8mi Chapter 98: Anyone who causes death or injury shall bear the consequences.
Chapter 98: Anyone who causes death or injury shall bear the consequences.
Chapter 98: Anyone who causes death or injury shall bear the consequences.
Martial artists possess physical abilities far superior to those of ordinary people.
To some extent, it can rival other monsters of the same rank.
If the qualification assessment were merely a matter of determining victory or defeat, it wouldn't have come to this. Four people were unconscious, one was stabbed, and all were seriously injured. Anyone who didn't know the situation would think they had encountered a large group of demonic beasts charging at them.
To injure these martial arts hall disciples like this, one would have to use considerable force.
For some reason, a chill involuntarily rose in the hearts of the disciples who had not yet entered.
Mo Zheng frowned slightly, realizing that this assessment was not simple.
If the strength were equal, it would be understandable that these people were so badly injured. However, each level of the Tower of Ascension has a different level of difficulty. Martial artists who can pass the fifth and sixth levels are so strong that they could easily kill martial artists who have not even passed the fourth level of the Tower of Ascension. How could the current situation have occurred?
Unless, of course, those Hun Tian Sect disciples who acted as examiners did so on purpose.
"It seems this qualification exam is quite difficult."
"Why don't we back down? This isn't about hunting monsters, why should we get injured like this?"
"What's there to be afraid of? Difficulty is what makes it interesting. In martial arts training, how can you not get injured? That's what makes the Haotian Secret Realm so precious!"
The disciples started discussing it. Some were afraid, but most were eager to try. They were just injured. Who wouldn't get injured when hunting monsters?
The premise is that no one dies, and everyone can accept it.
But soon, these people's thoughts changed.
Several groups of people went in, but none of them came out unscathed. Among them were disciples who were ranked more than tenth on the True Inheritance Stele. When they reached the door, they staggered and fell to the ground, their backs covered with sword marks.
Five people at a time, and seven or eight groups went in, all looking like this. Who wouldn't be horrified?
Many of these disciples were already having second thoughts.
If even the true disciples are like this, what about the ordinary disciples?
Mo Zheng glanced at Shi Liyan, who was staring nervously at the entrance, and asked, "Junior Brother Shi, what level have you reached in your internal energy cultivation?"
"The stone's outer layer." Shi Liyan breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Senior Brother Mo, these examiners are too ruthless. What are we going to do later?"
"Don't be nervous. If you're no match for them, just jump off the ring. Didn't I just say that leaving the ring area means you've surrendered?"
Admitting defeat is better than fighting like this. Is it really necessary to be so ruthless for an assessment?
Perhaps noticing the reactions of the disciples outside, or perhaps because the teachers inside protested, the next few groups of people who went in, although also injured, were able to walk out on their own. It was clear that their injuries were not very serious, and there were even a few who were uninjured.
The disciples were now much relieved.
Time passed slowly, and after an hour, the number of disciples waiting outside had decreased by more than four hundred, and the seats had become sparse. It was almost Mo Zheng's turn.
"Four hundred and sixty-one, four hundred and sixty-two—four hundred and sixty-five!"
The disciple in charge then called out five more numbers.
Shi Liyan's number was exactly 462. Upon hearing the number, he immediately stood up and smiled at Mo Zheng, saying, "I'm going, Senior Brother Mo. I'll definitely give that examiner a good tug-of-war later, and I'll wait for you to go on stage and defeat him."
He arrived earlier than Mo Zheng, but only sat down next to him after seeing Mo Zheng.
Mo Zheng's number is 472, so theoretically they will be on the same stage, facing the same examiner.
"No need for that. Just do your best to withstand five moves. If you feel you can't win, remember to jump off the stage as soon as possible," Mo Zheng said.
Whether someone is on the fifth or sixth floor of the Tower of Ascension, it makes no difference to him now.
He has completely mastered the essence of martial arts; unless a true master of the Visceral Realm makes a move, no one can be his match.
"I understand. I didn't bring enough wood today. When I come out, I will definitely carve a small wooden figure for you in your likeness, Senior Brother."
Shi Liyan smiled at Mo Zheng, then walked into the martial arts arena.
"I'll be waiting."
Five people walked into the training ground.
A short while later, a cry of surprise suddenly rang out in the training ground, followed by hurried footsteps. A teacher rushed out, whispered a few instructions to the disciples and teachers at the door, and then hurriedly went back inside.
"What happened?"
Someone nearby asked, puzzled.
"Look, the disciples who took the exam are coming out." "Why are there only four?" "What happened inside?" ————
The disciples were discussing it amongst themselves.
All four were injured. Two appeared to have only broken bones, while the other two were clearly in much worse condition, their clothes stained with blood and struggling to breathe.
Mo Zheng immediately sensed something was wrong. Of the four people who came out, Shi Liyan was not among them. What happened to him?
Several disciples who recognized the four immediately gathered around to inquire about the situation.
However, the teacher at the door, who controlled the essence of raging fire, immediately shouted, "What are you doing? Go back now! What a mess you've made!"
The disciples who rushed out had no choice but to turn back.
He added, "There's been a situation inside, the assessment is temporarily suspended. You all stay put and wait here; don't wander off."
After saying that, he told the disciples in charge to keep an eye on the scene, and then he walked into the training ground.
However, these martial arts hall disciples are not some obedient children. They are powerful martial artists who have seen blood and fought with demonic beasts and captured thieves in their daily lives.
With a master of the Visceral Realm present, the situation was naturally stabilized. But since he wasn't there, many disciples ignored the steward disciple and rushed up to ask the disciples who had come out about the situation.
As the news spread, the scene immediately became noisy.
"Have you heard? Someone died—"
"Those examiners were ruthless; it wasn't an assessment at all."
"Every move they made was aimed at killing. That kid's head was smashed open; even the best medicine couldn't save him!"
The disciples were all terrified upon hearing this.
Injuries are one thing, they've all been injured quite a few times, but what's going on with the deaths of some disciples?
Is a qualification exam really worth causing someone's death?
"Those bastards! They actually killed someone during an assessment!"
"Isn't there any teacher to discipline them? The headmaster and the others are all top-tier experts in the Internal Organs Realm!"
"The person who died seems to be Shi Liyan."
As Mo Zheng listened to the discussion, he felt inexplicably dazed.
He stroked the small tiger wood carving in his hand, and subconsciously looked at the empty seat next to him, where some wood chips and scraps from the carving still remained.
Inside the training ground, Wei Liujiang stood in front of the number two arena, looking at the disciples on the arena and the corpses lying there, his brows furrowing deeply.
This has resulted in a death; this is indeed a troublesome matter.
"Wei Liujiang, for your petty gains, you've now caused a death. How do you plan to clean up this mess?" Wang He questioned coldly.
Although it was only an inner disciple who died, inner disciples are still members of the Martial Arts Hall, and to die needlessly at the hands of their own people—
All the teachers in the training ground looked at Wei Liujiang with such rage that they seemed ready to devour him.
"Why are you all staring at me like that? I didn't kill anyone."
Wei Liujiang said nonchalantly, "In a duel between martial artists, swords and spears have no eyes; it's normal for there to be casualties. Headmaster Feng, don't you think so?"
At this moment, he did not address Headmaster Feng as "senior brother," but rather by his official title, which implied a hint of threat.
Headmaster Feng's expression was also not very good. If the disciples of the Martial Arts Hall died at the hands of demonic beasts or in the Haotian Secret Realm, he would not have any objections.
However, he died on the qualification assessment stage, at the hands of his own people from the Hun Tian Sect.
He fell silent for a moment.
The atmosphere inside the training ground became extremely oppressive.
After a long silence, he finally said, "Although there were reasons for the fratricide, we still need to give our disciples an explanation. The disciple who served as the examiner on the second arena must be severely punished, and the sect must also provide compensation to the family of the deceased disciple."
This punishment is not severe. According to the rules of the Hun Tian Sect, if fellow disciples kill each other, the disciple who strikes will be sentenced to death by a thousand cuts and publicly executed as an example to others.
"Should Kong Yi be severely punished?"
Wei Liujiang directly refused, saying, "No, I don't agree to such a punishment. Before the assessment began, I made it clear that leaving the arena would be considered an admission of defeat, and any deaths or injuries would be the sole responsibility of the perpetrators. I also warned them to be careful."
"This disciple, even when defeated, refused to leave the arena. How can you blame Kong Yi for his death? You must know that these disciples responsible for the assessments are under immense pressure. They are tasked with selecting the most outstanding disciples for the sect to compete for opportunities in the Haotian Secret Realm. If Kong Yi is punished, who will dare to conduct rigorous assessments in the future? How can they select disciples who satisfy the sect without rigorous assessments?"
"You mean, the person died for nothing?!" Wang He said, dissatisfied.
Wei Liujiang said, "Of course, a person cannot die in vain. He hasn't graduated yet, so he naturally falls under the jurisdiction of the Liangzhou Martial Arts Academy. Whether or not to compensate, and how much to compensate, is up to your Liangzhou Martial Arts Academy to decide. But I disagree with punishing Kong Yi, as this will affect the other disciples who serve as examiners."
He paused for a moment, then patiently explained, "Kong Yi is only thirty-two years old this year. Four years ago, when he graduated from the Qingzhou Martial Arts Hall, he passed the sixth level of the Tower of Ascension. He has a good chance of reaching the Visceral Realm in the future. If he is punished for this, and his confidence is damaged, it will affect his breakthrough in the future. Then you and I will undoubtedly be sinners of the sect."
A master of the Visceral Realm is an absolute high-ranking member in any sect, even a behemoth like the Hun Tian Sect.
Only when enough experts at the Internal Organs Realm are born can a Martial Saint-level being be nurtured.
Any disciple who breaks through to the Visceral Realm is a treasure of the sect.
However, the martial arts instructors present were not satisfied with this statement. They knew very well that this was still a struggle for interests. The more rigorous the assessment, the fewer disciples Liangzhou Martial Arts Academy could pass. In addition, with the other two martial arts academies, the remaining spots would be occupied by people from aristocratic families.
Disciplining Kong Yi would mean relaxing the performance evaluation standards, which Wei Liujiang naturally disagreed with.
"A life for a life, a debt for a debt."
Wang He emphasized again, "Besides, it's not about making Kong Yi pay with his life, it's just punishment. If we don't even do that, how will the other disciples in our Martial Arts Hall view the Hun Tian Sect in the future? Aren't we going to consider them?"
"Since they've come to participate in the assessment, and since they're martial artists, they should have the courage to face death. Otherwise, why would they go to the Haotian Secret Realm?!" Wei Liujiang retorted.
Wang He was about to speak when Headmaster Feng stopped her, saying, "Alright, stop arguing. The assessment is still ongoing. You should all back down. We'll discuss whether to punish Kong Yi after this assessment is over. We'll add a teacher at the Internal Organs Realm as a referee on all the arenas to prevent any more disciples from being accidentally killed."
"So, Junior Brother Wei, do you have any objections to this arrangement?"
Looking at Feng Shanchang's dark face, Wei Liujiang knew that the other party had already made concessions. He nodded and said, "Alright, Senior Brother Feng's handling is fair. This method is good. Adding a referee to each arena can prevent accidents from happening."
Anyway, the goal of protecting Kong Yi has been achieved. As for punishing him after the assessment, by then they will have already returned to their sects. Even if the Liangzhou Martial Arts Hall wants to investigate, it will be too far away for the emperor to reach them. Such a trivial matter would only cause trouble for the two Martial Saints.
Headmaster Feng looked at all the teachers expressionlessly and instructed, "Liu Qing, Wang He, Wu Feng, Han Zeyin, and Wu Feisheng, the five of you will go to arenas number one through five to act as referees. Under no circumstances should any more disciples be killed or injured!"
These five are the five strongest teachers in the entire Liangzhou Martial Arts Hall. With them watching over them, even a duel between two Visceral Realm experts can be separated, let alone an ordinary disciple.
At the entrance of the martial arts arena, two disciples carried out a corpse. Upon seeing this, everyone fell silent and stared at the body.
It's one thing for four people to come out, but it's quite another to see the dead disciple's body with your own eyes.
Like all the other disciples of the Martial Arts Hall, Mo Zheng silently watched the corpse. Just an incense stick's time ago, the other party was still enthusiastically offering to carve a small wooden figure for him and to help him exhaust the physical strength of the examinees. After an incense stick's time, he had become a corpse.
Shi Liyan kept his eyes tightly closed, but his stiff expression still revealed a hint of fear and resentment. His skull had been smashed open by something heavy, and the bloodstains had already congealed.
The atmosphere at the scene suddenly became tense, and many disciples clenched their fists silently.
Soon, the teacher who controlled the Blazing Fire Intent came out and said solemnly, "From now on, the assessment rules will be changed. An additional teacher will be added to each arena to be responsible for safety, and two more disciples will enter each arena in advance to observe the examiners. If you feel that you are not a match for them, you can withdraw in advance."
"The assessment will continue."
These words caused an uproar among the disciples.
"Won't the examiner who committed murder be punished?"
"Did Shi Liyan die in vain?"
"With a teacher as the referee, it should be much safer."
The crowd was abuzz with discussion, some concerned about Shi Liyan's death, others about the upcoming assessment, but most disciples were clearly much more at ease.
With a master of the Internal Organs Realm acting as referee, there should be no further incidents of disciples being killed.
Nobody wants to die.
Mo Zheng didn't speak. He silently sat back down in his seat. Since the assessment continued, it would soon be his turn.
"Four hundred and sixty-six, four hundred and sixty-seven — four hundred and eighty."
-
The disciple in charge then called out fifteen numbers in one breath.
Mo Zheng stood up and strode into the training ground.