Chapter 285 Entrance Exam. (4)
At Fei Yizhen's words, I found myself unconsciously brushing myself off.
Had a curse been cast on me?
If it were a real curse, I'd catch that bastard and burn him alive.
"Anyway, besides that..."
As Fei Yizhen was about to say something more.
I listened intently, even while frowning slightly.
Or rather, I should say I pretended to listen.
"What is the matter?" Fei Yizhen, who was about to speak, took a slight step back while looking somewhere.
"This won't do. If I say any more, it seems a sword fight might break out."
"Pardon? What do you mean?"
"Let's definitely meet again next time."
"Since there's no answer, I'll take it as a yes."
"No, how is that a yes...!"
Without even listening to my answer, Fei Yizhen strode away.
The bustling crowd must have deemed the matter concluded without much issue.
They had already started moving from their spots.
Qiu Jueye and Qiu Yanshu had disappeared at some point.
Only after that happened, slowly.
"Haa..."
I was able to withdraw the qi that had been filling my middle dantian.
'...I didn't expect Pei Zun to intervene.'
I vaguely knew he was interested in me.
But I didn't know he would step in so directly and change the subject.
'It's a bit thorny, but.'
It was definitely helpful just now.
Because I was swayed by my emotions and couldn't even see the easy way out.
Still, it's a relief.
I was feeling uneasy, wondering if that bastard had changed even a little.
The bastard was still the same.
Having confirmed that clearly.
My mind felt at ease.
'Since I'm here.'
Since I came to this place.
Since there's someone to find.
'I can kill him this time.' The justification to kill him.
That was enough.
Zhang Xianyan dies here.
That, too, was one of the reasons I came here.
I retracted the sharp killing intent that was flaring up.
Suddenly, I glanced in the direction where Pei Zun was earlier.
I wondered what he was looking at when he spoke.
"Huh?"
There.
Was Wei Xue'a, wearing a raincoat pulled low, just like yesterday.
Even though the distance was far.
And people were moving quickly.
That was definitely Wei Xue'a.
The moment I took a step to approach Wei Xue'a.
[Group 1, Peng Zhao! We will now begin the entrance exam! Please gather around!]
In the moment I briefly averted my gaze at the shout infused with internal qi.
When I turned my head back again.
"Dear me."
Wei Xue'a had already disappeared into the crowd.
If I tried to find him like last time, I could.
Since using some inner qi wouldn't cause me to fail the exam.
However.
'With that kind of expression on his face.'
For some reason, just this once.
The glimpse I caught of Wei Xue'a's eyes.
Gave off a feeling that he was asking me not to look for him.
A lingering sense of unease fills me right from the start.
"Ha."
Nothing goes right.
I want to vent my anger somewhere, but.
Unfortunately, it seems Qiu Jueye had already fled long ago.
"Tsk."
Clicking my tongue briefly.
I finally moved my steps.
For I had things to do first, after all.
.
...
!
.
Zhao Weishi, the second-generation disciple of Kunlun.
Was a martial artist with the alias Zhicha Jian.
He had made quite a name for himself in the Central Plains.
He was a young martial artist growing step by step while showing promise.
Moreover, among the martial artists past the age of thirty, he belonged to the outstanding side.
Like the Young Master of the Tang Sect.
If you excluded the geniuses like Shen Xian, the second-generation disciple of Huashan.
One could say he had a fairly solid position.
"Chu Yunqi of the Chu Family, Group 1, pass."
So he was able to find his way to the Shenlong Guan following the Qinghai Yijian.
And even obtain the position of an instructor.
However, Zhao Weishi wasn't very fond of this position.
'What could the Sect Master be thinking?' The matters currently unfolding in Qinghai are piled up like a mountain.
As for the reason to deliberately leave everything to the elders and head here.
Zhao Weishi couldn't easily understand.
Because he is the Sect Master, I had to hold back my words, but.
The dissatisfaction building up inside remained.
In a place like this, right now.
It wasn't a situation where he should be teaching these young brats.
Let alone.
'The Sword Empress.'
Zhao Weishi now recalled the only woman among the instructors of Peng Group.
He had already known through the Sect Master's words, but.
He truly hadn't expected that the world's Sword Empress would come all the way to be an instructor at the Shenlong Guan.
If you spoke of the Sword Empress, honestly, just looking at her fame.
She was a figure who wouldn't be out of place as the Guan Master rather than an instructor.
The fact that such a Sword Empress would deliberately swallow her pride and come as an instructor to the Shenlong Guan, which was managed by another sect, not the Huashan Sect.
Meant there was clearly another reason.
Just as his head throbbed from various thoughts and his frown deepened.
Clang!
With a clear sound.
Zhao Weishi rolled his eyes wide.
When he looked in the direction of the sound, countless young talents were letting out gasps of admiration while looking at someone.
And Zhao Weishi's reaction upon confirming this was the same.
'Heoh.'
It couldn't be helped.
In front of a stone pillar that looked to be at least ten chi in length.
A handsome young man was sheathing his sword.
Swish.
Just before the young man put his sword into its sheath.
Hum.
The sword hummed as if resonating.
Moreover, on the stone pillar, a long sword scar, though not deep, was etched.
Seeing that, Zhao Weishi had to open his mouth in surprise.
'Not a scratch, but a sword scar?'
That long pillar was precisely the task for this entrance exam.
To leave a scratch on the stone pillar by any means.
That was the content of the first gate's test.
Even though they said 'by any means'.
Everyone would know that it implicitly meant using one's own martial arts.
One might scoff and think leaving a mere scratch was easy.
But if they heard what that pillar was made of.
It was a fact everyone would accept.
'Wannian Cold Iron.'
Among all the metals across the Central Plains.
It was mixed with a portion of the iron known to be the hardest.
Even though only a very small amount was mixed in.
That alone turned it into an object that couldn't be easily broken.
That simple black stone pillar was no different.
How on earth they brought a stone pillar mixed with Wannian Cold Iron for a mere entrance exam.
He absolutely couldn't understand.
But regardless, it was a fact that its identity was as such.
The task of the entrance exam, which always changed with each term.
Was the authority of the Guan Master.
Then it meant that stone pillar was a task given by the Qinghai Yijian.
What kind of meaning did this test have?
With what intention was it given?
Zhao Weishi had no need to know about that.
What was important was simply whether the young talents succeeded in it or not.
Knowing that, Zhao Weishi looked at the very person who had created that long sword scar.
He could soon recall the young man's name as well.
'Was it Shen Xing?'
The only son of the current Alliance Master.
He was a martial artist hailed as a rising elite these days.
The sword name from just now, then, must be the Alliance Master's exclusive martial art, the Yin Sword.
'The rumors of his excellence were rampant.'
It didn't seem like an empty rumor.
While other young talents were struggling to even leave a fingernail-sized scratch.
Shen Xing had created such a mark with a single strike.
It wasn't strange for the other young talents to express such admiration.
'The level of the recent young talents is indeed extraordinary.'
Whether it's the Six Dragons and Three Phoenixes, or Shen Xing.
Or at the very least.
Even the descendant of the Sword Sovereign whom he had personally gone to find before.
In Zhao Weishi's eyes, they were all on a completely different level.
'Even so, the top spot this time... seems to be decided already.'
That was how it looked to him.
If he was at a level where he could leave such a scratch on that stone pillar.
It was expected that he had already surpassed the level of a young talent.
Though he'd have to see about the other Dragons and Phoenixes.
The top spot in the entrance exam would probably go to that young man.
Thinking such thoughts, Zhao Weishi opened his mouth.
"Group 1, Zhang Xianyan. Pa—"
Crrrrack!
Just as Zhao Weishi was about to pronounce Zhang Xianyan's passing.
A strange noise echoed from somewhere far away.
"What was that?"
"What is this sound?"
To the murmuring young talents, Zhao Weishi immediately infused his inner qi and shouted.
"Something might have happened, so please do not move!"
Accordingly, Zhao Weishi also took a defensive stance and surveyed his surroundings.
The direction of the sound was...
'Wasn't that where Group 2 was taking the exam?'
Then, was it an attack?
Since the martial artists of the Kunlun Sect and the Alliance were forming a perimeter around the area.
Unless they were at the level of the Dark King, it wouldn't be easy to break through.
Just as Zhao Weishi was thinking about evacuating the young talents first in case of an emergency.
A sound transmission informing him of the situation reached his ears.
"...What?"
Hearing this, Zhao Weishi let out a voice as if he had misheard.
He was so shocked that.
Zhao Weishi spoke out loud instead of replying with a sound transmission.
"Someone broke... the pillar?"
It was that much of an absurd statement.
After the strange noise echoed, in Peng Group.
Along with the stone fragments scattered on the floor.
A young man was covering his face and repeatedly letting out sighs.
'Heh heh...'
And looking at that, the Sword Empress was trying hard to hold back her laughter.
But it didn't seem easy.
In front of the Sword Empress, who was continually holding back her laughter as if she found it so amusing.
A large hole had been created in the pillar mixed with Wannian Cold Iron.
With cracks running thickly in all directions.
It looked as if it would collapse immediately at the slightest touch.
And.
The person who had so brutally ruined the pillar.
Was still covering his face and muttering quietly.
"Ah..."
The very person who created this situation.
Gu Yangtian, pushing back the gazes he felt from here and there.
Was truly regretting it inwardly.
'I should have controlled my strength a bit.'
It was the root of the disaster that he had struck it outright, thinking of venting some anger.
'They said it was mixed with Wannian Cold Iron, so why did it break so easily?'
It's absurd.
Recalling the Wannian Cold Iron he had seen in his past life.
This thing wasn't even worth comparing to it.
Even so, it shouldn't have broken like this originally.
The surroundings, which had been buzzing for a while, changed to silence as the pillar was pierced.
This silence surely contained multiple meanings.
It was clearly not a reason Gu Yangtian would welcome.
I didn't intend for this to happen.
Feeling that, Gu Yangtian muttered softly.
"I screwed up."
It seemed.
He had caused a huge accident right from the start of the exam.