“Don’t run off. I still need to come back to eat and sleep. And don’t try to steal my braised meat while I’m gone.”

Without waiting for Old Reed to respond, Brian Carter had already strode away.

Old Reed watched Brian Carter's upright back, muttering with a complicated look in his eyes, “If you don’t come back, the leftover meat will be mine.”

His interactions with Brian Carter had not been pleasant. Brian Carter had even used a knife to shave off a layer of his scalp. Old Reed remembered all of this.

However, after witnessing Brian Carter practice boxing that time, and seeing the spirit in his fists, Old Man couldn’t help but feel a bit more respect and admiration for this young man.

Even though Old Reed didn’t have much discernment, he could still tell that Brian Carter was a martial arts prodigy.

This was something none of the other youths in the Tielin Tribe could compare to.

Most importantly, Brian Carter gave him hope.

Back then, that powerful figure had said that as long as the person he brought was satisfactory, he would be given an elixir to prolong his life.

With the other party’s earth-shattering abilities, there was no way he would be deceived.

So, Old Reed sincerely hoped that Brian Carter would return.

But, Ethan Steele was so ruthless that if Brian Carter fell into his hands, he’d be lucky to escape with his life. Brian Carter had also offended the son of Qianzong Tiefeng.

No matter how skilled Brian Carter was in boxing, he was not yet a true martial artist.

With so many experts in the military camp and the harshness of military law, it would be all too easy to deal with Brian Carter.

This trip was almost certain death for Brian Carter!

Thinking of this, Old Reed felt a bit dejected. If Brian Carter died, those elixirs would have nothing to do with him.

No matter how he thought about it, Old Reed was unwilling to give up. But with his low status, even if he wanted to help, it would be useless.

“That’s right, Grace Miller!” A sudden flash of inspiration struck Old Reed, and he thought of Grace Miller.

She was the youngest priestess in the Tielin Tribe and had a close relationship with Brian Carter. If she could help, Brian Carter might be saved.

Old Reed didn’t dare go to the military camp, but he wasn’t afraid to look for Grace Miller. Even if things didn’t work out, he’d lose nothing.

The Ironblood Army’s camp was just below the city wall.

The buildings here were more orderly, surrounded by a wooden fence over three meters high. There were also two guards at the main gate.

The guards wore tattered, filthy leather armor, slouching against the wooden fence, holding ebony spears in their arms. Their faces, weathered by wind and frost, were expressionless and dull, as if nothing interested them.

As Brian Carter walked over, the two guards only glanced at him sideways, not even bothering to ask a question.

“Excuse me, how do I get to the East Camp?” Brian Carter asked politely.

“Just go straight.” The younger guard on the left replied impatiently.

Brian Carter nodded and didn’t say more. With that attitude, he naturally wouldn’t bother to make small talk.

The East Camp was indeed easy to find. After entering the camp and walking a short distance along the main road, Brian Carter saw a group of youths gathered on an open ground.

Because of the buildings in front, this area couldn’t be seen from outside the gate.

Ethan Steele's tall figure stood out among the group of youths. Not to mention, he wore armor and carried a sword, his fierce aura making him stand out even more—none of the other youths could compare.

Not wanting to cause trouble, Brian Carter quietly walked over and stood at the back.

Ethan Steele's presence was so overwhelming that the other youths didn’t even dare to breathe loudly, let alone speak.

Standing at the back, Brian Carter was able to calmly observe the others.

He found that most of the other youths were also dressed in rags, their faces sallow and thin, looking no better than himself.

However, all the youths here were sturdy. Even after eating meat for two days, he was still the skinniest and shortest among them.

Ethan Steele glanced at the sundial set up in the middle of the camp and said, “Time’s up.”

A sundial is a tool that tells time by the shadow of the sun.

The sun shone on the gnomon in the center, casting a shadow that pointed to the wooden disk. By the shadow, one could roughly tell the time.

As Ethan Steele spoke, the shadow on the gnomon was pointing to the position for noon.

Brian Carter was a bit surprised that Ethan Steele actually had a strong sense of time. Or rather, this person was especially meticulous.

In his previous life, Brian Carter had been the strongest in the army, but he most disliked people with such rigid and meticulous personalities.

“From today on, you are officially new recruits. Military law is merciless. Here, you have only one thing to do: obey orders.”

As Ethan Steele spoke, he slowly swept his gaze around. His eyes were as sharp as knives, and every youth he looked at lowered their head in fear, not daring to meet his gaze.

“For the next few days, you’ll be trained by Captain Clark. If you have any questions, just go to him.”

Ethan Steele then said to Captain Clark, “Anyone who comes late gets ten lashes. Anyone who arrives after dinner gets thirty lashes.”

Ethan Steele spoke calmly, but James Clark was startled.

Military punishments were severe—ten lashes could beat someone half to death. Thirty lashes could kill a person.

But James Clark didn’t dare object and quickly replied, “Yes, I understand.”

Once Ethan Steele left, everyone let out a long sigh of relief.

Even James Clark visibly relaxed a lot.

He pulled out a cow horn from his belt and said to the youths, “When you hear the cow horn, you must gather here immediately. If it’s a long blast, that means prepare for battle…”

“How long is a long blast?”

“Battle? Where are we going to fight?”

“With what are we supposed to fight?”