New Talent, the Minor Competition Arrives

"Finally broke through..."

"Does a breakthrough in a Martial Technique's realm also bring new talents?" A flicker of anticipation appeared in Gu Yang's eyes.

Before long, a line of small text appeared before his eyes once more.

Potential development complete. Talent 'Power Surge' successfully manifested!

"Power Surge?" Gu Yang's gaze sharpened. Before he could close his eyes to inspect the effects of this new talent, he suddenly felt waves of strength surging within his body.

This strength did not greatly increase his power. Rather, it was a kind of "reserve strength."

It was as though...

Following his instincts, Gu Yang suddenly threw a full-force punch.

The instant the punch shot out, before he even had time to recover his breath, a surge of strength welled up within him.

Then Gu Yang delivered another full-force kick.

"This..." Gu Yang's pupils widened, his face full of astonishment.

Under normal circumstances, after throwing a full-force punch, the strength in his body would inevitably enter a brief state of "exhaustion." If his punch were dodged at that moment, he would certainly suffer his opponent's counterattack.

That was also why Qin Hu had repeatedly stressed that when striking someone, one had to stay alert at all times—use seven parts of one's strength and hold back three.

That way, one's punches would be far more flexible. If one failed to hit the opponent, one could still change moves.

But now, that theory no longer applied to him.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

A punch, a kick, then another punch...

Every strike Gu Yang threw was with all his strength, yet he did not have the slightest gap of "exhaustion."

Every time he punched or kicked, a surge of strength welled up within him, serving as a foundation that bolstered his body.

It was as though his upper limit had been raised. His limit was no longer 100% full power, but 120%, 130%, or even higher—though for now, he could only unleash 100% of that strength.

So even when he erupted with his full strength, he could still achieve the effect of "using seven parts and holding back three"!

"Incredible. This is truly incredible!"

Gu Yang was deeply moved, a bright gleam shining in his eyes.

Though this newly manifested talent had not increased his strength, it had raised his combat power by at least thirty percent!

With his current strength of nearly five hundred jin, if he erupted with full force, even disciples who had practiced Stance Training for one or two years might not be his match, let alone those who had only joined this year.

With this talent, Gu Yang had even more confidence in the coming Minor Competition.

Skill: Blood Nourishing Stance · Minor Mastery (76/200); Azure Dragon Dance · Minor Mastery (1/1000)

Talent: Vitality Surge, Power Surge.

A moment later, Gu Yang calmed down and closed his eyes to look at the text before him.

As expected, Azure Dragon Dance had already broken through to Minor Mastery. However, to break through again, it would require a full thousand points of proficiency.

Even if he sparred with Li Zhiwu every other day, it would still take twenty days to accumulate enough proficiency for another breakthrough.

As his thoughts turned, the effect of his new talent surfaced in his mind.

The result was more or less what he had expected. There was only one effect: strength could take root and recover in an endless stream.

Before the old strength faded, new strength was born—unceasing and boundless, like rolling waves that never ended.

On a whim, Gu Yang began practicing Azure Dragon Dance again.

This time, every punch and kick was delivered with full force.

"Whoosh, whoosh~"

The force of his punches shook the air, and fallen leaves in the small courtyard were swept up by the fierce wind, scattering in all directions.

Skill 'Azure Dragon Dance' proficiency +1

After a long while, Gu Yang finally stopped moving and let out a long breath.

Although strength kept surging within him, his stamina did not possess the same endlessly replenishing effect.

After practicing a full set of boxing movements, more than half of Gu Yang's abundant stamina had been drained.

"Exhale..."

"Inhale..."

His long breathing rhythm drew great quantities of fresh air into his lungs. Gu Yang assumed the stance of Azure Dragon Dance, closed his eyes, focused his mind, and quietly felt the tranquility of daybreak.

He did not know how much time had passed when Gu Yang suddenly felt a chill on his forehead.

He abruptly opened his eyes and looked up at the sky.

Crystal-clear snowflakes drifted slowly down from the heavens, landing sparsely on the ground before melting away.

"Winter has arrived..."

Gu Yang opened his palm and let a snowflake fall onto it.

Yet before the snowflake could touch his skin, it turned into a droplet of water.

Though he had not yet reached the stage where his qi and blood condensed and he became impervious to heat and cold, ever since he began practicing martial arts, his vigorous qi and blood had greatly strengthened his resistance to the cold.

Only now, belatedly, did he realize that autumn had already passed.

More and more snowflakes fell, specks of crystalline white turning into great goose-feather snowflakes.

Gu Yang glanced at the sky, then turned and went back into the house.

If he went back to sleep now, he could still get another hour or two of rest.

Though the time was short, it would still allow him to recover most of his energy.

He gently pushed open the door. The whole family was still sound asleep.

Seeing this, Gu Yang went straight to his own bed and lay down.

In the morning, Gu Yang woke punctually according to his internal clock.

The moment he pushed open the door, he saw that the entire world had turned white.

The courtyard, the rooftops, and the sky—everywhere was filled with pure white snowflakes.

Late autumn had passed, and winter announced its arrival to the world with a heavy snowfall.

Gu Yang took a deep breath of cold air, then slowly exhaled. Looking at the white stream before him, determination flashed in his eyes as he strode out of the small courtyard.

Today was the day of the month-end Minor Competition. Apart from disciples still away on training expeditions, every disciple remaining at the Martial Academy had to participate.

Naturally, there would not be situations where disciples who had trained for two or three years fought against those who had only just joined the Martial Academy. Usually, disciples who entered in the same year fought each other.

The rules of the Minor Competition were simple: random matchups round after round, for a total of five rounds. In the end, the hundred people with the most victories would each receive a bottle of Military Rations Pills.

Besides that, this year's newly admitted disciples also had to determine the hundred disciples who suffered defeat after defeat in the Minor Competition.

Afterward, those disciples would each be given three chances to challenge others.

If they won, the two sides would exchange rankings.

If they lost, their rankings would remain unchanged.

Once all challenges had ended, the Martial Academy would register and warn the bottom hundred disciples.

If they remained among the bottom hundred over the next two months, they would be expelled from the Martial Academy outright.

The entire Minor Competition was conducted under the watchful eyes of the Martial Academy instructors. If anyone cheated, both participants would be expelled together.

Simple and brutal, yet incomparably cruel.

Of course, almost no disciple would deliberately go easy or cheat in such a competition.

The sun slowly rose. On the Training Ground, the formations stood neat and orderly, everyone with their backs straight and their bodies upright.

Even as the heavy snow continued falling onto their heads, no one moved in the slightest.

At the front of the formations, Qin Hu's eyes flashed like lightning as he continuously swept his gaze over the crowd. Only after a long while did he say, "Set off."

With that, he turned and took the lead toward the exit of the Training Ground.

Behind him, the disciples in the formations wore solemn expressions as they strode after him.