He had to admit, it was so kind of fate that he, Zhang Yong, and Zhang Hong were all in the sa group for the Martial Arts Examination.
In front of each open space were four iron locks, each larger than a washbasin.
The first stage of the Martial Arts Examination was to lift the iron locks. The four locks corresponded to weights of one thousand, two thousand, three thousand, and four thousand jin, respectively.
The four iron locks also corresponded to four grades—A, B, C, and D—while the number of lifts determined a sub-grade of upper, middle, or lower.
This stage tested one’s Martial Dao foundation—the depth of their True Qi and the conditioning of their physical body.
Generally, soone at the Early Stage of Qi Gathering Great Success could lift the one-thousand-jin lock. Those at the Mid-Stage could lift two thousand jin, and those at the Late Stage could lift the three-thousand-jin lock.
As for the four-thousand-jin lock, under normal circumstances, only examinees at the Bone Marrow Cleansing realm could lift it.
This wasn’t to say that Bone Marrow Cleansing Martial Artists could only lift four thousand jin, but that there was no need for heavier locks. Aside from a few individuals with Innate Divine Power, practically no one at the Late Stage of Qi Gathering Great Success could lift four thousand jin.
Therefore, there was no need for heavier iron locks.
’I don’t have Innate Divine Power, but my body has been tempered by Vajra True Qi. I imagine it’s not much different from having Innate Divine Power. I should be able to lift the three-thousand-jin iron lock, but there’s no need.
Even if I barely managed to lift it, I couldn’t do many reps before collapsing. People would think my foundation is unstable. It’s not always better to lift the heaviest weight.’
His current cultivation was still only at the Mid-Stage of Qi Gathering Great Success.
He had only reached this level of cultivation after months of arduous training, supported by the three Qi Gathering Pills from Lin Cheng and the over one hundred taels of silver from Zhang Sishui.
Cultivation within the Qi Gathering Great Success Realm required more resources than all the previous stages combined—from the Early Stage of Qi Gathering, through Qi Gathering Minor Achievent, all the way to reaching the Great Success Realm itself.
Sun Tao had previously taught him the technique for lifting the iron locks. In the Martial Arts Examination, lifting a heavier lock didn’t necessarily an a better score.
This stage tested one’s overall ability, the refinent of their True Qi and physical body. The main factor was the number of repetitions, though weight did provide a bonus.
Lifting the three-thousand-jin lock once would absolutely not score as well as lifting the two-thousand-jin lock twenty tis. This was because for any given weight, you had to perform at least twenty repetitions for the score to even count.
At that mont, the lock lifting began. The first person to compete was none other than Sun Tao. He chose the two-thousand-jin Stone Lock and made it look sowhat easy.
"Begin!"
At the proctor’s signal, he began to move, his aura surging powerfully.
Xu Yang counted along and saw Sun Tao stop after forty lifts. His face was flushed red, and after setting down the Stone Lock, sweat instantly beaded all over his body, his arms trembling slightly.
"C-1, forty lifts! Score: C-class!"
the proctor announced. A clerk standing nearby hurriedly wrote it down.
For the lock lifting, a score was considered passing only after twenty repetitions, which earned a "lower" evaluation.
Exceeding thirty reps earned a "middle" evaluation, and forty earned an "upper."
And because "upper," "middle," and "lower" couldn’t precisely describe an examinee’s performance, the exact number of repetitions was also recorded to facilitate later scoring and selection.
Sun Tao’s cultivation was likely approaching the Late Stage of Qi Gathering Great Success. Had he attempted the three-thousand-jin Stone Lock, he certainly couldn’t have managed twenty reps, which is why he chose the two-thousand-jin iron lock.
You had to use your head in the Martial Arts Examination. If you didn’t think, you could end up with a score of zero.
"Senior Brother Sun, the Martial Scholar title is in the bag!"
As Sun Tao stepped back, Xu Yang and Zhang Yong went over to him.
"Piece of cake!"
Sun Tao said with a smile. His goal wasn’t just to beco a Martial Scholar—it was Dragon Ascension.
The lock lifting continued. The next few contestants all lifted the one-thousand-jin iron locks.
Suddenly, Xu Yang felt a pair of sharp eyes on him. He turned to look and saw Zhu Yang, a disciple from Gale Hall, making a throat-slitting gesture at him.
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