Poyang Lake stretches eight hundred li, following the lake down the Min River straight to the East Sea Coast.
"Boatman, are you heading to Eight Directions City?"
"Upper cabin costs ten taels of silver coins, lower cabin five taels, and the deck one tael of silver."
"How long to reach Eight Directions City?"
"Four two-hours."
"The deck will do."
"Young master, to board the ship, aside from paying, you must be a Martial Artist. If you’re not a Martial Artist, you won’t be allowed on this boat."
"Why is that?"
"Martial Artists don’t need to pay entry tax. Though we’re taking the water route, we still pass through some cities’ inner rivers. Paying entry fees can cause significant delays."
The young man listened to the captain’s words, paused for a moment, lightly tapped his right foot, and then leapt onto the deck of the ship.
"Boatman, is this okay now?"
"Yes!"
Seeing the young man leap and land steadily on the deck, the captain’s smile grew warmer than before.
"Here’s the fare."
"Alright, young master, you can sit by the rail."
The captain collected the money and, after a few exchanges, went into the cabin.
The young man didn’t go to sit by the rail. It’s just four two-hours; it’s not like he can’t stand.
For him now, it’s not that he’s reluctant to spend ten taels of silver to sit in the cabin; he just finds it unnecessary. He can enjoy the scenery along the way on the deck.
This young man is, of course, Lin Chen, who is heading to Canglan Martial Arts Academy.
He took a boat from Linhu Village down Poyang Lake. After leaving Poyang Lake, he disembarked here and subsequently changed boats several times.
The captain rarely picks up passengers across the boundary. For one, he’s unfamiliar with the waters of other places, and two, crossing boundaries can easily upset the local captains.
This is already the sixth boat he’s taken.
During this journey, he also stayed at inns in county towns along the way, reaching here uneventfully.
He only needs to travel four more two-hours to reach Eight Directions City on the East Sea Path.
Although Eight Directions City isn’t where Canglan Martial Arts Academy is located, it’s the most bustling county town for trade between East Sea Path and other routes.
Following the route arranged by his instructor, Lin Chen will not need to take any more boats after reaching Eight Directions City; he can switch to travel by land straight to Canglan City where Canglan Martial Arts Academy is located.
On deck, there aren’t many people.
To be precise, there’s only Lin Chen.
An hour later, some people came out from the cabin.
"The deck is more comfortable; staying in the cabin is too stuffy."
"I think the captain should charge ten taels for the deck and five taels for the cabin."
"What if there’s wind or rain?"
Among the three young men who emerged, Lin Chen only glanced at them briefly and then looked away. Among these three, the older one is a Viscera-Refining Martial Artist, while the other two are just in the Opening Acupoints Realm.
The Qi Blood of those in the Opening Acupoints Realm is restrained and a Refining the Viscera Realm is different, Lin Chen has this discernment.
"This young man is smart to choose to stay on the deck. Are you going to Eight Directions City to participate in the Canglan Martial Arts Academy’s examination?"
"No."
Upon hearing the inquiry, Lin Chen didn’t maintain an aloof demeanor; he shook his head and smiled.
"Senior brother, that’s nonsense. If he were going to take the Canglan Martial Arts Academy’s exam, he would have been on the upper cabin on the second floor, or directly chartered a boat."
The slightly younger boy beside him sneered, and the senior brother immediately glared at his junior brother, then turned to Lin Chen: "Don’t mind him, young man, my junior brother means no harm."
Lin Chen nodded, not taking these words to heart.
He doesn’t want to engage in any scene where he faces discrimination and then proves them wrong; they are just fellow passengers. After disembarking, they might never meet again in this lifetime.
"I’ve heard of Canglan Martial Arts Academy, but not about the examination in Eight Directions City. Even if there is an examination, shouldn’t it be held at Canglan Martial Arts Academy?"
Upon hearing Lin Chen’s words, the man laughed: "Not just anyone can enter Canglan Martial Arts Academy. Only academy disciples and those geniuses who have received a Disciple Letter can go there. Those wanting to enter Canglan Martial Arts Academy must undergo an examination in Eight Directions City. Only after passing can they go to Canglan Martial Arts Academy for a second round of reevaluation."
"Every year at this time, Eight Directions City becomes extremely lively. My brothers and I are going to see the spectacle, to witness the Martial Path talents. What’s your name, young man?"
"Surname Lin."
"Since you’re going to Eight Directions City, Lin, you should check out the spectacle. By the way, where are you from, Lin?"
"Jiangnan Dao."
Upon hearing that Lin Chen is from Jiangnan Dao, the man seemed to understand: "No wonder you don’t know about the Canglan Martial Arts Academy examination; Jiangnan Dao is too isolated."
"What isolation? Jiangnan Dao has always been at the bottom in Martial Path, and Jiangnan Dao is a place with many mountains and harsh terrains, with little contact with the outside world."
The younger junior brother interrupted again. Lin Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly, not angry but rather felt the reality his instructor mentioned about Jiangnan Dao martial artists facing discrimination when going out.
"Can’t say that. Since the Imperial Court announced the matter of the Demon Race, Jiangnan Dao, for the sake of Liang, made great sacrifices to eradicate the Demon Race. It was due to the depletion of Martial Arts Powerhouses that Jiangnan Dao’s Martial Path declined."
Lin Chen smiled, and didn’t continue the conversation.
The ship sped quickly across the lake surface, and during this time, passengers from the cabin all came out to the deck. However, passengers from the upper deck did not need to, as the upper deck was already open, merely having an additional sunshade.
More than three two-hour periods later.
Standing on the deck, Lin Chen saw a majestic city ahead.
Eight Directions City appeared into view.
"Gentlemen, there is only a quarter of an hour left until we reach Eight Directions City."
The old captain’s voice could be heard; at this moment, passengers from the cabin also came out, including many from the upper deck.
"Senior Brother Zhu, Eight Directions City is about to arrive!"
Several figures of boys and girls walked out from the upper deck, totaling six people, four men and two women. Lin Chen merely glanced over to discover that these individuals were most likely Viscera-Refining Martial Artists.
"Senior Brother Zhu is sure to enter the Canglan Martial Arts Academy this time."
The man referred to as Senior Brother Zhu had a proud expression on his face: "Thank you for the good wishes, Junior Brothers. Once the assessment is passed, we shall toast and celebrate together."
"Senior Brother Zhu surely has no problem; your elder brother is already a disciple at Canglan Martial Arts Academy. With Brother Zhu there, passing the assessment shouldn’t be difficult."
"You there, please move aside."
As the group descended from the upper deck, one person addressed Lin Chen, who was standing at the foremost position on the deck.
Lin Chen glanced at the group, just about to say something when the man he had been conversing with all along tugged at his sleeve. Lin Chen looked at the man and finally silently moved aside from the foremost position.
"Brother Lin, those qualified to take part in the assessment all have quite affluent family backgrounds. This one has an elder brother who entered Canglan Martial Arts Academy, and the family at the very least possesses Middle Grade Martial Artists. They’re not people we can afford to offend."
Seeing Lin Chen move aside, Ji Qing lowered his voice.
"Thank you, Brother Ji, for the reminder."
"While traveling, it’s better to avoid unnecessary troubles. Eight Directions City has been bustling these past few days, with many noble children about. People like us can’t afford to provoke them."
As Ji Qing saw it, Lin Chen could only afford to spend one tael of silver to stand on the deck, suggesting that his family background was ordinary. Having managed to train up to the Refining Viscera Realm had likely exhausted his family’s silver coins. To break through further would, like himself, require relying on personal effort.
The dock at Eight Directions City stretched for a thousand zhang, with merchant ships coming and going in never-ending streams.
As a city where the three rivers converged, the bustling nature of Eight Directions City could be glimpsed through the queueing merchant ships and extensive-scale docks.
The docks of Eight Directions City were very long, and among them was a dock specifically for martial artists’ boats to land.
At this very moment, several youths stood at this dock, with one dressed in blue martial attire being the center of attention.
Everyone disembarking, upon seeing the emblem on the youth’s chest, bore faces of envy.
Red Sun Blue Sea!
The emblem of Canglan Martial Arts Academy.
This was a formal student of Canglan Martial Arts Academy.
"Senior Brother Zhu, with your brother coming to Eight Directions City this time, he will surely successfully pass the academy’s assessment—two martial academy disciples in a single family, no other family aside from the Zhu Family can achieve that."
"It would have been fine in previous years, but this year..."
Zhu Xing shook his head, worry in his eyes. Through some connections, he had asked instructors about this year’s enrollment at Canglan Martial Arts Academy, which had as many as five thousand candidates. If it were merely a matter of increased candidate numbers, that would be manageable—among them, over twenty were absolutely capable of entering the academy.
It’s no exaggeration to say that as long as these twenty wish to join, the academy would willing send out an invitation letter for them.
If these individuals chose Canglan Martial Arts Academy in the end, they would have to enter by passing the standard assessment, and the academy recruits only sixty disciples annually. This time, considering the presence of such talents, they increased the number by forty, yet the difficulty remains even greater than before.
After all, besides the twenty who are sure to take up a spot, many others originally able to pass assessments from other academies have also signed up for Canglan Martial Arts Academy.
The cause of all this is because of one individual.
The model martial arts student of Liang, Lin Chen from Jiangnan Dao.
"Senior Brother Zhu, it looks like your academy has more disciples arriving."
The person beside him spoke to remind, Zhu Xing followed the position indicated by the speaker’s gaze, and upon seeing the newcomers, there was a trace of astonishment in his eyes.
Why is he here?
"Junior Brothers, pardon me for a moment."
Zhu Xing left these words and walked towards that side. The junior brothers with him were not students of Canglan Martial Arts Academy but were here in Eight Directions City to take part in the Canglan Martial Arts Academy assessment, coming from the same prefecture as him.
"Senior Brother Qu."
"You are..."
"Zhu Xing."
"Haha, Junior Brother Zhu, why have you come here?"
Qu Feng looked at Zhu Xing standing before him. Upon hearing the other state his name, he remembered such a junior brother.
An exceedingly ordinary junior brother from the academy.
"I’m here to meet my younger brother; he has also signed up to participate in this year’s academy assessment."
"Ah... then indeed, that’s quite good. If he could enter the academy, it would be quite a story."
Qu Feng nodded, although his attitude wasn’t particularly enthusiastic. Not to mention whether Zhu Xing’s brother could pass the academy assessment—even if he did, it wouldn’t be anything noteworthy.
"Senior Brother Qu, have you also come to the docks to meet someone?"
"Yes."
Zhu Xing originally wanted to ask who Senior Brother Qu was meeting, but seeing Senior Brother Qu’s attitude—and seeming not inclined to say much—he refrained from asking, knowing he’d find out shortly in any case.

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