Applying

Application

Application

Principal Lu looked at the doorway, fell silent for a moment, and slowly said, "Special recruitment and supplementary admissions do, admittedly... have some political maneuvering involved. But I guarantee that with your strength, as long as you aren't blocked and enter the supplementary exams, you will definitely get into West Sea Martial University. Additionally, I will call the admissions office of West Sea Martial University to recommend you. A high school principal's recommendation still carries quite a bit of weight."

Zhou Leng looked at Principal Lu with surprise; though he didn't understand many of the inner workings, he knew very well what Principal Lu's recommendation meant.

"Principal Lu, you..."

Principal Lu smiled slightly, and said, "You didn't get discouraged after being gravely wounded by a demon, and even soared by sixty thousand spots in one breath—you deserve my recommendation. A few days ago, I was even joking with the school's leadership team, saying we might as well rename the 'No. 8 High School Progress Award' to the 'Zhou Leng Progress Award' in the future. As it turned out, they took it seriously and opposed it one after another. In short, you did what a student should do, so I will do what a principal should do."

"Thank you, Principal Lu." A warm current surged in Zhou Leng's heart.

"I know you're still hesitating, so don't rush to submit your application. Think it over more, and it won't be too late to submit it this afternoon. Alright, go back, and don't forget your file folder," Principal Lu said.

Zhou Leng got up, bowed to Principal Lu, and said, "Goodbye, Principal Lu."

Principal Lu watched Zhou Leng leave, sat for a while, took out his phone, and made one phone call after another.

"Teacher Xu? I don't know who misled Zhou Leng from your class, but instead of applying for the fine West Sea Martial University, he insists on applying for Ru City Martial University. Find a chance to persuade him today, um... Good..."

"Sun Xiong, that kid Zhou Leng doesn't want to apply for the Martial Arts Ten, he wants to apply for Ru City Martial University. Find an excuse to go to Class 3 and talk about the difference between the Martial Arts Ten and ordinary universities. You absolutely cannot let the child take the wrong path..."

Zhou Leng returned to the classroom and continued chatting with his classmates.

Before long, head teacher Xu Meijie entered, holding a stack of college entrance examination application forms, and began to explain them.

Afterward, she let the students discuss among themselves.

The students walked out of the classroom one after another, taking out their phones to contact their parents for final confirmation.

Xu Meijie walked over to Zhou Leng's side.

"Zhou Leng, do you have any thoughts?"

Zhou Leng hesitated for a moment, and said, "I'm considering whether to apply for Ru City Martial University's supplementary admissions or West Sea Martial University's supplementary admissions."

Xu Meijie said, "This, well, depends on you. If you lack ambition like Hu Yi, then apply for Ru City Martial University. If you want to be like Zhang Xinglie, then apply for West Sea Martial University."

Hu Yi stood to one side with a blank expression.

Nearby classmates snickered one after another.

"Teacher Xu, you can't be like this..." Hu Yi was grief-stricken.

"I'm mainly afraid West Sea Martial University isn't free," Zhou Leng said.

Xu Meijie said, "If you want to live on campus, you live on campus; if you don't want to live on campus, you commute. Even if you don't want to go, as long as you use the excuse of cultivating in Demon City, the school can't do much to you either. As long as you earn enough credits... No, you don't even need to earn enough credits; you only need to reach the Force-Generating Stage to apply for breaking through to the Innate realm and graduate early."

"It can even be like this?" Zhou Leng immediately set his mind at ease.

"Of course."

Zhou Leng had originally worried that going to the strict West Sea Martial University would make it impossible to cultivate at the Frost Giant Tree, but now it seemed his worry was somewhat redundant.

Before long, teachers of various subjects arrived one after another to chat with the classmates.

Most of the teachers walked over to Zhou Leng's side to chat with him about his choices, and almost all of them supported Zhou Leng in choosing the supplementary admissions for West Sea Martial University.

Xu Qingjin stood up, asked several classmates in a row about their applications, and incidentally asked about Zhou Leng's, but didn't offer any suggestions.

Zhou Leng sat in his seat pondering for a long time, and finally found Xu Meijie and said, "Teacher, I've decided."

"Which one did you pick?"

"For the supplementary admission qualification of a martial arts university, I choose West Sea Martial University. As for the supplementary admission qualification of an affiliated martial academy, I choose the affiliated martial academy of Ru City Martial University," Zhou Leng said.

Xu Meijie nodded gently and said, "This is good too. It balances your future and your personal preferences."

Xu Meijie walked out of the classroom, called Principal Lu, and stated the result.

"That's fine too."

After saying that, Principal Lu flipped through his contacts and dialed out.

"Hello, Old Yu, it's me."

"Old Lu, right now the admissions office is busy in a complete mess, with countless pairs of eyes staring at it."

"I just want to chat briefly. A freakish talent appeared at our school: over seventy thousandth place in the written and physical exams combined, and by the end of the martial arts examination, his final ranking was twelfth thousand. His single-subject score in the martial arts exam was 276, putting him in the top one thousand of the city."

"This... really is a bit of a freak. The one who retook the exam at the testing center?"

"Right."

"Mm, even though this student is somewhat lopsided in his scores, he is a martial dao genius needed by our country. No martial university will miss out on a talent like this."

"Let's have a meal together once this rush is over," Principal Lu said.

"No problem."

In the Class 3 classroom, Zhou Leng officially finished filling out his applications, and then found Feng Wenhao.

"Once we're done filling them out, the two of us will go to the Pioneer Corporation and meet that Boss Xue," Zhou Leng said.

"Alright."

In the afternoon, led by Li Linhan, the two arrived at Xue's Pioneer Branch Company in the suburbs and stepped into the company's indoor martial arts arena.

A space the size of two basketball courts was filled all around with cultivation equipment.

There are many demonized equipment that make martial artists' eyes burn.

Not far away, three men stopped chatting and walked over together.

Li Linhan said, "This is your Uncle Xue."

"Hello, Uncle Xue." Zhou Leng and Feng Wenhao greeted the tall, middle-aged man at the front in unison.

Xue Tongming smiled slightly and said, "People brought by Brother Li are naturally reliable. However, the rules must be kept. The two of you will spar with little Guo. To be blunt, if you are too poor, I will have to play the bad guy."

Li Linhan said, "If your strength doesn't measure up, you can't blame anyone. Zhou Leng, you go first."

"Yes."

Guo Xiaohao, beside Xue Tongming, extended his left arm and said, "Please."

Zhou Leng cupped his hands and said, "Senior, please."

The two walked a dozen steps and stopped.

Guo Xiaohao looked Zhou Leng up and down and asked, "What does it mean that the hands are two doors, and everything depends on the feet to strike?"

Zhou Leng thought for a moment and said, "The original meaning of this phrase is that legs and feet possess greater power than arms, and legs and feet are more capable of deciding victory or defeat than arms. But behind this, there are still multiple layers of meaning."

Zhou Leng spoke eloquently.

"In actual combat, leg techniques are actually more of a 'probe', a feint, seizing the timing to deliver a 'crucial blow'. Striking with the legs must never be done all the time; any overly flashy or rampant leg technique will die a miserable death in actual combat."

"Because the legs determine a person's center of gravity, and their range of motion is far greater than the arms with slower recovery, excessive use of leg techniques will inevitably lead to omissions being found."

"The 'strike' in this phrase is crucial—not kicking, not poking, not stamping, making the scope much wider. The Martial Saint Zhao Dongjun said during the Blood Qi Realm period that combat is a game relying on the legs. Here, there are two layers of meaning."

"One layer is relying on the legs and feet to move. A martial artist who stands still is a dead man; only those who know how to move are experts."

"As for the second layer, in actual force generation, the legs, waist, arms, and hands are actually one. Without leg power, any attack is soft and weak."

Guo Xiaohao nodded.

"Just knowing how to talk isn't enough. Now you attack, and I will only use Great Accomplishment True Qi, defending with one hand. After thirty moves, I will attack with one hand." Guo Xiaohao said as he moved his right arm forward, bending it to lift his hand in a line with his body's centerline.

A one-handed greeting to test the waters.

Then, he crooked his finger at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng remained completely unresponsive to this slightly provocative gesture and said, "Please enlighten me, Senior."

The very second the trailing tone of the word "enlighten" stopped, Zhou Leng stamped his right foot. Power surged with the Qi, and his figure rushed forward fiercely. He threw a direct punch, executing a move called Mountain-Splitting Welcome straight toward Guo Xiaohao's chest.

Long sleeves vibrated, and the punch split the air.

This move came straight and true, without hiding any transition moves, which is called paying respects with a fist.

Guo Xiaohao likewise did not push aggressively. He took a step back, placing his right hand in front of his chest to block, which is called a Magnanimous Return Greeting.

Zhou Leng took another step forward, changing his fist into a palm. It was a palm similar to Mountain-Splitting Welcome, pushing straight ahead, likewise completely without any flashy elements.

Rushing Tide Strikes Shore.

Feng Wenhao, not far away, had a blur in his eyes. Before he could even see what was happening, Zhou Leng rushed in front of Guo Xiaohao.

At this moment, Feng Wenhao felt as though he saw a wave suspended above Zhou Leng's palm.

"Good." Guo Xiaohao let out a soft cry, sidestepped, and reached out to block Zhou Leng's wrist.

Zhou Leng's arm swept horizontally in a move called Horizontal Block, Autumn River, pushing away Guo Xiaohao's right hand. Then his entire body resembled a moving sea tide, roaring forward. Stepping out the Bagua, he retracted his palm and switched to an elbow, his elbow tip thrusting upward to directly top Guo Xiaohao's face.

Guo Xiaohao hurriedly took a step back to avoid it, and Zhou Leng pursued him step by step, his body like a rushing tide.

Palms, fists, elbows, and legs assaulted Guo Xiaohao like wave after wave.

Xue Tongming said, "Old Brother Li, this nephew of yours is not bad. His stance is like a tide, fierce and pressing forward eagerly. His Mystic Tide Art has already attained three parts of its true intent."

Li Linhan nodded and said, "He has improved by a huge margin compared to a few months ago."

Guo Xiaohao was a Blood-Circulating Stage expert. He retreated for seven consecutive moves, only stabilizing his stance on the eighth move to interrupt Zhou Leng's offensive.

When the thirtieth move arrived, Guo Xiaohao suddenly struck, turning defense into offense.

Zhou Leng dodged left and right, retreating step by step, refusing to clash head-on with Guo Xiaohao at all.

Guo Xiaohao kept his True Qi controlled at Great Accomplishment without circulating blood, and for a moment actually found no way to deal with Zhou Leng.

After another twenty-odd moves, Guo Xiaohao smiled, withdrew his hand, and said, "Fierce like a sea tide when attacking, slippery like a loach when defending. Tide rises, tide falls, as you please. You've truly brought the Mystic Tide Art to life. Although your practical combat experience is lacking, and your stance is messy and forms sloppy when retreating, you have more brains than the previous few."

Xue Tongming and Li Linhan nodded.

Xue Tongming said, "Little Guo's critique is very pertinent. These student kids who have never been on a battlefield—when they fight, their whole body goes out of form and their moves fall apart. They're all like this."

"We, on the other hand, crawled out of seas of blades and flames; they are still lacking a bit," Li Linhan said. "Wenhao, you go up."

Feng Wenhao shrank his neck and hunched his shoulders, walking forward slowly.

Zhou Leng said, "Don't think too much, you won't get hurt. If you don't believe in yourself, you should at least believe in a Blood-Circulating Stage expert who is a realm higher than you."

Feng Wenhao laughed sheepishly and embarrassedly.

Guo Xiaohao crooked a finger, and Feng Wenhao imitated Zhou Leng's method, charging forward fiercely and throwing a punch.

Everyone frowned in unison.

Guo Xiaohao kept his feet still, blocking and pushing with his right hand, and Feng Wenhao tilted to the right with chaotic footwork.

Xue Tongming shook his head and said, "This kid's inner Qi is insufficient, his lower stance is unstable, his basic skills are not solid, and yet he blindly copies others."

"Xiao Leng, what do you think?" Li Linhan said.