Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
Inside the courtyard.
Zhang Jing checked the Flying Sword and Water Cloud Shield in his hands over and over, lest either Law Artifact develop a problem when he used it today.
Then he took another look at the fish of Law Techniques within the Five-Law Spirit River.
Only after confirming that all his preparations were complete did he draw a deep breath, push open the door, and head toward the Inheritance Pavilion.
Compared with usual, the roads were much quieter today.
Along the way, Zhang Jing encountered quite a few people, all walking forward in silence, their faces solemn.
Before long.
Tap, tap-
Zhang Jing slowly walked into the Square before the Inheritance Pavilion.
With a brief sweep of his gaze, he roughly estimated that as many as three hundred people had joined the Dao Academy this time.
These three hundred were the geniuses Dragon Lake Dao Academy had selected from the many millions of youths of suitable age across the Nanli Kingdom's Thirteen Prefectures.
His gaze passed over the surrounding crowd and looked farther out.
Ten square stone platforms had already risen in the center of the Square, each over ten feet tall and a hundred feet long and wide.
These platforms were arranged in a circle, blue-green light shimmering over them, giving an impression of unbreakable solidity.
Farther out stood more than a dozen towering stone pillars and a dense array of small stone platforms, with meditation cushions arranged neatly upon them.
At this moment, quite a few senior brothers and sisters from the Outer Court, dressed in blue-green robes, were already seated on those cushions. From time to time, they looked toward his group with curiosity or anticipation.
Zhang Jing guessed that these people belonged to the Outer Court's many mission squads.
The sun rose on the horizon.
Streaks of escaping light suddenly flew out of the Inheritance Pavilion and landed atop the massive stone pillars in an instant, vast and terrifying spiritual power fluctuations spreading in all directions.
The Square, bustling just a moment earlier, instantly fell silent.
"Junior brothers and sisters."
Clad in purple, Senior Brother Liu appeared soundlessly at the very center of the Square and declared:
"I now announce the official start of this ranking assessment. First, let me explain the rules for the first qualifying round."
The instant his voice fell.
Countless gazes converged on Senior Brother Liu in midair.
"The rules for this round are simple. There are ten Demonstration Platforms over there. There are no restrictions on Law Techniques or Law Artifacts. As long as you can hold out against the puppet on the platform for thirty breaths, you will pass the first round. Otherwise, you will be eliminated."
As he spoke.
Senior Brother Liu swept his sleeve, and ten streaks of light flew out, landing directly on the Demonstration Platforms and transforming into ten humanoid puppets that gleamed black as iron from head to toe, their auras icy.
"In sixty breaths, those whose names I call will step onto the Demonstration Platforms."
With that, Senior Brother Liu closed his eyes.
Below.
The crowd immediately surged toward the Demonstration Platforms like a tide.
As he walked, Zhang Jing suddenly felt someone gently tug his clothes. He turned to look and found Ji Bochang.
"Brother Ji?"
"Shall we go together, Brother Zhang?"
"Excellent."
When the time came, Senior Brother Liu opened his eyes in midair, a Jade Slip appearing in his hand.
"Li Cheng, First Law-Performance Platform."
"Wu Wenxuan, second Demonstration Platform."
Senior Brother Liu's voice rang out continuously. Those whose names he called immediately wore bitter expressions and trudged heavily onto the Demonstration Platforms.
Zhang Jing followed them with his gaze.
He saw a man slowly step onto a Demonstration Platform.
Opposite him, the puppet abruptly raised its head, lines of magical patterns lighting up all over its body.
Then the puppet stamped down hard with one foot. Its entire body became a blur too fast for the naked eye to follow, appearing before the man in an instant and throwing a punch.
The air was instantly torn apart with a piercing shriek.
Bang-
Before the man could react at all, he was sent flying, crashing heavily to the ground with a large section of his chest caved in.
Hiss-
All around Zhang Jing, sharp intakes of breath rose one after another.
Fortunately, a purple-robed figure suddenly rose from one of the stone pillars. A streak of white light flashed over and plunged straight into the man's body.
The next moment, his injuries began healing at an utterly terrifying speed.
Bringing the dead to life and regrowing flesh upon bare bones could hardly have looked any different.
Meanwhile.
Zhang Jing's gaze sharpened slightly.
These puppets were no pushovers. He reckoned the vast majority would not even make it through the first round.
"These puppets are supposedly forged entirely from yin-cold iron, making them indestructible. They're also inscribed with numerous restriction Dao patterns. Even the weakest has combat strength comparable to a Qi Refining Third Layer cultivator. But the senior brothers from the Inner Academy must have limited their strength, or that man would have been smashed apart just now."
Ji Bochang explained quietly to Zhang Jing.
"Did the senior sister tell you all this too?" Zhang Jing asked, turning his head.
"Of course." Ji Bochang nodded. "They sell these things at the Thousand Techniques Pavilion. The cheapest costs sixty Dao Merit."
"I see."
Zhang Jing nodded.
Almost without his noticing, it was nearly noon.
Thanks to the puppets striking so swiftly and ruthlessly, the first round of the assessment was already nearing its end.
Yet the atmosphere was growing increasingly lively.
By now, several geniuses with Grade B evaluations had taken the stage. The moment they stepped up, they displayed performances utterly different from those of most people rated Third Grade or Grade D.
Some sent Law Artifacts sweeping through the air; others wielded powerful Law Techniques.
Besides withstanding the puppets' terrifying attacks, they could occasionally counterattack.
This drew repeated cries of astonishment from the crowd below.
Below the platforms.
Ji Bochang dragged his somewhat bedraggled figure over to Zhang Jing and said gravely:
"Brother Zhang, be careful when your turn comes. These puppets are truly difficult to deal with. You can't damage them, and their attacks are absurdly powerful."
"Thank you for the warning, Brother Ji. I'll be careful."
Zhang Jing answered calmly.
While the two were speaking.
"Zhang Jing, ninth Demonstration Platform," Senior Brother Liu's voice rang out.
"They've called me."
Zhang Jing smiled faintly, then strode toward the ninth Demonstration Platform under the gazes of those around him.
Below the Demonstration Platform.
Watching that unfamiliar figure climb onto the platform step by step, and recalling the unfamiliar name they had just heard, the surrounding crowd immediately understood: another Grade B genius.
They all fixed their eyes on the platform.
Whoosh-
After several deep breaths, Zhang Jing shut out all the clamor around his ears, his gaze instantly focusing on the puppet.
He stepped forward!
It was as though he had triggered a switch.
Before Zhang Jing's eyes, the puppet suddenly raised its head, its hollow eyes staring straight at him. Intricate lines of Law Technique restrictions lit up, and violent spiritual power fluctuations surged toward his face.
The next instant.
The puppet brought both fists across its chest and leaped high, carrying an icy, murderous aura as it smashed straight toward Zhang Jing like a heavy hammer.
Fast! Incomparably fast!
Like a bolt of black lightning, it flashed into view before Zhang Jing.
The fierce wind raised by the puppet's movement struck his face like needles.
There was no Law Technique involved.
The puppet's incredibly hard body, coupled with its extreme speed, made this strike more terrifying than an ordinary Law Technique.
Just what I wanted!
Zhang Jing's gaze focused, and one hand swept across his Storage Bag.
The Water Cloud Shield abruptly appeared, then moved as though teleporting, blocking the space between him and the puppet. Abundant spiritual power poured from his dantian into the Water Cloud Shield, making the black spiritual light enveloping it ever deeper and more condensed.
Boom-
The violent collision instantly resounded throughout the Square, drawing countless gazes.
Under the puppet's attack, the spiritual light covering the Water Cloud Shield flickered wildly, as though it might shatter the very next moment.
But in the end, it held.
Seeing the small shield block its attack, light flashed in the puppet's eyes.
It seized the Water Cloud Shield tightly with one hand while bending its entire body around. Using the shield as a pivot, it actually became a long whip, lashing viciously toward Zhang Jing behind it.
An even stronger surge of spiritual power suddenly erupted from the puppet.
It could do that too?
A trace of surprise crossed Zhang Jing's face, but he did not panic.
With a metallic ring, Zhang Jing deployed his Flying Sword. An intensely condensed black edge immediately coiled around its blade as it met the puppet head-on.
Amid a clash of metal, Zhang Jing blocked the puppet's attack once again.
With no other choice, the puppet withdrew, seeking another opening.
Opposite it.
Zhang Jing slowly swept his gaze over the puppet.
Since you've retreated, the initiative in this battle belongs to me now.
After only two attacks, Zhang Jing had already gauged this puppet's combat strength.
Qi Refining Second Layer!
It was probably matched to his own cultivation. After all, when he had watched from below earlier, this puppet had not been this strong.
But Qi Refining Second Layer... is just right!
Thick-skinned, tough, and able to take a beating. Its attacks might be a little monotonous, but it was still at the same level. Wasn't this an excellent target for practicing Law Artifact control?
With a stir of his thoughts.
An illusory Mind's Eye slowly opened.
The Flying Sword immediately blazed with light, turning into a streak that tore through the air and slashed straight at the puppet.
Bang!
The powerful, heavy blow sent the puppet staggering.
Relying on its hard body, the puppet ignored the Flying Sword, rose, and lunged at Zhang Jing. Yet before it had taken even two steps, the Water Cloud Shield came hurtling toward it and smashed heavily into its face.
For a time, under Zhang Jing's control, the Flying Sword and Water Cloud Shield were now aggressive as fire, now advancing steadily as a forest.
Insights into Law Artifact control arose one after another, allowing Zhang Jing to wield the Flying Sword and Water Cloud Shield with increasing ease.
One attacking and the other defending, the two Law Artifacts seemed to weave an impenetrable net, locking the puppet firmly within.
Finally.
On the twenty-seventh breath.
Zhang Jing battered the puppet clean off the Demonstration Platform.
Silence reigned on all sides.
"Zhang Jing, passed." Senior Brother Liu's voice rang out at just the right moment, breaking the silence.
Zhang Jing retrieved his Law Artifacts and walked down with a calm expression.
On the neighboring tenth Demonstration Platform.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The puppet's attacks came like a raging tempest. His face deathly pale, Wu Mingyuan controlled his Law Artifact, struggling desperately to withstand blows that grew more terrifying with each strike.
His Qi Refining First Layer spiritual power was nearly exhausted, and the spiritual light on his Law Artifact had dimmed to the utmost.
"Five breaths, four breaths, three breaths..."
With his vision darkening, Wu Mingyuan silently counted the remaining time.
"Wu Mingyuan, passed."
To Wu Mingyuan at that moment, Senior Brother Liu's voice sounded like heavenly music.
The lines of restriction Law Techniques on the puppet gradually went dark.
Unable to hold on any longer, Wu Mingyuan went limp and collapsed. Lying on the ground, he no longer cared about appearances and simply gasped for breath.
Just then, Zhang Jing's slowly departing figure on the ninth Demonstration Platform came into view.
He could not help looking toward the puppet lying below that platform, an inexplicable trace of relief rising in his heart:
Luckily, I offered compensation and apologized in time back then. Otherwise, now I might...
On a stone platform along the perimeter.
"Junior brother, is that the Zhang Jing you invited before, only to be refused?"
"Yes, senior brother."
"In terms of talent, he has a Grade B evaluation. As for temperament, he remains composed before an enemy, and his timing in both attack and defense is excellent. He's a fine seedling. How about this, junior brother? Once the rankings are settled, sorry for the trouble, but please invite him again on behalf of our Hundred Rivers Squad."
"Senior brother, he refused us before-"
"Then just raise your offer a little more, junior brother. What's all this talk about rejection? It's simply that our terms haven't met his expectations."
"The thirty-percent cut of Dao Merit?"
"That rule cannot be broken. Find a way to approach it from another angle."
"Brother Zhang, your cultivation... Qi Refining Second Layer?!"
Ji Bochang stared blankly at Zhang Jing and spoke in considerable shock.
"It was all luck, all luck," Zhang Jing replied modestly.
"Heh, luck again..."
A trace of mixed feelings colored Ji Bochang's gaze as he looked at Zhang Jing.
From first entering the Seventh Temporary Academy, to mastering the basics of the Visualization Method, to Qi Induction, and then to now, less than a month had passed.
And in that brief span of time.
He had watched this Brother Zhang of his go from lagging far behind, to mastering the basics of the Visualization Method just one day after him, to now reaching Qi Refining Second Layer ahead of him-
It all felt like a dream, so exaggerated that it seemed unreal.
For an instant, Ji Bochang felt that Brother Zhang might not necessarily be inferior to those two First Grade prodigies.
But the next moment, he shook his head.
What am I thinking?
"Chen Xiandao, First Law-Performance Platform."
Senior Brother Liu's voice suddenly rang out, instantly drawing everyone's attention. Everyone, Zhang Jing included, crowded toward the First Law-Performance Platform.
On the stone platforms around the perimeter.
The moment they heard that name, people from the various mission squads stopped chatting, their gazes unconsciously turning toward the first stone platform ahead.
A burly, bald man sat cross-legged there, the fluctuations of spiritual power around him extraordinarily violent, like a volcano about to erupt.
"So that's... Chen Xiandao, one of this intake's two First Grade prodigies?"
Amid the crowd, Zhang Jing watched the tall figure ascend the Demonstration Platform, a trace of curiosity stirring within him.
He had heard that this man had been cultivating in an island cave abode belonging to the top-ranked Coiling Dragon Squad, so he had only ever heard his name, never seen him in person.
Now I finally get to see him in the flesh!
Of course, Zhang Jing was more curious about the Upper-Grade Cultivation Method the man practiced than about his appearance.
On the platform.
The puppet's figure blurred, then abruptly appeared before Chen Xiandao.
Here it comes!
With a stir of thought, Zhang Jing immediately activated Mind's Eye.
He saw Chen Xiandao's body straighten in an instant, abruptly giving the strange impression of a colossal god holding up the heavens, as searing, flame-like crimson Dao patterns spread over his entire body.
He threw a punch!
Fist met fist!
Boom!
Chen Xiandao actually sent the puppet flying with a single punch.
"Chen Xiandao, pass."
Senior Brother Liu's voice rang out.
"Heavens! Brother Zhang, did you see that?"
Ji Bochang cried out involuntarily, his expression contorted by overwhelming shock.
"I saw it."
Zhang Jing answered with a smile, a trace of excitement he could hardly conceal shining in his eyes.
He really had seen it!
Just now, through his Mind's Eye, he had sensed an exceedingly faint wisp of unknown Dao Rhyme wrapped around Chen Xiandao's fist as he struck.
Through that wisp of Dao Rhyme, Zhang Jing seemed to see a terrifying colossal god whose entire body blazed with crimson flames.
He could now be certain that Upper-Grade Cultivation Methods were connected to Dao Rhyme!
PS: Thanks to [Ink Trails Without a Trace] for the tip~~
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