Challenging a Martial Warrior

"Brother Yuan, you did it!" Tie Niu's eyes reddened as he strode forward and hugged Su Yuan.

He knew Su Yuan had been silent and withdrawn for the past two months. The others had suffered one failure after another, and Su Yuan must have been under immense pressure.

But in the end, practicing martial arts depended on oneself. There was truly only so much Tie Niu could do.

Su Yuan hugged him back. "I got lucky and broke through on my first try. From now on, I'll have to spar with you and see which of us is stronger."

"Yeah!" Tie Niu nodded emphatically, already figuring out how to make sure Brother Yuan practiced with him more often so he could grow stronger faster.

The others in the courtyard wore a jumble of expressions, their feelings all mixed together.

Su Yuan had really made it!

And he'd broken through on his first try!

Huang Jiangyue felt a tightness in his chest. Could it be that this medicine suited those with inferior roots in particular? Why was Su Yuan so lucky?

Not long ago, he had tried to break through again, only to fail once more.

Jiang Yu unconsciously clenched the hem of her clothes. She hadn't even reached a bottleneck yet, while most of the academy's disciples had already tried to break through once.

Thinking of how she had once looked down on Su Yuan and kept her distance from him, Jiang Yu felt her face grow hot. An indescribable shame and self-doubt welled up inside her.

"Am I just not cut out for martial arts?" Her nose stung, and she nearly burst into tears.

Someone who had once been at the bottom alongside her had suddenly leaped ahead of everyone and become a Martial Warrior.

She wasn't stupid. Now she realized that although Su Yuan usually hadn't been at the academy, he must have been training hard somewhere else.

"Good, good. I knew this boy was exceptional from the start. Jiang Yu, don't lose heart either. Take it one step at a time, and you'll make it eventually." Liu Chang stroked his beard and praised his only male disciple, then offered Jiang Yu some encouragement as well.

Chai Lang gave a cheeky grin. "Old man, take a look at what he's been practicing. He became a Martial Warrior through Flying Horse Leg!"

Liu Chang gave a dry cough. "It's all the same."

Lin Fan had already rushed forward, beaming. "Brother Su, two Martial Warriors in one family—truly born of dragon and phoenix stock! Congratulations, Senior Brother Su Yuan, on becoming a Martial Warrior!"

Lin Fan had become a Martial Warrior before Su Yuan, but now that Su Yuan had broken through, he immediately addressed him as Senior Brother.

Seeing that, the others couldn't help murmuring to themselves, but they still came forward to offer their congratulations and a little silver.

Su Yuan declined. "It was just luck. You all have a hard time practicing martial arts, so keep the silver to buy your own medicine."

Meng Qi, standing off to the side, felt deeply embarrassed.

In recent days, several disciples with inferior roots had tried to break through, and every one of them had failed.

He had thought he was the sole "prodigy" among this batch of disciples. He hadn't expected Su Yuan to emerge as well.

Seeing Su Yuan turn down everyone's gifts only made Meng Qi feel worse.

Why didn't you have to worry about money?

And why did you have a powerful younger brother you could ask for advice whenever you wanted?

How could the families people were born into differ so much?

Seeing the people from the Chai Family Martial Academy chattering noisily, Rong Qi cut in coldly from behind. "Whether you've become a Martial Warrior or not, tell us the whole story about the Xingyun remnants! You've only just become a Martial Warrior. How could you handle so many people?"

Su Yuan sighed and could only tell the truth: there had been only two attackers. He briefly described their builds and features.

Rong Qi couldn't arrest anyone on Chai Family territory, so he took note of the details and led his people away.

Only after hearing Su Yuan's account did Meng Qi realize that Su Yuan had been boasting earlier.

Everyone returned to the courtyard. Overjoyed, Tie Niu went to report the news to Chai Nian.

At that moment, Meng Qi shot a glance at Wang Biao beside him.

Wang Biao understood and sidled up to Su Yuan, flattering him. "Now that Senior Brother Su Yuan has become a Martial Warrior, why not challenge someone above you and claim a ranking?"

There was nothing wrong with the suggestion.

After Lin Fan became a Martial Warrior, he had challenged Meng Qi and lost.

Among this batch of disciples, only Lin Fan and Meng Qi were Martial Warriors.

Since Lin Fan had already accepted a lower rank, if Su Yuan wanted to establish his place, he could only challenge Meng Qi.

Meng Qi had challenged several senior brothers too, winning some and losing others. But against Tie Niu, he hadn't been able to fight back at all.

Su Yuan glanced at Meng Qi and nodded. "All right. Then I'll ask Senior Brother Meng for guidance."

He had decided to reveal some of his strength. First, he wanted to demonstrate his value. Second, he wanted to lay the groundwork for his role in the Wolf God Ritual—to work his way into Great Liang's upper ranks and obtain more resources and information.

"Please, Junior Brother Su Yuan." Meng Qi was delighted.

Since Su Yuan had challenged him of his own accord, even if Meng Qi defeated him, Tie Niu wouldn't be able to say anything.

Lin Fan advised him from the side, "Senior Brother Su Yuan, why not stabilize your cultivation first? I lost because I was too eager to challenge someone."

"It's fine," Su Yuan said calmly.

Everyone gathered around. Another good show was about to begin.

Du Ziqian asked, "Senior Brother Huang, who do you think will win?"

"Senior Brother Meng, naturally. He's been a Martial Warrior for nearly half a month, and the Galloping Horse Fist he practices is well suited to fighting in the ring," Huang Jiangyue replied.

Du Ziqian nodded too. "The ring is cramped. It really doesn't favor leg techniques."

Most people still favored Meng Qi to keep his title of senior brother.

Su Yuan, however, was wondering how much strength he should use and how many kicks it would take to send his opponent flying off the platform.

Meng Qi stepped onto the platform and courteously yielded. "Please, Junior Brother Su Yuan."

Su Yuan didn't bother with pleasantries. He moved in a flash and charged forward, so fast that the onlookers' vision blurred.

Meng Qi felt it even more keenly on the platform. Before he could think, he let out a shout, sank his waist, and settled into a horse stance. His right fist shot out like a galloping horse breaking free of its pen, the blow cutting through the air with a muffled whoosh as it drove straight toward Su Yuan's face!

But Su Yuan's footwork was elusive, darting about like a flying horse. In an instant, he had slipped around to Meng Qi's side.

Meng Qi twisted around in a hurry and swung his fist. Just as the wind from his punch rose, Su Yuan's left leg swept out like a whip. It was Hoof Sweep in Eight Directions, one of the Flying Horse Leg techniques. His leg cracked against the outside of Meng Qi's arm, knocking him off balance.

Su Yuan pressed his advantage. The instant he landed, he pushed off with his toes and darted forward again.

Furious and startled, Meng Qi gathered strength in his right fist and swung. But Su Yuan had already rushed inside his guard. His other leg shot out like a venomous dragon darting from its lair, kicking hard into the side of Meng Qi's knee!

The move was both swift and vicious. It was Hidden Horse Hoof Kick, a technique designed to strike the soft spots around the joints.

Meng Qi had already lost his balance. His knee buckled, and he stumbled forward.

Before he could catch his breath, Su Yuan drove his right foot into the ground and spun with the momentum, powering the movement through his waist and abdomen. His legs rose like a rearing steed's hooves and slammed into Meng Qi's hastily crossed arms!

"Bang!"

Meng Qi felt as though a pair of iron hammers had smashed into his arms. Pain surged through him, and he could no longer hold on. His feet left the ground as he flew backward, landing flat on his back below the platform.

"Thank you for yielding, Junior Brother Meng," Su Yuan said, cupping his fists.

The whole courtyard fell silent.

"T-three moves?" someone murmured. "Senior Brother Su Yuan beat him in just three moves?"

"How can his Flying Horse Leg be so fast? And his kicks are terrifyingly powerful!"

Were they even practicing the same martial arts?

"I'm not convinced! I was careless just now!" Meng Qi scrambled to his feet, his face flushed as he started to charge back onto the platform.

"That's enough," a calm voice said.

Chai Nian and Tie Niu were already standing in front of the hall. Clearly, they had witnessed the entire bout.

Chai Nian fanned himself, his gaze lingering on Su Yuan for a moment. It seemed Gao Mian had given the boy plenty of pointers, and he'd managed to get something out of them.

In Chai Nian's eyes, Su Yuan had become a Martial Warrior in two months mostly because Gao Mian had cultivated him.

Still, he praised him aloud. "Not bad. You're the third Martial Warrior from this batch, and you have inferior roots as well. As a reward, you'll receive three Blood Origin Pills. All of you should take Su Yuan as an example."

The appearance of another Martial Warrior with inferior roots undoubtedly gave everyone else a shot in the arm. They all hoped they would succeed the next time they tried to break through.

Su Yuan accepted the reward. "Thank you, Young Master."

Everyone gathered around again, showering him with praise.

"Senior Brother Su Yuan, how did you train your leg techniques? Could you give me a pointer or two?" Lin Fan asked.

Meng Qi sat alone to the side, looking dejected.

Even Wang Biao, who had followed him around earlier, had sidled up to Su Yuan. "Senior Brother Su Yuan, I knew you could do it!"

The Su brothers' influence at the Chai Family Martial Academy had become unstoppable. Everyone lowered themselves to curry favor with them.

Su Yuan declined them one by one, then took his leave and headed straight to Gao Mian's place in the Inner City.

Tie Niu caught up and handed him a stiff piece of red paper stamped with an official seal. Grinning sheepishly, he said, "Brother Yuan, you're a Martial Warrior now. That makes you a second-tier citizen."

Su Yuan took the red paper, his expression complicated. He almost wanted to laugh; he had nearly forgotten about this.

With the Chai Family's backing and Tie Niu's influence, he had long been able to ignore plenty of rules. But only now had he truly escaped the lowly status of a commoner.

He made a deliberate detour to the South City Gate.

The soldier who had cursed at him before was still there. When Su Yuan showed him the stiff red pass, the man quickly bowed, his face wreathed in smiles. "Please come in, honored Martial Warrior!"

Su Yuan didn't hurry inside. He just smiled at him.

"Does the honored Martial Warrior have any other instructions?" Tan Shen looked up, then froze.

It was him!

Su Yuan usually went to see Gao Mian through this gate. He passed through every day, so Tan Shen naturally remembered him. But hadn't he been a third-tier citizen?

There was a hint of amusement in Su Yuan's smile.

Tan Shen suddenly recalled that two months ago, when Su Yuan had been one of the Grey People, he himself had apparently cursed him out.

He forced out an awkward grin, about to explain.

Su Yuan raised a hand and patted his stiff shoulder. The touch wasn't hard, but Tan Shen shuddered from head to toe.

Su Yuan spoke evenly. "From now on, don't look down on people because of their status."

With that, he didn't look back as he strode into the Inner City.

After two months, he had finally entered the Inner City on the strength of his own fists, with his head held high.

But this still wasn't nearly enough.