Screening Ends

A stir ran through the crowd.

They had never seen a selection method like this; in their view, the right way was to use an arena to pick the strongest fighter.

Just as everyone was arguing and restless, a figure stepped out from the crowd, and all eyes involuntarily fell on him.

The son of the Leiquan City Lord, Ganlan.

Ganlan didn't even glance at the crowd, walking straight toward the White-Hat General, thinking to himself: "These thirty-five spots, I'm definitely getting one. This is no trial for me; the real trial is still ahead in Lionheart City!"

Ganlan reached the White-Hat General, bowed respectfully, and said: "General, I wish to attempt it now."

"Put on the bracelet and go try. Aim at the tree trunk, use all your strength, and just throw a punch."

Ganlan put on the black bracelet and immediately felt a portion of his power restrained. Whenever he tried to exert force exceeding that of a newly advanced Tier 6, the black bracelet would absorb the excess.

Ganlan felt nothing unusual, as this wasn't his first time using such a bracelet.

Ganlan walked slowly toward the Great Tree, adjusting his state as he moved. When he reached the tree, without even looking, he threw a punch straight out.

The branches immediately shook.

One.

Two.

Three.

Four!

The fourth branch trembled slightly and then stopped.

The entire tree had only six branches in total.

"Four branches, not bad," the White-Hat General nodded. On the other side, someone approached Ganlan to record his name and the number of branches affected.

With Ganlan's demonstration, others quickly followed.

It was a Tier 8 Warrior.

Six branches total. Ganlan, a Tier 7 Warrior, had shaken four. He, a Tier 8 Warrior, could easily shake all six! With that confidence, he stepped forward.

"This tree has some tricks. Even if you're restrained to a newly advanced Tier 6, an ordinary tree would snap at the waist from a single punch. But this tree isn't even scratched, and two branches didn't even rustle a leaf," Uncle Jack remarked in amazement.

Just then, the Tier 8 Warrior put on the black bracelet, walked to the Great Tree, let out a low shout, and threw a punch.

One, two.

The leaves on the third branch only swayed slightly.

Gasps of doubt erupted from the crowd. The White-Hat General glanced over: "Two branches. Next."

"Wait, I haven't used my full strength yet! My power is more than this—I want to try again!" The Tier 8 Warrior's face flushed red, but the White-Hat General silenced him with just a look. Reluctantly, he handed over the black bracelet.

"Why? Why is this happening?" The Tier 8 Warrior, still unable to understand, returned to the crowd in a daze.

"Fool," Ganlan said coldly, ignoring the warrior's glare. "Still don't get it? Once you put on that bracelet, your power is locked to a newly advanced Tier 6. Even if you were Tier 9, what difference would it make? You can only exert the strength of a newly advanced Tier 6. To shake more branches, you need to unleash more power—it has nothing to do with your rank.

"This is about how your body generates force—the most fundamental thing. Once you master it, your speed and power will all be affected, becoming faster and stronger. It's technique. This trial selects for insight. If rank mattered, why wouldn't they just pick Tier 9 Warriors for the trial?"

Though Ganlan's attitude was harsh, it made many people understand.

"So that's it. On the same foundation, those who can unleash greater power are the ones with better technique—in other words, more talent. Damn it, I only realize now. I don't even know how much my own force output can amplify," Uncle Jack lamented.

If he had realized this earlier and trained specifically for it, his strength would have improved greatly.

Just as Ganlan said, this kind of power amplification was the most basic; once mastered, it meant becoming stronger in every aspect.

One warrior after another stepped forward with confidence.

"Two branches."

"Two branches."

"Two branches."

"Three branches."

"Two branches."

The White-Hat General, expressionless, recited number after number coldly.

Only then did everyone realize that Ganlan's four branches was a distant, unreachable figure.

Roughly one out of every seven or eight people could manage three branches. It truly was as the White-Hat General had said—shaking three branches was the standard for entering the top thirty-five.

"Four branches."

Another warrior who shook four branches appeared—a thin, gloomy-looking man. After his punch, the fourth branch also visibly trembled before he silently retreated into the crowd.

But no one dared to ignore him anymore. Even Ganlan stared at him for several moments.

After a while, an Artifact User appeared. The Artifact User also requested to wear the bracelet, but his method was different: he manipulated the vines on the tree trunk, tightening them forcefully.

In the end, he made two branches sway.

An Artifact User?

This time it wasn't just Guen who was puzzled—everyone was. Some among them had never seen an Artifact User before, but they knew that Artifact Users could become high-ranking members of any organization, and they still had to participate in the trial, which left everyone scratching their heads.

"Let's go, we'll give it a try too," Uncle Jack said, already impatient. The four of them went to the front of the line.

One punch per person, plus the time it took to put on the black wristband—it didn't take long at all. Soon it was Uncle Jack's turn. After taking the black wristband, he took a deep breath and threw a fierce punch.

"Boom."

The tree trunk had been struck by so many people hundreds of times without a single mark left on it, but this time it shook slightly, and three branches swayed.

"Three branches," the White-Hat General said expressionlessly.

"Haha, I made it," Uncle Jack walked back with a beaming smile and encouraged, "If I can do it, I feel like you all can too."

These words were meant for Guen and the others, but the group beside them who had only managed to shake two branches sneered. In their eyes, it was already lucky that this little group had one person who could deliver the force of three branches—how could anyone else possibly manage it?

But then Setti stepped up and surprised everyone.

Even the fourth branch swayed slightly. Though the movement wasn't large, everyone present was a high-tier warrior, at least Tier 7—Tier 6 warriors had long been weeded out—so they all saw it clearly.

"Four branches." Setti walked back with an easy expression and casually encouraged Chen.

This result didn't particularly surprise Chen either. Being able to lure away a Vajra Ape on the verge of breaking through to Super Tier was itself a sign of something unusual, but shaking four branches was still a bit beyond Chen's expectations.

Chen took the wristband, and the result he showed once again drew surprised expressions from the onlookers.

"Three branches."

Now everyone's gaze converged on Guen. Anyone could see that these four were a group. The first three had all achieved the strength of three branches, and one even had four. Could this last one also manage to shake three branches?

Guen walked up to the Great Tree with ease. No charging up, no excessive preparation—just a simple punch thrown.

One branch.

Two branches.

In the onlookers' disbelieving eyes, the fourth branch shook violently, and then the fifth branch moved slightly. Though the motion was small, it drew an incredulous gasp from the crowd.

"So one branch equals one times force amplification. I only managed to break through this time, able to execute fifty-one moves of the Hundred Refinement Fist, which is 5.1 times force amplification. Not bad." Guen showed no trace of pride.

He still remembered what his father had said.

Before becoming a Super Tier Warrior, eight times force amplification was considered decent. And his father, Kolong, back before reaching Super Tier, could already perform the entire Hundred Refinement Fist from start to finish.

So Guen wasn't just unarrogant—he was actually somewhat dissatisfied with his own progress.

"Five branches. Very good, very good." The White-Hat General smiled for the first time. Even the four branches from Ganlan, the gloomy man, and Setti earlier hadn't changed his expression, but now he laughed. "My name is Tom. What's yours?"

"Guen," Guen replied calmly.

The White-Hat General was even more satisfied and said nothing more.

As soon as Guen returned to his companions, Chen grabbed his shoulder and shook it hard. "Seriously, you were hiding your strength? And that was a Super Tier expert—a rare sight—and you talked to him so calmly!"

"Let me check—is your heart racing, pretending to be steady?" Uncle Jack also put a hand on Guen's chest and made an exaggerated face.

Guen could only smile.

A Super Tier expert?

Rare sight?

His own parents were both so-called Super Tier experts. By their reckoning, that was just Planetary Level—not weak on a single planet, but Guen's parents were the type who, aside from the five Saint Tier powerhouses, didn't think much of other Super Tier experts.

Toward Super Tier warriors, Guen was quite level-headed.

One warrior after another continued the challenge, but the best anyone managed was three branches. Not even four branches appeared, let alone five.

After a while, as the challenge was nearing its end, Keen appeared before Guen again, amazed. "Guen, I never expected you to be this impressive—truly hiding your strength. I only barely made the third branch move."

Guen smiled. "That's not bad either. At least you have a shot at the top thirty-five."

"Hard," Keen shook his head. "I saw quite a few people complete the three-branch challenge, but only three managed four branches, and you're the only one with five. You're definitely in."

Just then, the White-Hat General Tom's voice rang out across the field: "Alright, everyone has finished the challenge. Come over here."

The warriors gathered together again.

But this time there was a clear divide. Most people stood toward the back, while those who could shake three branches naturally positioned themselves at the front.

"This time was very good—beyond my expectations," Tom said. As his words fell, everyone's eyes landed on Guen before shifting to Ganlan, Setti, and the others. "Not only did a talent like Guen appear, but the numbers also exceeded what I predicted. Forty-seven people achieved three times force amplification. Very good. Congratulations—you can follow me to Lionheart City."

Someone was stunned: "General, didn't you say there were only thirty-five spots? How... how are there suddenly so many people?"

Tom laughed heartily. "If I hadn't said that, would you have given it your all? Some of you might not have taken it seriously, wanting to hide your strength. I don't like trouble—screening again just to find one or two lazy people isn't worth it. Three times force amplification was the real requirement.

"One times force amplification—Tier 1 or Tier 2 warriors can do that. For ordinary people, one times force amplification, fully unleashing their own strength, is decent. But to break through to Super Tier, it's far from enough.

"Most of you are at two times force amplification—too ordinary. As warriors, you might have a bit more talent than ordinary people, but just a bit. Tier 9 might even give you some trouble, but I believe you can still manage it. Don't be discouraged. The Three Official Organizations are already waiting for you. If you obtain the Transcendence Method, you'll still have a chance to break through to Super Tier."

Tom looked at everyone's expressions and suddenly barked, "Don't think I'm just comforting you. Back then, I could only barely manage three times force amplification after three trials—barely, barely. But now, I've achieved Super Tier."

Seeing the crowd's incredulous looks, Tom said calmly, "It's true. Not being able to do it now means you're already behind others at this stage. You've fallen behind, so you need to work even harder. Back in my day, to train my force amplification technique, I was a Tier 8 Warrior punching until my bones cracked. Have you done that? If not, you need to work harder. You're already behind now. If you don't put in the effort, you'll have even less chance. I'll be honest—being behind now means your hope of breaking through to Super Tier is a bit less compared to them. But if you don't work hard, you won't have even that sliver of a chance. Go on, accept the recruitment from those organizations, and make yourselves stronger."

Tom's words reignited the fighting spirit in those who had been discouraged.

Some even shouted at Guen, declaring they would take him as their goal and become Super Tier warriors before him.

This left Guen torn between laughter and tears—he had somehow become a benchmark.

"By the way, remember this: everything about the valley must be kept secret. Those who come later need to be tempered. Some of you aren't first-timers in the trials, so you know the consequence of leaking information is being hunted by all Factions. Go." Tom addressed everyone one last time, then gestured for the three hundred-plus people to leave.

In the end, only forty-seven remained, including two Artifact Users. They had only managed to shake two Tree Branches, but were still counted in.

According to Tom's explanation, Artifact Users were special. Without professional guidance, it was even harder to increase their Force Multiplier in the early stages. As long as they weren't barely achieving double force, but exceeding it by a bit, they qualified.

"Now, bring your mounts and come with me to Lionheart City."