Chapter 64: The Choice
"Splash!"
Zhang Ruochen leaped up from the water, flipped through the air, and landed on the shore.
White true qi surged out from his pores, instantly drying his soaked clothes in just a moment.
Having reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm, the true qi within his body was abundant, allowing him to expel it outward, even condense it into qi swords to kill from a distance.
Zhang Ruochen channeled the true qi in his body to the meridians in his right hand. A mass of white qi light gathered at the tip of his index finger and shot toward an ironwood pine tree as thick as a bowl, ten meters away.
"Boom!"
The white qi sword pierced through the trunk of the ironwood pine, leaving a fist-sized hole.
"Just an ordinary sword qi, and its power is already this impressive. A Mysterious Extreme Realm martial artist is truly incomparable to a Yellow Extreme Realm one. If I could master the Spirit-level top-grade martial technique 'Ten Meridian Sword Wave,' and unleash a qi sword, just how powerful would it be?"
In his previous life, Zhang Ruochen had practiced the Ten Meridian Sword Wave, cultivating his ten fingers into finger swords. With a casual point, he could unleash a sharp qi sword, killing someone from a hundred zhang away.
However, the Ten Meridian Sword Wave was extremely difficult to master. Even though Zhang Ruochen had succeeded once before, practicing it again would by no means be an easy task.
Just then, Zhang Ruochen sensed someone approaching, so he immediately withdrew the true qi within his body.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince walked toward Zhang Ruochen, looked him up and down, nodded with satisfaction, and said, "Broken through to the Mysterious Extreme Realm?"
Zhang Ruochen did not say much, only nodding lightly.
Zhang Ruochen did not have much affection for the Yunwu Commandery Prince, but he could feel the prince's concern for him. Therefore, he still held a fair amount of respect for the Yunwu Commandery Prince.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince said, "Attack me with your strongest power."
Zhang Ruochen glanced slightly at the Yunwu Commandery Prince and said, "Alright."
Having reached the initial stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm, Zhang Ruochen also wanted to test just how strong his strength had become.
In front of the Yunwu Commandery Prince, he could unleash his trump cards without reservation. Because the Yunwu Commandery Prince would never harm him; he would only use all his power to protect him.
"Swish!"
Zhang Ruochen burst his speed to the limit, instantly crossing a distance of ten meters, and struck a palm toward the Yunwu Commandery Prince's chest, "Dragon-Elephant Returns to the Field!"
He executed his strongest palm strike, carrying the power to overturn mountains and seas. The bones and muscles within his body seemed to emit a sound like the harmonious cry of dragons and elephants.
The fierce palm wind stirred up sand and stones from the ground.
Even when Zhang Ruochen's palm struck the Yunwu Commandery Prince's body, the prince stood unmoving, showing no intention of counterattacking.
"Boom!"
Just as Zhang Ruochen's palm landed on the Yunwu Commandery Prince's body, an immensely powerful force erupted from within the prince.
Zhang Ruochen was sent flying backward, his blood and qi churning violently. He landed somewhat awkwardly on the ground, retreating over ten steps before dissipating that powerful impact.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince nodded and said, "Not bad. The power of this palm of yours is stronger than many martial artists at the later stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm, even comparable to the strength of some weaker martial artists at the Minor Extreme Position of the Mysterious Extreme Realm."
"Moreover, your greatest advantage is not your strength, but your control over power and your sword path realm, which rivals martial artists at the Earth Extreme Realm. All in all, even some martial artists at the Minor Extreme Position of the Mysterious Extreme Realm might not necessarily be your match. It seems you truly have cultivated to the Unrivaled Extreme Realm of the Yellow Extreme Realm; otherwise, you couldn't be this powerful."
Zhang Ruochen thought to himself, It seems that summoning the resonance of the gods has indeed alerted the Yunwu Commandery Prince.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince stared at Zhang Ruochen, a hint of tenderness in his eyes, and said, "With your talent, your future achievements will surely surpass mine. Staying in the royal palace will only bury your talent. Now, there are two paths before you."
"The first path—have you heard of the Yuntai Clan Mansion?"
Zhang Ruochen said, "The Yuntai Clan Mansion is a fourth-rate sect, founded seven hundred and twenty years ago. Its power is quite vast, holding a very transcendent status in the nine commanderies west of the ridge. Princes, princesses, and noble children from various commandery states all take pride in joining the Yuntai Clan Mansion. The Yuntai Clan Mansion can be called the cradle of the strong. Nearly half of the Heavenly Extreme Realm experts in the nine commanderies west of the ridge were once disciples of the Yuntai Clan Mansion."
The nine commanderies west of the ridge referred to the nine commandery states west of the Heavenly Demon Ridge, and the Yunwu Commandery State was one of them.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince nodded and said, "I was once a disciple of the Yuntai Clan Mansion. One of the current vice-heads of the outer mansion of the Yuntai Clan Mansion is an elder of the Yunwu Commandery Prince's royal clan, and I must address him as uncle. If you wish to join the Yuntai Clan Mansion, I can write a letter to my uncle right now. With your talent, you only need to reveal a tenth of your aptitude to join the Yuntai Clan Mansion and become an outer mansion disciple."
Zhang Ruochen pondered for a moment, then said, "And the second path?"
The Yunwu Commandery Prince said, "The second path is a bit more difficult, but as long as your talent is high enough to stand out among the many geniuses, your future achievements will be even more astonishing. You should know about the Martial Market Academy, right?"
"The martial academy established by the Martial Market Bank?" Zhang Ruochen said.
The Martial Market Bank's industries spanned the entire Kunlun Realm. Every commandery state, every city, and even every small town would inevitably have a branch of the Martial Market Bank.
The martial markets of various commandery states were almost all controlled by the Martial Market Bank. It could be said that the Martial Market Bank controlled over thirty percent of the economic arteries of the entire Kunlun Realm.
The power of the Martial Market Bank was countless times greater than that of the Yuntai Clan Mansion. It had been passed down from the Middle Ages to the present, truly worthy of being called a money empire. Not to mention fourth-rate sects, even first-rate sects dared not go against the Martial Market Bank.
Of course, with such wealth, the Martial Market Bank certainly needed strong martial power to protect it.
Thus, the Martial Market Bank established the Martial Market Arena and the Martial Market Academy.
The Martial Market Academy was designed to continuously cultivate talent for the Martial Market Bank, ensuring its lasting prosperity and eternal dominance over the currency of the Kunlun Realm.
The better a student performed at the Martial Market Academy, the higher their status in the Martial Market Bank after graduation, and the greater the power they wielded.
The greatest benefit of joining the Martial Market Academy was never lacking money or cultivation resources; the Martial Market Bank was the strongest backing.
Of course, the difficulty of joining the Martial Market Academy was also great, the competition fiercer, and one might even die within the academy if not careful.
Zhang Ruochen naturally knew the power of the Martial Market Bank. The Martial Market Bank of the Yunwu Commandery State was just a very small branch. The headquarters of the Martial Market Bank was comparable to the court of the First Central Empire, both controlling the situation of the world.
Zhang Ruochen said, "Has the Martial Market Bank established an academy in the Yunwu Commandery State?"
The Yunwu Commandery Prince shook his head and said, "Not in the Yunwu Commandery State, but in the Heavenly Demon Ridge. It has established a one-star academy, specifically recruiting talents from the thirty-six commandery states around the Heavenly Demon Ridge: the nine west of the ridge, the nine east of the ridge, the nine south of the ridge, and the nine north of the ridge."
Zhang Ruochen nodded and said, "Alright! I choose the path of the Martial Market Academy."
Joining the Yuntai Clan Mansion might allow Zhang Ruochen to face less competition and grow more easily. But the potential of the Yuntai Clan Mansion was far inferior to that of the Martial Market Academy.
Zhang Ruochen was not afraid of fierce competition; he was afraid the competition was not fierce enough.
The Yunwu Commandery Prince was quite satisfied with Zhang Ruochen's decision and said, "If you become a high-ranking member of the Martial Market Bank in the future, the Yunwu Commandery State will surely reap boundless benefits. In another month, it will be the enrollment day for the Martial Market Academy. During this time, you should focus on stabilizing your realm. When the time comes, I will send someone to escort you to the Heavenly Demon Ridge."
After that, the Yunwu Commandery Prince and Zhang Ruochen left the Royal Mountain.
Zhang Ruochen returned to the Yushu Palace but did not see General Ge Qian.
The imperial guards stationed at the Yushu Palace had also been replaced with a new batch. The leading general was tall and burly, with dark skin and a full beard. Seeing Zhang Ruochen, he immediately bowed and said in a rough voice, "Your subordinate, Gan Li, pays respects to the Ninth Prince."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Where is General Ge Qian?"
Gan Li said, "Old Ge has been transferred by the king to guard the ancestral temple at Tianzi Mountain. From now on, I will protect the Ninth Prince's safety. Rest assured, Ninth Prince, my martial cultivation is in no way inferior to Old Ge's. If it comes to strength, I could flip three Old Ges over."
As he spoke, Gan Li flexed his thick, muscular arms, his muscles as solid as iron blocks.
Zhang Ruochen thought to himself, It seems Ge Qian and those imperial guards knew about me summoning the resonance of the gods, which is why they were transferred to guard the ancestral temple.
Zhang Ruochen glanced at Gan Li and said, "With General Gan Li protecting me, I believe no assassin would dare set foot in the Yushu Palace."
Hearing Zhang Ruochen's praise, Gan Li laughed heartily, brandishing the giant axe in his hand, and said, "I have followed the king into battle ten times, even cleaving enemy war beasts with a single axe stroke. A few mere assassins—if they dare come to the Yushu Palace, I will split them all in two."
Zhang Ruochen nodded and walked into the palace, intending to first visit the courtyard where A Le lived, to see if A Le had successfully cultivated the "Nine Revolutions Life-and-Death Art."
Just as he entered the courtyard, he saw A Le standing upright in the middle of it.
The bamboo leaves in the nearby bamboo grove fell like a rain of leaves, continuously drifting down.
A Le's sword-drawing speed was as fast as lightning. With each strike, he would surely pierce through a bamboo leaf. With A Le at the center, sword shadows filled the air all around, producing a "swish, swish" sound of breaking wind.
Not a single bamboo leaf on the ground was intact.
"Clap, clap!"
Zhang Ruochen clapped as he walked over and said, "Congratulations on breaking through the cocoon and becoming a butterfly, advancing your cultivation to the next level. You have successfully cultivated the first revolution of the 'Nine Revolutions Life-and-Death Art,' haven't you?"
Zhang Ruochen could tell that A Le's cultivation had already reached the initial stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm.
A Le immediately sheathed his sword, the blade returning to its scabbard with precision.
A Le's gaze also fixed on Zhang Ruochen as he said, "Has the benefactor's cultivation also reached the initial stage of the Mysterious Extreme Realm?"
"Indeed, I have reached the Mysterious Extreme Realm." Zhang Ruochen nodded and asked, "What are your plans next?"