"What's going on? We're about to start the final assessment?"
Han Zheng pulled Li Sancheng aside and asked.
Li Sancheng chuckled, "To be precise, it's not us, but you guys.
Rumor has it that today, the head of the Academy will announce the start of the final assessment for the five of you.
The victor will be this session's most outstanding disciple at Zhenwei Martial Arts Academy and will qualify to be taught the White Ape Extended Arm Fist."
"The final assessment is starting now? That's quite a fast pace."
Han Zheng was slightly surprised.
Before they joined the Academy, Li Jingzhong had told them that the course would be about a year long.
As long as one passed the assessments and wasn't expelled, one could officially graduate in a year.
Now, just after half a year, they were supposed to undergo the final assessment, which seemed faster than previous sessions.
"It is said that because this session's disciples are so exceptional, especially a few of you who are almost certain to reach the Innate Realm in the future.
If it was dragged out to a year, you all might have already advanced to the Innate Realm by then, and teaching you the White Ape Extended Arm Fist would be a bit late, hence the decision to proceed with the assessments earlier."
Han Zheng nodded in understanding.
Most martial artists may never aspire to the Innate Realm in their lifetimes.
In the past, not every session at Zhenwei Martial Arts Academy would have a disciple who advanced to the Innate Realm.
This time, with so many outstanding disciples, it was only natural for Li Jingzhong to revise the schedule and prepare in advance.
Martial skills for the Innate Realm aren't only learnable after reaching that state.
Rather, it's that one can only fully utilize the potential of these martial skills once in the Innate Realm.
So, starting cultivation earlier is quite necessary.
After a while, Li Jingzhong emerged from the inner hall of the Martial Arts Academy, and all the disciples immediately quieted down and stood in order.
"You must have heard the news already. Today, we will commence the final assessment, though it is not relevant to most of you."
Li Jingzhong's gaze turned to Han Zheng and the others as he said in a deep voice, "Han Zheng, Chen Zhao, Lin Qing, Song Tianqing, Guo Mingyuan.
The strength and cultivation level of you five far exceed the other disciples within the Academy. It is time for the final assessment.
The ultimate victor will be the most outstanding disciple of this session and will be eligible to inherit the White Ape Extended Arm Fist.
To ensure fairness, considering your stamina, each of you will only have one match per day.
Since there are five of you, someone will be drawn to advance directly today, having a bye.
Tomorrow, there will be another draw for a bye, but the person who had a bye today won't be able to draw and will need to compete."
The method to determine a single winner out of five, while somewhat intricate, was as fair as Li Jingzhong could manage.
Having a bye was a significant advantage; it saved stamina and allowed observing the others' moves.
Yet luck itself is also part of one's strength.
When stepping into the Martial World, just a bit more luck than you could suppress you for a lifetime.
At this point, Lin Qing suddenly stood up and said, "There's no need for such trouble, Master. I withdraw from the assessment.
Not long ago, my father had already made contact with the Cang Mountain Sword Sect.
An Outer Door Steward from the Cang Mountain Sword Sect came to inspect my qualifications yesterday and confirmed that I could join the Sect, with a strong chance of being admitted to the Inner Door.
Once he reports back to the Sect, an Elder in charge of transmitting teachings will personally come to re-examine and officially admit me into the Inner Door."
As he spoke, Lin Qing's tone was calm, but he couldn't entirely conceal a hint of pride.
The other disciples within the Academy looked at Lin Qing with envy and admiration, with hardly any jealousy.
If Lin Qing were simply the most prominent disciple of the Zhenwei Martial Arts Academy in Black Stone County, they might have felt envious.
But now that he was about to become an Inner Sect Disciple of the Cang Mountain Sword Sect, what was there to be jealous about?
Once the gap between people reaches a certain level, the emotion of jealousy ceases to exist.
The Cang Mountain Sword Sect is one of the Five Families and Seven Sects of the Southern Mountain, renowned throughout the region for its swordsmanship.
Once they graduate, they could only serve as Martial Arts Hall Protectors, essentially gatekeepers, bowing and scraping to their superiors.
But disciples of the Cang Mountain Sword Sect, wherever they roam in the Martial World, deserve polite treatment from any faction.
The two are not on the same level at all.
Han Zheng also thought to himself that Lin Qing truly had good fortune, holding the best cards from birth.
Although born in the county city, he was the son of the Chief Clerk.
With the County Magistrate of Black Stone County indulging in a life of intoxication and neglecting his duties, the actual power was held by Lin Qing's father, the Chief Clerk; one might say he was the most influential person in Black Stone County.
Moreover, Lin Qing was born with a dashing appearance, and it was said that the Song Family had wanted to marry one of their legitimate daughters to him several years ago, but he didn't show interest in the daughter of the Song Family.
Later, when he joined the Martial Arts Academy to practice martial arts, his root aptitude and talent were affirmed by Li Jingzhong, and his future entry into the Innate Realm was certain.
His father, the Chief Clerk, was not content with Lin Qing staying in Black Stone County all his life. So for years, he made connections with many great sects, aiming to send Lin Qing out of the county.
Unexpectedly, he truly succeeded, and it was with the top sect of the Southern Mountain, the Cang Mountain Sword Sect.
Lin Qing had smooth sailing all the way, without facing the slightest setback, truly a source of envy.
When he heard this, Li Jingzhong felt somewhat astonished too.
He knew that Chief Clerk Lin wanted to send Lin Qing to a major faction in the outside world, but he had not expected him to actually make contact with the Cang Mountain Sword Sect.
However, Lin Qing's withdrawal was of no concern to Li Jingzhong.
He was just an instructor at the martial arts hall, earning silver by teaching martial skills.
Whether his students chose to take their skills to another teacher or to join another sect once they left the door did not matter much to him.
The sword dao of the Cang Mountain Sword Sect was famous throughout Southern Mountain, with various martial arts and swordsmanship starting from the Innate Realm. It was normal that Lin Qing would look down on the White Ape Extended Arm Fist.
After all, a martial artist's time is limited; Lin Qing would rather spend that time practicing the swordsmanship of the Cang Mountain Sword Sect than bother with fist techniques.
Li Jingzhong patted Lin Qing on the shoulder lightly and admired, "Not bad, the Cang Mountain Sword Sect is a top major sect of Southern Mountain. Being able to enter it, especially the Inner Door, you will surely achieve limitless success in the future.
The martial path is long, and for you, the Innate Realm is just the beginning. I also wish that after you join the Cang Mountain Sword Sect, your martial fortune flourishes all the way."
Lin Qing chuckled and said, "With the Hall Master's blessing, then I shall be on my way."
Having said that, Lin Qing turned and left without any hint of reluctance.
For him, the Zhenwei Martial Arts Academy was just an insignificant step on his martial journey.
The Cang Mountain Sword Sect and the entire Martial World of the Great Zhou were where he truly aimed to soar to great heights.
In the crowd, Song Tianqing gave Lin Qing a glance, revealing a slightly disdainful smile.
"Now only four remain. It's perfect for two rounds of battle. Let's start drawing lots."
Inside the lot drawing bucket were two red lots and two green lots; Han Zheng and Guo Mingyuan drew the red ones, while Song Tianqing and Chen Zhao drew the green ones.
Seeing his own lot, Guo Mingyuan's face showed a hint of joy.
Among the disciples inside the martial hall, only Lin Qing and Song Tianqing were considered by Guo Mingyuan to be formidable foes.
Han Zheng and Chen Zhao, who were of commoner origin, were never in his eyes.
A poor soul who couldn't even afford a medicine bath could only be comparable to him in the Postnatal Realm.
Once reaching the Innate Realm, they might spend their lives stuck in the early stages, while he would surely soar high above, with them only fit to look up at him.
Now, with Lin Qing voluntarily withdrawing, one major rival was gone.
And in the first round, having drawn Han Zheng meant that it wouldn't take much effort to deal with him.
Then he could observe Song Tianqing's moves, scout for weaknesses, and defeat him in one fell swoop tomorrow!
Guo Mingyuan was brimming with confidence; from the moment he drew his lot, he had both Han Zheng and Song Tianqing neatly sorted out.
Li Jingzhong declared solemnly, "Han Zheng, Guo Mingyuan, you two will have the first match.
Although I have taught you weapons, a spar between fellow disciples seeks only the outcome, not life or death, so you must not use weapons and only compete with fists and feet."
Had Lin Qing been there, this rule would have seemed targeted at Lin Qing, as Lin Qing's swordsmanship was even better than his fist technique.
But without Lin Qing, neither of the four showed any advantage with weapons, which was fair.
The disciples inside the martial hall dispersed to the sides, clearing a large space in the center of the practice ground, with Han Zheng and Guo Mingyuan standing in the center.
About the outcome between the two, the disciples inside the martial hall still felt that Guo Mingyuan had the greater chance of victory.
Although they all cursed Guo Mingyuan, they had to admit that his martial cultivation, built up through medicine baths, was currently the best in the martial hall.
One level of strength could crush a person; in the eyes of most martial artists, a higher realm often implied strength and victory.
"Begin the match."
As Li Jingzhong's voice fell, a confident smile appeared on Guo Mingyuan's lips.
His qi and blood churned tumultuously, and he threw his fists simultaneously, aiming straight for Han Zheng's chest.
Guo Mingyuan's entire body was a conduit for nine meridians, channeling the power of his acupoints. From the get-go, he intended to overwhelm his opponent, directly crushing Han Zheng with absolute strength.
Watching Guo Mingyuan make his move, Han Zheng shook his head inwardly.
Medicine baths were indeed effective in enhancing one's cultivation, even so, Han Zheng's cultivation level was still a notch below Guo Mingyuan's, despite having the Taotie Furnace cheat.
However, cultivation could be enhanced, but mastery over martial skills and combat experience could not be raised through medicine baths.
Han Zheng's Vajra Fist skill level had already reached perfection, whereas by the looks of it, Guo Mingyuan was at most 50%.
With a cross fist in front of him, Han Zheng's arm was like a massive Demon-Subduing Pestle, his waist and hips twisted, and he suddenly swung it out!
Li Jingzhong's eyes instantly lit up.
Han Zheng was unarmed, but this strike carried the essence of a weapon, like a Buddhist Vajra wielding a Demon-Subduing Pestle, augmenting the power with the weight behind the swing.
Bang!
Guo Mingyuan's fists felt as though they had struck an iron plate, sending a painful shock through his palms.
Despite having one more meridian open than Han Zheng, why couldn't he overpower the other's strength?
Before Guo Mingyuan could react, Han Zheng's fist came crashing down, the whistling sound fierce, the Vajra Demon Suppressing strike unmatched in power.
Guo Mingyuan raised his hands high as if holding up a cauldron, one of the rare defensive moves in the Vajra Fist style.
Yet, as Han Zheng's fist fell, the Demon-Subduing Pestle broke the surface with a point, his entire body's meridians and blood boiling, the force suddenly bursting forth, completely shattering Guo Mingyuan's defensive posture.
He was even sent flying by the punch, landing in utter disarray.