Road to Be the God

Chapter 40 The Ranking Trial of Exterior Ministry

In Lin Tian's residence, Su Shu blushed and goggled at Lin Tian with staring eyes.

"This is an accident. You've got me wrong." Lin Tian was a bit embarrassed.

How would he know that Su Shu would stay with Lin Xi for a whole night in that kind of sleeping posture?

"Accident? Got you wrong?"

Su Shu gritted her teeth and her eyes gleamed with anger as if she wanted to eat Lin Tian alive.

Lin Tian was speechless.

Now, he had better stay silent.

For the moment, it was even more embarrassing in the room.

Moments later, Su Shu finally cooled down and yet still stared at Lin Tian with her eyes wide open, "Why weren't you back last night? Where have you been?"

Lin Tian was speechless.

Why did her question sound so weird?

"Well, I practiced combat craft in Qingfeng Mountain yesterday," Lin Tian said.

"Did it need to take you a night to practice the combat craft? Aren't you worried about Lin Xi?"

Su Shu was a bit doubtful.

"I was so focused on practicing that I forgot the time," Lin Tian kept a stiff upper lip and also took the opportunity to curry favor with her, saying, "Besides, you are such a kind and beautiful lady. With you here, I was not worried at all. I believe that you would come to keep her company and take good care of her!" Lin Tian looked rather serious.

Su Shu blushed and coughed twice, "Well, your instinct is rather correct. Good for you."

"Thank you for the compliment," Lin Tian said grinningly.

It seemed that Su Shu felt better.

Su Shu snorted and stared at Lin Tian. Her facial expression suddenly became serious, "By the way, you must start preparing for this. Two days later, there will be a ranking trial for the exterior disciples in Qingfeng Mountain."

"A ranking trial?" Lin Tian was taken aback.

He had never heard of it before.

"It has been a month since you were enrolled by the martial institution. You should know that the martial institution consists of Exterior Ministry and Interior Ministry. Every year, after the new disciples are recruited, there will be a ranking trial among the exterior disciples at an appropriate time. The top 30 participants will be rewarded, which is also an incentive to push the disciples to cultivate," Su Shu explained.

Lin Tian asked, "What's the trial about? The disciples fight against each other?"

"No," Su Shu shook her head and said, "There are many monster beasts in Qingfeng Mountain. Generally, each of them has a beast nucleus. The trial is simple, that is, the participants must kill the monster beasts and get their beast nuclei. In the end, they will be scored based on the number and ranking of the cores. The higher score, the higher ranking."

"Oh, I see. The rule is quite simple then." Lin Tian nodded his head. On second thought, he furrowed his eyebrows and said, "The monster beasts in Qingfeng Mountain are probably rather ferocious. Aren't the seniors of the martial institution afraid that the participants may be killed by them?"

Hearing Lin Tian's question, Su Shu rolled her eyes uncontrollably.

"The disciples often go to Qingfeng Mountain to train themselves up. If the seniors of the martial institution have to worry about whether the disciples will be killed by the monster beasts, don't they make themselves the disciples' parents? We are in a martial institution, where the disciples are only forbidden to hurt each other. If anyone is killed by the monster beast in Qingfeng Mountain, it can only prove that he is too weak," Su Shu said.

Lin Tian nodded his head. Brutal as her answer sounded, it made sense indeed.

"Are you in?" Lin Tian asked Su Shu.

Su Shu rolled her eyes, "Of course I am. Otherwise, Mu Qing would accuse me of letting him down again."

Lin Tian was so speechless. It was really rude of the girl to call Mu Qing by his full name.

"Can we attend the trial in the form of a team? How about us forming a team?" He said.

Su Shu blinked her eyes and suddenly grinned. She stood on tiptoe and patted his shoulders, saying with assurance, "Of course. No worries. Your senior sister myself will get you covered!"

"We are at the same age!"

"Oh yeah? Then, your senior sister apprentice will get you covered."

Lin Tian was speechless.

He had learned about the trial roughly. Then, he suddenly thought of a man and then asked, "Oh right, in the ranking trial of Exterior Ministry, what is Zhou Hao's usual ranking?"

It was better to know about the enemy's capability.

Su Shu stared at Lin Tian and felt a bit surprised, "Don't you know that?"

"No, I don't." Lin Tian shook his head. After thinking it over, he added, "I've been too busy to ask about it."

This time, Su Shu was the speechless one.

"Zhou Hao, the son of the commander of Fengjian City, is 18 years old, at the ninth layer of body cultivation... Top one martial artist among the exterior disciples," Su Shu said.

Lin Tian nodded, "Oh."

"Oh?" Su Shu stared at Lin Tian.

"What?"

"Aren't you worried at all?"

"About what?"

"He is the top disciple in Exterior Ministry at the ninth layer of body cultivation. And you are going to have a life-and-death battle with him in two months!"

Su Shu didn't know what to say to him. Didn't he feel nervous at all?"

Lin Tian raised his eyes heavenward, "If worrying could work, why would I work hard at cultivating?"

"That being said, you look too at ease!" Su Shu was lost for words.

"I will cultivate fast when I am at ease," Lin Tian said grinningly.

"Is that so..." Su Shu puckered her lips and asked a bit banteringly, "You've been at ease for one month. May I ask at what stage you are? And how is your practicing of Shadow Fire Boxing and Wind-startling Swordsmanship going?"

Lin Tian smiled. This girl still wanted to mock him.

"I'm at the sixth layer of body cultivation. And I've cultivated Shadow Fire Boxing to big attainment and Wind-startling Swordsmanship to big attainment too," He answered with a faint smile.

Su Shu was dumbfounded with her eyes wide open. "What?"

Su Shu wanted to ridicule Lin Tian but to her astonishment, he gave such an answer.

He was at the sixth layer of body cultivation. And he had cultivated Shadow Fire Boxing to big attainment and Wind-startling Swordsmanship to big attainment too.

What the heck!

She wouldn't comment on his progress in the cultivation of Shadow Fire Boxing. And it was still fair enough that he could reach the sixth layer of body cultivation from the fifth layer within one month. Nevertheless, he even cultivated Wind-startling Swordsmanship to big attainment? As far as she knew, no one could cultivate this sword method to peak by now. Even her master Mu Qing couldn't make it. Yet, Lin Tian had cultivated it to big attainment within one month!

Was the man with the nine-star talent so gifted?

"Don't you lie to me!" Su Shu stared at Lin Tian.

"Do you want me to show you the sword spirit? Or to show my cultivation stage?" Lin Tian asked.

"Yes!" Su Shu nodded her head and couldn't believe his words anyway.

Lin Tian was speechless. Was he so unreliable?

Without hesitation, he showed his cultivation stage and then the sword spirit of the third sword technique of Wind-startling Swordsmanship.

"You..." Su Shu widened her mouth.

Mu Qing only grasped the second sword technique of Wind-startling Swordsmanship but now, the third sword technique displayed by Lin Tian just showed a rush of stronger sword spirit than that of the second sword technique exerted by Mu Qing. Undoubtedly, what Lin Tian exerted was the third sword technique of Wind-startling Swordsmanship. As to his cultivation stage, since her cultivation stage was slightly higher than his, she could feel that he was at the sixth layer of body cultivation.

"What do you say? Do you believe me now?" Lin Tian spread his hands.

Su Shu stared at Lin Tian and clenched her teeth.

"You are so un..." She was about to say he was unbelievable when she recalled what had happened before. She blushed and said instead, "You are nuts!"

"Young people all go nuts." Lin Tian chortled.

Su Shu got mad, gave him a kick and directly ran away.

"Two days later, come to the rock gate of Qingfeng Mountain." An angry voice sounded from the distance.

Lin Tian chuckled and shook his head.

"The ranking trial of Exterior Ministry? Well, I still have two days. I can make some preparation," He muttered to himself.

After resting for a while, Lin Tian came to the attic of his residence. He took out the materials he had bought before to imprint some martial integrating formation pattern scrolls for Wind-startling Swordsmanship. After all, it was an Exterior Ministry trial. Whether out of concern for his scores or safety, it was not a bad thing to get prepared.

...

Two days passed by.

On this day, nearly 300 people gathered before the rock gate of Qingfeng Mountain. These people were the exterior disciples of Jiuyang Martial Institution, who would head to Qingfeng Mountain and attend the ranking trial of Exterior Ministry. The trial would last seven days.

"I wonder what the rewards are for the top 30 participants. How desirable!"

"Stop dreaming! You've just been enrolled by the martial institution and you want to make it to the top 30?"

"I'm only fantasizing."

Before the rock gate, there were quite some murmurs.

Lin Tian arrived here and looked around.

"Lin Tian, this way." Su Shu waved at Lin Tian. She called him Little Tiantian before but after Lin Tian's repeated protest and correction, she finally changed her way of addressing him.

"I'm coming." Lin Tian ran over quickly.

"Are you ready?" Su Shu asked.

"Yeah." Lin Tian nodded. He was wearing a white robe with a fancy sword tied to his back and several martial integrating formation pattern scrolls for Wind-startling Sword hidden in his pocket.

"Well. Very good. You look spirited today," Su Shu said smilingly.

"Of course." Lin Tian also chortled.

Three mentors of Jiuyang Martial Institution were standing before the huge rock gate, who were martial artists at the primary level of Divine Meridians Stage. They were talking to the exterior disciples. It was mainly a pep talk.

"Okay. The trial begins!"

Another half an hour passed by. Finally, one of the three mentors shouted. Instantly, the rock gate to Qingfeng Mountain was opened and a rush of rich spirit of monster beasts just flew out.

A procession of 300 people was not really grand. Under the guidance of Jiuyang Martial Institution, 300 people went through the rock gate in order but after that, many people instantly cried out and charged forward quickly. Most of these people were newly recruited disciples into the martial institution, who appeared rather excited now.

Lin Tian and Su Shu headed in a direction slowly.

"Su Shu, you must know well about Qingfeng Mountain, right?" Lin Tian asked.

Su Shu nodded proudly, "Of course."

Lin Tian was instantly relieved and followed Su Shu. Shortly, they were a few kilometers away from the rock gate. They couldn't see the rock gate now.

"Growl!"

"Howl!"

The growls of monster beasts came. When they arrived here, they found that the spirit of monster beasts was apparently much richer.

"This is the area of first-grade monster beasts, where most of the monster beasts are first-grade. Of course, some second-grade or even third-grade monsters may appear in this area. If we go more than 10 kilometers deeper into Qingfeng Mountain from here, that will be the area of second-grade monster beasts. It will be the third-grade area and the fourth-grade area when we advance from there. In terms of our cultivation stage, we can access the area of second-grade monster beasts at most. It will be a bit dangerous if we go into the area of third-grade monster beasts," Su Shu said.