Chapter 125: Is This an Agricultural Master? How Can He Be So Brutal?! (Part 3)

Hearing the second drumbeat, the crowd around surged like a market day.

Zhao Xing couldn't help but quicken his pace.

As the second drumbeat fell, he finally arrived at the southwest training ground.

With over ten thousand people, it looked like a sea of humanity.

The Four Great Academies and the other branch academies had agricultural masters organizing order, but for now it was still a mess.

Besides, the number of people here was well over ten thousand.

The agricultural masters had gathered on the northeast side of the training ground, but on the southwest side there was another formation that had long been waiting.

Their ranks were neat, every one of them burly and powerful, all eyes fixed on this side, seemingly harboring ill intent.

"That's the martial artists' formation."

Zhao Xing understood at a glance, because Tian Hou had said before that the first course of mandatory training prohibited the use of spells and would include martial artists as sparring partners.

"But the numbers are a bit small, only about three thousand, and they're all unarmed."

Just then, Tian Shan appeared.

He stood nine chi tall, wore battle armor, leaned on a long spear, and roared from a raised platform: "Agricultural masters of the Earth Advantage Academy, gather before me at once!"

Zhao Xing immediately ran over.

Of the 200 people remaining after the fourth trial, 115 were Grade B talents and 85 were Grade A.

There were a total of twenty-one Grade A-Upper geniuses.

The Earth Advantage Academy also had a total of fifty people, the same as the Heaven Timing Academy, the Grand Granary Academy, and the Level Huai Academy.

But the Earth Advantage Academy's Grade A-Upper had only five: Zhuang Ziqing, Zhao Xing, Jiang Tianming, Cao Shuang, and Meng Song. Han Bing was only Grade A-Middle.

The Grand Granary Academy and the Level Huai Academy each had three Grade A-Upper talents.

The remaining ten were all in the Heaven Timing Academy.

Grade A-Middle and Grade A-Lower were also most numerous in the Heaven Timing Academy.

So while the Four Great Academies appeared to have equal numbers, their actual strength was completely different.

"Listen up!" Tian Shan said. "For the next month, all training courses will be 【Spell-less Training】. The use of spells is prohibited!"

"And every day will be real combat!"

"See the formation to the southwest?"

"There are only three thousand people there!"

"Like you, they are also reserves; the highest realm will not exceed eighth rank."

"These three thousand people are now your enemies."

"You must hold your ground and not fall beneath their charge!"

"The Agricultural Supervisor will record the exact time each of you falls. If, at the time of academy assignment, you receive a Grade C-Lower rating, and three consecutive times you are among the first hundred to fall, you will be demoted, expelled from the reserves, and sent back to your place of origin!"

"The geniuses of the Four Great Academies face even harsher requirements!"

"If you are a Grade A-Upper genius, you must hold on until only twenty-one agricultural masters remain standing on the field before you may fall."

"If you are a Grade A-Middle genius, you must hold on until only fifty-three agricultural masters remain standing on the field before you may fall."

"If you are a Grade A-Lower genius, you must hold on until only eighty-five agricultural masters remain standing on the field before you may fall."

"Grade B geniuses of the Four Great Academies must hold on until only two hundred agricultural masters remain standing on the field before you may fall."

"As long as you have not completely lost combat ability, you may get up and fight again."

Tian Shan's words stirred some restlessness among those below.

In such a melee, one had to hold out until the very last moment?

In a melee, a moment's carelessness could mean being surrounded by several people; one might not hold out long before directly losing combat ability!

"Higher treatment for geniuses, but also harsher demands." Even Zhao Xing, hearing this, had no confidence he could hold on until only twenty-one remained standing.

But those chosen for the Four Great Academies all had good talent.

Good talent, plus greater resources for cultivation, could save a great deal of time in preparing for this training; if they still fell short of others, that would truly be inexcusable.

Once or twice meant little, but if they consistently fell short of those below them across several rounds, there was indeed a problem.

The third drumbeat was still sounding.

The formation on the southwest side of the training ground.

Several martial Dao powerhouses were also addressing the martial artist reserves below them.

Before one of the formations stood a bald middle-aged man named Fang Wu, a Grand Martial Master of the 【Azure Dragon Martial Division】 among the martial artists' Four Great Academies.

Fang Wu pointed to the rear and said:

"See those frail-looking agricultural masters across the way?"

"They have over ten thousand people on their side—more than triple your numbers!"

"But they are only agricultural masters, and the use of spells is prohibited; no matter how many there are, it's useless!"

"You, however, have trained in martial arts since childhood; all manner of martial techniques are far beyond what their two or three years of half-baked skills can compare to."

"Right now you are unarmed, while they wear straw raincoats and have bamboo hats and other protective gear; even when they fall, they can get back up and fight again. You must learn how to take down your opponents and rob them of their combat ability in the shortest time possible!"

"But you also cannot fight without restraint; you cannot kill, only wound. It's about knocking down, not killing. This tests your control over your own strength; only through precise control of power, unified as one, can you grow stronger."

"When today's training ends, rankings will be calculated by 'number of opponents knocked down.'"

"You are from the 【Azure Dragon Martial Division】; I know some of you were recruited because of your skill with weapons, but even without weapons, you should still be the strongest!"

Fang Wu said: "Go take down enemies according to your respective academy ratings. If, during training, you fail to meet your rating three consecutive times, you will be demoted!"

"I don't want anyone from the Azure Dragon Martial Division to be eliminated. Is that understood?"

"Understood!"

The third drumbeat fell, and both sides of the training ground fell silent.

The heads of each courtyard on both sides had also laid out the rules clearly.

So they flew into the sky one after another and landed on a tower ship.

On the tower ship, a group of officials was still watching below.

Among them were high-ranking members of the Four Great Courtyards, such as Lu Bang, Ge Jinsong, Zuo Zizhi, and others.

The Directors of the Four Great Martial Offices: Azure Dragon, Bai Hu, Zhu Que, Xuan Wu.

Around the training ground, there were also powerful practitioners of healing professions such as physicians and pharmacists present.

Fan Zhaoli, the Commandant of Diannong who had obtained 1 billion points, was also the Grand Agronomist of the Earth Advantage Courtyard.

At this moment, he said to Fang Wu: "General Fang, you've made the rules clear to those below, haven't you?"

Fang Wu cupped his hands toward Fan Zhaoli and said: "My lord, rest assured, I've explained everything clearly."

"Good, then let us begin."

Fan Zhaoli said with a slight smile.

After three beats of the drum, the training ground fell silent for the duration of an incense stick.

A voice came again from the tower ship, repeating the training rules three times.

Unlike Tian Shan's earlier explanation.

Zhao Xing felt that the person speaking this time was a Rites cultivator.

Because the voice was imprinted in his mind, impossible to shake off, impossible to forget even if he wanted to.

The martial artist formation opposite was the same — they too clearly remembered their training objective: to knock down, not to kill.

The rules recited by this voice would influence everyone for a short period of time.

After waiting quietly for another incense stick's duration.

A majestic voice came from above the training ground.

"Training begins!"

As the voice spread out.

The three-thousand-strong martial artist formation charged toward the Si Nong formation.

The two sides were only a hundred meters apart.

At full sprint, within a few breaths, they crashed into the Si Nong formation.

No one was allowed to leave the training ground unless judged to have lost combat ability, in which case they would be teleported away by spell.

"The Southwest Training Ground is only the size of six football fields, not much bigger than where I live."

"Over thirteen thousand people in such a space — it's truly crowded."

The two hundred geniuses of the Four Great Courtyards were all positioned at the very front of the Si Nong Monitor.

At the very start of the training battle, Zhao Xing felt a terrifying pressure, because on this training ground it was completely impossible to use spells.

Having lost his usual reliance, and with several thousand people pouncing on him like wild beasts, although he had some confidence in his sound wave Wu Ji, the pressure in his heart was still immense!

The rules stated by the Si Nong Monitor and from the tower ship never said for certain that no one would die!

"Charge!"

Zhao Xing understood that he had to charge forward; turning to flee meant he couldn't outrun the martial artists, and might not outrun the other Si Nong either, because being blocked would inevitably slow him down.

"Charge!"

Almost all the geniuses of the Four Great Courtyards made the same choice as Zhao Xing — they all knew there was no retreating, for retreating meant falling even faster!

If one fell during the first charge, it would be hard to get back up again!

The two sides charged at each other; the hundred-meter distance was covered in almost an instant.

Contrary to the Si Nong formation, the martial artist formation had its strongest placed at the back — this too reflected the stricter demands placed on martial arts geniuses.

"Purple Lightning Tiger Roar Fist!"

"Flying Dragon Palm!"

"Mountain-Crushing Fist!"

Three martial artists charging straight at him immediately all targeted Zhao Xing, wanting to knock him down first.

A ninth-rank martial artist could project their vital energy outside the body.

Before Zhao Xing's eyes, three streaks of light immediately appeared — one had fist shadows like a tiger, another a flying palm like a dragon, and another's fist shadows as heavy as a mountain.

Two fists and one palm came howling toward him.

"Folded Sound Curved Form · Sound Pierce!"

Zhao Xing's lips trembled, and his sound wave Wu Ji activated instantly.

At the eighth revolution of the sound wave Wu Ji, eight diamond-cone shapes faintly appeared in the air, stabbing toward the three martial artists.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!"

"What?"

"Not good!"

"Puff puff puff—"

Although they detected the anomaly and tried desperately to dodge, all three martial artists were still hit — one had his shoulder pierced, one his abdomen pierced, and one's chest caved in.

After two of the martial artists fell, they immediately vanished from the ground; the next moment they appeared outside the training ground and swiftly received treatment.

Zhao Xing held the Hundred Flower Conical Hat horizontally in front of his chest. Although his sound wave Wu Ji was faster, at such close range, a fist shadow still smashed into him.

"Boom!" The Hundred Flower Conical Hat caved in, and his speed was hindered as well.

However, after taking down these three, he actually felt less pressure, because once the two armies truly engaged after charging at each other, the number of enemies one actually faced wasn't that many.

Moreover, the Si Nong had the numerical advantage — one martial artist had to deal with three Si Nong. The Si Nong side was rather crowded, but the martial artist formation had been stretched out laterally much more.

After charging past these three.

He immediately ran into the four great Wu Si members behind him.

"Interesting, a sound wave Wu Ji?"

A buzz-cut youth staring right at him glanced at Zhao Xing, then changed his charging direction and swiftly dodged around Zhao Xing.

Picking the softest persimmons to squeeze—this elite of Wu Si saw how formidable his opponent was and immediately chose to give up taking down Zhao Xing.

Because he had to rack up more takedowns and couldn't waste too much time on a single person.

The strong could be eliminated last.

After this martial artist dodged away, Zhao Xing found the space before him empty—no one ahead anymore.

He glanced back, and in just this short while, the two formations had already completely collided.

Countless Wu Ji erupted, making the Yuan Qi across the entire training ground extremely chaotic.

Yet in this very first clash, a large batch of Si Nong officials fell.

Those who could fight their way through were few—only about a thousand.

"Standing your ground in battle might keep you alive; running away only gets you killed faster."

"The rule set for the Si Nong is to hold on and not fall, not to try to take down as many martial artists as possible. This gives many people a choice in their hearts… Hmph, thinking you can just stand there and survive to the end—how could it be that simple?"

"The stronger you appear, the less others dare to make a move on you first."

Zhao Xing's feet never stopped as he ran swiftly. He held his conical hat horizontally against his chest, turned around, and once again charged into the crowd on his own initiative.

On the tower ship, Tian Shan quietly stared down at Zhao Xing's figure below. Upon seeing his student's choice, a gratified smile immediately appeared on his face.

"Tian Hou." Zuo Zizhi looked down below. "How long has it been for Zhao Xing, and his sound wave Wu Ji has already reached the Eight Revolutions realm?"

Tian Shan smiled faintly: "It is passable."

Lu Bang was also beside them: "From the look of him, getting through the first phase is easy. He should be able to hold on until the end."

Tian Shan nodded: "The geniuses of the four great academies have mostly reached Eighth Pin. Even without using spells, they won't fall that easily. The key is who can hold on longer in the final phase."

Zuo Zizhi said: "Yes, as long as he plays it steady, lasting until the end really isn't hard."

Lu Bang laughed: "Steady? I don't see this kid as the steady type. Look at what he's doing after charging through—he's turned back to chase people."

Tian Shan said lightly: "That is the most correct choice. The fiercer you are, the more others will subconsciously avoid you. Those who die fast are usually the timid and weak ones. If Zhao Xing stayed in a corner of the training ground, many might think him weak and instead he'd have to face more enemies."

"Now that he takes the initiative to seek them out, he only needs to face one or two opponents at a time."

The battle wasn't as drawn-out as imagined. As time went on, more and more Si Nong fell, lost their fighting ability, and were teleported out of the training ground.

The martial artists in Yang City were also chosen from the best of every army.

Movement Wu Ji, fist and leg Wu Ji, defensive Wu Ji—these were all required courses. Some even mastered more than one or two. Sound wave Wu Ji, the martial artists also trained in, and they would only understand it better than the Si Nong.

Over ten thousand Si Nong were taken down by half within the first quarter-hour!

Although there were only three thousand martial artists, different trades are worlds apart. The vast majority of Si Nong, even fighting three or five against one, found it very hard to take down a martial artist of the same realm.

Conversely, with their superb Wu Ji and the coordination of multiple Wu Ji, the martial artists completely overwhelmed the Si Nong.

"Damn it, what's all the hollering? You think we don't know you lot practice sound wave Wu Ji?"

"A mere Si Nong, how laughable—and you still stubbornly refuse to fall?"

"Hahaha, just drop for me, brother!"

"What, you're from Xuan Jia Army too? Sorry about that, brother. I respect the army Si Nong plenty, but today you lot must fall!"

"Come on, hit here. Put some force into it—don't tickle me."

"How come you can't even break through my secret technique Ten Thousand Mountains? You're not cutting it, pal. You need more practice."

"…"

Every martial artist appeared completely at ease; they simply didn't regard the Si Nong as opponents.

The real competitors were, in fact, only those who were martial artists themselves.

Competing over who could take down Si Nong faster, and who could take down more.

"This training exercise has no pressure at all." In the northeast of the training ground, Chen Xuan Wu Wu Si's Grade-Jia genius 'Zhang Jie' weaved through the crowd.

Though he wore only a thin training outfit, a layer of earthy-yellow rock wrapped his body's surface—this was the Wu Ji 'Xuan Wu Shield,' learned after entering Chen Xuan Wu Wu Si.

Facing a situation of few against many, Zhang Jie completely abandoned defense. Even when struck by three or four Si Nong's fists and kicks simultaneously, he was entirely as if nothing had happened.

"The gap is too huge. The higher-ups are basically having us come as sparring partners—no, to give these army Si Nong a lesson." Zhang Jie casually caught a fist from an army Si Nong sneaking up from behind.

"Bam!" A shoulder throw sent this Si Nong crashing down, his head spinning.

Seeing this army Si Nong's eyes roll white, lying on the ground unable to move, Zhang Jie smiled faintly: "Thirty-nine."

"Ah!"

Hearing this annoying cry, Zhang Jie's ears sealed shut. Then his feet flashed as he swiftly closed in, his body slamming straight into that Si Nong's chest.

"Pfft~" This Si Nong raised his hands to block. But Zhang Jie's impact force was too heavy—even though he reacted in time to block, he was still sent flying.

"Whoosh~" Zhang Jie pressed forward again. Before the opponent even hit the ground, his hands struck rapidly at the other's chest and abdomen. "Spirit Rhinoceros Finger, break!"

"Hum~" The struck Si Nong shuddered all over. A burst of light scattered from his body, and the Yuan Qi defensive technique condensed at his chest was instantly and easily pierced.

"Thud~" He landed outside the training ground, his whole body rigid.

"Fortieth." Zhang Jie clapped his hands and turned to seek his next target.

His eyes swept about, but just then—

A figure suddenly flew horizontally toward him, nearly knocking him over.

"Hm?" After Zhang Jie dodged, he saw this was a martial artist, because they wore not a straw raincoat but ordinary clothes.

"Thud~" When this young martial artist crashed to the ground, Zhang Jie's face went pale with shock.

"Chen Fang of Zhu Que Wu Si? How could…"

Chen Fang was a genius of the same rating as him. After all, the number of geniuses who reached Grade-Jia was countable, and the circle was small. In two months' time, it was naturally easy to get to know each other.

"Watch out behind…" Chen Fang clutched his abdomen, squeezed out a sentence with difficulty, and was then dragged out of the training ground by a gust of wind.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh!" Two more figures shot across horizontally. Zhang Jie immediately deployed movement arts to shift aside.

"Hu Bing, Dan Fei?! You all—"

These are from his Xuanwu Division, Jia-rank!

At this moment, Zhang Jie turned pale with shock, looking toward the direction those two had flown in from.

He saw a youth with a straw raincoat held horizontally across his chest let out a furious roar. After shattering the defensive secret arts on the three men's bodies, he unleashed a fierce sonic secret art that pierced straight through their shoulder blades and abdomens.

"Thud~" The three martial artists were as if nailed to the training ground, unable to crawl up even if they tried.

"Th-this-this…" Zhang Jie was stunned, staring at the youth ahead. "This is a Si Nong? Who on earth is he, how can he be this brutal?!"

Hit a small block. Will be late. Sorry about that.