Gao Wu: My freshman internship was a battle on the front lines.

Chapter 92 Enhances the strength of Dong Sheng and Boss Zhao.

Ye Feng sat in his office in the city lord's mansion, surrounded by piles of registration forms.

The adjutant stood beside him, holding a statistical report.

"Major Ye, the number of applicants is still increasing. As of now, there are 3,300 qualified applicants. Among them, there are 2,900 second-tier martial artists, 330 third-tier martial artists, and 70 fourth-tier martial artists."

Ye Feng frowned.

He originally planned to recruit only one thousand people, but now it seems that one thousand is far from enough.

Jiangcheng is desperately short of manpower.

Previously, the military and the Night's Watch were unable to expand their forces due to the suppression by the powerful families.

Now that the powerful families have fallen, Ye Feng is in charge and can recruit as many people as he wants.

But he can't recruit too many.

The new army needs elite troops, not a rabble.

Too many people and insufficient resources will actually affect combat effectiveness.

"Let's recruit two thousand people first," Ye Feng decided. "We'll select the best candidates, including those from poor but respectable families and locals from Jiangcheng."

"yes!"

The adjutant accepted the order and left.

Ye Feng leaned back in his chair, looking at the ceiling.

Two thousand people, two thousand Qi and Blood Fruits, and dozens of Blood Soul Fruits.

The supplies in my spatial ring are enough.

But this is not a long-term solution.

He needed to get the new army into combat capability before these resources were exhausted, and then use the spoils of war to sustain the operation of the new army.

"We have to take things one step at a time," Ye Feng muttered to himself. "First, recruit people, then train them, and then send them out for real combat."

Two days after the press conference, Ye Feng summoned Dong Sheng and Zhao Laoda's groups to the City Lord's Mansion.

The Dong Sheng team consisted of three people, Zhao Laoda had four, and Ye Feng himself made nine people.

Sitting in the small conference room of the city lord's mansion.

Ye Feng sized up Dong Sheng.

Dongsheng has changed.

In just a few days, his strength had increased significantly. His qi and blood fluctuations were more than twice as strong as before.

"Captain Dong Sheng, what is your current cultivation level?"

Dong Shengting said with a hint of pride, "Late stage of the fourth tier."

"Late stage of fourth rank?" Ye Feng was somewhat surprised. "I remember you were still in the mid stage of fourth rank just a few days ago."

"How did you improve so quickly?"

"I've eaten a lot of good food these past few days," Dong Sheng said with a slightly embarrassed smile.

"When those aristocratic families host banquets, they always serve things like thousand-year-old Ganoderma lucidum and ten-thousand-year-old Polygonum multiflorum. After eating them for a few days, their strength increases."

Ye Feng nodded. Dong Sheng's foundation was never bad; it just lacked resources before.

Now that we have the resources, breakthroughs are a natural outcome. This is the importance of resources.

"Where's Arui?" Ye Feng asked, looking at Arui.

Arui scratched his head: "Peak of Tier 3."

"The old hunter?"

The old hunter took a puff of his cigarette: "Peak of the third tier."

Ye Feng nodded in satisfaction, then looked at Boss Zhao.

Zhao Laoda was embarrassed.

His strength had improved in the few days since he last saw him, but not by much.

It has progressed from the middle stage of the third tier to the late stage of the third tier.

Hong Gu, Lao Ma, and A Kun have made even less progress and are basically still standing still.

It's not because they didn't work hard, but because they didn't have the same opportunities as the Dong Sheng Squad.

The Dong Sheng Squad was Ye Feng's earliest teammate. In order to curry favor with Ye Feng, the Jiangcheng Family took extra care of the Dong Sheng Squad, sending them all sorts of precious resources like water.

Zhao Laoda is different; he's just Ye Feng's friend, not a teammate, so the aristocratic families are much less eager to curry favor with him.

"Brother Zhao, how have you been staying at Fortress No. 2 these past few days?" Ye Feng asked.

Old Zhao grinned: "I'm used to it! Five-star treatment, eating and sleeping well, but I feel a little guilty."

"What are you feeling guilty about?"

"I don't feel at ease eating and staying for free without doing anything."

Ye Feng smiled.

Boss Zhao is still the same Boss Zhao – honest, kind, and not greedy.

"I've called you here today for something important."

Ye Feng's smile faded, and he said seriously, "I want to form a new army of two thousand men."

"Commander Cao and the others are in seclusion, and there's no one left in Jiangcheng. I need someone to help me lead the troops."

Dong Sheng and Boss Zhao exchanged a glance but did not say anything.

"Captain Dongsheng," Ye Feng looked at Dongsheng, "I want you to be the deputy commander of the new army."

Dong Sheng was stunned. He thought he'd misheard and instinctively asked, "What?"

"The deputy commander of the new army," Ye Feng repeated, "is responsible for the daily training and management of the new army."

"I've already had the barracks built, and we can move in in three days."

"The recruitment and screening of new recruits is also underway. You can take over directly after you arrive."

Dong Sheng opened his mouth as if to say something, but then swallowed it back.

He opened his mouth, then closed it again, repeating this several times, finally managing to choke out a single sentence: "Can I do it?"

"You're a late-stage Tier 4 player, you've led squads, you have combat experience, and you have management skills. What's wrong with that?"

"I..." Dong Sheng scratched his head.

"I've heard that Manager Xing has quite a few peak fourth-tier experts, and I'm worried I won't be able to manage them well. I'm not good at management either."

"If you can't manage it, then learn it." Ye Feng patted him on the shoulder.

"Who's born with that skill? I was forced into this role. With Commander Cao and the others in seclusion, and no one else in Jiangcheng, if we don't step up, who will?"

Dong Sheng fell silent.

Yes, there's no one left in Jiangcheng.

Town Chief Cao is in seclusion, Director Zhou is in seclusion, and Elder Zhang is in seclusion.

Among those at the fifth rank or above who can fight, only Ye Feng and the two captains of the Po Jun squad from Xuanwu Fortress remain.

Those two are to guard the Xuanwu Fortress and cannot move.

Ye Feng himself is the only one in Jiangcheng with combat power above the fifth rank.

We can't let Ye Feng take charge of the new army, can we?

"Fine!" Dong Sheng gritted his teeth. "I'll do it!"

"Okay." Ye Feng smiled, then looked at Boss Zhao, "Brother Zhao, I want you and your squad to be the captains of the new army."

Zhao Laoda was stunned. He looked at himself, then at Hong Gu, and finally at Ye Feng.

"Ye Feng, are you sure?" Boss Zhao's voice was somewhat hoarse.

"I'm only at the late stage of the third tier. The strongest among my men is only at the peak of the second tier. I'm afraid I'm not strong enough to command an army of two thousand.

"Yeah! I'm afraid my strength isn't enough to control those peak fourth-tier cultivators," Dong Sheng chimed in.

"Who said you were supposed to use your current strength to intimidate us?"

Ye Feng took out twenty jade boxes from his pocket, some white and some silver, and pushed them in front of Boss Zhao.

"Twenty Qi and Blood Fruits. Twenty Blood Soul Fruits."

Old Zhao's eyes widened in surprise.

He had heard of these things: a Qi and Blood Fruit costs three million, and a Blood Soul Fruit costs one hundred million.

All of these things add up to over a billion.

"Brother Zhao, take these fruits and divide them among yourselves."

"When will I break through to the fourth rank, and when will I emerge from seclusion?"

Old Zhao's hands were trembling, and he didn't reach for the jade box.

"Ye Feng, this is too valuable!"

"Valuable my foot." Ye Feng shoved the jade box into his hand.

"What are these fruits? Take them, don't be polite with me."

Old Zhao looked at the jade box in his hand, his eyes reddening.

He was a wilderness hunter who had lived a life of danger for over a decade, but hadn't amassed much wealth.

Now Ye Feng has given these things not just for himself, but also for his brothers and sisters.

"Okay." Old Zhao's voice choked with emotion. "I'll take it. Once I'm out of seclusion, I'll definitely help you take good care of the new army!"

Ye Feng smiled and turned to look at Dong Sheng.

"Captain Dongsheng, don't fall behind either." He took out more than twenty jade boxes from his spatial ring and pushed them in front of Dongsheng.

"Sixteen Blood Soul Fruits. Thirty Qi Blood Fruits. You, Arui, and Old Hunter will share them."

"Your goal is not the early stage of the fifth tier, but the late stage of the fifth tier."

"Are and the old hunter's goal is at least the peak of the fourth tier."

Dong Sheng did not refuse, picked up the jade box, and nodded.

"And another one," Ye Feng said, taking out a few more golden Yi Fruits and placing them on the table.

"Use this when you break through to the peak of the fifth rank. Use it to attempt to break through to the sixth rank."

The conference room fell silent.

There are seven people: Dong Sheng, Zhao Laoda, A Rui, Lao Lie, Hong Gu, Lao Ma, and A Kun.

His eyes widened as he stared at the jade boxes on the table.

"Ye Feng," Dong Sheng swallowed hard, "you're being way too arrogant!"

Ye Feng smiled.

"You are my people, you are the people of Jiangcheng!"

That's enough.

"I'll be very busy for the next while. The affairs of Jiangcheng and the new army will depend on you all."

"Once we've built up a certain level of combat strength," he turned around, looked at the seven people, and smiled slightly.

"I will take you to the southern mountains to kill the Beast King."

The eyes of all seven people lit up at the same time.