Contest

"Junior Brother Lu's kindness is worthy of this bow."

Lu Chuan shook his head. "Senior Brother's foundations were deep; you were already not far from breaking through. I merely lent a hand—I can't accept such thanks."

He had gained far too much from Senior Disciple Brother Zhou, far more than he had given.

"It is worthy." Zhou Ming Chuan did not stand on ceremony any longer, merely giving Lu Chuan's shoulder a firm pat.

As he withdrew his hand, the corner of his mouth suddenly curled up.

"Junior Brother, you kept me in the dark quite thoroughly. Didn't you break through as well?"

Lu Chuan smiled sheepishly.

At such close range with Senior Disciple Brother Zhou, how could he possibly conceal his surging blood and qi?

"I broke through not long ago. I have that Mountain Lord to thank for it."

"Looks like that Mountain Lord on Mount Erlong truly sent you soaring into the sky with a single leap." Zhou Ming Chuan clicked his tongue. "When we have time, tell me properly what that beast looked like."

Lu Chuan nodded. "All right."

After chatting idly for a while longer, Zhou Ming Chuan finally remembered the real matter.

"Oh, right." His expression turned serious. "Master told me to fetch you."

Lu Chuan looked up at him. "Fetch me for what?"

"To take part in the Minor Trial," Zhou Ming Chuan said. "The one on the tenth of this month. Master wants you to go this time too."

Of course Lu Chuan knew about the Minor Trial.

It was an unwritten rule of the Mountain Splitting Saber Hall.

On the tenth day of every month, Old Zheng would personally instruct the disciples at the Small Training Ground in the Backyard.

Though it was called a Minor Trial, it was actually more like a small internal competition.

The disciples would demonstrate their saber techniques and engage in Blade Duels with one another. Old Zheng would offer pointers on the spot, and sometimes even step in personally to feed them moves.

But this rule had never been open to everyone.

In the past, only the several Formal Disciples, along with a small number of Outer Disciples who had broken through the Blood Pass, were allowed to attend.

Lu Chuan had been at the hall for four months, yet he had never once been summoned.

"This time, Master Zheng actually called for me too?" Lu Chuan could scarcely contain his delight.

He could indeed raise his martial arts realm by absorbing insights into martial arts, but he had no way to learn combat experience or tactics for facing enemies.

Now, taking part in this Minor Trial would neatly make up for this shortcoming.

"Yes. It seems Master Zheng recognizes you more and more now. Let's hurry over."

"Alright!"

After the two finished preparing, they took their long sabers and headed toward the Backyard.

The moment Lu Chuan stepped into the Backyard, he felt several gazes settle on him.

Those gazes carried surprise, along with a measure of scrutiny.

Lu Chuan was not surprised in the slightest.

To these senior disciples, he was merely an Outer Disciple from a poor family.

He might have trained diligently enough, but he could not keep up with the blood food. From time to time, he even had to set down his saber and go hunting to earn money.

How could someone like that be qualified to stand within their circle?

Lu Chuan simply turned his face away, refusing to look at those gazes.

Chen Mo Bai also saw Lu Chuan enter the Backyard, and his brows immediately furrowed.

Everyone permitted to attend the Minor Trial had broken through the Blood Pass. Could it be that Lu Chuan... had broken through as well?

The moment that thought surfaced, Chen Mo Bai felt even more troubled.

He recalled Lu Chuan's first day at the hall. He had been too lazy even to teach him the Initiate forms, skipping over him directly to teach Wang Yun instead.

At the time, he had thought this poor brat was merely there to make up the numbers and not worth the effort.

But in only a few months, he had already broken through the Blood Pass?

Offending an Outer Disciple with no prospects was nothing, but offending a potential genius would be troublesome.

At that thought, his brows knit even tighter.

Not far away, Su Tang sat cross-legged on a meditation cushion, her eyes closed and her expression cool.

Jiang Hao sat beside her, likewise resting with his eyes shut, his breathing long and steady.

Neither of them looked toward the courtyard gate, as though the bustle in the yard had nothing to do with them.

Seeing Zhou Ming Chuan and Lu Chuan arrive, Old Zheng gave a slight nod.

"Sit down and prepare yourselves properly."

"Yes."

Lu Chuan found a spot to sit and waited quietly.

Once everyone had arrived, Old Zheng wasted no time and began explaining the Mountain Splitting Saber's techniques for meeting an enemy.

"Our Mountain Splitting Saber places the greatest emphasis on one word: heaviness. When the saber is heavy, its momentum is heavy; when its momentum is heavy, the enemy cannot withstand it. But heaviness is not brute force—it is the fusion of qi and blood with saber momentum..."

As he spoke, he demonstrated, explaining every technique for countering and engaging an opponent with great clarity.

Lu Chuan listened with utmost attention.

These were advanced applications derived from the Thirty-Six Basic Forms. They were not contained within the insights, and could only be passed down by a Master through word and heart.

As he listened, he silently compared the teachings to the sensations he had felt while practicing the saber. Many things that had once been vague gradually became clear.

After half an hour, Old Zheng stopped speaking and swept his gaze across the disciples in the courtyard.

"I've taught you plenty. Same old rule—send out two people to exchange a few moves. Many lessons can only be understood through actual combat."

As soon as the words fell, Chen Mo Bai looked toward someone behind him and gave him a meaningful glance.

A young disciple then raised his eyes to look at Lu Chuan and stepped forward.

"Master Zheng, I'll go first."

This man was called Wang Yun. Lu Chuan remembered him—on the day he had first entered the martial hall, he was the one Chen Mo Bai had abandoned Lu Chuan to teach.

"Fine." Old Zheng glanced at Wang Yun. "Who do you want to choose?"

A smile rested on Wang Yun's face, as though he were merely picking an opponent at random.

"I'll choose Junior Brother Lu Chuan. He and I entered at around the same time, and we both just broke through the Blood Pass... It'll be perfect for us to spar and verify each other's skills."

Old Zheng said nothing. He merely looked at Wang Yun, then at Chen Mo Bai.

Chen Mo Bai's expression immediately stiffened.

But Old Zheng said nothing further and turned to Lu Chuan instead.

"Lu Chuan, what do you think?"

Lu Chuan was somewhat surprised inwardly.

He could sense the fluctuations of qi and blood from Wang Yun's body. He had indeed only broken through recently, and his aura was still somewhat unsteady—more than a level weaker than Lu Chuan's own.

Why had this guy taken the initiative to challenge him? Did he really think that Lu Chuan was a newcomer and easy to bully?

"Of course I agree."

The two took their positions in the center of the yard, each holding a saber.

The sabers had no edge, but no one thought them harmless. Even an unsharpened saber could split the web between thumb and forefinger with its shock, or smash bones apart.

Lu Chuan studied Wang Yun across from him.

After only a little over four months since entering, Wang Yun had already trained himself into an exceptionally sturdy build. His shoulders and back were thick, the muscles in his arms sharply defined. Clearly, his family was quite wealthy—blood-rich food and medicinal pills had never been in short supply.

And the saber momentum radiating from his entire body at this moment showed without doubt that his Mountain Splitting Saber had indeed reached Minor Success.

Chen Mo Bai had personally taught him every day. It had not been for nothing.

The few Outer Disciples watching the match in the front courtyard began whispering among themselves.

"Senior Brother Wang's bearing is practically that of a different person compared to when he first entered."

"Isn't that so? Senior Brother Chen personally feeds him moves, sparring with him for at least two hours a day. When have we ever received such treatment?"

"I heard his family provides five Qi and Blood Pills every month just to support his martial training!"

"Five pills? No wonder his progress has been so fast..."

Someone glanced at Lu Chuan.

"By comparison, Lu Chuan over there is much weaker..."

"Yeah. I heard Senior Disciple Brother say that this kid's talent is too poor. Teaching him would be a complete waste of time."

"Middle Lower Grade Bone Structure... I never expected him to break through the Blood Pass too. Who knows what dog-shit luck he stumbled into..."

"I bet Senior Brother Wang wins within three moves."

"Three moves? That's too conservative. I say two."

"You can't put it that way either. Lu Chuan did break through, after all. He should at least be able to last fi—"

"Last five what? What does he have to last with? That hunting bow of his?"

Several of them laughed quietly.

No one thought Lu Chuan could win.

No one even thought he could last three moves.

Wang Yun had clearly heard their discussion as well, and the corner of his mouth curled up slightly.

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you don't lose it next time.