"Recommend someone to me?"
The strong man known as Ninth Senior Brother, who was addressed by Wan as "Master Brother," looked a bit surprised. He set aside the battle knife in his hand and pondered, "Wan, you just returned from the Haixu Star Realm?"
The Haixu Star Realm is a star realm located in the southern sea of Xia Country. It is also a level two star realm, but it is much less famous than the Lobu Sea.
Wan Qinghe had been wandering in the Haixu Star Realm for a long time.
"Yes."
"I've been back for over half a year, and I forgot to tell Ninth Senior Brother," Wan said with a smile. "I’m now back in Jiang City and I’m the master of a level five martial hall."
Ninth Senior Brother didn’t find it surprising that he wasn’t aware of Wan’s recent situation. Their master is a top martial artist in Xia Country, not only capable of flying but also considered one of the 'cornerstones' of Kunlun Martial Arts University.
Years ago, Wan was lucky to become a named disciple under him.
The strong man in the video, however, was a direct disciple.
In terms of age, Wan was actually a year older than the strong man, having entered the school a year earlier, but all named disciples had to refer to direct disciples as 'Senior Brother' according to the rules.
There was a clear distinction between named disciples and direct disciples, with a huge gap in status.
And over the years, the gap in their strength had only widened, so they hadn’t kept in touch much in the last decade.
"Wan, you should know that even though I’m the vice president of the Eight Institutes, I’m only responsible for teaching. I wasn’t leading the inspection team to Jiangbei Province this time."
"I don’t directly handle admissions; I can only give suggestions at most." The strong man carefully chose his words. "If the talent isn’t good enough, they won’t pass the final review of the school."
He instinctively thought that Wan wanted to use his connections, and he wasn’t too keen on it. Yet, he didn’t want to ruin their relationship, especially since Wan had helped him a lot when he first entered their master’s door.
"Haha, don’t worry, Ninth Senior Brother," Wan said with a smile. "I’m not trying to put you in a difficult position. On the contrary, I really want to recommend a good talent to you."
"This person I’m recommending is seventeen and a half years old, and his martial arts skills have already reached the third stage of perfection." Wan quickly explained. "Just yesterday, he broke into the top 1000 of the Blue Star Youth Ranking."
"Moreover, his spiritual power talent is extremely high; he can already be compared to level 13 or 14 martial artists." Wan finished in one breath, listing all of Li Yuan's strengths.
"Oh?" The strong man showed a hint of surprise. "From what you said, this kid does seem quite impressive."
"Wait a minute."
The strong man suddenly looked puzzled. "Wan, if he has the potential to enter Starfire University, why do you need to come to me?"
"Is he physically disabled? Missing an arm or leg?" Ninth Senior Brother asked. "Or does he have other flaws?"
"Brother, please see clearly." Wan said with a wry smile. "He hasn’t awakened his Martial Spirit."
"I see." The strong man instantly understood.
The Martial Spirit is the most important indicator of martial talent, without a doubt. This can be seen from the score distribution in the college entrance exam.
"This kid, based on what you said, could easily spend resources and use over a hundred million Blue Star Coins to become a Source Martial Artist." The strong man said, "But without a suitable high-level cultivation method, it won’t be easy for him to break through to level 25 in the future, let alone become a flying martial artist."
"It is indeed difficult." Wan agreed.
However, Wan couldn’t help but think that Ninth Senior Brother’s standards were quite high, always mentioning level 25, while he himself hadn’t reached that level yet.
But Wan understood that Ninth Senior Brother was just one step away from becoming a flying martial artist.
"With such high skills and strong spiritual power, theoretically, as long as the compatibility exceeds 80%, he should be able to barely sense the cosmic source power through a cultivation method." The strong man frowned. "But his age is approaching the limit... There’s a 99% chance that the seven high-level cultivation methods of human civilization won’t suit him."
"If he wants to achieve great things in the future, he must create a high-level cultivation method that suits himself." The strong man’s voice carried a hint of regret.
Ninth Senior Brother had high standards. He knew very well that the seven high-level cultivation methods established by humans so far were mostly developed by flying martial artists and those at the very peak, based on their experiences and repeated experiments.
Creating a high-level cultivation method, even the simplest one tailored for oneself, is extremely difficult for a Source Martial Artist.
Such talented individuals are rare in the entire human civilization.
"Yes, it’s hard." Wan understood the difficulty of creating a cultivation method. "But he really is a good seed, at least there’s a great hope for him to become a Source Martial Artist."
"Source Martial Artist?" The strong man thought for a moment. "How about this, Wan, send me his detailed information."
"I’ll mention it to Teacher Fan Jin and ask him to pay attention."
"Teacher Fan Jin? He’s one of the inspection teachers coming to Jiangbei this time?" Wan’s eyes lit up.
Fan Jin was one of Wan’s instructors back in the day.
"Yes, there are eight teachers sent for the inspection in Jiangbei, one from each of the Eight Institutes." The strong man smiled. "You know, Jiangbei Province is one of the largest recruitment areas for our Kunlun Martial Arts University."
Wan nodded involuntarily.
The five major martial arts schools in Xia Country each have about two thousand recruitment spots every year, totaling ten thousand.
In Jiangbei Province, about five hundred students are recruited, with Kunlun Martial Arts University taking over 300 spots.
However, the number of students selected for special training does not exceed 15% of the admitted students.
"As long as this kid is as you said, with good martial arts skills and spiritual power, he should have no problem getting on the special training list." The strong man didn’t complete his sentence.
"Thanks for your help, Ninth Senior Brother." Wan said.
After hanging up the call, he sighed.
"Li Yuan."
"I’ve done what I could for you." Wan thought to himself. "I hope you can seize the opportunity."
After thinking for a moment, Wan sent a message to Xu Bo.
...
During the day, around one in the afternoon.
After lunch, Li Yuan arrived outside Xu Bo's office, where the door was open.
"Teacher, you wanted to see me?" Li Yuan stood at the door.
He had just received a message from Xu Bo and rushed over immediately.
"Come in." Xu Bo was standing by the window, looking at the cherry blossoms gradually blooming along the road outside.
Every year in March and April, the cherry blossoms in Jiang City bloom, attracting people from all over the country to visit.
"You made it into the top 1000 of the Blue Star Youth Ranking, right?" Xu Bo looked at Li Yuan. "Your progress is even faster than I expected."
"Teacher, you knew?" Li Yuan was a bit surprised.
He had only attempted the promotion match a little after two in the morning.
"News from Starfire Martial Hall." Xu Bo said, then he briefly told Li Yuan about Wan contacting Kunlun Martial Arts University.
"One of the deans from Kunlun Martial Arts University?" Li Yuan held his breath.
Martial arts universities are not comparable to ordinary cultural universities.
As far as Li Yuan knew, anyone working at a normal martial arts university had to be at least a Source Martial Artist.
A dean? That’s definitely a big deal.
"I don’t know exactly who it is, but Wan really has good intentions."
"This time, the observer from Kunlun Martial Arts University will probably specifically assess you." Xu Bo instructed. "Prepare well and seize the opportunity."
"I understand, Teacher." Li Yuan said seriously.
He immediately realized that this was a rare opportunity.
Perhaps if he displayed his strength normally, he could also receive an invitation for special training from the five major schools.
But with extra attention, it would naturally be easier.
"What a pity." Xu Bo suddenly sighed.
"Teacher, what’s wrong?" Li Yuan asked, puzzled.
"I just thought, if you awaken your Martial Spirit and gain that bonus, you might have a chance to aim for Starry Sky University or Starfire University." Xu Bo looked at Li Yuan with regret.
"The three top martial schools in the world?" Li Yuan smiled; he had never dared to think about that.
The three top martial schools in the world only recruit about a thousand people each year.
Based on college entrance exam scores, only the top ten in the province have a decent chance of getting in.
Li Yuan's initial goal was just to get into the five major schools.
...
As the days passed, Li Yuan continued his routine of studying and training.
Besides attending cultural classes in the morning, he was completely absorbed in practicing fist techniques and spear techniques, hoping to break through in his spear skills.
Before he knew it, it was March 13.
In the martial arts room 4011.
"Skills are interconnected."
"Mind and body in harmony, I feel my strength flowing perfectly." Li Yuan thought to himself. "I’m even gradually discovering deeper layers of power within my body."
"My spear techniques are also continuously improving."
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Li Yuan’s long spear transformed, piercing, striking, lifting, and slashing with each movement.
"Bang!"
"Bang!" "Bang!" The huge sandbags hanging in the martial arts room, weighing over a thousand kilograms, emitted deep sounds as they were struck.
Li Yuan had purchased these training sandbags a month ago to facilitate better training.
"I’ve completely mastered the five major killing moves of the Rock Spear Technique; they are truly ingrained in my bones." Li Yuan’s eyes sparkled as he wielded the spear, moving as if it were a part of him.
"However..."
"I still can’t fully grasp the first move of the Starry Spear Technique, 'Starry Dawn.'" Li Yuan kept trying.
His spear skills were constantly improving.
But for several days, the skill level on the Divine Palace Panel still showed 99% in the third stage.
"The Divine Palace Panel hasn’t given me any reminders."
"But I can feel it." Li Yuan’s eyes brightened. "This move is becoming more and more refined. If I keep practicing like this, I’ll soon be able to master the first move completely."
Li Yuan had a hunch that once he mastered it perfectly, it would mark his entry into the fourth stage of spear skills.
He wasn’t afraid of slow progress; he was afraid of having no hope.
"Beep—beep—" A sound suddenly rang out.
"Master, your sister 'Li Qianqian' is urgently contacting you." The assistant AI voice announced.
"Urgent contact?" Li Yuan was startled and quickly put away his spear. "Connect."
Whoosh~
A holographic screen appeared, showing Li Qianqian’s small face, which was filled with anxiety, and there were even tears in her eyes.
From the background, it seemed she was standing in a corner of a corridor.
"Brother!" Li Qianqian exclaimed as soon as the call connected.
"Qianqian, what’s wrong?" Li Yuan’s voice was low. "What happened? Don’t panic, take your time."
"Lobu Sea!"
"Many people have died in the Lobu Sea Star Realm; the war there has escalated." Li Qianqian spoke nervously. "The country has already issued a level two war alert; our teacher just mentioned it in class."
"Level two war alert?" Li Yuan’s pupils shrank.
For the past six months, the war had been at a level three alert.
Moreover, he had just had a video call with his uncle two days ago, and wasn’t the war in the Lobu Sea Star Realm supposed to be ending soon?
Now the war hasn’t ended, but it has escalated?
"I just called Dad, but it showed he’s out of the service area." Li Qianqian said anxiously. "I called Mom, but she didn’t answer either."
"Brother!"
"Do you think Dad is okay?!"
(End of Chapter)