Mountain and Sea Demon Martial Arts, Starting with Vertical Pupils

"I have another question that I don't understand. I don't understand why those private schools have to wait until I reach the fourth level of strength before they can recruit me," Chen Luo said.

This is something he doesn't understand. It's because of this that he didn't expect Linzhou to investigate him, thus overlooking a potential enemy.

But Instructor Li simply waved his hand, saying, "It's just a few old rules; you don't need to worry about it."

"Yes." Seeing that he did not answer, Chen Luo could only suppress his doubts.

It seemed that everything that needed to be said had been said. With the matter settled, he was not one to linger or be verbose. He understood Instructor Li's profound intentions and knew what he should do at this moment.

Chen Luo took a half step forward, straightened his clothes solemnly, then crossed his arms and bowed deeply and slowly to Instructor Li. Behind him, the wind and snow whistled. "Disciple Chen Luo, having received meticulous instruction from my esteemed master Li Shen at the Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy, has now completed his studies and is about to depart. I am deeply grateful for your guidance. I only wish my master good health, longevity, and continued success in martial arts. Disciple Chen Luo bows in gratitude!"

Instructor Li looked pleased. "No need for formalities, please get up."

Chen Luo slowly rose, then turned to Li Jiangwei and Lin Siwu, bowing once more. "Siwu Lin and Li Shuli have taken good care of me these past few days, and I am deeply grateful. I thank you both here!"

A rare smile appeared on Lin Siwu's usually stern face. "No need for formalities."

Li Jiangwei stepped forward, gently took his arm, and said softly, "Graduating from your apprenticeship doesn't mean we're parting ways. You can come back to visit anytime you have free time in the future."

"Okay," Chen Luo replied with a smile.

Seeing this, Instructor Li coughed lightly. "Other private schools will be looking for him today. Jiang Wei, please escort Chen Luo along the way and tell him some other matters in detail."

Lin, the steward, glanced at Li, a knowing smile flashing in his eyes.

Li Jiangwei agreed and led Chen Luo away.

As Chen Luo walked out of the martial arts academy, he stopped and looked at the plaque of Zhengyang Martial Arts Academy and the two powerful couplets on the left and right, feeling a surge of emotion.

I practiced martial arts here for more than a year and a half, and I never expected that the day of graduation would come so soon.

After boarding the carriage, Li Jiangwei said seriously, "You may not know much about the private school in Qingshan County. There are some things you need to know."

"Hmm?" Chen Luo pretended to listen.

Li Jiangwei explained earnestly: "There are many private schools in Qingshan County. Among them, there are two largest private schools. One is Licheng Martial School, which was represented by Principal Huang just now, and the other is Jingyi Martial School. However, these two schools each have an Inner Realm Martial Master as their headmaster. The other martial schools are relatively small in scale, and the instructors are often at the seventh level of the Strength Realm. How to choose is up to you."

"Does Miss Li have any suggestions?" Chen Luo asked, knowing that Li Jiangwei clearly knew more about these things.

"You are exceptionally talented and have a bright future, so I would naturally recommend Jingyi Martial Arts Academy and Licheng Martial Arts Academy even more."

She paused, then subtly changed the subject, "Normally, it wouldn't matter much which of these two schools you choose; it just depends on which one offers better benefits. But right now, with some changes at Jingyi Martial Arts Academy, I would recommend Licheng Martial Arts Academy to you."

"Has something happened at the Jingyi Martial Arts Academy?" Chen Luo's heart skipped a beat, guessing that this incident was likely related to Lin Zhou's death.

Li Jiangwei stared at him, her eyes probing. "You should know something about this."

What does it mean that I should know some things...?

Did she know that Lin Zhou's death was related to her?

Meeting Li Jiangwei's ambiguous gaze, Chen Luo's heart tightened, but he said with a puzzled expression, "I don't understand."

Li Jiangwei stared at him for a moment, and seeing that his expression was unchanged, she sighed softly: "Naturally, it's because of Song Ruokui, Miss Song."

"Huh?" Chen Luo was taken aback.

"Miss Song is exceptionally talented, actually even surpassing you by a significant margin. However, for some reason, she has been stuck at the sixth level of the martial arts realm in recent years. The disciples and even the teachers at the Elite Martial Arts Academy have expressed their dissatisfaction with this, and the academy head has been under considerable pressure. Therefore, the Elite Martial Arts Academy will recruit you, but the benefits they can offer... will definitely be limited."

Li Jiangwei explained, her gaze falling on Chen Luo's face, "I heard that you and Miss Song used to be close, and I thought you knew some inside information."

"..." Chen Luoqian chuckled, feeling somewhat speechless.

He discovered that his relationship with Song Ruokui was truly famous; almost everyone could talk about it.

He could actually understand what Li Jiangwei was saying.

Private schools are more profit-oriented than charity schools. Ordinary disciples have to spend a lot of money to enter the school to learn martial arts, but disciples from farming families like Song Ruokui can enter the school without tuition fees and enjoy resources that other disciples cannot. If they cannot show their talents in the private school, they will naturally attract criticism.

His potential is not even as good as Song Ruokui's. Even if Jingyi Martial Arts Academy recruits him, they will definitely be more cautious, and the treatment will most likely be worse than that of Licheng Martial Arts Academy.

However, even if Li Jiangwei hadn't brought it up, Chen Luo would still have chosen to establish the Cheng Martial Arts Academy.

In short, there is absolutely no way he would go to the Jingyi Martial Arts Academy.

Nonsense. He just killed two disciples from the Elite Martial Arts Academy a while ago, and now he's going into their academy again. What's the difference between that and blatant provocation?

Even without this incident, the headmaster of Licheng Martial Arts Academy, an Inner Realm expert, personally came to recruit him. This was a very generous offer, and he was very pleased with it and would certainly be happy to accept it.

Thinking of this, Chen Luo suddenly understood why Instructor Li had mentioned "owing Principal Huang a favor" not long ago.

This is most likely an implication, or a reminder, that Master Huang was even willing to use the favor of an Inner Realm Martial Arts Master in order to recruit him first.

"This Headmaster Huang seems to value me even more than I thought," Chen Luo thought to himself.

After some thought, noticing the subtle change in Li Jiangwei's expression when she mentioned Song Ruokui, he subconsciously avoided the topic and instead asked, "I don't understand, these private schools, unlike free schools which receive government subsidies, are willing to invest so much effort in students like me who attend free schools?"

"That's easy to understand."

Li Jiangwei smiled gently: "Firstly, it's for building a reputation. An outstanding disciple like you, once trained, will be a living advertisement. Secondly, the private school is also related to the Martial Arts Selection Division. If you can enter the Qingyun Martial Arts Academy in the future, the private school that trained you will naturally receive some kind of reward. Not to mention, if they can train an Inner Realm expert, the value of that favor will be immeasurable."

Chen Luo nodded, somewhat understanding the logic behind it.

Putting aside the first two points, the background and connections of an expert in interior painting alone are enough to make this an investment worthwhile.

It should be noted that the total number of experts in the inner realm of Qingshan County seems to be less than two hands' worth.

"Miss Li,"

Chen Luo looked at Li Jiangwei, hesitated for a moment, and finally asked a question that had been buried in his heart for a long time, "Since you attach so much importance to martial arts training... is our Great Lin in a precarious situation right now?"