Chapter 281: Such Is the Grand Era
The Illusion Sword Demon-Breaking Finger that Yan Qingwu executed also produced finger-rule sword energy, somewhat similar to the Ten-Pulse Sword Wave.
However, the Ten-Pulse Sword Wave emphasized penetrating power and explosive force, while the Illusion Sword Demon-Breaking Finger prioritized speed and phantom images.
In an instant, a sky-covering torrent of sword energy surged toward Zhang Ruochen like a rainstorm.
Zhang Ruochen moved his feet, shifting his form like a phantom, weaving through the sword energy.
"Chi!"
One strand of sword energy pierced through Zhang Ruochen's protective true qi shield, passing under his armpit. Fortunately, he dodged in time; otherwise, his body would have been pierced through.
While retreating, Zhang Ruochen observed Yan Qingwu's finger technique, searching for a flaw.
The Illusion Sword Demon-Breaking Finger she executed was utterly flawless, having reached a state of supreme mastery, forcing Zhang Ruochen to keep retreating.
Since there were no flaws, he could only break the technique with raw power.
Just as Zhang Ruochen was about to be pushed back against the stone wall, he suddenly sank his legs, steadied his stance, and struck out with a palm.
"Elephant Force Ninefold!"
A series of seven palm prints shot out, unleashing seven times the power.
"Demon-Suppressing Finger!"
Yan Qingwu extended only her index and little fingers on her right hand, a surge of freezing true qi erupting from her fingertips and striking Zhang Ruochen's palm.
With one clash, the two separated again.
Yan Qingwu's strength was surprisingly formidable, only slightly weaker than Zhang Ruochen's.
This was not unusual. Yan Qingwu's overall strength had always been above Zhang Ruochen's.
Her speed was a full notch faster than his, reaching two hundred sixty-six meters per second. Her maximum power was only slightly inferior to his, at thirty-one and a half barbaric elephant forces.
Their battle was evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand.
After an hour, they had exchanged over two thousand three hundred moves, yet still could not determine a victor.
If they continued fighting, barring any mistakes, even three days and three nights would hardly decide the outcome.
Finally, the artifact spirit clone of the Earth Ranking intervened, transmitting a voice: "According to the Earth Ranking testing rules, if no victor is decided within an hour, the Earth Ranking will evaluate both fighters' strengths and determine the outcome."
"Based on your data, the Earth Ranking artifact spirit judges Zhang Ruochen to be superior, and his challenge against Yan Qingwu is successful."
Yan Qingwu was somewhat unconvinced and asked, "Why? Clearly, my strength is greater than his. If we continued, I could gradually gain the upper hand by relying on my deeper true qi reserves."
"You are correct. However, Zhang Ruochen did not use his full strength when fighting you."
The Earth Ranking artifact spirit continued, "After your sword was destroyed, Zhang Ruochen voluntarily abandoned his own sword and fought you with fists and feet. You need to know that Zhang Ruochen's sword dao realm has already reached Sword Heart Illumination. If he had used the Sword Heart Illumination realm, you would have been defeated within a thousand moves."
Earlier, when Zhang Ruochen fought Wei Wuhen, he had used the Sword Heart Illumination realm, which the Earth Ranking artifact spirit had already recorded in its data.
"Sword Heart Illumination?"
Yan Qingwu stared deeply at Zhang Ruochen and said, "So that's it. I accept my defeat willingly. Zhang Ruochen, I will remember your name. When my strength improves further, I will definitely challenge you again on the Earth Ranking."
With those words, Yan Qingwu's spiritual void body dissipated, turning into wisps of spiritual qi.
Zhang Ruochen walked out of the testing chamber and found Luo Shuihan already waiting outside, having completed her three practical tests.
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Senior Sister, how did your tests go?"
"I won two matches and lost one," Luo Shuihan said.
The silver-robed elder standing nearby looked at Luo Shuihan with great admiration and said, "Luo Shuihan defeated the Earth Ranking's 3,700th and 3,300th ranked martial artists, and ultimately lost by a single move to the 3,000th ranked martial artist. Among martial artists under twenty years old who have entered the top ten thousand of the Earth Ranking, there are only seventy-eight, and she is one of them."
Zhang Ruochen said, "Congratulations, Senior Sister."
Luo Shuihan remained very calm, instead looking at Zhang Ruochen with a meaningful gaze and said, "My ranking is probably far behind yours."
The silver-robed elder was slightly startled. Luo Shuihan's ranking was far behind Zhang Ruochen's?
The two strongest prodigies of Demon Ridge, Si Xingkong and Zhang Tiangui, were only around the 5,000th place on the Earth Ranking, both far behind Luo Shuihan.
No matter how powerful Zhang Ruochen was, how strong could he be?
After all, Zhang Ruochen was also under twenty years old.
Lei Jing, standing nearby, could not help but ask impatiently, "Zhang Ruochen, did you succeed in your second practical test challenge?"
Lei Jing was the only one who knew that Zhang Ruochen intended to challenge the 100th place on the Earth Ranking, fully aware of the importance of this battle.
If successful, Zhang Ruochen would enter the top one hundred of the Earth Ranking, qualify to appear on the next issue of the Eastern Region Wind and Cloud Report, become a leading figure among the younger generation of the Eastern Region, and fully enter the view of major powers.
Zhang Ruochen remained expressionless and nodded.
Lei Jing let out a loud laugh, almost ecstatic, and waved his sleeve, saying, "Elder Xi, Luo Shuihan, you may withdraw first. I have matters to discuss privately with Zhang Ruochen."
"For the nearly hundred-year-old Pavilion Master Lei to be so excited, Zhang Ruochen's Earth Ranking challenge must be quite high. Perhaps he has even entered the top one thousand," the silver-robed elder speculated in his heart.
He bowed to Lei Jing and withdrew from the Earth Ranking Testing Palace.
Luo Shuihan also exited.
Lei Jing said, "Zhang Ruochen, this old man was not wrong about you. For Demon Ridge to produce a young hero like you is also Demon Ridge's fortune. Demon Ridge was once occupied by savage beasts, ruled by the 'Four-Winged Earth Dragon,' a primordial wilderness. In truth, humans have only been on this land for five hundred years."
"Five hundred years may seem long, but compared to the entire history of humanity in Kunlun Realm, it is but a fleeting instant. Thus, in others' eyes, Demon Ridge remains a barren wasteland, a remote backwater, an insignificant speck."
Zhang Ruochen did not know why Lei Jing was saying this, but he listened earnestly and then said, "Although Demon Ridge has only five hundred years of history, it has still produced countless heroes, some even achieving sainthood. For example, Senior Luo Xu."
"Indeed."
Lei Jing nodded, a look of longing in his eyes, and said, "Senior Luo Xu is the only saint in Demon Ridge's history, the strongest to ever emerge from here. Without his influence, many people might still not know of Demon Ridge's existence."
Zhang Ruochen asked, "Pavilion Master, are you also a native cultivator of Demon Ridge?"
Lei Jing said, "You could say that. I was once an orphan, taken in by an elder of the Martial Market Bank and brought to the Martial Market Academy to train. Because of my outstanding talent, I not only entered the inner academy but later even the Holy Academy."
"But the competition in the Holy Academy was too fierce, too many geniuses. I was just a poor boy from a small place—how could I compete with the heirs of half-saint families and saintly clans?"
"After just one year in the Holy Academy, I offended an heir of a saintly clan. He beat me severely and threw me out of the Holy Academy. Haha!"
At this point, Lei Jing could not help but laugh bitterly, saying, "How ridiculous! Back then, I was thrown out of the Holy Academy by someone else. To be honest, this is the first time in all these years I've told anyone about this—it was too humiliating! What could I do? At the time, in terms of strength, I couldn't match him. In terms of family background, I couldn't match him either. So, I had to take the beating!"
Zhang Ruochen asked, "And then what?"
"After offending the heir of a saintly clan, naturally I couldn't stay in the Holy Academy. Besides, after being beaten like a dog, I had no face to stay there. Leaving the Holy Academy, I joined the Martial Market Bank. Unexpectedly, I later broke through the four martial realms and reached the Fish-Dragon Realm, becoming a top-tier expert."
Although Lei Jing spoke lightly, Zhang Ruochen knew how difficult it was to break through to the Fish-Dragon Realm. Even in his previous life, he had not reached that realm.
Lei Jing must have put in countless efforts, shed much sweat and blood, growing and struggling in humiliation, to finally break through and become a true elite.
Lei Jing laughed, "When I broke through to the Fish-Dragon Realm, the heir of that saintly clan who had thrown me out of the Holy Academy was still stuck in the Heavenly Extreme Realm. Heh! Since my strength had greatly improved, naturally I had to get my revenge, right? So, on a dark and windy night, I gave that heir a thorough beating, blackened his eyes and swollen his face, stripped him naked, and hung him on the gates of the Holy Academy. Haha!"
Zhang Ruochen smiled and said, "Pavilion Master finally vented his anger and avenged that old grievance."
Lei Jing stopped laughing, rolled his eyes, and said, "I vented my anger, but I thoroughly offended that saintly clan. If not for my master's protection, I would probably have been killed by them. Even so, I was expelled from the Holy Academy again, driven out of the Eastern Region's sacred land, and sent back to Demon Ridge. Fifty years have passed in the blink of an eye!"
"Back then, when I was expelled from the Holy Academy for the second time, I swore an oath. Even if I returned to Demon Ridge, I would train a peerless prodigy from Demon Ridge to enter the Holy Academy, to completely break the monopoly of the saintly clans' heirs there, to show them that even a humble family can produce a noble son."
Zhang Ruochen understood Lei Jing's feelings. In Kunlun Realm, the children of humble families and the heirs of saintly clans had always been in opposition. Due to differences in cultivation resources and conditions, the heirs of saintly clans had always held an absolute advantage, suppressing the children of humble families, making it impossible for them to lift their heads.
Take Demon Ridge, for example. Among the younger generation of strong individuals, the vast majority were princes and princesses of various commanderies, or heirs of major families. Very few children of humble families became top experts.
Thus, no matter how the world changed, those who ruled Kunlun Realm were always the heirs of the great and powerful clans.
For a martial artist without background or influence to become strong, even to achieve sainthood, was absolutely as difficult as ascending to heaven.
In fact, in the eyes of those half-saint families and saintly clans, the princes and princesses of the thirty-six commanderies of Demon Ridge were like country bumpkins with some wealth, no different from commoners.
What could a child of a humble family do?
Such is the grand era—one can only swim against the current.