Time gradually passed, and before Chen Heng had realized it, five years had gone by.
Over the five years, Chen Heng's fame in the region became greater and greater, and he soon became known by many people.
Most people knew that he was the most famous hunter in the region and that he had great skills.
Of course, part of this was because of the Body Forging Technique.
In the real world, even though the Body Forging Technique was only a basic martial art, it was a bona fide Body Forging Technique.
For those who had not done much training before, this kind of Body Forging Technique had great effects.
The reason why Chen Heng was able to become an excellent hunter these past five years was because of the Body Forging Technique.
Over the five years, he had barely been able to complete a bit more than half of the Body Forging Technique. Even according to the standards in the real world, it was quite impressive.
At the very least, in Chen Heng's class, he would definitely be number one.
Of course, this was just something accomplished consistently over time; it was not anything incredible in and of itself.
After all, with his experience and given that he had five years, not reaching such a level would be strange.
Even so, he was still far away from completing the Body Forging Technique.
Chen Heng felt that if he wanted to complete it, it would take him at least another three or four years.
"I wonder how those monsters who completed Body Forging before turning 18 did it…"
After confirming his progress, Chen Heng felt quite speechless.
He could only confirm that the difference between people was sometimes indeed bigger than the difference between humans and dogs.
After calculating the time, this year was the fifth year that Chen Heng had been in this simulation.
In this year, the originally peaceful mountain village started to go through some changes.
"Are you the most famous hunter here?"
A tall young man stood before Chen Heng and looked at him. Based on his gaze, he seemed to be examining him.
"Hello, sir."
Chen Heng's expression was very calm. Looking at the young man's attire, a respectful look appeared on his face as he said, "How can I help you?"
This young man was wearing a high-quality red robe and had an ornate short sword on his waist.
In this region, only nobles could wear red, and that ornate short sword was not something that ordinary families could have.
Evidently, this fellow was both rich and high class; it was extremely likely that he was a noble.
"My people and I want to catch a white deer on this mountain."
The young man was evidently quite pleased towards Chen Heng's tactfulness and respectfulness and said, "As a reward, I will give you a large sum of money."
Hearing this, Chen Heng's eyes lit up.
"I would be honored to help you, sir," he said softly as he looked at this young man with a respectful gaze.
Following this, he led the young man and his two attendants into the mountain.
As they walked, Chen Heng considered the possibility of taking down the young man.
Beforehand, he had chatted with the young man, and it seemed that the young man did not have much wariness towards him, allowing him to gain some information.
The young man was called Sorondo, and he was the son of a Knight in this region.
The reason why he came here was because he wanted to find a special gift for his mother's birthday.
It was quite likely that the child of a Knight would know some Knight cultivation techniques, and even if he didn't, he would at least know some basic martial arts.
On the way, Chen Heng had already tested him.
Even though Sorondo's father was a Knight, his strength was not very great. Even though they had only walked for a short while, he was already breathing a bit heavily. From how things seemed, he did not seem very strong.
Looking at Sorondo's constitution, he did not seem like he had received much Knight training, and he did not know any profound Knight breathing techniques.
If they fought, Chen Heng had the confidence to quickly subdue him.
It was just that…
Chen Heng looked at the people by Sorondo's side and gave up on that idea.
Sorondo's strength was quite average, but his two attendants were not ordinary at all.
He most likely would not be able to deal with them all by himself.
After thinking about it, Chen Heng decided to not attack them.
As they walked, he maintained a respectful disposition and talked about things that had happened in this forest, occasionally causing Sorondo to loudly laugh. From how he looked, he seemed like he greatly appreciated Chen Heng.
As for the white deer, Chen Heng was able to find one quickly.
After living here for five years, this forest was like his home; he knew exactly where everything was.
In just a few days, Sorondo was able to obtain what he wanted.
Before leaving, Sorondo kept his end of the agreement and tossed a bag of gold coins in front of Chen Heng.
However, Chen Heng shook his head and refused.
"Why are you refusing?"
Sorondo could not understand and asked, "Do you feel it's not enough?"
"No, sir, you gave me too much."
Chen Heng deeply breathed in and said, "Sir Sorondo, you are the most noble and dignified person I have met, and to be able to get to know you is my honor. How could I dare to take a reward for my services?"
Sorondo stared at him with surprise. No matter how thick one's skin was, one would feel embarrassed from that.
Normally, he was just the son of a Knight, and even though his status was higher than an ordinary person's, he was not that much higher. He had never been praised like this before.
What's more, the one praising him like this was not an ordinary person; he was an extremely skilled and powerful hunter.
"You're… You're exaggerating…"
His face became red and wondered how to reply, but Chen Heng spoke first, "If you don't mind, I'm willing to become your most loyal follower, the blade in your hands."
Chen Heng half-knelt and said sincerely, "Such a noble person like you is my model for the rest of my life. Please let me serve you and clear away all of your obstacles."
"This…" Sorondo was stunned for a moment before saying in shock, "You want to follow me?"
In this world, following someone and giving them your loyalty was not just something casually said.
Once someone chose to pledge their loyalty to someone, they would not be able to betray them for their entire lives, as they would be shunned by all people.
Of course, following someone and pledging loyalty was a rule created by nobles. For a commoner like Chen Heng, ordinarily, he did not even have the right to follow a noble.
However, the current state of affairs was different than before. During the chaos of war, any warrior who could draw his sword would be welcomed.
Moreover, Sorondo was not a proper noble.
He was just the son of a Knight.
As such, Chen Heng suddenly pledging his loyalty was very tempting.
He looked at Chen Heng's solid and tall figure and thought back to his valiant fighting style when fighting with beasts, and he could not help but nod.
Just like that, Chen Heng became Sorondo's follower.
After choosing to follow Sorondo, Chen Heng left his town and headed to Sorondo's father's territory.
He did not have any reservations about this.
Suolo's mother had long since passed away because of illness, and his father had passed away because of the flu two years ago.
He was all alone and did not have anything tying him down here.
Sorondo's father also welcomed Chen Heng.
There was a shortage of soldiers recently, and valiant fighters like Chen Heng were something they could never have enough of.
This was especially so after seeing Chen Heng's abilities. Seeing that he was not any inferior to his guards, he was delighted.
A Knight's territory did not come for free. They needed to nurture guards and followers to protect their territory and heed their call when they went into battle.
It was difficult to nurture warriors, and it was naturally better to have as many valiant warriors like Chen Heng as possible.
Just like that, Chen Heng joined Sorondo's father's territory.
Time gradually passed, and soon, it had been another five years.
One night, Sorondo called Chen Heng to his room.
"Suolo, my brother."
Compared to five years ago, Sorondo still looked young but seemed much more mature.
Over the past few years, Chen Heng had served Sorondo's father well, but he had not lost contact with Sorondo. The two of them had maintained a good relationship since the start.
Just like today, they would often meet up late at night and chat.
However, this time was different than the past times.
Within the spacious room, Sorondo sat there by himself and his expression flickered as he said, "Can I trust you?"
"Of course, sir," Chen Heng did not hesitate to reply, and he half-knelt as he said resolutely, "With a single command, I can do anything for you."
Seeing how Chen Heng didn't even hesitate, Sorondo inwardly let out a sigh of relief and paused before saying, "I have something that I need your help with.
"My father will not be able to last very long…"
After pausing, he decided to speak.
"What?"
Chen Heng paused and felt quite surprised.
Sorondo's father, Knight Cecily, was a real Knight.
According to the standards of this world, Knight Cecily had received good training as a Knight and had the talent to match, awakening Life Energy.
Chen Heng had seen Knight Cecily not too long ago; he had come back from an expedition and seemed incredibly mighty.
He did not look like he was going to die at all.
Sorondo seemed to be able to tell Chen Heng's confusion and continued, "Using Life Energy will cause many problems in the body, and it will even cause one's lifespan to be reduced.
"My father, he…"
Pausing, he once again sighed and did not continue.
Chen Heng understood what Sorondo was trying to say.
Based on his investigations, the Knights here used something called Life Energy.
Life Energy caused Knights to be incredibly powerful, but at the same time, it harmed their bodies and could reduce their lifespan.
This must have been what happened to Sorondo's father, Knight Cecily.
"Based on what I know, my father only has two years left…"
Sorondo sighed, and his expression became gloomy as he said, "And after that, Charlie will take over this territory and become the new ruler…"
Chen Heng immediately understood Sorondo's intentions.