Afternoon.

Xu Ning began to head back to the Tao Village with the cut leopard fur.

He was walking towards the Tao Village.

Xu Ning saw that group of people on horses, galloping out of the Tao Village.

They were dressed in black armor and black clothes, with swords and long knives tied to their waists.

Looking at them from a distance, their movements were uniform and coordinated, and their horses moved at the same speed.

It gave off a strong oppressive vibe.

“Are they… the Black Armored Guards?”

Xu Ning looked confused.

Last time when he followed Tao Yungang into the city to escort the carriages, he caught a glimpse of the Black Armored Guards.

This was why Xu Ning was able to recognize them.

“What are the Black Armored Guards doing at the Tao Village?”

His predecessor had lived in the Tao Village for several years, but he had never seen the Black Armored Guards visiting.

“Could it be that something big happened recently?”

Xu Ning had some guesses in his heart, but he did not draw any conclusions.

Soon, he reached the gate at the entrance of the Tao Village.

They were guards from the village that patrolled around the entrance.

“Xu Ning, you’re back. What did you bring back this time?”

As soon as Xu Ning walked over, a big man with a beard greeted him with a smile.

Xu Ning left the village every other day, so the guards at the entrance were well aware of who he was. Not to mention the story about him helping Tao Yungang and defeating Zhan Sandao, more and more people had begun recognizing him.

“I brought back a piece of leopard skin.”

Xu Ning responded with a smile. “It’s just a pity that I shot a few holes in the leopard skin with my arrows.”

“That’s not bad, much better than us guards standing around here all day.”

The guard laughed as he spoke with a tony of envy.

Most of the Tao Village’s guards were ordinary people, only a few people had external and internal skills.

Their daily work consisted of looking intimidating, so their income was rather low.

“By the way, just now I saw a group of people coming out of the village, and they looked like the Black Armored Guards?”

Xu Ning asked.

“Yes, it was the Black Armored Guards.”

The guard said, “We were all surprised when they came. We haven’t seen the Black Armored Guards before. They said they wanted to see the Clan Head, and we didn’t dare to refuse.”

“What were the Black Armored Guards doing in the village?”

Xu Ning asked.

“This I don’t know…”

The guard shook his head.

“Hmm…”

When Xu Ning heard this, he did not ask any more questions.

After some more small talk, Xu Ning went to the hunting store in the village and sold the leopard coat.

…

Old clan church.

Nearly ten people were sitting in the hall.

They did not look young, even the youngest had some gray hairs on his head.

Everyone seemed to give off their own aura. They were obviously martial arts masters.

These people were the highest decision-making members of the Tao Village, the clan elders of the Tao family.

“Everyone is here?”

Sitting at the front was a spirited old man.

Although it was winter, he was still wearing a thin shirt. His exposed forearms were packed with muscle.

He was the contemporary Clan Head of the Tao Village, Tao Jingxing.

“All here.”

The clan elders sitting below were on high alert, with their eyes all turned towards Tao Jingxing.

“I called everyone here today to tell you all something.”

Tao Jingxing’s voice was not loud, but he had an overwhelming aura. “Just now the Black Armored Guards Captain Xia Yuanxing came to the village to meet with me.”

“Xia Yuanxing?”

When the clan elders heard the words, some were surprised, while some were calm.

Obviously, some people already knew that the Black Armored Guards had come by, while others did not have a clue.

“Clan Head, what is Xia Yuanxing doing here?”

Tao Jinglu was the one that spoke.

He had previously given Xu Ning and others the Spring Breeze Tactic cultivation technique.

Everyone heard Tao Jinglu’s question.

Although some people knew that the Black Armored Guards had come here, Xia Yuanxing only met with Tao Jingxing alone. They did not know the specific content of the meeting.

Tao Jingxing didn’t answer immediately. He rubbed his fingers and paused before speaking, “Xia Yuanxing said that the Black Armored Guards is going to select talents from the Tao Village.”

‘Selecting talents from the Tao Village?’

“Um…”

All of the clan elders were surprised when they heard this.

They looked at each other before looking at Tao Jingxing again.

“Clan Head, the Black Armored Guards never recruit people from our local area? Why did they suddenly change their mind?”

The one who spoke was a bald old man with a white beard on his chin.

Everyone agreed with the bald old man’s words.

After the collapse of the previous dynasty, each state capital fought with each other. There were disputes between the state capitals, sects, and families.

Finally, 30 years ago, the Source Faction quickly rose up and became the true leader of State Feiyun.

Subsequently, the Source Faction established the Black Armored Guards in Yunying City, the state capital. They were dispatched to various places in the State Feiyun to control the jurisdiction of various places, and became the de facto ruler.

During the 30 years, the Black Armored Guards in Kangyun County had changed members, but new members were all sent from abroad, with none of the locals being recruited.

Everyone knew the reason for this.

After ending the chaos in State Feiyun and achieving unification, in order to maintain independence, the Black Armored Guards always drew a clear boundary with local and state.

They were a veteran force in Kangyun County. The Tao Village had always been guarded by the Black Armored Guards.

However, there was an understanding between the two. The Black Armored Guards never bullied the Tao Village, but if there was an order, the Tao Village would obey quietly.

This was not only true for the Tao Village, but also the Song Village and the Tan Village, the other two big villages in Kangyun County.

However, the balance between the two in the past 30 years was broken because of what Tao Jingxing had said.

If someone in the Tao Village entered the Black Armored Guards, then the boundary between the two would be diluted, and the Black Armored Guards would formally merge with the local forces.

“When Xia Yuanxing informed me of this, I also felt shocked.”

Tao Jingxing explained, “Xia Yuanxing didn’t say the reason directly. He just said that the situation is unstable, and it is inconvenient to recruit new guards. So, now is the time for them to find local talent.”

“Clan Head, what are the selection criteria for the Black Armored Guards this time? How many people will be selected?”

A gray-haired old woman asked.

She had a wrinkled face and looked quite old, but her eyes shined with brilliance and astuteness.

This old woman’s name was Tao Jingfang. She was the oldest person of the Tao Village and the only female clan elder.

She did not get married all her life. She had dedicated her life to the Tao Village.

“Sister Jingfang.”

Even the Clan Head Tao Jingxing was polite to Tao Jingfang. “Xia Yuanxing said that they want to select 20 people in the Tao Village. The selection criteria are broad: the best young men between 14 and 18 years old would be selected into the Black Armored Guards.”

“The best young men between 14 and 18 years old?”

Tao Jingfang’s expression changed a little. “This is poaching the young backbones of the Tao Village.”

“How could we let this happen?”

Tao Jinglu quickly said, “If we send our talents to the Black Armored Guards, what about the Tao Village? The future of our Tao Village lies in these young people.”

Tao Jinglu’s remarks aroused the support of all the clan elders present.

Faced with the emotional elders, Tao Jingxing furrowed his eyebrows and said, “Silence!”

Suddenly, the noisy old clan church quieted down instantly.

Tao Jingxing’s majesty and power as the Clan Head was clear.

After seeing that everyone’s emotions calmed down, Tao Jingxing’s tone became calm again. “Everyone, I understand your concerns. At first, after Xia Yuanxing said this, I was also angry.”

“But he made a promise to me afterwards.” Tao Jingxing continued, “Xia Yuanxing said, after entering the Black Armored Guards, they would enjoy the right to stay in Kangyun County forever. Moreover, when the selected person reaches 40 years of age, they could make their own decision on whether to stay in the Black Armored Guards or return to the Tao Village.”

“That’s better!”

After hearing Tao Jingxing’s follow-up explanation, all of the clan elders were intrigued.

Although the young people in the village would join the Black Armored Guards, they would not leave the local area—they would stay in Kangyun County.

Moreover, after reaching 40 years of age, the selected candidates could decide to stay or leave. If they ever returned to the Tao Village, they could still become the backbone of the Tao Village and lead the way to the future.

Now it seemed like sending talents from the Tao Village to the Black Armored Guards was reasonable.