"Gasp! Holy crap, 5.999!?"
"Young man, how could your Blood and Qi value be this high!?"
The middle-aged Martial Arts Association staff member nearby saw the number displayed on the tester.
His eyes widened uncontrollably, and he cried out in surprise.
"Could the tester be broken?"
"Young man, your name is Li Ziyu, right? How about testing one more time?"
A Blood and Qi value of 5.999 was only a tiny step away from the standard for a Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist.
He hadn't been surprised when the burly man had just tested at 3.1.
The main reason was that the other party was relatively old, so he had expected it.
But how old was this young man named Li Ziyu standing before him?
According to the records, he had only just turned seventeen this year?
He was only seventeen, yet his Blood and Qi value was already nearly that of a Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist. Wasn't that absurd!?
"Young man, are you sure this is your first time coming to the Martial Arts Association for certification?"
"If you've undergone Martial Artist Certification in another city before, then doing it again won't be valid."
The Martial Arts Association staff member looked at Li Ziyu again and couldn't help asking.
He suspected that Li Ziyu had undergone Martial Artist Certification somewhere else before. Otherwise, if his Blood and Qi were already nearly at the Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist standard, why would he only now be coming for Level 1 Beginner Martial Artist certification?
"Uh, it really is my first time."
Li Ziyu scratched his head and said with an embarrassed smile.
He hadn't expected his Blood and Qi to be this high either.
Out in the wilderness, he had been too busy killing ferocious beasts. Aside from hunting Shadow Cats, he had casually killed an unknown number of Red-Eyed Rabbits as well.
The system had only told him that his Blood and Qi had reached the Level 1 Intermediate standard.
But this was the first time he knew the exact figure.
He hadn't expected it to be at the very peak of the intermediate level.
In other words, if he went to the wilderness now and casually killed a single ferocious beast, he could advance to the Level 1 Advanced stage.
At the strong urging of the Martial Arts Association staff member, Li Ziyu lay back down in the Qi-Blood Tester and underwent the test again.
"It's the same as last time!"
"Looks like the tester didn't malfunction. Your Blood and Qi really is 5.999!!"
The Martial Arts Association staff member stared at the result that had reappeared on the screen, his voice trembling slightly.
A genius!!
This young man named Li Ziyu was definitely a genius!!
Only seventeen years old and already a Level 1 Intermediate—no, he was about to become a Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist!
A Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist who hadn't even turned seventeen!
This Li Ziyu was absolutely a super-genius!
Who would have thought that the Xujiang City Martial Arts Association would produce such a genius!
And this genius had been personally tested by him!
The middle-aged Martial Arts Association staff member was so excited that even his mustache trembled.
"Blood and Qi of 5.999? That high? Holy crap, that's several times higher than mine, right?"
"Awesome. He's so young and already has such high Blood and Qi. How did this kid... no! How did this big shot train!?"
"With Blood and Qi of 5.999, he should already be able to undergo Level 1 Advanced Martial Artist certification, right? Why is he only testing now?"
"Looking at him, could it be that he hasn't even cultivated a body-tempering technique yet? Gasp! That's actually possible!"
"He could be a Qi-Blood Talent Martial Artist, which is why his Blood and Qi rose so quickly. But Martial Artists like that usually aren't very strong in combat."
"Forget that. I'm more curious about how someone with such high Blood and Qi could still get dumped by his girlfriend."
"Could the guy who's with that girl now have an even higher Blood and Qi value than Li Ziyu?"
The people who had just taken the test looked at Li Ziyu, who had already climbed out of the Qi-Blood Tester onstage. They chattered among themselves, cries of surprise filling the air as uncertainty and disbelief spread through the crowd.
At the same time, several people turned their gazes toward Xu Mengyao and Bai Haoran in the last row.
The burly man was also somewhat surprised, and he couldn't help leaning forward.
This Blood and Qi value was almost twice his own!
And the key was that Li Ziyu was still so young!
He had only been curious about the Blood and Qi value of the young man who had come to undergo Martial Artist Certification at such a young age and had been mocked to his face by a girl. He hadn't expected him to be a genius!
A Blood and Qi value of 5.999—truly, the younger generation was formidable!
At the same time, however, doubt appeared in the burly man's eyes. Following the crowd's gazes, he subconsciously turned to look at Xu Mengyao behind him.
Someone with Blood and Qi of 5.999 had been cursed as a good-for-nothing? Were this girl's standards really that high?
But she didn't look exceptionally beautiful either, did she?
Xia Lin's feelings at this moment were much the same as the burly man's.
However, she didn't look at Xu Mengyao and Bai Haoran, because she knew exactly what was going on between them.
What amazed her was Li Ziyu.
He had remained silent until suddenly astonishing everyone.
She hadn't expected Third High School to have a hidden dark-horse genius like Li Ziyu!
"Looks like you're planning to make a splash at the Martial Arts Exam!"
"With Blood and Qi of 5.999, you should be a Qi-Blood Talent Martial Artist. But even though your Blood and Qi is high, your martial skills definitely won't be able to keep up!"
"In actual combat, you might not be any match for me!"
Xia Lin's eyes shone like brilliant stars, and her battle intent surged.
After all, she was someone who had fought ferocious beasts before!
Although it had only been a Level 1 Beginner ferocious beast, a Sabertooth Pig, it had still been a ferocious beast!
"Impossible! Blood and Qi of 5.999—that's absolutely impossible!!! How could Li Ziyu possibly have Blood and Qi of 5.999? At the school test the day before yesterday, he clearly only had a Blood and Qi value of 0.8!"
"And at Hongsu Martial Arts Hall, he only tested at 0.9!"
"How could it have risen so much overnight!"
"It's fake! The Qi-Blood Tester must have broken!"
Below the stage, Xu Mengyao's eyes widened as she stared at Li Ziyu, disbelief filling her gaze.
A Blood and Qi value of 5.999 had completely exceeded her imagination.
The minimum standard for the Martial Arts Exam was only a Blood and Qi value of 1.2.
Now that Li Ziyu had tested at 5.999, he could be admitted to the Martial Arts Exam based on that alone!
Back then, hadn't she broken up with Li Ziyu because she despised his ordinary talent and thought he could never become a Martial Artist?
How could he possibly have tested at 5.999 now!?
"Li Ziyu should be a Qi-Blood Talent Martial Artist."
"He probably awakened yesterday, or perhaps today."
Beside her, Bai Haoran stared fixedly at Li Ziyu as well. Jealous flames blazed in his eyes, and his voice sounded somewhat bitter.
"Talent Martial Artists have been recorded in the textbooks."
"Blood and Qi, defense, speed—there are all kinds of talents. They might not reveal themselves normally, but once awakened, one's strength rises by leaps and bounds."
"Talent Martial Artists like that are extremely rare. I've heard that among the geniuses in First High School's Rocket Class, there are some who are Talent Martial Artists."
"But I never expected Li Ziyu to be one too... We really misjudged him."
"Talent Martial Artist?"
Xu Mengyao was somewhat dazed by what she heard.
She looked at Li Ziyu, who was preparing to undergo the Combat Power Test amid the countless adoring and fervent gazes from both on and below the stage.
She thought of how Li Ziyu had once obeyed her every word and groveled at her feet.
Now, the contrast with how he ignored her entirely left a bitter, indescribable taste in her heart.
A Talent Martial Artist—if only she could firmly hold on to him, she would definitely be able to live a good life in the future!
But she still stubbornly argued,
"So what if he's a Qi-Blood Talent Martial Artist? His Blood and Qi is merely a little higher. His martial skills can't keep up, and Blood and Qi alone are useless. He's still just a pretty pillow!"
Onstage, Li Ziyu stood before the Test Target. The Martial Arts Association staff member said with a broad smile,
"Young man, relax. Don't be nervous. Just perform at your normal level."
"Even if you perform poorly, it doesn't matter. We can just keep testing. You can test as many times as you like!"
Before you continue