Martial Arts Overlord!

"Good." Yan Wenzhi's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly reached everyone present. He was the first to clap his hands in praise: "Very good."

He lowered his hands, staring intently at Lu Jin on the arena, a meaningful smile playing on his lips: "To be honest, when the inner city branch asked me to come and inspect a few days ago, I was not very willing."

Yan Wenzhi's voice echoed in the quiet martial arts hall, and everyone pricked up their ears to listen.

"Every year, some branch libraries claim to have produced a genius, praising them to the skies."

He shook his head, a hint of self-deprecation in his voice, "I've heard it so many times that I've become numb to it. So before I came here, I only believed three-tenths of what Master Jiang said."

Jiang smiled to himself but didn't say anything.

"But now—"

Yan Wenzhi paused, his gaze sweeping over Lu Jin, then looking at the dumbfounded students below the arena, before finally settling back on Lu Jin.

"I believe it completely."

"You haven't been practicing martial arts for long, yet you've already reached the fourth level of the Body Refinement Realm. Your cultivation speed is faster than every genius in our inner city during the Body Refinement stage."

He raised his hand, pointing at Lu Jin, and his voice suddenly rose: "Lu Jin, I'll be waiting for you at the inner city branch."

This statement was made with great conviction.

A burst of suppressed discussion erupted from the audience.

What does it mean that a representative from the inner city branch personally extended an invitation?

This means that Lu Jin has already gained the approval of the inner city branch. As long as he does not encounter any unexpected events in the next selection of the eight major regions, entering the inner city branch is almost a certainty.

Countless envious gazes were focused on Lu Jin.

Lu Jin stood on the arena, his expression remaining calm despite Yan Wenzhi's praise and invitation.

He nodded slightly, his voice neither humble nor arrogant: "It was just luck. Thank you, Brother Wen. I will definitely go to the inner city branch."

He said it casually, but only he knew that it was not just a goal, but a task that had to be accomplished.

He had to go to the inner city branch.

It wasn't because there were better resources there, nor because there were stronger opponents, but because only by entering the inner city branch could he access the cultivation method of the Yi Jin Jing.

After the fifth level of Muscle Refining comes the Tendon Changing Realm, but the outer city branch of Tianlong Martial Arts School only teaches the techniques for the Muscle Refining Realm. To continue advancing, one must enter the inner city.

If he cannot learn the Yi Jin Jing (Muscle/Tendon Changing Technique), his path in martial arts will be completely blocked.

What does the stagnation of martial arts mean?

This means he could die at any moment in the Eternal Night Ruins, and that when the Fist Slave Calamity truly descends, he will have no ability to protect himself.

Lu Jin clenched his fist slightly.

He won't let that happen.

Whether it's the eeriness of the Eternal Night Ruins or the impending calamity of the Fist Slaves, he must survive.

To survive, you must become stronger.

Become stronger than everyone else.

"A second death is not allowed!"

...

Jiang Zhengmu roared in a booming voice, "The match between Chu Zhen and Lu Jin is over, and the outcome is decided. Now, who else is willing to step forward and challenge Lu Jin?"

His gaze swept across the faces of the students in the elite class.

Wang Qi lowered his head.

Bai Bo looked at the ground.

Zhang Ming took half a step back.

Yang Tai touched his newly filled tooth and shrank his neck.

The other trainees were even worse off; when Jiang Zheng's gaze swept over them, they wished they could shrink into a ball.

Are you kidding me? Chu Zhen was defeated in one move, what are they doing going up there? Are they just going to feed him?

The martial arts school was completely silent; even breathing could be heard clearly.

Jiang Zheng waited for a moment, and seeing that no one responded, he nodded slightly: "Since no one is going to challenge, then I announce—the first place winner of this elite assessment is Lu Jin."

His voice echoed through the martial arts hall, and he added, "Second place, Chu Zhen."

No one objected.

Everyone was convinced by this result.

Lu Jin undoubtedly deserves the first place.

There was no controversy over who got second place. Although Chu Zhen lost to Lu Jin, his strength was undeniable, and no one else had the right to challenge him.

"Next, we'll compete for third place." Jiang Zheng waved his hand. "Those who are interested in competing for third place, please come up on stage."

The following matches were much less exciting compared to the battle between Lu Jin and Chu Zhen.

Unsurprisingly, Yang Tai came in third place, his face beaming with undisguised excitement.

Chen Wei stood beside Lu Jin and sighed heavily.

"Brother Lu Jin, you go to the inner city first this time, I'll come again next time!"

Chen Wei looked as if he were making an oath to someone.

As soon as he finished speaking, a hand landed on his shoulder.

Chen Wei looked up and met Lu Jin's calm gaze.

"We're barely friends."

Lu Jin's voice was calm, but every word clearly reached Chen Wei's ears: "If there's a chance, I'll take you with me."

Chen Wei was stunned.

He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but finally nodded heavily: "Don't worry, Brother Lu Jin, from now on I'm willing to go through fire and water for you, without hesitation!"

At the same time, Jiang Zheng stood on the judges' table, his gaze sweeping over Lu Jin, Chu Zhen, and Yang Tai in turn, and said in a deep voice: "The top three in this assessment are finished. The top three are Lu Jin, Chu Zhen, and Yang Tai."

"Alright, everyone who is not involved can leave now."

In an instant, the elite class returned to its usual calm, but the entire branch was in an uproar!

After the crowd dispersed, Jiang Zheng stood beside Yan Wenzhi, looking at Lu Jin and the other two, his voice suddenly becoming serious: "The three of you will represent our branch in the inner city selection assessment for the eight regional branches."

Only the top three can advance!

Yang Tai's smile froze instantly.

He slowly turned his head and glanced at Chu Zhen, who was pale and had bloodstains on the corner of his mouth. A deep sense of powerlessness suddenly welled up in his heart.

They are indeed the top three in this branch, but which of the top three from the other seven branches isn't a top genius in their respective branch?

How can one compete for a top-three spot among a group of geniuses?

Yang Tai swallowed hard. It was really difficult, but he still wanted to try!

Chu Zhen clutched his still throbbing jaw, a bitter look flashing in his eyes.

He was originally very confident, but when he glanced at Lu Jin out of the corner of his eye, he realized there was a monster here.

Are there any other branches?

He wasn't sure.

Only Lu Jin remained calm.

He stood with his hands hanging at his sides, his gaze calmly fixed ahead, as if what Jiang Zheng had just said was not a selection that would determine his fate, but a trivial matter.

The genius of the eight regional branches?

With his physique at the fifth level of the Body Refining Realm, he was confident he could fight even if some of the top geniuses from those branch schools had already reached the threshold of the Tendon Changing Realm.

It's not arrogance, but a clear understanding of one's own strength.

Yan Wenzhi walked up to Lu Jin at some point and patted him on the shoulder.

Lu Jin turned his head and met Yan Wenzhi's smiling gaze.

"Kid, practice hard."

Yan Wenzhi gave him a thumbs up, and the two exchanged contact information.

"If you have any questions when you arrive at the inner city branch, feel free to ask me."

Lu Jin smiled and nodded slightly: "Thank you, Brother Zhi."

Yan Wenzhi smiled, turned and left.

...

At the same time, the assessment results, like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, stirred up huge waves inside this branch.

Those trainees who couldn't attend the assessment in person learned about everything that happened on the stage immediately through videos and messages circulating wildly in the group chat.

"Brother Lu Jin has broken through to the fourth level of the Dragon-Elephant Realm?"

"He withstood Chu Zhen's Azure Dragon Offering without a scratch?"

"One move, just one move, and Chu Zhen was instantly defeated?"

"What kind of movement technique and physique does Brother Lu Jin have? He completely overwhelms Brother Zhen!"

"I watched the video three times. The third time, I slowed it down to 0.5x speed to see his movements clearly. It was too fast, really too fast."

Throughout the martial arts school, from the regular classes to the elite classes, from students to instructors, everyone was talking about Lu Jin, eliciting one exclamation after another.

Chu Zhen, a name that was once looked up to by all the students in the entire branch, has now been completely relegated to the background.

No one laughed at him, but no one regarded him as an invincible myth anymore.

Because in front of Lu Jin, all myths were shattered.

Lu Jin ignored these comments.

After the assessment, he stayed in the training area as usual, practicing the combination of Dragon Fist and Dragon Shadow over and over again.

The wind howled, his figure flashed, and sweat dripped down his chin onto the floor, spreading out a small, dark stain.

As the last rays of the setting sun were swallowed by the night and the lights in the martial arts gym came on one by one, Lu Jin finally stopped his movements.

He exhaled a long breath, feeling the smooth and harmonious power flowing within his body, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly.

【Dragon Shadow: Perfection】

Attack: 81.3 → 82.1

Speed: 86.0 → 101.4

[Defense: 77.4→77.9]

[Stamina: 78.0→78.3]

[Spirit: 41.5→41.6]

[Willpower: 41.7 → 41.8]

"This is outrageous! The Dragon Shadow Movement Technique has increased my speed so much that I'm now invincible among those of the same level just by speed alone!"

"So... learning more martial arts techniques will allow me to improve my strength even faster!"

Lu Jin's eyes became incredibly determined. He had to enter the inner city branch. Only by going to the inner city branch would he have the opportunity to learn more martial arts.

For others, learning more martial arts would be a waste of energy, but for Lu Jin's heart for martial arts training and the breakthrough dream essence of Eternal Night Return to the Void, this was no big deal.

He mastered the Dragon Shadow movement technique from beginner to expert in just a few days. If Jiang Zheng knew, he would probably be astonished.

Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Lu Jin was about to leave when he heard familiar footsteps behind him.

"Xiao Lu, wait a minute."

...