The next morning, Lu Feng had already put on his constable uniform and taken up his ox-tail saber, ready to head to the County Yamen.
Before leaving home, he reached up and touched the spot where he'd injured his head. The wound barely hurt anymore; it was almost healed.
Looks like a Martial Artist's body recovers much faster than an ordinary person's.
With that, he headed outside.
When he arrived at the County Yamen, Fan Tao and Chen Han were huddled together again, chatting about something.
The two of them were usually the first to arrive at the County Yamen, but when they saw Lu Feng had shown up early yet again, they both looked puzzled.
"Lu Feng, why are you here so early again? Are you out of silver?" Fan Tao asked suspiciously.
The original Lu Feng only showed up early to check in when he was short on silver. At other times, he was always the last to arrive.
At that, Lu Feng shook his head helplessly. "You hit the nail on the head. I really am short on silver. How about lending me some?"
The two frowned as soon as they heard he wanted to borrow money, both claiming they were broke, too.
The original Lu Feng hadn't been very popular at the County Yamen, so naturally, neither of them would lend him silver without a second thought.
Seeing that they wouldn't lend him anything, Lu Feng hadn't really meant to borrow money anyway. He changed the subject. "By the way, what were you two talking about just now? You seemed pretty engrossed."
"Oh, we were talking about choosing a new Captain. A couple of days ago, the County Magistrate said he wanted to add a Captain position and select the best candidate from among the Constables we already have," Chen Han replied.
At that, Lu Feng raised an eyebrow. "Huh?! That's happening? How come I haven't heard about it?"
Before Chen Han could answer, Fan Tao spoke up. "Lu Feng, don't take this the wrong way, but you don't stand a chance of becoming Captain. You know what I mean."
Fan Tao's words didn't make Lu Feng angry. He knew Fan Tao had a sharp tongue, but meant him no harm.
He was only being realistic.
Lu Feng smiled faintly. "Fan Tao, that's not right. What do you mean I don't stand a chance? Am I not a Constable at the County Yamen?"
Fan Tao was at a loss for words, but still added, "Lu Feng, you are a Constable at the County Yamen, sure. But you need to be at least a Sixth-Rank Martial Artist to compete for Captain. Do you think you qualify?"
"A Sixth-Rank Martial Artist? I'm definitely not one of those. But doesn't the Qinglu County Yamen already have three Captains? Why does the County Magistrate suddenly want to add another?" Lu Feng shrugged, then asked in confusion.
Chen Han continued, "It probably has something to do with the Martial Arts Examination three months from now!"
"The Martial Arts Examination?!"
Lu Feng felt a stir of surprise. This was an era that revered martial strength above all else. Even the Great Yan Dynasty primarily selected its officials through the Martial Arts Examination.
There were literary examinations, of course, but civil officials ranked below military officials.
For instance, the County Magistrate of Qinglu County was a powerful expert in the Martial Master Realm.
Chen Han nodded. "That's right! I hear this year's Martial Arts Examination is going to be spectacular. Not only will the great Noble Families take part, but experts from the Great Yan Martial Arts Talent Ranking will be there, too. The County Magistrate is adding another Captain so he can see what we Constables are made of."
After hearing Chen Han's explanation, Lu Feng finally understood.
He'd also learned a few new things, like the Martial Arts Examination and the Great Yan Martial Arts Talent Ranking.
Even the original Lu Feng hadn't known any of this. It seemed this selection for a new Captain really was a big deal.
Just then, Lu Feng leaned against the side of the Yamen Room, rubbing his chin as he pondered.
His Martial Realm wasn't yet high enough to qualify as Captain, but with the Proficiency Panel, breaking through to the Sixth-Rank Martial Artist level would be easy.
But there were already four known Sixth-Rank Martial Artists among the County Yamen's Constables. He had no idea whether any of them were hiding their strength.
So, just reaching the Sixth-Rank Martial Artist level might not be enough to win the Captain position.
Besides, yesterday his uncle had asked him to give his Constable position to his cousin. Could that be connected to this?
Seeing that he'd fallen silent, Fan Tao clapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, Lu Feng! Don't tell me you're actually thinking of competing for the new Captain position?"
Lu Feng looked up at him. Fan Tao might not be much of a Martial Artist, but he was sharp-eyed and quick-witted.
He'd figured out what Lu Feng was thinking at a glance. It would be best to talk to him less from now on, lest Fan Tao notice something was off.
"Ahem, you're overthinking it. You know how strong I am. I was just wondering who in the Yamen is most likely to become the new Captain, so I can get on his good side in advance," Lu Feng said with a light cough.
Fan Tao nodded. "So that's what you were thinking. If you ask me, Li Hu is the most likely candidate."
"Li Hu?" Lu Feng mused.
Li Hu was one of the four known Sixth-Rank Martial Artists at the County Yamen.
He'd been honing his skills at the Sixth-Rank Martial Artist level for over a year, and his martial talent was pretty good. It wouldn't be surprising if he broke through to the Seventh-Rank Martial Artist level right now.
Just then, Chen Han spoke up. "I'm not so sure. Li Hu is strong, but Chen Yu shouldn't be underestimated either. He reached the Sixth-Rank Martial Artist level a year ago, and his family runs a martial arts school, so he's bound to be better in actual combat."
While the three were deep in conversation, the other Constables and Yamen Runners began filing into the Yamen.
Seeing them, the three fell silent.
Before long, Captain Wang entered the Yamen Room and, as usual, checked attendance and assigned the day's tasks.
Lu Feng's assignment that day was still to patrol West Street, with Fan Tao as his partner.
The two left the County Yamen and soon reached the outskirts of West Street.
Just then, Lu Feng turned to Fan Tao. "By the way, when did you say they were choosing the new Captain?"
"Three days from now, I think. What, are you really thinking of signing up?" Fan Tao asked, grinning at him.
"Uh, I was just asking. Don't get any ideas."
With that, the two began their patrol. Before long, it was noon. Nothing had happened on West Street, so they both returned home.
As soon as he got home, Lu Feng focused his mind and brought up the Proficiency Panel again.
[Name: Lu Feng] [Age: 19/50] [Realm: Fifth-Rank Martial Artist] [Cultivation Method: None] [Martial Skill: Cloud-Dispelling Palm (High-Grade, Lower-Tier, Greater Completion 0/500)]
At that moment, the Greater Completion level of Cloud-Dispelling Palm had reached five hundred points of proficiency.
The difficulty of advancing further had doubled.
Still, five hundred proficiency points weren't a big deal. He could now use Internal Force to perform Cloud-Dispelling Palm fifty times in a row.
In other words, he only needed to rest ten times to max out Cloud-Dispelling Palm.
He just didn't know what level came after Greater Completion.
Even his late father had only trained this Martial Skill to Lesser Completion. He hadn't told the original Lu Feng what level came after Greater Completion.
The main reason was that the original Lu Feng had been too useless: not only was his martial talent poor, but he also hated practicing martial arts.
That was why his father hadn't taught him much about martial arts.
Forget it. I'll keep practicing for now.
With that, Lu Feng began to cultivate in earnest.
With each palm strike, a notification appeared on the Proficiency Panel.
[You used Cloud-Dispelling Palm once. Proficiency +1] [You used Cloud-Dispelling Palm once. Proficiency +1] ...
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