Chapter 42

But no matter how they looked at it...

That poem was still just a poem.

They probably had no chance of passing this second stage and reaching the Final Test of the Academy Grand Examination after all.

Yet just then—

Another person stepped forward, leaping onto the Qianjin Platform.

It was none other than the Daughter of the Thousand Doors, Yin Luoxia!

The crowd below, however, didn't hold out much hope for her. Insight was an elusive thing, after all.

If you got it, you got it.

If you didn't, no amount of racking your brain would make a difference.

Those truly capable of passing had already grasped it within half an hour.

As for those who still hadn't...

They never would.

"I, Yin Luoxia, humbly request that Second Mister accept me as your disciple!"

Yin Luoxia suddenly dropped to one knee.

Jiang Mu Ming perked up, saying, "You've spent nearly an hour and still haven't grasped what's hidden in my poem."

"What makes you think I'd be willing to take you as a disciple?"

But Yin Luoxia showed no fear.

Instead, a flicker of confidence crossed her face as she met Jiang Mu Ming's eyes.

"Because I have already comprehended two martial techniques from it!"

Instantly—

A storm of shock erupted from the crowd below!

"What? That's impossible!"

"We can't even comprehend one martial technique from it, yet she claims to have grasped two?!"

"How is that possible! Even Ye Dingzhi didn't manage to comprehend two techniques from it! What makes her so special?!"

No one could believe it.

But the next moment, Yin Luoxia rose to her feet.

"Please take a look, Second Mister!"

"One technique—Cloud Riding. One technique—Sea Breaking!"

Yin Luoxia drew her sword. The first move was ethereal, as if riding the clouds, elusive and untraceable.

The second was overbearing, as if descending from the heavens, splitting mountains and breaking seas!

It was true—within a single hour, she had indeed comprehended two martial techniques from the poem!

The crowd below was stunned.

Even those who had already passed the second stage couldn't help but feel shaken.

So this was why Yin Luoxia hadn't stepped onto the Qianjin Platform earlier.

It wasn't that she couldn't.

It was that she had been waiting for an opportunity—a chance to make a stunning debut! Only by comprehending two sword techniques from the poem at once could she truly impress the Second Mister of the Academy.

Only then might he accept her as his disciple.

No wonder she was the Little Gambling King of the Thousand Doors—her meticulous thinking was truly astonishing.

"These two sword techniques aren't bad."

Jiang Mu Ming commented, "But to say they dazzle me enough to make me want to take you as a disciple..."

"They still fall short."

Not to mention, among those who had already passed the test, was there really no one who could have comprehended a second technique?

Ye Dingzhi and Baili Dongjun were both prodigies of the world.

Both were destined to break through to the Profound Spirit Realm in the future.

Yet even for them, Jiang Mu Ming had no desire to take them as disciples. So why should Yin Luoxia be any different?

"However, if you perform well in the next stage and make it to the end..."

"I might consider it."

The next stage would be the Final Test—the one that truly tested everyone's strength.

One wrong step, and it could cost them their lives.

"One hour is up!"

"All examinees not involved, withdraw at once!"

The crowd of candidates below the stage, unable to glean any insight from the poem, filed out in disappointment.

This day's journey had taught them one thing.

They now understood the vastness of heaven and earth, and how many talents the world truly held.

They themselves were merely ordinary specks of dust drifting through this expanse.

"Now then, next up is the Final Test."

"As always, I, Young Master Zhuo Mo Lei Mengsha, will explain the rules!"

Lei Mengsha stepped forward once more.

But just then.

A white-haired old man suddenly appeared on the Qianjin Platform, a flask of fine wine in hand.

He swayed unsteadily.

As if he might fall at any moment.

"The rules are simple. Here are four pouches, each containing a different clue."

"Form four teams among yourselves."

"Each team follows the clue in its pouch to the location it points to—that will count as passing the final exam."

"But in the end, only one person will be accepted as a disciple of me, Li Changsheng."