Seven World Martial God

Chapter 54: Selection

“Alright! Since Brother Niu is eager to see your strength, we will proceed,” Zhao Dapeng announced in his clear, loud voice, not at all upset at being interrupted.

The five commanders approached a high platform overlooking the arena and took their places.

Five chairs were evenly arranged on the platform for the commanders, allowing them to easily take in the entire arena.

“Hail the Honored Commanders!” The Scarlet Guards roared in unision.

Shua! Shua! Shua!

As the fifty Centurions bowed, five thousand guards fell to a knee and called out again: “Hail the Honored Commanders!”

In the Scarlet Guard, Centurions and Commanders bowed to no one.

The denizens of Shen Zhou Continent worshipped strength, and every expert was given respect.

“At ease!” The elderly Commander said calmly, lifting a hand.

The five thousand guards immediately stood.

Ye Tian carefully observed the interactions between the Commanders, easily picking out the deference and respect awarded to the most powerful member of their group.

While the other four Commanders were obviously powerful, the elderly man was unfathomable.

When he looked up at the old man, Ye Tian felt as if he was staring at a dormant volcano, a calm surface masking terrifying strength.

Just as there were ten levels in the Martial Artist realm, there were ten levels in the Martial Master realm. As far as Ye Tian knew, only a Level Seven Martial Master could become a Scarlet Guard Commander.

But for some reason, Ye Tian felt as if the elder had far surpassed the Level Seven Martial Master requirement.

Level Seven Martial Master? With my current Martial Spirit talent, as long as I get an Inner Heart Art, my cultivation will rapidly improve. Level Seven Martial Master will take less than ten years, Ye Tian thought, his eyes gleaming.

Ye Tian had joined the Scarlet Guard in order to access their Inner Heart Arts. These secret cultivation arts were the precious treasures of the different continental powers and were only given to their followers.

The Scarlet Guard was Ye Tian’s first stop.

While Ye Tian was thinking about his future, the old man began speaking again. “Dapeng, take the recruits. You’re also in charge of the Centurions and Squad Leaders.”

“Yes, Uncle Duan!” Zhao Dapeng clasped his hands respectfully before leaving the platform and approaching Ye Tian’s group.

The recruits looked up at the Commander with eager, confident eyes, every one of them hoping for an officer position.

Few of them could be as calm as Ye Tian.

Zhao Dapeng’s eyes swept over the group, lingering contently over Ye Tian for a brief moment before his gaze turned back to address all the recruits. “Hear my command. Level Eight Martial Artists and above, step forward.”

Hua La!

Ye Tian stepped forward without hesitation with the other experts, all of them quickly lining up in another rectangular formation.

Zhao Dapeng watched as the recruits ordered themselves, finally nodding in approval. “Good. There are 73 of you. Challenge each other and the five most powerful warriors will become Centurions while fifty of you will become Squad Leaders.”

Zhao Dapeng turned to address the other recruits, his voice cool: “You all.. Watch carefully. Once they’re finished, you will have to choose your leaders. If you cannot choose, the Scarlet Guard will assign you randomly.”

Finished with his explanation, Zhao Dapeng called a fully-fledged Centurion to organize the rest of the competition before returning to the platform.

Ye Tian cocked an eyebrow with surprise, recognizing the assigned Centurion. It was Li Tian again, the man who had given him the letter of recommendation.

Li Tian noticed Ye Tian as well, sharing a glance with him before turning and organizing the competition. He moved quickly, drawing a large fifty-meter radius circle on the ground while the confused recruits watched silently.

The five Commanders said nothing so the others could only keep their peace and wait patiently.

Very quickly, the Martial Master had finished the circle and turned to Ye Tian and the others, calling out: “Step forward and enter the circle.”

Ye Tian and the others exchanged confused glances, but they obediently stepped forward.

“Hey, when are we going to fight? This young lady is getting impatient,” a girlish voice called out as the red-robed girl grew impatient.

Li Tian’s brows furrowed as he glanced at the girl but he couldn’t rebuke her, hurriedly continuing: “The competition will begin now. You can attack anyone within the circle. You will be ranked according to how long you last. The last person standing is the strongest.”

As Li Tian spoke, the Martial Warriors hurriedly separated, staring at their compatriots warily.

Ye Tian smirked, amused by the unexpected rules. Smiling to himself, he moved to the side, watching the people around him.

Everyone had reacted similarly, choosing caution, none of them daring to move first.

The red-robed girl giggled with pleasure, blinking her big eyes in amused surprise. “Good! This young lady likes this rule! Now who should I attack first…” She trailed off, eyeing the people around her.

The people she eyed could only cry to themselves. All of them knew this young girl was a Level Ten Martial Artist, an expert at the peak of their group.

When Yang Tianyou saw the young girl eyeing him, he could only smile awkwardly as he hid.

“Bah, no guts!” The red robed girl pouted. Although Yang Tianyou’s face fell, he still didn’t dare to move forward.

While Yang Tianyou was a young genius, he was still a level below many of the experts around him.

Talent was just talent and before a genius matured, they couldn’t be called a true expert.

The young girl continued to look around her, her eyes falling on Wu Qinghu. The Half-Step Martial Master met her gaze and snorted, flexing his powerful Qi and pushing back the people around him.

“That big oaf… hmph!” The young girl sniffed, turning away proudly, hiding her trepidation. Finally, her eyes fell on a young man standing quietly to the side.

Brat. How dare you ignore this young lady?! I’ll make it so you aren’t even a Squad Leader! The young girl thought, giggling to herself.

The wary experts all saw the young girl’s gaze stopping on the young man, and they could only watch with sympathy as she chose her target.

Of course the young man was none other than Ye Tian.

The young Ye expert calmly met the young red-robed girl’s gaze, still ignoring the girl’s provocation.

“Hmph!” The young girl snorted, dashing forward. As she approached Ye Tian, she struck out with both palms, her moves summoning up a fierce wind as she attacked.

Ye Tian moved calmly in reply, blocking with his Thundering Palm. The calm youth moved without flourish, satisfied as long as he made no mistakes.

The two experts dueled ferociously, their powerful exchanges opening up a wide area around them as the other recruits backed away.

As their space narrowed, the recruits finally began to fight, with the weak quickly pushed out of bounds.

The five Commanders watched attentively, most of their attention focused on Ye Tian and the young girl. The two were among the peak experts of the group and the young girl’s background was quite extraordinary.

The Commanders naturally focused on the young talents.

“This Ye Tian child isn’t simple. Look—he’s practiced his Low Rank Martial Skill to great perfection. Truly talented.” Zhao Dapeng sighed with praise, clearly expressing his admiration for Ye Tian.

“Only sixteen yet already so powerful—truly a peerless genius. Do any of you know his background?” The elderly Uncle Duan nodded in agreement as he spoke.

“Uncle Duan, I’ve looked him up. This child is from a village in White Cloud Town. His background is entirely clean and he’s truly worth cultivating,” Zhao Dapeng hurriedly replied.

Uncle Duan smiled happily in response, nodding again. “I know White Cloud Town. For such a genius to come out of that poor backwater, how incredible. Hehe!”

“Uncle Duan, I’ve heard that these small villages don’t even have medicine for their children. This Ye Tian child most likely relied solely on his diligent cultivation to reach this stage. His talent is undeniable, far better than Old Yang’s child,” Niu Yunshan interjected.

“Yes! That’s what I value as well. He’s made it to this level without any resources, so with our Scarlet Guard’s support, his future will be limitless!” Zhao Dapeng exclaimed, his eyes glowing.

…

As the five Commanders talked amongst themselves, more and more people were knocked out of the circle. When half an hour passed, less than twenty people remained.

Ye Tian and the young girl still dueled energetically, neither of them clearly favored in their exchanges.

The young girl’s palm technique was clearly very powerful and was probably a powerful Yellow Rank Martial Skill, but she hadn’t cultivated it to great perfection and could only display a portion of its strength.

Ye Tian relied on his Late Stage Level Ten cultivation and his mastery over his skill to cleanly handle the young girl’s attacks, calmly resisting her blows.

“Brat, you’re pretty strong but this lady hasn’t used her full strength!” the young girl cried out, growing progressively more anxious the longer the duel dragged on, her palm strikes growing more and more fierce and more and more chaotic.

Ye Tian could tell that despite the young girl’s powerful cultivation, she lacked experience. As the battle progressed, she grew weary and would soon collapse on her own.

But despite her weakness, Ye Tian only used his Thundering Palm to block the girls’ moves.

He hid his true strength. After all, the tallest tree suffered the most from the storm.