Chapter 61

High comprehension, but no belief of a strong person, timid and afraid of death; the road still wouldn't go far.

High comprehension, no background, no resources, and not daring to fight; sooner or later, he would fall.

"It's a pity to have such comprehension."

Lin Cheng sighed in his heart. If such comprehension had appeared in people like Lu Ren, the top of this year's Martial Examination might have appeared in the Weiyuan Hall.

With no resources, he would smash them to create a number one.

"This disciple also stumbled into it; I don't know how I practiced it!" Xu Yang said modestly.

Lin Cheng was silent for a moment. Sun Tao and the others risked their lives wanting to grasp the Wind-Thunder Force and failed, and you stumbled into it and succeeded?

"You don't need to pay your tuition in the future; I, your Master, will waive it for you!" Lin Cheng said.

Although he didn't take him as a personal disciple, he still gave some benefits to see if a miracle could appear after waiving the two taels of tuition per month.

Although disappointed, he still planned to invest a little.

Xu Yang was overjoyed: "Thank you, Master!"

Lin Cheng nodded lightly, pondered for a while, and still spoke: "If you have aspirations for the martial dao, you must change this timid nature of not daring to fight or grab. The Martial Examination is far more cruel than you imagine."

"If you are afraid of death, it's best not to go on stage. In martial artist struggles, cultivation base and realm are certainly important, but heart, spirit, and courage cannot be ignored."

He basically wouldn't say these things to his disciples because among all martial artists, few were cowardly.

This time, even Lu Ren, Jiang Ping, and the others were going to enter the mountains, but Xu Yang didn't dare.

If these few words could make Xu Yang change his nature, perhaps he could achieve something in the future; otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to walk out of Qingyuan.

"This disciple will keep Master's teachings in mind." Xu Yang cupped his hands.

Lin Cheng shook his head secretly. Looking at Xu Yang's appearance, he knew that his words had been in vain; Xu Yang hadn't listened to a single word.

"If you have any questions in the future, you can come find me at any time."

Disturbed by Xu Yang, the guilt that Lin Cheng had finally ignited disappeared instantly, and he had no intention of guiding other disciples, so he went straight back to his courtyard.

Rotten mud could never be supported on the wall.

Xu Yang watched Lin Cheng leave.

He knew that what Lin Cheng said made a lot of sense, and for most martial artists, they should also do as Lin Cheng said.

But he was not an ordinary martial artist.

Others had to fight and grab because their lives were short, and they had to obtain as many resources as possible in a limited time to become strong quickly; otherwise, when their age arrived and their blood and qi declined, everything would be in vain.

He had achieved an alternative longevity and had plenty of time; his brain would have to be sick to go and take risks.

Lin Cheng returned to the small courtyard somewhat depressed, still feeling a bit of regret in his heart.

"Father, why are you unhappy after going out for a trip?" Lin Wei keenly discovered her father's abnormality.

Lin Cheng said: "There is a disciple named Xu Yang in the inner court who grasped the Wind-Thunder Force in less than a year of practicing martial arts, but his nature is somewhat cowardly and he doesn't dare to fight."

Grasped the Wind-Thunder Force in less than a year?

A look of surprise flashed in Lin Wei's eyes.

Every martial dao foundation-building fist technique had three levels of force, but most people, even at the Great Success of Qi Refining, could only grasp the first level of force. Many people would only grasp the second level of force after entering the Marrow-Washing realm.

Grasping the Wind-Thunder Force in less than a year, this comprehension was somewhat shocking.

"How is he cowardly?" Lin Wei asked curiously.

How cowardly could he be to make her heartless father feel depressed?

Lin Cheng said: "This time, sweeping the mountains, of the eighteen disciples in the Weiyuan Hall at the Small Success of Qi Refining, only three didn't participate, and he was one of them. He grasped the Wind-Thunder Force and could threaten experts at the Great Success of Qi Refining, yet he didn't even have the courage to enter the mountains."

Lin Wei was stunned: "He is indeed lacking in courage, but Father, you teach disciples by only focusing on money. When did you start looking at courage?"

Lin Cheng was choked for a moment and retorted: "I focus on money because most of them have no money, so I let them know the importance of money. This kid came from the countryside and had no money to practice martial arts; he entered the martial arts hall through the Huang family's selection."

"I told him the importance of money on the first day, but I didn't expect him not to listen at all. Such a good money-making opportunity as sweeping the mountains, and he actually didn't go."

"Even when he practiced the Wind-Thunder Force, he didn't report it to me. If I hadn't discovered it, I wouldn't have known that a person who grasped the Wind-Thunder Force had appeared in the martial arts hall."

Is there such a "low-profile" person in the world?

Practicing the Wind-Thunder Force, such a big show-off thing, and he actually hid it. Shouldn't a young person be high-spirited?

At this moment, Lin Wei finally understood why her father was so depressed.

"Who told you to be lax in managing your disciples? You have to take the greatest responsibility for a genius developing like this," Lin Wei laughed: "After nearly a year of entry, you don't even know the talent of your disciples. No wonder this Weiyuan Hall is becoming more and more declining."

Saying this, she didn't care about her depressed father and walked out. She wanted to see what this person who was so "low-profile" looked like.

Lin Cheng didn't retort this time; this might really be his responsibility.

"Hey, who is this?"

"Senior Sister Lin Wei, she is Master's youngest daughter."

"Why did Senior Sister Lin Wei come to the inner court?"

"It looks like Senior Sister Lin Wei is looking for someone. Who is so lucky?"

Xu Yang suddenly heard strange sounds and immediately looked up, only to see that Master Lin Cheng's daughter, Lin Wei, had actually appeared in the inner court.

He didn't care either and continued practicing his fist.

The next day, all the Weiyuan Hall disciples who participated in the mountain sweeping returned, and two broken corpses were carried back. In the end, there were casualties.

The living also had some injuries on their bodies.

However, Xu Yang discovered that this training was indeed somewhat useful. Many of the living had undergone huge changes; their aura had become condensed and steady, and they had a bit of ruthlessness on them.

Xu Yang focused on Lu Ren.

Although Lu Ren wasn't carried back, his face was pale, his robe was stained with a large patch of red, and he had been gloomy, no longer having his previous high spirits.

"He was unlucky. It is said that he encountered a powerful exotic beast comparable to the Marrow-Washing realm. If it hadn't been for the timely rescue by the experts sent by the Gu family, he would probably have died."

Zhang Hong came over and said with a gloating expression: "The two dead people were with him. Although he saved his little life, I heard that his meridians and internal organs were impacted, and he needs to rest for at least a month before he can practice."

"He really lost everything this time."

Xu Yang didn't expect Lu Ren to be so unlucky, yet so lucky, to be able to return alive after encountering an exotic beast comparable to the Marrow-Washing realm.

Besides Lu Ren, several others were seriously injured. Although they weren't crippled like Xue Fangsheng, they also had to spend a lot of time resting.

These people could also be considered those who lost the gamble.

Originally, by practicing step by step, they had hope of reaching the Great Success of Qi Refining by the time of the Martial Examination, but now that possibility was gone directly.

"Risking one's life to fight, right? His life is still there, so it doesn't count as a loss," Xu Yang smiled.

Lu Ren's eyes spewed fire. His five senses were keen, so he naturally heard Xu Yang's words, and he couldn't help but feel a wave of regret in his heart.

According to his cultivation progress, he could reach the Great Success of Qi Refining within at most half a month, but now it had been dragged out to a month and a half, making it even harder to achieve a good ranking in the Martial Examination.

"Coward, are you worthy of laughing at me?" Lu Ren snorted coldly: "Even if I lost the gamble, with this experience, my martial dao belief is even firmer. Training doesn't mean success only if you harvest resources."

Xu Yang smiled: "Is that so? Then why do I see only frustration in your eyes?"

Lu Ren had walked too smoothly and didn't have the firm martial dao belief he spoke of at all; instead, his sharp spirit had been frustrated. On this point, Xu Yang could still see it.

The ones who truly gained something were Zhang Hong and Zhang Yong beside him. They should have seen blood and fought to the death with exotic beasts, and their spirit and energy had undergone earth-shaking changes.

"Those injured, go treat yourselves quickly; don't delay here."

Lin Cheng appeared, and Lu Ren stopped bickering with Xu Yang and was taken away by the Gu family's people.

He encouraged them and was very satisfied with the results of the training. Although some lost their lives, most of them could be considered successful.

"You should have gone," Zhang Hong looked at Xu Yang.

Unlike the time he was tricked by Xue Fangsheng, after returning that time, he felt Xu Yang was right.

After returning this time, he felt Xu Yang shouldn't have shrunk back.

Although Lu Ren was quibbling, his words weren't wrong. The biggest gain from this mountain sweeping wasn't hunting exotic beasts, but the transformation of the soul, which made them true martial artists.

"I have no ambition; everyone's path is different," Xu Yang smiled.

After talking for a while, he learned that Zhang Yong and Zhang Hong's gains were actually very large. The exotic beasts they encountered weren't very powerful, and the two of them teamed up to hunt three exotic beasts, with each person able to split one hundred and thirty taels.

"Senior Brother Zhang Yong, Senior Brother Zhang Hong, Senior Brother Jiang Ping wants to hold a celebration banquet to celebrate the successful conclusion of this mountain sweeping, and invites you to go over and talk." Just then, an inner court disciple following Jiang Ping came over.

Zhang Yong and Zhang Hong cupped their hands at Xu Yang and got up to leave with this person.

"Senior Brother Jiang, with Xu Yang's progress, even if he didn't participate in this mountain sweeping, he still has a great possibility of succeeding in the Martial Examination in the future. Why not invite him too? It's just a pair of chopsticks."

In the pavilion, Gu Fang showed curiosity.

Jiang Ping was nominally celebrating the end of the mountain sweeping, but in reality, he was starting to pave the way for the Martial Examination and associate with those who had the potential to succeed in the Martial Examination.

Xu Yang had the monthly allowance from the Liu family, plus the support from the Qiu family, so the Martial Examination was not out of reach.

"Him?"