Ji Fanchen and the others stood at a distance, watching Ye Feng's figure, all their mockery swallowed back down.
"Young Master Ji, look at how arrogant Ye Feng is!" Zhang Yun was still displeased, but now he wouldn’t dare to provoke Ye Feng even if he had the courage.
"Yeah, Young Master Ji, there are still two more rounds of tests, and Ye Feng already acts like he's the champion!" Zhao Feihong added fuel to the fire.
"Hmph! What’s there to fear!" Ji Fanchen remained confident, "He just has some strange strength in his fists. Ye Feng must have accumulated a lot of Profound Qi over eight years of hard cultivation, but it’s all useless..."
Watching Ye Feng's departing figure, Ji Fanchen sneered, "Ordinary Profound Qi is worthless in the face of true Profound Art Combat Skills! As long as I meet Ye Feng in the final round, I will crush him!"
"Young Master Ji is mighty!"
Zhang Yun and the others let out a sigh of relief and followed Ji Fanchen as they began the third round of testing.
***
The third item of the Inner Gate Assessment: Comprehension Test.
As the name suggests, this test examines the martial comprehension of disciples. The method involves demonstrating a set of martial combat skills in front of the disciples, accompanied by a simple explanation of the heart method. After a stick of incense's time, the disciples are tested on how much of the combat skill's power they can replicate, and they are graded accordingly.
It was in this test that Ye Feng truly showcased the demeanor of 'Brother Ye' from years ago, who once looked down on his peers.
A set of Low-Grade Profound Art, the Angry Thunder Palm, consisted of thirty-six forms and one hundred and eight variations. The heart method for practice was over a dozen pages thick. An ordinary person would need several minutes just to read through it once, but Ye Feng managed to execute the first twelve forms of the complete palm technique within a single stick of incense's time, astonishing everyone.
"Disciple Ye Feng, Comprehension Test score, result—Super Grade A!!"
Another Super Grade A!!
The outer disciples who had followed along were once again shocked.
Ye Feng had become famous.
His stunning performance in two consecutive rounds of testing had almost replaced Ji Fanchen as the most attention-grabbing presence among this year's new disciples.
Coupled with his already striking appearance, the atmosphere around him was completely different as he walked through the Sky-Touching Peak square.
"Senior Brother Ye! Senior Brother Ye!"
One by one, little fangirls waved their arms with eyes full of admiration, bouncing around in a way that was quite, no, very cute.
Even those young men who had previously doubted Ye Feng were at a loss.
Ye Feng was too fierce!
Even if shattering the Profound Qi Stone was a fluke, that fist was not something an ordinary person could withstand. Ji Fanchen might have met his match this time.
Thinking of this, everyone flocked to the location of the final round of today's Inner Gate Assessment—the Martial Arts Arena.
The final item of the Inner Gate Assessment, the Combat Test, arrived as scheduled.
According to the rules of the Tianyun Sect, the Combat Test is the last item to assess the disciples' overall strength. Each batch of disciples who completed the first three tests would be divided into groups of four under the arrangement of the inner disciples. They would spar on the arena, limited to a stick of incense's time, to showcase their strength.
Here, Elder Han Yun served as the final chief examiner of this assessment, compiling all the disciples' test scores and, based on their performance in the Combat Test, ultimately producing a score list as the final result of the Inner Gate Assessment.
At this moment, Han Yun was craning his neck, eagerly watching the distant crowd like an old goose.
"Why hasn't that kid Ye Feng come yet..."
Comrade Old Han was anxious.
Someone who could be personally 'noticed' by that existence hadn't appeared in the Tianyun Sect for decades. What kind of extraordinary ability did Ye Feng have to shatter the Profound Qi Stone with one punch?
"Elder Han, this is the match list for the next hundred disciples. Please have a look."
"Alright."
Han Yun took the list and glanced over it, his gaze stopping on one name.
"Ye Feng... ended up in a group with those three?"
This was too coincidental...
With Han Yun's insight, he naturally saw some issues here. If it were before, he might have asked a few questions, but remembering the instructions from that existence, he silently approved the list.
If Ye Feng were to fight those three, it might truly test the kid's abilities!
"Alright, notify the disciples to prepare for the stage according to this list!"
"Yes, Elder Han!"
The inner disciple nodded respectfully and withdrew, a faint, cold smile on his face.
Ye Feng...
You really don't let people have peace wherever you go.
Since you've caused such a commotion, let's see how you 'show your might' in the Combat Test, hmph hmph!!
***
In front of the Martial Arts Arena, it was already a sea of people.
Ten temporarily built arenas could accommodate forty disciples competing at once. Earlier, hundreds of disciples had completed their matches, with some exciting battles among them. But with the arrival of Ye Feng and the others, all eyes were on this strong dark horse of the day.
Would he be grouped with Ji Fanchen?
What final ranking could Ye Feng achieve in this Inner Gate Assessment, and what kind of cultivation would he receive from the Tianyun Sect?
All this kept everyone on edge.
Finally, amid the anticipation, an inner disciple ascended the platform to announce the upcoming match list:
"The match list for the next ten rounds of the Inner Gate Assessment, Arena One—Bao Ming, Song Qingtian..."
Everyone listened intently, eagerly awaiting the most notable names.
"Arena Eight..." At this point, the disciple seemed to pause, then glanced at Ye Feng in the crowd with a peculiar look before announcing loudly:
"Ye Feng, Ji Fanchen, Zhang Yun, Zhao Feihong!"
An uproar erupted below!
"What?"
"How did Ye Feng end up in a group with those three?"
"This is too much of a coincidence! Is there something fishy?"
People couldn't believe such a coincidence could exist, but some knowledgeable individuals shook their heads and sneered:
"Hmph, you probably don't know, but Ji Fanchen is personally looked after by the Chief of Angry Cloud Peak. Otherwise, would he dare to be so arrogant in the Outer Gate?"
"Angry Cloud Peak?"
Disciples of the Tianyun Sect who were slightly knowledgeable about the name were all tongue-tied, seemingly able to accept the result immediately.
If Ji Fanchen was indeed associated with that Chief, then this grouping list, which clearly had a 'retaliatory' nature, could be fully explained. Find the original chapter at g.com.
After all... in today's Tianyun Sect, the Chief of Angry Cloud Peak was someone even the Sect Master had to show respect to.
As everyone discussed, Ji Fanchen and his two lackeys were also a bit surprised.
"Young Master Ji... this grouping is a bit too..." Zhang Yun and Zhao Feihong looked at Ji Fanchen together, "Could it be that the Chief arranged this for you?"
Ji Fanchen blinked, pondering.
Logically, it shouldn't be...
What kind of status did that Chief have? Although he did take care of Ji Fanchen, it wouldn't be necessary to trouble him with something as trivial as the Inner Gate Assessment, right?
But that didn't matter!
Ji Fanchen snorted coldly. As long as he could be grouped with Ye Feng, it was all he could wish for, especially since this time, the three of them would be on stage together, leaving Ye Feng with no hope.
"This is perfect! The three of us will be in a group with that little bastard, and we'll completely cripple him!"
"Hmph!" The two lackeys were also seething with anger, "Don't worry, Young Master Ji, today we'll crush that bastard's limbs and vent your anger!!"
While everyone was discussing the grouping list, the announcement from the platform had already sounded:
"Contestants, take the stage!!"
The sound resonated throughout the venue, and the forty named contestants stepped onto their respective arenas.
The eighth arena, where Ye Feng and Ji Fanchen were, instantly became the focal point, with at least half the crowd gathering around, creating a spectacular scene.
Ye Feng walked onto the arena step by step, his face calm and unruffled.
He had, of course, noticed the unfairness in the matchup list, but even those who had deliberately 'set him up' probably didn't expect that such a grouping would actually align with Ye Feng's wishes.
Ji Fanchen, he certainly intended to teach a lesson.
But in Ye Feng's mind, a spoiled young master was never a concern. What he needed was to use this Inner Gate Assessment as an opportunity to showcase his strength and gain the attention of the Tianyun Sect's higher-ups, paving the way for his future cultivation.
Therefore, a seemingly 'unfair' match was actually a heaven-sent opportunity for Ye Feng.
If he could defeat Ji Fanchen and the other two by himself, who in this year's assessment could match Ye Feng's brilliance?
With this thought, a cold flame rose in Ye Feng's heart. He stood tall, his gaze as sharp as a blade, sweeping directly toward the three opposite him.
Seeing Ye Feng's arrogant demeanor, Ji Fanchen and his two companions' faces darkened, their eyes almost spitting fire. Zhang Yun and Zhao Feihong nodded slightly at Ji Fanchen's command, then unhesitatingly spread out, moving toward Ye Feng's rear, forming a triangle to encircle him.
"This, this is an open attempt to gang up on Ye Feng?" The audience below began to murmur.
"This is a bit too much, isn't it? Ye Feng is just a newcomer. Ji Fanchen broke through to the Two-Vein Profound Realm a few days ago, and Zhao Feihong and Zhang Yun are also in the One-Vein Profound Realm... This is going to be the end of Ye Feng!"
"Not necessarily! Didn't you see Ye Feng's Profound Qi power earlier? That fist, whoever gets hit won't have a good time!"
"But he has to hit them first... And Ye Feng only has strength. Ji Fanchen has learned Profound Art Combat Skills. I don't think Ye Feng stands a chance; he's going to be brutally beaten."
The voices of the crowd were mixed, with more than seventy percent not optimistic about Ye Feng. Meanwhile, Elder Han Yun, sitting on the high platform, frowned slightly, looking at Ye Feng's proud figure with a serious expression.
"Ye Feng... if you can defeat those three, even Li Huayu back in the day would be outshone by you. What kind of ability do you have? Let me see clearly!"
He took a deep breath, nodded toward the distance, and the inner disciple opposite immediately announced loudly:
"Combat Test, all disciples are forbidden to use weapons, the fight is to stop before causing fatal harm to fellow disciples, now—begin!"
Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan