Volume One: Emerging Prominence Chapter 104: Passing with Ease

Ten minutes later.

Everyone had found their respective positions.

Wang Jue briefly glanced at each group and then withdrew his gaze, only to notice that Wang Bin, Chen You, Sun Da, and the others from his group were all present.

A quick scan revealed that their group had the largest number of people among all the groups, with at least thirty to forty thousand members.

Three solemn-looking proctors stood in the Sword Zone. The one at the forefront was a slightly gray-haired man, flanked by two men around forty years old.

"There's no need to be nervous, everyone. Just relax. The assessment for this round is actually quite simple."

The lead proctor spoke in a deep voice, "First, each of you must perform your most skilled martial technique using the wooden swords provided by the examination venue. Second, you will take turns exchanging five moves with the three of us proctors so that we can score each of you. Finally, the average score will be calculated and added to your previous assessment scores to determine your total score."

Saying this, the lead man exchanged glances with the two men beside him, as if they had conspired beforehand, and uttered a sentence that excited all the candidates.

"In addition, due to new regulations this year, there will be a bonus assessment."

As soon as the bonus assessment was announced, the surroundings immediately erupted in an uproar.

"Holy crap!"

"A bonus item?"

"There were bonus items in school exams, but I didn't expect the adventurer assessment to have them too?"

"I don't think this has ever happened before, has it?"

"What will the bonus assessment test?"

"Oh my god, something this good actually exists."

"Don't be too happy yet. The bonus assessment will definitely be very difficult. If everyone gets bonus points, what's the point? There would be no challenge at all!"

"..."

The crowd chattered and discussed among themselves.

"Silence!"

The lead proctor snorted coldly. The aura of an Orange Star Realm martial artist swept over, and the candidates who were still chatting immediately flushed red and hastily fell silent.

Seeing this, the lead man continued, "During the bonus assessment, you must learn a martial technique within the specified time and then perform it for the three of us to score. Do you all understand?"

"Understood!"

The three proctors went to their seats and sat down. Wang Jue then heard whispering from behind him.

"The man who just spoke is Zhou Tianlong, the chief sword master of Yongan Academy..."

"Yongan Academy, one of the top hundred academies!?"

"My god, I've always dreamed of getting into Yongan Academy."

"What can we do? It's the closest top hundred martial school to our Heping Town..."

"By the way, are you guys going to participate in the bonus assessment later?"

"Let's see how things go first."

"I won't participate."

"Of course I'll participate! What if I'm a once-in-a-century genius, and today is the day my talents are finally awakened?"

"Take that back and let me say it!"

"It's not even dark yet, and you're already dreaming."

"..."

The originally tense atmosphere was considerably eased by a few jokes.

"Number seventeen, Chi Shizhen."

As the proctor called out the number, the relaxed atmosphere suddenly tensed up again.

A candidate of average height, neither tall nor short, stepped forward, took the wooden sword, walked to the three proctors, bowed, took a deep breath, and began to perform his sword technique.

The routine was smooth and flowing. He swung and slashed with fierce momentum, showing that he had practiced this sword technique for a long time and thoroughly mastered it.

However, the attitudes of the three proctors on the seats varied.

After making notes in their respective rosters, the three proctors took turns stepping forward to spar with the candidate.

With Chi Shizhen being the first to take the challenge, everyone gradually got familiar with the process.

They took turns one by one. After finishing, some were filled with regret, beating their chests, while others were beaming with joy, just waiting for the bonus assessment to begin.

After over a hundred people, a staff member picked up the roster and announced, "Number two hundred and twenty-two, Chen You."

A cold and proud figure stepped out from the crowd, immediately sparking whispers all around.

"Is this the famous genius of the Chen family, Chen You?"

"I heard he practiced swordsmanship first when he was young, and then started practicing blade techniques. Now he's a super genius who has mastered both sword and blade."

"I heard that not only is his swordsmanship at the Mastery level, but his blade technique is also at Mastery, and he has even mastered a secret art."

"He's too strong. There's just no comparison. My swordsmanship is only at the Grand Completion stage, and he's already at Mastery."

"He is indeed very strong. I doubt there are many people of the same age who can surpass him in martial techniques."

"Don't joke around. To surpass him, you'd have to reach Perfection. Do you think that's possible?"

"Probably not..."

"Exactly!"

The candidates whispered and discussed among themselves. Even the three proctors smiled and nodded at each other upon seeing Chen You step out, clearly having heard of the Chen family's genius long ago.

"I've long heard that the Chen family produced a genius who dual-cultivates sword and blade. Today, I finally get to see it with my own eyes."

The proctor on the left smiled and said, "I just wonder if this genius of the Chen family can win first place in this assessment?"

"That's hard to say."

The proctor on the right also smiled, "The young master of the Huang family is here this year too. He possesses innate divine strength, and his talent is not much inferior to Chen You's."

"Indeed. The one from the Huang family practices archery. As for who will win the championship between the two, it's hard to tell."

Hearing this, the proctor on the left nodded, then turned to the proctor sitting in the middle and asked, "Senior Zhou, what do you think?"

As the strongest martial artist present, Zhou Tianlong's presence could not be underestimated. Naturally, his opinion carried a lot of weight.

Zhou Tianlong, who had been silent all along, spoke slowly and calmly, "The answer will be known when the scores are tallied. It's too early to discuss it now."

Amidst the crowd's discussion, Chen You calmly took the wooden sword for the assessment.

He thrust the sword out.

The force rippled through the air.

It immediately drew gasps of amazement from the observing candidates.

"His control over strength far exceeds ours..."

"His body moves with the sword, his limbs and torso integrated as one. It's truly terrifying."

"Could Chen You's swordsmanship have already reached such a level?!"

"..."

The proctor who had already favored Chen You nodded repeatedly, "If I'm not mistaken, this should be the sword technique created by their Chen family's ancestor. It has extremely strict requirements for physical fitness. Even if one can learn it, it doesn't mean it's easy to master. I didn't expect Chen You to perform it so well. Given time, I'm afraid the Chen family will produce another sword path powerhouse."

After Chen You finished his demonstration, the three proctors took turns testing him. Unlike their previous impressions, the tangible changes in power this time drew high praise from all three.

Although Zhou Tianlong didn't speak, he nodded in approval.

He was a good seedling.

Due to Chen You's extraordinary performance, the expressions of the surrounding crowd varied.

"This is the first time I've seen all three proctors nod in praise at the same time. It seems the first place in this sword assessment is undoubtedly Chen You's."

"First place is definitely the Young Master Chen's! Senior Zhou Tianlong nodded for the first time."

"A genius like Chen You is destined to go down in history!"

"Sigh, this is what children of noble families are like. Where would such supreme talent appear among commoners?"

Wang Bin, the senior disciple of the Jidao Martial Arts Hall, looked melancholic, while Sun Da cast a mocking glance at Wang Jue, as if taunting that he wasn't even fit to shine Chen You's shoes.

Wang Jue kept his eyes straight ahead, calculating in his mind when it would be his turn for the assessment, completely ignoring the surroundings.

Lost in thought, Chen You had already finished his assessment, and it was then the turn of other candidates to take the stage one by one.

Unfortunately.

During this period, no one appeared who could rival a genius like Chen You, and even Zhou Tianlong's expression returned to its calm, unruffled state.

"Next, number 666, Wang Jue."

Wang Jue walked forward unhurriedly and took the wooden sword.

Not far behind him, Sun Da sneered, "Heh, putting on an act!"

Actually, before coming out, Wang Jue had hesitated about which sword technique to perform.

He currently had an incomplete secret art, Heaven-Cleaving, and the other was the mass-produced Basic Sword Art. However, it was indeed the basic sword art improved by the Jidao Martial Arts Hall. Although its power had changed, the general moves remained the same.

The secret art Heaven-Cleaving was very powerful. If he demonstrated it, he would surely win the favor of the three proctors. However, Wang Jue thought exposing his trump card like this was foolish.

Eliminating this option, the only choice Wang Jue had left was the Basic Sword Art.

Although it was a common technique, he had at least practiced it to the Grandmaster level.

However, the Grandmaster level was also his trump card, and he naturally wouldn't expose it in such a crowded place.

Perhaps because he didn't want to show off too much, Wang Jue displayed his sword technique at the Mastery level in a standard way, not even aiming for Perfection, let alone the subsequent Subtle Realm, Transcendent Realm, and Grandmaster level.

When they saw that Wang Jue was only performing the most basic Basic Sword Art of the martial arts hall, Sun Da immediately sneered repeatedly, "Heh, having the nerve to show off a mere Basic Sword Art. How embarrassing!"

The three proctors also recognized that the sword technique Wang Jue was performing belonged to the category of basic sword arts, so their faces showed no change.

As Wang Jue wielded the sword and stepped, the sword momentum became increasingly fierce.

A subtle sense of roundness and fluidity, not easily noticeable, was clearly perceived by the three proctors who were closest.

"Huh, this candidate is quite interesting."

"If you hadn't mentioned it, I wouldn't have noticed. Such a solid foundation is rare."

"After watching so many candidates' sword techniques, this boy's sword technique is the best!"

"What does Senior Zhou think?"

Zhou Tianlong carefully observed Wang Jue performing the sword technique and said slowly, "It's hard to say. We'll know his depth when we test him later."

"The Senior is right."

Next, the three proctors took turns testing Wang Jue.

When it was Zhou Tianlong's turn, the usually unsmiling senior held the wooden sword in one hand and signaled to Wang Jue, "Just attack directly."

"Alright."

Wang Jue nodded and didn't stand on ceremony, slashing directly downward.

This sword strike was extremely simple. Those without some skill wouldn't be able to see the intricacies of this move.

At this moment, Zhou Tianlong, who was closest to Wang Jue, truly felt the surging power contained within this strike.

"Good boy..."

A flash of light burst in his eyes. Zhou Tianlong raised his hand and blocked with his sword, "Not only did you hide your strength, you've actually cultivated the Basic Sword Art to Perfection!"

"Bang!"

The two wooden swords touched and immediately separated.

Feeling the force coming from Wang Jue, Zhou Tianlong's cold expression finally broke. He casually threw his wooden sword, easily tossing it onto the rack beside him.

He nodded satisfactorily, "Not bad. One strike is enough. No need to test the rest."

Wang Jue shrugged and put his wooden sword back on the rack as well.

To be honest, he wasn't surprised by Zhou Tianlong's reaction.

After all, the level he used for this move wasn't Mastery, but a genuine, unreserved Perfection.