Purple!

"Master and Eldest Senior Brother are back!"

"Master!"

"Eldest Senior Brother, how did the bandit suppression go? Did you encounter any Outworld Demons? Do they really have blue faces, fangs, and boundless strength?"

"They say Outworld Demons have dragon heads, human bodies, and scales all over. I wonder if that's true."

"..."

Wu Deshui and Liu Tong had barely returned to the Martial Arts School when a crowd of apprentices surrounded them on the Martial Arts Ground, firing off questions.

Qian Tao and another instructor, who were also there, came over to help carry their luggage.

Wu Xin had gone to the docks to meet them from the start and had returned with them.

After more than half a month away and a boat journey back, both men looked rather travel-worn.

"We did encounter them. Dragon heads and human bodies is an exaggeration, but they really do have tough scales, sharp teeth and claws, and tremendous strength. Every Outworld Demon seems to be born with extraordinary strength. In terms of brute force alone, even I can't match them.

"But the strange thing is, some have decent combat skills, while others are terrible and have nothing but strength..."

Faced with his junior brothers' questions, Liu Tong shared his impressions.

As the strongest fighter in the Martial Arts School after their master, their Eldest Senior Brother had already reached Great Achievement in Hidden Force and was not yet thirty. He was certain to pass the Provincial Examination of the Martial Examination that August, and even had a slim chance of becoming a Martial Presented Scholar in the following year's Metropolitan Examination.

Rumor had it that, to prepare for this attempt, their Eldest Senior Brother had temporarily halted his Organ Tempering to avoid injuries that might weaken him. He had not taken the Martial Examination before because he had been busy completing the Organ Tempering stages he was confident of handling.

A Hidden Force expert with exceptional physical gifts of his own, Liu Tong had defeated Lizardmen in direct combat.

"Although those Lizardmen have highly protective scales, and quite a few had acquired armor, they still lacked an effective defense against Hidden Force at Great Achievement penetrating their bodies. But their vitality really is incredible. Even with their internal organs shattered, they could still launch a desperate counterattack. Martial Masters from across the county were summoned to help this time, and some well-known ones lost their lives..."

Liu Tong sounded rather wistful as he spoke.

Lin Hao had also come out with Qin Sicheng and heard these descriptions.

Combined with the information from the broadcasts, they gave him a clearer picture.

Those Lizardmen could probably use Wish Power equipment too, which explained why some had decent combat skills thanks to equipment with skill bonuses.

Their physiques far surpassed those of ordinary humans. With certain equipment added into the mix, they could even kill Martial Masters supported by troops encircling them.

They first appeared ten years ago. That means the earliest batch of Lizardmen might have been training for ten years already. With their physical advantages and equipment bonuses for martial training, they can't be underestimated, even if their bodies might not be well suited to human martial arts.

Lin Hao pondered this for a moment, then took the initiative to ask,

"Eldest Senior Brother, have all those Outworld Demons been killed? What exactly were they trying to do?"

"Most of them were killed, though a few slipped through the net. They were probably planning to organize the bandits into an attack on the county seat, but we put a stop to that."

Their Eldest Senior Brother spoke confidently.

"We mustn't get careless. Those Outworld Demons were clearly covering someone's escape with an important item at the end. Their final resistance was ferocious. They may have some other scheme."

Wu Deshui was much more measured. With a few gray strands in his hair and his refined bearing, he looked more like a schoolteacher.

Lin Hao vaguely sensed that Wu Deshui knew something but had held back because there were too many people around.

Upon hearing Wu Deshui's words, the burly Liu Tong immediately became as meek as a lamb and said no more.

Wu Deshui then looked Lin Hao over with satisfaction and said,

"Hao, I've already heard that you've completed your Whole-Body Force. Accomplishing that in a month shows truly outstanding talent."

"I did it in a month back then too."

Liu Tong, who had only behaved himself for a moment, chimed in again.

Lin Hao almost thought he saw Wu Deshui roll his eyes, though he wasn't sure.

"It's all thanks to your excellent teaching, Master."

Lin Hao was not merely flattering him. He really had relied on Wu Deshui during his first five days of learning, and his equipment came from the Martial Arts School as well.

Without the equipment's skill bonuses, he truly would not have been able to match the speed of Nie Yi, that little glutton.

By now, Nie Yi could produce unified Bright Force eight or nine times out of ten. She would probably complete her Whole-Body Force within a week.

"Haha, I guide every apprentice through the basics the same way, so I know perfectly well. Would you be willing to become my Personal Disciple?"

Wu Deshui's words immediately caused an uproar among the apprentices.

Achieving Bright Force, combined with decent character, could earn someone a place as an Inner-Chamber Disciple and allow them to serve as an instructor at the Martial Arts School, like Qian Tao and the other instructors.

Many of the Martial Arts School's Bright Force apprentices and Inner-Chamber Disciples left to make their way elsewhere once they had attained sufficient skill, which was why there seemed to be so few instructors.

But there were only five Personal Disciples in the entire Martial Arts School!

Their Second Senior Brother and Fourth Senior Brother had both left the Martial Arts School for South of the Yangtze, leaving only three Personal Disciples here!

And only Personal Disciples had a chance to learn the secret arts of Hidden Force and Organ Tempering!

Did Master think Junior Brother Lin had a chance to reach Transforming Force too?!

"Of course I'm willing!"

Lin Hao answered without hesitation.

Although there had been a bad apple, the Martial Arts School's overall atmosphere was excellent. Besides, Lin Hao genuinely wanted to use Wish Power's healing function for Organ Tempering, so he naturally needed the Organ Tempering Secret Art.

"Good."

Wu Deshui looked very pleased with Lin Hao's answer.

He then said,

"The County Examination will begin soon, so we'll hold the discipleship banquet sometime in the next few days. We'll invite a few fellow practitioners to witness it. Since you fled here and have no elders in the area, we can dispense with some of the more cumbersome formalities."

A Personal Disciple was naturally different from an ordinary student of the Martial Arts School. Although martial artists did not insist on lavish celebrations, the proper courtesies still had to be observed.

"I'll leave everything to you, Master."

"Come with me. Let me see how much you've improved."

Wu Deshui smiled in satisfaction. When accepting disciples, he considered not only talent but also character.

Quite apart from the fact that Wu Deshui had once served in the army under the great general, who could guarantee that a disciple of poor character would not betray his master and his lineage for personal gain?

Accepting anyone with talent might well mean planting a hidden danger for himself!

The boy had only been here for a little over a month, and Wu Deshui himself had been away for more than half of it. Normally, he would have needed more time to observe him.

However, when his daughter met him as he disembarked, she had already told him that Hao valued loyalty and affection, and that his character was sound.

His daughter got along well with the two young women in their group, so it was only natural that she knew more about him. That was why Wu Deshui had made his decision!

Encouraged by these words, Lin Hao followed Wu Deshui toward the Left Courtyard.

This was generally a place only Inner-Chamber Disciples could enter. Ordinarily, the Martial Arts School taught apprentices only unarmed combat and staff techniques.

Only after becoming Inner-Chamber Disciples were they given access to the Inner Martial Hall and allowed to learn the spear and saber!

That also meant there should be more equipment here for him to discover!

Following Wu Deshui and Liu Tong through two courtyards, he arrived at the Martial Arts Hall in the Left Courtyard!

It was somewhat smaller than the Martial Arts Ground, but it was a fully roofed hall-a true inner hall.

"Wait here a moment. Your Eldest Senior Brother and I will go freshen up first."

After all, Wu Deshui had only just returned from his journey. His refined bearing suggested that he usually cared about his appearance, so he at least needed a quick wash and a change of clothes.

"I'll wait here for you, Master."

"Xin, explain some of our rules to Hao first."

Wu Deshui had Wu Xin, who had escorted him back, stay behind.

"All right."

Wu Xin nodded. The Wu Family Martial Arts School did not have many rules. Besides the universal strictures against betraying one's master and lineage or harming fellow disciples, it had two relatively uncommon rules: "No Oppressing the Poor" and "No Aiding Tyrants."

Hearing this, Lin Hao felt both surprised and reassured.

The Martial Arts School that even the old farmer praised so highly really does have principles of its own. At least in this day and age, including those two rules is exceedingly rare...

I really did make the right choice!

As he listened to Wu Xin explain the rules, Lin Hao's gaze had already drifted toward the weapon racks nearby.

They mostly held red-tasseled spears and a type of short saber that could almost pass for a dagger.

These were probably the main weapons used for the Crouching Tiger Spear and Crouching Tiger Saber. The difference was that the Crouching Tiger Spear required a foundation in the Crouching Tiger Staff, with proficiency at minimum before one could attempt it, while the Crouching Tiger Saber only required proficiency in the Crouching Tiger Fist.

There were also several stiff bows and Emei Daggers, probably used to practice Bowstring Force and Twin-Dagger Force. Zhao Xiaowen and Nie Yi had likely come here to find equipment to assist their training.

But without Equipment Slots, they could only select the one weapon best suited to them.

In the end, however, Lin Hao's gaze did not linger on the weapon racks on either side. Instead, it settled on the wall at the very center of the Martial Arts Hall!

On the hall's main wall was the character for "martial," which Lin Hao could now recognize.

A grand armchair stood against the center of the wall, and behind it was a heavy suit of armor mounted on a stand!

Lin Hao had heard before that there was a suit of Infantry Armor here, but it had only been a name to him, with no concrete image attached.

Now that he saw just how thick the armor was, he was rather surprised.

It was built up layer upon layer, each covered in metal plates.

The tightly fitted plates overlapped like dragon scales. He could imagine the scrape of metal accompanying every step.

Besides that, a dark spear made entirely of metal hung in front of the character for "martial." Even the blood groove in its tip seemed to retain a dark red hue, giving it a chilling air of slaughter.

The spear neatly formed part of the character's strokes, serving as both an ornament and a testament to the Martial Arts Hall's heritage.

Gradually, Lin Hao stopped hearing his Senior Sister's words. Like a sleepwalker, he approached the Infantry Armor, reaching out to touch it and counting roughly three layers, while gazing up at the spear with a lovestruck expression.

[Veteran's Infantry Armor (blue)]

[Value: 5,400 Wish Power]

[Weight: 30 kg]

[Attached affix: Armored (blue)]

[Attached affix: Arrow protection (blue)]

[Additional affix: Triple-layer protection (blue)]

[A veteran's armor that has drunk deeply of enemy blood, a symbol of his military achievements. With his commanding officer's permission, it accompanied him into retirement in his hometown. Its multiple layers offer some protection against Hidden Force and enhanced protection against arrows.]

Although it was only blue quality, its value exceeded five thousand, and all three affixes were blue!

This was the best blue equipment Lin Hao had seen so far!

It was also an important piece of defensive equipment that could make up for his current shortcomings!

And beyond that, the faint purple glow hanging on the wall dazzled him even more.

[General's Meteoric Iron Spear (purple)]

[Value: 7,977 Wish Power]

[Weight: 23 kg]

[Attached affix: Armor-Piercing (white)]

[Attached affix: Bloodletting (green)]

[Additional affix: Intimidating presence (blue)]

[Attached skill: Crouching Tiger Spear-Great Achievement (purple)]

[A Meteoric Iron Spear that has passed through several owners. Weathered by time, it seems to have lost its former edge, yet years of slaughter on the battlefield have imbued it with an intimidating presence. Its previous owner bestowed it upon a veteran under his command who retired due to injury, and it accompanied him home.]