Chapter 171: Passing the Exam

Meanwhile, on the other side, Yu Xinghan glanced at Zhang Yu’s departing figure, then turned his attention away.

He had more important things to deal with now.

Ever since the Divine Overseer of the Health Ministry reversed his sterilization with divine power, Yu Xinghan hadn’t initially noticed anything different.

He returned to the exam hall and began practicing the Titanium Body Technique.

But as the cultivation progressed, as mana began to circulate and traces of pure yang Martial Qi condensed, he gradually felt an intense heat spreading through his body. His thoughts grew restless, his heart unsettled.

Even more troubling was the flood of feminine silhouettes that began surfacing uncontrollably in his mind.

There was Bai Zhenzhen, Le Mulan, Zhang Pianpian, female classmates from White Dragon High School, and even some girls from Xiandu City present at the scene today…

These graceful figures flashed through his mind like an endless stream of distractions. Yu Xinghan's focus began to slip, and his control over the Martial Qi started to waver.

Finally, all the illusions vanished—except for one.

His senior sister, Li Xuelian, daughter of Xinghuo Zhenren.

As Li Xuelian’s figure emerged in his mind, Yu Xinghan suddenly realized how beautiful she really was. A mature allure radiated from her, making his breath grow even heavier.

The thought of their century-long age gap, and the fact she was the daughter of Xinghuo Zhenren… made his heart thump faster.

Just as the pure yang Martial Qi was about to spiral out of control, Yu Xinghan snapped back to awareness.

“No! I can’t lose to Li Xuelian!”

He bit down on his tongue, forcing himself to focus. Then he began recalling Zhang Yu, Song Hailong, Chu Qiuhe, and Xiong Wenwu.

Especially Song Hailong. Yu Xinghan found that each time he visualized him, the heat in his body lessened, allowing him to keep cultivating the Titanium Body Technique.

…

On the other side, Bai Zhenzhen was fully immersed in mentally rehearsing the Infinite Sword Meditation. She didn’t even notice that Zhang Yu had already finished the exam.

Her cheeks were flushed, her brain working at high speed, steaming with bursts of heat.

In her mind, a simulated Zhang Yu—crafted by her imagination—fought her amid a storm of Formless Cloud Qi.

As she unleashed the sword forms of the Infinite Sword Meditation one after another, her movements grew faster, more dazzling, slicing through the Formless Cloud Qi like a lightning bolt tearing through the heavens—until she finally found a flaw in the Zhang Yu of her mind.

With a clap of thunder, she emerged victorious.

And in that moment, she understood: it wasn’t that she had overpowered “Zhang Yu”—she simply had no flaws left in her swordplay. That’s why her mental opponent lost.

At the same time, a surge of sword intent rose within her mind. The myriad sword forms of the Infinite Sword Meditation flowed through her like she had practiced them thousands of times.

“The intent precedes the thought; the sword moves with the will… That’s the true essence of the Infinite Sword Meditation.”

“The sword forms don’t matter. What matters is the condensed Infinite Sword Intent.”

With this realization, Bai Zhenzhen understood that she could graft any sword form into the Infinite Sword Meditation. She could even create new forms on the fly to counter enemy techniques.

“The Infinite Sword Meditation’s forms… they can be limitless.”

“As long as one possesses the Infinite Sword Intent, swordplay can be improvised, integrated, even created mid-battle.”

“The Infinite Sword Intent is the key. Ordinary cultivators have to drill ten thousand sword forms into instinct before their will can guide their blade.”

“But a genius like me? I only needed to grasp the sword intent, and the Infinite Sword Meditation was mine.”

With a confident smile, Bai Zhenzhen looked around—and was surprised to see many students already gone. Only then did she realize they had all completed their techniques and gone to rest.

“Huh? Yu Xinghan’s still not done?”

She glanced his way—only to see him blushing furiously and turning his head away like he was afraid of her.

“What’s going on with him?”

Just then, Huang Zichou approached and said, “I’ve sensed your Infinite Sword Intent. The exam’s over. Head to the resting room.”

…

Time passed, and the two hours were almost up. Only a few students remained on the field.

Yu Xinghan, pale and on the brink of collapse, finally completed the Titanium Body Technique.

Now only a few students were left.

Huang Zichou glanced at the time, then at Li Tongyun, who was still trying.

“One minute left,” he said coolly.

Li Tongyun pushed herself even harder, but still couldn’t complete the technique.

As time expired, she cried, “I did it! Proctor, I really did it—”

But Huang Zichou ignored her. With a wave of divine power, he swept away Li Tongyun and the others who hadn’t succeeded.

Li Tongyun knew: with her failure in the Foundation Establishment exam, she would soon become company property.

…

Moments later, the remaining students returned to the arena.

Yun Jing approached Ye Lingxiao. “You picked a ten-star technique?”

Ye Lingxiao answered coolly, “Infinite Sword Meditation.”

Yun Jing pursed his lips. Ye Lingxiao had left five minutes before him. Clearly, Ye Lingxiao had won this round.

Ye Lingxiao wasn’t surprised. When he completed the Infinite Sword Meditation in just ninety minutes, he knew he’d take first.

Yun Jing thought silently: “Tch. I can’t beat him in technique mastery. If only this round had been real combat…”

Looking at Ye Lingxiao’s indifferent expression, Yun Jing grew more frustrated.

Just then, he noticed Zhang Yu and smiled. “So, how hard of a technique do you think someone could master in 32 minutes?”

Ye Lingxiao blinked, picturing a familiar figure. “Thirty-two minutes?”

After thinking, he said, “A seven-star technique? That’s doable.”

“Eight-star… depends on the specific technique.”

Then he looked at Yun Jing. “So what are you getting at?”

Yun Jing pointed at Zhang Yu. “Number 55. He mastered the Endless Spring and Autumn Meditation—an eight-star technique—in just 32 minutes.”

Ye Lingxiao turned toward Zhang Yu, eyes narrowing.

At that moment, the rankings from the third exam appeared on the screen.

1st – Number 23 (Ye Lingxiao)

2nd – Number 11 (Yun Jing)

3rd – Number 56 (Bai Zhenzhen)

4th – Number 55 (Zhang Yu)

Seeing this, Ye Lingxiao knew Yun Jing wasn’t bluffing.

“Thirty-two minutes to master Endless Spring and Autumn Meditation?” Ye Lingxiao was stunned.

He immediately thought: Could I do that?

The answer was yes—but just barely.

“So… Number 55’s aptitude and technique mastery are at my level?”

This was the first time Ye Lingxiao had encountered someone outside his clan who could rival him in this domain.

Yun Jing smiled. “If he hadn’t picked an eight-star technique, he might’ve beaten your score.”

As a prodigy who mastered techniques after seeing them once, Ye Lingxiao could guess the truth.

“Maybe he’s already learned most of the ten- and nine-star techniques. The rest are ones he doesn’t like, so he picked an eight-star.”

Recalling Zhang Yu’s performances in the mana and physical exams, Ye Lingxiao thought this was very likely.

“This guy doesn’t care about rankings at all.”

…

“Damn it, I only got fourth? Was eight-star not hard enough?” Zhang Yu stared at the leaderboard.

“A bunch of rich bastards. If I had the money, I’d leave you all in the dust.”

Then he looked behind him at Yu Xinghan.

“Why are you hiding behind me?”

Yu Xinghan gripped Zhang Yu’s shoulder. “Don’t move. Just block for me.”

Bai Zhenzhen leaned over, curious. “Why are you looking at me like that? Like some slacker from a normal high school.”

Yu Xinghan grimaced. “Don’t mind me.”

He pointed at her. “Just stay away!”

He had never noticed before how pretty Bai Zhenzhen was. Though still second to Li Xuelian in his heart, her presence alone unsettled him—especially as the pure yang Martial Qi inside him grew more volatile.

For someone used to total self-control, this was maddening.

Yu Xinghan sighed internally: “If I’d known the reversal would come with such a huge side effect, I never would’ve chosen the Titanium Body Technique.”

Bai Zhenzhen tilted her head. “Oh? Afraid of me?”

Yu Xinghan nodded rapidly. “Stay away.”

She reached out. “Five hundred coins for a No-Disturbance Fee.”

Yu Xinghan’s breath quickened with fury. “Fine! I’ll pay you back later.”

As the rankings for the third exam lit up, many eyes turned toward Zhang Yu and Bai Zhenzhen.

Dai Xingzhi looked at Zhang Yu and mused, “Finished in 32 minutes, yet only placed fourth? That means it was a high-star technique—probably not ten-star, or he’d be first.”

Even so, he realized Zhang Yu must possess a terrifying ability to learn techniques.

“No one like that makes it this far without being insanely rich.”

“Clearly someone who doesn’t care about ranking—just flexing his technique prowess.”

“And that girl.”

He looked at Bai Zhenzhen. “Placing third in this round proves she’s no slouch either.”

“And she seems to know Number 55 pretty well. Probably part of the same rich crowd.”

His eyes grew serious. “These two might be just as strong as Ye Lingxiao and Yun Jing.”

“They’re serious contenders for a Foundation License.”

Soon after the third exam ended, the overall rankings were posted.

Ye Lingxiao was first, Yun Jing second.

Bai Zhenzhen came in 14th, and Zhang Yu 15th.

Their rankings weren’t high—but to many students, they were clearly rich outlanders who hadn’t even gone all out. Their real strength was a mystery.

Deng Bingding addressed the group. “Top twenty remain. The rest, you’re out. Prepare to leave.”

She nodded with satisfaction at the remaining twenty.

By her scale—ants, cattle, and people—these twenty had one foot in the realm of “people.”