Chapter 12: Martial G.o.d
Translator: BeetleBarker Editor: Efydatia
“Time to get off!” Zhu Yan said, glancing at his watch as the carriage slowed down.
Luo Yunyang, who had still been thinking about a way to move his family to Chang’an City, nodded and followed Zhu Yan out of the carriage door.
“You devil! Let’s eat together tonight!” As the two of them were about to disembark, Gu Qianqian walked over and pinched Zhu Yan’s arm gently.
As he saw this public display of attention, all Luo Yunyang could do was look in the other direction and pretend he hadn’t noticed anything.
After walking for about 10 minutes with Zhu Yan, Luo Yunyang reached a huge silver building.
The cold building gave off a grave vibe. When Luo Yunyang’s gaze landed on the signage on it though, his expression changed.
This was the Rising Dragon Army Chang’an General Headquarters.
Each of the seven words carried a strong meaning, but when combined together, they created an indescribable might that seemed to choke Luo Yunyang.
This stifling, unbearable strength made his whole body feel suppressed.
Zhu Yan swept his eyes over the words respectfully, but when he glanced at Luo Yunyang, he found the sight a little amusing.
Back when he had first visited the Rising Dragon Army Headquarters and seen those same words, he had gone down on his knees.
However, the young man before him looked like a calf that was not afraid of tigers. These words would soon be etched into his mind, never to be forgotten.
As he looked at the words, Luo Yunyang felt the pressure build up. His legs seemed to have started trembling. He knew that the best thing to do would be to look away.
However, he sensed that those words had an unknown hidden meaning. If he understood them, he would definitely benefit immensely from them.
The most important thing right now was his Mind.
Luo Yunyang transferred all his attribute points to his Mind Attribute. As soon as he finished this adjustment, a feeling of lucid clearness emerged in his mind.
He felt extremely powerful!
This was a sort of power that exerted pressure in all directions, a power that was as boundless as the sky.
The instant that this power appeared, Luo Yunyang shut his eyes slowly. The previous stifling feeling he had felt had vanished completely.
Zhu Yan, who had been watching Luo Yunyang’s actions, was left speechless when he saw his current state.
Could this young man have understood something?
Luo Yunyang’s aura became more and more incisive. If Luo Yunyang had been a bright, energetic young man a moment ago, now he was like a long blade that had just been unsheathed.
A blade that was pointing in every direction!
Luo Yunyang exhaled slowly. He didn’t know how long it had been, but he quickly opened his eyes.
He wanted to keep a.n.a.lyzing the sign, but trying to understand what was hidden behind those seven words had consumed too much of his energy.
His mind could not keep up anymore. Luo Yunyang didn’t want to faint right after arriving at the Chang’an Headquarters.
“Do you know who wrote those seven words?” Zhu Yan glanced at Luo Yunyang, speaking one syllable at a time. “It was Luo Kai!”
“Martial G.o.d Luo Kai?”
“That’s right, Martial G.o.d Luo Kai!” Zhu Yan confirmed. “Although he wrote these words randomly, they actually contain Luo Kai’s martial spirit. It’s alright if you can only look at them for a short time. This is the first time you are seeing them. There is no need to force yourself. Let’s go, the a.s.sessment will take place inside.”
Luo Yunyang followed Zhu Yan, taking large strides as he walked through the large ice-cold doors. The large doors didn’t seem fortified. As they walked along a 250-meter long path, Luo Yunyang did not see a single other person.
Power: 3.5
Speed: 1.2
Mind: 1.7
Const.i.tution: 3.0
Ever since he had set off on this journey, his Mind Attribute had increased by 0.3 points.
In the two days before he’d left Donglu Town, Luo Yunyang had mastered the Tail-Swaying Storm Dragon Move. This move had allowed both his Power and Const.i.tution to improve noticeably.
However, his Mind Attribute had not improved in the least. He hadn’t expected that looking at the six words “Rising Dragon Army Chang’an General Headquarters” would stimulate his Mind and increase it by 0.3 points.
He had Martial G.o.d Luo Kai to thank for that!
As Luo Yunyang kept thinking about this name, his eyes shone brighter.
“Is that you, Captain Zhu? What’s up? Are you here to take someone to the a.s.sessment? Ha ha ha… He better not be a piece of trash that will waste the Rising Dragon Army’s resources!”
When he heard those sharp, unkind words, Luo Yunyang looked up and saw a group of people standing ahead of them. The majority of them were teenagers around his age.
There were only a few girls among them.
The person who had spoken was a robust young man who appeared to be in his 20s. He had an air of intense fearlessness.
Luo Yunyang, who had been paying attention to Zhu Yan all along, realized that although Zhu Yan had a cool, reserved exterior, once one got to know him, he was a really nice person to talk to.
As soon as he saw the young man, a disgusted expression appeared on Zhu Yan’s face.
“Long time no see, Xue Mingcheng. You are still as annoying as ever!” Zhu Yan said straightforwardly.
“He he… I don’t care if you find me annoying, as long as Qianqian doesn’t!” The robust young man brandished his arms around and pointed to one of them. “Come greet me. Make your big brother happy!”
There was a silver star on his arm.
The star, which was stuck on a black adhesive strap, was beautiful. When Zhu Yan saw the strap though, his expression turned slightly darker.
In the end, he stood at attention and said in a mechanical voice. “Major on site. Greetings, Major!”
“Ha ha ha… That’s loud enough, I like it!” Xue Mingcheng turned to size up Luo Yunyang and shook his head. “A little child from Donglu Town. Are you trying to find treasure in a pile of trash? Soon, I’ll let you know how inadequate the candidate you brought is!”
Then, he turned to the group of young martialists and said, “How do you think you will perform later, Xue Hu?”
“I will show this little brother that the best fate he can hope for is to return to Donglu Town and become a farmer!” a lean young man with a face full of pockmarks said loudly.
His words were emphatic and the green badge he was wearing on his chest was very eye-catching.
“Do you see this? It’s a D-rank elite badge!” Xue Mingcheng patted the young man’s shoulder with a wide smile.
“This is your badge, Luo Yunyang.” A stern-looking man in a blue military uniform handed Luo Yunyang a chest badge.
The chest badge was similar to the one Xue Mingcheng was wearing, except that this one was red.
Luo Yunyang suddenly realized that all the others seemed to be wearing badges on their chests as well.
The majority of them were wearing orange or yellow badges. Only a small minority had red or green badges.
When Zhu Yan saw Luo Yunyang’s badge, his expression changed and he said gravely, “I evaluated Luo Yunyang as a D-rank elite. Why did you give him a red badge?”
The man in the blue military uniform answered in a calm, mechanical voice, “I’m just distributing the chest badges according to my superiors’ instructions. I do not know anything else.”
“There is no need to ask him, Zhu Yan. I can give you an explanation right now.” Xue Mingcheng snickered. “How could there ever be a D-rank elite in Donglu Town? The examiners rejected your evaluation!”
Then, Xue Mingcheng added, “I stopped you from embarra.s.sing yourself by obtaining a false merit. There is no need to thank me for it.”
Zhu Yan clenched his fists tightly. Luo Yunyang was certain that if Zhu Yan could, his fists would have beaten Xue Mingcheng by now.
Eventually, Zhu Yan pulled his fists back.
Luo Yunyang had already sensed the changes in Zhu Yan’s expression, as well as the other people’s faces. He walked over to Zhu Yan’s side and said softly, “This is only temporary.”
“Just perform well and prove them all wrong!” Zhu Yan exhaled heavily before he muttered, “Your elite evaluation has already put you at a disadvantage. If you can’t astound people with your abilities, then you will only become an ordinary member of the Rising Dragon Army. You won’t be able to get in the Rising Dragon Army’s elite cla.s.s!”
If he fell one step behind, he would only fall behind even further. Luo Yunyang knew this very well.
Plus, he wanted to use this a.s.sessment as an opportunity to meet the qualifications to bring his mother and little sister to Chang’an City.
Therefore, he could not fail.
“It’s my fault!” Zhu Yun’s voice was soft. Luo Yunyang could hear some guilt and indignation in his tone.
He thought this was unfair as well. The D-rank elite evaluation that Zhu Yan had given him had been overridden based on the ridiculous reasoning that Donglu Town could not produce D-rank elite martalists.
“Boss, if my performance is too stunning, will I be treated as some sort of freak?” Luo Yunyang asked after hesitating for a while.
“You little rascal! You know how to make me feel better!” Zhu Yan smiled at Luo Yunyang. “As long as it’s not too unbelievable, everything will be fine. We need elite martialists that are better than the average person after all. Humanity needs elite martialists!”
Luo Yunyang nodded his head. Suddenly, someone said sternly, “Be quiet, everyone! I’m going to announce some important instructions. According to the Da Alliance, during this round of a.s.sessment, E-rank elite martialists and above will be given fixed positions in the army. Elite martialists below E-rank will be deployed to the unified Da Dongfang Region after the a.s.sessment!”
The announcement was brief, but Luo Yunyang was confused by it.
His acute senses told him that this order would probably be very important in the future.
“Sh*t!” Zhu Yan cursed. The gaze he shot Luo Yunyang was full of guilt. If he hadn’t recommended Luo Yunyang, he would surely have gotten into the Rising Dragon Army.
Now, there was no telling where he would end up.
An uncertain final position generally wasn’t a good sign.
“You can do it, Yunyang! Only you can decide your own fate!” Zhu Yan said solemnly.
“I know, don’t worry!” Luo Yunyang said with a nod.
“Alright, the a.s.sessment will begin now!” the man who had read the announcement said coldly.