Breakthrough Failure? (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

After Wu Zhiai left.

Chen Mo counted on his fingers, "There are sixteen days left until the Martial Examination."

With such a short time, if he wanted to break through to Dark Jin, he would need to use some special methods.

He took out the Tianxin Sunflower that Yin Shanshan had given him. After decocting and consuming it that day, he felt for the first time what it meant to have a heaven-sent treasure.

Once the medicinal liquid of the Tianxin Sunflower entered his stomach, it transformed into a continuous stream of pure medicinal power, flowing through his tendons, bones, and meridians.

Taking advantage of the surging medicinal power, Chen Mo dove back into the Blacksmith Room to practice his stake technique and punches.

Every few steps he took, he would stop, lost in thought, to ponder.

When he grew tired from the stake training, he would stoke the fire and forge. He placed both Crude Iron and Refined Iron into the furnace, taking them out once they glowed a rosy red to forge, quench, and finally carve patterns into them, eventually crafting them into weapons.

Every time he finished a weapon, a flash of insight would strike Chen Mo's mind. He would immediately sit down to contemplate, then integrate those realizations into his stake technique.

Time passed quickly.

On the eighth day, dusk began to gather.

After practicing the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique dozens of times, Chen Mo settled his mind into a meditative state.

[Thousand Hammer Refinement, Mountain and Water Cultivation]

[Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique: Basic stake technique, trains leg stance below, trains fist power above]

[Comprehension: 99/100 (Minor Accomplishment)]

"I'm still a hair's breadth away from Minor Accomplishment, but it was already ninety-nine yesterday, and there hasn't been the slightest progress today..."

It seemed that, just as he had thought, his comprehension of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique needed to reach Minor Accomplishment before he could break through to Dark Jin.

"It seems that having Mountain and Water Cultivation doesn't mean there are no thresholds to breaking through."

"But I can faintly feel that the power within my body is gradually becoming more compressed."

At the peak of Ming Jin, he already possessed the preliminary ability to probe the meridians within his body.

He slowly turned his vision inward to inspect his meridians and, to his surprise, discovered that some of them were beginning to show signs of connecting and merging.

And the connection of the meridians was the hallmark of stepping into Dark Jin!

Joy crept onto his face.

As long as there was a sign, it meant that Mountain and Water Cultivation could indeed help him cross the threshold of his cultivation realm.

Even if his natural talent was only average!

"There is still residual medicinal power from the Tianxin Sunflower; I cannot waste it..."

Chen Mo felt even more motivated and added charcoal to the furnace, the flames inside roaring.

While the iron billet in the furnace was still heating up, he threw himself into his stake training and punches.

The firelight faintly illuminated the lines of his well-trained muscles, which were already showing signs of being knotted and robust, a far cry from the sallow, skinny boy he had been before.

Under such grueling training, coupled with the continuous supply from the Ningjin Pill, the meridians in his body gradually began to merge and connect.

Three days before the Martial Examination, the morning light began to peek through.

Chen Mo inspected his meridians and found that the progress of their connection had reached over ninety percent. Although they were not yet fully connected and his comprehension of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique had not reached Minor Accomplishment, he felt that he was not far from Dark Jin.

"Three days left; I'll give it one more push."

Through these days of grueling training, he realized he had gained an entirely different understanding of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique.

Some of the essential meanings he thought he had understood before had now evolved into new insights.

He felt as if the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique was no longer just the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique, but had transformed into another, more profound cultivation method.

"Once I truly break through to Dark Jin, I'll see what changes have occurred in the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique..."

Chen Mo bid farewell to Chen Lan and Wu Zhiai and headed to the Tianqing Martial Hall.

Having been away from the hall for these days, Yin Tianqing had intentionally let him seclude himself, agreeing that they would meet at the martial hall on the appointed day to travel to Anyang County together.

Today was that appointed day.

He stepped into the hall.

Several gazes, sharp as an eagle's, swept toward him.

First was Ji Chang, who hurried over to give him a warm hug, then patted his chest, producing a heavy "thud-thud" sound.

Chen Mo's physique was now even broader than Ji Chang's, and even compared to Yue Lun before his injury, there was little difference.

"Not bad. I haven't seen you in a few days, and you look just like a sturdy martial artist now."

On the other side, Yin Shanshan looked up, a faint blush rising on her face. At her age, she was, after all, still a young girl at heart.

At this moment, Yin Tianqing emerged from the inner room. Upon seeing Chen Mo, he approached to observe the aura about him, and a look of slight disappointment flickered across his face.

In Yin Tianqing's heart, he had originally only held a sliver of hope regarding Chen Mo's breakthrough to Dark Jin.

Seeing today that he truly hadn't broken through to Dark Jin, the last glimmer of hope was extinguished.

"To reach the peak of Ming Jin in such a short time is already no easy feat."

These words sounded like they were meant to comfort Chen Mo, yet also like they were meant to comfort himself.

After saying this, he spoke to both Chen Mo and Li Xuan: "Just do your best; ensuring your own safety is the most important thing."

The two bowed in acknowledgment.

After some brief preparations, Yin Tianqing led Chen Mo and the others to set off.

Aside from Chen Mo and Li Xuan, several other important disciples, including Yin Shanshan and Ji Chang, also followed them to Anyang County.

The group boarded a Ziyuan Carriage.

The brown stallion galloped toward the north, its wheels spinning rapidly.

Clatter, clatter, clatter, clatter!

Inside the curtained carriage.

Yin Tianqing began to explain the rules of the Martial Examination.

"Due to limited quotas this year, only fifty-one martial artists are participating in the Martial Examination, and only the top ten will earn the title of Martial Scholar."

Chen Mo thought to himself, fifty-one people competing for ten spots—it was no wonder the Martial Examination was so fiercely competitive, not to mention that the number of participants in previous years had been even higher.

But then again, if one could successfully attain the title of Martial Scholar, it would be a "rebirth" for someone from the common folk; it was no wonder martial artists flocked to the title of Martial Scholar.

Yin Tianqing continued: "The Martial Examination is divided into two trials. The first is called the Strength Trial; each person lifts stone locks, and the heavier the stone lock lifted, the better the score."

"The second is called the Technique Trial, which is a one-on-one competition of martial arts and techniques. Who you face in each round is decided by drawing lots, and the further you advance in the rounds, the better your score."

"The scores from both trials are combined to determine the final result of the Martial Examination, from which the ten spots are decided."

Chen Mo understood after hearing this.

Whether in the Strength Trial or the Technique Trial, the gap between Ming Jin and Dark Jin was immense.

Taking advantage of this spare time, he began to contemplate the final parts of the Dragon-Subduing Stake Technique that still troubled him.

Suddenly, brilliant golden light filled his mind, transforming into countless streams of characters that spliced and rearranged themselves, deducing and calculating.

Meanwhile, Yin Tianqing's introduction continued: "The top powers in Anyang County, such as the Xie Family, the Qi Family, the Iron Palm Gang, and the Hefeng Pawnshop, will all send their best young experts; they are the cream of the crop among the younger generation in the county."

"If you two encounter them, you can broaden your horizons and gain experience. Even if you aren't a match for them, you can always participate again next year."

Upon hearing this, Li Xuan hesitated for a moment before asking: "Where do Zhang Chong and Yue Lun roughly rank among these people?"

He wanted to use their rankings to estimate his own.

Yin Tianqing thought for a moment and replied: "Zhang Chong can make the top ten, and even has a chance to challenge for the top five. Yue Lun is roughly around twentieth."

Li Xuan's heart tightened upon hearing this.

"Even Senior Brother Yue can only rank around twentieth?"

Just then, a dull sound erupted from within Chen Mo's body, like the crack of a firecracker.

Yin Tianqing was the first to react; he whipped his head around to look at Chen Mo and immediately reached out to place a hand on his shoulder, sensing the condition inside his body.

Suddenly, Yin Tianqing's expression darkened.

"What is it, Father?" Yin Shanshan asked from the side.

Yin Tianqing shook his head with a grave expression, "Chen Mo has failed to break through to Dark Jin..."