"Someone this age still hadn't become a martial artist?"
"Hey, handsome!"
"..."
At that moment, two or three dozen people were practicing in the martial arts hall.
Seeing that Jiang Li was unfamiliar, they couldn't help discussing him.
"Jiang Li, this is the Punch Force Testing Machine. It's used to test your punching power."
The girl pointed to an unoccupied Punch Force Testing Machine nearby and said, "You just need to put all your strength into punching this pad. I'll determine the level of your student card based on the result."
"Okay."
Jiang Li nodded, took a deep breath, and brought himself into peak condition.
"Guess whether he can reach the strength requirement for a beginner student."
"He looks pretty old, so beginner level shouldn't be a problem. Intermediate level, though, is hard to say."
"I'm not optimistic about him. He's too skinny, like a stiff breeze could knock him over. I'm afraid even beginner level will be difficult."
"True. Otherwise, why would he wait until his twenties to take the test?"
"..."
While everyone was talking,
Jiang Li exhaled, drew his right arm back, and gathered his full strength into his right fist. His punch shot out like a dragon, humming through the air.
Bang!
A terrifying rumble came from the Punch Force Testing Machine. The impact was so powerful that the entire machine shook.
A moment later, a number appeared on the display: 1320 kg.
Everyone in the hall stared wide-eyed at the number on the machine, unable to believe it.
The martial arts hall girl was equally astonished. "Mr. Jiang, your strength has already surpassed the martial artist standard! As long as your speed meets the requirement, you'll be an official martial artist. Please come with me..."
"Okay."
Jiang Li didn't waste any time and followed her up to the second floor.
"Th-this... He's actually a martial artist!"
"1320 kg! That's even stronger than Brother Lu and the others!"
"Maybe he's a young master from some big family who came here to have a bit of fun."
"Almost certainly! Otherwise, an ordinary person would've come to get verified as soon as he became a martial artist. Martial artists have status!"
"Darn it, I forgot to ask for handsome's contact information."
"Idiot, didn't you see the wedding ring on his hand? He's already taken!"
"..."
Third floor.
There was another martial arts hall here, with training equipment filling every corner.
However, only "advanced students" were allowed here, so there weren't many people.
As soon as Jiang Li stepped through the entrance, the others greeted him warmly.
"Well, we don't get new students here often. I'm Lu Fei."
"I'm Du Xiao."
"Chen Ming. Madman, we've got a newcomer. Come over and say hello."
Most people who trained at the martial arts hall came from ordinary families and couldn't afford their own private training rooms. After spending years together, they had all gotten to know one another.
The "Madman" Chen Ming mentioned was Luo Feng. After defeating several wealthy advanced students in a row, he'd earned the nickname "Madman."
"Hello, I'm Luo Feng."
A tall, handsome young man with delicate features walked over from the training area and smiled at Jiang Li. "You can call me Madman, too."
"Are you Luo Feng?"
Jiang Li was slightly taken aback when he heard the name. He introduced himself: "I'm Jiang Li. I just came to get my student card."
"Huh? You can come straight to the third floor on your first day? Bai Ning, how much punching power does he have? At least 800 kg?"
Brother Lu, who stood over 1.9 meters tall, asked urgently.
Bai Ning smiled brightly at Brother Lu. "1320 kg!"
"What?!"
The others cried out together, their faces full of shock. "Th-this is already the level of a Quasi-Martial Artist!"
"Even stronger than Brother Lu's punch?!"
"What about his speed?"
Lu Fei pressed urgently. "Wait, you just got up here, so you haven't tested your speed yet. Come on, let's see how fast you are!"
As he spoke, Lu Fei pulled Jiang Li toward the running track and switched on the Speed Tester.
To become a Quasi-Martial Artist, you needed to meet the requirements for speed and nerve response as well as strength.
There was also the practical combat assessment.
"Sure."
Jiang Li didn't hesitate. He stood on the track and suddenly pushed off with his feet!
Whoosh!
A gust of wind seemed to sweep through the room. In the blink of an eye, he had raced through the testing zone.
"How fast?"
Jiang Li turned around and saw Lu Fei staring with his mouth hanging open, wide enough to fit a fist.
"Oh my god!"
Bai Ning stepped forward to check and cried out, "Thirty-five meters per second? That's ten meters per second above the Quasi-Martial Artist standard!"
"You're only twenty? You're a monster!"
Du Xiao felt a little dejected. She was already twenty-five. If she still couldn't meet the martial artist standard in a few more years, she'd be in trouble for the rest of her life.
"Hahaha!"
Lu Fei threw his head back and laughed. "If you're calling him a monster, Madman's a monster too. He's only eighteen!"
"Looks like Jiangnan's about to gain two more martial artists!"
On the fourth floor of the advanced students' teaching building, a red-haired man and a Black-Clad Bald Middle-Aged Man were walking along, chatting and laughing, when a staff member hurried over with some documents.
"Thirty-five meters per second?"
The Black-Clad Bald Middle-Aged Man was startled. "And his punching power reached 1320 kg?"
"Brother Jiang, could he be that Luo Feng you mentioned? To have that kind of strength at eighteen?"
The Red-Haired Man's eyes lit up.
"No, his name is Jiang Li. This was his first time taking a test at the martial arts hall, and there's nothing about him in the database."
"Where is he?"
The man they called Brother Jiang was Jiang Nian, the owner of this Limit Martial Arts Hall and the most powerful person in it. The other was Yan Luo, a free martial artist.
"Reporting to the owner, he's left," Bai Ning replied.
"Brother Jiang, not bad. Your hall's about to gain another genius in this martial artist assessment."
"Too bad he didn't awaken until he was twenty. His potential is already capped!"
Jiang Nian sounded regretful.
The earlier someone became a martial artist, the greater their talent, and the better their chances of advancing to War God level later on.
Someone like Jiang Li, who hadn't become a martial arts student by sixteen and had suddenly awakened at twenty, wasn't common in Jiangnan City. But across the whole Hanxia Kingdom, let alone the entire world, people like him were as plentiful as fish crossing a river.
"True. You make the fastest progress between sixteen and thirty. The older you get, the harder it is to improve!" Yan Luo said regretfully. "Since I've got nothing on, I'll go to the Yangzhou Martial Arts Hall tomorrow and see whether there are any promising newcomers this year!"
As soon as Jiang Li got home, he smelled the delicious aroma of food.
"Honey, you're back!"
Ling Ling hurried over and gave him a warm hug.
"Yeah. Honey, guess whether I passed the test."
Jiang Li took her smooth, delicate hand and led her to the dining room. A bottle of red wine had already been set on the table.
"I have faith in you!"
Although she didn't want Jiang Li to take risks, she understood that as a man, he wanted to protect her.
Only by becoming strong could he better protect the woman he loved!
After they'd eaten and drunk their fill,
Jiang Li said to Ling Ling, "The assessment this time is at the Yangzhou Guild Hall. The round trip will take a whole day, so you don't need to make dinner for me."
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