Practical Combat

At this moment, the examiner in the arena finally came to his senses and shouted:

"Cheng Heng! Five thousand jin of strength!"

"Where did this man come from? To possess such astonishing strength!"

"Looks like he's from the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall in the Outer City!"

The many commoners watching below immediately began discussing it among themselves.

On the raised platform, a flicker of surprise passed through He Chunshan's eyes.

"Born in the Outer City, with decent talent. I showed him kindness before; if I draw him in further later, he may well become a capable man under my command!"

The first round of assessments continued. Among the five great martial halls and three major lineages, disciples who drew gasps of amazement appeared from time to time.

The record of five thousand jin of strength was broken three times in succession.

One was Xu Jie, a true disciple of the Rushing Thunder Martial Academy. His strength had already reached Hidden Force Completion, and it was said that he had begun to challenge the bottleneck of Skill-Transforming Force.

Another was the young master of the Qian Family, Qian Feng, who had been born with divine strength and possessed an astonishing physique!

Cheng Heng watched quietly from below the arena while secretly making his own estimate.

His result in the first round had already placed him within the top ten.

So long as he continued to perform well in the second round, a place in the top ten was as steady as Mount Tai.

It was not until the sun went down that the first round of assessments finally came to a complete end.

The other spectators also began leaving one after another. Just as Cheng Heng was about to depart, a burly middle-aged man with a smile on his face approached him and cupped his hands.

"I am Lin Qing of the Might-Guard Escort Agency. Greetings, Young Hero Cheng!"

Cheng Heng returned the gesture calmly. "May I ask what Escort Chief Lin seeks from me?"

The Might-Guard Escort Agency was the largest escort agency in Gaoyang County. Goods traveling from the county town to the prefectural city were basically all protected by the Might-Guard Escort Agency, whose strength was formidable!

Lin Qing smiled faintly. "Young Hero Cheng's vitality and blood are truly astonishing. Would Young Hero Cheng be willing to take a post at my escort agency? Fifty taels of silver per month, along with five Essence-Blood Pills."

Cheng Heng considered it for a moment before finally cupping his hands.

"Please allow me to consider this matter. If I agree, I will come to the escort agency and find you!"

Lin Qing smiled slightly at those words, showing his understanding, then bid Cheng Heng farewell.

Afterward, several wealthy households and landlords came forward with invitations, hoping to recruit Cheng Heng.

Their offers all exceeded those given to ordinary Hidden Force martial artists by a great deal, but Cheng Heng had his own considerations and declined them all.

Leaving the noisy crowd, Cheng Heng quickly returned home. He needed to rest early today in preparation for tomorrow's practical combat test!

Early the next morning, Cheng Heng arrived at the Martial Examination grounds.

The square before the county office was still a sea of voices, but the number of examinees in the arena had decreased.

It seemed the first round's strength test had eliminated quite a few people!

And the second round, practical sparring, was about to begin.

Today would completely determine the rankings of Gaoyang County's Martial Examination.

Training through the dog days of summer and the bitterest days of winter, martial artists tempered over many years had waited precisely for this opportunity, hoping for the chance to leap like a fish over the dragon gate!

On the viewing stand not far away.

Wu Yong, master of the Prosperity Martial Academy, sat beneath a sunshade. Then he instructed Huang Hua beside him in a deep voice.

"Do you see the people from the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall over there?"

Huang Hua focused his eyes into the distance, observed for a moment, then replied in a low voice, "I see them, Master!"

Wu Yong narrowed his eyes, a cold glint flashing through them.

"When you face disciples of the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall in practical combat, show no mercy. If you can cripple one or two of them, all the better—especially those two named Cheng Heng and Chen An!"

Hearing this, Huang Hua's expression turned serious.

"Master, leave this to me. Those two disciples may have ranked well in the first round, but when it comes to real combat, they are far from my match."

"If I run into them, I'll definitely let them know just how high the heavens are and how thick the earth is!"

Huang Hua was Wu Yong's second disciple. Among Hidden Force experts, his strength ranked near the top.

The grudge between the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall and the Prosperity Martial Academy had a long history. It stemmed from the feud Wu Yong and Wu Zhong had formed back then.

When Wu Zhong first arrived in Gaoyang County and wanted to establish his own martial hall, he had once challenged the Prosperity Martial Academy. At the time, Wu Yong had still been a disciple, and Wu Zhong had defeated him!

That was why Wu Yong harbored such hatred toward the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall. In the past, he had never found an opportunity.

Now that the Martial Examination had provided one, Wu Yong naturally had no intention of letting them off lightly!

Very soon, an examiner called Cheng Heng's name.

Hearing the examiner's shout, Cheng Heng strode swiftly onto the arena. His opponent was a middle-aged man with a broad back and powerful waist.

When the middle-aged man saw Cheng Heng take the stage, he could not help but smile bitterly. "Might-Guard Escort Agency, Lin Zhanqiu!"

Cheng Heng's performance yesterday had been nothing short of a single cry that startled the world. Now that he had encountered such an expert, Lin Zhanqiu naturally found the situation troublesome.

But things had come to this. He could only use every ounce of his strength and fight Cheng Heng fiercely to determine the victor!

Cheng Heng's expression was calm as he cupped his hands. "Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall, Cheng Heng!"

Immediately afterward, Cheng Heng let out a thunderous roar and attacked first!

His right foot stomped the ground fiercely, and his body shot toward Lin Zhanqiu like a heavy cannon.

The Might-Guard Escort Agency was Gaoyang County's foremost escort agency. Its cultivation technique, the Great Vajra Palm, possessed astonishing power and could not be underestimated.

Lin Zhanqiu's face was as still as deep water. He pushed the Great Vajra Palm to its utmost limit, Hidden Force gathering in both palms as he guarded his front so tightly that not even water could seep through.

Cheng Heng's expression was cold and stern. Power rapidly gathered in his right fist. He neither dodged nor retreated, clearly intending to use force to break force!

Bang! Bang! Bang!

As fists and palms collided, bursts of explosive booms rang out!

In the blink of an eye, the two had exchanged several moves.

Lin Zhanqiu's arms went numb. He was driven back several steps in succession, and shock filled his heart!

Cheng Heng's fist technique is not only perfected to the point of mastery—it is also this tyrannical!

Seeing that Lin Zhanqiu had fallen into a disadvantage, Cheng Heng pressed his attack. Seizing an opening, he drove a punch into Lin Zhanqiu's left shoulder.

Lin Zhanqiu immediately felt the blood and qi within his body churn. He could no longer withstand Cheng Heng's attacks.

In real combat, one step slow meant every step slow.

Lin Zhanqiu forced himself to hold on, barely blocking several more moves before Cheng Heng knocked him off the arena with a single punch!

"Thank you for yielding!"

On the arena, Cheng Heng cupped his hands.

"Thank you for showing mercy, Young Hero!"

Lin Zhanqiu barely steadied himself, calmed his surging blood and qi, and spoke with a bitter expression.

He knew Cheng Heng had already shown mercy and had not struck to kill. Otherwise, given Cheng Heng's strength, he would certainly have been injured.

After this, he would no longer have any chance to take the stage in the remaining matches!

After the match ended, Cheng Heng turned his attention to the other arenas.

This was a rare occasion for martial artists across Gaoyang County to gather. Carefully observing other people's matches would also improve his practical combat ability!

Just as Cheng Heng was engrossed in watching, he suddenly heard waves of shouting and commotion coming from another arena.

Suspicion rose in his heart, and he hurried toward the arena where something had happened.

He saw the arena surrounded so densely by people that it resembled an iron barrel, while noisy discussions continuously reached Cheng Heng's ears.

"The Prosperity Martial Academy really showed no mercy!"

"I'm afraid Zhao Wei has suffered serious injuries. He has no chance in this Martial Examination now!"

"It seems the Tiger-Subduing Martial Hall and the Prosperity Martial Academy have become mortal enemies this time."

The more Cheng Heng heard, the grimmer his expression became. He hurriedly squeezed through the crowd and stepped forward.