Fang Jie was naturally unaware that on Shenquan Mountain, thirty miles from the martial arts arena, several powerful figures with extraordinary cultivation were engaged in a momentous event. While the impact of this event on the world wasn't as profound as the one nearly eleven years ago, once it spread, it would undoubtedly cause a massive upheaval. Of course, Fang Jie also didn't know about the event from almost eleven years ago. In fact, the common people knew even less about it.
The reason that event was said to have had a profound impact on later generations is that without the magnificent and fearless actions of those people, the Great Sui Dynasty might not have achieved its current state of peace and prosperity. No one knows how many lives were lost for that event, and these were all highly skilled leaders in the martial arts world. Back then, they bravely marched forth for this empire called the Great Sui, their blood staining the yellow sands in a single battle. However, their names were destined not to appear in history books, nor would they be remembered.
Not to mention the common people, even many powerful figures were unaware of this event.
While the events on Shenquan Mountain cannot be compared to the events of that time, their essence is almost identical.
Fang Jie was focused intently on his match against his opponent. This was the final round of the Martial Arts Academy's assessment, and his previous performances had been nothing short of stunning. Naturally, he didn't want to become someone else's stepping stone at the last moment.
Therefore, even though he knew something big was happening on Shenquan Mountain, he would concentrate solely on completing his task. Of course, unless that event threatened his life.
After four rounds of matches, there were very few people left on the field. Besides those who had been defeated, many who felt they lacked the strength to continue also wisely withdrew from the competition. What was expected to be a long match unexpectedly came to an end in less than an hour. This allowed the important figures sitting in the stands to breathe a slight sigh of relief. While the matches were exciting, many of them had little interest in such martial arts.
Especially the few Grand Scholars who had patiently sat there.
There were now fewer than twenty people remaining on the field.
Just one more match, and the ten outstanding spots would be decided.
Fang Jie achieved top marks in all five humanities subjects, but the results for the first three martial arts exams were yet to be announced, so he wasn't entirely sure how many points he would get. However, if he could just persevere through one more round of competition, an excellent score was guaranteed. At this point, Fang Jie would not allow anyone to stop him.
The person who tried to stop him was Cui Pingzhou.
The Cui family of Boling was a first-rate family in the Sui Dynasty, but Cui Pingzhou was not the eldest grandson of the family head, so his status within the family wasn't particularly high. The most direct younger generation of the Cui family hadn't fully matured yet, which was why he had the opportunity to stand on the martial arts arena and represent the family.
Perhaps to many, even most, people, the martial arts academy's exams were merely an exam. But to the aristocratic families of the Sui Dynasty, it was nothing short of a war—a war of strength and heritage between families. It was a stage for aristocratic families to flaunt their wealth to outsiders, and a battlefield to demonstrate their power to rivals and allies.
Cui Pingzhou wasn't the most outstanding young talent in the Cui family, so he was more eager to use this opportunity to elevate his status within the family.
Therefore, he chose Fang Jie.
Fang Jie's exceptionally outstanding performance this year was only one reason for his choice; another was the fundamental reason for his decision. When he approached Fang Jie, Cui Pingzhou appeared calm and composed. It was unclear where his confidence came from, considering Fang Jie already possessed formidable strength among the examinees.
"I'm curious why I chose you?"
Cui Pingzhou asked Fang Jie. Fang Jie remained silent for a moment, then shook his head and smiled, saying, "Perhaps many people would choose me, but you were the quickest to make a decision."
Cui Pingzhou smiled and said, "You're very clever, exceptionally so."
Fang Jie didn't feign modesty. He glanced at the other examinees looking in his direction and smiled, "Perhaps many are regretting that you beat me to it."
"Because they were truly unsure, and so was I."
Cui Pingzhou said truthfully, "Although we come from different backgrounds, I genuinely admire you. I know the effort a poor student needs to put in to get to where you are today; it's probably many times harder than what I've done. Of course, I can't deny your extraordinary talent. And the reason I chose..." "It's not just because of your outstanding performance in this exam. The main reason is... I still think you're relatively weak among the remaining people."
He shrugged. "Sorry, I was a bit blunt. Although you just knocked down Xie Fuyao from Jiangnan, after thinking about it carefully, I still think he's more formidable than you. Because you gave it your all, while he certainly wouldn't have gone all out in this exam. You're a smart person, so you should know I'm not intentionally belittling you to elevate Xie Fuyao. Because he's also a smart person, knowing what kind of performance he should deliver."
Fang Jie hummed in agreement. "I know, I understand."
After he sent Xie Fuyao flying with a single punch, a professor from the Martial Arts Academy said it was somewhat thrilling. Zhou Banchuan muttered to himself, "One won perfectly, the other lost perfectly, where's the thrill?" At that moment, Zhou Banchuan had already seen through the true nature of that seemingly intense battle.
Xie Fuyao was very strong.
The reason he lost to Fang Jie was because he wanted to lose from the very beginning.
Despite his fame, Xie Fuyao was merely a scion of a declining aristocratic family. His family had fallen into decline after the founding of the Sui Dynasty, and by his father's generation, no one had even reached the rank of fourth grade or higher. For a family that had once wielded immense power and influence in the previous dynasty, this was truly a tragedy.
It was precisely for this reason that Xie Fuyao was burdened with heavy expectations.
Perhaps, in this sense, Xie Fuyao should have focused all his efforts on rising through the ranks at the Martial Arts Academy. But in reality, doing so would have been utterly foolish.
…
…
The dominant aristocratic families in the Sui Dynasty were no longer those that had been so powerful in the previous dynasty. The emerging aristocratic families of the Sui Dynasty had never ceased their suppression of the once-glorious families, determined not to allow these old families to once again have the opportunity to lord it over them.
While the emperor, in order to consolidate his rule, wouldn't openly exclude members of the former aristocratic families, he would certainly use a long period to gradually marginalize them, ultimately leading to their complete disappearance from the historical stage. Families like the Xie and Wang families of Jiangnan held a place in the court during the early years of the Sui Dynasty. However, a century later, they gradually declined into third-rate power, and in a few decades, they might completely disappear.
At this time, Xie Fuyao, carrying the hopes of a revitalized family, needed to prove himself and gain the emperor's attention, but he could never provoke the emerging aristocratic families.
Therefore, he chose Fang Jie as his opponent. Although he attacked many people at the entrance of the martial arts arena, drawing many into the fray—including Yu Xiao, son of the Left Martial Guard General Yu Manlou, Pei Chuxing of the Pei family, Cui Pingzhou, and even a professor from the martial arts academy—his target was undoubtedly Fang Jie.
He drew so many people into the fray to demonstrate his abilities. His loss to Fang Jie was also intentional. He wanted to show off, but he knew when to stop. This was a difficult balance to strike, and Xie Fuyao did it well. In this year's martial arts academy exams, if he were to surge ahead by a wide margin… Undoubtedly, he would gain the attention of Dean Zhou and even His Majesty. Equally undoubtedly, the emerging aristocratic families would also take notice.
If he were so powerful as to overwhelm everyone, how could those emerging families allow him to continue shining? Having finally suppressed the old aristocratic families, how could they allow them to see hope for a revival? If Xie Fuyao truly overwhelmed everyone, he might disappear within three years.
Therefore, Dean Zhou said his defeat was perfectly timed.
He attracted attention as a loser; what could be more perfect?
His provocation of the professor seemed rude, but in fact, it was the truest manifestation of his pride. Perhaps inciting everyone involved was part of Xie Fuyao's plan, except for Professor Mo Wanwu. Xie Fuyao challenged Mo Wanwu because his third senior brother had defeated this excellent disciple of Moxi Academy many years ago. And he didn't want to tarnish his third senior brother's reputation.
Cui Pingzhou understood this; he was certain that Xie Fuyao, who had been sent flying by Fang Jie's punch, had not displayed his full strength. He had witnessed Fang Jie's performance and, after careful consideration, concluded that Fang Jie had given it his all. In such a contest, someone who had already displayed their full strength, even if they exhibited astonishing power, was by no means the most terrifying.
Therefore, while others hesitated, Cui Pingzhou stepped forward to Fang Jie.
"I was doing the same thing as you before," Cui Pingzhou said with a smile.
"Having never faced a strong opponent, neither of us can gain an advantage in terms of stamina."
Fang Jie slowly extended his hand, uttering a gesture of invitation.
Cui Pingzhou returned the gesture, saying, "You'll be pleasantly surprised."
Fang Jie was taken aback, but before he could understand what Cui Pingzhou meant, Cui Pingzhou had already charged forward. Fang Jie spread his feet, adopting a stance like a horse stance, his fists held horizontally in front of his chest to block Cui Pingzhou's spinning kick. The instant Cui Pingzhou landed, he leaned back, delivering a powerful punch from above and diagonally towards Fang Jie's face. Fang Jie parried again, and taking advantage of this opportunity, Cui Pingzhou calmly turned to face Fang Jie, unleashing a barrage of punches faster and faster than the last.
His fist technique could be described in one word: speed.
In just a few seconds, he had already thrown at least sixty punches. So fast that you could only see the shadows of the fists, unable to distinguish which punch was the actual attack; before the afterimage of the previous punch had even disappeared, the next punch had already landed. Each punch carried the power of his cultivation. He transformed the energy of heaven and earth into fist force; the power was unimaginable.
Fang Jie remained on the defensive, and after the ninetieth punch, he began to retreat. As Cui Pingzhou's punches grew faster, Fang Jie's retreating steps became larger and larger.
It seemed that Fang Jie had no time to counterattack. He kept retreating, and although he blocked all of Cui Pingzhou's punches, at this rate, no one knew if he would be knocked down by a single punch in the next second due to a moment of carelessness. This was the transformation that cultivation brought to the human body; Cui Pingzhou's punching speed was absolutely unattainable for ordinary people.
At that moment, almost everyone watching from the platform widened their eyes. Prince Yi, Yang Yin, even let out a soft gasp, his eyes filled with astonishment.
Professor Qiu Yu, with her strangely beautiful but undeniably striking white eyes, seemed to react faster than most. A few seconds before Prince Yi's gasp, her expression subtly changed, but she quickly regained her composure.
Zhou Banchuan narrowed his eyes, watching the imposing Cui Pingzhou and the retreating Fang Jie, a slight smirk playing on his lips, seemingly pleased with whose performance.
...
...
Fang Jie retreated step by step, unaware and unable to perceive that not far behind him, the ground was gradually changing. A large clump of soil suddenly rose into the air, abruptly transforming into a straight, upright log. Undoubtedly, the clump of soil hardened as it changed shape.
This log, now formed, floated in the air, trembling slightly, pointing towards Fang Jie's back! A Talisman Master!
No one had expected that Cui Pingzhou was actually a Talisman Master with considerable skill!
The reason those who witnessed this scene were shocked wasn't because Cui Pingzhou was a Talisman Master, but because a Talisman Master could possess such formidable combat power! Talisman Masters have historically been unsuitable for close combat. They possess powerful mental control, allowing them to transform the energy of heaven and earth into weapons, making their attacks far more unpredictable than those of martial artists who transform energy into internal energy. However, precisely because Talisman Masters transform the energy of heaven and earth into external objects, getting close to an enemy is a nightmare for them!
Then, Cui Pingzhou's punching speed declared that although he was a Talisman Master, he wasn't afraid of close combat!
Fang Jie took three more steps back, less than two meters from the floating earthen stick. Cui Pingzhou's lips involuntarily twitched, and his eyes suddenly sharpened!
The earthen stick suddenly moved, slamming down hard on Fang Jie's back!