Tianfeng Alley was the site of a residence Duke Cui had purchased in his youth. He had subsequently brought his parents to live there, as it was, after all, the closest city to the Capital City.
However, as Duke Cui's station rose, he purchased an even more expensive residence in the Capital City, and this place became vacant.
In the past, it was mostly just servants who cleaned and maintained it. Over time, it was forgotten by many in the city.
It wasn't until Duke Cui retired from the court and expanded the properties around Tianfeng Alley, moving back here, that the area became lively once more.
Of course, he had acquired the surrounding residences from others at a high price, paying in real gold and silver.
On this day, the expanded Tianfeng Alley still seemed incredibly crowded. A diverse crowd of people had appeared.
There were old and young, men and women. The young were in their prime, full of vigor, while some of the old already had white hair and beards. But they all had one thing in common: they were all martial world heroes carrying weapons like sabers, spears, and swords.
This made the surrounding residents quite frightened. It was clear at a glance that these people were martial artists and common folk, and most of them were not to be trifled with.
But thinking of Duke Cui in that manor, some of the bolder residents stood on their courtyard walls, their gazes darting about as they watched.
At the same time, the government authorities had, on their own accord, dispatched several hundred soldiers to surround the area from a distance. They merely stood far away maintaining order and did not prevent the crowd from surging towards the Duke's manor.
Inside a spacious courtyard in the Duke's manor was a huge training ground. On a high platform to the north, a robust old man with a full head of white hair and a white beard sat in a large grand-tutor chair.
On either side of him stood three men and one woman, all between forty and fifty years old.
At that moment, a gaunt old man with particularly long arms and legs, standing beside the old man, leaned down and whispered to him.
"General, this subordinate still feels this approach is improper. Firstly, it is too ostentatious and might startle the snake by beating the grass. Secondly, it is highly likely that someone will take this opportunity to infiltrate."
The gaunt old man had followed the old man for decades. Even though he was no longer in the army, he was still accustomed to calling him General and referring to himself as a subordinate.
"The Emperor gave me five to ten years. Now, more than half that time has passed, but I still haven't been able to probe their true depths. At my age, the evening moon doesn't know the affairs of the morning sun. I cannot delay any longer. Moreover, His Majesty's health is declining by the day. Some matters must be resolved as soon as possible. This can be considered the last thing I do for His Majesty. You must all thoroughly investigate the backgrounds of all the first-rate masters here today, including any suspicious individuals in the crowd. Mark down anyone problematic and report to me. For those who are not a problem, we can use this opportunity to provoke the other party. He will definitely suspect that I am colluding with someone and preparing to make a move."
The old man's lips moved slightly, but he replied using the Secret Voice Transmission.
Afterward, he glanced at the three people who had just finished their test in the training ground below and said to another sixty-year-old man with graying hair on the other side.
"Song Duan, take them to the side hall to rest for now. Are there more people? If so, continue!"
"General, there are many people outside, but there aren't that many true first-rate masters. Why not let them come in batches to fight a round with us? That would be much more straightforward!"
Song Duan looked at the three people below who had only been tested on hidden weapons, internal energy, and lightness skill, feeling it was all quite boring.
Although such tests could roughly gauge a person's martial arts depth, they couldn't test their ability to react in a real battle.
Why had his General adopted such a method? It was so dull. In the past, when selecting leaders in the army, it was always a real fight with swords and spears.
"If I let you all fight, are you trying to tear down my manor? Follow the order!"
The old man's face darkened.
Song Duan immediately fell silent. After retreating a few steps helplessly, he walked quickly down to the training ground and soon disappeared from the courtyard with the three men.
Outside the Duke's manor, a crowd of three to four hundred people had gathered. Combined with the surrounding soldiers, the long alley, which had already been widened, became crowded.
However, most of the people here were just here to watch the excitement, or perhaps they thought the Duke's manor might suddenly lower its requirements. If so, they would have a chance to enter the Duke's manor.
How could there be so many martial arts masters in this world, especially first-rate masters? Those people were either sect leaders or major figures in the martial underworld, all of them exceedingly arrogant.
If not for the fact that the General himself had come from the martial world and had a resounding reputation, it was estimated that few first-rate masters would have been willing to come.
Li Yan mingled in the crowd, listening to the various accents from all corners of the country, feeling as if he were in a chaotic marketplace.
In front of the main gate of the "Duke's Manor," a gentle-looking middle-aged man in a black robe stood.
He would occasionally let out a few coughs, then raise a handkerchief to gently cover his mouth, wiping away non-existent stains from his lips.
Beside him stood four young servants in green robes with their hands hanging down. Next to them were two round, ebony gold giant rocks, about the size of millstones, standing upright on the ground.
They looked like two giant wheels pressed tightly together.
"My good heroes, who else is willing to give it a try!"
The gentle-looking middle-aged man tucked the handkerchief into his wide sleeve and looked around with a smile.
This was already the fourth time he had asked.
"My name is Bucai. I have long heard of Duke Cui's great name and have admired him from afar for a long time. I have come to give it a try, to see if I am fated to meet this peerless Transformation Realm master."
The gentle-looking middle-aged man looked towards the source of the voice and saw a short, dark, and skinny man in a purple warrior's outfit step out. He was only a little over three feet tall.
Although the purple-clad, dark-skinned man was short, his eyes shone with a bright light, and a few sparse yellow whiskers grew haphazardly under his chin.
When the gentle-looking middle-aged man saw this person, his expression tensed. From the man's gait, he could tell that he possessed profound internal energy.
When his eyes swept over the brown nine-section whip wrapped around the man's waist and glanced at his face, he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Oh? If this Xie is not mistaken, could you be the renowned 'Flying Cloud Horizontal Lock,' Hero Lian Pinghai!"
"Hehe, worthy of the 'Three-Eyed Divine Fox,' you recognized my origins at a glance. I am but a humble villager from the mountains. How could I be worthy of the title 'Hero'?"
Lian Pinghai clasped his fists and bowed to the gentle-looking middle-aged man. He also knew that although the man opposite him looked like a weak scholar, he was an absolutely ruthless character.
He had followed Duke Cui into battle everywhere and had killed who knows how many people. It was possible he had personally slaughtered over a thousand.
Even he, who was usually quite arrogant, showed a respectful attitude.
"Hehe, then let's not waste words. Brother Lian, please!"
The gentle-looking middle-aged man moved his body slightly to the side, making more space. Even though he knew the man's strength should be enough to pass this first test, he didn't say much more.
With his shrewdness, he knew to save the pleasantries for after the other party had completed the test and achieved his goal. Saying them too early could be counterproductive.
If the other party was not as powerful as the legends claimed, or if he performed poorly today, then his initial compliments would be a slap in the face.
Lian Pinghai said no more and walked step by step towards the two tightly pressed ebony gold giant rocks.
As he walked forward, the aura around his entire body began to rise, section by section, causing a glint of light to flash in the eyes of the gentle-looking middle-aged man.
'This man's reputation is not unearned. To be able to control his internal power so that it is contained and not revealed, even as his aura soars from the infusion of internal power.'
As he thought this, he couldn't help but look at some of the cracks on the hard ground, which had been caused by the explosive internal power of a few people before.
They had already lost control of the strength of their internal power, leaking a significant amount of it before they could even execute their moves. That was a sign of insufficient skill and cultivation.
In contrast, this Lian Pinghai, although his aura rose as he walked, his movements were as light as clouds and mist.
Lian Pinghai reached the ebony gold giant rocks in just over ten steps. The few young servants in green had already retreated far away from the two upright rocks.
Lian Pinghai did not act immediately. Instead, he circled the ebony gold giant rocks a few times, a slight frown on his face.
The two ebony gold giant rocks had been meticulously polished. They were shaped very much like round millstones, but there were no holes in the center, making it impossible to insert one's fingers.
After careful polishing, the edges were even smoother. This made the seam where the two rocks were pressed together extremely small, so small that not even a fingernail could be inserted.
And what he had to do was to separate these two ebony gold giant rocks completely with his bare hands to complete this stage of the test.
Lian Pinghai thought for a moment, then stood facing the edge of the ebony gold giant rocks.
Then, he placed one palm directly on top of the two rocks, aligning his palm with the hair-thin seam.
Then, he placed his other palm on the edge of one of the rocks, in a pushing motion.
As he let out a sharp exhalation, both his palms channeled power and exerted force simultaneously.
The two ebony gold giant rocks, which had been tightly pressed together, began to emit a "kaka-kaka" grinding sound after a few breaths, as Lian Pinghai's face turned slightly red.
A series of gasps immediately erupted from the surrounding crowd. Many had tried before, but only three had succeeded in getting through.
It was clear at a glance that this thing was extremely difficult to separate. The gentle-looking middle-aged man, standing not far away, narrowed his eyes.
'Trying to use clever force? This can indeed leverage some strength, but it will also take more time. If he can separate them like this, it would prove his internal power is profound and long-lasting.'
Seeing Lian Pinghai's actions, the eyes of several people below lit up, all feeling that this method should work.
These few were all martial arts masters who felt their own cultivation was comparable to Lian Pinghai's.
The method Lian Pinghai was using was not like the previous people who had mostly tried to rely on brute force to shake the two giant rocks apart. Instead, he was borrowing the rolling force of the round giant rocks.
Lian Pinghai aimed one palm at the seam between the two ebony gold giant rocks. By infusing it with internal power, he could slightly widen the gap between them.
This allowed the giant rocks to separate slightly.
Then, he placed his other palm on the edge of one of the rocks and pushed it forward from his chest. This was equivalent to him forcefully "rubbing" the two rocks apart.
This was not pulling them apart by force or shaking them apart. The force used was much smaller, but this method also had its problems. It took longer to "rub" the two giant rocks apart.
During this process, Lian Pinghai needed to have long-lasting and powerful internal power to support him.
So, even if some clever force was used, it still required powerful strength as a backup. It wasn't something you could succeed at just by thinking of the method.
Most of the people here understood Lian Pinghai's method, but few thought they had the strength to do it. Only a handful of people had a glint flash through their eyes.
As time passed bit by bit, the two ebony gold giant rocks also shifted apart bit by bit. The two rocks had already passed each other by about eighty percent.
At this moment, Lian Pinghai's forehead was dripping with sweat, his face was flushed, and both his arms were trembling constantly. It was clear that he too was at the end of his strength.