A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Chapter 14 Assessment (I)

The sky is bright.

Inside the Yuanshun Escort Agency, all kinds of noisy sounds were heard everywhere.

Although the woodshed is remote, you can still hear the noise coming from far and near.

Duan Rong, Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng and Li Chong were standing in the yard when they suddenly saw two figures walking in from the gate of the courtyard.

The person walking in front was an old man with gray hair and a broad stature. It was impossible to tell his age. Judging from the knife-like wrinkles on his hair and face, he should be quite old. However, his back was straight and his eyes were as sharp as an eagle's. He did not look old at all.

But he walked on tiptoe with his right foot, one step deep and one step shallow, and he was a lame person.

Zhao Mu walked behind the old man, nodding and bowing as he spoke something.

Duan Rong, Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, and Li Chong all looked at the lame man with admiration.

All four of them knew who was conducting the assessment and immediately knew the identity of the cripple.

The chief instructor of Yuanshun Escort Agency, Xiao Zongting.

Although Xiao Zongting also came from a poor family, he was a martial arts genius.

In Yuanshun Escort Agency, he once rose from escort to chief. He was sworn brothers with the old manager of Yuanshun Escort Agency, who was also the father of the current chief manager.

It was just a great battle seventeen years ago. Although he and the old shopkeeper fought their way out of the siege, the old shopkeeper died of his injuries a few months later.

Xiao Zongting managed to save his life, but his martial arts skills were ruined, so he retreated to the second line and became the chief instructor in the escort agency.

Although he is the chief instructor, the current chief manager Ruan Fengshan has always treated Xiao Zongting with courtesy as a junior.

He would visit him in person every New Year, and whenever there were important matters in the escort agency, he would often ask for his opinion.

Therefore, all the people in the escort agency, on the one hand, admired his heroic deeds, and on the other hand, were intimidated by his influence, and they all respected and feared him.

Duan Rong looked at Xiao Zongting, who was limping over with his hands behind his back, and he actually became nervous.

It was as if I was back in the college entrance examination examination room of my previous life, about to cross the single-plank bridge called destiny.

Duan Rong took a deep breath and calmed himself down.

Initially, he thought that the test should be a fight between these menial disciples who had practiced for three months, with the winner staying and the loser being eliminated.

However, after this period of time, he changed his mind after digesting the understanding of the entry-level Five Tigers and Sheep Sword Technique.

In recent days, he secretly watched Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng and others practice their routines. Initially, he just felt that their practice seemed not right, but gradually he could watch more and more carefully, and he could tell where their main problems were almost at a glance.

Sometimes I even feel like trying my hand at it and can hardly resist helping them calibrate it.

Fortunately, he restrained the habit of being a know-it-all from his previous life.

However, this also made him understand one thing: as the saying goes, an expert can tell whether something is good or not with just one look.

He had only comprehended the entry-level realm of martial arts, but he could already see the problem. The chief instructor Xiao Zongting was a person who had once been the chief leader. With their mediocre skills, he could probably see through their depth at a glance. So was there any need for them to compete?

The two men did not walk very fast. Xiao Zongting was limping, so he could not walk fast. Zhao Mu usually walked with his head held high, but at this moment he could only take small steps and follow behind Xiao Zongting.

Xiao Zongting stopped half a meter in front of the group and said, "Let's try some tactics."

Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng, and Li Chong were slightly stunned. Only Duan Rong seemed to have expected that there would be no need for a duel and had already walked towards the weapons rack in the corner.

"What are you still standing there for? The assessment has already begun! You're using tricks! Don't you understand?" Zhao Mu stood behind Xiao Zongting and yelled at Kong Bin and the others.

The muscles on Kong Bin's face twitched, and he followed Duan Rong towards the weapons rack.

Several people pulled out the useless swords from the weapon rack, walked back to Xiao Zongting, and started to fight.

Xiao Zongting limped over to the group, walked past Li Chong and Zhang Zheng expressionlessly, and said without even raising his eyelids, "What a show, what a deadly routine! How can this be called martial arts training? Isn't this just a monkey show on the street?"

This was not only an insult to Li Chong and Zhang Zheng, but also to Zhao Mu who was following behind him.

Zhao Mu's face twitched and he glared at Li Chong beside him. Li Chong's eyes showed a hint of decadence, and his already messy moves became even more out of step.

Xiao Zongting walked up to Kong Bin and looked up. His right hand, which was behind his back, suddenly flashed. With a ding, the knife in Kong Bin's hand flew out and stuck into the ground behind him without the handle.

In Xiao Zongting's right hand, he was actually holding a pipe. Just now, he used the pipe to knock the knife out of Kong Bin's hand.

Kong Bin stood there in a daze, and before he could react, Xiao Zongting had already taken a step forward, pinched Kong Bin's shoulders, elbows, and hips, then snorted coldly and walked in front of Duan Rong without saying a word.

During this time, Xiao Zongting didn't even look at Kong Bin.

Xiao Zongting did not even stop in front of Li Chong and Zhang Zheng, but in front of Kong Bin, he tried his best and the difference was already apparent.

Xiao Zongting walked in front of Duan Rong, and everyone present immediately paid attention to this side.

But in front of Duan Rong, Xiao Zongting stopped for a few breaths without moving, and his head was slightly raised, as if showing an interested expression.

Perhaps it was the excitement and concentration brought about by the nervousness of the exam, Duan Rong immersed himself in these six moves, a routine he practiced every day.

Surprisingly, he performed beyond his capacity, fighting in a continuous and ups-and-downs manner, with each move being solid and powerful, like a lone soldier besieged by thousands of troops.

And this is the secret of the Five Tigers and Sheep Sword.

Duan Rong himself didn't even realize that his current state was already showing signs of leaping beyond the entry-level realm.

The Five Tigers and Group of Sheep Sword was originally a sword technique for a single soldier against a group of soldiers.

The bodyguards of the escort agency travel around the world and encounter bandits who are trying to rob the escort.

These robbers usually have one or two leaders who are quite skilled, while the rest are just vagrants and brave men.

What ordinary bodyguards have to deal with is the siege of these roving soldiers and stragglers.

This is why all the menial disciples and apprentices have to learn the Five Tigers and Sheep Swords, which can be considered a professional match.

Xiao Zongting suddenly used his pipe to light the edge of Duan Rong's knife, which was wielding as fast as the wind.

Duan Rong was fighting with great concentration when he suddenly felt a great force coming from the blade. He reacted almost subconsciously and turned his wrist, moving the blade diagonally. Then, he turned it over and swung it, changing the downward sweep to a head-on chop.

This was Duan Rong's instant reaction. He released the force, used the force, and changed his tactics, all in one go without any delay!

But with this change, Duan Rong's blade was actually facing Xiao Zongting's forehead and chopped down directly.

Xiao Zongting stretched out his left hand and firmly grasped the back of the knife that Duan Rong had chopped down. However, at this moment, the broken blade was only a finger's distance away from Xiao Zongting's forehead.

Everyone present was shocked!
Zhao Mu took a big leap and shouted angrily, "Duan Rong, what are you doing? Attacking and killing Old Xiao, do you think you have too much time to live?"

Duan Rong suddenly woke up from his dream, and was horrified. He immediately dropped his hands and knelt down, saying, "You deserve to die, disciple! I was too focused just now, and only had my eyes on the moves, forgetting everything else. I had no intention of attacking and killing Elder Xiao!"

"Forget about everything else..." A gleam of light flashed in Xiao Zongting's eyes.

But Zhao Mu was still furious, and Duan Rong even lowered his head and cursed himself secretly. Why did he seem to be possessed just now and immersed in the swordsmanship? This was not his style.

Kong Bin, Zhang Zheng and Li Chong all looked like they were watching a show. Even Kong Bin, who usually had a expressionless face, showed a bright smile.

"You bastard, you little bastard..." Zhao Mu cursed loudly. He was afraid that this matter would get out of hand and implicate him.

Xiao Zongting turned around and glared at Zhao Mu, angrily saying, "Shut up! I think you are the idiot! Are you the one who is doing the test, or am I the one doing the test?"

"I'm an asshole! Of course it's you who's the one doing the testing. You test..." Zhao Mu immediately said with a smile.

Xiao Zongting snorted coldly and said, "That move I made just now has cut off his strength. If he wants to continue his attack, he can only chop him down on the head! Good attack!"

When Duan Rong heard the words "good attack", he looked up at Xiao Zongting with some surprise.

Xiao Zongting was also looking at Duan Rong and said, "Boy, a martial artist should be obsessed with martial arts. Not only did you do nothing wrong, you did a great job! Get up!"

Duan Rong stood up happily and thought to himself: It seems that this old man thinks I am a martial arts fanatic.

(End of this chapter)