Overlord of the Wilderness

Zhaang Ye strode into the Steward Hall and found the steward in charge of registration. When he stated his purpose, the steward’s eyes went wide. He stared at Zhaang Ye for a long moment before finally speaking, ”Judging from your aura, you really are at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer. However, according to our rules, anyone who advances to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer and becomes an Inner Sect Disciple must undergo a strength test.”

Zhaang Ye nodded and said, ”Then I’ll trouble you to arrange the test, Steward.”

Just then, someone entered from outside, saying as he walked, ”Haha, Steward Zhaang, there’s no need for you to arrange this test. I’ll take care of it.”

The newcomer was none other than Steward Bai. Although his status was slightly higher than Steward Zhaang’s, when Steward Zhaang bowed to him, he merely nodded and his gaze fell upon Zhaang Ye. After a glance at Zhaang Ye, a trace of astonishment flashed in Steward Bai’s eyes. He said, ”Zhaang Ye, the test is simple. You just need to strike me with your full-powered palm, and I’ll know your strength. Come on, let me see what you’ve got.”

Zhaang Ye was slightly taken aback. Having spent some time with Zhaang Zisong and other Inner Sect Disciples, he had a rough idea of the strength test’s procedure. The Zhaang Family’s test was mainly divided into three steps. First was to demonstrate the ability of True Qi Transformation. This skill—making one’s True Qi flow out from the body—was unique to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer and served as basic proof of reaching that realm. The second step was to shatter a stone. The registration office would provide a hard stone specifically for testing; shattering it with True Qi proved one’s strength was at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer. The final step was to execute a Combat Skill with True Qi to see if the two could merge harmoniously. This step tested one’s control over their own True Qi.

’The test for a Zhaang Family Outer Disciple entering the Inner Sect usually follows these three steps. But this Steward Bai is telling me to hit him with a palm strike. What kind of test is this?’ Zhaang Ye wondered, and repeated aloud, ”Steward Bai, you want me to strike you with my palm?”

Steward Bai nodded slightly and said very casually, ”That’s right. You can hit me with your full-powered palm strike.”

Seeing Steward Bai’s casual demeanor, Zhaang Ye had the urge to use his Dragon Elephant Skill and send the man flying with a single punch. However, he was calm and steady by nature. The thought merely flashed through his mind, with no trace of it showing on his face. He bowed to Steward Bai and said, ”Very well, I will make my move. Please be careful, Steward Bai.”

With that, Zhaang Ye struck out with his palm.

Uncertain of Steward Bai’s intentions, Zhaang Ye did not use his true strength. The power in this palm strike was equivalent to that of the Martial Arts Fourth Layer Early Stage.

PAK!

The palm landed squarely on Steward Bai’s shoulder. Zhaang Ye felt a rebounding force shoot back from the steward’s shoulder, making his own palm go slightly numb. But Steward Bai, having taken the blow, merely trembled slightly before standing perfectly still, as if nothing had happened.

Zhaang Ye wasn’t surprised by this. The Stewards of the Zhaang Family were all former Inner Sect Disciples. In their youth, they had already reached the Martial Arts Fourth Layer. After decades of cultivation, their own cultivation had reached at least the Martial Arts Fifth Layer. A person at the Martial Arts Fifth Layer could, of course, withstand the palm strike of a Martial Artist at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer Early Stage.

After delivering the strike, Zhaang Ye retreated two steps and waited for Steward Bai’s verdict.

Steward Bai gave Zhaang Ye a deep look and said, ”That last palm strike... your Palm Power surged like a tide, your True Qi is quite pure, and the force was considerable. You’re at the Martial Arts Fourth Layer, no doubt. Zhaang Ye, you are the first among the new Outer Disciples to advance to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer. Congratulations.”

Zhaang Ye bowed to Steward Bai in thanks.

Since Steward Bai had confirmed Zhaang Ye’s advancement to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer, the rest of the test was deemed unnecessary. Steward Zhaang deftly handled the registration paperwork, officially assigning Zhaang Ye to the Inner Sect.

When Zhaang Ye entered the Steward Hall, he was dressed in white. By the time he walked out, his white robes had been replaced with the distinctive cyan robes of an Inner Sect Disciple. A metal nameplate now hung from his waist—the unique identification tag of an Inner Sect Disciple.

As an Inner Sect Disciple, Zhaang Ye was also assigned a private courtyard to use as a place for his cultivation. However, he had no intention of seeing it just yet. His most urgent task was to go to the Library Pavilion and find a Middle Level Body Technique Secret Manual.

Watching Zhaang Ye walk into the distance, Steward Bai muttered to himself, ”To think that Zhaang Ye would advance to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer so quickly. He’s a cunning one, too. I was hoping to make him use his full strength to gauge his true power. I never expected him to conceal it so well. Even after taking his palm strike, I couldn’t figure out a thing...”

After a moment of contemplation, Steward Bai left the Steward Hall and headed toward the back mountains of the Zhaang Family estate.

The Zhaang Family’s back mountains were one of the clan’s restricted areas. The scenery was quite pleasant, but it was heavily guarded. Even with Steward Bai’s status, he had to pass through a dozen or so checkpoints before arriving outside a simple, ancient cave.

A voice echoed from within the cave. ”Is that Steward Bai? You can speak freely.”

Steward Bai answered with the utmost respect, ”Patriarch, Zhaang Ye, the one you asked me to keep an eye on, has just advanced to the Martial Arts Fourth Layer and become an Inner Sect Disciple.”

”Oh?” The person in the cave sounded quite interested. He asked, ”And what is his true strength?”

Steward Bai replied, ashamed, ”Zhaang Ye is an extremely cautious person. During the strength test, he completely concealed his true strength, so I was unable to determine it. Patriarch, I’d like to find an opportunity tonight to test his true power.”

”Cautious? That’s a good thing.” The man in the cave chuckled. ”Go ahead and test his strength. I’ve seen Zhaang Ye’s file. His rate of growth is so astonishing, even I find it hard to believe. Hehe, I hope this little fellow can give me a pleasant surprise. I’m counting on him for an upcoming tournament.”

”A tournament?” Steward Bai’s scalp tingled. He asked in shock, ”Patriarch, you can’t mean you want Zhaang Ye to participate in the competition for the Gathering Flower Fruit?”

”No, no.” The man in the cave chuckled. ”The competition for the Gathering Flower Fruit relies mainly on the Elders. With Zhaang Ye’s strength, he’d be no help; he’d just be throwing his life away. The tournament I want him to join is the Four Races’ Younger Generation Masters Ranking Tournament, held once every five years. I hope he can achieve a good ranking and help us fight for more properties and territory.”

At the mention of the Four Races’ Younger Generation Masters Ranking Tournament, understanding dawned on Steward Bai.

Cyan Mulberry City was home to four great Martial Arts Families whose spheres of influence were complex and intertwined, constantly overlapping. This situation inevitably led to conflicts over properties and territory. For a family, these were relatively minor matters, so it was inconvenient for figures at the Elder Level or Steward Level to get involved, lest they escalate the disputes.

The Elders could not act, but the disputes still had to be resolved. Thus, someone proposed holding a tournament where the Younger Generation would compete, with the ownership of these territories and properties decided by the outcome. This event eventually became a fixed tradition, giving rise to the Four Races’ Younger Generation Masters Ranking Tournament.

The Four Races’ Younger Generation Masters Ranking Tournament not only decided the ownership of many properties and territories but also served as a way to display a family’s power to the public. For this reason, the four Martial Arts Families had always placed great importance on the event.

Steward Bai thought for a moment before saying, ”Patriarch, aren’t your expectations for Zhaang Ye a bit too high? The participants in the Four Races’ Younger Generation Masters Ranking Tournament are all exceptional masters from the four families. Many of them even possess a cultivation at the Martial Arts Fifth Layer. The tournament is only two months away. In such a short amount of time, no matter how outstanding Zhaang Ye is, it’s impossible for him to raise his cultivation to the Martial Arts Fifth Layer.”

The man in the cave replied, ”I have my own considerations regarding that. For now, just go and test Zhaang Ye’s strength as I said.”

Steward Bai didn’t dare say more. He simply acknowledged the command, turned, and left the back mountains.

(Thank you to readers Huanlang 2000, Ai Mao Mao de Yu, and pjz21000 for the donations, and thank you to all readers for the Recommendation Tickets. Also, I’d like to apologize here. The protagonist should have been 14 shortly after joining the Cyan Mulberry Zhaang Family, but I got his age wrong later. I’m truly sorry about that. I will pay more attention to these details in the future.)