Three Trials Passed, Entering the Martial Arts School

The four grand characters of Jianxiong Martial Arts School danced like dragons and phoenixes, imposing and solemn above the school's entrance.

The martial arts school occupied a vast, spacious courtyard, surrounded by gray walls a zhang high.

The main gate faced south, and the ground before it was paved with ancient white stone tiles, worn smooth and gleaming by countless passing footprints.

"Zhou You is here to register."

Zhou You walked beneath the entrance steps, cupped his hands toward the gate, and called out loudly.

The registration fee for the martial arts school was five taels. Only after paying it could one qualify to enter its gates.

Jianxiong Martial Arts School had a high threshold for accepting disciples. Applicants had to be children of respectable families within the city; anyone of unknown origins or without a fixed residence was rejected outright.

Only after meeting those conditions could one proceed to the selection process for admission.

He had come here once before with Gao Qiang. Though he had failed, he was thoroughly familiar with the process.

"Zhou You, a city resident... Hmm, it seems you've come before."

The speaker was Lu Qiang, the chief disciple of the Outer Court and a trusted disciple of the school's master, Wang Jianxiong. He was a sturdy man in his thirties.

Lu Qiang looked up at Zhou You and asked, "This is your second registration. You've spent ten taels in total—still not ready to give up?"

The five-tael registration fee at Jianxiong Martial Arts School was exceedingly expensive.

The Fang Family's annual expenses for three people were only four or five taels, and they already lived fairly well, even eating meat during holidays and festivals.

The five taels he had paid last time had been the pocket money Zhou You had painstakingly saved since childhood. He had hoped to change his fate, but it had gone down the drain.

"Senior Brother, let me try again. I think I can pass this time."

Zhou You straightened his chest. In his vision floated a System Panel that no one but him could see.

Even Lu Qiang, standing right before him, could not detect its existence.

Personal Information:

Name: Zhou You.

Strength: 3.

Speed: 3.

Defense: 4.

Occupation: Commoner.

Skills: None.

Experience Points: 57.

Status: Trial Project One (Unrated): Successfully pass the entrance examination and become an apprentice of Jianxiong Martial Arts School...

The greatest trump card he had gained from reincarnation was this System Panel, which gave him the confidence to defy the heavens and change his fate.

Jianxiong Martial Arts School's three entrance trials were comprehensive tests of strength, speed, and defense.

The admission standard was simple as well. According to the System Panel's standards, all three attributes had to reach at least 5 to qualify for entry.

Zhou You's strength, speed, and defense had all been below 5. No wonder he had been eliminated.

This time, he had come prepared, having accumulated enough Experience Points before appearing at the school.

"Consume 10 Experience Points. Strength +1."

"Current Experience Points: 37. Strength: 5."

"Consume 10 Experience Points. Speed +1."

"Current Experience Points: 17. Speed: 5."

"Consume 10 Experience Points. Defense +1."

"Current Experience Points: 7. Defense: 5."

The System Panel consumed Experience Points and raised all three of his attributes to 5, meeting the martial arts school's admission requirements.

Now he had confidence!

Zhou You raised his head to face Lu Qiang's questioning and answered loudly, "Senior Brother, please test me."

Lu Qiang nodded. Zhou You was a child of a respectable city family, and his parents were honest people. If his innate physique had not been too poor, he would not have been eliminated.

Since he could still produce another five taels of silver, Lu Qiang would give him one more chance.

The first trial was the strength trial.

In the Outer Court's training grounds stood a row of ten stone locks, increasing in weight from smallest to largest.

The minimum admission standard was to lift the fifth stone lock—the one weighing one hundred kilograms—and raise it ten times in one breath.

Last time, Zhou You had been unable even to lift the fourth stone lock and had been brutally eliminated in the first trial.

But this time was different.

Zhou You lifted the fifth stone lock and felt an enormous pulling force. His arms exerted strength, and his muscles suddenly tightened.

The stone lock instantly left the ground. He raised it into the air, lifting it up and down.

When Lu Qiang counted to ten, he nodded. "That's enough. You've passed this trial."

He praised him, "Good lad, what have you been eating? Your strength has grown so quickly?"

After not seeing him for some time, the youth before him had improved tremendously and had already reached the threshold for passing.

Next came the second trial, the speed trial.

Lu Qiang grabbed a handful of wooden balls coated in lime and threw them at him from ten meters away.

The moment a wooden ball struck the body, it left a white mark. If the number of white marks exceeded a certain limit, the applicant was eliminated.

Zhou You took a deep breath. He heard fierce wind whistling beside his ears as Lu Qiang's arm blurred into an afterimage.

One wooden ball after another tore through the air, raining down over his body.

The speed that had just risen to 5 came into play.

Zhou You kept leaping and shifting, using every means at his disposal to dodge the wooden balls, but his arms, chest, and abdomen were still struck repeatedly.

The pain made him bare his teeth, but those five taels of silver could not be wasted. Even if it hurt, he had to endure it.

"Stop. Count the white marks."

Lu Qiang circled Zhou You once. "I threw a hundred balls just now. You have forty-three white marks on your body—fewer than fifty. Pass."

After the speed trial came the final trial, the defense trial.

The defense trial was the simplest. He only needed to stand still and let Lu Qiang push him once. As long as he did not fall, he would pass.

Zhou You found it rather daunting. He had personally seen Lu Qiang snap a Hardwood Stump as thick as a bowl with one palm strike.

Though his body had been strengthened, could he truly withstand Lu Qiang's full-force blow?

"Senior Brother, please Show Mercy."

Seeing his concern, Lu Qiang laughed heartily. "Don't be afraid. It's only a test. I'll hold back."

Zhou You stood on the ground, the soles of his feet lightly scraping against the rough surface as he took a deep breath.

He tensed his entire body, ready to bear an unprecedented attack.

In his vision, Lu Qiang raised a hand. His palm instantly seemed to expand, growing larger than a human head as it slowly pressed toward him.

The air turned thin, making it hard for him to breathe, leaving him unable to catch his breath.

A soft, muffled thud rang out.

Lu Qiang's hand pushed against Zhou You's chest!

Zhou You nearly vomited up last night's meal. Both legs went rigid, and his body became like a tattered sack, flying backward against his will.

He could not retreat. If he retreated, he would lose, and the five taels of silver would have been paid for nothing.

His father had scraped together that money only after swallowing his pride and borrowing from every friend and relative.

He did not want to bow his head to hoodlums who were no better than mud. Only by joining the martial arts school could he protect his family.

There was only advance, no retreat, in today's trial. Succeed, or die.

Zhou You used every ounce of strength to sink downward. Boom! Power traveled through his legs into the ground, and the soles of his feet trembled slightly.

"Hmm!"

Lu Qiang was utterly astonished. He had neither retreated nor fallen?

The requirement for passing was not to fall. It had never said he could not retreat.

After all, Lu Qiang was a martial arts expert. A single palm strike of his could break wood and split stone. Even if he restrained ninety-nine percent of his strength, it was not something a youth could endure.

Originally, Lu Qiang had expected Zhou You to take the palm strike, stagger back a few steps to dissipate its force, and pass the test.

"What a stubborn temper. Keep this up, and you'll get hurt."

Lu Qiang shook his head and withdrew his palm, announcing loudly, "You've passed."

A line of glowing words flashed across the System Panel in Zhou You's vision:

Trial Project completed. Joining the martial arts school was a complete success. Experience Points +15.

Personal Information:

Name: Zhou You.

Strength: 5.

Speed: 5.

Defense: 5.

Occupation: Commoner.

Skills: None.

Experience Points: 22.

Lu Qiang patted his shoulder. "Welcome to the martial arts school. I'll take you to meet the school master. From now on, we're all fellow disciples."

"You'll study fist techniques in the Outer Court. Your status will be that of an apprentice, and like everyone else, you may call me Senior Disciple Brother."