Chapter 171: Passing the Exam

Chapter 171: Passing the Examination

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yu Xinghan glanced at Zhang Yu’s departing silhouette and then turned his indifference away.

For at this moment he had something far more pressing.

After the divine power of the Ministry of Health’s deity descended and reversed the sterilization procedure for him, Yu Xinghan at first felt no change within himself.

He returned to the examination hall and began to cultivate the Tiangang Qi Gong.

Yet this cultivation, accompanied by the flow of magical energy and the condensation of strands of pure yang gang qi, gradually made Yu Xinghan’s body blaze with heat, his mind restless.

What truly unsettled Yu Xinghan, however, was the uncontrolled parade of delicate visions that began to surface in his mind.

There were Bai Zhenzhen, Le Mulian, Zhang Pianpian, and the various female classmates he had met at Bailong High School, even the Xiandu girls present today…

These graceful silhouettes flickered back and forth like endless distractions, causing Yu Xinghan’s thoughts to flutter and his grip on the gang qi to weaken ever so slightly.

Until at last all the visions vanished together, leaving only a single figure.

It was Li Xuelian, the daughter of the Immortal Starfire and Yu Xinghan’s senior sister.

As Li Xuelian’s form materialized, Yu Xinghan suddenly realized how strikingly beautiful his senior sister truly was, exuding a mature allure that made his breathing grow heavier.

The centuries‑long age gap, coupled with her status as Starfire’s daughter… the very thought set his heart fluttering with a subtle excitement.

Watching the pure yang gang qi teeter on the brink of loss of control, Yu Xinghan snapped back to himself: “No!”

“How could I be defeated by Li Xuelian?”

He bit his tongue, then summoned in his mind the images of Zhang Yu, Song Hailong, Chu Qiuhé, and Xiong Wenwu.

Especially Song Hailong; Yu Xinghan found that each recollection of him eased the internal heat a little, allowing him to press on with the Tiangang Qi Gong.

…

On the other side, Bai Zhenzhen had already thrown herself wholly into the mental rehearsal of the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue, not even hearing that Zhang Yu had completed the exam.

At that moment her face flushed crimson, her brain whirring at high speed, emitting layers of heat and billowing white vapor.

Within Bai Zhenzhen’s mind, however, stood another Zhang Yu she imagined, wielding a sky‑filled, formless cloud‑storm, locked in battle with her.

As the sword techniques of the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue unfolded one after another, Bai Zhenzhen’s figure grew faster, more dazzling, streaking through the formless cloud‑storm with layers of electric light, like a bolt tearing the heavens, gradually carving a fissure in Zhang Yu’s form.

At last, accompanied by a rolling thunderclap, Bai Zhenzhen finally overcame the Zhang Yu of her imagination.

In that instant she understood: she could no longer locate the flaw in her own sword release, so the simulated “Zhang Yu” was the one that fell.

Simultaneously, a surge of sword intent rose from her mind, the myriad sword forms of the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue circulating within her heart as if she had practiced them thousands of times.

“Thought precedes intention, the sword moves with the mind… that is the true subtlety of the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue.”

“The specific techniques matter little; what matters is the distilled, endless sword intent.”

Bai Zhenzhen felt that, with this endless sword intent refined, she could graft any sword technique into the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue, even conjuring brand‑new moves on the spot to counter an opponent’s attack.

“The techniques of the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue… can indeed be infinite.”

“As long as the endless sword intent is present, one may wield techniques at will, graft them, or even create new ones to break through.”

“The endless sword intent is the key; ordinary mortals must rehearse tens of thousands of techniques, turning every possibility into instinct, so that thought leads intention and the sword follows the mind.”

“A genius such as I need only grasp the sword intent, and the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue is learned naturally.”

Bai Zhenzhen smiled confidently, glanced around, and saw that many of the students had already vanished; later she learned they had each completed the martial art of their choosing and retreated to the lounge to rest.

“Hm? Yu Xinghan still not finished?”

Bai Zhenzhen looked toward Yu Xinghan and saw his cheeks flushed red, turning his head away hurriedly, a look of fear evident on his face.

“What the hell is going on?”

At that moment, Huang Zichou stepped before Bai Zhenzhen and said, “I have already sensed your endless sword intent; the exam is over—go rest in the adjoining room.”

…

As time slipped by, the two‑hour mark drew near, and fewer and fewer students remained on the field.

When Yu Xinghan, his face pallid, completed the Tiangang Qi Gong in a state of near‑exhaustion,

only the last handful of students were left in the hall.

Huang Zichou glanced at the clock, then at Li Tongyun still attempting, and said lightly, “There’s only a minute left.”

Li Tongyun redoubled her efforts, yet she could not achieve completion.

When the exam time ended, she hurriedly declared, “I’ve completed it, examiner, I truly have…”

Huang Zichou ignored her, rolled his divine power, and dragged the ashen‑faced Li Tongyun and several other unsuccessful candidates out.

Li Tongyun understood that, with the foundation‑building exam utterly failed, she would soon become company property.

…

A moment later, the remaining examinees all returned to the hall.

Yun Jing approached Ye Lingxiao and asked, “Are you cultivating a ten‑star‑level technique?”

Ye Lingxiao replied calmly, “The Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue.”

Yun Jing curled his lip; his counterpart had left the arena five minutes earlier, making it clear that Ye Lingxiao had won this round.

Ye Lingxiao was unsurprised; having spent an hour and a half mastering the Wan Jian Wu Zhong Jue, he could be certain he would claim first place.

Yun Jing thought inwardly, “Hmph, in terms of martial cultivation I truly fall short of him.”

“If only this test had been a real combat trial.”

Watching Ye Lingxiao’s indifferent demeanor, Yun Jing’s frustration at never seizing first place seemed to deepen a few more degrees.

At that instant, Yun Jing spotted Zhang Yu not far away; a faint smile curved his mouth as he asked, “If it were you, how many stars could you achieve in thirty‑two minutes?”

Ye Lingxiao blinked in surprise, a fleeting image flashing through his mind, and asked oddly, “Thirty‑two minutes?”

He pondered briefly and replied, “A seven‑star technique should be no problem.”

“An eight‑star one depends on the exact art.”

Ye Lingxiao turned to Yun Jing, “So… what exactly are you getting at?”

Yun Jing pointed toward Zhang Yu and said, “Number 55 completed an eight‑star Spring‑Autumn Endless Zen in thirty‑two minutes.”

Ye Lingxiao stared, momentarily stunned, looking toward Zhang Yu’s direction.

Simultaneously, a light screen displayed the rankings of this third martial‑arts examination.

First place – No. 23 (Ye Lingxiao)

Second place – No. 11 (Yun Jing)

Third place – No. 56 (Bai Zhenzhen)

Fourth place – No. 55 (Zhang Yu)

Seeing the board, Ye Lingxiao instantly realized Yun Jing had not been fabricating.

He glanced at Zhang Yu, astonishment flooding his heart: “Thirty‑two minutes to master Spring‑Autumn Endless Zen?”

Ye Lingxiao’s first thought was whether he himself could achieve it.

The answer was that it should be possible, though the time constraint was extremely tight.

“So…” Ye Lingxiao thought inwardly, “The qualification and ability of this No. 55 cultivation technique are not even below mine?”

This was the first time, aside from members of the Ye clan, that Ye Lingxiao encountered a rival who could match him in this regard.

Beside him, Yun Jing smiled, “If this person hadn’t… for some unknown reason, chosen an eight‑star technique this time, his score might even surpass yours.”

As a prodigy of cultivation methods—one who grasps a technique after a single glance and refines it after a single practice—Ye Lingxiao felt he could discern some of the underlying reasons.

“Could it be that this No. 55 has already mastered most of the ten‑star or nine‑star techniques, and only the ones he dislikes remain, prompting him to pick an eight‑star method?”

Recalling his performance in the magical‑power and physical examinations before No. 55, Ye Lingxiao suddenly thought this very plausible.

“That fellow simply doesn’t care about rankings.”

……

“Damn it, I’m only fourth this round? Is the eight‑star difficulty not hard enough?”

Zhang Yu stared at the leaderboard and thought, “A bunch of filthy rich bastards—if I weren’t so poor, I’d have leapt past all of you.”

Then Zhang Yu turned to the man behind him, Yu Xinghan, and asked, “Why do you keep hiding behind me, you brat?”

Yu Xinghan pressed a hand on Zhang Yu’s shoulder and said, “Don’t move recklessly; just give me a little cover.”

Beside them, Bai Zhenzhen stuck her head out, curious, “Why does my gaze look so strange? Like the eyes of a typical high‑school underachiever.”

Yu Xinghan winced and replied, “Don’t mind me.”

He pointed at Bai Zhenzhen and said, “Stay away from me!”

Yu Xinghan had never realized before how strikingly beautiful Bai Zhenzhen truly was.

Though she could never surpass Li Xuelian in his eyes, her presence still rattled him, especially as the pure yang vigor within him grew increasingly restless.

That sensation made the usually impeccably self‑controlled him feel terribly uneasy.

Yu Xinghan sighed inwardly, “Had I known the reversal surgery carried such a massive side effect, adding this glaring weakness, I should never have chosen the Tian‑Gang Qi‑Gong.”

Bai Zhenzhen, intrigued, asked, “Oh? Are you scared I’ll get close to you?”

Yu Xinghan nodded repeatedly, “Don’t come near me.”

Bai Zhenzhen stretched out her hand, “Five hundred for a ‘do‑not‑disturb’ fee.”

Yu Xinghan, his breath growing harsher with irritation, muttered, “Give, give, give—just hand it over when you go back.”

As the light curtain materialized, displaying the rankings of the third trial, countless eyes in the hall converged on Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.

Dai Xingzhi watched Zhang Yu and thought, “Finished in thirty‑two minutes and placed fourth? That means he completed… a high‑star difficulty technique in that time. It can’t be ten‑star, otherwise he’d be first.”

Yet even so, Dai Xingzhi realized that Zhang Yu must possess an extraordinarily terrifying capacity for learning techniques.

“Someone with that ability, who can still grow enough to sit this foundation‑building exam, must be immensely wealthy.”

“Sure enough… he’s a rich kid who doesn’t care about this round’s rankings and just plays around.”

“And that woman.”

Dai Xingzhi turned to Bai Zhenzhen, “Ranking third in this trial also attests to her prowess.”

“Moreover, she seems intimately familiar with No. 55, likely a fellow wealthy associate.”

With that thought, Dai Xingzhi’s gaze grew solemn, “The true strength of those two may not be far behind Ye Lingxiao and Yun Jing.”

“They’re also fierce contenders for the foundation‑building qualification.”

When the third‑trial rankings faded, the overall scores for the day were announced moments later.

The first place went undisputedly to Ye Lingxiao, the second to Yun Jing.

Then came fourteen‑place Bai Zhenzhen, followed by fifteen‑place Zhang Yu.

Though Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen’s positions were modest, many students saw them as under‑exerted out‑of‑town magnates whose true power was unfathomable.

Deng Bingding addressed the crowd, “The top twenty remain; the rest are eliminated. Prepare to depart.”

Watching the remaining twenty, Deng Bingding nodded with satisfaction; by her classification of ants, cattle, and humans, these twenty had each at least set one foot over the threshold of humanity.

(End of chapter)