Chapter 120: Rain Technique Trial Rankings, Branch Academy Selection

Zhao Xing walked to the bow of the ship, took out the Cloud Rain Pearl, and the deep-blue orb immediately drew the attention of everyone on the flying vessel.

"His Cloud Rain Pearl has collected a huge amount." Jiang He's gaze sharpened. "I'm afraid it's the most collected on this flying vessel."

"What luck." Jiang Hai said sourly. "He got to discover it first."

Zhuo Li looked at that blue pearl, and the smug expression he had just worn faded.

Just looking at this rain pearl, as long as Zhao Xing's rain technique isn't too weak, he can achieve a good result in this trial.

"A rain pearl without a trace of blue, even cloud-wielding is in vain; a rain pearl with seven parts blue, cloud-wielding and rain-summoning crushes the mountain." Hua Zhilin stared at the pearl in Zhao Xing's hand and recited in a delicate voice, "Brother Zhao's rain pearl has at least five parts blue."

Zhao Xing: "..."

He suspected Hua Zhilin was deliberately trying to get under people's skin.

"My lord, is there a rule against others interfering?"

The judge couldn't stand it either and dropped a harsh line: "Yes, anyone who makes a racket while others are being tested will be eliminated on the spot."

At this, everyone fell silent and quietly watched Zhao Xing perform.

"Clouds, come!"

Zhao Xing pointed with his hand and immediately cast the Cloud-Swallowing Technique.

Because the five suns hung overhead and the environment was harsh, the cloud layer was only about ten meters across and two meters thick.

However, Zhao Xing's cloud technique was very stable.

If the Cloud-Swallowing Technique lacked stability, how could it swallow other cloud techniques and make them its own?

Moreover, the cloud layer condensed by Cloud-Swallowing could also take on the characteristics of other cloud techniques.

Although the five suns overhead were harsh, it wasn't much worse than the influence he had endured in the Ten-Thousand-Li Lei Chi back then; it was just difficult to expand the area for gathering water.

"Cloud Rain Pearl, go!"

Zhao Xing tossed the blue Cloud Rain Pearl into the cloud layer.

"Gurgle~"

The pearl immediately emitted billowing cloud vapor, causing the cloud layer to rapidly grow.

In no time, it had already exceeded ten meters thick and a hundred meters long.

As for how wide it was, the others couldn't see, because the flying vessel's viewing angle was fixed, and now Zhao Xing's cloud layer had completely blocked their view.

"Looking at this scale, just on basic points alone, he's going to surpass the others by several times." He Yu thought silently, "Forget it, what happened before the Ten-Thousand-Li Lei Chi, I'll just pretend I don't remember."

First-rate in cloud technique, ranked ninth in Lei Chi hunting, and now such a good result in the rain technique trial — when He Yu recalled being used as a pawn by Zhao Xing before, he wasn't quite as angry anymore.

Maybe in the future he could even use this matter to get closer to him!

"Pitter-patter~"

Rain began to fall from the cloud layer.

At this point Zhao Xing did not choose to play black or white, simply letting the rain fall normally.

This rain actually couldn't reach the ground either; below five hundred meters, it would be evaporated.

But the basic points only counted how much rain came out of the cloud layer into the area below five hundred meters.

The rules required it to last at least one quarter-hour; less than a quarter-hour, and the duration score would be zero.

Duration multiplied by rainfall volume counted as basic points; if the rainfall volume was too great but the earlier duration was zero, it was meaningless.

Zhao Xing was very steady.

He persisted for a full seven quarter-hours before the Cloud Rain Pearl gradually turned transparent, with only one-tenth of the rain remaining.

Only after seven quarter-hours did he reach into the basket of stones at the bow and grab a black piece, holding it in his hand, preparing to attempt the bonus section.

"Hum~"

Zhao Xing pressed down with both hands, and as he did so—

The view before everyone's eyes suddenly opened up.

It turned out he had controlled the cloud layer to sink downward.

"Hmm? He can even make the cloud layer sink?"

"This man's cloud-control technique is truly remarkable."

"Five suns overhead, yin descends and yang rises — the lower the cloud goes, the harder it is to keep stable."

"He wants to close the distance to the ground so he can more precisely operate the black-and-white mechanical puppets."

"Too confident! He's already taken so many basic points, and he still wants to take a risk? If it were me, I'd have withdrawn long ago."

Everyone's thoughts differed, and even the judge glanced at Zhao Xing.

But with the prohibition in place, no one made a sound to disturb Zhao Xing at this moment.

The cloud layer kept descending until it reached a height of five hundred meters, and only then did Zhao Xing control it to stop.

As it descended, the cloud layer also shrank by more than half; this was because, to counter the rising yang energy, the cloud had to be condensed more tightly.

This kind of operation had its pros and cons — the downside was that the coverage area shrank, and it wasn't certain whether it could still reach the puppet zone.

The upside was that it freed up the viewing field for casting.

Zhao Xing displayed his cloud-control ability excellently — it could be called masterful.

But the rain technique itself had not yet been revealed; was he doing this out of confidence or arrogance?

Everyone stared intently at what was below.

Thunder circulated and flickered within the cloud layer, but the display was not grand; instead it gave off a chilling feeling.

Soon blue raindrops began to fall from the cloud layer — each as big as a fist, radiating cold!

Mid-grade perfected 【Ice Rain】!

The moment the Ice Rain emerged from the cloud layer, it plummeted at extreme speed.

"Splat~"

Raindrops landed on the silver-white puppet's head.

"Buzz~" The struck area on the silver-white puppet's head lit up with a faint formation glow.

As the light flashed, its movements turned stiff, remaining completely rigid for at least two seconds.

"Boom!"

A black puppet wielding a blade suddenly swung it, slashing the silver-white puppet to the ground.

Not far away, the silver-white puppet was leaping high into the air, drop-kicking toward the black puppet—but just then.

"Plop!"

A raindrop landed on its wrist; after the blue raindrop fell, the glow spread along the entire arm, and the arm instantly lost the ability to move.

"Plop~" "Plop~" "Plop~" "Plop~"

The black and silver-white formations were tangled together, but the raindrops overhead gave the black formation tremendous assistance.

Originally the black and white sides were exactly equal in strength—precisely calculated to ensure that even fighting for three days and three nights, no victor could be determined.

But now, that balance had been broken.

The white side was falling rapidly.

"Plop~"

A blue raindrop landed on a black puppet.

At the same moment, the black piece in Zhao Xing's palm trembled.

He understood that he had reached his limit.

He had to control the cloud technique, control the overflow of rain from the Cloud Rain Pearl, manipulate the Ice Rain, and simultaneously employ Keen Observation to watch the battle between black and white.

Such fine micro-control consumed a great deal of primal energy and mental focus.

Now that his side had taken casualties, Zhao Xing understood that he could no longer maintain peak performance and would instead decline.

After barely holding on for another quarter-hour, seeing that the Ice Rain's damage to both sides was beginning to equalize, Zhao Xing immediately stopped.

"Buzz~" The clouds dispersed and the rain ceased.

Zhao Xing reached out and beckoned; the Cloud Rain Pearl returned to his hand, and the pearl had already become completely transparent.

"Hoo~" Letting out a long breath, Zhao Xing also felt somewhat fatigued.

He walked down from the bow, put the black piece back, and waited for the score.

Because of their limited ability, most people on the flying vessel hadn't understood Zhao Xing's operation—at least not all of it.

But being able to understand even a part of it was already extremely shocking.

Especially Hua Zhilin—her gaze at Zhao Xing was a little off, staring with an utterly admiring look!

Zhuo Li, Jiang He, and Jiang Hai had also glimpsed some of the trick; they all vaguely sensed that Zhao Xing's score this time would be extraordinarily high!

The judge also looked at Zhao Xing with a strange expression; he hadn't expected Zhao Xing to pull off such an operation.

When announcing the score, his tone carried undisguised praise: "Shenwei Army's Zhao Xing, Cloud-Swallowing Rain-Spreading, sustained for one hour, rainfall three hundred and fifty-two points, holding black side, kills one thousand four hundred and sixteen, self-loss two hundred and thirteen."

"Final score: 4019!"

"Not bad, beautifully done. Come down and rest."

Zhao Xing cupped his hands: "Many thanks."

The moment the judge finished speaking, the people on the flying vessel could hold back no longer.

"What? 4019 points?!" He Yu's eyes were full of shock. "I expected him to break a thousand, but I never thought it'd be over four thousand!"

"Heavens, his score is nearly ten times Zhuo Li's!"

"Jiang He and Jiang Hai only got a little over two hundred each."

"I didn't even understand his operation—how did he get over four thousand?"

"If you could understand it, wouldn't you have broken a thousand too? It's perfectly normal not to understand."

"Who in the Rain Technique Gate is invincible? Who dares claim first?"

"Shenwei Army's Zhao Xing is too strong!"

Zhuo Li, Jiang He, and Jiang Hai, now being compared to Zhao Xing, felt no displeasure about it—mainly because the gap was too vast; they simply couldn't refute it in their hearts!

Even if Zhao Xing was lucky and the Cloud Rain Pearl gathered enough rainwater, his bonus items alone were over a thousand points!

"Kills one thousand four hundred and sixteen, self-loss two hundred and thirteen?" Zhuo Li muttered to himself. "Is this kind of rain-technique talent even human…"

Rain falling from a thousand meters up—the drops drift who-knows-where by the time they reach the ground. And they couldn't even see the fighting on the ground clearly, so how could one talk of precise control?

The best one could do was try to cover the enemy's area—indiscriminate friendly-and-foe blurred strikes.

But being able to make it more helpful to one's own side than to the enemy was already impressive.

Yet Zhao Xing's casualty ratio between enemy and friendly was simply astonishing.

Originally the black and white camps were evenly matched, but after his one rain, the casualty ratio was close to 7!

Kill 7 enemies, and only one of your own dies?

"Too exaggerated—even though it's only a drill and not as harsh as real combat, how could he reach this level?" The brothers Jiang He and Jiang Hai were also full of question marks.

As for Hua Zhilin, she seemed to want to say something to get closer to Zhao Xing.

But seeing Zhao Xing's fists clenched tight, his face hostile, as if one more word from her would earn a beating, Hua Zhilin immediately shrank her neck.

Moreover, the judge had just called her name, so she immediately gave up on the conversation and quickly walked up to the bow.

While waiting for Hua Zhilin to cast her spell, Zhao Xing silently recovered his primal energy in a corner of the deck.

He wasn't surprised at scoring 4019, because he had done similar trials countless times in his previous life.

His 【Ice Rain】 was also the first mid-tier spell he had perfected, and since leaving East Lake Mountain, Zhao Xing had clearly felt that his comprehension of the water element far surpassed that of the other elements.

Earlier, at the Gucheng temple, he had observed the 【Rain Water Diagram】, and on his first viewing had gained some insight—only to have the contemplation interrupted because he didn't yet have the identity of a Military Agricultural Official.

Another influencing factor was his Life Soul.

In the Great Zhou dynasty's qi-yun system, anyone below Third Rank cannot cultivate a Life Soul; they can only improve passively.

Zhao Xing's Life Soul was at Ninth Rank, middle period, and he had also cultivated a top-tier secret art like Great Dream of Spring and Autumn, which was a considerable help in his extreme control over spells.

High talent, comparison with operational experience from his previous life, plus the Life Soul factor, and with sufficient rainfall as a foundation — naturally he shone brilliantly in this trial.

"The fourth trial is certainly passed. Now it just depends on the ranking, and whether the Celestial Timing Court can give me good training resources." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

Passing the fourth trial grants the opportunity to enter the Celestial Timing Court.

Of course, the Celestial Timing Court couldn't possibly take all 200 people.

The Celestial Timing faction was the current mainstream; some room for survival had to be left for the other schools.

"There will definitely be a lot of people in the Celestial Timing Court. I wonder if I can get the best training resources." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

"Xuanjia Army, Send Bai Ming, Lotus Cloud Rain, sustained for four quarter-hours, rainfall 108, kills 1104, self-loss 532."

"Final score: 1004"

The trial for the last person in this group had ended.

Send Bai Ming's score had just barely broken a thousand, the second-highest in this group.

Although Zhao Xing felt this person was a little strange, he did indeed have real strength.

Anyone who could break a thousand points in the Rain Method trial was no simple matter — a top-tier level among the reserves.

"All personnel in this group have finished their trials. Now return to the tower ship and await the announcement of the final rankings." The judge did an about-face on the spot and headed straight for the tower ship.

The Cloud Rain trial had ended, and the time was already close to the Xu hour, yet the sky was still bright. The five suns hanging overhead still shone upon the earth — clearly this region was the 【Eternal Daylight】 zone of the Ten Sun Grotto-Heaven.

Zuo Zizhi and Lu Bang stood on the second-floor pavilion, waiting for the return of the other groups.

When Zhao Xing's group returned to the tower ship, Zuo Zizhi and Lu Bang's gazes fell on Zhao Xing, and they smiled faintly.

Clearly, they already knew the results.

Now it was just a matter of waiting for everyone to return before announcing them together.

After a short while, another flying boat returned.

The moment the people on the flying boat disembarked, a burst of exclamations erupted.

"What? Such a high score?!"

"Heavens, the casualty rate is way too exaggerated!"

"Before casting the Moving Clouds Rain, Shi Yong performed a Solar Term Decree, and actually weakened the Five Suns overhead somewhat! He can influence the celestial timing even in such an extreme environment?"

"To shake the Five Suns overhead — how immensely difficult that is. Shi Yong truly lives up to his reputation as the top pick from the Tiger Flood Dragon Army."

"Zhuang Ziqing is also not bad, but unfortunately he still can't compare to Brother Shi in this trial."

"Sigh, the gap between people is just too great."

"..."

Zhao Xing also looked toward the direction of the exclamations, and saw Shi Yong and Zhuang Ziqing walk from the flying boat onto the tower ship's deck.

The cheers had come from over there.

"Shi Yong, his casualty ratio reached eight?"

"That high?"

Listening to the content, Zhao Xing couldn't help but feel a little surprised. Shi Yong was probably the strongest of this cohort.

On the pavilion, Lu Bang and Zuo Zizhi were also chatting about these two.

"Shi Yong's bonus item — his casualty ratio exceeded eight. Zhuang Ziqing's casualty ratio also reached seven."

"Both of them have several years of military experience; they were selected from the secondary armies. The bonus item for the Rain Method trial is based on real combat scenarios, so it's only natural." Zuo Zizhi said.

"Shi Yong is already twenty-six, and Zhuang Ziqing is slightly younger at twenty-four. Both of them have already begun cultivating the Solar Term Decree and gained some benefit. But Zhao Xing is only twenty this year and didn't even have time to cultivate the Solar Term Decree. To achieve this result is purely a matter of spell talent."

Lu Bang said: "Personally, I think more highly of Zhao Xing's potential. It just depends on what the old men at the Celestial Timing Court think."

After waiting for another hour, all the dispatched flying boats gradually returned, one after another.

At the beginning of the Hai hour, Zuo Zizhi cleared his throat.

"The fourth trial has fully concluded!"

"The results for all personnel are out. Now I will announce everyone's scores!"

With a wave of Zuo Zizhi's hand, the Earth Mirror Instrument standing on the deck rippled like flowing water.

Everyone stared fixedly at the Earth Mirror Instrument.

【First place, Shi Yong, total score 5845】

【Second place, Zhuang Ziqing, total score 4537】

【Third place, Zhao Xing, total score 4019】

【Fourth place, Cao Shuang, total score 3712】

……

【Eighth place, Han Bing, total score 3401】

【Thirteenth place, Feng Qiu, total score 2851】

【Twenty-ninth place, Send Bai Ming, total score 1004】

【Two hundredth place, Pan Shou, total score 251】

With the rankings out, some rejoiced while others worried.

Zhao Xing also took a look.

"The gap between Zhuang Ziqing and me isn't that big, but I'm so far behind Shi Yong?"

"My base score should have exceeded his by a bit. Looks like the bonus items pulled the distance apart."

"He must have comprehended a Solar Term Chart, possibly even multiple solar terms."

The fourth trial didn't say one could only use the Rain Method.

If one has cultivated the "Solar Terms Decree," then the environmental influence of Five Suns Overhead can be partially offset by the Solar Terms Decree.

After that, casting Drifting Clouds and Spreading Rain becomes easier, and is even unaffected by the previously gathered rainwater.

Of course, Shi Yong is only at the ninth rank, so he cannot completely reverse the environmental influence of Five Suns Overhead.

"After the top hundred, the gap becomes quite large; the further back you go, the scores drop off a cliff."

"Even though most people have begun cultivating the secret manuals of the three great schools, the three realms of the Solar Terms Diagram—Knowledge, Stabilization, and Alteration—most people remain at the superficial level of the first realm. When cast, the power is not great, and faced with this kind of extreme environment, they are powerless."

In a place like Gucheng, the strength variation is not large; cultivating the Solar Terms Decree for a year or two is enough to alter and stabilize the celestial timing.

The Ten Suns Grotto-heaven is on a completely different level of intensity. What can easily be shaken in Gucheng becomes ten or a hundred times harder in the Ten Suns Grotto-heaven.

"Challengers ranked beyond the top two hundred, please board the Flowing Cloud Flying Vessel and disembark." Zuo Zizhi did not give the crowd time to indulge in melancholy.

Once the results were out, he immediately arranged for these eliminated candidates to disembark.

Soon, more than half the people on the tower ship's deck were gone.

Of the five hundred, only two hundred remained.

"Those who remain may take out your Earth Mirrors and register for the Celestial Timing Court," Zuo Zizhi said. "The Celestial Timing Court will also proactively send you messages, but regardless of how many register, the Celestial Timing Court will ultimately select only the top fifty."

"Of course, you may also decide based on your own future plans whether to register. Even if the Celestial Timing Court sends you a notification, you may refuse and continue to participate in the trials of the Earth Advantage Court, Grand Granary Court, or Pinghuai Court."

"This is a two-way choice; no compulsion."

After Zuo Zizhi finished speaking, the people on the deck also took out their Earth Mirrors and began registering, while some waited for the Celestial Timing Court's notification.

Zhao Xing had originally planned to take out his Earth Mirror to register, but he saw Lu Bang and Zuo Zizhi beckoning to him.

"Calling me over?"

Zhao Xing was somewhat puzzled and walked up to the second-floor pavilion.

There will be two more updates before midnight; after that, all updates will be at night. Fifteen thousand words a day—it's really impossible to release at a precise time, I can only try my best to ensure no missed updates every day! And if something really comes up, I'll say so in advance.

As for the bonus update at six thousand votes, there definitely won't be one today, everyone don't wait for a fourth update.