice.
“… No matter what, at least the matter of the Three Great Training Camps didn’t change at all.”
While such thoughts flashed across Wang Chong’s mind, the group left via the East Gates, heading into the distance.
Many news regarding the details of the Three Great Training Camps had been released.
The opening of the training camps was a matter proposed and approved by the Sage Emperor, and under the collaboration of the Bureau of Military Personnel, Bureau of Punishments, Bureau of Works, Bureau of Revenue, and Bureau of Personnel, along with the assistance of the Imperial Army, the Longwei, Shenwei, and Kunwu Training Camps were created.
The training grounds were located in the mountains twenty li away from the east, west, and north of the capital. The proximity of the camps from the capital was actually rigorously debated upon.
Too far and the Three Great Training Camps would lose its protection, making it unsafe. Too near… and everyone would be thinking of returning to the capital. That would limit the effectiveness of the training.
As for the Kunwu Training Camp that Wang Chong and the others were heading to, it was located in the mountains east of the capital.
Walking along the main route initially, they turned into a bend and around six hours later, they finally saw a massive mountain which peak shot straight into the clouds. It resembled a behemoth compared to the cluster of mountains around it.
At the top of the mountain was not lush greenery but wood-crafted halls, infrastructures, and training grounds.
Hundreds of Great Tang military flags were hung all over the mountain, dancing amidst the wind, creating a grand and majestic sight. The thickest and tallest one was a yellow one which was almost a hundred meters long. Despite the long distance away, the reddish-gold word written on it was clear:
“Kunwu!”
“How majestic!”
Wei Hao said exaggeratedly as he glanced into the distance.
The others didn’t say anything but internally, they were overwhelmed with shock by the massive formation before them. Of the Three Great Training Camps, Kunwu was directed toward normal civilians. If even Kunwu’s setup was like this, it was unimaginable what Shenwei and Longwei looked like.
“Given that the various bureaus of the royal court, along with the Imperial Army, have collaborated with one another on this matter, the efficiency is indeed remarkable.”
Wang Chong thought as he looked at the camp from the distance.
In his previous life, Wang Chong was unfated with the Three Great Training Camps. On top of that, the Three Great Training Camps weren’t places that any casual passer-by could approach easily. Thus, this was the first time Wang Chong was seeing Kunwu Training Camp.
The construction work for his training ground on the spirit vein probably earlier than the Three Great Training Camps but in terms of degree of completion and scale, it paled far to Kunwu Training Camp.
“Wei Hao, don’t get careless on the mountain later on. The Kunwu Training Camp might be the easiest to enter of the Three Great Training Camps but if you think that you’re invincible inside and a place is guaranteed for you, you might just end up being sent back home.”
Wang Chong suddenly turned to Wei Hao and said. Standing right before Kunwu Training Camp, he felt that there was some things he should remind his brothers of in advance so as to prepare them.
“Are you joking? I’ve already at Origin Energy Tier 7 and I’m even capable of exerting the Mountain Ascension Might now. It can’t be that everyone in this Kunwu Training Camp is Origin Energy Tier 8, right?”
Wei Hao exclaimed in disbelief. His cultivation had surged immensely in the past few months. For some reason, the Mountain Ascension Formula that Wang Chong gave him seemed to be exceptionally compatible with him, as though it was tailored just for him.
Due to this, his confidence surged as well. That was also why so many scions had decided to follow him.
Yet, Wang Chong said that there was a possibility that he might fail the entrance examination to Kunwu Training Camp. How could Wei Hao possibly believe it?
“Hmph, is that so? Do you think that martial art is all about clash of strength? You might possess immense strength but you lack skill and dexterity. You might still be able to deal with average martial artists but true experts will be able to see through your flaws and start exploiting them within a few blows. The dumb bird starts learning to fly early—those who applied to Kunwu Training Camp might have come from humble backgrounds, but that’s precisely the reason why they put in much more effort than us.”
“Furthermore, Kunwu Training Camp is specifically created for civilians so the competition for it will be far more intense than what you expect. All those who managed to earn the qualification to enter Kunwu Training Camp today are those who have emerged victorious in an intense fight against a huge group of contenders.”
“All of them are the elites of the elites. Just by how they were able to stand above so many people, do you think that they’ll be unable to discern your flaws?”
Wang Chong’s words shocked the group. Miyasame Ayaka didn’t expect the Kunwu Training Camp to be so competitive whereas a bizarre glint shone in Li Zhuxin’s eyes.
It wasn’t surprising for there to be intense competition among the civilians. What was surprising was for Wang Chong, despite coming from an affluent clan of generals and ministers who worried not for his food and clothes, to understand this, that was truly a rare and valuable trait.
“No way!”
On the other hand, Wei Hao failed to consider this aspect before so so he was astounded by Wang Chong’s words. “That seems like making a mountain out of a molehill!”
But Wang Chong didn’t bother explaining any further.
Given Wang Chong’s ability and accomplishments, he could easily pick any of the Three Great Training Camps. It wasn’t on a whim or anything that he chose Kunwu Training Camp. Rather, he had considered the matter properly and determined that this was the best course of action.
Shenwei and Longwei were more famous of the three, and those inside were either nobles or offsprings of prestigious clans. However, time would prove that the true talents and experts were all gathered within Kunwu.
Nearly ninety percent of the rising generals of Great Tang would appear from Kunwu.
And Wang Chong didn’t think that this fact would change due to his prior actions!
‘The offsprings of a poor family mature faster’, the very nature of Kunwu Training Camp made it inevitable that it would become the most outstanding of the Three Great Training Camps. The words that Wang Chong had just told Wei Hao weren’t lies, it was his actual evaluation based on the trainees of Kunwu Training Camp in his previous life.
These people had no background, resulting in their limited training resources. Thus, they could only make up for their insufficiencies through frenzied hard work.
Wei Hao’s diligence was indeed impressive among his scion peers, but it was nothing much compared to these people.
There were many that were more frenzied and hard working than him when it came to training.
What these people lacked weren’t aptitude, wisdom, or diligence. What they lacked were cultivation resources! Once they obtain sufficient resources from the training camp, their abilities would soar in an instant.
Like the saying goes, it was impossible for an individual tree to form a forest.
If Wang Chong wanted to change the fate of the empire, he had to find peers and aides who shared the same vision as him, and Kunwu was the best place to do so.
“… In any case, just remember this. If someone attacks the back of your right thigh, use the ‘Tiger Ascending Mountain’ and ‘Dragon Ascending Mountain’ of the Mountain Ascension Formula to retaliate. As long as you do so, you shouldn’t fail the examination.”
After recovering from his momentary daze, Wang Chong said.
“Got it.”
Wei Hao nodded his head with a slightly fearful expression. Even though he found the matter hard to believe, he didn’t think that Wang Chong would lie to him.
They were still a distance away from Kunwu Training Camp but Wei Hao could already foresee the entrance examination being harder than that of Shenwei and Longwei.
——Wang Chong had already pointed it out so clearly to him. He would be truly foolish if he didn’t start raising his game.
“Also, later when you’re on the mountain, look for a plump, bearded instructor for your test. Don’t bother about the other instructors, just go straight for him. It’ll definitely be beneficial to you!”
Wang Chong said.
Trainees in Kunwu Training Camp were divided into various sections and each section would be led by a different instructor. Each instructor would impart the fundamentals to the trainee and guide their training.
The instructor that Wang Chong mentioned was the instructor who was the most adept in henglian in Kunwu, which bore extremely high compatibility with Wei Hao’s Mountain Ascension Formula. Most of the students taught by this instructor eventually went on to become valiant generals who led their troops at the forefront of the formation.
In the future battlefield, this instructor and his students would make a huge name for themselves. Just that, at this very moment… due to the instructor’s chubby appearance, there weren’t many people who thought highly of him.
Many people were unwilling to come under him, thus missing this opportunity.
If nothing changes, three years from now, that instructor will be promoted to a higher-ranked commander and by then, he wouldn’t take any new trainees anymore. If Wei Hao wanted to progress further, this was his chance.
The future had already changed so Wang Chong couldn’t say for sure whether the plump instructor would be there or not. Even so, he felt that this was an opportunity that Wei Hao shouldn’t miss if possible.
“Yes, Wang Chong. Don’t worry, I got it.”
Seeing Wang Chong’s grave expression, Wei Hao nodded grimly. Their long relationship had given Wei Hao unreserved trust toward Wang Chong.
“Zhao Jingdian, you should follow me later on!”
Wang Chong turned around and faced Zhao Jingdian. They had been good brothers in their previous life so there was no need for Zhao Jingdian to look for any other instructors.
He was the best one for him.
“Yes, gongzi!”
Zhao Jingdian respectfully replied without any hesitation.
Wang Chong was the offspring of Duke Jiu, the future successor of the Wang Clan. The Zhao Clan had been following the Wang Clan ever since his grandfather’s generation, and in his heart, he had already viewed Wang Chong as his future liege.
Di da!
The sound of galloping echoed once more as the group headed for Kunwu Training Camp, leaving behind a trail of dust in their wake.
I do regret not putting ‘bureau’ as ‘ministry’ but *shrugs*
Anyway, for those who are slightly confused, Bureau of Military Personnel mainly deals with military matters whereas Bureau of Personnel deals with the governance side.
henglian is one of the three main classifications of martial arts.
It refers to the act of persistently dishing out damage to a certain part of your body so as to strengthen it.
For example, if you have heard of the Iron Head Technique of Shaolin Monastery, they train by knocking their head on objects, starting from softer ones and going for harder ones as they progress. That is considered as henglian.
And just to leave some words for those reading on aggregator sites,
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