...

...

The days of spring planting are busy yet peaceful.

After the Lizardmen's failed attack on the Mountain Cat People up north, they vanished overnight, like frightened beasts.

Even more bizarrely, all the mass graves had been dug out.

The bodies inside vanished without a trace, leaving only deep pits,

which puzzled everyone—what exactly do they want?

Over a month without any trace, Luo De let Rein and Gang Le take their men and return for a few days of rest.

They'd been struggling in the cold for too long and deserved a good reunion with their families.

Coincidentally, the beasts of spring were busy mating and reproducing.

Rein and Gang Le had already brought back over three hundred tons of game; if they continued to hunt wild boar, deer, and buffalo, there'd soon be none left.

Giving the soldiers a few days of rest also gave the beasts some breathing space.

Luo De left a small squad at the Vanguard Outpost on the Razor Plain.

Primarily Hunters and Tucson, responsible for watching and scouting the opponent's movements.

Withdrawing troops doesn't mean relaxing vigilance.

The Lizardmen still need to be guarded against.

As for spring planting, Otto was in charge, freeing Luo De from hands-on involvement, making more inspections instead.

However, this is only for the wheat fields; vegetable cultivation is entirely different.

This year, Luo De had already prepared various vegetable seeds, such as turnips, spinach, carrots, kale, mustard, and so on.

Luo De didn't like eating wild vegetables; although healthy, they stripped the body of too much oil.

Moreover, the cultivation methods for vegetables varied and couldn't be generalized like for wheat.

For instance, turnips couldn't be simply row planted—at least the seeds couldn't be mixed together.

Each plant requires a spacing of about a palm's width, necessitating careful cultivation.

Such knowledge was unknown to the farmers of Frost Leaf Town; some slaves knew a bit, but still needed Luo De's direct guidance and supervision.

Most of these vegetables needed to be planted from March to April in early spring, and some could be harvested and served by June.

Of course, guiding vegetable planting only took Luo De a few days, much easier compared to last year.

When Rein, Gang Le, and others returned, Luo De specifically set aside time to stay at the training ground.

Luo De wanted to spend more time with his retainers, to foster camaraderie.

And the way warriors enhance camaraderie, apart from drinking, was through sparring.

...

...

"No more! No more!"

Gang Le plopped down on the ground, tossing his axe to the side.

He panted heavily, "Lord Baron, we've been fighting for so long, I'm about to die of exhaustion, yet you're not even flushed or out of breath!"

Gang Le wiped the sweat from his forehead, scratching his head in confusion, "Let's not even talk about strength, how did you get so much more stamina?"

He frowned, recalling, "I remember half a year ago when we sparred, you weren't this at ease, right? Though even then, I wasn't your match."

Luo De handed the training great sword to Durant, taking a couple of sips of water, and casually said, "Maybe it's because I eat well."

That wasn't exactly a lie.

Because of his wild absorption, Luo De could absorb more nutrients from food.

These subtly transformed his physique.

Durant asked, "Lord Baron, have you been promoted to Intermediate Knight?"

"A promotion would enhance your physique; the better the base, the greater the improvement."

"I don't know, perhaps."

Luo De raised his arm to feel his strength, "Since receiving the Flame Tempering inheritance, the blazing energy in my body has taken control."

"The 'breath' cultivated through Breathing Technique gets swiftly devoured by the blazing energy."

"I can only feel the growth of the blazing energy, but I don't understand the specifics."

"That's a good thing for you!"

Durant's eyes lit up, "Didn't you say before that you couldn't enhance the blazing energy through cultivation?"

"It's only halfway good."

Luo De sighed softly and chuckled helplessly, "The 'breath' cultivated seems to resist, causing significant loss in the devouring process."

"Of course, this is just my speculation."

"But the result is a fact."

As Luo De's words fell, Durant frowned, sinking into silence.

Gang Le didn't understand either and couldn't interject, turning to grab a water pouch and gulp it down.

"What are you thinking about?" Luo De asked Durant.

"I have a thought, it might seem like wishful thinking."

Durant's expression was hesitant.

This only piqued Luo De's curiosity further.

"Let's hear it."

"All Breathing Technique cultivations have corresponding attributes, not apparent in ordinary knights, but only revealed upon becoming a Legendary Knight."

Durant explained, "For instance, the ancestor of Marquis Cold Blade, the Frost Ash Knight, could emit ice power with his breath."

"Storm Blade, legend has it, when he drew his sword, electric light flickered..."

"Hmm, and then?" Luo De frowned, pressing further.

"You don't have 'breath' now, but you have blazing energy in your body,"

Durant speculated tentatively, "It's similar to the ascension of a Legendary Knight."

"But I'm far from being a Legendary Knight..."

Luo De was momentarily stunned but reacted as his words trailed off.

Luo De frowned, pondering before speaking,

"You mean to say that although I lack the power of a Legendary Knight, my body has energy akin to one?"

A flash of understanding flickered in Luo De's eyes,

"This blazing energy is of a higher grade, or rather more refined, and now the 'breath' cultivated through Breathing Technique is purified by the blazing energy?"

"Is that why I feel the devouring process is reduced?"

"Yes, Lord Baron."

Durant nodded repeatedly with relief, "You summed it up much better, I was too vague."

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