Hong Sen’s face turned paler and paler by the moment, and his hands were shaking more and more violently.
It was obvious that the military was here to deal with the gangsters. Did the kid actually summon an army?
He was shocked when he arrived at that thought.
He stole a glance at Tang Hao and immediately dismissed the idea.
‘How is that possible? Not anyone can call the military for backup! Right, I heard that two days ago, there was a big incident. It might be a terrorist attack.’
Security was tight in the city. Military presence would have been normal.
Initiating a gang fight at this time was a bad idea!
When he thought of that, he wanted to slap himself hard in the face.
His eyes wandered around the place, trying to look for an escape route.
Someone who looked like a military officer came into the cafe with several soldiers behind him.
The gangsters in the cafe crouched on the floor.
“This is a misunderstanding, Sir! This is a total misunderstanding. We’re all here to have some coffee and not cause trouble!” One of the gangsters looked at the military officer miserably.
“Shut up! Stay down!” The military officer yelled coldly.
The gangster immediately kept his mouth shut.
Hong Sen became more and more panicked as the military officer neared him. He stood up frantically and tried to explain, “This has nothing to do with me, Sir. I’m not from Huaxia. I’m a tourist from Merrica.”
He turned around and pointed at Tang Hao. “It’s all because of this kid, Sir. You ought to arrest him first!”
“You… shameless! You’re the one who got physical first!” Jiang Wanying glared at Hong Sen.
She did not suspect that Tang Hao called the military for the backup.
Hong Sen chuckled. “How can I be the one who instigated it, Sir? Look at him, he’s still fine, but my forehead is bleeding. You can see that he’s the one who started it.”
The military officer glanced coldly at him.
He did not bother talking to that guy. Instead, he walked next to Tang Hao and greeted him with a salute.
“Sir! Number Two Company reporting in! Sir!”
That voice was loud and firm.
The cafe was immediately silent again.
Hong Sen’s body shook. His mind went blank.
When he finally processed what he heard, his eyes opened round and wide, and his face contorted out of utter incredulity.
‘Oh my god! What did I just hear?
‘How… How is that possible?’
‘The kid is that officer’s superior? How old is he again?
‘By the way, isn’t the kid just a student? Why is he in the army?’
Hong Sen stood there, utterly confused.
Jiang Wanying’s mouth was opened wide. She was shocked as well. Needless to say, her parents were just as stunned.
Tang Hao nodded and said, “Take these three people away! I suspect that they’re terrorists who infiltrated into Huaxia recently. Remember to interrogate them properly. If they’re not terrorists, send them out of the country!”
Hong Sen nearly cursed out loud.
‘Suspected terrorists? F*ck me! He’s setting me up!’
He could imagine his treatment in the army’s hands once he was labeled a suspected terrorist.
“You can’t do that! I’m not from Huaxia. I’m Merrican! You can’t arrest me! I’ll sue you!” Hong Sen yelled madly.
The military officer ignored all that. He gestured at the soldiers, who pounced on the three people and carried them away.
“You can’t do this! Let me go…”
Hong Sen’s panicked cries could still be heard from afar.
The soldier hauled the three people onto the truck and left.
They left the scene equally as fast as they came. The onlookers remained confused.
“Are they terrorists?” Someone asked.
“If the military is here to arrest them, of course they are! Nice one! Terrorists like them ought to be punished heavily!”
Many people clapped their hands happily.
The other gangsters ran away for their lives.
The cafe was still as silent as ever.
Everyone inside looked at Tang Hao. Their gaze was full of respect and fear.
‘He’s so young but he’s an officer in the army. Just who is that kid?’
Jiang Wanying and her parents came to her senses after a long while.
“Lil Tang, you are…” Mrs. Jiang was confused.
‘Isn’t he a student and a businessman from a peasant family? Why does he have a rank in the military?’
Tang Hao smiled. “It’s just a title, Auntie!”
Mrs. Jiang was even more shocked. Not any random person could get a title in the army just like that. They needed to have powerful backgrounds.
She suddenly realized that she did not understand her daughter’s student.
He was only a student, yet he was the president of several businesses and had a title in the military.
Tang Hao presented the two elders with many jade talismans.
They did not fully believe Tang Hao when he told them about the talismans’ protective powers, but they took them anyway.
After saying goodbye to them, Tang Hao went to buy another car in the afternoon. It was also an Audi A8. After bringing the car home, he modified it and installed many jade talismans inside.
In the evening, he drove his new car back to Westridge.
Chapter 421 - Tang Hao Is Busy
Another seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
Tang Hao was very busy in those days.
In Provincial City, he could rely on others to manage his businesses. However, once back in Westridge, he needed to be hands-on in his company.
Haotian Health Products, Divine Liquor Company, and Masculine Wind were growing rapidly. Meanwhile, Haotian Plantations was also finally operational after a month of preparations. Its manager was a veteran in the industry.
Preparations for Haotian Group had also been progressing steadily.
Tang Hao managed the companies in the day. At night, he was even busier.
He crafted jade talismans as well as tended to his plants, especially the liquor trees.
He used most of his supply of jade talismans during his trip to Dongying a month ago, and he never had the chance to replenish them since then. The fight with the Wang family descendants also used many talismans.
He barely had any jade talismans left.
Without jade talismans, he did not feel secure. After all, the more jade talismans, the better.
To gather enough raw materials, he went to many places to buy tens of millions worth of raw jade. The jade was cut into small pieces to be crafted into talismans.
He planned to craft all types of talismans for any scenario.
He also crafted many sets of talismans, especially the Thirty-Three Heavenly Lightning Talisman Formation. He prepared a few sets in case of emergencies.
If he had more time, he would make even more. There could never be enough powerful attack talismans.
If he had more talismans during his encounter with Dragon Tiger Mountain, he would not have to call for help from Mao Mountain.
Without the jade talismans, his powers were limited.
Tang Hao spent some time every day tending to his crops and the liquor trees.
The liquor trees thrived under his care. They were about two meters tall and were covered in leaves.
They were still far away from reaching maturity, but they emanated a light fragrance of alcohol.
Tang Hao went to Dirtclod Village and transplanted the Tree of Youth to a plot of land in his plantation.
The Tree of Youth was a rare treasure. If the tree thrived and grew more flowers, he could use them to make more Pills of Everlasting Beauty.
The Pill of Everlasting Beauty could halt one’s aging process, which made it extr
emely valuable.
He had successfully made only one pill so far, which he gave to Sis Xiangyi.
Once he collected more flowers and made more of those pills, he could start selling them. Of course, he could give them away as presents too.
The pill should be popular among not only women but also men. After all, men were concerned about their appearances.
Tang Hao went to Mao Mountain. The charity foundation was finally set up. Tang Hao handed them the check for five hundred million dollars and also contributed some of his own money.
Mao Mountain also contributed a lot of money. They had contacts all over Huaxia and managed to pull in more funds.
As soon as it was set up, the charity foundation had more than ten billion yuan in funds. The news sent shockwaves throughout the entire Huaxia, and the media reported on it for a long time.
Of course, the charity foundation was part of Mao Mountain’s exterior setup. Both sides of Mao Mountain were the same entity anyway.
Tang Hao also went to check the progress of the Mao Mountain plantation.
Mao Mountain was surrounded by uncultivated mountains. They were all turned into plantations for lingzhi and ginseng.
Many young Taoist disciples carried plows and water cans, working hard under the hot afternoon sun. Many elderly Taoist masters who were Tang Hao’s acquaintances were hard at work in the plantation as well.
Tang Hao was experienced in planting and tending medicinal herbs. He surveyed the area and gave them many useful pointers.
Shabby Taoist Master and many other elderly Taoist masters followed him from behind. They behaved humbly and wrote down whatever Tang Hao told them.
A few more days passed, and Tang Hao had already amassed a respectable stash of jade talismans.
Tang Hao began to think about other things.
Now that he had encountered more and more cultivators, he was worried about the safety of the people around him.
Defensive jade talismans and the blood jade beads could only defend mundane attacks and would not be very effective against cultivators.
Even the defensive properties of the blood jade beads were not enough to withstand mundane attacks if they were powerful enough. The light shield could be broken.
Even though he had reached a truce with the Song family, there might be other accidents. He needed better ways to protect the people he cared for.
Tang Hao thought for a while. His strongest defensive item at the moment was a defensive jade talisman formation. However, each formation required tens of jade talismans and was not easy to bring around.
Individual jade talismans would be less powerful.
Tang Hao knew that he needed Artifacts with powerful defensive properties.
Too bad he did not know how to craft them.
Also, finding the necessary crafting materials in modern times was exceedingly difficult.
The bronze used in the qi gathering jars was passable, but it was the lowest grade. The quality was not good enough for crafting powerful Artifacts.
Jade would be an ideal material for defensive Artifacts. However, normal jade would not do. He needed spirit jade, which was at least a thousand years old and filled with qi. The blood jade beads were made using that type of jade.
Tang Hao had never found any jade close to that level in all the jade markets he visited.
Tang Hao flipped through his knowledge in his heritage. He found a method to produce spirit jade.
If he could not find spirit jade in the market, then he would have to produce his own.
Producing spirit jade was not a simple task.
According to his heritage, the jade had to be put in a place with a strong flow of qi, nourished with the power of the sun, the moon, and the stars, and fed with the blood of spirit creatures.
The text in the heritage was esoteric. However, putting the instructions in simpler terms, it meant that the jade had to bask in the open and be fertilized with animal blood.
The blood of the serpent monster or the sea dragon would do.
Tang Hao went to all the famous stone-gambling stores in the city and bought all the high-quality jade. He bought a few hundred pieces, which cost him a few tens of millions.
Those jade included Khotan jade and jadeite.
Now that he had the materials, he needed to find a suitable place for producing spirit jade.
After surveying a few places, he decided on a spot near Dragonrock Village. The valley with the Liquor Tree had leyline gathering formations and qi seal formations. That satisfied the strong qi flow.
Moreover, the spot was also exposed to the open sky. He could lay a talisman formation to focus the sunlight and moonlight.
After deciding on the plan, Tang Hao set into action. He dug a small pond in the valley about three meters a side. It was not very big, but it was enough to contain all the jade pieces.
He first buried the talisman formation underneath, then placed the pieces of jade inside the pond. The best quality jade was placed in the middle. It was the imperial jade that Tang Hao had obtained earlier. He had not used it ever since he used a portion for Sis Xiangyi’s accessories.
He placed jade pieces of lesser quality around it.
After placing the jade, Tang Hao poured the sea dragon blood and serpent monster blood into it, then added his own medicinal concoction that included ginseng and lingzhi.
Tang Hao had no more personal use for those two herbs. He might as well use it to nourish the jade.
Chapter 422 - It’s Done
The night sky was calm.
A bright moon hung in the sky. It scattered cold and pale moonlight on the earth below.
As the moonbeams shone on the valley, the rays were refracted and focused toward the pond.
The water in the pond was an unnerving blood color.
The moonlight seemed to have given a layer of white frosting to the blood-colored water in the pond.
Tang Hao stood next to it and observed it for a long time. He nodded his head satisfactorily.
The spirit jade pool was done. What was left was to wait.
It did not require too much attention. He only had to come every few days to top up the fertilizer.
According to Tang Hao’s estimations, the pieces of jade in the middle, especially that imperial jade, should be ready in about ten days.
It would mean that the mundane jade would be transformed into a piece of thousand-year spirit jade.
The next morning, Tang Hao went to the replica maker and bought a lot of bronze. He also ordered many bronze pieces of various sizes for practice.
Jade was a precious material. He could not afford to work on it immediately. He would rather practice on bronze first.
When Tang Hao returned home, he began practicing.
The first step of crafting an Artifact was molding the item into the desired shape.
The next step was to inscribe runes on it.
Finally, a cultivator had to channel qi into the Artifact to activate its powers.
The process seemed simple, but actually doing so was anything but that.
The hardest step was the second step.
Crafting an Artifact required a cultivator to carve many runes on the material, many times more than the runes on a jade talisman. The position of each rune had to be perfect.
Every millimeter of difference would result in useless scrap.
Tang Hao started to practice carving a defensive spell on a piece of bronze.
First, he practiced focusing his qi into a sharp carving blade. That took a lot of time, but fortunately, his qi reserves were high.
After mastering that skill, he started to carve the runes.
He encountered many failures, though each failure sharpened his skills. It took him six days of practice before he saw any real progress.
Six days later, he successfully crafted his first Artifact.
The amount of wasted bronze he used could fill up an entire room.
Tang Hao continuous
ly ordered more bronze items from the replica maker. The boss was extremely happy and worked overtime to fulfill his orders.
After his first success, his second and third successes came more easily.
After mastering the basics, Tang Hao ramped up the difficulty. He started carving smaller and more intricate runes.
Jade items were usually smaller than bronze items. He needed to carve very tiny runes to make jade Artifacts. For example, the runes on the blood jade bead could hardly be seen by the naked eye.
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