Chapter 18

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Xiaoming stood at the classroom door, took a deep breath, and firmly held the letter containing the secret that his mother had given him. In the eyes of those around him, Ye Feng was synonymous with silence. At this moment, they noticed that Ye Feng was somewhat different from before, but they couldn't quite figure out where the difference lay. If the Ye Feng from before might have gotten angry, the Ye Feng now had no time to deal with him. After all, he was just at the Quasi-Warrior realm. Would an elephant bother with an ant's roar?

"Ha ha, that's right!! People shouldn't stoop to the level of a dog!!"

"Right, Ye Feng's words make sense!"

...

After Ye Feng's words, many of the surrounding teenagers echoed in agreement. These people, like Ye Feng, had no cultivation potential. One could say that Lin Ming's taunts had left a bad taste in their mouths. If no one had stood up, given Lin Ming and the Lin family's influence, none of them would have spoken up. But with someone taking the lead, they naturally wouldn't hold back.

"You... Ye Feng, you're asking for death!!" Seeing Ye Feng's demeanor and hearing the surrounding comments, Lin Ming's face changed. He pointed at Ye Feng and his companions, his face turning red as he shouted.

But neither Ye Feng nor his brother Ye Hao paid any attention to his taunts, just chatting and laughing with the people around them. Seeing that no one was paying attention to him, Lin Ming, full of anger, was about to charge over but was held back by someone beside him, who whispered a few words in his ear. Hearing the youth's words, Lin Ming calmed down, turned to look at Ye Feng and his group, and said with a cold snort, "You're such a waste. Wait until I enter the sect, and then I'll deal with you!"

"Lin Ming, you've blown all your hot air! Enter the sect? You?" Hearing Lin Ming's words, Ye Hao sized him up and said with a mocking smile.

Lin Ming's father, Lin Yuan, was the village's alchemist, though he was just an alchemy apprentice. It was said that he used to be a disciple of a junior alchemist, but after the alchemist's death, he settled here. Although he was just an alchemy apprentice, Lin Yuan was a celebrity in the village and the wealthiest household. Even the village chief would give him some face, so the Lin family had the most resources. With such resources, Lin Ming only reached the Quasi-Warrior realm at the age of fourteen, showing how much of a waste he was.

Hearing Ye Hao's words, Lin Ming's eyes narrowed slightly, but soon a look of smugness appeared on his face.

"Heh heh, Ye Hao, don't be so smug. What if you're a genius? My brother Lin Luo is in charge of recruitment this time. Even if you're a genius, what can you do? Whether you're accepted or not is up to my brother! As for whether I can join the sect, you'll see!"

After Lin Ming's words, Ye Feng and his group fell silent. Lin Ming's brother, Lin Luo, was the genius of Horn Village twelve years ago. He broke through to the Quasi-Warrior realm at the age of twelve and joined the Lan Shui Sect that year. He is now an outer sect manager of the Lan Shui Sect, with considerable power. So, upon hearing this, no one dared to speak, fearing Lin Ming's resentment.

Although there were over a dozen sects recruiting, the most likely one for them to join was the Lan Shui Sect, as it was a local sect in Lan Shui County with relatively relaxed recruitment conditions. Only such a sect would accept people from the countryside with average potential.

"Heh heh!" Seeing that no one spoke, Lin Ming laughed smugly.

"Screech..." A light sound, and the door of the martial arts pavilion behind Ye Feng slowly opened. Three people walked out of the martial arts pavilion.

These three were the most respected people in Horn Village: the village chief, Zhao Dasheng; the instructor, Ma Kui; and the alchemist, Lin Yuan. They were also the ones in charge of this year's selection.

Village Chief Zhao Dasheng, a man in his sixties, looked around and finally focused his gaze on the young people like Ye Feng.

"You are the future of our Horn Village. I hope more geniuses will emerge among you, join the sect, and contribute to making our village stronger! The selection begins now!"

After Zhao Dasheng's words, Ma Kui stepped down and scanned the young people participating in the selection. "Those aged eleven to sixteen, follow me! Those aged six to ten, go to Alchemist Lin!"

After saying this, Ma Kui walked towards the eastern side of the training ground. Following Ma Kui, over forty young people all followed.

"The first test: lift a 200-pound stone lock! Ten points for lifting it, more weight means more points, with an additional five points for every 100 pounds!" On the eastern side of the training ground, Ma Kui distributed all the number plates to the young people and pointed to a row of stone locks.

At this moment, two villagers had already carried a wooden board over, which had numbers from one to forty-six, each corresponding to the number plates in the young people's hands.

Ye Feng looked at his number plate, which read number forty.

"Number one!" Seeing that everything was ready, Ma Kui called out.

With the call, a young boy around eleven or twelve years old walked over.

"Zhou Xi from the Zhou Butcher's family!" Ye Feng recognized him at first sight.

"Hey!"

Zhou Xi approached the 200-pound stone lock, shouted, and reached out to lift it. Although Zhou Xi's shout was quite impressive, he only managed to lift the stone lock for three breaths before dropping it to the ground, let alone lifting it.

Seeing this, Ma Kui shook his head helplessly, but this was within his expectations.

However, Zhou Xi didn't mind, scratching his head and smiling. In his view, being able to lift a 200-pound stone lock to his chest without reaching the Quasi-Warrior realm was already very impressive.

"Zero points! Next!"

"Zero points, next!"

"Zero points, next!"

"Number four, Zhou Guang, ten points!!"

"Zero points, next!"

...

"Number twenty-six, Zhao Jian, fifteen points!"

...

"Number thirty, Lin Ming, twenty points. Not bad, Lin Ming, keep it up, you have a good chance this year!" It wasn't until Lin Ming's turn that a smile appeared on Ma Kui's face.

Lin Ming, not yet fifteen, had already reached the late Quasi-Warrior realm, which was quite impressive.

"Number forty!"

Soon, it was Ye Feng's turn. Ye Feng walked out from the crowd, and Ma Kui's brows furrowed slightly when he saw him.

Ma Kui knew Ye Feng, who had no cultivation potential. One could say that his fragile meridians made him incompatible with martial arts.

Strengthening meridians with medicine? That was a joke. At his level, he knew a lot. Out of a hundred people who took the medicine to strengthen their meridians, it was already good if one succeeded. The rest either died or became permanently disabled.

"Hey, the waste is here. No, not a waste in this test. Iron Body Technique Level Two, ha ha... that's all he'll be for life, maybe he'll die in a few years!"

Seeing Ye Feng walk out, Lin Ming, who had already been tested, called out sarcastically.

Although the people around him thought Lin Ming's words were inappropriate, no one dared to say anything, not even Ma Kui.

Not to mention Lin Ming's father, but even Lin Ming's brother, who was now a fourth-stage warrior, was the top person in Horn Village. He had joined the sect and become a manager. If everything went well, Lin Ming might also join the sect. Ma Kui didn't want to offend such a person.

"Master Ming is right. Trying to cultivate the body, isn't that asking for death? If you can't cultivate, you should accept your fate. Refusing to accept it will only lead to death!"

After Lin Ming's words, someone beside him immediately echoed in agreement.

Not just him, several others also chimed in.

"Xiao Feng, don't worry, it's okay if you don't pass!"

"Big brother, good luck!"

Seeing Ye Feng walk out, Ling Wanrong hurried over from outside the training ground. Ye Hao, who had been checked for potential by Lin Yuan on the other side, also rushed over to look at Ye Feng.

Although Ling Wanrong was extremely nervous, even gripping the hem of her clothes, she still comforted Ye Feng.

Hearing Ye Hao's words, Ye Feng turned and smiled at him, then nodded to Ling Wanrong.

"Ye Feng, hurry up and start!" Ma Kui, knowing Ye Feng's potential, was a bit displeased to see him dawdling.

Ye Feng hadn't even passed the village selection three years ago. In these three years, it was said he had broken through to Iron Body Technique Level Two, but Ma Kui still didn't have high hopes for Ye Feng. Even if he had reached Iron Body Technique Level Two, what difference would it make? His fate was already sealed. If he didn't cultivate Iron Body Technique now, he might have a chance to live, but if he continued, he was destined to die young.