Mountain and Sea Demon Martial Arts, Starting with Vertical Pupils

"I didn't want Miss Li and Instructor Li to worry, so I went into seclusion for many days. By sheer luck, I've broken through to the fourth level of the Strength Realm," Chen Luo said gently, meeting Li Jiangwei's gaze.

"I guessed it." Li Jiangwei came back to her senses and smiled slightly.

She already knew that Chen Luo was approaching the threshold of the fourth level of strength, and had been doing so for some time, but had encountered a bottleneck and had not been able to break through.

She was actually a little worried about this, after all, the existence of realm bottlenecks is mysterious and profound, and there are always people who are trapped in a certain realm for their entire lives and never have the opportunity to break through.

She was worried that Chen Luo felt the same way, and Li Shen mentioned Chen Luo yesterday out of concern for this reason.

Only after seeing Chen Luo again today did I finally put my worries to rest.

However, what she didn't understand was why Chen Luo's temperament changed slightly after breaking through a realm, becoming more sharp.

"Perhaps it is true, as my father said, that some people, once they shed their stone armor and cage, will become even more dazzling."

Li Jiangwei murmured to herself, gently picked up her pen, and wrote a few strokes on Chen Luo's case file as usual. Then she stood up, naturally put her hair up in front of him, smoothed the stray hairs on her forehead, and smiled sweetly: "You broke through to the next realm today, which involves some matters. Please wait here for a while. I will come to take you to see your father later."

"it is good."

Chen Luo agreed, guessing in his heart that what she was talking about might be related to the private schools in Qingshan County.

Because Lin Zhou mentioned that day that once he broke through to the fourth level of strength, he would be recruited by various private schools.

After watching Li Jiangwei leave, Chen Luo waited patiently in the study.

However, a woman's "just a moment" always seems to take longer than a man expects.

About an hour later, as dusk was falling outside, she returned. "Sorry to keep you waiting, let's go."

Chen Luo couldn't help but wonder, what could possibly take so long?

As Li Jiangwei arrived at the backyard, the rain and snow had not yet stopped. Instructor Li sat under the pavilion, with Steward Lin standing behind her.

In addition, a middle-aged man sat at the side of the table. He looked to be about the same age as Instructor Li. His features were ordinary, but he was very fair-skinned and looked like a scholar.

It is worth noting that, despite the fact that it was already winter and the weather was cold, both Instructor Li and the man were wearing only a single-layered robe.

Chen Luo deduced from this that the scholar-like man was probably also an expert in the Inner Realm, which was why he was not afraid of the cold weather.

The reason we waited so long was probably because of this person?

All of this only made him more curious. Lin Siwu, Li Jiangwei, and Li Jiaoxi, the three people with official positions at Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy, were gathered together, plus this man in the inner vision. What could be the reason for this?

As Chen Luo sized up the man, the man also glanced at him a few more times, a gentle smile appearing on his face, and nodded at Chen Luo in a friendly manner.

"Chen Luo, practice the Nine Yang Strength once," Instructor Li said gently.

"Yes."

Chen Luo nodded, then took a half step back and threw a punch. The punch was powerful, and the four layers of energy condensed and exploded, creating a muffled sound under the Rain and Snow Pavilion.

The scholar-like man nodded slightly upon seeing this, "Not bad."

Instructor Li smiled and nodded, looking at Chen Luo, "You entered the sect in a year, reached the second level of strength in half a month, achieved minor success in a month, and now you have broken through to the fourth level of strength in two months. You can be described as outstanding and remarkable. Next, you can choose a private school to enter and further your training. That will be considered as graduating from my Zhengyang Martial Arts School."

"Graduation?" Chen Luo was immediately surprised; he hadn't expected Instructor Li to say such a thing.

"This is Huang Mingyuan, the headmaster of Licheng Martial Arts Academy."

Instructor Li introduced the man beside him and added, "Originally, Principal Huang should not have come to see you at this time and place, as it would be unfair to the other private schools. However, I owe Principal Huang a favor, so I allowed him to see you first."

Chen Luo didn't understand why Instructor Li brought this up out of the blue, but he still bowed and said, "Greetings, Headmaster Huang."

No need for formalities.

Huang Mingyuan chuckled, "I suppose you can guess that I'm here today to recruit you into my Licheng Martial Arts Academy."

He paused, then continued, "Your talent is exceptional. There are no tuition fees at my Licheng Martial Arts Academy, and you will receive a monthly stipend of three taels of silver, along with nourishing spiritual herbs and external techniques. If you perform well in the future, your treatment can be improved. We can discuss the specific conditions later. In short, Licheng Martial Arts Academy will do everything in its power to help you enter Qingyun Martial Arts School. What do you think?"

"..." Chen Luo was surprised to hear this.

The headmaster of Licheng Martial Arts Academy, a dignified Inner Realm Martial Master, not only personally came to recruit him, but also offered such generous recruitment benefits. Not only was there no tuition fee, but he also received a monthly stipend of three taels of silver.

Not to mention external techniques and spiritual medicines. External techniques are precious, and he currently only knows the publicly known Nine Yang Force. As for spiritual medicines, he has experienced the Bone Tempering Liquid and knows the extraordinary effects of this medicine.

Surprised, he hesitated for a moment, "Thank you for your kindness, Master, but I am still at Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy and dare not accept without permission."

"Of course." A hint of approval flashed in Huang Mingyuan's eyes.

In his view, it is rare for a farmer's son to be able to remain calm and composed in the face of great profit.

"This matter does indeed require careful consideration; there's no need to rush it," Instructor Li said, picking up his teacup.

Huang Mingyuan understood and bowed to Instructor Li, saying, "Brother Li, I shall take my leave now and visit you again another day."

Before leaving, he smiled and waved goodbye to Chen Luo.

After the other party left, Chen Luo looked at Instructor Li and couldn't help but say, "This disciple doesn't understand."

Instructor Li smiled. "You're probably wondering why I let you graduate from the martial arts academy when you're only at the fourth level of internal energy?"

"Yes." Chen Luo nodded. With his superior speaking and outsiders present, he couldn't raise any questions.

It should be understood that, in principle, there are only two situations for a martial arts academy disciple to graduate.

One option was to seek other opportunities, such as giving up martial arts training or joining the Mountain Guard.

Secondly, there were some outstanding disciples who practiced until they mastered the Nine Yang Strength, graduated, and went to the Qingyun Martial Arts School.

He was only at the fourth level of skill and had never thought of seeking other training, but Instructor Li took the initiative to mention that he was about to graduate.

To put it bluntly, it even gives off a feeling of being expelled from one's sect.

"It's not that I'm unwilling to teach you, but rather that I'm limited by my energy."

Instructor Li said gently, "Your talent far surpasses your peers, and you deserve more cultivation. However, Zhengyang Martial Academy is a charitable academy, and as an instructor, I am responsible for thousands of disciples. Giving individual guidance to some outstanding disciples in the evenings is already the limit. If I were to further cultivate you beyond that, it would inevitably neglect the other disciples, which would be unfair to them."

"Moreover, the Nine Yang Strength is not a simple martial art of strength, but also the key to entering the inner realm. It is a matter of foundation. Ordinary disciples may only need to practice step by step to the seventh level of strength, but for someone with your talent, you still need to further solidify your foundation. This is not something I can do alone. So, both logically and emotionally, you should go to the private school for further study."

Chen Luo was deeply moved; he hadn't expected there to be so many considerations involved.

Upon closer reflection, he realized he understood part of it.

As a righteous school, Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy was originally established for all disciples from farming families. However, its resources are limited, and Instructor Li's energy is also limited. If one wants Instructor Li to further guide them, it will definitely sacrifice the rights of other disciples to some extent.

Chen Luo himself came from a poor farming family and worked his way up to where he is today. He would never want to see a situation where other disciples from farming families are sacrificed to achieve his own goals.

In other words, Instructor Li's decision to let him graduate was both to protect the interests of most ordinary students in the private school and to consider the future of a high-potential student like him.

No wonder Song Ruokui switched to Jingyi Martial Arts Academy back then. I originally thought she had forgotten her roots, but it seems I misunderstood her.

As for the other point that Instructor Li just mentioned, the Nine Yang Force is not just an ordinary method of force cultivation, but also the key to entering the inner realm of martial arts.

This was something Chen Luo had never expected, and he was somewhat surprised when he first heard it.