Chapter 5: The Three Great Absolute Arts

  "What's wrong with you, are you talking about Chen Hao?" Xiao Bo raised an eyebrow and said in a cold tone.

  "Yes, that young man is extremely talented. Relying on his physical strength alone, he broke the record of the first test and became the first to pass the Xiao family's test. Moreover, he has an obsession that ordinary children do not possess. He deserves this first place!"

  "Who else but him? He hasn't even attended school, doesn't recognize a single character, how can he be the first? Hmph, not stripping him of his title is already being generous considering his mediocre talent, I've decided on last place!"

  "Give him three months, if he can recognize all the words in this book 'Xue Hai Wu Ya', then allow him to study Xiao family martial arts, otherwise, eliminate him!" The sixth elder Xiao Bo said coldly.

  "Six Elders!" Upon hearing Xiao Bo's words, the cold-faced Iron Hand Xiao Guan was quite perplexed: "In previous years, when the Xiao family recruited disciples, they only looked at test scores. When did it start requiring whether or not one had attended school or could read and write?"

  "Hmph, can't even recognize characters, what comprehension are you talking about? The intricacies of the technique and especially the advanced mental keys are all obscure and difficult to understand, relying solely on intuition to comprehend. An illiterate person, how could they possibly comprehend? Even if they have an extraordinary natural talent, how high could their achievements be?" Xiao Bo retorted sharply: "My mind is made up, Xiao Guan, don't say another word!"

  Upon hearing Xiao Bo's words, Xiao Guan was furious in his heart but couldn't find a reason to refute him. Indeed, the more profound the martial arts are, the more abstruse and difficult to understand their cultivation secrets are. How much one can comprehend depends entirely on individual intuition. However, studying literature can only slightly enhance intuition; it has little relation to whether one's intuition is high or low. Otherwise, what would be the point of having a master? A master is there to guide and enlighten, passing on his own cultivation experiences to his disciples.

  Furthermore, if learning literature is really that important, shouldn't all the great scholars of our time become unparalleled masters, or even... those legendary masters?

  But since Xiao Bo has said so, Xiao Guan can only give in even if he is not satisfied. However, the conditions set by Xiao Bo are too harsh. To know that "Xue Hai Wu Ya" contains not only the commonly used 3,400 words but also more than 600,000 various types of characters, including ancient oracle bones, large seal script, small seal script, and even ancient immortal texts, which are extremely complex. It's easy to recognize all in three months?

  Of course, Xiao Guan knew that Liu Zhang meant 3,400 commonly used characters. Even so, three months was still not enough time.

  ……

  Ninety-nine disciples, under the command of a junior disciple from the three Xiao family outer sects with the "thousand" character generation, were divided into three squares, each with thirty-three people, forming a square array. The way to divide was decided by drawing lots, which avoided the situation where the strength difference was too large, and formed three classes. Xiaoling and Chen Huan indeed had a good relationship, coincidentally assigned to one class, and the two stood together again.

  "Report! One class, all thirty-three eighth-generation disciples are present!"

  "Second class, all thirty-three eighth-generation disciples are present!"

  "Third shift, all 33 eighth-generation disciples have arrived!"

  The three first-generation disciples reported one by one and then said in unison: "Please, Sixth Elder and Xiao General, give us instructions!"

  Elder Xiao Bo slowly stood up, walked to the edge of the high platform, wearing a white long shirt, with white hair and beard, his eyes shining like torches, his face benevolent. In the gentle breeze, his long shirt fluttered, his white beard flew, and his body emitted a faint brown glow, giving him an air of immortality. His gaze slowly swept over the ninety-nine disciples, and he said in a soft voice: "Congratulations, you have passed the Xiao family test. From today on, you will truly become disciples of the Xiao family. The great gate of Xiao family martial arts will also be open to you!"

  "Twenty-four years ago, the Xiao family began to recruit outer door disciples. Today, the Xiao family's outer door disciples are all over Yunzhou. Those who hold official positions have them, those who engage in commerce have them, and they are all elites among elites with prominent identities. Among the Qianzi generation, twenty-five people have been promoted to inner door disciples. In the Qiuzi generation, nineteen people; in the Wanzi generation, ten people; and in the Dai generation, three people. After the Yongzi generation, many young masters have also emerged!"

  "Today you honor the Xiao family, tomorrow the Xiao family will be honored by you!"

  ……

  Under Xiao Bo's instigation, all the young men and women were stirred up with enthusiasm, until now they had a real understanding of the Xiao family's strength. The Xiao family was one of the four major families in Yunzhou County, with disciples spread throughout Yunzhou, forming a vast network of relationships.

  Chen Hao only then understood that when the Xiao family disciples turned twenty, they would enter the Jianghu and become a part of the vast network of relationships within the Xiao family. They would blend into secular society and establish their own power. Some remained in the Xiao family to continue cultivating, taking on certain positions, such as the three Qianzi generation instructors standing before them, as well as Xiao Guan and others.

  "But...” Xiao Bo said, his tone suddenly changing. "In the past 24 years, although many inner disciples have been promoted, not a single one has been able to do so before the age of 20! If you're not promoted as an inner disciple by the time you're 20, it's extremely difficult to become a true master for the rest of your life - a Ninth-Rank Martial Emperor! Our Xiao family isn't lacking in ordinary masters, but when it comes to true masters... we're severely lacking in successors! The ages of our younger generation disciples are mostly between 18 and 20 years old. Currently, not a single one of them is able to reach the Seventh Level of martial arts and be promoted as an inner disciple before the age of 20!"

  It is hoped that only those born in the auspicious and lucky generations will be born. Therefore, our Xiao family head Xiao Ding promised a heavy reward: among the Ji and Xiang generations, whoever can advance to an inner disciple before the age of 20 will receive that generous reward! The qualification for cultivating the three great ultimate skills of the Xiao family and one Chi Lian fruit!"

  "Boom——" The originally quiet martial arts arena suddenly boiled over.

  "The three great ultimate techniques... 'The Return to the Origin Heart Sutra', 'The Mountain Opener Palm' and 'The Xiao Family's Nine Swords'! And also the Scarlet Furnace Fruit... If I were to get it... Ahhh...!" The lively little spirit excitedly started dancing with joy, her small face turning bright red, looking utterly adorable.

  "Is this reward good?" Chen Hao asked somewhat puzzled.

  "Isn't it just great? Don't you know that? Hmm... You seem to know very little... Let me tell you, the three greatest absolute arts of the Xiao family are extremely famous, and they're all sixth-grade techniques! Especially the "Returning to the Origin Heart Scripture", which can rival seventh-grade techniques! And that Scarlet Refining Fruit is also a sixth-grade spiritual medicine... The Xiao family, indeed worthy of being the Xiao family, what a grand gesture!"

  The classification of Gongfa and Lingyao is roughly similar to that of the Wu Zhe, with nine levels in total, each level further divided into three sub-levels: upper, middle, and lower. Only those who have reached the Wu Huang level are qualified to use sixth-level Gongfa and sixth-level Lingyao. In the Xiao family, only the head of the household, guest officials, and elder members who are truly high-ranking experts are qualified to use them, but it is extremely difficult for them to get the opportunity to do so, which shows just how precious they are.

  After listening to Xiaoling's explanation, Chen Hao didn't get excited like her and the other boys, but his eyes became exceptionally fiery!

  ……

  Xiao Bo looked at the excited young man, slowly raised his hand, and the commotion quickly subsided. He smiled slightly and said: "Now, please let General Xiao Guan announce your new names!"

  Xiao Guan walked coldly to the front of the stage, read out the new names from number one to ninety-nine, and then retreated with a cold face.

  Chen Hao officially changed his name to Xiao Xianghao!

  ……

  After Xiao Guan and Xiao Bo left, three Qianzi officers led their respective classes to one side.

  "My name is Xiao Qianrui, and from now on, I will be your instructor. You can call me Instructor Rui." Xiao Qianrui, a 36-year-old middle-aged man, wore a black instructor uniform with the golden character "Xiao" on his left chest, followed by his number, "38", ranking thirty-eighth in the Thousand Character Generation.

  "You, you, step forward!" Xiao Qianrui said up to this point, suddenly nodded at the two young men in front of him, pointing at the thick stack of documents neatly arranged on the ground: "Distribute these, one copy per person, except for No. 99!"

  "Yes, Lieutenant Rei!"

  When the two young men began distributing materials, Xiao Qianrui's gaze turned to Chen Huan standing at the end and said: "Ninety-nine, step out!"

  Chen Haoyi was taken aback and hastily ran forward in small steps.

  "This is yours. If you can't understand it, ask others, and return to the team!" Xiao Qianrui threw a document at Chen Hao and said coldly.

  Chen Huan had a bad premonition in his heart, as if he was being treated specially again. He knew it couldn't be anything good. Clenching his fists tightly, Chen Huan suppressed the anger deep within him, Enduring, only enduring!

  Only when one becomes a strong person will all unfair treatments disappear!

  (Second update. Originally, the update time was adjusted to avoid many of you staying up late until 12 o'clock. From tomorrow on, I will update one chapter around 8 am and another around 7 pm. Although it's only two chapters, the word count is similar to that of three chapters in many new books. The daily word count for a new book is about 6,000 words, which should be considered generous. With over 40 days of public updates, occasionally bursting with more content, by the time it's published, there should be nearly 300,000 public chapters... Hehe... After resting for two months, although I've thought about many things, my hands are a bit rusty and my typing speed is slow... But Wushan has confidence in writing "Proud Sky" well. Also, let me reveal that this book doesn't have just one female lead, but it won't be too many either. The kind of grand scale like Xuantian will definitely not appear... Passing through a sea of flowers without getting stained. Women will never become a burden to Chen Huan... For the new book, I once again ask for everyone's support on Fantasy Journey. Clicking, recommending, especially collecting, are all affirmations and supports for Wushan, as well as the driving force behind my typing... Thank you!)