Eternal Life: Talent Grows with Age-Chapter 83 - 84: A Style Unlike Nobles!

Several stone locks were laid out on the ground, with the heaviest weighing up to a thousand catties, and the lightest at least five hundred.

And what’s more, these were single-arm stone locks, not double-arm. In other words, to pass the trial, you had to lift the stone lock with just one arm.

"If I had mastered the Divine Power Stake, maybe I could have tried for this thousand-catty limit. But my Flood Stake doesn’t boost physical strength much—five hundred catties will do!"

Lu Chang’sheng knew his own limits. He didn’t try to overperform and simply walked up to the five hundred catty stone lock.

A moment later, he summoned all his strength, blood and energy surging, and the stone lock rose in response.

His face flushed a little, involuntarily.

Clearly, five hundred catties wasn’t as easy as he’d imagined.

Yet, even so, a faint change flickered on the faces of the Jixia Academy tutors and professors standing nearby.

"His blood and energy are weak, but steady—not achieved by some sneaky trick!"

"Bring me Scholar Lu’s registration!" a tutor ordered a junior official standing behind him.

The junior official, holding a booklet in his hand, stood behind the group of tutors and professors.

There were quite a few of these junior officials nearby, serving drinks and providing assistance to the professors. Hearing the command, he immediately handed over the booklet.

This tutor rarely dealt with people and hardly ever left his home, so he wasn’t very familiar with Lu Chang’sheng. Taking the booklet and flipping through it, he immediately became serious.

"So he trains in the Flood Control Stance. This pile skill isn’t nearly as tough as Divine Power Stake or Overlord Stake, but it stands out for its balance!"

Balance means steadiness.

Only, on the battlefield, that trait isn’t exactly in vogue—so the Flood Stake isn’t as popular as the Divine Power Stake and others.

Still, it meant that Lu Chang’sheng had reached great success in his stance training.

The audience burst into a wave of whispered discussion. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Especially over on the academy’s side—the professors and tutors found this outcome hard to accept.

What they wanted wasn’t this.

It caught them off guard, a bit.

Some professors frowned and muttered quietly with those beside them, casting scrutinizing, even disapproving, looks at Lu Chang’sheng.

If he failed the test, fine, that would suit their wishes—but now, he’d passed the first step, which left them slightly upset.

Their irritation toward Lu Chang’sheng only seemed to intensify.

"That was a surprise!"

Hong Yuan looked slightly stunned, then shook his head with a rueful smile.

As if he’d seen something amusing.

"You agreed just now not to compete with me for candidates," said Lin Shan.

Hong Yuan hesitated. "Don’t worry about that. Flood Control Stance is still ordinary—passing this part is fine, but the second trial will be a real hurdle."

Lin Shan nodded; the second part—the combat evaluation—really decided if someone was qualified.

"By the way, why are there so many people today?"

Lin Shan seemed to think of something, pointing to some noble martial artist candidates mingling among the crowd.

Hong Yuan didn’t elaborate, only saying, "Probably because they know I’m recruiting disciples—they don’t want to miss the chance!"

"So you really do plan on picking a disciple this time." Lin Shan sighed.

Lin Shan didn’t think much of it.

As dusk settled, he figured the next phase would be put off until the following day. But Hong Yuan said, "The next trial begins soon. Mountain Master, won’t you stay and watch?"

From "Brother Lin" to "Mountain Master"—the change in address made Lin Shan instantly stand up straight.

Meanwhile, Lu Chang’sheng, resting, got word from a junior official and headed toward the armory for the second trial.

"A nighttime test?"

Lu Chang’sheng found it odd and became even more cautious.

Soon, he reached the armory and spotted dozens of students from the Martial Artist Institute scattered around.

Those who knew each other gathered to chat in low voices; those who didn’t sat elsewhere in twos and threes.

Lu Chang’sheng also saw Zhou Yu. Unfortunately, Zhou only nodded at him, then went to stand with that Zhao family youth.

"Zhao Liang is the third son of the current Zhao Family Patriarch, with outstanding talent. Ranked fifty-eighth in the Black Mountain Prefecture Martial Artists List. Zhou Yu managed to join up with them—of course he wouldn’t turn away and offend them for your sake."

Lu Chang’sheng turned and saw Xu Zhuqing walking over.

"Miss Xu Zhuqing!" Lu Chang’sheng greeted hurriedly.

Zhou Yu’s decision was easy to understand—personal choice, nothing unusual.

But it was that Martial Artist List that left Lu Chang’sheng speechless.

The list had appeared nine years ago. In the beginning, it barely got around—only a few storytellers would mention it. Later on, Lu Chang’sheng had someone track it for a while but, seeing it didn’t affect him, eventually let it go.

Not until two years ago, when Niu Dazhuang rose to number eighty-nine, did he take it seriously again.

"You really shouldn’t have come this time. Those in their positions don’t want anyone beneath them hell-bent on breaking free of their control."

Xu Zhuqing shook her head.

Lu Chang’sheng understood what she meant. Over the years, he’d kept his allegiances ambiguous, annoying some people. If his rivals weren’t distracted and some professors from the academy hadn’t backed him, he wouldn’t have been able to stay safe until now.

But now, by stepping up in such a fragile situation, he’d just pushed things further, easily provoking the other side.

No telling what people might do next.

"Tomorrow night, come find me at Xu Mansion," Xu Zhuqing said coolly. "That is—if you survive tonight’s trial."

Lu Chang’sheng’s heart skipped a beat. He quickly said, "Please advise me, Miss Xu!"

"No need for advice. The news will reach you soon enough. In past years, the test was fighting against a tutor posing as an enemy. This time, the Dean changed his mind."

"Now, the test will be a real attack on a gang. Weapons don’t have eyes. If you get hurt, so be it."

"Most Martial Artist Institute students are nobles. Will their families really agree to send their descendants on such a dangerous mission?" Lu Chang’sheng asked in surprise.

"That’s not for you to worry about. Better think about how you’ll handle things," she shot back.

Watching Xu Zhuqing walk away, Lu Chang’sheng fell deep into thought.

"Dean Hong Yuan rarely gets involved in outside matters. But things are rough now—gangs all over have started breaking with the rebels. Maybe this crossed the authorities’ line. The Black Mountain Army is complicated. If they get mobilized, things could get out of control. Sending the institute’s students is probably an easier move."

"So, does this mean Dean Hong Yuan has picked sides, too?"

Lu Chang’sheng shook his head.

If that was really the case, then it wasn’t like he had a choice anyway.

"If True Qi Martial Arts didn’t reveal the Innate Secret, there’d be no reason I’d have to stay at the Martial Artist Institute."

Sure enough, a while later, several institute tutors came in to announce the news, causing a huge stir among the students.

There were plenty of gangs in Black Mountain Prefecture, but any gang living comfortably had family ties. Targeting a gang meant going up against families, too.

But the tutors didn’t say which gang. So no one said much more.

"We may claim the moral high ground, but cornered beasts fight hardest. This’ll be risky. If anyone doesn’t want to go, you can withdraw. But for secrecy’s sake, you must stay here for three to five hours if you withdraw."

One tutor came to the front and declared.

As soon as he finished, more than a dozen people stepped out.

They knew there’d be good opportunities, but figured their own talent and roots weren’t enough. Besides, they’d already passed the previous trial and could stay on for further training at the Institute, so why risk it?

The tutors asked a few more times. When no one else withdrew, they brought out blank sheets of paper for letters home.

If something really happened, these preparations would let the Institute at least claim the moral high ground.

It might not matter, but at least it looked good.

Lu Chang’sheng took the paper. As he stared at the blank sheet, faces flashed through his mind.

He’d meant to start with his parents’ names, but as the brush touched the paper, he wrote "Nangua" instead.

He froze, then couldn’t help but laugh at himself.

He kept writing.

Nothing too emotional—just an account of a few matters, and a few words about the future—then he handed it in.

"For the Institute to mobilize like this, the target can’t be some small-time gang."

On that thought, Lu Chang’sheng felt more confident about what to expect.

Soon after, everyone started picking weapons from the armory.

Since this was to be a real fight, there were no restrictions on weapons. If you thought you could use it, you could take out the whole storeroom if you wanted.

"Spears are strong, but in an alley or up close, they lose their edge."

Lu Chang’sheng grabbed a spear and slung an ordinary steel saber over his back as well.

Then, without stopping, he went to a corner and picked up several pouches of lime powder.

"Better to be prepared!"

Armors weren’t good for carrying this stuff, so he tied the six or seven little bags together on a string and slung them over his shoulder, looking rather comical.

There were also masks, each stamped with a number—obviously meant for shady dealings.

"Covering your identity—this way, people won’t hesitate so much when the killing starts."

Gang members were ruthless, and if someone escaped, it could cause real trouble for students and their families alike.

With these masks, people’s worries would be lessened.

Once he was ready, Lu Chang’sheng stepped out of the armory. Soon, he saw nobles dressed as Black Mountain Army soldiers, with face masks, scattered across the drill grounds.

Almost everyone had long spears—just a few brought two weapons.

When they saw Lu Chang’sheng coming out loaded with two weapons, quite a few nobles were quietly surprised.

Everyone had chosen separately, and under cover of darkness, it would be hard to tell who was who just from these outfits.

And anyone bringing two weapons had to be highly confident in their martial arts—people figured it must be Xun Zimo, Zhao Liang, or the like.

But when they spotted the bags of lime dangling from Lu Chang’sheng’s armor, they fell silent.

Now—that didn’t look like something a refined noble like Xun Zimo would do at all!