Testing Strength

The spacious training ground was filled with people seriously holding stances and practicing their punches.

Chen Lin strode over to a row of stone locks arranged from small to large and thought to himself, It's time to see just how far my strength has reached!

After estimating his own strength, Chen Lin first chose a pair of 300-pound stone locks. He weighed them in his hands, found them a little light, casually set them down, and moved on to test the 350-pound pair.

With a low shout from Chen Lin, the 350-pound stone locks were laboriously lifted over his head, and excitement immediately surged through his heart.

According to one of the War God Temple's assessment rules, one needed to reach 700 pounds of strength to pass.

His strength now clearly met that requirement.

Due to differences in individual physiques, the strength gained after becoming a Martial Master also varied from person to person.

According to the continuous conclusions drawn by those before them, Martial Masters possessed at least 700 pounds of strength.

And this was also the War God Temple's minimum strength requirement for martial artists.

At that thought, Chen Lin could not help throwing several fierce punches at the air. The gloom that had long lingered in his heart instantly scattered by more than half.

"Let's test my limit too!" Chen Lin took several light breaths, suppressed his excitement, and chose a pair of stone locks marked 450 pounds.

On his first attempt, Chen Lin only managed to lift them to his waist before his strength failed, forcing him to set them back on the ground.

Faced with this, Chen Lin did not give up. Instead, he took a deep breath, sank his waist and lowered his stance, power bursting forth through his hips and waist as his arms heaved upward with all their might.

The stone locks that had been difficult to lift just moments ago were actually raised high above his head under Chen Lin's full strength.

"900 pounds?"

Chen Lin's eyes lit up, and he gained a new understanding of the physique strength value recorded in the jade book.

The jade book listed his physique strength as 100. Now, his two arms could lift 900-pound stone locks. Converted between the two, one point of data was roughly equal to a little over nine pounds of force.

Of course, testing one's strength with stone locks could only provide a rough estimate, not an especially precise figure.

If he wanted to know exactly how much strength he possessed, he would have to wait until after taking the War God Temple's entrance assessment.

At the martial academy's Quiet Heart Building, the black-robed martial artist and the academy's master, Shen Honglang, stood gazing at the distant scenery as they chatted and laughed. "Old Shen, how long has it been since we last met?"

"Almost a year, I suppose! I heard you recently killed a late-stage Demon General beast and traded it for eighty thousand taels of silver. Tsk, tsk, that really makes one envious!" Shen Honglang said with a smile.

"Hahaha! Just luck. Killing that Demon General was purely a fluke!" the black-robed man said with a laugh. "Old Shen, you should go out and see the world too..."

The black-robed man trailed off mid-sentence, his eyes fixed on a spot in the training ground.

"Old Zhu, what's wrong?"

Seeing the black-robed man suddenly fall silent, Shen Honglang could not help turning his head to ask.

"What is the name of that young man testing his strength beside the stone locks?" the black-robed man asked in astonishment.

Following the black-robed man's gaze, Shen Honglang glanced at the figure by the stone locks and sighed softly. "That's Chen Lin, one of the martial academy's students. With this little fellow's strength, he originally had a good chance of entering the upper academy of Nanqing Martial Academy this year. But for certain reasons, he failed to get into Nanqing Martial Academy. What a pity!"

"Old Shen, that little fellow doesn't look very old! Yet he can lift 900-pound stone locks. His strength is at least close to the middle stage of Martial Master!" the black-robed man said in surprise.

"What?" Shen Honglang stared at Zhu Wei with astonishment in his eyes. "You didn't see wrong, did you? During the martial examination not long ago, this little fellow had only just broken through to the Late Martial Disciple stage. How could he already possess strength close to the middle stage of Martial Master?"

"Old Shen, with my late-stage Martial Grandmaster strength, do you think I would be mistaken?" Zhu Wei said with a dissatisfied expression.

"If Old Zhu isn't mistaken, then this little fellow's strength has improved far too quickly recently! It's truly a little unbelievable! Could it be that shame spurred him to courage, and long accumulation finally burst forth?" Shen Honglang muttered to himself, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Breaking through from Late Martial Disciple to Martial Master in two months? Old Shen, you're not pulling my leg, are you?" the black-robed man looked at Shen Honglang suspiciously.

"This is something anyone can find out with a little inquiry. Why would I need to lie to you?" Shen Honglang rolled his eyes when he saw that his old friend did not believe him.

"If it's really as you say, then I truly need to go meet him!" As soon as the black-robed man finished speaking, his figure moved, and he immediately leaped straight out of the Quiet Heart Building.

"Zhu Wei, can't you change that impatient temper of yours? Can't you just take the stairs?" Shen Honglang shouted in complaint at the black-robed martial artist plummeting rapidly downward.

"Hahaha! It's a habit. Can't change it!" Zhu Wei laughed after landing, beckoning to Shen Honglang.

Seeing this, Shen Honglang sighed helplessly and also leaped down from the Quiet Heart Building.

After setting down the 450-pound stone locks, Chen Lin did not stop. Instead, he walked over to the 500-pound pair.

He wanted to see whether he could lift this pair of 500-pound stone locks.

After trying several times, the stone locks only rose slightly, less than three feet off the ground.

Seeing this, Chen Lin could only give up.

He now had a vague estimate of his own strength.

Just as he turned to leave, Chen Lin discovered in alarm that two people had appeared behind him at some point. Taking a closer look, he hurriedly bowed respectfully.

"Greetings, Master Shen! Greetings, Senior!"

"Come, come! Come over here!" Shen Honglang called with a smile. "I never expected that after failing to enter the martial academy, not only were you not affected, but you trained even more diligently and painstakingly. Not bad, not bad. Let me introduce you. This is your senior, Zhu Wei, a Rank 8 Monster Exterminator of the War God Temple. We were just talking about you, and he thinks very highly of you!"

"Little fellow, with your strength, you can absolutely join the War God Temple. I've heard about what happened to you as well. The martial examination is not the only path to becoming a martial arts powerhouse. If you wish to continue practicing martial arts, you can come to the War God Temple. I can serve as your guide," Zhu Wei said as he looked at Chen Lin, his eyes full of appreciation.

Seeing this, Shen Honglang hurriedly reminded Chen Lin with a smile, "Chen Lin, why aren't you quickly thanking Senior Zhu for his favor? You should know that having a guide when joining the War God Temple and having none lead to completely different outcomes. If you still want to take the Demon Slayer Envoy assessment this year, a guide can not only speed up your application process, but can also give you guidance in advance, increasing your chances of passing the Demon Slayer Envoy assessment!"

"Thank you for your favor, Senior. Should this junior have any shortcomings in the future, I ask that you offer me much guidance," Chen Lin quickly said in thanks.

"There's no need for that! I simply wish to do my small part for humanity's survival!" Zhu Wei said courteously with a smile, waving his hand.

Chen Lin's eyes flickered with excitement at this.

After all, given the status and position of the two men before him, they normally could not be bothered with the wealthy clans and powerful nobles of Nanqing City.

Yet today, they were extremely courteous toward him, someone young whose strength had only just reached Martial Master, and there even seemed to be faint traces of expectation in their words.

"Chen Lin, once you become a member of the War God Temple, how about joining my Monster Slaying Squad?" Zhu Wei asked with a smile. "As long as you are willing to join my Monster Slaying Squad, the team can provide you with a two-courtyard residence in Nanqing City's inner district, as well as one hundred taels of silver every month as a cultivation subsidy!"