Becoming an immortal from a canal worker

Chapter 99 Martial Arts Hall

Early in the morning, Bai Chongshan personally led Chen Ping toward Cangwu Terrace.

Warriors hurried to and fro on the street.

After walking for about half an hour, the street ahead suddenly opened up, and a high wall stood in front of us, with banners stretching across its top.

A city within a city.

Chen Ping raised his head and went over those four words in his mind.

The outer wall of Cangwu Terrace was shorter than the city wall of Tianyan City, but its thickness was no less, with the bluish-gray stone bricks stacked tightly together.

There was a gate in each of the four directions: east, south, west, and north. Inside the gates stood soldiers in full armor, their gazes steady, their aura powerful, their strength restrained, and they remained calm and composed.

Bai Chongshan stopped at the door, glanced at Chen Ping, and said, "I can only take you this far."

Chen Ping nodded and went inside.

Upon entering the East Gate, one is greeted by four spacious martial arts arenas, each several times larger than the Dragon Head Festival arena. They are paved with bluestone, with wooden stakes at the four corners, and weapon racks lined up along the sides.

Chen Ping paused for a moment at the edge of the training ground, looking around.

Further inside the training ground were rows of neat pavilions. Some doors were open, and one could vaguely hear voices inside. Other doors were closed, and it was impossible to tell what was inside.

The bluestone path between the pavilions is clean and tidy. Occasionally, someone walks by on the path with a steady gait and eyes that do not look to the side.

Chen Ping withdrew his gaze, asked where the Martial Arts Hall was, and walked in. He followed the bluestone path, passed through two martial arts training grounds, and went around a row of low warehouses. The Martial Arts Hall was right in front of him.

The six-story building, with its blue bricks and gray tiles, is not very wide, but it is built very tall. Looking up from the outside, the windows on the top floor gleam in the morning light.

A guard stood at the entrance of the building. Seeing Chen Ping approach, he asked, "Name?"

"Chen Ping."

The guard glanced down at the booklet in his hand, then nodded: "Go in."

Chen Ping pushed open the door and went in.

Inside was a spacious hall, with tables and chairs arranged neatly. Light streamed in through the windows, falling on the floor and casting streaks of light on the bluestone slabs.

There are only two people inside the hall now.

A woman sat by the window, her posture upright, holding a book in her hand, her eyelids not lifting, but when Chen Ping came in, her fingers paused slightly.

Near the door sat a richly dressed man, adorned in brocade robes and a jade belt, with a fine jade pendant hanging from his waist. He lightly tapped his fingers on the table, his gaze lingering on Chen Ping for a moment before looking away.

The three people looked each other over for a moment, but no one spoke.

Chen Ping casually found a seat and sat down.

After that, people came in one after another, some alone and some in groups.

In an instant, the hall was filled with twelve people, each at varying distances from the others, sizing each other up, but no one spoke first.

Chen Ping's gaze swept over each of the eleven people.

Eight people possess internal strength, while three possess external strength.

Not long after, a man dressed in a white robe walked in from outside. His steps were unhurried. After entering the room, his gaze swept around the hall, and the voices inside immediately quieted down.

The man stopped and spoke in a calm voice: "I am Shi Junqing, a steward of the Affairs Hall. The reason you are all sitting here today is because you are all students of the first-class talent of Cangwu Terrace."

He turned around, and a guard behind him came up carrying a tray with twelve waist tags neatly arranged on it, black with red paint.

The guards handed out waist tokens one by one. Chen Ping took one, glanced at it, and saw that the words "Cangwutai" were engraved on the front and his name was on the back.

Then another guard came up carrying a wooden box. Inside the box were twelve thin books, with plain covers bearing only the three words "Cangwu Record".

The guards also distributed them in turn.

Chen Ping took it and flipped through it casually. The paper was yellowed, the handwriting was neat, and it was divided into five layers: the first layer strengthens the blood, the second layer cleanses the marrow, the third layer tempers the internal organs, the fourth layer opens the orifices, and the fifth layer strengthens the vital energy.

He scrolled down, reading slower and slower, his pupils contracting slightly.

The first level strengthens the Qi and blood, the second level cleanses the tendons and marrow, and the third level can temper the five internal organs again, corresponding to the five physical barriers and the refining of the body. If the third level is completed, all the mistakes and errors in the previous cultivation process can be corrected. If there are no mistakes, one can go further. The fourth level opens the acupoints and can even help open the acupoints. The fifth level is the Gang Yuan, which leads directly to the Yuan Gang realm.

Chen Ping stared blankly at the thin booklet in his hand.

This thing has probably already deviated from the category of superior martial arts. If it were put on the market, it would probably fetch an astronomical price. He flipped to the fourth floor and remembered that he had already opened the Yongquan point. He compared the path to enlightenment in the Cangwu Record with the path he had figured out himself. There were slight differences in the details, but the direction was the same.

Shi Junqing looked at Chen Ping below with surprise in his eyes, seemingly quite satisfied, and said, "Our Great Wei has collected all the secret manuals in the world and constantly tested them to compile this small booklet in your hands. Moreover, the last two levels of the Cangwu Record are the most important. This is the privilege of first-class students. If you are a second-class, third-class, or fourth-class student, you need to exchange merit points for the last two levels."

He pointed to the waist tokens on the table and said, "These are your identity tokens. In Cangwu Platform, identity tokens are very important. If you lose them, you can go to the Affairs Hall to reissue them. The Cangwu Record in your hands is the internal cultivation method that all students of Cangwu Platform must learn. It is issued upon enrollment. I hope you will practice diligently. Next, let's talk about the basic rights of students with first-class qualifications."

He held up one finger: "First of all, there are basic merit points. A grade A aptitude is worth 10,000 points, which can be used to copy martial arts, exchange for treasures, resources, weapons, and even armor. If you don't understand the martial arts you've copied and want to be taught or guided, you'll also need merit points. But for you, it's not that complicated."

He held up his second finger: "This is the second point. You can directly become an apprentice of an outer court instructor, so that the instructor's guidance will not require spending merit points, but this does not include other instructors."

Shi Junqing paused for a moment, took out six wooden plaques from his pocket, hung them on the wooden frame behind him, and said: "There are a total of six instructors in our outer academy who are qualified to teach first-class students. Each of the six instructors has a different style and focuses on different aspects. It is not just about aptitude. Over the next week, you will need to attend the classes of these six instructors in turn to get to know each other so that the instructors can make a selection."

A voice spoke from inside the hall. The man had a dark complexion and an ordinary appearance. He cupped his hands and said, "Deacon Shi, if we run out of merit points, how can we obtain more?"

Shi Junqing nodded and said, "There are many ways to obtain merit points. You can exchange them for merit points by accepting missions, submitting new martial arts techniques, slaying demons, evil spirits, and even demonic sects and cults."

The man nodded and sat back down.

Chen Ping recalled the crystal core he had retrieved after killing the Pi Sha, but he wondered how many merit points a single crystal core could be exchanged for. He asked, "Where do I exchange merit points for slaying demons and evil spirits?"

Shi Junqing glanced at him and said, "If you can successfully kill demons and evil spirits, you can take the crystal cores to the Demon Extermination Hall to exchange for merit points. However, I must remind you that demons are easy to deal with, but if you encounter evil spirits, do not be reckless if you are not confident. Evil spirits have strange methods and are hard to guard against. I recommend that all of you go to the Demon Extermination Hall to listen to a lecture on evil spirits and learn about some common evil spirits, so that you are prepared."

After saying that, Shi Junqing turned and left, his footsteps disappearing outside the door.

There was a moment of silence in the hall, then everyone stood up and walked towards the six wooden plaques. Chen Ping followed and looked down at them.

Xiang Ge was skilled in both hammer and axe techniques, and had twenty-eight students under his tutelage.

Sun Qichen possesses exceptional martial arts skills and has forty-five students. His fighting style is characterized by its hardness and strength.

Lin Shu, a master swordsman with unparalleled skill, had thirty-two disciples and was the founder of the "Hate Water Sword" technique.

Changsun Shao was an exceptional marksman, with sixty-five students under his tutelage, who prioritized battlefield martial arts.

Song Ge possessed exceptional swordsmanship skills and had fifty-one disciples.

Four or five scions of prominent families were gathered around the wooden plaque on the far right, whispering among themselves.

Chen Ping stepped forward to take a look.

Qin Ya has ten students under his tutelage, all of whom are exceptionally skilled in weaponry.

He pondered for a moment. The other six instructors each had their own focus: Xiang Ge used hammer and axe, Lin Shu used swordsmanship, Changsun Shao used spears, and Song Ge used sabers. They each specialized in one area. Only Qin Ya was described as having "superb weaponry" without specifying which weapon it was.

At this moment, the dark-skinned man spoke up, his voice not loud, addressing everyone in the hall: "Gentlemen, since we are all top-tier students and fellow students of Cangwu Terrace, we will surely be comrades-in-arms in the future. Why not get to know each other and learn about one another?"

After these words were spoken, the group of scions of noble families did not even raise their heads, but walked straight out, their footsteps disappearing outside the door.

The woman by the window and the stern-faced man also got up and left without saying a word.

The dark-skinned man glanced at the scene, gave a wry smile, and said, "So, it's just the four of us left."

The hall fell silent for a moment.

A man in a blue robe spoke up, a bitter smile on his lips: "Sigh, they all have powerful backers. Those richly dressed people are all scions of local aristocratic families, and the remaining two are probably sponsored by someone. Even if they go to the battlefield, they won't be in the same battalion as us."

Upon hearing this, the dark-skinned man clasped his hands in greeting and said, "My name is Zhou Ji, from Linling County, Baiyue Prefecture. May I ask how you are addressed, sir?"

The man in the blue robe also clasped his hands in greeting: "Zhang Tingwan, a native of Sanjiao County, Yangzhou Prefecture."

Zhou Ji said to Zhang Tingwan, "It seems Brother Zhang has put in a lot of effort in this regard?"

Zhang Tingwan shook her head and said, "I came to Tianyan Prefecture a month ago. On the one hand, I wanted to find a place to stay, and on the other hand, I wanted to gather information in advance. As people from an outer prefecture, the first thing we do when we come to Tianyan Prefecture is to gather necessary information so as not to be accidentally dragged into some inexplicable struggle."

Chen Ping, who was about to leave, stopped when he heard this.

Zhang Tingwan glanced at Chen Ping, then at the ordinary-looking woman still sitting in the corner, and continued, "In previous years, there were at most seven or eight students in each cohort who achieved the highest rank, and most of them were from poor families or were martial artists. This year, however, there are five more scions of aristocratic families. This is unusual. In the past, scions of aristocratic families would either go to the three major sects or go to the capital. This time, Lu, Xue, Xiao, and Wang have all sent the best of this generation to Cangwu Terrace. I think there is something fishy about this, and it is beyond our ability to speculate."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the group: "But they have their schemes, we have our ways of life. I don't know if they'll be comrades in the future, but we'll definitely be comrades in the same battalion. Why don't you stick together and support each other?"

Zhou Ji nodded in agreement.

Chen Ping thought about it and felt that this made sense, so he nodded and said, "Chen Ping is from Huai'an Prefecture."

In the corner, Zhai Jing had been sitting by the window. After listening to Zhang Tingwan's words, her eyes flickered slightly. She looked up at everyone, slowly stood up, nodded, and said calmly, "Zhai Jing, Jinnan Prefecture."

After announcing his name, Chen Ping got up and walked outside.

Zhang Tingwan noticed this and asked, "Where are you planning to go, Brother Chen?"

"Let's take a look at the Hall of Exorcising Evil."

Zhang Tingwan chuckled, pulled out a green stone emanating a sinister aura from his pocket, and said, "Perfect timing, I also have a demon crystal core here. Shall we go together?"

Chen Ping nodded upon seeing this.

The two walked out of the Martial Arts Hall side by side and headed towards the Demon Extermination Hall.

Passing by a martial arts training ground, I saw it was full of people. One by one, people dressed as instructors stood in front of the training ground, and then people walked out one by one to begin practicing their boxing techniques.

Chen Ping slowed his pace.

Zhang Tingwan noticed this and said, "These are the entrance tests that students with B, C, and D aptitudes need to go through. This test should be a comprehension test. Generally, it consists of some introductory martial arts created by the inner academy instructors, which are shown to people within a limited time to see how much they can comprehend."

Chen Ping remained silent, his gaze fixed on the people practicing in the arena.

Each of them was crooked and unorthodox, with different approaches, but Chen Ping stared at a few of them for a moment, his brows furrowing slightly.

The style of that boxing technique has some similarities to the "Stone-Crushing Force".