Chapter 65

Chapter 65: I. Of course I’m a real man! (4000 words, two-in-one)

[You have passed the official selection of the Blood Floating Pagoda and have become a full-fledged member, achieving “Blood Floating Pagoda,” with a +50 increase in battlefield luck.]

[You were thoroughly beaten by Xu Xia, gaining invaluable combat experience, with +30 blood energy, +30 strength, and +7 agility.]

Xu Ming patted his butt, holding the pass token as he stood up.

Recalling the trial just now, Xu Ming had never seen such a style of boxing before. Until now, all the martial arts he’d encountered were expansive and aggressive, delivering relentless punches until the opponent was dead.

The moment Wu Yanhan entered the exam room, a gust of Martial True Qi blew past, slamming the door shut.

The door of Exam Room Five burst open again, but this time, no one flew out.

“I’ll be ready soon!” Wu Yanhan insisted stubbornly.

“Next, Chen Qian!” The female examiner in Exam Room Five called out.

“Put me down! Put me down!”

Before Xu Xia could react, Wu Yanhan’s long legs swung like iron whips toward her temple.

“Hurry up and scram, wasting my time!” came the unfriendly voice from inside the exam room. “Last one, Wu Yanhan!”

Xu Xia’s martial soul delivered a punch that dispersed the blood tiger, looking down at Wu Yanhan with disdain: “You are a rare divine martial body. Is this all you’ve got?”

“What’s this Blood Floating Pagoda nonsense? How can someone like this be accepted?”

“They’ve returned to the camp.” Li Han said.

But the other person’s cultivation style was as graceful as a butterfly, unpredictable.

The female examiner named Xu Xia smiled: “Your evaluation, naturally, isn’t for ordinary people, but you should be cautious—I won’t hold back.”

“Next, Wang Wei!”

But this person wasn’t Wu Yanhan; it was Xu Xia.

“Boom!”

After temporarily parting ways, Xu Ming walked to Exam Room Five, where only Wu Yanhan remained outside.

Even though the person wasn’t from the Blood Floating Pagoda but an examiner from another army, all the martial arts styles of Wu Kingdom were stored in the Pagoda Fist library, so logically, it should be possible to find it.

As Xu Ming entered Exam Room Five, he saw Wu Yanhan sitting on the ground, gritting her teeth, beads of cold sweat dripping from her forehead, her left leg trembling uncontrollably.

“Do you want me to carry you back?”

Xu Xia’s face remained unchanged as she quickly retreated, turning her hands into blades aimed at the waist of her opponent.

“Next, Huang Qian!”

The guy who failed sighed, standing up and leaving dejectedly.

“You seem weaker than that little brat Xu Ming.”

Wu Yanhan’s eyes narrowed as Martial True Qi surged around her, forming a fist pressure.

With a clang,

Xu Xia blocked with her side hand, her brows furrowing as pain shot through her arm.

When Wu Yanhan landed, her heel struck toward Xu Xia’s crown.

“Oh.” Xu Ming nodded.

“Boom!”

“Alright, stop fooling around. Are you even a real man?” Xu Ming said exasperatedly.

Two more hours passed, and only Xiong Hai Zhi emerged from the exam rooms.

If this is true, I’ll report to your father, and he might be disappointed.”

Seeing Xu Ming approach, Wu Yanhan merely glanced at him coldly without saying anything.

Xu Ming mainly wanted to refer to it, hoping to gain some insight that might inspire his own martial path.

Xu Xia sensed danger behind her, spinning around swiftly as her fists hammered like iron towards Wu Yanhan’s clawed hands. Wu Yanhan reacted quickly, pulling her hands back while her figure danced ghostlike backward, evading Xu Xia’s attack once again.

Could he have bribed the examiner with his butt?

Their martial souls had fractured somewhat.

Many onlookers watched with sympathy.

Wu Yanhan stepped forward into the exam room.

Half an hour passed. Among the ten known members of Camp Four Eight Four, including Xu Ming, three had passed the test, and three had not.

Xu Ming knew better than anyone else about Guang Yin’s abilities since he had been teaching him for the past month.

Just then, another person crashed out of Exam Room Five’s door, falling to the ground.

“Hmph.” Wu Yanhan smirked and turned away.

To be honest, Xu Ming thought Wu Yanhan was becoming more and more like a girl.

“What do you want to do?!” Wu Yanhan was startled.

The female examiner kept calling names, and one after another, candidates were kicked out.

“Where’s Hu San?” asked a roommate named Lu Ren.

Xu Xia skillfully dodged the heavy punch, extending her right foot in a clever trip attempt to knock her opponent down.

Wu Yanhan’s upward punch emitted a dragon’s roar as the fist, along with white Dragon Energy, smashed toward the martial soul’s feet.

“It’s none of your business.” Wu Yanhan gave Xu Ming a glance, stubbornly refusing help.

However, surrounded by Martial True Qi, Wu Yanhan formed a protective aura. Xu Xia’s palm blade was like striking black iron, producing a loud sound.

Xu Xia smirked, clenching her fist as Martial True Qi continuously condensed around her knuckles.

But there was no “Pass” badge in his arms, only the voice from inside: “Too weak! Go home and farm!”

“Are you okay?” Xu Ming looked at Wu Yanhan, seeing her in such a sorry state for the first time.

Rather than staying in the army, they could return to farming or work as bodyguards, marrying and settling down peacefully.

As Wu Yanhan thought Xu Ming was about to leave, he bent down.

“…” Wu Yanhan placed her hands on Xu Ming’s shoulders, tightly pursing her lips, her cheeks red as if they could drip water.

Or is he simply not as good as Xu Ming?

Just as Xu Ming was lost in thought, the door of Exam Room Five opened again, and another person was flung out.

Who knows what Guang Yin did inside.

Finding an opportunity, Wu Yanhan clenched her left fist and thrust it forward, transforming her blood energy and Martial True Qi into a blood tiger.

Inside the exam room, Wu Yanhan stopped, staring at the female examiner: “I didn’t expect my father to send you.”

Nevertheless, Xu Ming gradually understood this approach.

Bald Yuan Hua also passed, looking more relaxed compared to Li Han, though limping slightly.

“You’re pretty capable.” Xu Ming admitted.

“Should only one more remain—Wu Yanhan.” Xu Ming said, “Do you want to check?”

A figure appeared.

Xiong Hai Zhi was bruised and battered, and Guang Yin limped like Yuan Hua.

“I’ll skip for now. Let’s take Guang Yin to the infirmary,” Li Han said. “Wu Yanhan will definitely pass.”

If unqualified, the female examiner would harshly criticize them—for example—

Not yet finished.

“Truly worthy of you, mastering the seventh form of Pagoda Fist.” Xu Xia smirked, her Martial True Qi rising continuously, eventually forming a five-meter-tall version of herself.

“Clang”

“Really don’t need? Then I’ll go.” Xu Ming asked one last time.

“Who hasn’t come out from our tent?” Xiong Hai Zhi asked.

Xu Ming glanced at Wu Yanhan standing nearby.

Xu Xia showed no panic. She bent her right leg, supporting her body steadily while clasping her hands together, pushing forward to create an impenetrable True Qi wall.

Wu Yanhan frowned, lifting her left foot to kick toward Xu Xia’s chest.

His increasingly powerful abilities made it hard to associate him with femininity.

While carrying her, Xu Ming suddenly stopped.

His expression was extremely calm, lacking the tension others displayed.

“That’s more like it.”

Martial True Qi covered Wu Yanhan’s arms with a faint silver fist armor resembling dragon scales.

Xu Xia no longer clashed directly with Wu Yanhan, using agile movements to dodge attacks repeatedly, aiming a punch straight for Wu Yanhan’s jaw.

Of course, Xu Ming wasn’t interested in cultivating this “gentle fist”—it didn’t align with his personality or his belief in breaking all with a single punch.

“Said I don’t need it, so I don’t!”

As soon as the words were spoken, Wu Yanhan’s figure disappeared.

But it no longer mattered as Wu Yanhan had already charged forward with a punch.

Wu Yanhan was prepared, kicking off the ground with her right foot, spinning mid-air to land smoothly. She followed up with a punch, its wind roaring as it aimed for the opponent’s face.

The three failed roommates walked back dispiritedly, while Li Han and Yuan Hua wanted to console them but were stopped by Xu Ming.

The blood tiger roared, attempting to tear Xu Xia apart.

A successful candidate would throw out a token.

Xu Xia met the punch head-on.

Wu Yanhan took a step forward, her punch slicing through the air, targeting the opponent’s vital spot.

Xu Ming planned to search for this boxing style in the Fist Library.

Li Han, the Back Hair Man, passed the test but was bruised and battered, clearly having been beaten severely.

Xu Xia took three steps back as Wu Yanhan flipped in the air, landing gracefully on the ground.

Like the clash of bronze bells, the force of the fist dissipated and was absorbed by the wooden walls of the exam room.

The ones who failed考核 walked back dejectedly, their spirits crushed further by criticism, with some tough guys bursting into tears on the spot.

Because of what?

Is it disappointing his father?

Wu Yanhan’s sharp gaze focused as she rapidly retreated, raising her right foot to sweep Xu Xia’s knee.

Xu Ming decided to look for this kind of boxing technique in the Fist Pavilion.

Though it was understandable; if Wu Yanhan couldn’t pass, almost no one would, and even Xu Ming himself would be in trouble.

After that trial, Wu Yanhan, who was almost out of strength, gripped her fists and continuously pounded Xu Ming’s back, carefully avoiding letting her chest touch his back.

“Next, Xu Can!”

Seizing the opportunity, Wu Yanhan lunged forward, her right fist clenched, launching a thunderous strike toward Xu Xia. However, Xu Xia shifted her body slightly, deftly dodging the punch.

“Alright, I’ll check. See you back at the tent.” Xu Ming nodded.

“Such cowardice—what kind of martial artist are you? Pull down your pants! Let me see if you have balls!”

Seeing this, Wu Yanhan performed a backflip in mid-air, evading Xu Xia’s defense. Landing on her feet, she transformed her hands into claws, lunging toward Xu Xia’s back.

Speaking of which, Xu Xia patted Xu Ming’s shoulder, tossing a jar of ointment into his hands before walking away.

In Xu Ming’s view, although Guang Yin had improved significantly, passing the test seemed highly unlikely.

People who hadn’t passed were already disheartened; criticizing them further would likely shatter their martial spirit, leading them to truly return home to farm.

“You can stand up?” Xu Ming looked at her long leg.

“You’re this weak? How are you more feminine than me?”

Xu Xia blinked, realizing he was genuinely angry.

“Don’t be so fussy then. The female examiner gave me some medicine for you to soak your feet in, otherwise your leg will be ruined.” Carrying Wu Yanhan, Xu Ming adjusted her position for better balance. “Let’s go back.”

Without waiting for Wu Yanhan to react, Xu Ming supported her under her armpits, hoisting her up like a baby. As Wu Yanhan was about to fall, Xu Ming spun around, placing her squarely on his back.

“If you were to break down because of criticism, your stress tolerance is poor, and you’d easily die in battle.”

Lu Ren and others, seeing Li Han’s restrained expression, understood what “return to the tent” implied.

It’s best to let them think quietly alone. Approaching those who failed might make them feel worse.

Xu Xia grabbed Wu Yanhan’s ankle along with her pant leg, her other hand turning into a blade, slashing powerfully toward Wu Yanhan’s knee.

This blow would cripple the leg instantly.

Everyone looked toward the entrance of Exam Room Five.

Xu Xia transformed her palm into a fist, striking downward at Wu Yanhan’s foot.

Heroic Soul Realm – Martial Spirit.

Even a broken martial spirit could result in returning home to farm forever.

“Can you stand?” Xu Ming looked at her extended leg.

“No need!”

Wu Yanhan stood tall, like a willow tree.

Xu Ming sniffed, tilting his head: “Brother, you smell kinda girly.”

Wu Yanhan paused, then punched Xu Ming hard: “Get lost!”