Clumsy First Victory

"Whoosh—"

The heavy ornamental axe howled with a foul wind, slicing down mere inches from Chen Ping's nose.

As if scared stiff, Chen Ping stumbled, his body lurching awkwardly to the left, narrowly dodging the skull-splitting blow.

The axe blade slammed into the wooden platform of the arena, sending splinters flying and rattling Chen Ping's feet with the impact.

"Dodge? Let's see how many times you can dodge!"

The burly man's face shook with fleshy rage. Missing his strike, he roared, muscles bulging in both arms as he spun his twin axes like a windmill, creating a storm of blade shadows that engulfed Chen Ping.

Chen Ping was like a tiny boat in a raging sea, flailing left and right, drenched in sweat.

Sometimes he fled with his head in his hands, sometimes he rolled and crawled, each time brushing past death by a hair's breadth.

Yet deep within his outwardly panicked eyes lay a cold stillness, like an ancient well.

"Too slow."

Under the heightened senses granted by Longevity of Pine and Crane, the burly man's seemingly ferocious assault was riddled with flaws in Chen Ping's eyes.

Every exertion of force, every pause in breath, was clearly laid out in his perception.

His feet shuffled in chaotic steps, but secretly followed the essence of plum-blossom stake footwork. Each "stumble" was precisely calculated to land in the blind spot of the opponent's power.

"Chop that monkey to bits!"

"Group D, Number Seven, don't embarrass us! Split him in half!"

The audience below jeered loudly. The gamblers who had bet on the burly man screamed with red eyes, itching to rush up and hold Chen Ping down for the kill.

Chen Ping ignored it all. He parted his lips, panting heavily, pretending to be at his limit. In truth, his internal energy flowed smoothly, and he hadn't even broken a real sweat. The moisture on his forehead was just a bit of fluid he'd forced out for realism.

"Die already!"

The burly man, unable to land a hit after a long assault, was drained of stamina. The crowd's taunts made him irritable, and he finally lost patience.

With a roar, he raised both axes high, aiming for a heavy "Mountain Crushing Strike" to end this cat-and-mouse game.

As his arms lifted, his chest and abdomen were left wide open.

In that instant, Chen Ping's right index finger, hidden in his sleeve, twitched slightly—a muscle memory from mastering Shattered Stone Palm. One palm strike now, with penetrating force, could shatter the man's heart meridian and kill him on the spot.

But the thought was barely born before Chen Ping crushed it.

Can't use Shattered Stone Palm.

It was too fierce and distinctive. If Jin Zhenshan on the platform caught on, his "ordinary" persona would be ruined.

In a flash, Chen Ping made his choice.

He yelped, pretending to be terrified, and swung the standard-issue wooden sword wildly.

The strike was formless, crooked, like a desperate thrash.

"Smack!"

A crisp sound.

The back of the wooden sword "coincidentally" struck the numb spot on the burly man's right wrist.

This seemingly light blow actually carried a thread of Chen Ping's hidden force.

"Ah!"

Half the man's arm went numb and weak. His right axe slipped from his grip, clattering to the ground.

Off balance, the burly man swayed. Before he could react, Chen Ping dropped to the ground and executed a move infamous in the martial world but highly practical—Lazy Donkey Rolling.

He rolled once on the ground, hooking his right foot like a claw around the man's ankle, then yanked hard.

"Thud!"

Like toppling a mountain of flesh, the burly man crashed heavily onto the arena, dazed and dizzy.

Before he could scramble up, Chen Ping agilely mounted him, legs clamping tight around his waist, and pressed the wooden sword's hilt firmly against his throat.

"Don't move! Move, and I'll stab you through!"

Chen Ping gasped heavily, his face twisted in a "survivor's" snarl, his voice trembling as he shouted.

With his throat blocked, the burly man struggled to breathe. The fall had knocked the wind out of him, and staring into Chen Ping's bloodshot eyes, he felt a chill down his spine. Humiliated, his face flushed red, he finally slapped the floor.

"Stop! Winner decided!"

The referee announced flatly.

Only then did Chen Ping collapse off the man, feigning exhaustion, slumping to the ground. Wiping his "cold sweat," he cupped his hands to the crowd, a foolish grin of "luck" plastered on his face.

"That... actually worked?"

"Damn, what kind of dumb luck does this kid have!"

"A cheap win! Nothing but a thug's trick!"

The crowd erupted in curses, feeling as disgusted as if they'd swallowed a fly. They wanted blood and gore, not this street-brawling sneak attack.

Chen Ping listened to the insults, secretly delighted.

Let them curse. The harsher, the better.

Only by being seen as a shameless clown could he avoid drawing the attention of true experts.

He struggled to his feet, dusted himself off, and was about to step down from the platform.

Suddenly, a chill ran down his back. Someone's gaze had landed on him.

Chen Ping's heart jolted. He instinctively turned his head.

On the high platform, the chief examiner Jin Zhenshan sat upright in a grand armchair, idly rolling two iron balls in his hand. His sharp, piercing eyes were fixed on Chen Ping with a thoughtful expression.

Chen Ping's heart skipped a beat.

Had he overdone the act?

Or had that move—the precise strike to the wrist—been too clever, arousing suspicion?

He didn't dare meet Jin Zhenshan's gaze. Hurriedly lowering his head, he put on a cowering look and melted into the crowd descending from the platform.

"Brother Chen! You won too!"

As soon as he stepped down, a hulking figure rushed over—it was Tie Niu.

The big oaf was splattered with blood, clearly fresh from a brutal fight, but he was brimming with excitement, grinning so wide his eyes were nearly lost in the creases.

"I just threw that scrawny monkey practicing Eagle Claw Technique right off the stage! Felt damn good!"

Tie Niu's voice was thunderous, and his shout drew countless stares.

Especially from the Jin Family lackey who had provoked them earlier—now shooting them a sinister look.

"Shh!"

Chen Ping's face changed. He quickly grabbed Tie Niu and lowered his voice: "You won, fine. Why shout about it? Got a death wish?"

He dragged Tie Niu into the crowd, weaving through twists and turns until he was sure no one was watching, then stopped in a secluded corner.

"Brother Chen, what's wrong?" Tie Niu scratched his head, confused.

"Nothing. Keeping a low profile never hurts."

Chen Ping didn't explain further. On this cutthroat examination ground, the more you flaunted, the faster you died. That glance from Jin Zhenshan had his nerves wound tight.

The two collected their tokens for the next round and headed out of the arena.

As they passed the outer edge of the Training Ground, a commotion caught Chen Ping's attention.

A large gambling stall had been set up there—run by the city's biggest establishment, the Treasure Gambling House.

A big wooden board was densely packed with the names and odds of every examinee.

At the top, Jin Shijie's name was written in cinnabar, with odds so low they were pitiful—one to one point one. He was undoubtedly the top favorite.

The mysterious black-clad youth Leng Feng also had extremely low odds.

Chen Ping's eyes traveled downward and found his own name in a corner.

[Group D, No. 32, Chen Ping. Odds: one to ten.]

Note: An extremely lucky scoundrel, will be eliminated next round.

Staring at that glaring "one to ten," Chen Ping didn't get angry. Instead, he stopped in his tracks.

He reached into his chest.

Inside were the last few silver coins he had.

Between buying his freedom and purchasing medicine, he had drained his savings.

Future cultivation—even just the core ingredient of that Iron Bone Soup, the Black Tiger Shin Bone—would require a fortune in silver.

Chen Ping stared at the wooden board, and the timid, cowering look in his eyes gave way to a glint of madness.

"Since you all think I'm nothing but a lucky piece of trash..."

He clenched the silver in his hand, a cold smile curling at his lips.

"Then I'll use these few coins to gamble my way to a fortune."