Testing Strength

The spacious training ground was filled with most people diligently practicing stances and punches.

Chen Lin strode towards a row of stone locks of varying sizes, thinking to himself, It's time to see what my current strength is truly capable of!

Estimating his own power, Chen Lin first chose a pair of 300-jin stone locks. He hefted them in his hands and felt they were a bit light, so he casually put them down and moved on to try the 350-jin stone locks.

With a soft shout from Chen Lin, the 350-jin stone locks were also lifted over his head with effort. This immediately made Chen Lin's heart race with excitement.

According to one of the War God Temple's assessment rules, one had to reach 700 jin in strength to pass.

At this moment, his strength clearly met this requirement.

Due to individual differences in physical bodies, the strength of Martial Masters varied.

Based on the continuous summarization of predecessors, Martial Master level cultivators would possess a minimum of 700 jin of strength.

And this was also the War God Temple's minimum requirement for a cultivator's strength.

Thinking of this, Chen Lin couldn't help but excitedly throw a few punches into the air. The lingering gloom in his heart dissipated by more than half.

"Let's try my limit!" Chen Lin took a few deep breaths, suppressing his excitement, and chose a pair of stone locks marked as 450 jin.

On his first try, Chen Lin only managed to lift them to his waist before his strength gave out, forcing him to put them back on the ground.

Facing this situation, Chen Lin did not give up. Instead, he took a deep breath, sank his waist, and lowered his hips. A powerful force emanated from his waist and hips as he forcefully lifted and heaved with his arms.

The stone locks, which had been difficult to lift just moments ago, were now raised high above Chen Lin's head with his full effort.

"900 jin?"

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

According to the data on the jade book, physical strength was 100. If he could now lift 900 jin stone locks with his arms, then converting the two would mean that a value of 100 was equivalent to about 9 jin of force.

Of course, testing one's strength with stone locks could only provide a rough estimate at best, not precise data.

If he wanted to know his exact strength, he would only find out after participating in the War God Temple's entrance examination.

In the Martial Academy's Tranquility Pavilion, the previous black-robed cultivator and the Martial Academy's head, Shen Honglang, were chatting while gazing at the distant scenery. "Old Shen, how long has it been since we last met?"

"Almost a year! I heard you recently slew a late-stage Demon General beast and got eighty thousand taels of silver. Tsk tsk, truly enviable!" Shen Honglang said with a smile.

"Hahaha! Just good luck. Killing that Demon General was pure chance!" the black-robed man laughed. "Old Shen, you should also get out more..."

The black-robed man's voice trailed off as he stared intently at a spot in the training ground.

"Old Zhu, what's wrong?"

Seeing the black-robed man suddenly fall silent, Shen Honglang couldn't help but turn and ask.

"What's the name of the young man testing his strength next to the stone locks?" the black-robed man asked in surprise.

Following the black-robed man's gaze, Shen Honglang glanced at the figure by the stone locks and sighed, "That's Chen Lin, a student of the martial academy. With his strength, he had a good chance of entering the upper division of Nanqing Martial Academy this year. However, for some reason, he didn't get in, which is a real shame!"

"Old Shen, this young man doesn't look very old! He can lift 900 jin of stone locks? That strength is at least close to the mid-stage of Martial Master!" the black-robed man exclaimed in surprise.

"What?" Shen Honglang looked at Zhu Wei with disbelief. "Are you sure you're not mistaken? This kid only broke through to the late stage of Martial Apprentice during the martial arts examination a while ago. How could he have strength close to the mid-stage of Martial Master now?"

"Old Shen, with my late-stage Martial Ancestor strength, do you think I could be mistaken?" Zhu Wei said with a hint of displeasure.

"If you're not mistaken, then this kid's strength has improved too quickly recently! It's truly incredible! Could it be that shame spurred him on? A late bloomer?" Shen Honglang murmured, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Two months from late Martial Apprentice to Martial Master? Old Shen, you're not pulling my leg, are you!" the black-robed man asked Shen Honglang suspiciously.

"This is something you can find out with a simple inquiry. Why would I lie to you?" Shen Honglang rolled his eyes, seeing that his friend didn't believe him.

"If it's really as you say, then I really need to get to know him!" the black-robed man said, and with a flash of movement, he leaped directly out of the Tranquility Pavilion.

"Zhu Wei, can't you change your impatient temper! Can't you just take the stairs?" Shen Honglang complained loudly at the rapidly descending black-robed cultivator.

"Hahaha! I'm used to it, can't change!" Zhu Wei called back to Shen Honglang with a grin after landing.

Shen Honglang sighed helplessly and leaped down from the Tranquility Pavilion as well.

After putting down the 450-jin stone locks, Chen Lin didn't stop. He moved to the 500-jin stone locks.

He wanted to see if he could lift this pair of 500-jin stone locks.

He tried several times, but the stone locks only lifted slightly, less than three feet off the ground.

Seeing this, Chen Lin had no choice but to give up.

He had a rough estimate of his own strength.

Just as he turned to leave, Chen Lin was startled to find two people behind him. He quickly composed himself and bowed respectfully.

"Greetings, Master Shen! Greetings, Senior!"

"Come here for a moment!" Shen Honglang called out with a smile. "I didn't expect you to be even more diligent and hardworking after your setback at the martial academy. That's good, that's good. Let me introduce you, this is your senior, Zhu Wei, an eighth-rank Demon Purifier from the War God Temple. We were just talking about you, and he greatly admires you!"

"Young man, with your strength, you could completely join the War God Temple. I've heard about your situation. The martial arts examination isn't the only path to becoming a powerful martial artist. If you wish to continue practicing martial arts, you can come to the War God Temple. I can be your guide!" Zhu Wei said, looking at Chen Lin with great admiration.

Shen Honglang quickly reminded Chen Lin with a smile, "Chen Lin, thank Senior Zhu for his kind offer! You should know that joining the War God Temple with a guide and without one results in two 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 also provide you with guidance in advance, increasing your chances of passing the assessment!"

"Thank you for your generous offer, Senior. If I have any shortcomings in the future, please guide me," Chen Lin said gratefully.

"No need for such formalities! I'm just trying to contribute a little to the survival of humanity," Zhu Wei said, waving his hand with a smile.

Chen Lin's eyes sparkled with excitement.

He knew that these two individuals, given their status, usually disdained the influential families and powerful figures in Nanqing City.

Yet today, they were treating him, who was not old and only recently became a Martial Master, with extreme politeness, even with a hint 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. "If you are willing to join my Monster Slaying Squad, the team can provide you with a two-courtyard residence in the inner city of Nanqing City and a monthly subsidy of 100 taels for your cultivation!"