As Li Yan moved forward with the line, he pondered, 'Judging by the way Marshal Hong on the platform is watching us, what's inside that tent must be more than just simple registration. Could there be some other kind of evaluation? But the tent doesn't look very big. It seems a bit small for practicing martial arts. Could it be that the army also tests literary skills?'
Head down, lost in thought as he walked, Li Yan's view suddenly brightened. The last person in front of him had entered the tent, leaving the space ahead of him wide open. By the time he looked up, the person had already gone inside and the door flap had fallen, obscuring his view of the interior. Li Yan stopped thinking about it and just waited quietly where he stood.
After a few dozen breaths, someone lifted the flap and walked out. It was the person who had just gone in. He was currently rolling down the sleeve of one arm, his face filled with confusion, a picture of complete bewilderment. At the urging of a soldier by the door, he walked to the end of the middle line in the center of the drill grounds. At that moment, one of the soldiers pointed at Li Yan and said, "You, in." Hearing this, Li Yan complied and walked towards the tent entrance.
Lifting the flap and entering the tent, Li Yan was met with a sudden dimness. He blinked a few times to let his eyes adjust to the light. When he opened them again, he saw that the tent contained only a low table. Behind the table, a person was sitting cross-legged on a small rug. The man appeared to be around forty years old, wearing a scholar's cap and a loose black robe. The hem of his robe was spread out on the ground, covering the lower half of his body. Even sitting down, he seemed only slightly shorter than Li Yan, suggesting he was quite tall.
His face was thin and long, with a grayish-blue complexion. A long wisp of a beard flowed down his chest. His hands were tucked into his sleeves and crossed over his abdomen, partially hidden by the low table. His narrow eyes would occasionally flash with a sharp glint as they opened and closed. He was currently sizing up Li Yan. Seeing Li Yan looking back at him, he extended a long, fair finger from his sleeve and pointed to a similar small rug in front of the table. "Sit," he said, and then no more.
Li Yan walked to the table as instructed. Only then did he notice an unrolled cloth pouch on the tabletop. Rows of small pockets were sewn vertically onto the surface of the pouch, their openings facing up. Each pocket held a varying number of thin needles, the ends sticking out of the pockets gleaming with a silver light.
Looking at the rows of cold, gleaming silver needles on the table, Li Yan's heart began to pound. 'There's no brush, ink, paper, or inkstone here. How are they going to register me? What is this thing for?' His mind was in a turmoil, unsure of what to do.
The man in the black robe saw Li Yan staring at the silver needles, hesitating to sit down. He spoke again. "Relax. I am just going to perform a meridian test on you. If your meridians are excellent, a great fortune may be waiting for you."
After hearing this, Li Yan thought for a moment and then sat down cross-legged, just like the man behind the table. He was already here. He had to go through this step no matter what, otherwise he wouldn't be able to proceed to the next stage of assessment on the drill grounds. There was no point in overthinking it.
The man in black saw how readily Li Yan complied and smiled faintly. "Expose the meridians on your left wrist and place it on the table. It should only take a few breaths." Li Yan stopped hesitating. He used his right hand to roll up the coarse cloth sleeve on his left arm a few times, then placed his hand, palm up, on the table next to the cloth pouch.
Seeing Li Yan follow his instructions, the man in black extended his right hand. With two long, fair fingers, he plucked a silver needle from one of the pockets with lightning speed. Before Li Yan could even see clearly, he felt a numbness in his wrist. When he looked closely, the silver needle was already mostly embedded in his meridian. After doing this, the man in black retracted his hand into his sleeve, once again crossing his arms over his abdomen. He then scanned Li Yan's face.
After the initial numbness in his wrist, Li Yan felt nothing else unusual. But just as he was feeling puzzled, only two breaths later, a wave of cold energy shot up from his abdomen to his head. His mind felt instantly refreshed, and a pleasant sensation spread throughout his body.
The man in black had been squinting his eyes. Seeing Li Yan's untroubled expression, he felt a pang of disappointment. He had seen this situation countless times over the years, yet every time he inserted the needle, a sliver of hope always remained in his heart. In all those years, only the incident at the beginning of last year had made him ecstatic, but the final result had left him furious.
Just as he was about to remove the silver needle from Li Yan's pulse point, he saw a layer of black energy slowly emerge on Li Yan's face. The man in black froze for a moment, then his heart leaped with joy, though his face remained calm. His hands shot out like the wind, fluttering like butterflies dancing through flowers. Four more silver needles sank into Li Yan's pulse point. This time, only a breath later, Li Yan felt four new waves of heat, dryness, weight, and warmth rise from his abdomen and shoot straight to the crown of his head.
He now felt as if he were being fried in a boiling pot of oil. His head felt like it had been struck by a heavy blow. He couldn't help but let out a muffled groan, his face contorting in pain under the shroud of the different energies.
After inserting the four needles, the man in black stared intently at Li Yan's face, as if afraid of missing something. When a second streak of green energy rose on Li Yan's face, he grew tense. Then, a third streak of red energy surged up, and he clenched his fists tighter. But as yellow and white energies followed, he loosened his clenched fists in disappointment, his expression becoming uncertain as he frowned in thought.
Li Yan's body was in agony. The different energies in his abdomen were crashing around, causing him immense pain. He had collapsed from his cross-legged position and was now lying on his side, his body curled up like a shrimp. Fortunately, he hadn't touched the five silver needles in his wrist, otherwise, who knows what would have happened.
If anyone could see his face clearly at this moment, they would discover five different colors of energy alternating across it. The black energy was the most prominent, followed by green, red, yellow, and white. By the time it reached white, the energy was quite faint. The colors always flashed in the same sequence: black, green, red, yellow, white. The pain grew more and more unbearable, and Li Yan let out several low, heavy groans.
These groans startled the man in black from his deep thoughts. He looked at Li Yan, hesitated for a moment, and then, as if having made a decision, he rose to his feet. Without any perceptible movement, he floated to the front of the table and stood before Li Yan, silent and ghostly. With a wave of his right sleeve, five flashes of cold light shot from Li Yan's left hand. With a few soft 'thwacks', a neat row of inch-long silver needles was embedded in the tabletop, their ends still vibrating. Although the table was not made of the finest wood, military equipment prioritized quality over appearance. This table was made of solid jujube wood and was exceptionally sturdy. Such a feat was impossible for anyone less than a first-rate or peerless master in the martial world.
The man in black looked at the needles on the table, then at Li Yan's rapidly recovering complexion, and couldn't help but sigh inwardly. 'Alas, my own level is still insufficient. I dare not enter those places and can only use this most inferior and primitive method for testing. The consequence is that it brings considerable pain to the person being tested. Fortunately, it causes no lasting harm to the body or mind, just temporary agony. If only I had a 'Spirit-Testing Stone' or a 'Spirit-Testing Pillar'...' At this thought, he sighed again. These were things he currently had no access to. But perhaps, after this time, he could... At this thought, his heart burned with fervor. But looking at Li Yan on the ground, he muttered to himself, "The last one actually had a Profound Spirit Root, an aptitude even better than my own. But the greatest pity was that he was illiterate and could only grasp the most basic cultivation manuals with a vague understanding. He completely wasted the heaven-defying aptitude the gods gave him, only to meet such an end."
Thinking of this, he sighed again. 'Alas, although this person has a Miscellaneous Spirit Root, it's still better than nothing. There isn't much time left. The fact that these two appeared within two years of each other is just a coincidence. In the past few years, I've already tested nearly a hundred thousand people. Coming up with this method to test existing soldiers and new recruits in the army, after so many years, there have only been these two. This is already the greatest fortune I could ask for. And I probably only have one or two years left. Even if I get incredibly lucky and find another suitable person in the future, there won't be enough time.'
'A Miscellaneous Spirit Root, if used well, is still worth a shot.' Thinking this, he let out a long breath and looked at Li Yan, who was slowly returning to normal on the ground.
Li Yan felt as if he had just endured a brutal torture, but a torture inflicted upon the depths of his soul. The pain was so intense he could barely control himself, yet he couldn't even scream, only able to let out low, heavy groans. After what felt like an eternity of unbearable time, Li Yan felt a final numbness in the meridians of his hand, and the pain receded like a tide, vanishing without a trace, as if it had never happened. The ordeal felt like nothing more than a hallucination.
Li Yan pushed himself up from the ground, using the edge of the table for support. He looked at the row of sinisterly gleaming silver needles on the table, then fearfully at the man in black before him, who seemed like a malevolent ghost standing there. He didn't believe for a second that it had just been a hallucination. The pain had been real, piercing his very organs and bones. Otherwise, how could he explain the row of needles on the table? The man in black saw Li Yan's fearful expression and gave him a gentle smile. "Don't be afraid. My surname is Ji, and my name is Wenhe. People call me Strategist Ji or Lord Ji."
Li Yan was stunned. 'He is the famous Strategist Ji, who governs Green Mountain Pass alongside Marshal Hong? He's also a renowned figure. Why would such a great man use such methods on me just now?'
Seeing Li Yan's silence, Strategist Ji smiled and continued, "Although you suffered a great deal just now, it was worth it. In all these years, countless people have not been able to obtain such a fine opportunity. I was originally a man of the martial world. A few years ago, I suffered an incurable injury and came to the army to find something to do while searching for a fated person. I have no children and have always wanted to find a legacy disciple to whom I can impart all my knowledge. Otherwise, if my school's lineage were to be severed upon my death, I would not be able to face the ancestors of my sect in the afterlife. The method I just used on you is my sect's way of selecting disciples. The martial arts of my sect require a strong constitution, wide meridians, and full internal organs to even begin. Otherwise, even if one learns them, it would be useless, and they might even die from the reverse flow of qi through their meridians. So, are you willing to enter my tutelage and inherit all that I have learned?" By the end of his speech, Strategist Ji's voice had become serious, and he stared at Li Yan without blinking.
Li Yan thought, 'This initiation method is so vicious, causing such excruciating pain. The cultivation techniques must be difficult to learn as well. And how can I believe what he's saying?' He was just about to think of a way to refuse when he suddenly remembered the words of the squad captain, Liu Chengyong, whom he had met at the city gate earlier that day.
"The scoundrels from the State of Meng failed to break through even after three major invasions, and even had their Vice Marshal's head taken by Strategist Ji..." That's what he had said. If that was true, then this strategist was an enemy to ten thousand men. According to his own words, he had joined the army after being injured. What kind of world-shaking hero must he have been before his injury?
He looked again at the row of silver needles on the table. After the pain had subsided, his entire body felt weak and limp. When he stood up, he had used the table for support. Although he wasn't particularly heavy, if the table had been made of ordinary wood, the pressure of most of his body weight would have made some sound. But this small table hadn't made a single sound, showing how sturdy it was.
He looked at the row of silver needles again, and his heart filled with even more shock. He had seen silver needles before; the village's rustic doctor had them. They could be bent easily with just a flick of a finger. How could these needles be inserted into such a sturdy wooden table? He was no fool.
Youths always worship heroes. Every boy has a heroic dream, fantasizing about saving the world and rescuing their loved ones from peril. Li Yan was no exception. Although he was more meticulous in his thinking compared to others his age, he was still a youth at heart. In just a few moments, his thoughts had shifted dramatically.
At this thought, an impulse seized Li Yan. He had already forgotten the death-like pain from moments before, feeling only that by following the man before him, he could learn the heaven-and-earth-shaking abilities he had dreamed of. He raised his head, looked at Strategist Ji, and said solemnly, "Since my Lord has shown me such favor, how could this boy dare to refuse?"
Hearing this, Strategist Ji showed no surprise on his face. It was what he had expected. He would have been more surprised if Li Yan had refused. Strategist Ji asked him, "What is your name?"
"This boy is Li Yan, from the Great Green Mountains," Li Yan replied.
"Can you read and write?" Strategist Ji asked again.
"This boy has studied in a private school for several years. Although I do not have the talent to pass the imperial examinations, I am well-read in the classics," Li Yan replied. This was no boast. When he was studying in the village's private school, the old scholar had valued him the most among all the students, hoping he could pursue a title. But given Li Yan's family's financial situation, continuing his studies was not feasible. This was a matter of great regret for the old scholar. Even so, the old scholar had allowed Li Yan to read all of his nearly one hundred books, and Li Yan had diligently sought clarification on anything he didn't understand.
"Have you ever learned any martial arts or internal energy techniques?" Hearing that he was well-read, a sliver of hope rose in Strategist Ji's heart.
"This boy has only learned some crude fighting techniques in the village. I have never learned any profound martial arts, let alone come into contact with any internal energy techniques," Li Yan continued to reply.
Hearing this, Strategist Ji smiled faintly. "That's for the best. Your body's meridians are very suitable for my sect's techniques. I will tell you the rules of our sect when we return. As for your family background and identity, I will have someone investigate. I hope you have not concealed anything. You are also the last applicant for today. In that case, come with me." With a flick of his large sleeve, the silver needles and the cloth pouch on the table vanished.
Li Yan was even more amazed by this. He bowed and replied, "Yes, my Lord." Then, a hesitant look appeared on his face, and he didn't immediately follow.