Chapter 691: Trial

Two years later.

Inside the True Martial Talisman.

Fang Xing sat cross-legged, then suddenly raised his hand.

A book materialized out of thin air, hovering midair as its pages turned one by one.

Sheets of paper projected forth, transforming into golden characters suspended in the air:

【Dragon-Tiger Rank #1: Lian Hua Shangren of Dahei Temple, Wu Gong: The Black Sun of the Time Wheel Scripture, mastered the Great Radiance Fist—unrivaled across the land… Record: Fought ten thousand punches on Bright Light Peak, defeated the Grand Master of Tianyang Sect, Tianyang Zi; once single-handedly halted three thousand Iron Cavalry… One palm reversed the flow of Ziyan Waterfall…】

【Dragon-Tiger Rank #2: Xuan Yin Zi, Grand Master of Xuan Yin Sect, the Number One Swordsman in the World… Record: Once severed Xiao Qingfeng Mountain with a single sword, carved a chessboard into its face, and dueled Tianyang Zi in a three-day-three-night chess battle for martial mastery, winning by half a point…】

【Dragon-Tiger Rank #3: Qing Long Lao Da of Qinglongmen, Supreme Leader of the Underworld… Record: Bloodied hands wiped out three gangs and six families, building a pyramid of skulls in the capital…】

【Dragon-Tiger Rank #4: Tian Qin Shangren of Wuqinmen, Record…】

…

This was the Dragon-Tiger Rank that Xun Heihu had “gifted” him.

The Dragon-Tiger Rank lists the supreme masters of the Nine Provinces, changing only every few years—

far less dynamic than the ever-shifting Chu Feng Rank!

The Chu Feng Rank, compiled by Wuqinmen, ranks only masters from Chuzhou, and includes specialized lists: the Xin Feng Rank for those under thirty, the Nu Feng Rank for female masters… Its entertainment value far surpasses the Dragon-Tiger Rank.

“Though Tianyang Sect is among the Nine Great Sects, Tianyang Zi is pitiful—has he become nothing but a benchmark for measuring strength?”

Fang Xing’s expression twisted as he flipped further, but found no mention of this man.

He saw the footnote: “Ah… turns out he died of depression after too many fights and too many losses… exacerbated by old injuries… Otherwise, a top-tier master like him could live five hundred years—he wouldn’t have been driven to death by humiliation… Ultimately, he was beaten too badly, his foundation shattered…”

Tianyang Zi was not weak!

He simply always fought peak opponents—and paid the price.

“The Dragon-Tiger Rank only lists top three-tier masters; each of the one temple, two sects, and six great schools has a Grand Master on it… This lets me gauge the progress of martial arts in this world…”

Fang Xing stared at the descriptions of swords severing mountains and palms cutting rivers, and shook his head: “Only sixth or seventh realm strength, perhaps reaching eighth at peak—but their lifespans are nowhere near comparable.”

At this level, even the supreme masters suffer no “Pan Wu awakening within me” dilemma.

Simply put, they’re too weak—Pan Wu’s consciousness struggles to stir.

Forget resurrection.

Moreover, within this world’s Dao, the True Martial exists!

“It’s time to guide the True Martial lineage, begin laying the groundwork…”

“All these years of seclusion haven’t been wasted… At least, initiating the True Martial Dao isn’t difficult…”

Currently, Pan Wu is strong—but a vegetable.

True Martial is weak, still a child—but mobile.

This is the unfair advantage of using the Gates of All Realms.

Otherwise, Fang Xing might have waited countless years to forge his own Dao.

【Fortunately, time flows extremely fast within this world—no need to worry about missing the Great Xia Universe’s insectoid war.】

【Worst case, if I miss it—so be it… I’ll avenge human civilization and rebuild it later.】

Fang Xing closed his eyes and sank into meditation.

…

Outside the True Martial Talisman.

Dozens of teenagers, boys and girls, sparred against each other.

Instructors Xiong and Yu watched nearby, occasionally offering commentary.

“Wei Chi Gang still ranks first—he’s reached Seventh Rank Upper, right?”

“Si Tu Yan Yan isn’t bad either—barely broke into Seventh Rank…”

“Both are from noble families with ample wealth to support their lower-tier hardening training… But shouldn’t we be surprised by Xun Heihu? He’s broken into Seventh Rank too—his golden-threaded silver-veined physique rivals Si Tu Yan Yan’s…”

“I heard his family’s decent—he’s had his father deliver silver several times… Must’ve sold off most of his belongings…”

Instructor Yu listened and moved on, his gaze fixed on one person: Jiang Yuyan. “Yan’er is excellent—her mental fortitude stands out. Even with just a little silver support from me, she’s reached Eighth Rank Upper… Close to breaking into Seventh Rank.”

The remaining dozen or so teens were all Ninth Rank; Ye Fengchun was among them, but utterly ignored.

After three years, anyone stuck at Ninth Rank would likely remain trapped in the lower tiers for life.

After leaving Bai Lu Academy, they’d either join the army, become bodyguards or escort guards… Or, if their character was worse, turn to banditry.

But banditry and highway robbery were perilous in this era—many young heroes sought fame by slaying them.

Even Wuqinmen occasionally sent martial armies to crush them—no remote mountain or treacherous terrain offered safety.

Even the Five Animals Sect occasionally sent armies of martial artists to hunt them down; no remote mountains or dangerous terrain could save them.

At the sharp command, over twenty teens gathered.

Xun Heihu watched and sighed inwardly: “Three years… Of that first intake, only these few have made it into the ranks.”

“You’ve done well, this cohort.”

Inside his neck, within the True Martial Talisman, Fang Xing’s voice directly entered Xun Heihu’s mind.

This was a new ability Fang Xing had recently “developed”—spiritual communication, like telepathy, requiring no spoken words.

Xun Heihu took it for granted, assuming it was an inherent function of the True Martial Talisman.

For Fang Xing, it was another step closer to freedom—toward making the Talisman act on its own. Joyous, truly joyous.

“My strength… must already surpass Wei Chi Gang, right?”

Xun Heihu gazed at the handsome youth ranked first, thinking inwardly.

“Lower-tier cultivation builds the foundation for internal energy—stronger physique means faster absorption and greater reserves of internal energy.”

Fang Xing said: “That’s why I had you linger at Seventh Rank. Your current state is already Seventh Rank Perfect—you can break into Sixth Rank internal energy anytime.”

The internal energy of Zhou’s Nine-Rank martial arts flows from outside to inside; once broken through, one gains immense, overwhelming internal energy.

Not the slow, gradual cultivation path—sudden, complete transformation! And the internal energy’s destructive power is brutally formidable.

Thus, the foundation must be rock-solid—the stronger the base, the greater the payoff.

Xun Heihu now primarily trains New Martial, secondarily Ancient Martial—his foundation is immensely thick; he’s mastered six of the Twelve Body Transformations.

He could even hold his own against a Sixth Rank martial artist.

It could be said that even against a sixth-rank martial artist, he could hold his own.

A soft chuckle echoed as the rotund “Taiyi Hand” Zhang Kaitai arrived on the training ground.

“Respectful greetings, Headmaster.”

Xun Heihu bowed quickly, thinking inwardly: “If even the Headmaster came, something major’s happening.”

“What else could it be but the graduation trial?”

Fang Xing’s voice came: “Looks like they’re planning a live combat test.”

“All students, your trial task is live combat.”

Zhang Kaitai smiled and waved his hand.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Sheets of paper flew through the air, landing precisely in each student’s hands.

“Huh? A wanted poster?”

Xun Heihu unfolded his poster to see a handsome face with a sinister aura: “Xiao Tianquan Gou San?! Seventh Rank Golden Thread martial artist? Bounty: 3,600 taels?!”

“Correct. This is your trial task: capture him!”

Zhang Kaitai grinned: “Why? Not because he’s evil—because he’s recently been brazenly raiding tombs… even digging into the ancestral graves of a Wuqinmen official’s family…”

Clearly, he resented the upper sect’s arbitrary task assignments—and spilled the truth outright.

“Our wanted posters… all feature this Xiao Tianquan Gou San!”

Wei Chi Gang asked: “Only one person passes?”

At this, every teen’s expression changed.

“Of course not—we’re just a Wuqinmen branch academy. How cruel could the trial be?”

Zhang Kaitai smiled: “Capture or kill this bandit, and you pass automatically. Additionally, instructors will secretly observe you—if you perform notably during the capture, you’ll earn high marks. And standards are relative to your rank. For example, him…”

Zhang Kaitai casually pointed at Ye Fengchun, the Ninth Rank student: “If a student like him contributes even slightly—whether by surrounding, tracking, or providing clues—he’s considered qualified.”

Hearing this, many Eighth and Ninth Rank martial artists exhaled in relief.

They couldn't even defeat their own Seventh-Rank seniors—how could they possibly fight a real Seventh-Rank martial artist? It would be suicide.

A single rank gap meant an insurmountable chasm in martial skill.

Even if not instantly killed, they couldn’t survive three moves.

Meanwhile, Fang Xing observed Xun Heihu’s expression with interest.

Xun Heihu’s face remained calm; he even accepted Ye Fengchun’s invitation to team up—clearly seeking protection.

Only when night fell and he shut his door did he sit on his bed, gripping the True Martial Talisman around his neck: “Elder… what do you wish to say?”

“I can only tell you this: the True Martial Talisman was originally a burial artifact—your father stole it from an ancient tomb.”

Only at night, after closing his door, did he sit cross-legged on the bed, gripping the True Martial Talisman hanging around his neck: “Elder… what would you like to say?”

“Xiao Tianquan… tomb raider… active frequently these past few years.” Xun Heihu recalled the humble, bowed figure who had delivered silver to him…

“Elder… I thought you’d hide this.”

After a long silence, Xun Heihu thought inwardly.

"Senior, ... I thought you would conceal this matter."

After a long while, Xun Heihu said in his mind.

"Conceal this matter and watch you father and son destroy each other? What benefit would that be to me?"

Fang Xing sneered: "I don't have that kind of sick taste..."

"I thought you would hate him?" Xun Heihu sounded clearly puzzled.

"Do you think it's something one willingly does—bury oneself alive with someone else?" Fang Xing's voice carried a hint of exasperation: "Strictly speaking, your father brought me out and dug up that man's grave—I was thoroughly delighted..."

Hmm, that ancient Daxia probably regarded the 'Zhenwu Talisman' as some source of calamity, so he chose to entomb himself with it, ensuring the Zhenwu Talisman would remain buried forever...

Strictly speaking, this explanation isn't wrong at all.