Chapter 41: What Matters in the Martial World Is

The scent of cotton jade fried crisp drifted through the air; even from afar, Li Hao could smell it—this was made by Uncle Liu himself.

Though Uncle Liu was just a petty vendor, his fried crisp was unmatched; his stall had thrived for years on the busiest street outside the Divine General’s Mansion, a testament to his skill.

At the edge of the square, when Li Hao arrived with Li Yuanzhao, he saw far fewer boys and girls here—they were all rushing toward the entrance stairs of the Tan Palace Academy—but many still lingered before various stalls, their attire clearly indicating they came from other provinces.

It’s rare to come to Qingzhou; might as well sample the local delicacies.

Li Hao saw a long line stretching before Uncle Liu’s stall, mostly women, with some servants in retainers’ and maids’ garb waiting to buy for their masters.

Li Hao pulled Li Yuanzhao and joined the end of the queue.

“Big Brother Hao, haven’t you had breakfast yet?”

Li Yuanzhao asked, surprised.

Li Hao nodded.

“Wait a moment—I’ll go buy you some.”

Li Yuanzhao immediately shouted toward the front: “Uncle Liu! Two portions of breakfast, please!”

His voice rang out loud; those in line turned to look, and seeing their brocade robes and noble attire, they knew these were sons of wealthy families.

Beside the stall, Aunt Liu was busy collecting money and serving customers; hearing Li Yuanzhao’s shout, she looked up and recognized Li Hao standing at the back—she immediately smiled and called out to her husband, who was buried in work:

“It’s Young Master Hao from the Divine General’s Mansion! Make him two portions right away!”

Uncle Liu froze, glanced up amid his rush, and when he saw the boy at the end of the line, his wrinkled face broke into a grin.

To petty vendors and lowly folk like them, nobles usually sneered, their eyes filled with disdain.

But only this Young Master Hao treated them equally, never avoiding them; three years ago, he had even sat cross-legged right in front of their stall, helping them shout out their wares—his presence had terrified them both, leaving them overwhelmed with honor, and ever since, they’d remembered this peculiar noble son.

“You little rascal…”

Li Hao had wanted to pull Li Yuanzhao aside and wait patiently, but seeing Aunt Liu smile at him, he could only sigh and lead Li Yuanzhao forward, standing quietly beside the stall.

Nearby, some retainers and maids in line kept glancing over but dared not speak.

But the women who had queued themselves scowled, shooting hostile glares; one muttered discontentedly:

“Why can he cut in line? That’s unfair!”

“Exactly!”

“You’re being terribly unfair, boss!”

Hearing these accusations, Li Yuanzhao grew flustered and moved to reveal his status as a Divine General’s son—but Li Hao pressed his chest, silencing him.

With the situation as it was, Li Hao stepped forward to resolve it; inwardly he felt weary, yet his face smiled gently at the chattering girls as he pulled a gold ingot from his pouch and placed it before Uncle Liu’s stall, speaking calmly: “Ladies, no need to be upset—I’ll make it fair. Five times the price.”

Aunt Liu panicked and tried to push the gold back into Li Hao’s hands: “Young Master Hao, we can’t accept this!”

“No change needed—consider this payment for future purchases too,” Li Hao smiled, gently refusing it back, his warm gaze carrying undeniable authority.

Petty vendors, after all, were seasoned travelers of the martial world; Aunt Liu instantly understood and stopped protesting.

Li Hao said: “Uncle Liu, five portions, please.”

“Oh! Yes, yes!” Uncle Liu hurriedly replied.

His wife had stopped refusing—so he just got to work.

The other girls in line, seeing Li Hao’s lavish spending, were furious; even at five times the price, they could afford it—but they refused to be the fools paying extra.

Soon, five portions of cotton jade fried crisp were ready; Li Hao handed one bag to Li Yuanzhao and turned away from the crowd.

“So much? Big Brother Hao, can you even eat all this?”

Li Yuanzhao stared at the four bags in Li Hao’s hands, took a bite of his own, and sighed: “So delicious—no wonder you love it!”

Li Hao smiled and returned to the carriage, where Qingzhi and Li Fu stood behind the cabin; he handed each of them a bag.

“Young Master, haven’t you gone to the entrance stairs yet?” Li Fu took the breakfast, staring at Li Hao in surprise.

Li Hao said: “First, you must eat.”

“...” Li Fu had no reply; having followed this boy for five or six years, he understood his nature well enough to say nothing more—after all, they had their invitation.

Li Hao returned to the front of the carriage, glanced at Ming Bo sitting on the carriage board; though Ming Bo was from the Falling Snow Courtyard, he’d always treated Li Hao with courtesy, so Li Hao handed him a bag too.

“Thank you, Young Master Hao.”

Ming Bo quickly accepted it with both hands and stood to bow.

Then, just like Li Fu, he voiced the same question: “Young Master Hao, you… haven’t gone to the entrance stairs yet?”

“After I finish eating.” Li Hao replied.

Ming Bo fell silent; by now, Young Master Yun and Miss Zhining had likely already entered the mountain gates—yet this Young Master Hao was still loitering at the foot of the mountain, just as the rumors said: truly leisurely…

…

After eating his fill, Li Hao led the impatient Li Yuanzhao through the crowd to the entrance stairs.

Called stairs, they were in truth a long flight of steps.

Rumor said they stretched a thousand levels up to the entrance of the Tan Palace Academy.

This was the Academy’s first trial.

Climbing a thousand steps alone wasn’t hard—but on the other side of the steps, near the forested slope, figures darted up and down: unmistakably monkey spirits.

Though called spirits, they were all tamed by the Tan Palace Academy.

Those attempting the stairs would be harassed and attacked by these monkey spirits during their climb; if they couldn’t reach the summit within ten breaths, they failed the first trial.

The test was no small challenge: merely climbing required strength of the Sixth or Seventh Layer of Tongli, let alone dodging sudden monkey spirit attacks—testing one’s eyesight and agility.

“Miss, this trial seems difficult!”

In the crowd, a maid holding an umbrella nervously spoke to the white-robed girl beside her.

“Not hard at all—just a minor first trial. It won’t stop me.”

Si Xiaolan’s expression was calm, but her gaze swept the crowd: “Compared to this trial, there are many strong opponents among these people…”

With her keen insight, she spotted numerous noble families among them.

Some held higher status than her Si family; others, lower.

“Miss, those two over there seem to be the young masters of the Qingzhou Divine General’s Mansion,” the maid said, rising on tiptoe to point left.

Si Xiaolan looked up, recognized the sleeve embroidery, and nodded slightly: “Correct.” At that moment, the two were just registering to enter.

Si Xiaolan’s heart stirred; she stepped forward immediately to register too.

“So what if they’re from the Divine General’s Mansion? I’ve heard the Li family are true dragons—I want to see how much I truly lag behind them.” Si Xiaolan thought, her eyes gleaming with quiet defiance.

“Age, origin, name.”

“Jizhou, the Si family.”

Before the registrar, Si Xiaolan gave only her family name; the first trial’s registration was casual. Indeed, upon hearing “Si family,” the registrar looked up at the girl, then nodded:

“Enter. You know the rules—no matter how, reach the summit within ten breaths.”

“Ten breaths? Too long.”

Nearby, another young man in fine robes spoke coolly.

Si Xiaolan glanced at him, recognized him as a scion from another province, and her eyes brightened further.

“Miss, they’re all nobles—shouldn’t we wait for the next group…?” The maid tugged her sleeve, nervous and hesitant.

“What’s to fear?”

Si Xiaolan’s eyes shone brightly: “In the martial world, it’s not titles that matter—it’s your fists and feet!”

Saying this, she told her maid to wait patiently, then followed the others into the trial area.

She wanted to secretly compare herself.

“Prepare,” said an old man nearby, his eyes half-lidded as if in meditation.

Everyone adjusted their breathing, loosened their joints.

“Yuanzhao, do your best,” Li Hao smiled encouragingly.

This boy insisted on proving himself—Li Hao couldn’t stop him.

“Yes!”

Li Yuanzhao nodded firmly.

Others glanced at Li Hao, finding his words odd, but didn’t dwell on it.

At the old man’s command, over a dozen began simultaneously—WHOOSH! A violent wind surged beside them; Li Yuanzhao’s figure shot forward like a cannonball, leading the charge, leaving a depression in the ground.

In the blink of an eye, he reached the hundredth step, then leapt again, surging ahead like a hurricane, reaching the summit in barely three breaths.

Li Hao knew that for Yuanzhao, who had reached the peak of Zhoutian, this wasn’t even his true strength.

The moment Si Xiaolan saw Li Yuanzhao launch, her beautiful eyes narrowed slightly—then she exploded forward, becoming a streak of white light, chasing after him—but was quickly left behind.

Monkey spirits suddenly attacked mid-climb, but she was ready; she dodged like a butterfly turning, then dashed forward in rapid strides to reach the summit.

She counted: seven breaths.

As she arrived, others followed closely behind.

After ten breaths, twelve had begun—only seven succeeded.

Those atop the peak stared at the short, stout, unremarkable figure with complex expressions, their eyes filled with awe.

Li Yuanzhao’s initial burst had been terrifying; merely the wind from his body carried the roar of a tiger.

Is this the Divine General’s Mansion’s prodigy? The gap was too vast.

Si Xiaolan’s gaze grew heavy as she studied the chubby boy, who looked even younger than her by one or two years; a deep sense of defeat settled in her chest.

At that moment, someone noticed: only one of the Divine General’s Mansion’s two had reached the summit.

Someone turned back—and froze.

On the steps, a figure walked slowly, unhurriedly.

And the monkey spirits made no move to attack him.

[101] “Big Brother Hao.”

Li Yuanzhao turned and waved in greeting.

Soon, Li Hao also reached the top, smiling at Li Yuanzhao.

“Is he considered to have passed?” someone asked in surprise.

“Didn’t the ten breaths pass long ago?”

The crowd was uncertain and bewildered.

An old man stood atop the mountain, verifying candidates; hearing their murmurs, he said coolly, “You’ve all passed. Proceed to the second trial—it’s where you may lose your life. If you wish to withdraw, you may. After all, other prestigious sects still accept disciples.”

His words left them speechless, yet they felt his unshakable confidence.

“Is he considered to have passed?” Si Xiaolan asked, frowning as she pointed at Li Hao.

“Of course. He has an invitation.” The old man replied calmly.

“An invitation?”

“Does the Tan Palace Academy even issue invitations?”

Everyone stared in shock—they were clearly hearing of this for the first time.

The crowd scrambled to cross, yet one man simply rowed a boat? And this boat ticket was issued directly by the Tan Palace Academy! Li Hao smiled at the pure-white-clad girl radiating righteousness, amused by the thought of teasing her; he pulled out his invitation, waved it, then walked off without delay.

Si Xiaolan froze for a moment, recalling her earlier words—that in the martial world, one relied on fists and feet… fists and feet, what nonsense! He relied on powerful backers! Thinking of Li Hao’s showy display, she stomped her foot in fury, then gritted her teeth and followed after him.

…

Not long after, the crowd arrived at the second trial.

Just ahead atop the mountain lay a sheer cliff, with chains driven into its face, stretching across to the opposite side.

The chains were spaced far apart—meaning one could only step on a single chain at a time.

A ten-thousand-zhang precipice, crossed by a single chain?

Some paled, their courage faltering.

Si Xiaolan’s eyes narrowed, her palms slick with cold sweat; then her gaze shifted to the two figures ahead, radiating noble aura.

Surely he can’t rely on an invitation here, she thought with a silent sneer.

(End of Chapter)