Chapter 141: Silkworm Transformation, Straw Man Technique Training Class

【Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, you have been randomly matched with opponent 'Wei Chen' (Sea-Suppressing Army).】

【The random environment is 'Ocean Lake Wetland'.】

【The battle will begin in sixty breaths; please prepare yourself.】

"Wei Chen? Seems like a Grade A-minus genius from the Pinghuai Academy."

Zhao Xing found the name somewhat familiar.

There were only so many geniuses on the Grade A list, and Wei Chen had a small reputation within the Pinghuai Academy.

"Matched with Zhao Xing!"

On another preparation platform, Wei Chen was somewhat excited.

He had just finished watching Zhao Xing’s battle against Feng Qiu, so on a whim, he started a match.

He hadn't expected to actually run into him.

Wei Chen was already at the Third Realm in the Nine-Section Dojo, though he had been hovering at one or two stars of the Third Realm.

"Hope I can last a bit longer in his hands."

Wei Chen waited for the battle to start with anticipation.

Five breaths later, Wei Chen reappeared on the preparation platform, his face filled with shock.

"I was actually finished off in one move, didn't even last five breaths?!"

"The gap between people is truly damn large."

Wei Chen shook his head and sighed.

Ocean Lake Wetland was an environment he excelled in; upon entering the duel, Wei Chen had immediately cast defensive spells.

Wei Chen’s specialty was a water-element secret technique called "Gate of Heavy Water."

It was a secret technique that combined water-element arts with Profound Earth arts.

He could open nine Gates of Heavy Water, each capable of using water-element power to dissolve or distort an opponent's spell attacks, or to trap an opponent.

"Nine Gates of Heavy Water, actually broken by him in one move."

"As if they were made of paper."

Wei Chen felt a bit melancholy.

Originally, he thought the gap between himself and a Grade A-plus genius wasn't that big, and at the very least, he could trade a few blows.

As it turned out, he was instantly defeated.

…………

【Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, you have completed the Third Realm promotion battle!】

【Dojo Points: 69】

【Net Wins: 69】

【Dojo Rating: Third Realm, One Star】

【Dojo Point Ranking: 712,452 (Ten Suns Grotto-Heaven)】

【Nine-Section Dojo Point Ranking: 55,214 (Ten Suns Grotto-Heaven)】

【After reaching the Third Realm rating, you may choose to challenge opponents of the same realm or accept challenge invitations.】

"One elective training task completed." Zhao Xing smiled slightly.

For the second match of the Third Realm promotion, feeling that Wei Chen posed no pressure, Zhao Xing directly cast a water-element spell to finish his opponent instantly.

Having promoted to the Third Realm, his ranking in the Nine-Section Dojo reached over 50,000, and his ranking in the entire Ten Suns Dojo rose by 200,000 places.

"With this elective course from Cen Sanji completed, I can go finish Lu Bang’s elective course. If I plant Third Realm plants now, under conditions of infinite land fertility, reaching maturity within an hour won't be a problem."

"Once that's done, I'll have completed two of the ten elective training courses." Zhao Xing thought to himself.

As a Grade A-plus genius, he had to earn Grade A ratings in his elective training as well.

To maintain his Grade A-plus status from the Ministry of Agriculture until the end of training, he needed to perform excellently in mandatory training and earn ten Grade A ratings in elective courses.

"Hum~"

Suddenly, the Earth Mirror vibrated.

【Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, 'Zhuang Ziqing' of the Tiger-Dragon Army has challenged you. Do you accept?】

【Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, 'Guan Junyang' of the Profound Armor Army has challenged you. Do you accept?】

【Zhao Xing of the Divine Might Army, 'Cao Shuang' of the Profound Armor Army has challenged you. Do you accept?】

【……】

In an instant, many notifications appeared on the Earth Mirror.

"So many people waiting for me to promote." Zhao Xing couldn't help but laugh.

It seemed everyone wanted to have a go at him, the runner-up of the last mandatory training.

Especially after Feng Qiu’s defeat, the geniuses were itching to try him out.

"Let's accept one."

Zhao Xing agreed to Zhuang Ziqing’s invitation.

He also wanted to see what the result of a real battle with Zhuang Ziqing would be after he had comprehended the Drip-Water Technique.

Because Zhuang Ziqing and Shi Yong had clearly entered the fourth turn of the Knowing Realm.

As for the others? Zhao Xing didn't know.

To accept a challenge, one naturally had to pick a decent opponent.

"Agree." Zhao Xing selected confirm on the Earth Mirror.

【This challenge is a private challenge; spectating is not allowed. The battle will begin in sixty breaths...】

"Private challenge? Little Zhuang is being secretive, afraid of people seeing his secret techniques?"

For private challenges, one could choose to make them public or not. If public, followers could watch the battle process via the Earth Mirror.

If not public, it would only show that a battle was in progress, and the results would not be announced.

…………

"He agreed?" Standing on the preparation platform, the moment Zhuang Ziqing saw Zhao Xing accept the invitation, he became excited. "Looks like he really has entered the fourth turn of the Knowing Realm; he's quite confident."

Zhuang Ziqing hadn't even slept; he just wanted to fight Zhao Xing.

Because Shi Yong was too strong, he couldn't beat him at all, and sparring with him offered no experience.

Having finally found a Zhao Xing, he was naturally itching for a fight.

"The random map is Spring Grassland?"

Zhuang Ziqing took a glance, put away the Earth Mirror, and waited quietly.

Personal invitation duels after the Third Realm had a slightly longer wait time; after all, once reaching the Third Realm rating, the area had to expand accordingly to allow the combatants to display their skills fully.

Spring Grassland, the sky was incredibly blue, without a single cloud.

Two figures appeared on the grassland.

"Zhao Xing!"

After entering, Zhuang Ziqing didn't attack immediately but called out to Zhao Xing.

"You should have already entered the fourth turn of the Knowing Realm and comprehended a high-level technique, right?"

"Let's not use other spells; let's go straight for our strongest moves and decide the winner in one strike, how about it?"

Zhao Xing nodded: "Fine."

Zhuang Ziqing flew closer: "You attack first. You’ve only just comprehended the Knowing Realm technique, while I’ve already learned several secret techniques. If I attack first, you won't have a chance."

"Alright."

Zhao Xing didn't stand on ceremony. Qi circulated at his fingertips, and the Solar Term Order in his dantian vibrated slightly.

The map here was 'Spring Grassland', which was perfectly suited for casting [Drip-Rain].

In an instant, he easily borrowed the momentum of heaven and earth.

A single water droplet appeared at his fingertip.

"Shoo!"

Zhao Xing flicked his finger, and the water droplet flew rapidly toward Zhuang Ziqing.

"Hm?"

A strange look flashed in Zhuang Ziqing’s eyes.

Even though it was just a drop of water, he felt as if the entire world were crashing down on him.

He couldn't help but cast a spell to resist.

"Chi chi chi~"

Around Zhuang Ziqing’s body, a large amount of flocculent material suddenly appeared, and at the same time, the grass beneath his feet grew wildly.

Thread by thread, thousands of threads intertwined, quickly forming an oval white shell, like a silkworm cocoon, enveloping Zhuang Ziqing.

As the water droplet arrived, the cocoon also formed.

"Bang!"

The cocoon seemed to suffer a massive impact, and both the person and the cocoon were knocked back.

"Rumble~"

Soil rolled, and grass flew everywhere.

The cocoon plowed a trench over ten meters long and half a meter deep into the ground before stopping.

"Hm? Is this the secret technique Silkworm Transformation?" Zhao Xing looked at Zhuang Ziqing in surprise. "I thought your lightning technique was strong; why is the high-level technique you comprehended a wood-element one?"

"Aren't you the same? Everyone says your Cloud-Swallowing Technique is unrivaled, yet what you comprehended is a high-level water-element technique." Zhuang Ziqing’s voice came from inside the cocoon.

The water droplet hadn't broken through the cocoon's defense; although it had caused many cracks, the characteristic of wood-element techniques was endless vitality, and the Silkworm Transformation secret technique was an even more advanced application skill.

The wood-element power was like needle-threads, flying up and down, and the cocoon quickly repaired itself.

"Didn't break through, hehe, my turn."

The cocoon wrapping Zhuang Ziqing suddenly flew up out of thin air and began to spin wildly.

Countless silk threads flew toward Zhao Xing.

Some silk threads drifted in a twisted manner, while others were pulled taut like sharp arrows.

There were ways to dodge, but dodging would lose the meaning of this training.

Zhao Xing didn't use any defensive spells either, because they had agreed not to use other techniques at the start.

"Drip-Water."

A water droplet appeared in Zhao Xing’s palm again, dancing around him, attempting to destroy those silk threads.

"Bang bang bang bang!"

When the water droplet touched the silk threads, it made a heart-palpitating explosion sound. Even though the water droplet and the silk threads were both insignificant objects, the commotion they caused was massive.

Zhao Xing had originally borrowed the momentum of heaven and earth very easily, but as the water droplet touched the silk threads, he clearly felt a sense of stagnation, because Zhuang Ziqing was also borrowing the momentum of heaven and earth.

"Chi chi chi~"

The silk threads quickly wrapped around Zhao Xing’s right arm, interrupting his spellcasting. The water droplet lost control, rushed toward the ground, and blasted out a deep pit.

The silk threads became more numerous, quickly embedding into his flesh.

"Hum~"

The protective barrier appeared, golden light swept over Zhao Xing’s entire body, and moved him out.

On the preparation platform, the injuries on Zhao Xing’s body healed rapidly; they were just superficial wounds anyway, and they recovered instantly.

Flying out of the Cloud Gate and arriving at the plaza, he met up with Zhuang Ziqing.

"Hm? What’s wrong with you?" Seeing him, Zhao Xing was somewhat surprised.

"What do you mean what's wrong." Zhuang Ziqing was stunned.

"You look so haggard; how long has it been since you slept?" Zhao Xing could tell at a glance that Zhuang Ziqing’s state was wrong. Cultivating the "Great Dream Spring and Autumn," he could feel Zhuang Ziqing’s life soul was overexcited, which was caused by using treasures to clear fatigue too many times.

Physical fatigue could be relieved, but fatigue of the life soul was hard to resolve. Zhao Xing slept for an hour every day, mainly to let his life soul rest.

"Small matter, I'll sleep when I go back." Zhuang Ziqing said dismissively.

"You came all this way just to have a fight with me?"

"You’ve had a breakthrough, so naturally I had to come and spar." Zhuang Ziqing smiled. "In the reserves now, only you, me, Shi Yong, Cao Shuang, and Guan Junyang have learned high-level techniques from the Solar Term Order. What you comprehended is different from ours, so naturally I had to come and try it."

In truth, he had other thoughts; Zhao Xing’s progress was so fast that if he didn't take the chance to fight him now, he might not be able to beat him in the future!

After all, in the Ministry of Agriculture reserves, Zhao Xing’s growth speed was the fastest; he was the only one selected for transfer immediately after becoming an official.

Even with the resource bonuses within the Ten Suns Grotto-Heaven, cultivating a Solar Term Order to the fourth turn of the Knowing Realm in just a few months was simply terrifying.

"Still very shallow, just grasped the fur." Zhao Xing shook his head. Zhuang Ziqing’s Silkworm Transformation was clearly very proficient, and he had mastered the secret technique; those silk threads and the cocoon were advanced applications of high-level wood-element techniques.

"I’ve only grasped the fur too." Zhuang Ziqing said, "If your Drip-Rain Technique were more proficient and you mastered the secret technique, it wouldn't be so easy for me to beat you. Among the five of us, only Shi Yong is faster; he can be considered to have truly entered the door."

"Have you fought Shi Yong?" Zhao Xing asked.

"Fought him." Zhuang Ziqing nodded, "He and I are both in the Tiger-Dragon Army, so we’re quite familiar. Since entering the Nine-Section Dojo, I’ve fought him ten times."

"What’s the win-loss record?"

"Don't ask about sad things." Zhuang Ziqing shrugged and said, "I'll tell you when I surpass him."

That means he hasn't won a single time... Zhao Xing thought to himself.

"I'm off, I need to go back and sleep." Zhuang Ziqing yawned, "The elective training coming out in a few days will have point rewards, I need to prepare well. Zhao Xing, let's practice together again when you're free."

"Easy to say."

Zhao Xing parted ways with Zhuang Ziqing and didn't enter the Nine-Section Dojo again.

It wouldn't be too late to train again after having new insights.

On the 17th of July, Zhao Xing obtained a Third Realm rating in the Nine-Section Dojo and also received a Grade A rating from Cen Sanji.

On the 18th of July, Zhao Xing came to the inner hall of the Earth Vein Palace to meditate. The Earth Vein Map in the inner hall was more profound than the outer hall; there were only nine earth veins, but these nine earth veins were far more powerful than those in the outer hall. It was on this day that his Earth-Benefit school spells had a breakthrough.

The Divine Movement Protection even broke through to the tenth turn, because the Profound Earth Technique and the Divine Movement Earth Palace were both related to earth veins. The breakthrough of this dual-technique fusion spell also gave Zhao Xing two spells that reached high-level power.

From July 19th to July 23rd, he went to the Heavenly Time Academy again to observe the 108 Solar Term Steles.

Five days later, Zhao Xing left the treasure land with some reluctance.

"The two free meditation opportunities for the Heavenly Time Academy's treasure land have been used up."

"However, my 24 Solar Term Orders have all reached the third turn of the Knowing Realm, though only [Start of Spring] is at the fourth turn."

"The Earth-Benefit Academy still has one free meditation opportunity left, while the Great Granary Academy and Pinghuai Academy treasure lands still have two left."

"The high-level spell [Drip-Water] has reached the third turn; it will be hard to break through in the short term. Unless I buy [Drip-Water Domain]." Zhao Xing’s progress was fast.

But at the high-level spell tier, he had also encountered a bottleneck.

High-level spells were the standard for Grade 6; about 30% of Grade 7 military agricultural officials knew one high-level spell.

As for those at Grade 8 who mastered high-level spells, they were extremely rare, precisely because they were too difficult to cultivate.

"I only have over 10,000 points now; I'm still quite far from being able to buy [Drip-Water Domain]."

And he couldn't ask Marquis Tian for them; after all, Marquis Tian had already given him things worth 80,000 points.

To ask for more would be excessive and against the rules.

"Tasks cannot be accepted during the training period, unless arranged by the Ministry of Agriculture."

"However, the elective training courses opened since July 15th will reward points, because the reserve agricultural officials have gradually become stronger after several months of training, and their demand for points is also growing."

"Let's see which elective training courses reward points." Zhao Xing took out the Earth Mirror to check.

"Hm? Straw Man Technique Training Class?"

The first line he saw was a Straw Man Technique training class.

"Starting on the afternoon of July 23rd, held at the Tianning Villa, hosted by Grade 5 agricultural official 'Liu Tianning'. Isn't that today?"

"First place reward: 50,000 points?"

"Straw Man Technique training class, why give so many points?"

Adjusted for nothing, drowsy during the day, but energetic once night falls.

There's more today.