I walked back to the camp just outside Ann Arbor’s city limits. Sal’s construction vehicles were parked in a rough circle, forming a perimeter against the dark woods.

  Everyone was there. Bells was leaning against a tire, cleaning his nails with a wind blade. Joakim and his crew were playing cards on the hood of a truck. Frank and Sal were looking over a blueprint.

  I didn't waste time. I raised my hand, and the earth shifted.

  "Shelter," I commanded.

  Bamboo stalks shot up from the ground, weaving themselves into simple, sturdy residences for the crew.

  "Report," I said, gathering the generals.

  "Nothing," Sal said, throwing his hands up. "Just vendors selling junk and people complaining about the weather."

  "Same," Frank added. "No chatter on the arrays. It's quiet."

  "Too quiet," Joakim muttered.

  I looked at Bells. "And you?"

  "Boring," Bells spat. "I tried to pick a fight with a biker gang, instead they apologized and bought me a drink. This city has no spine."

  "It's fine," I said. "Because I learned plenty."

  I told them about Chaps, about Adan and the intel on Cloud and Black Hand.

  "We are declaring war on Cloud," I announced. "They are a cult and enslave cultivators. Their leader, Qolius, can corrupt Qi and turn your own mind against you. We cannot coexist with them."

  The group nodded. Even Joakim, who usually shied away from the heavy stuff, looked grimly determined. Slavery wasn't a popular concept, even in the apocalypse.

  "One problem," Bells said, stepping forward. "We need bodies."

  He pointed at the fifty Diamond Boys and the fifty soldiers in the third division.

  "This isn't an army, Kaz. It's a posse. If Cloud is as strong as you say, we will be outnumbered ten to one and I am not retreating again. If we lose, I will die on that field. Do you understand?"

  I looked at Bells. The shame of the retreat from White Hill still burned him.

  "No one will die," I said. "And we won't be retreating."

  I checked my watch.

  "Go to bed," I ordered. "Get some rest. I have work to do."

  I teleported back to Southfield.

  I was standing in the foyer of my Mansion.

  I pulled out my phone and opened the Eden Administrative App.

  [Broadcast: Eden Citizen Registry]

  [Subject: Army Recruitment]

  [Message: Eden is forming the First Division. We require able-bodied men. No cultivation path required. Salary: 100,000 Spirit Stones salary with full benefits. Report to the Eden Training Field in 10 minutes.]

  I hit send.

  Then I teleported to the Training Field.

  I stood on the podium, watching the empty bleachers.

  Ten minutes later, the roar began.

  It started as a rumble of engines and grew into a stampede. Cars, bikes, scooters, and thousands on foot flooded the parking lot. They spilled onto the field.

  35,000 men.

  Nearly all the male population of the city had shown up. They were mechanics, teachers, accountants, and laborers. They were desperate for the security and wealth that 100,000 stones promised.

  "Let's begin," I whispered.

  I spent the next six hours vetting them.

  You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

  I used [Root Sense] to scan their bodies. I checked bone density, muscle mass, and lung capacity. I needed durability.

  I walked the lines, pointing.

  "You. You. Not you. You."

  By dawn, I had selected 10,000 men. They stood in formation on the field, looking nervous but eager.

  "Now to arm you," I said.

  I teleported to the Garden.

  I stood in the center of the Verdant Jade Loam.

  "Crafting," I commanded.

  I visualized the gear.

  I already had the necessary but there was something I didn’t have. Range.

  I pulled a stalk of bamboo and bent it and strung it with a high tensile vine.

  [Verdant Jade Loam Bamboo Bow (Grade 3)]

  Because of my Dao of Growth all of my creations were imbued with the concept of regeneration. As soon as an arrow was pulled, the living wood of the quiver would sprout another one instantly. Infinite ammunition.

  My soldiers would not be scavenging for arrows anytime soon.

  I teleported back to the field.

  "Dominion."

  Racks of armor and weapons grew out of the earth in front of every single soldier.

  "Suit up," I ordered.

  The sound of 10,000 men donning wooden armor filled the air.

  "Go home," I told them. "Sleep. Then take the train to Eve. From there, march down the highway to Ann Arbor. We meet at the camp tomorrow morning."

  "Yes, sir!" the army roared.

  I teleported back to my house and collapsed into my bed.

  Tomorrow was war.

  I woke up early and teleported back to the camp outside Ann Arbor.

  The guys were stirring, brewing coffee over a fire Frank had set up.

  "Where's the army?" Bells asked, looking at the empty road.

  "En route," I said. "They should be here within the hour."

  "Strategy," Bells said, pulling out a map. "We need to plan."

  We gathered around a makeshift bamboo table.

  "First Division," Bells said, tracing a line toward Grand Rapids. "My men. We head straight up the middle, following the heavy support and smash the front gate."

  "I'll take the flank," Joakim said. "My boys are fast. We can hit their supply lines or harass their edges."

  "Siege support," Frank said, pointing to himself and Sal. "We'll set up arrays and build fortifications as we advance and keep the line moving."

  "And you?" Bells asked, looking at me. "Rear guard?"

  "Yes," I said. "I'll cover the back."

  "You should be up front, Boss!" Sal objected, slamming his fist on the table. "You're the strongest! You should be leading the charge!"

  "Don't be ridiculous," Bells scoffed. "Kaz is a support cultivator. He can take a hit but he can't deal damage. He stays in the back where he can prevent any flank."

  I looked at Bells. He still saw me as the man he beat in the duel. He had been unconscious during the theater fight. He didn't know.

  I raised a finger.

  Ten stalks of bamboo popped from the ground around Bells.

  They sharpened, and snapped off the vine, hovering in the air.

  Ten spears, pointed at Bells' throat, chest, and eyes.

  Bells froze and turned slowly, his eyes wide.

  "You..." Bells whispered. "When?"

  "I'm not just a gardener anymore, Bells," I said calmly. "But I will stay in the back. Not because I'm weak, but because from there, I can see the whole board. My reach is infinite."

  I lowered my finger and the spears dissolved back into the earth.

  Bells swallowed hard. He nodded. "Understood."

  Just then, the ground began to shake.

  We looked toward the highway.

  The First Division had arrived.

  10,000 men in jade armor marched in perfect unison. The sun glinted off their bamboo swords and the infinite quivers on their backs. They looked like a forest that had decided to go to war.

  Bells walked out to meet them, his confidence returning as he surveyed his troops.

  "Rest up," I ordered. "We march in two hours."

  At noon, we moved out.

  "Summon," I commanded.

  Two massive shapes grew from the ground. Roots twisted into legs thick as redwood trunks. Vines braided into armored torsos.

  Two Guardian Treants (Tank Variant) stood up, towering 100 feet over the army. Their Sky Piercer turrets swiveled, locking onto the horizon.

  The people of Ann Arbor came out to watch. They lined the streets, staring in awe as the Eden Army marched past. The ground shook with every step of the Treants.

  "Maybe after this," I said to myself, "I'll have some reputation here."

  We marched for three hours before reaching Grand Rapids.

  It was magnificent.

  Unlike the chaotic sprawl of Ann Arbor or the tech-scape of Detroit, Grand Rapids was austere.

  It was built from black and white stone. Brutalist architecture. Massive, sheer walls rose fifty feet into the air.

  Dominating the skyline was a single, gigantic tower in the center of the city. At its peak, a Pink Star glowed. It was the only splash of color in the entire monochrome city.

  "Temples," Frank noted, looking through a pair of binoculars. "Barracks. Hospitals. It's a fully functioning city."

  "It's a fortress," Bells corrected.

  We approached the main gate.

  The Cloud sentries on the ramparts spotted us immediately.

  A bell rang out and echoed across the plains.

  "No need to announce what's already understood," Frank said, drawing a rune in the air.

  The gates of Grand Rapids did not open but the walls did begin to glow with a white light.

  "The war between Eden and Cloud," I said, "has begun."