Chapter 53

Update Time: 2013-04-21

"Ah, everyone is here." The city lord nodded with a full face, still shaken by Mr. Wu's incident, which had made him as nervous as a bird that had been frightened by a bow. He only managed to sleep soundly after the people from the Bright Martial Association arrived.

He smiled and said, "Please, Mr. Kong, test their talents."

A middle-aged man in a white martial uniform nodded with a smile. The martial uniform he wore was embroidered with exquisite golden thread, exuding a noble demeanor. He gave the order, "Let's begin."

"Yes." An old man quickly stepped forward, standing in front of the students. Suddenly, a stack of light rings appeared in his hand. With a flick of his finger, the light rings scattered like flowers falling from the sky, flying toward the students.

Seeing some students instinctively dodge, the old man sternly shouted, "Don't move!"

Though his voice was not loud, it sounded like thunder in everyone's ears, and all the students dared not move.

The light rings flew up into the sky, quickly grew larger, and then scattered, each one covering a student.

After a moment, the colors of the light rings began to change, each one a different color.

Tang Tian curiously stared at the light ring at his feet, which was shining with a black light.

Then he heard the old man sternly shout, "Those with golden light rings, step forward ten steps."

Only five people did so: Sima Xiangshan, Liang Qiu, Han Bingning, A'mori, and an unknown student who looked bewildered. If Zhou Peng were still alive, he would have recognized this student as Gu Xiaoyu, whom he often bullied.

Headmaster Andrew's face lit up with joy when he saw Gu Xiaoyu selected.

"Those with silver light rings, step forward seven steps."

This time, more students stepped forward, including the famous ones like Wang Zhen. Only seven people remained.

"Those with bronze light rings, step forward three steps."

Six people stepped forward, leaving only Tang Tian standing in his place.

Tang Tian looked around and suddenly realized that he seemed to be the only one with a black light ring.

The old man turned and reported to the middle-aged man, "Sir, there are five with excellent talent, forty-two with good talent, six with average talent, and one with extremely poor talent."

The expressions of everyone present became extremely strange. The one with extremely poor talent could only be Tang Tian, as he was the only one standing alone.

For the first time, a sense of absurd joy arose in everyone's hearts.

Tang Tian's talent is extremely poor?

Is this a joke... It must be... Or a group joke...

Tang Tian, completely unconcerned, curiously looked around. The light rings were quite magical, with various colors. He wasn't too concerned about the Bright Martial Association. If not for the danger of the Heavenly Path, he would have perfected the other martial techniques and gone to find Qian Hui in the Perseus constellation.

A'mori suddenly widened his eyes and shouted, "This must be wrong! How can Tang's talent be so poor? It's impossible! Absolutely impossible!"

The old man's face darkened, "I have been testing talent for over twenty years and have never been wrong."

Han Bingning's cold voice rang out, "Sir, could you test again?"

Liang Qiu, whose shoulder wound had healed, spoke calmly, "Sir, you used a secret treasure, which can sometimes be unstable."

Sima Xiangshan, with a smile on his face, said in a cold voice, "If Tang's talent is considered poor, how can we bear it!"

The old man's face turned even darker. He had never encountered such a situation, especially in front of Mr. Kong, which made him lose face. If it were any other student, he would have shouted at them, but these few had outstanding talent and were likely to join the Bright Martial Association in the future.

Tang Tian exclaimed, "The old man didn't make a mistake. My talent is indeed poor!"

Tang Tian was very clear about his talent, which was average in all aspects, and his physical condition, thanks to five years of basic training, was far inferior to that of A'mori, who was a natural brute.

Hearing this, everyone's faces turned red, and they felt like they were about to bleed.

Please, if you're going to act innocent, at least don't pretend your talent is poor. Do you think we're all fools...

A'mori widened his eyes, "Tang, you're a god-like youth. How can your talent be poor?"

"What does being a god-like youth have to do with talent?" Tang Tian said indifferently.

Everyone turned their heads away, unable to bear the sight. This... This is a blatant challenge to our intelligence...

Do you think we believe you... Do you think we believe you... If we believe you, we're fools!

If anyone else had said such a provoking thing, they would have been trampled to death by the crowd. But now, with Tang Tian's reputation, everyone could only endure, though it felt... so unsatisfying!

The old man, seeing everyone's reaction, hesitated. Could there really be a problem?

Without a word, he flicked his finger, and a more brilliant light ring shot out, covering Tang Tian.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the light ring.

Pitch black and shiny!

Even blacker and shinier than before!

The old man was certain this time. He could guarantee there was no problem. Such a black light ring was the first he had ever seen, indicating that the youth before him was not just poor but extremely poor.

Everyone's faces turned strange, and their gazes toward the old man were filled with doubt.

On the contrary, Tang Tian said smugly, "I told you, my talent is very poor!"

Everyone's strange expressions froze on their faces.

This guy... actually... actually looks smug!

Group ridicule!

This despicable person must be group ridiculing! What a terrible character, just because he's strong... Just because he's strong, he can group ridicule...

Everyone's hearts were filled with tears. They were 100% sure that Tang Tian was doing this on purpose!

Definitely on purpose!

Of course, they forgot about another oddball. A'mori, with a shocked face, shouted, "Tang! You truly are a god-like youth! With such poor talent, you can still reach this level. It's truly inspiring!"

Smack!

A'mori's head was hit. He widened his eyes, turned around angrily, and saw Brother Liang Qiu. His anger immediately dissipated, and he looked bewildered, "Brother Liang, why did you hit me?"

Liang Qiu looked calm, "Oh, I slipped."

Han Bingning frowned and said, "Tang Tian, stop playing around!"

"Ah, girl," Tang Tian looked bewildered, "What are you talking about?"

Everyone wisely kept quiet. Even Han Bingning couldn't get Tang Tian to listen, so no one else had the face to speak.

Tang Tian's words were automatically filtered out by everyone. This guy is a jerk, he just wants to bring our intelligence down to his level and then beat us with his experience! That's it, it must be!

But, is this Bright Martial Association really as powerful as the legends say? A place that can't even accurately measure talent... It's a bit worrying...

Tang Tian was so odd that even the old man was shaken. He wondered if Tang Tian had used some secret treasure to confuse his own. Should he test again?

The old man was full of hesitation.

Mr. Kong's eyes flickered, and he smiled at the city lord, "I've been to many cities, but this is the first time I've seen a city like Starwind, with so many talented youths. I've heard that the city lord has invested a lot in education, and today's visit is truly impressive!"

The city lord's face lit up, "Mr. Kong, you flatter me! I wonder how many of these students can meet Mr. Kong's standards?"

"These five are certainly no problem. Their talents are quite good, and they are still young, with great potential." Mr. Kong then looked at Tang Tian, "I find this young boy quite interesting. Though he is a bit older, he can join our outer camp."

The city lord was overjoyed. Having six students selected was a very good result for Starwind City. From now on, Starwind City would be under the true influence of the Bright Martial Association, protected by it.

"I want to go to the Perseus constellation!" Tang Tian raised his hand, determined. If he couldn't go to the Perseus constellation, he wouldn't join the Bright Martial Association.

"Perseus constellation?" Mr. Kong smiled kindly, "That's convenient. We have a large branch there. You can join the outer camp there."

"Great!" Tang Tian jumped up, raising his arm and shouting, "I can save on travel expenses!"

Sima Xiangshan and others' eyes twitched. Please, you're a skilled expert, can you be a bit more composed... Can you not be so odd...

"I want to go to the Perseus constellation! Wow, I can see Miss Qian Hui!" A'mori also raised his arm and shouted.

Miss Qian Hui!

Han Bingning said without hesitation, "I also want to go to the Perseus constellation!" She was a die-hard fan of Shangguan Qian Hui and would go no matter how far to see her idol.

Sima Xiangshan's face darkened, and he gritted his teeth, "Shangguan Qian Hui... Great, the Perseus constellation! I didn't expect to have a chance to avenge myself!"

"One arrow of revenge?" Tang Tian widened his eyes, "Ah, isn't it many arrows of revenge?"

Sima Xiangshan was speechless. He felt as if he had been pierced by a thousand arrows. He finally understood why Shangguan Qian Hui liked Tang Tian.

—Because Tang Tian is even more of a jerk than she is!

"You're right! Many arrows of revenge!" Sima Xiangshan's eyes were filled with killing intent, and his voice was icy cold.

Liang Qiu said calmly, "Not being able to fight Miss Qian Hui is a regret in my life. I'll go with you."

Gu Xiaoyu weakly said, "I... I'll go with everyone."

The old man was completely stunned. When did the Bright Martial Association start letting people choose their branches?

Mr. Kong was also a bit surprised but smiled, "Your young people's enthusiasm is truly enviable. The Perseus constellation branch is quite strong and won't bury your talents. Since you want to go, there's no problem."

The old man was shocked. They had a mission this time, and if they didn't take anyone back...

He was about to speak to stop them but suddenly remembered that the head of the Perseus constellation branch was Mr. Kong's sister. The old man immediately wisely kept quiet.

That terrifying woman!

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