Bombarding Cultivators with Cluster Artillery

Jiang Ding came out, greeted by a chorus of cheers.

”Pretty impressive, kiddo!”

Sun Xiao and the other boys clustered around him, slapping his shoulder, ”You’ve pulled one back for us.”

”We’re secure in the top ten.”

”That’s good enough. We’re not cut out for these one-on-one face-offs, being in the top ten is enough. We’ll make them cry in the actual combat examination.”

Someone offered consolation.

”Yeah, that’s good.”

Jiang Ding couldn’t help but laugh and cry at his classmates’ buoyant spirits, making him seem fragile, as if he would jump off a building if he lost next.

”Tch! Dream on!”

People from No.7 High School scoffed at their optimism.

”We’ve got Li Tie at Qi Practicing Level 8. You think you can thrash us? Keep dreaming. And as for you guys securing a top-ten spot in the Internal Qi Realm, that remains to be seen. Nothing but scared turtles!”

”Heh, tough talk, blind man calling us scared turtles?”

The quarrel restarted, each side defending the honor of No.1 High School and No.7 High School. The spat included many students in the Qi Practicing Realm, spitting and sputtering all over each other.

It was quite a sight, devoid of any dignity.

Nearby, the cultivators from Canghai Minor World Cloud Sect, who were prepared for the test, looked at each other, puzzled and unsure.

It was just a competition among mortals in Jianghu, wasn’t it?

Why were they taking it so seriously?

Besides, the magic of Xianmen was truly terrifying. In secret realms, they almost had an endless number of life-saving talismans, unlike them, whose lives were as lowly as ants—lost and easily dismissed.

Of course, nobody thought it unfair.

Just like they viewed the lowly loose cultivators of the Canghai Minor World, the Xianmen cultivators could easily claim their lives during a trial, all in good fun.

It was normal, in the Cultivation World, for the strong to be revered.

As the exam progressed, No.1 High School almost completely collapsed in the Internal Qi Realm cold weapon combat, falling beyond the fifteenth place.

Sun Xiao reflected, ”If this were some ’martial prowess supreme’ Small World, every single one of us from No.1 High would be wiped out, no match for No.7 High’s tough guys.”

”You guys might be wiped out, but I’m not even considered human.”

Li Junhao said with a forlorn face, finally recovering from his first loss, after which he had directly admitted defeat.

”Ha ha!”

Everyone laughed around him, without too much frustration.

After all, Xianmen ultimately valued realm and academic performance above all. Although they couldn’t beat the people from No.7 High, their scores only trailed by five to fifteen points, which could easily be made up elsewhere.

After all, the cold weapon examination in the Internal Qi Realm only offered twenty-five points.

Furthermore, when joining the army or seeking employment, they would not be at a disadvantage compared to equally scoring No.7 High students but would instead have more advantages and be more likely to obtain high-paying jobs.

”Examinee number 1246215, Jiang Ding, please enter the examination area.”

”Examinee...”

While the group was still chatting and messing around, their gaze shifted to the last remaining candidate in the sky. Other examinations had concluded, and now it was time for the top sixteen battles. The winners would advance to the top eight, significantly widening their score gap from the others.

Jiang Ding placed his hand on his sword hilt and opened his eyes.

On the ground littered with yellow sand, a tornado tens of meters high was visible in the distance, ready to sweep up the unwary; visibility was high, with indents peppering the ground.

”Great, luck’s on my side!”

A shorter candidate from No.7 High, learning from Wu Jinqian’s lessons, was on full alert, avoiding any wasteful expenditure of Inner Energy. Unfortunately, he was randomly placed in a desolate sandy terrain where hiding traces was a challenge.

Overjoyed, without a second thought, he brandished a heavy broadsword and charged forth.

”Darn!”

Sun Xiao slapped his thigh, ”How did we end up with this terrain? The Art of Small Concealment won’t be effective now.”

The others were also quite regretful.

”Well, it’s okay. There’s still the revival match to compete for ninth to sixteenth places. The top ten is still possible.”

”Bad luck...”

”Hold on!”

Li Junhao was somewhat puzzled and raised his hand, ”Jiang Ding often beats you guys with cold weapons beyond his level, and at that time, he hadn’t learned the Art of Small Concealment. Why doesn’t it work this time?”

Sun Xiao, Li Hu, and the others fell silent.

Clang!

Jiang Ding did not dodge but drew his sword, a half-arc of precision flashing by.

The tip of the sword aimed precisely at the side of the great saber, with the highly concentrated sword light piercing through the thick layers of saber energy, reaching the body of the saber, and sparks flew.

Although his inner energy was slightly weaker, he managed to grind away multiple portions of inner energy with just one!

At the contact point between the sword tip and the saber, a massive surge of inner energy, diminished by half, poured from the sword tip. But before it could enter the opponent’s meridians, it was further weakened, layer by layer, until it disappeared.

Even if they cultivated the same cultivation method, being just one minor realm below, he still could face the opponent head-on without being at a disadvantage!

The shorter examinee from No.7 High School’s face changed slightly. Before he could change his move, a streak of sword-light thrust rapidly toward his throat, as fast as lightning. In his haste, he quickly retracted his saber to defend, blocking the sword tip.

In the rushed change of moves, the immense network of true Qi within his body couldn’t be fully marshaled instantly. It was broken through at the point of contact by Jiang Ding’s focused true Qi, inadvertently creating a local advantage in combat strength.

”Get lost!”

The short examinee found himself unable to exert any strength, feeling like vomiting blood from discomfort. He cleaved with his saber, a radiant saber light piercing the air as he rapidly retreated, trying to catch a breath to gather Qi.

Jiang Ding thrust his sword again. Although he was not as fast as the opponent, he struck first, breaking through the saber energy and pressing close to the opponent’s chest, forcing him to mobilize a portion of his inner energy to defend in even greater haste, worsening his situation.

One sword thrust, two sword thrusts...

Every strike landed precisely when the shorter examinee was about to slash but hadn’t yet, unable to exert his full strength. His saber grew weaker with each strike, and even his furious roars were futile.

This was the vast disparity in swordsmanship!

By the third thrust, the slow-reacting saber could no longer block and the sword tip pierced into the throat. Sword Qi surged in, shredding all the organs.

The short examinee’s movements stiffened, his eyes dimming in anger as his body slumped to the ground.

Jiang Ding withdrew his longsword, shook off the fresh blood, and sheathed his sword.

Silence fell outside.

”...You’re right.”

Sun Xiao said to Li Junhao, ”I saw myself during cultivation classes in the eyes of that guy from No.7 High School.”

”A high-level sword technique!”

Compared to them, the martial artists from No.7 High School were much more knowledgeable, staring intently at the slowly disappearing figure in the image.

To overcome the strong with the weak, this was definitely a mastery of ”Eagle Taking Off Technique” caliber swordsmanship. No, this wasn’t overcoming the strong with the weak, but the strong overpowering the weak. The level of Internal Qi Realm does not always fully determine strength.

”Not just that.”

Jiang Jinxian’s face was solemn, ”There are too many traces of ’Eagle Taking Off Technique’ in his moves. I suspect his cultivation method has also reached mastery.”

Those around him were shocked.

The former signifies technique, while a mastery of ”Eagle Taking Off Technique” indicates the path, meaning that the other party’s cultivation speed will be very fast. Now, they can fight back by leveraging their advantage in inner energy, but soon even this opportunity may vanish!

The person of greatest martial talent at their No.7 High School had barely reached minor completion in his cultivation method.

”Don’t worry, his innate talents are poor. Even with the boost from a highly successful method, his cultivation speed won’t be too fast.”

Jiang Jinxian declared, a strong fighting spirit rising in his heart.

Inside the examination room.

”What a pity.”

Jin Dazheng expressed his regret, ”Such an exceptional martial talent should have applied to our No.7 High School. Then, his strength today would have been far from just this.”

”What do you know?”

Zhang Dingjun sneered, ”Apart from talent, a high-level cultivation method requires profound knowledge of the Immortal Path as a foundation to be activated. Does your No.7 High School have the teaching resources for that?”

”Mere brute force and aggression, the quick advancement of strength for a while will only lead to a power drought later on.”

Jin Dazheng fell silent.