Becoming a Martial Artist

Beep! Beep!

Heavy trucks drove out of the small town, their beds piled high with the carcasses of monsters.

One of the trucks was not carrying monster corpses, but the remains of prospective martial artists; they were mangled and incomplete, clearly having perished in the maws of the beasts.

Some people burst into tears upon seeing the bodies of their friends, only to be sternly reprimanded by an officer.

When Xu Qing walked out, he happened to witness this scene.

He couldn't understand it. Anyone coming here to participate in the actual combat assessment should have known that death was a possibility—they had signed a contract, after all. Since they had come anyway, shouldn't they have been mentally prepared?

To be wailing and sobbing like this, even if it was a friend who had died, seemed a bit much.

It wasn't that one couldn't feel grief, but that kind of blubbering was just... very strange.

Perhaps it was because Xu Qing couldn't empathize with their friendship; he couldn't resonate with it, and instead found it rather odd.

"Officer, this is my left ear... no, wait, this is the monster's left ear... uh, that's not right either, it's the left ear of the monster I killed," Xu Qing said, dumping the monster ears out of his backpack.

The several officers in charge of tallying the scores had been wearing stern, icy expressions, but upon hearing this, they couldn't help but laugh.

Was this little girl here just to amuse them?

"Four monster left ears. Not bad. What's your name?" The officers were somewhat surprised to see the four ears.

They hadn't expected this seemingly delicate young girl to be capable of killing four monsters.

Then, they noticed Xu Qing's weapon. "A bow and arrow?"

For this young girl to choose such a cold weapon was far more difficult than using a blade. Everyone knew that archers feared close-quarters combat; once an enemy got close, they would basically lose their ability to fight and be trampled or slaughtered.

Although the monsters used for the assessment were the lowest tier, they were still formidable enemies for a prospective martial artist.

This was especially true for an archer, as monsters moved quickly, making it extremely difficult to land a kill from a distance.

Yet, Xu Qing had managed it, shooting down four monsters. It was truly no small feat.

Moreover, not only was Xu Qing uninjured, but there wasn't even a speck of blood on his clothes.

"My name is Xu Qing," Xu Qing replied.

"Xu Qing... Alright, good performance. Next!" The officers nodded at him.

After handing over the monster ears, Xu Qing went to return his weapons and equipment to the military district personnel in charge.

"Soon, I'll be a martial artist too," Xu Qing thought, knowing he would definitely pass.

He could tell from the expressions of the officers that handing in four monster ears placed him near the top among all the prospective martial artists.

After all, three monster ears were generally enough to pass the assessment.

"Look, it's Luo Feng from the Limit Martial Arts Hall! He's out. I wonder how many monsters he hunted?"

"He's a genius recruited in advance by the Limit Martial Arts Hall, so it shouldn't be a low number."

"Having strong physical fitness doesn't necessarily mean he's good at hunting monsters. Maybe he's just average."

"So sour... someone's clearly jealous."

Many prospective martial artists looked toward the gate as a young man walked out, his body stained with the blood of many monsters.

Hearing the commotion, Xu Qing drifted over as well. "I think I heard a name that sounds a bit familiar."

Then, looking through the crowd, he was surprised. "Isn't that the guy who kept staring at Sister Xin? He came to the martial artist combat assessment too."

"I remember his name is Luo Feng, right? Didn't he get into college?" Xu Qing wondered.

He hadn't understood it before, but now he realized this Luo Feng must have a crush on Sister Xin, which was why he kept sneaking glances at her.

The noisy chatter broke Xu Qing's train of thought.

It turned out that Luo Feng had handed in thirty-six monster left ears, making him the person with the highest kill count so far.

From the conversations of those around him, he learned that Luo Feng had already been recruited in advance by the Limit Martial Arts Hall.

Among all the prospective martial artists present, only three had been recruited early: Luo Feng, who joined the Limit Martial Arts Hall, and two others who joined the Thunder Martial Arts Hall, named Wan Dong and Ma Xiao.

Being recruited early by a martial arts hall meant they were all geniuses who would likely achieve great things on the path of a martial artist.

"So he's a genius. Maybe he really does have a chance to win over Sister Xin," Xu Qing muttered to himself.

Xu Xin was the daughter of the Xu Family and held a high status; ordinary people shouldn't even dream of it. The world didn't have that many stories of rich girls falling for poor boys, or princes and Cinderellas.

One still had to consider social standing.

Soon, Xu Qing's attention was drawn to someone else—a very beautiful young man. "Stunning" would be a more fitting description; his face was truly of a level that could topple cities and ruin states.

"Wow, he looks just like a girl. I told you, I'm definitely not the only one who looks like a girl, and he looks even more like one than I do," Xu Qing whispered to himself.

Through the conversations of others, Xu Qing learned that the young man was named Ma Xiao, one of the two geniuses recruited early by the Thunder Martial Arts Hall.

"Wan Dong, a total of 51 monster left ears. He surpasses Luo Feng and takes first place."

Hearing the officer's announcement, the crowd gasped in amazement. Killing 51 monsters was simply too fierce.

Xu Qing took a look at the young man named Wan Dong. He had a purple birthmark on his face and an overall gloomy, sullen air; he didn't look pleasant at all, as if everyone owed him money.

"Ma Xiao, 23 monster left ears. Not bad."

The results for that handsome youth named Ma Xiao also came out; aside from Luo Feng and Wan Dong, he was the most outstanding.

Xu Qing watched the commotion for a while before losing interest. Regardless, he had already passed; as soon as his information was recorded, he would be an official martial artist.

Possessing the status of a martial artist allowed one to enjoy many conveniences.

Leaving the North Military Region and heading back to the Xu Family, Xu Qing dialed home, wanting to share this good news with Xu Xin in advance.

"Hello, is that Xiao Qing?" Xu Xin's voice rang out.

"Sister Xin, it's me. I passed the actual combat assessment and am now an official martial artist," Xu Qing told her.

"That is truly wonderful. When you get back, we must celebrate properly," Xu Xin said, feeling happy for him.

Xu Qing nodded. "Mm-hmm, I'm already on my way back and will be home this afternoon..."

After delivering the news, Xu Qing ended the call, his mood excellent.

It was near dusk by the time Xu Qing returned home.

"Xiao Qing, congratulations on becoming a martial artist," Xu Xin said, giving him a hug.

"Hehe, Sister Xin, let me tell you, there were so many people participating in the prospective martial artist assessment—over sixteen hundred—but forty percent were eliminated."

"Also, Sister Xin, guess who I saw? You'll never believe it," Xu Qing said mysteriously.

Xu Xin looked at him with a smile. "Who? Why so mysterious?"

"Luo Feng. It seems he didn't go to college but joined the Limit Martial Arts Hall instead. And he's a genius, too; he was recruited early by the Limit Martial Arts Hall. In this actual combat assessment, he killed thirty-six monsters," Xu Qing said slowly.