Sky-Drum

It must be said that the awe-inspiring power of National Scholar is indeed quite great.

Especially for the young talents present, who wouldn't want to achieve great things and become a high-ranking official?

The National Scholar belongs to all of them, yet many people never achieve it in their entire lives. Now, Yi Yun, a boy half a head shorter than them, has become National Scholar.

In an instant, many people's eyes turned to Yi Yun.

The six teenagers behind Liu Da'er, in particular, were staring intently at Yi Yun.

In literature, there is no first place; in martial arts, there is no second. In this world where strength reigns supreme, no one is willing to concede to anyone else.

"This kid came from the Great Wilderness, a new recruit from the Great Wilderness, and he's already been named National Scholar. I fought my way through many geniuses from several great Lineage and only managed to become an elite member of the Brocade Dragon Guard!"

"Hmph! It's just choosing the best among the worst. The general level of martial artists in the Great Wilderness is poor. If one of them is even passable, that's considered Celestial Person. If we were at that level, we could easily sweep through the Yunhuang."

"This title of 'National Scholar' is too frivolous!"

People whispered among themselves using their spiritual energy, but because of the difference in status between nobles and commoners, they did not dare to question Yi Yun to his face.

In Yunhuang, most people in the Divine Kingdom Grand Selection were just there to make up the numbers, and they were eliminated in the first round.

However, in the central land of the Tai'a Divine Kingdom, most of the young talents participating in the Divine Kingdom Grand Selection were cultivated by large Lineage and were considered elites. The election scene was a Dragon Fights Tiger, with one battle after another, which was extremely brutal!

Therefore, young talents who stand out from large Lineage have a sense of superiority in their bones.

They felt they were superior to others.

In fact, this sense of superiority is not unfounded. Under normal circumstances, the young talents of the Great Wilderness are worlds apart from those of the Central Plains.

"So this young man is from Yunhuang. What's your name?"

Liu Da'er stroked the rough stubble on his chin and looked at Yi Yun with a smile.

"My name is Yi Yun." Yi Yun clasped his hands in a fist and palm salute.

"Hmm... Yi Yun." Liu Da'er nodded. "Interesting, little guy, we'll be rivals from now on!"

Liu Da'er said it without any hesitation.

Zhang Tan chimed in, "That's not necessarily true. Repulse Bay can't contain a dragon. After Yi Yun completes basic training, he probably won't stay in my little corner of the world. I can't take him under my wing."

The truly outstanding warriors of the Brocade Dragon Guard would be specially assigned. Those who were exceptionally outstanding could even attract the attention of the Brocade Dragon Guard's commander-in-chief, who would personally make the assignment. Of course, they would not be assigned to Zhang Tan's command.

Liu Da'er the implication in Zhang Tan's words. His large ears twitched slightly, and he looked at Zhang Tan incredulously, "Old Zhang, you're really confident!"

"Haha! It's just so-so!"

Zhang Tan's words were laced with an air of arrogance, leaving Yi Yun speechless. He hadn't realized that Zhang Tan, so serious in the Tao Clan, could be so boastful and arrogant in front of his old friend and rival at the Brocade Dragon Guard camp.

It seems that when soldiers get together, they all like to boast a little, to show off how great they or their unit are.

But if you boast, you'll provoke others' competitive spirit. Liu Da'er was unconvinced and said to Yi Yun, "Young brother, just take a look around. General Yan won't be here for quite a while."

Liu Da'er patted Yi Yun on the shoulder and gave him a meaningful look.

The training ground of Brocade Dragon Guard was very large, stretching over a hundred zhang in length and width.

The most eye-catching thing is the large drum in the middle. The drumhead is pitch black, and if it were placed on the ground, it would take seven or eight people to hug it and encircle the drum.

The large drum was placed on a stand, which was three zhang tall, made of black iron, with iron bars as thick as a thigh, and buried deep in the ground!

In front of the drum, there is a high platform where people can stand and play the drum. The drumstick is a purple wild animal leg bone with an iron chain attached to one end, which is connected to the drum's support.

That drum is very impressive!

Seeing Yi Yun's interest in the drum, Liu Da'er said from the side, "This is the Sky-Drum! Have you ever seen a large army in battle, with soldiers lined up in formation, ready to charge? Before they charge, a drummer beats the drum, which is called 'one drumbeat to boost morale'! And when it's time to retreat, the drummer sounds the gong, which is called 'sounding the gong to retreat'."

"This Sky-Drum is the war drum of the Brocade Dragon Guard of Tiandu City! When we go to the front lines, once the drum is sounded, the sound is earth-shattering. The soldiers will be empowered by the drumbeat, their morale will be high, and their fighting power will be multiplied!"

"So it's a war drum!" Yi Yun touched his cheek and examined the drum closely.

In the era of cold weapons, drums were used in battles, serving two purposes: as a signal to charge and to boost morale. For an army, the quality of its war drums was of great importance.

Liu Da'er continued, "This Sky-Drum is made from the hide of the Azure Ox. This Azure Ox has the bloodline of the divine Kui Ox, and is considered an ancient wild beast. Its hide is impervious to swords and blades, and immune to water and fire! Back then, the city lord of Tiandu City hunted down an Azure Ox, soaked its hide in medicinal liquid for ten years, and then hammered it thousands of times before using this hide to make a war drum."

"This Sky-Drum, once struck, will generate a recoil force from its surface. Martial artists with weak foundations dare not strike it, otherwise the recoil force will shatter them!"

The mythical beast Kui Ox resembles an ox but has only one leg, and its roar shakes the heavens. Ancient texts record that an ancient Great Emperor used its hide to make a drum, and the drumsticks were made from the bones of a thunder beast, so that its sound could be heard throughout heaven and earth, thus awe the world.

Liu Da'er patted the stand of the Sky-Drum with his large hand and said proudly, "How about it? Doesn't this war drum feel powerful and majestic? When the Brocade Dragon Guard is not fighting, this Sky-Drum is placed in the training ground. The Brocade Dragon Guard members who train in the training ground all take pride in beating it!"

"Generally speaking, a warrior in the early stages of the Purple Blood realm can barely manage to strike the drumstick once or twice before becoming completely exhausted, his entire body feeling like it's falling apart from the shockwaves from the drumhead!"

Liu Da'er's face showed pride as he said this.

After hearing these introductions, Yi Yun did feel a surge of excitement. The heavy, thick drumsticks, made of some kind of barren bone, made Yi Yun want to pick them up and try them out.

"Look over there," Liu Da'er pointed to the side, "The Sky-Drum tests a martial artist's physical strength and power, while this formation tests a martial artist's Movement Technique!"

Following Liu Da'er, Yi Yun saw an open space next to the Sky-Drum, on which a large array was drawn.

The formation looks like a large six-pointed star, with dozens of flaming spheres floating in mid-air above it.

These spheres, pale red in color, could fly in the air without any support, which intrigued Yi Yun.

"Haha, these are spheres called Cold Iron Blood Pearl. In the deep sea trenches, there are giant Blood-Veined Oysters. These Blood-Veined Oysters are also ferocious beasts that can swallow sharks whole! Blood-Veined Oysters absorb the iron essence of cold iron from the seabed and combine it with their own blood essence to condense iron powder pearls within their bodies, which are called Cold Iron Blood Pearl! A Cold Iron Blood Pearl the size of a fist can weigh over a hundred pounds and can be used to forge weapons and refine magical artifacts. They are quite valuable!"

"Each of these Cold Iron Blood Pearl you see is engraved with an array. Relying on the energy of the array, these Cold Iron Blood Pearl can fly through the air at extremely high speeds. If you get hit by one, you will be seriously injured! If you're unlucky, you might even die!"

As Liu Da'er explained, Yi Yun looked thoughtfully at the dozens of Cold Iron Blood Pearl.

Legend has it that on every full moon night, a giant, spiritually powerful sea clam rises to the surface and uses the moonlight to Body Refinement.

This is what is meant by "the moon shines brightly over the sea, and pearls weep."

These pearls contain the essence and blood of giant oysters. If collected and boiled with medicinal herbs into a medicinal soup, it can be very beneficial to the body.

Yi Yun never expected that such a precious pearl would be used to create a large formation that tests Movement Technique in this Brocade Dragon Guard camp.

Looking at the open space and the six-pointed star formation below, Yi Yun understood the principle behind this formation. Martial artists standing on this open space would dodge the attacks of the Cold Iron Blood Pearl, and whoever had the better Movement Technique would dodge them better.

A single Sky-Drum and a Cold Iron Blood Pearl Array encompass the two most basic aspects of a martial artist's test. Just from this alone, one can see the profound resources of the Brocade Dragon Guard Camp. After all, both the Sky-Drum and the Cold Iron Blood Pearl Array are extremely expensive to manufacture; in Yunhuang, they could be considered rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

I'd like to recommend a book, "The Gate of Creation" by Goose (老五), a Xianxia (fantasy/martial arts) novel that's currently very popular.

There is a direct link on the book page.

...(To be continued.)