Volume 2: Breaking into Fengdu Chapter 89: Testing Sword Stone Tablet

Only crabs walk sideways, so Eight Fingers Wang’s dream of walking sideways was nothing more than pretending to be a crab to Xu Yan.

Xu Yan didn’t want to walk sideways—he only wanted to use the authority of a Ghost King Gate guardian to suppress Yue Chengfeng.

“Brother Wang, what are the qualifications for taking the stage? Besides Ghost King Gate people, can others also take the stage?”

The two deputy hall masters on stage had already decided the victor. One was slashed off the wooden platform with a sword, blood spilling everywhere—he was probably seriously injured. After watching for a while, Xu Yan asked Eight Fingers Wang beside him.

“Non-Ghost King Gate people can also participate, as long as they’re under twenty-five years old and have strength above three-meridian innate, they can take the stage.” Eight Fingers Wang chattered like a broken record. “Win three matches in a row, and you become a guardian lord. Ah, I have no chance. Brother Yan, you’re still young—maybe you’ll have a chance to become a guardian in the future. When that time comes, you must look after me, hehe.”

While listening to Eight Fingers Wang’s explanation, Xu Yan looked toward a bluestone tablet over a person’s height on the other side of the wooden platform. The tablet was made of unknown material, covered with sword marks of varying depths.

“What’s that stone tablet for?” Xu Yan asked curiously.

“Testing Sword Stone Tablet, used to test innate realm levels. It’s our Ghost King Gate’s treasure—I heard only cultivators can forge it.”

Afraid Xu Yan wouldn’t understand, Eight Fingers Wang continued, “The testing method is simple—just channel true qi and slash down. A one-meridian innate martial artist can cut one inch deep with full force, two-meridian innate can cut two inches. You need to cut a three-inch sword mark to qualify for the stage, because only three-meridian innate masters can cut three-inch marks. Otherwise, if any random cat or dog went up to compete and got beaten to death, it wouldn’t matter—everyone would just watch for entertainment, but it would lose face for our Ghost King Gate.”

“Testing Sword Stone Tablet…”

Xu Yan slightly narrowed his eyes, staring at that bluestone tablet for a long time before withdrawing his gaze.

It was just a simple method to verify stage qualifications, nothing strange. But in Xu Yan’s eyes, this tablet had another use—it could show him exactly how many innate meridians he had broken through.

A cheer from the surroundings interrupted Xu Yan’s contemplation. Another martial artist had taken the stage to challenge that Ghost King Gate deputy hall master.

“I am Chen Xiaohei, known in the martial world as Black Blade Maniac. Today I’ll experience the skills of a Ghost King Gate hall master!”

The person taking the stage was burly and thick-set, wielding an even larger blade—a crescent moon blade over a zhang long that whistled through the air when swung. After his challenge declaration, he immediately engaged in battle with the Ghost King Gate hall master who had won two consecutive matches.

The two exchanged moves and techniques, first probing each other before beginning real combat, with dim light gradually rising from their weapons.

That was innate true qi!

When innate martial artists deployed innate true qi, it meant they were fighting desperately. The halos on both their weapons had similar brightness, suggesting comparable strength. When blade and sword clashed, sparks flew. Each move appeared methodical yet had unexpected elements.

This was martial technique. Xu Yan watched with increasing attention.

He only knew Flying Stone, not blade or sword work. What he could bring out was only that Seven Star Sword Manual he had never practiced carefully. However, Xu Yan learned quickly. After watching for a long time, he discovered a characteristic of martial artists’ deadly combat—the transition between offensive and defensive moves.

No matter who the opponent was, as long as one could grasp the precise moment of transition between offense and defense, victory was possible. Because those who lost all had flaws appear during the transition between offense and defense, giving their opponents opportunities.

Martial arts and sword techniques—moves were secondary. What truly decided victory or defeat was both sides’ perception and agility, or rather, combat experience honed through fierce battles.

Anyone could kill—just slash down with a blade. But facing strong enemies, victory couldn’t be achieved with a single blade or sword stroke. What was needed then was not only strength but also experience. Combat experience was precisely Xu Yan’s weakest link.

Lacking experience wasn’t difficult—Xu Yan could learn and apply immediately. With his clever mind, remembering every move and technique of the two fighters on stage wasn’t hard. As long as he remembered the opponent’s moves and weaknesses, victory would become much simpler.

Ant colonies have rulers called queens, who sit in their kingdoms directing affairs. Under the queen’s command, tiny ants toil endlessly. Recording the paths of ants’ movements had become one of the little Taoist’s great hobbies in childhood.

Young Xu Yan greatly enjoyed memorizing ants’ crawling routes. When the old Taoist discovered this and found it interesting, he had the little Taoist draw out some ant crawling trajectories. So under Xu Daoyuan’s astonished gaze, little Xu Yan used stones as brushes and spent half a day drawing over three thousand crooked traces near the ant hole.

Those were the ant crawling routes he had recorded that morning—not one ant, but the crawling routes of over three thousand ants!

From then on, the old Taoist finally learned a truth—his little disciple possessed memory far beyond ordinary people. This ability wasn’t just photographic memory, but reached an inconceivable level.

Photographic memory might already seem miraculous to ordinary people. The ability to read ten lines at a glance was always talked about with admiration and envy. If he truly wanted to memorize something, Xu Yan could read a hundred lines at a glance and still have perfect recall!

This unknown ability was fully deployed by Xu Yan in this moment of crisis. He not only memorized the moves of both fighters on stage but simultaneously analyzed their weaknesses. After half an hour, Xu Yan’s right hand unconsciously slashed downward. On the wooden platform, that Ghost King Gate hall master moved like Xu Yan’s puppet—seizing the right moment to slash horizontally at his opponent’s lower body with his sword, forcing the Black Blade Maniac to retreat repeatedly until he lost his footing and fell directly off the platform.

Just as expected…

Having seen through the two fighters’ combat, Xu Yan gently exhaled. He rarely used his brain because thinking was tiring, but today was unavoidable.

The Ghost King Gate deputy hall master had won three consecutive matches, becoming the second victor of the day. With only two guardian positions remaining, it was nearly evening with the red sun beginning to set. Xu Yan looked up at the sky, patted the steel blade on his back, pushed through the crowd, and headed straight for the Testing Sword Stone Tablet.

“Brother Yan, Brother Yan, where are you going?”

Eight Fingers Wang was completely puzzled behind him, watching Xu Yan walk toward the stone tablet in confusion, thinking this fellow might have gotten excited watching the arena and wanted to try competing himself.

Beside the Testing Sword Stone Tablet sat Grand Guardian Zhuo Shaoyu, sipping tea while watching the stage combat. As Grand Guardian, his status was extraordinary. If not for today being the great day of guardian selection, Zhuo Shaoyu wouldn’t have personally presided.

The stage was currently empty, waiting for the next martial artist. Zhuo Shaoyu suddenly saw a young man walking over. He looked somewhat familiar but couldn’t remember where he’d seen him.

No wonder Zhuo Shaoyu couldn’t recognize him. In the eastern suburbs bamboo forest of Horse King Town, Xu Yan had deliberately smeared blood and mud on his face. He wasn’t some important figure—it would be strange if Zhuo Shaoyu remembered him.

Approaching the Testing Sword Stone Tablet, Xu Yan showed his white teeth in a foolish grin, raised his hand to draw his blade, and slashed directly at the stone tablet!