Chapter 173 – Planting the Dragon Sect Banner on Every Peak

Song Cong quickly received the information.

He skimmed through it, his brows furrowing almost instantly.

“Who initiated the comprehensive reform of the new blood assessment?”

Su Zhaohui casually replied, “A few months ago, the personnel department welcomed the youngest, the most beautiful, the most capable, and the most promising new Minister in their history. Her name is—Xiao Rui…”

“So it was her…”

Song Cong’s furrowed brows relaxed, and he murmured, “No wonder, even those two were allowed into the new blood assessment.”

He stared at the two personnel profiles projected onto his retinal display and turned to look at Su Zhaohui beside him.

“One is Level A+, but his modification ability is unique. Under certain environmental conditions, even I might not be his match. As for the other one…”

Song Cong pressed his lips together, unsure how to describe it.

“Although also Level A+, his strength assessment data surpasses forty-seven percent of those ranked S-.”

“Lu Yuan is indeed impressive, but after all, he’s just a pure martial artist…”

Song Cong looked into Su Zhaohui’s eyes and said calmly, “Do you really think it’s necessary?”

Su Zhaohui couldn’t help but laugh, pointing at him and saying, “Old Song, do you even hear yourself?

What do you mean by ‘necessary’?

For new blood like Lu Yuan, having the opportunity to spar with powerful Level A+ individuals from both the new martial arts and modification systems—how rare is that?

And you think it’s unnecessary?

I think you’re so eager for him that you’re starting to talk nonsense in front of me…”

Song Cong’s eyes flickered slightly, but he said nothing.

It seemed like Su Zhaohui had hit the mark.

Su Zhaohui reached out and patted him on the shoulder, comforting him, “Alright, Old Song, what’s meant to be yours will be yours. With our many years of friendship…

cough cough, would I not save it for you?

Relax, you’re the first to get the news.

Just watch, who knows… this kid might surprise us even more?”

“Will he?”

Song Cong looked at the virtual screen in front of him and spoke softly.

“Maybe…”

Su Zhaohui appeared calm, but a hint of inexplicable anticipation flickered in his eyes.

“Who knows?…”

Lu Yuan sat cross-legged in the center of the vast martial arts arena, his fair skin and handsome features complimented by his silky black hair cascading over his shoulders.

His quiet demeanor, set against the backdrop of a ruined arena that looked as though it had been ravaged by a tornado, created a strangely compelling scene.

You Long sat just four or five meters away from him.

The Black Bear Man squatted beside You Long, holding a white, shell-like instrument. He applied a layer of ointment to You Long’s injuries before placing the instrument over them. After a few minutes, a “beep” sounded, and a hand that had been nearly crippled was restored to its original state.

You Long, having been pinned against the wall by Lu Yuan’s final blow, had his “ancient martial arts senior” prestige shattered to pieces.

He decided to let it go and didn’t shy away from showing his miserable state to Lu Yuan.

As the Black Bear Man treated You Long’s injuries, he kept sneaking glances at Lu Yuan.

At this moment, his mental state was not much different from the condition of the martial arts arena.

Both were in ruins, scattered and chaotic, in the process of post-disaster reconstruction.

If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, hadn’t experienced it himself.

If someone had suddenly come up to him and said: “Chief Instructor You Long got into a duel with a pure martial artist and ended up with both hands and one leg broken, pinned against the wall like a helpless quail. And the one who did this looked like a seventeen or eighteen-year-old senior high school student.”

The Black Bear Man would definitely have dunked that person’s head into ice water to wake them up and check if they were still dreaming.

But now… what he needed to consider was how to tell his friends about this without having his own head dunked into ice water.

“Beep-“

With another beep, You Long’s last injured hand emerged fully healed from the instrument.

He flexed his wrist and waved the Black Bear Man away with the instrument.

Then he focused his gaze on Lu Yuan in front of him, his face showing a deep and complex expression.

“You know, if you were to climb the Ascend the Heavenly Ladder at Penglai, those people would definitely vie for you, seeing you as the greatest hope for the ancient martial arts world in the past century.”

Lu Yuan was taken aback. He hadn’t expected You Long’s first words to be this.

“Penglai…”

Lu Yuan had heard these two words mentioned countless times, and even one of the killer moves in the Crane Style Legacy was named after Penglai.

He immediately asked, “Senior, could you tell me more about Penglai?”

You Long had always been straightforward with Lu Yuan.

“Penglai was once the holy land in the hearts of all traditional martial artists, a place they dreamed of visiting once in their lifetime.”

“Once?”

“Yes.”

You Long continued, “Just as ancient martial arts once had an incredibly glorious past, Penglai’s status was also unparalleled. Before the advent of modifications and new martial arts, Xia State’s top-tier combat power was always provided by Penglai…”

“What about Martial Saint Island?”

Lu Yuan remembered Liu Daoyuan mentioning another term before and decided to get everything clarified at once.

“Martial Saint Island was initially aloof and detached, but after the last Martial Saint passed away, it completely became a vassal of Penglai.

The ancient martial arts world holds a Martial Arts Conference every five years on Martial Saint Island. Those who perform outstandingly in the conference are granted the opportunity to meditate in Penglai Pavilion for seven days.

The next Martial Arts Conference isn’t far off. If you’re interested, you could go and check it out…”

“Martial Arts Conference?!”

Lu Yuan’s eyes flickered, and he asked, “Senior, are there any Grandmasters in Penglai?”

You Long glanced at him and nodded, “Of course there are.”

“Oh.”

Lu Yuan nodded thoughtfully, “Then it’s definitely worth a visit.”

Seeing Lu Yuan’s expression, You Long hesitated before speaking, “Your talent in pure martial arts is exceptional, probably the best I have ever heard or seen in my life. But there are some things I still want to tell you…”

Lu Yuan’s expression changed slightly, “Please go ahead, Senior.”

You Long pondered for a moment before speaking slowly, “The path of pure martial arts has reached its end. Ancient martial arts are in decline. Don’t let those in the ancient martial arts world brainwash you and make your thinking rigid. Switching to new martial arts or modifications sooner will only benefit you…”

This wasn’t the first time someone had said something similar to Lu Yuan.

On the shuttle on the way here, Zhou Ling had earnestly advised him to switch to new martial arts as soon as possible.

Lu Yuan didn’t respond immediately. After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked, “Senior You Long, how strong is a Grandmaster?”

You Long smiled, as if he had anticipated this question.

“I don’t know exactly how strong a Grandmaster is,” You Long replied calmly, “But during my years with Yellow Bear, I have witnessed the downfall of more than one Grandmaster.

Some were killed in ambushes, others died in one-on-one duels.

The people who killed them were not pure martial artists, and some weren’t even truly top-tier…

Unfortunately, these videos are classified, otherwise, I could show you.”

“Uh…”

Lu Yuan said nothing, a peculiar emotion welling up inside him.

He understood You Long’s point.

A Grandmaster is considered the pinnacle of pure martial arts. Reaching the level of a Grandmaster is essentially the end of the road for pure martial artists.

And yet, these top-tier individuals, who might be one in a million among martial artists, could easily be taken down by non-top-tier individuals from the new martial arts and modification systems.

In comparison, the gap indeed seemed vast.

However, Lu Yuan believed he was different from other martial artists. When he achieved the level of a Grandmaster, he would not be an ordinary Grandmaster.

But this wasn’t something he could say to You Long.

“Why hasn’t Senior You Long switched to new martial arts or modifications yourself?”

Lu Yuan’s question was somewhat impolite, but You Long didn’t seem to mind.

He smiled and said calmly, “Switch? Why wouldn’t I? It’s just that I don’t want to switch right now.

I serve as the Chief Instructor of ancient martial arts at Yellow Bear, with generous benefits and no real danger. Why should I bid farewell to my old friends so early?”

Lu Yuan noticed You Long’s gaze lingering on his hands and feet, a look of deep sentiment on his face.

Indeed, for an ancient martial artist of You Long’s caliber, his strength was the result of relentless, day-in-day-out, year-after-year hard training.

Every inch of his skin, muscles, bones, and even hair had been tempered countless times.

How could he easily give that up?

If You Long couldn’t bear to, Lu Yuan certainly couldn’t either.

He was only seventeen, hadn’t even held a girl’s hand…

“…Moreover, if I switch to new martial arts, my skills in ancient martial arts will undoubtedly drop several levels. I haven’t yet found a suitable Legacy Bearer for the Dragon sect Martial Arts…”

You Long added.

As soon as he finished speaking, he looked up to meet Lu Yuan’s sincere gaze.

“Senior, what do you think of me?”

Lu Yuan’s demeanor was composed, his confidence shining through his eyebrows as he spoke eloquently.

“I possess both the Palace of Flesh and Brain Divinity, with exceptional talent and unparalleled aptitude. In my hands, the Dragon sect Martial Arts will surely flourish. If Senior You Long passes the legacy to me today, I promise that within three years… I will conquer Martial Saint Island, overturn the Penglai Pavilion, and plant the Dragon sect’s flag at the highest peak of the ancient martial arts world!”

“…”

You Long stared at Lu Yuan, stunned by his passionate speech, unable to react for a moment.

After his constitution points broke the limit, Lu Yuan felt his skin had become much thicker.

Without a hint of embarrassment, he finished his self-recommendation and fixed his eyes on You Long.

He then keenly sensed that You Long… was indeed slightly moved.

Unfortunately…

“I see your moves are all from the Sky Water Stream Crane Style. You must have already joined the Crane Style sect, right?”

You Long asked.

Lu Yuan couldn’t lie about this, or he would be letting Old Liu down.

He nodded honestly, “Yes. Does the ancient martial arts world not allow one to join multiple sects?”

“My Dragon sect doesn’t allow it.”

You Long replied.

“Alright then.”

Lu Yuan didn’t feel too much regret.

After all, with his intelligence points breaking the limit, his comprehension was extraordinary, and he had the effect of [Imaginary Enemy] at level 3…

What was meant to be his would be his eventually.

“But…” You Long’s tone shifted, and he casually said, “Even though I can’t formally take you as a disciple and pass on the Legacy to you, if you manage to learn on your own, there’s nothing I can do about it, right?”

Lu Yuan’s eyes lit up at these words, and he sincerely thanked him, “Thank you, Senior.”

It seemed that his earlier grand declaration about “planting the flag” had indeed tempted You Long.

“When you join Yellow Bear, feel free to come and spar with me anytime,” You Long said with a smile.

He then turned serious, “But on a more serious note, with your talent, if you haven’t immediately decided to switch to new martial arts or modifications, learning from multiple sects’ Legacies will indeed benefit you.

The Sky Water Stream Legacy isn’t bad, but unfortunately, you’ve only learned half of it. Without the other half from the Snake Sect’s cultivation techniques, whether it’s your moves or True Intent, you’ll fall short compared to truly top-tier martial arts Legacies.

Haven’t you noticed? Your Spirit Crane True Intent has an inherent flaw. If it weren’t for your strong physical power compensating for this, you would definitely be at a disadvantage against opponents of the same level…”

“Uh…”

…