Imperial Cultivation

Bai Ningyu arrived in haste, his strides long and swift. His armor shimmered with silver as he moved, making him look like a silver statue.

"General," Bai Ningyu said solemnly, clasping his fist in salute.

He was handsome, and adorned in silver armor, with a solemn expression, he naturally possessed an air of authority.

Chu Zhiyuan returned the salute: "General Bai, what is the situation?" In the army, he couldn't address him as '舅舅 (uncle)', but only by his official title.

Bai Ningyu shook his head and said, "Progress is slow. If we want them to be combat-ready, they still need rigorous training."

"How long will it take?" Chu Zhiyuan asked.

News had already arrived from the Worry-Free Sect that the military equipment was ready and they were actively gathering intelligence.

The Great Lie Dynasty and the Great Guang Dynasty had already entered the final stage of preparation for war, and the warship repairs were nearing completion.

The time to set sail and start the war was not far off. But here, the military camp had just been built.

Using the elite soldiers as the backbone, they were actively integrating and training hard, accelerating the transition from new recruits to veterans.

But this kind of thing couldn't be achieved overnight; it couldn't be accelerated by human will.

Elite soldiers couldn't be trained in a short period; they required years of hard training and actual combat experience.

These thousand-plus elites were not weak in cultivation, and their aptitude was not bad, but they were not necessarily qualified soldiers.

It needed the polishing of time, but what was lacking now was time. Chu Zhiyuan and Bai Ningyu arrived at the central tent.

Chu Zhiyuan sat down in the grandmaster's chair covered with white tiger skin, looked at the array plate on the table in front of him, which was so crude that he couldn't bear to look at it, and frowned: "Haven't you figured out the specific geographical features yet?"

Bai Ningyu smiled wryly: "The time is too rushed, and the people from the Surveillance Department haven't done this kind of thing before."

"Then hurry up," Chu Zhiyuan said.

When he was by Ying Wang's side, he didn't see any mountain and river model diagrams, but that was during the marching process, and it was to the border, in a defensive state, so there was no need to make those complicated things.

So he didn't know that the Da Jing army didn't have a model. He didn't know that building a model was so difficult.

To build a model of the main mountains and rivers from Yujing to the Eastern Border, and then refine it to every town and village.

This had become an impossible task for the Surveillance Department.

The Surveillance Department had such a long history, but no one had ever thought of this?

This was the restriction of ideas.

What the world lacked was not smart people, but flashes of inspiration.

With this idea, there would be more smart talents to constantly improve and develop it, and carry it forward.

The model he had seen in his later life also started from an idea and continued to develop, not achieved overnight.

"Aren't we the Imperial Guards?" Bai Ningyu asked, puzzled, "What do we need these external terrains for?"

"This camp of ours is not only for guarding the army, but also for supporting local areas," Chu Zhiyuan said.

This was similar to the special forces in his previous life. They went wherever they were needed, were highly mobile, and could be regarded as firefighters.

This camp had a good foundation, and as long as they were slightly trained and practiced the Phoenix Seeking Phoenix formation he had chosen, they could be useful.

"One year of training won't be of great use, right?"

"It's enough for a surprise attack," Chu Zhiyuan said.

Influenced by his previous life, he knew the power of special operations, which could achieve unexpected results and repeatedly establish great achievements.

It was enough to change the battlefield situation and change the general trend of the world.

Bai Ningyu didn't ask any more questions: "How much time do we have left?"

"Less than a month," Chu Zhiyuan said: "Those who can't master the Phoenix Seeking Phoenix formation within a month will be eliminated directly."

Bai Ningyu grinned: "This is too harsh."

Chu Zhiyuan smiled and shook his head: "Let them choose between elimination and death."

"Alright, I'll keep a close eye on them," Bai Ningyu said.

"Come here," Chu Zhiyuan said: "I'll teach them. Let the first nine teams pass first."

"Yes," Bai Ningyu clasped his fist in salute, turned around, and strode away.

Chu Zhiyuan picked up the dossier and started reviewing it. Soon, a buzzing discussion sounded on the training ground in the distance.

As seen by his super-senses, they heard Bai Ningyu announce the decision that anyone who couldn't master the formation within a month would be directly eliminated, and they were immediately surprised. The formations they knew required ten or twenty years of practice. How could they master them within a month?

If they couldn't master them within a month, how many people would be left in this camp by then?

This was too ruthless!

Amidst the crowd's discussion, Bai Ningyu led the first nine teams, six people per team, to the center of the training ground, scattered around the high platform.

Chu Zhiyuan put down the dossier, lifted the curtain, and left the tent, floating down to the high platform.

He stood on the high platform, his gaze calm and indifferent, and said slowly: "One month is just the minimum time limit. Those who can master the formation within ten days will directly enter the Martial Arts Hall upon reaching the Perfected Acquired Realm, without having to sort by merit."

Everyone's eyes lit up instantly, and their breathing became heavy.

Previously, they desperately cultivated and honed the formation in order to gain merit and be ranked ahead.

There were more than a thousand people in the military camp, and each of them was an elite, all at the Perfected Acquired Realm or only one step away.

It was impossible for Chu Zhiyuan to guide all these people at once, and there had to be a first-come-first-served basis. It couldn't be whoever was older or whoever stepped into the Perfected Acquired Realm earlier.

It must be in order of merit.

Now, as long as they could master the formation within ten days, they could directly receive Chu Zhiyuan's guidance without having to be ranked.

How exciting was this!

Chu Zhiyuan glanced at the crowd and looked at the soldiers in the distance: "In half an hour, it will be your nine teams' turn!"

"Yes!"

The soldiers in the distance agreed one after another, wishing they could start immediately. Then, the nine teams of soldiers began to operate the formation, stepping on strange steps, cooperating with each other. The six people's weapons were different, some with knives, some with swords, some with spears, some with shields, some with bows, and some with forks.

Chu Zhiyuan threw out yellow beans, landing on legs and arms.

Accompanying the yellow beans were Chu Zhiyuan's instructions: "Step a little bigger, the steps are too small!"

"Faster, the steps are too slow!" "Smaller, the steps are too big!"...

Whoever was hit by the yellow bean knew that Chu Zhiyuan was talking about them and immediately widened their eyes to concentrate and correct.

Time flew by quickly. They felt that half an hour passed in the blink of an eye, and they were drenched in sweat.

It was the turn of another nine teams.

Chu Zhiyuan still flicked yellow beans, as if he had three heads and six arms. The yellow beans shot out, as fast as lightning, arriving in an instant.

The previous sentence was about him, and the next sentence was about him, pointing out all the wrong things one by one, and also giving the solution.

Bai Ningyu stood aside watching, his eyes widening more and more.

He could clearly see that the nine teams in front of him were undergoing visible changes, progressing rapidly.

Originally, they couldn't find the knack, but after Chu Zhiyuan's reminder, they had already gained a preliminary understanding and started to operate the Phoenix Seeking Phoenix Formation.

Although there were some stumbles, they still completed the full performance, and only needed to continue to correct it.

Almost all nine teams reached this level. This was a huge improvement. Success or failure, good or bad, these were two different levels. First, they had to master it, and then they had to master it well.

Now they had mastered it.

All that remained was to work hard in the direction of mastering it well. Hard practice was the key, practicing hard from morning till night.

After a round of guidance, all eighteen teams of a battalion were able to fully perform the Phoenix Seeking Phoenix Formation, but they were not yet proficient and would still make mistakes from time to time.

It was much easier to go from unfamiliar to skilled, just hard practice, practicing hard from morning to night.