In the heart of Xujiang City, there was a granite path tucked away from the bustle.
Li Ziyu walked slowly along the winding path.
As he walked, he kept waving his hand, mimicking the movements of a blade.
Once.
Again.
And again.
After a while.
Li Ziyu gradually came to a stop, reached behind him to draw his long blade, and suddenly swung it at the ground in front of him.
The sound of something tearing through the air howled as the long blade in Li Ziyu's hand flashed across the sky in a blur too fast for ordinary eyes to catch. With a boom, it cleaved into the stone beneath him.
Clang!
A clear crack appeared in the pure granite pavement—a handspan deep and two meters long.
Li Ziyu looked at the granite he had cleaved open, his eyes lighting up.
"Open the system panel."
Name: Li Ziyu. Realm: Level 1 Intermediate Martial Artist. Combat Skills: Gale Blade Technique, Intermediate Blade Technique, Basic Movement Technique. System: Martial God System. Function: Can absorb all things and increase Qi-blood. Other functions await the host's own discovery.
"I really did master the Gale Blade Technique!"
Li Ziyu sighed with emotion.
"Before learning the Gale Blade Technique, even with my full strength, my blade could only cut through a wall.
But now, I can cleave a twenty-centimeter crack into granite as hard as iron.
This power is at least fifty percent greater than before!"
"And most importantly, the unparalleled speed of the Gale Blade is going to be a tremendous help to my practical combat ability!"
Li Ziyu looked exhilarated. He gripped the long blade in one hand and swung it through the air several more times.
Blade light flashed, howling as it tore through the air.
However, he was about to reach the Martial Arts Association, so he did not continue using the granite on the ground as a test subject.
The elderly men doing their morning exercises in the distance had already been eyeing him and were almost calling the police.
Li Ziyu slung the long blade over his back and continued along the path for a while.
After turning several corners, he merged onto a broad road filled with streams of traffic.
After walking for a while.
A dozen-story building appeared ahead, its surface completely covered in silver glass and brimming with a futuristic feel.
At the very top of the building hung seven enormous characters: Xujiang City Martial Arts Association.
It was only eight in the morning.
Yet the Martial Artist Building was already filled with people coming and going through the entrance—some carrying all kinds of weapons, others dressed in suits like white-collar elites.
Li Ziyu noticed that the people dressed as Martial Artists mostly wore ordinary clothes, but their expressions were generally cold and stern.
When they reached the passageway, they did not swipe their cards. Instead, they went straight through the VIP passage on the side.
The elite white-collar workers in suits, on the other hand, had to honestly line up in the passage.
Whenever they encountered a Martial Artist, they would occasionally reveal envious and respectful expressions.
The difference in status was plain to see.
"Um... Martial Artist, my lord? May I ask why you've come?"
Li Ziyu was sizing up the architectural style of the Martial Artist Association when an inquiring female voice sounded beside him.
A tall beauty in black stockings and professional attire was looking at him curiously.
From the work badge hanging at her chest, Li Ziyu recognized her as an employee of the Martial Arts Association.
"I'm here to undergo Level 1 Martial Artist certification."
Li Ziyu replied with a smile.
"Ah, oh! My lord, this way, please. I'll take you there."
The woman in black stockings froze at first, then seemed to realize what he meant. She hurriedly led the way in front of Li Ziyu.
As she walked, she could not help glancing back at him from time to time.
Li Ziyu did not mind.
He had grown used to being stared at back at the Precious Martial Pavilion. They were probably just curious because he looked so young.
And that was indeed the case.
"We're here, my lord."
"This is the room specifically used for Martial Artist testing."
"There's still half an hour before the test begins. You can wait inside for a while."
Li Ziyu followed the woman in black up the elevator to the sixth floor.
They passed through a long corridor and arrived before a room.
The woman in black stopped, pushed open the door for Li Ziyu, and said respectfully.
Li Ziyu nodded and pushed the door open as he entered.
The inside suddenly opened up into a vast space: a hall spanning several thousand square meters.
At that moment, seven or eight people who had come to take the test were already waiting inside, some sitting and some standing.
In the center of the room stood a Qi-Blood Tester similar to the one Li Ziyu had used at Hongsu Martial Arts Hall, along with a Combat Power Test pillar.
However, it looked newer and more advanced than the one at Hongsu Martial Arts Hall.
Li Ziyu glanced at the time on his phone. There were still about twenty minutes before the test began.
According to what the woman in black had just told him, the Martial Arts Association held Level 1 Martial Artist certification twice a day, once in the morning and once in the afternoon, both beginning at fixed times.
The morning session was at eight-thirty, and the afternoon session was at five-thirty.
Li Ziyu found a seat and sat down, while sizing up the other seven people taking the test.
Sitting in the first row was a burly man with metal gauntlets on both hands and a cold, stern face.
Sitting there, the burly man had the air of an expert who warned all strangers to keep their distance.
Everyone else stayed far away from him, and they occasionally cast wary, respectful looks his way.
He was probably a powerful Martial Artist.
Li Ziyu stared at the burly man's back and thought to himself.
Seven or eight meters away from the burly man sat a girl who looked about the same age as Li Ziyu and appeared to be a high school student.
The girl wore a simple white T-shirt on top and light-blue jeans below.
Her simple outfit, supported by her perfect curves, gave anyone who saw her a pleasant surprise.
Paired with that breathtaking face, it even made Li Ziyu take a second look.
This girl's looks far surpassed Xu Mengyao's.
Of all the women he had seen so far, she was the most beautiful.
While Li Ziyu was sizing up the girl, the girl was secretly sizing him up as well.
A trace of curiosity showed in her eyes as she looked toward Li Ziyu.
After all, she felt that she was already young enough, yet Li Ziyu looked even younger than her.
Could he be preparing to take the Martial Arts Exam too?
I wonder which school's genius he is.
The girl pondered secretly.
The girl was not the only one sizing up Li Ziyu.
When Li Ziyu entered, the burly man and the other Martial Artists who had come to take the test all turned their eyes toward him as well.
Their eyes were filled with curiosity.
They seemed curious about Li Ziyu's age.
They simply could not believe someone this young had come to certify as a Martial Artist.
Li Ziyu's gaze passed over the girl as he continued looking around, but he soon withdrew it after taking in the room for a while.
Apart from the burly man and the girl, who were relatively eye-catching, everyone else looked utterly ordinary.
With that thought, Li Ziyu closed his eyes and rested, waiting for the test to begin.
"Ah! The beauty of No. 2 High School, the genius girl Xia Lin, is actually here?"
"She's here to take the Level 1 Martial Artist certification too!"
Just then, the examination hall's door was pushed open again.
Xu Mengyao and Bai Haoran walked in.
As soon as she entered, Xu Mengyao turned her eyes toward the black-haired girl in the room, covered her little mouth, and cried out in surprise. Her eyes simultaneously filled with an adoring look.
"Xia Lin is a genius from No. 2 High School, and she's also one of the seeded candidates for the top three in this year's Xujiang City Martial Arts Exam!"
"I heard that during the school's Qi-blood test, her initial Qi-blood was already 1.45! Not only does she have incredible Qi-blood talent, she's also a genius in the sword path. Her swordsmanship has already reached the intermediate level!"
"She's the idol of all the female students in Xujiang City!"
Xu Mengyao's face was flushed with excitement as she spoke excitedly to Bai Haoran beside her.
Bai Haoran's eyes also showed solemnity.
"I didn't expect Xia Lin to have already reached the level of a Level 1 Martial Artist. This test doesn't just have Xia Lin—the burly man sitting beside her is also an expert."
"Huh? That figure... why does it look so much like Li Ziyu?"
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