A tall soldier clad in heavy armor and wielding a battle spear strode into the grand hall: “Reporting to The Master and Second Master, the garrison at Zhushan has sent a signal. Three hundred cavalry of the Northern March have bypassed the second slope and are expected to arrive in front of the manor in about a quarter of an hour.”

“Dismissed!” The Master Samuel Johnson rose to his feet.

The soldier withdrew, and the main hall immediately erupted into noise.

“Northern March? Three hundred cavalry—what are they here for?” someone asked with a frown.

“Judging by the timing, it’s about time to pay this year’s annual tax,” someone else replied calmly.

“Every year, besides paying taxes to the three great families in Hongcheng, we also have to pay an annual fee to the Northern March stronghold.” The bald man suddenly stood up and roared, “Second Master, now that you’re back, I say we just don’t pay any of them.”

“Five or six thousand yuan stones a year—it really is a heavy burden.”

As soon as the bald man spoke, others immediately began to discuss.

Jack Johnson slowly stood up and gently waved his hand, and the entire hall fell silent. He smiled lightly and said, “As for taking control of Hongcheng, let’s take it slow. With me here, the three great families and the Northern March stronghold will naturally know what to do.”

With his words, no one in the hall dared to object.

Henry Johnson, held in his mother’s arms, looked at his father in flowing white robes and felt a bit surprised. With just a word, no one dared to refute him. Within the manor, his father’s prestige was truly terrifyingly high.

“Three hundred Northern March cavalry—they really think highly of the Jiang clan. Since they’re coming, we can’t show fear!” In the manor, Samuel Johnson spoke: “Tommy, order the manor’s guards to don armor, mount up, and form ranks!”

“Yes, Father!” The burly man seated below immediately stood up, answered, and turned to leave.

“The rest of you, let’s go out and have a look!” The Master Samuel Johnson waved his hand.

Nearly twenty high-ranking members of the manor didn’t hesitate and, led by Samuel Johnson, left the main hall.

On the other hand, Jack Johnson was in no hurry. He smiled gently at Vera Quinn and said, “Vera, it’s snowing heavily outside. You take Little Henry back.”

Before his mother Vera Quinn could speak, Henry Johnson was already unwilling.

This was the first grand event since arriving in this world—he didn’t want to miss it. He immediately started to cry and fuss, and Vera Quinn couldn’t comfort him no matter what.

“Forget it, Little Henry seems to like excitement. Let’s take him along!” Jack Johnson said with a smile.

“But—!” Vera Quinn frowned slightly. She really didn’t want her child to take any risks.

“Look at this little guy—he stopped crying as soon as he heard he could go.” Jack Johnson laughed. “It’s only three hundred Northern March cavalry. Even if their leader came in person, he might not dare to really fight me.”

“You’re always showing off—fine, let’s go!” Vera Quinn teased him in return.

And so, the family of three walked out of the main hall together and arrived at the spacious martial training ground.

Through his mother’s hand, Henry Johnson could see that there were already several hundred people on the training ground. Each was tall and sturdy, holding a battle spear, mounted on massive horses, and arrayed in formation.

What shocked Henry Johnson the most was that all these riders were clad in full armor, and even the horses were covered in blue battle armor from head to toe. Only through the gaps in the armor could one vaguely glimpse the horses’ fiery red color.

“Heavy cavalry—how many people does the entire Jiang clan have? How can they field several hundred heavy cavalry?” Henry Johnson was astonished.

Each of these soldiers clearly possessed cultivation. Even clad in full heavy armor, they stood motionless, spears raised, exuding a chilling and murderous aura in the falling snow.

The hundreds of mounts were also unbelievably large, bigger than any warhorse Henry Johnson had known in his previous life. Across the entire training ground, aside from the sound of hooves striking the earth, there was not a single other noise.

“Their army is like a forest, their armor like a fortress, their weapons point the way, invincible wherever they go!” Such words involuntarily surfaced in Henry Johnson’s mind.

If such an army existed in ancient times on Earth, it would have been the most elite cavalry in the world, unstoppable in battle. From the moment the order was given to now, how much time had passed? Yet they could assemble with such momentum.

“But I wonder what kind of presence the Northern March, which makes the entire manor so wary, truly has!” Henry Johnson’s heart burned with anticipation.

Having witnessed this heavy cavalry, his expectations only grew.

In his previous life, although he had embarked on the path of cultivation, his achievements were limited by his talent. In tens of thousands of years in the underworld, he mainly cultivated his soul. Although he had seen some peak experts duel, he still only had a superficial understanding of the true path of cultivation.

That was why his anticipation grew even stronger.

Soon, Henry Johnson followed his mother up onto the high outer wall of the manor fortress, overlooking the broad mountain road stretching down the slope.

Between heaven and earth, a torrent of blood-red heavy cavalry was charging forward. Even from several miles away, Henry Johnson could feel a terrifying, murderous aura surging toward him.

This was an even more fearsome flood of armored cavalry!

Chapter Five Second Master

Henry Johnson, held by his mother, stood at a corner atop the high wall, with armored guards nearby, but he could still clearly see everything below.

Hundreds of cavalry galloped forward, much like the Jiang clan’s iron cavalry, all in uniform heavy armor. The only difference was that these iron riders’ armor was a crimson blood-red, looking especially fierce and exuding a murderous aura.

Judging by instinct, Henry Johnson felt that these so-called “Northern March” iron cavalry were even more powerful.

“These hundreds of iron-armored heavy cavalry, all cultivators—such a force must be a dominant power in this region.” Henry Johnson watched.