Western Training Ground, Outer City.
Boom Boom Boom
At the fourth mark of the Si hour (around 10:00 AM), the sound of war drums began to echo across the training ground.
The drumbeats grew increasingly rapid, resonating like thunder.
Thud Thud Thud
Outside the training ground, the sound of uniform footsteps could be heard.
Everyone turned their heads to look.
They saw two teams of armored soldiers, full of vigor, marching in unison.
Each soldier wore dark black armor that remained dull even under the sunlight.
They held long halberds, their blades glinting coldly.
"Such imposing presence, such fine equipment! Truly the elite soldiers under Commander Wang's command!" Cheng Ran, standing behind Jiang Ning, exclaimed in admiration.
Jiang Ning also nodded silently.
From his knowledge of history, only the most elite soldiers or the personal guards of generals and city lords were equipped with full-body armor.
Yet, these two teams of soldiers were merely part of a hundred-man garrison stationed in Luoshui County.
For a small county's garrison to have such an imposing presence and equipment was truly remarkable.
"Commander Wang must be quite wealthy," Jiang Ning thought to himself.
Based on his understanding, although the armor was likely not made of the highest quality materials, equipping a single soldier would still cost several hundred taels of silver.
Just outfitting these two elite teams would have cost tens of thousands of taels of silver.
And this was only for two teams of armored soldiers.
What if there were more?
At that moment, the crowd parted as the soldiers approached.
A man in a dark robe with black-gold trim appeared in everyone's sight.
He appeared to be around forty years old, with a calm and inscrutable expression.
"Prefect Hong is here!" Wang Jin said, his expression serious.
"Master, is that Hong Minghu, the Prefect?" Li Qing asked.
"Indeed, it is him!"
"Such a commanding presence! His every step exudes power, making my heart tremble from afar," Li Qing sighed.
Wang Jin replied, "Of course. Prefect Hong Minghu is said to be at the peak of the sixth rank, and he might have even advanced to the fifth rank by now."
"With his strength alone, he could easily sweep us all aside."
Hearing the conversation between Li Qing and Wang Jin, Jiang Ning wasn't surprised.
According to the intelligence Lin Qingyi had provided him, Hong Minghu's strength was recorded as being at the peak of the sixth rank, possessing the power of dragons and tigers, making him an invincible presence in Luoshui County.
Behind Hong Minghu was Commander Wang, whom Jiang Ning had met before.
Beside Commander Wang were four others three men and one woman all exuding an extraordinary aura.
Following them were the two teams of soldiers, who quickly dispersed to the sides of the training ground.
A moment later, Hong Minghu ascended the high platform and took his seat.
"Begin," he said calmly.
His voice, though soft, was heard by everyone on the training ground.
"Inner energy!" Jiang Ning thought, his heart tightening.
He had seen this technique before Lin Qingyi had demonstrated it.
"This suggests that the Prefect might not be at the sixth rank, but the fifth!"
On the high platform, as Hong Minghu gave the order, a man stepped forward.
"The rules are simple. The first step is to lift an 800-jin iron lock and hold it for three breaths. Those who succeed will pass."
With that, he waved his hand.
The students from the Martial Academy, seated on the viewing platform, stood up one by one.
They were the first group to take the test.
Soon, it became clear that the test was no challenge for them.
Lifting an 800-jin iron lock for three breaths was not difficult for even an ordinary ninth-rank martial artist.
After all, a ninth-rank martial artist typically had a strength of at least 700 jin.
800 jin was only 100 jin above the threshold for entering the ninth rank.
For the Martial Academy students, this was a trivial task.
Moreover, they had already known the rules of the assessment beforehand. If they couldn't pass, they wouldn't have come to the training ground to embarrass themselves.
After the Martial Academy students returned to the viewing platform, it was the turn of the various factions.
From the wooden sheds, people stepped forward one after another to participate in the iron lock test.
Some succeeded, while others failed.
For those who had just entered the ninth rank, most only had a strength of 700 jin.
Lifting an 800-jin iron lock for three breaths required more than just barely reaching the 800-jin threshold.
The martial artists of Luoshui County were not like the Martial Academy students, who had been nourished with medicinal herbs from a young age to enhance their foundation and potential.
Thus, most of the ninth-rank martial artists in Luoshui County only met the basic requirements of the rank.
Unless their skin refinement had reached the level of "stone skin," it was difficult for them to possess 800 jin of strength.
Under these conditions, more and more people began to fail the test.
Some managed to lift the 800-jin iron lock but ultimately couldn't hold it for three breaths and failed.
Whenever someone failed, the man on the high platform would mercilessly cross their name off the list.
If their strength didn't meet the standard, they failed the assessment.
In less than an hour, it was the turn of the Shenwei Martial School.
Five disciples from the Shenwei Martial School stepped forward three men and two women.
"Master Wang, my disciples will go first," Yu Yuan said.
"Master Yu, please," Wang Jin gestured.
Meanwhile, outside the training ground.
"Elder, if there are no surprises, the man named Jiang Ning should be here."
"I understand," the gray-robed middle-aged man nodded.
He then looked toward the center of the training ground.
His lips moved slightly.
Hong Minghu's expression changed as he noticed the gray-robed man from his elevated position.
"Gongsun Yu is here? Shouldn't the Third Elder of the Medicine King Valley be in the Medicine King Valley?" Hong Minghu thought to himself.
He then waved his hand, signaling someone to bring Gongsun Yu over.
At that moment, the five disciples from the Shenwei Martial School arrived at the center of the training ground.
As their names were called by the man on the high platform, they stepped forward to lift the 800-jin iron lock.
Testing strength was the simplest way to assess one's capabilities.
The first four passed easily.
However, when the last disciple, a female, stepped forward, her face paled slightly.
She knew her strength was around 700 jin, not quite reaching the 800-jin mark.
"Lin Mu, begin," the man on the high platform said.
Hearing this, the female disciple from the Shenwei Martial School gritted her teeth.
She bent down and grabbed the bulky iron lock.
Even though the lock was made of iron, its 800-jin weight made it cumbersome.
This was why, once strength reached a certain level, it became difficult to measure accurately, as one could only rely on one perception.
When strength reached two or three thousand jin, few objects could effectively test it.
Even a two or three-thousand-jin iron block would be too bulky to lift properly.
As Lin Mu's legs trembled and her body swayed, the iron lock in her hands refused to budge from the ground.
"Failed!" the man on the high platform declared, glancing at Lin Mu before marking her name with a red cross.
Hearing this, Lin Mu bit her lip and gave up.
The next round was Jiang Ning and his four companions' turn.
On the high platform.
Gongsun Yu had arrived beside Hong Minghu.
"Brother Minghu, I didn't expect to see you here," the gray-robed man said.
"Gongsun Yu, why aren't you staying in the Medicine King Valley? What brings you here?" Hong Minghu frowned slightly.
Although he was acquainted with Gongsun Yu, they weren't particularly close.
Moreover, from the perspective of the Inspection Office, sects like the Medicine King Valley were often targets of scrutiny.
Throughout history, medicine and poison were inseparable.
In recent years, several incidents of chaos in the Great Xia Dynasty had been linked to sects skilled in medicine.
The most egregious incident occurred in Danzhou, where a plague outbreak was deliberately spread by the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect.
When this was discovered, the imperial court was furious, and the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect was annihilated, with nearly all its disciples slaughtered.
Thus, Hong Minghu was not particularly welcoming of Gongsun Yu's arrival.
Hearing Hong Minghu's words, Gongsun Yu replied, "Elder Liu from our valley was pursuing a bandit who had stolen tribute from Prince Huai'an. A few days ago, he unexpectedly died in the Luoshui River."
"There's someone here who might know something, so I came to investigate."
"I see," Hong Minghu nodded slightly. "What's the person's name?"
"Jiang Ning."
At that moment.
Jiang Ning and his four companions had arrived at the center of the training ground.
According to the order on the list, Zhou Xing was the first to step forward.
In Zhou Xing's hands, the 800-jin iron lock was lifted effortlessly and held steady.
Seeing Zhou Xing's calm and composed demeanor, the man on the high platform nodded approvingly.
"He's a good seedling! It seems he has the potential to compete for the squad leader position. If he performs well later, I might consider recruiting him into my unit," the man thought to himself, giving Zhou Xing an extra glance.
"Pass!" the man declared, marking Zhou Xing's name with a red check.
Next up was Zhao Hu.
"Zhao Hu!"
Zhao Hu stepped forward.
"Begin!"
"Pass!"
Hearing these words, Zhao Hu released his grip.
Boom
The 800-jin iron lock fell heavily to the ground.
"Junior Brother Jiang, it's almost your turn!" Zhao Hu grinned at Jiang Ning.
"Zhang Tiesheng!"
The man on the high platform called out another name.
Zhang Tiesheng quickly stepped forward.
Having already broken through to the ninth rank, lifting the 800-jin iron lock was no challenge for him.
After three breaths.
"Pass!"
Hearing this, Zhang Tiesheng released the lock.
Thud
The iron lock hit the ground with a dull thud, sending up a cloud of dust.
"Junior Brother Jiang, what should I do? I haven't reached the 'stone skin' level yet. I can't lift the 800-jin iron lock," Li Qing said anxiously as her turn approached.
Jiang Ning shook his head slightly. "Senior Sister, there's nothing I can do."
"Li Qing!" the man on the high platform called out her name.
Hearing this, Li Qing took a deep breath and stepped forward.
"Begin!"
The man on the high platform glanced at Li Qing, memorizing her name and appearance.
This was part of his duty to ensure that no one could cheat or slip through unnoticed.
A moment later, the man shook his head regretfully.
If possible, he would have liked to recruit this woman into the Inspection Office as a guard.
Even if she wasn't particularly skilled, she would at least be pleasant to look at.
Moreover, the Inspection Office had too many men. After all, martial talent was naturally slightly stronger in men.
Combined with other factors, the number of male martial artists far exceeded that of females.
In such a situation, a female martial artist with good looks was a rare find.
But alas, the rules of the Inspection Office were not up to him. They were set by the man sitting on the grand chair Hong Minghu.
"Failed!" he declared.
Li Qing hung her head and retreated.
In the wooden shed where the Canglang Martial School disciples were seated.
"What? Senior Sister Li Qing failed the test?"
"If even Senior Sister Li Qing failed, then Junior Brother Jiang will struggle."
"Exactly! Senior Sister Li Qing reached the ninth rank before Junior Brother Jiang, and even she failed!"
"An 800-jin iron lock? This is designed to weed out those who've just entered the ninth rank!"
For a moment, the disciples of the Canglang Martial School looked worried.
Beside them, Yu Yuan wore a smug expression.
"Master Wang, three out of five passed. It seems your teaching skills are slightly inferior to mine."
"Isn't it a bit early to say that?" Wang Jin replied.
"Oh? Are you still holding out hope for the remaining disciples?" Yu Yuan chuckled.
Wang Jin said, "How about we make a bet?"
"A bet? What do you propose?" Yu Yuan asked immediately.
Wang Jin said, "If my disciple passes the test, you'll teach me that secret technique of yours?"
"No way!" Yu Yuan shook his head. He had heard of Jiang Ning's reputation even Hong Chengtao had supposedly died at his hands.
"Then what's the point?" Wang Jin glanced at Yu Yuan.
Yu Yuan laughed, unbothered.
Meanwhile, on the high platform.
The man conducting the assessment called out the next name on the list.
"Jiang Ning."
At the same time, in the center of the viewing platform.
Gongsun Yu's expression changed slightly upon hearing the name.
"Jiang Ning, is that him?" he murmured, his eyes narrowing as he looked toward Jiang Ning on the training ground.
Having arrived in a hurry, he only knew the name and hadn't yet seen Jiang Ning's face.
Who exactly was Jiang Ning?
But now, hearing the name, his attention was finally drawn to the young man in the center of the training ground.
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