25 Chapter 22 : Assessment Begins, Round 1.

Soon the assessment began. The first round was to check the comprehensive strength of the participants. All the participants entered were given a scroll. The host of the assessment was an old man. He looked at the participants and said," This is a martial arts technique. It contains 4 parts. Your aim is to practice the first part of the technique till the point of Beginning in the minimum time. The time limit given is 2 weeks. Understood?" The old man looked over to see if anyone was having any doubts.

Zhang Feng held the scroll in his hand and opened it. "Eagle's claw...." Zhang Feng muttered the name of the technique under his breath. This technique was quite different from the Wind Tiger Claw which Zhang Feng had practised. Wind Tiger Claw had a dominating and strong momentum to it. Whereas, The Eagle's dive was swift and delicate. It was suited to be a surprise attack. It could catch the opponent off-guard and deliver a lethal blow. Zhang Feng then checked the description further. The first form was called Flying Eagle. It was a move best performed when one is down. The 2nd form was called 'Eagle dashing through the mist'. This move could be used well when there is a certain gap between the opponent and yourself. The gap shouldn't exceed more than 6 metres. The gap can be reduced drastically using the 2nd move. This can catch the opponent unprepared and land an attack successfully. The 3rd form was called 'Soaring Eagle'. This move could be employed to quickly shorten the wide gap between the opponent and yourself. The gap should be fairly large. The last move was called 'Eagle's Dive'. The last form had a different ability from the previous 3 forms. It could increase the speed and attack power by at least 3 times and could be used anywhere. However, the Qi usage was extremely large. Nearly 1/2 of the Qi stored in the Dantian would be utilized to use the last form. This move could be used to escape, sneak attack and openly attack. It depends on the situation present about how to implement it.

Zhang Feng secretly nodded after viewing the description. However, in the description, only the names of the 4 forms and their basic effects were given. Zhang Feng completely inferred the rest of the information using his imagination. He visualized himself in that situation and thought of the countermeasures he could implement to defend himself.

If any of the Elders knew about this then they would literally fight over Zhang Feng. Such comprehensive strength and imagination capabilities were extremely rare.

Each participant was given a training room to train. Zhang Feng entered the room and sat down silently. He began to comprehend the first form of the exercise.

As Zhang Feng was engrossed in practising the first form of exercise, he noticed that a stream of light flashed out of the Origin of Chaos and reached towards his sea of consciousness. Soon all his thoughts became clearer and his vision broadened. It was like there was a sword paving way for him in comprehending the Technique.

After 5 hours Zhang Feng got up and performed the first form of Eagle's Dive. "Flying Eagle!" yelled Zhang Feng in his mind and dashed ahead. Unknowingly, he had reached the point of Small Perfection in just 5 hours. Zhang Feng didn't get up to report that he had finished the required Task. He planned to comprehend the remaining Technique.

"Reporting now would be too eye-catching. I should wait till few people get up first. My objective is to join a major sect. I would have reconsidered grabbing the first spot but the reward is not really helpful to me. It's only Realm Breaking Pill of the lowest grade. Pity that I already broke through." Zhang Feng cleared his thoughts and proceeded with the comprehension of 'Eagle's Dive'.

The next day Zhang Feng broke through the point of Great Perfection of the first form. He had been so engrossed in comprehending that he forgot the time. He checked the situation outside and found that only 1 person had comprehended the first form till the Point of Beginning. "It's still a little early to go out. I will wait till a few others come out and then go to report. Zhang Feng had some curiosity about the person who had comprehended in just 1 day. He guessed that it might be Li Ruo, the daughter of the City Lord.

Zhang Feng just drank some water from his storage ring and continued to comprehend. By the next day, the effect of the stream of light which had shot from the Chaos Bead had withered away. Zhang Feng knew that the bead only helped him initially to get a faint outlook of the technique which he was comprehending. For the rest of the comprehension, Zhang Feng had to rely on himself. He didn't sweat over it much. He had enough confidence in himself. As long as he believed and had faith in himself, there was nothing he believed he couldn't do.

For the next 2 days, Zhang Feng comprehended the 2nd form. Inside the training room, there were multiple flashes of light followed by loud claps. The flashes were irregular in frequency. Sometimes they were slow and sometimes fast. Suddenly Zhang Feng stopped and closed his eyes. He breathed lightly and gathered his thoughts. " Not like this...No.. Hmmm...Yes, it must be like this!" Zhang Feng opened his eyes and his face gleamed with anticipation. He dashed forward and attacked the wall in front. There was a slight crack formed as the attack landed. Zhang Feng smiled in satisfaction and said," I didn't expect that I directly achieved Mastery at the 2nd form. Huh? My Mental Power broke through as well? Haha! This is quite a surprise." Zhang Feng's mood was visibly brightened after the results. He had stagnated at mid-Purple Mansion Realm for quite a long time. Now that he broke through to Late Purple Mansion, he was extremely happy.

He checked the outside and outside and found that there was still only 1 person who had comprehended the First Form till the Point of Beginning. "Is this Technique really so difficult?" thought Zhang Feng feeling puzzled. He then shook his head lightly and continued to practise further.

Soon a week had passed since the first round had started. Suddenly someone came out and reported the completion of the Task. People in the audience quickly looked over to see the person who came out.

"That's Li Ruo! She finally came out! I wonder how she will feel when she knows that she isn't the first one to complete the Task."

"I just hope that my Goddess won't get too disappointed!"

"However, the gap between the two is really huge. The person who came first comprehended only in 11 hours. Sigh, peerless genius!"

"Indeed, I couldn't believe that such a genius actually existed in our Greystone Prefecture. All the sects would surely fight for that person."

"That person broke all the records in the history of Greystone Prefecture. But who is the person? The Elders haven't let the person out since. We only got the news that someone passed in just 11 hours."

"I can guarantee that it isn't someone from our City. I wonder who it might be? I think that it might be an extraordinary and handsome young hero. He must have an otherworldly temperament." said the young maiden with her eyes shining.

"I really wish that too. He might come and pick me up and...." said a girl as she wildly fantasized and blushed fiercely.

Various remarks sounded as the crowd thought about the mysterious person who achieved the first position.

Li Ruo came out from her training room as she successfully comprehended the first form till the Point of Beginning. She was fairly confident that she had achieved the first position. She had enough faith in her abilities. When she came into the Reporting Room, she found that the Elders were arguing over something. Her father, the City Lord's face showed a helpless look. She spoke," Elders, I wish to report the completion of the Task."

The Elders stopped for a second and glanced at Li Ruo who had just entered the room. They then motioned their disciples to examine Li Ruo and continued to argue over some matter. Li Ruo got puzzled. She had hoped to see an enthusiastic look on the Elder's face. But there wasn't any such look. The disciples came forward with a smile and started her examination. Li Ruo performed the First Form, 'Flying Eagle'. It had been practised till the Point of Beginning. The disciples nodded and smiled towards Li Ruo warmly. "Congratulations Sister Li Ruo! You have passes the Test! You are the 2nd person to go to 2nd Round."

Li Ruo got shocked after the words of the disciple. She looked and saw that her father was giving her a complex look. She had never thought that somebody could beat her. At least not in Matterhorn City. She got curious and asked," Can brother tell me who is the first person to complete the task?"

"This....Even we don't know about that. We only know that someone practised the Eagle's Dive's first dorm till the Point of Beginning in just 11 hours."

"What? 11 hours? Are you sure?" said Li Ruo, looking dumbfounded.

"Yes, it is true. Even we felt the same." said another disciple with a small smile.

"How's this possible?" gasped Li Ruo. Her little mouth had an 'O' shaped look. Her pretty face paled with shock. She originally wanted to know the gap between her and the person. But she didn't even dare to imagine that there would be such a vast difference. She smiled bitterly and said," I am nowhere near that person. Sigh, I really wish to know that person."

The female disciple from Sun-Moon Pavilion came forward and patted Li Ruo and said," Don't get disheartened, Sister Ruo. This can be regarded as a small setback in your path of being a Powerhouse. Consider it as a test of mind and heart."

"Don't worry, Sister Xiao. This cannot dampen my confidence and faith in myself. I will work even hard now." Li Ruo said with her eyes gleaming with bright light.

The disciple called Sister Xiao smiled in satisfaction. She suddenly thought about something and muttered," I wonder how will that boy perform."

Soon 9 days had passed since the first round had started. Zhang Feng sat down after practising the 2nd form of Eagle's Dive. " I am only a little distance away from reaching Small Perfection. Let me rest for a bit," said Zhang Feng wiping his sweat.

Suddenly he remembered something. "Dammit! This is the 2nd time I forgot to check the situation outside. I hope that it's not too late." He quickly checked the situation outside and saw that the board displayed the number 6. It meant that 6 people had completed the task. Zhang Feng heaved a sigh of relief and muttered, "Thank God that it's not too late. I can get a decent ranking if I go out now."

Zhang Feng wiped his sweat and went out to report. He went into the reporting room. He spoke," Respected Elders, I wish to report that I have completed the task." Zhang Feng entered the room and saw the Elders of various factions sitting solemnly. Zhang Feng felt the tension in the atmosphere. "Did I come a bad time?" he thought. Sister Xiao's eyes showed a look of interest as she saw Zhang Feng. The elders nodded and motioned Zhang Feng to attack the puppet in front of him. Zhang Feng inhaled lightly and performed the first form of Eagle's Dive. The puppet bounced back a few feet as the attack landed. The elders nodded in satisfaction and said," The attack power is quite good. You have passed the first round."

A disciple gestured to Zhang Feng and told him to wait in the waiting room where all the participants who finished the first round were.

Zhang Feng entered the room and saw a few people sitting and cultivating. He got a few curious looks but after some time they too stopped. Zhang Feng quietly cultivated as he waited for the First Round to end.

Soon 2 weeks passed by and the waiting room now had over a hundred participants. Zhang Feng heard a voice say," Round 1 is now over. Here are the names of the participants who are qualified to enter the 2nd round. The participants should come on the stage after their names are called."

"No. 120, Meng Xin."

"No. 119, Li Daoran."

...

"No. 50, Ling Yunfeng."

...

" No. 20, Hong Liang."

.....

"No. 10, Chun Fei."

" No. 9, Huang Feng."

"No. 8, Han Wuque."

" No.7, Zhang Feng."

"No. 6, Ye Lei."

" No, 5, Lin Fan."

"No. 4, Zhong Fei."

" No.3, Chen Fang."

"No. 2, Li Ruo."

" and No. 1, Yang Zhi Ruo."

Quote : "People generally see what they look for and hear what they listen for...."