Chapter 09: Entrance Examination

At the peak of Luoyan Mountain, Shen Chen stood facing the wind, repeatedly performing the Surging Tide Fist, as if savoring something.

The reason Shen Chen could defeat Liu Yong, who was at the third level of the Blood Fusion Realm, with only the first level of the Blood Fusion Realm, was not due to the low-grade Human Rank technique, the Vast Sea Tide Technique, nor the Surging Tide Fist!

Instead, it was the faint sense of the ebb and flow, the unceasing vitality, that Shen Chen experienced during his sudden enlightenment. It was this sense that allowed Shen Chen to unleash his divine power and defeat Liu Yong.

However, because the time of enlightenment was too brief, Shen Chen's understanding of this sense was not complete.

After consuming dozens of Body Tempering Pills and breaking through to the second level of the Blood Fusion Realm, Shen Chen finally had the time to once again savor this sense.

"Whoosh... whoosh... whoosh..." Shen Chen repeatedly performed the Surging Tide Fist. The surging blood qi, like a mighty river, continuously surged, producing a series of wave-like sounds. Wherever his fist passed, the air was stirred by the wind of his punch, forming swirling vortices that produced a whooshing sound.

At the same time, in Shen Chen's mind, a scene of the sea appeared. Wave after wave, endless and boundless, eventually converged into towering waves that fiercely battered the rocks on the shore. Under the assault of the waves, the originally unyielding rocks were eroded into a thousand holes.

One wave, then another!

Countless waves piled up, transforming the originally gentle waves into a force that could destroy any obstacle! Even a mountain could be eroded and destroyed by these waves!

"Layered waves? When waves pile up, they undergo a qualitative change! That's it!" Shen Chen suddenly opened his eyes, and the style of the Surging Tide Fist he was performing changed, becoming faster and faster, with the power rapidly converging at a single point.

"Ha!" Shen Chen roared, and his fist slammed down onto the rock in front of him.

"Boom!" A loud explosion, and a massive boulder, weighing a thousand pounds, shattered into countless pieces of various sizes, raining down like a shower.

This strike must have had a force of six thousand pounds!

In other words, Shen Chen, with the second level of the Blood Fusion Realm, had unleashed an attack with three times his own strength, a power that could rival an ordinary sixth-level Body Tempering Realm martial artist.

"Great! With this technique of layering ten waves, I finally have the ability to protect myself in the Flowing Cloud Sect. If anyone dares to provoke me, I won't mind letting them taste the power of ten layered waves." Shen Chen thought, a smile appearing on his face.

In the distance, a figure was running frantically. Before reaching Shen Chen, he shouted.

"Brother Chen, Brother Chen, good news, good news!"

Shen Chen glanced over and saw it was none other than Wang Yue.

"What good news? Don't be so dramatic!" Shen Chen laughed and scolded.

"Uh..." When Wang Yue finally reached Shen Chen, he saw the boulder that Shen Chen had shattered and was instantly speechless.

"Brother Chen, did you do this? Wow! You're amazing! Even before you broke through to the second level of the Blood Fusion Realm, you could challenge Liu Yong, who was at the third level. Now that you've broken through to the second level, your strength must have improved greatly! Even a fourth-level Blood Fusion Realm martial artist might not be your match..." Wang Yue said with admiration.

Seeing the boulder that Shen Chen had shattered, Wang Yue's admiration for Shen Chen grew even more, and his determination to follow Shen Chen unwaveringly became even stronger.

"Enough, stop flattering me! Tell me, what good news..." Shen Chen smiled and nudged Wang Yue, asking.

"Oh, almost forgot... Just now, the outer sect elder announced that the biennial inner sect entrance examination will begin in three days!" Wang Yue said.

"Inner sect entrance examination? What are the benefits of joining the inner sect? Besides, isn't the minimum requirement to join the inner sect the third level of the Blood Fusion Realm?" Shen Chen asked, puzzled.

"Brother Chen! That's the inner sect! If you join the inner sect, you have the chance to become a disciple of an inner sect elder. Moreover, in the future, you can freely choose second-level Human Rank or even higher-level Human Rank techniques from the second floor of the library... I'm already at the peak of the second level of the Blood Fusion Realm. During the examination, I might even break through to the third level of the Blood Fusion Realm..." Wang Yue said confidently.

After Shen Chen defeated Liu Yong and obtained the Body Tempering Pills from him and his minions, he not only consumed them himself but also had Wang Yue take as many as possible to enhance his strength.

Wang Yue, being diligent, took eight Body Tempering Pills in three doses, breaking through from the first level of the Blood Fusion Realm to the peak of the second level. Then, Wang Yue went to the library and chose the Human Rank Intermediate technique, the Great Vajra Fist.

Wang Yue, being a large and naturally strong person, combined with the Great Vajra Fist, now had a full-force punch of about 2,700 pounds, rivaling an ordinary martial artist who had just broken through to the third level of the Blood Fusion Realm.

His current strength was largely due to the Body Tempering Pills given by Shen Chen, which made Wang Yue very grateful to Shen Chen, and he had long considered Shen Chen his big brother.

Originally, Wang Yue was quite proud of breaking through to the peak of the second level of the Blood Fusion Realm after consuming eight Body Tempering Pills. After all, an ordinary martial artist could absorb only three Body Tempering Pills in half a month. Wang Yue's ability to absorb eight Body Tempering Pills was considered quite exceptional in the Flowing Cloud Sect.

However, when Wang Yue learned that Shen Chen had consumed forty-six Body Tempering Pills, his pride was completely shattered, and he was even more in awe of Shen Chen.

"Oh? Sounds good, let's go and see!" Shen Chen nodded.

In his previous life, Shen Chen was a person who couldn't stand idleness, enjoying battles and confrontations with stronger opponents. In this life, with the chance to start anew, Shen Chen had great confidence that he could become stronger and even reach the peak of this world!

Now, Shen Chen had the strength to contend with fifth or even sixth-level Blood Fusion Realm martial artists, which made him very eager to spar with stronger opponents, to find his own shortcomings, and to promote his own rapid growth.

A surging battle spirit rose in Shen Chen's heart!

Fight!

...

Three days later, outside the Purple Mist Hall of the Flowing Cloud Sect, the area was already crowded with people.

Although the Flowing Cloud Sect was not a particularly powerful sect, it had a history of several hundred years and a considerable foundation, which attracted many martial artists from the surrounding hundreds of miles to join the sect.

Currently, the Flowing Cloud Sect had over a thousand disciples, with hundreds of them being outer sect disciples, almost making up nine-tenths of the sect!

Upon learning that the inner sect entrance examination was to be held, almost all the outer sect disciples of the Flowing Cloud Sect rushed over, each harboring a glimmer of hope, dreaming of joining the inner sect and achieving success.