Then, right before everyone’s eyes, the man performed a Fist Technique, his fists cutting through the air with a whistling sound.
By the time he finished, quite a few people had gathered around.
"Congratulations, Brother He. You’ve finally achieved the Fourth-Time of Skin Smoothing."
"Brother He, your perception is astonishing! You’ve gained some insight after just three short days."
Lin Yan: ...
Jian Sheng: ...
Seeing the strange expressions on Lin Yan’s and Jian Sheng’s faces, He Qiaosheng chuckled. "What do you think these people are doing, sitting in front of the Saint Sealing Stone? They’re hoping to gain some Martial Arts insight from the words left behind by the Martial Saint."
"Master, are the two words left behind by this senior Martial Saint really useful?"
"Useful? Not a bit... Of course they’re useless!"
He Qiaosheng shook his head. "In the beginning, some people truly believed it. Back then, it wasn’t Skin Smoothing Martial Artists sitting here; even those in the True Gang Realm could only sit at the periphery. But after several hundred years, those Martial Arts powerhouses failed to gain any Martial Arts insight from the Saint Sealing Stone, so they gradually left. Then, the True Gang Realm powerhouses gave it a try, and only after them did it become the turn of these Skin Smoothing Martial Artists."
"Master, if it’s useless, then what about that man?"
"He was already on the verge of a breakthrough. Being under the Saint Sealing Stone gave him a psychological boost, providing the confidence he needed. Sometimes, confidence is crucial for a Martial Arts breakthrough. Hesitation and misgivings can actually lead to failure, especially in the Skin Smoothing and Blood Exchange Realms. You two should know that all too well."
Lin Yan fell silent. He didn’t have any such experience, because he had never hesitated.
Still, as Lin Yan watched the people packed in dense layers around the giant stone, he found himself agreeing with Senior He. Some sat cross-legged with their eyes closed, meditating before the stone. Some stood ramrod straight, their gazes burning into the two words, as if trying to decipher some profound mystery. Others held paper and brushes, attempting to copy the calligraphic style of the words "Strong Martial."
Most of these people were Skin Smoothing Martial Artists, and to say a Skin Smoothing Martial Artist could gain any real Martial Arts insight was a gross exaggeration. Whether or not they could break through depended entirely on if their Qi Blood was sufficient.
This so-called "gained insight" was more like a self-prescribed dose of comfort and confidence. For these Skin Smoothing Martial Artists, the Martial Saint’s two words acted as both a placebo and a stimulant, powered entirely by their own imaginations.
"Let’s go. The Sword Inquiry Stone we’re heading to is on the back mountain."
After passing through the bustling square at the front, the crowds thinned the further back they went. At the same time, the Martial Artists they encountered were progressively stronger.
By this point, Lin Yan could already sense many Blood Exchange Realm Martial Artists. Many of them were in groups just like his—an elder accompanied by a junior.
"Master, is there a Realm requirement for the Sword Inquiry Stone? Why don’t any of the Skin Smoothing Martial Artists come this way?"
"If I told you there was a place where True Gang Realm powerhouses gathered, would you go?"
He Qiaosheng shot back a question. Jian Sheng scratched his head. "Definitely not. I’m just in the Blood Exchange Realm. I’d feel incredibly out of place among a bunch of True Gang Realm powerhouses."
Jian Sheng asked no more questions. He understood his master’s point.
A Skin Smoothing Realm Martial Artist would inevitably feel out of place in an area where Blood Exchange Realm Martial Artists congregated. Besides, not all Martial Artists were good-tempered. If one were to accidentally offend someone from the Blood Exchange Realm, although fighting was forbidden on Tai Mountain, there was no guarantee that person wouldn’t be waiting for them at the foot of the mountain, or stalking them on their way down.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, the path ahead suddenly opened up.
The back of the mountain wasn’t flat and open like the front, but a sheer cliff.
To the side of the cliff, a massive, sword-shaped rock jutted out diagonally from the mountainside. It was grayish-white, stood about eighty feet tall, and its tip pointed toward the sky. The blade was over ten feet wide, yet no more than three feet thick. From a distance, it looked like a colossal sword that had flown from beyond the heavens to plunge into the very spine of Tai Mountain.
Jian Sheng stared at the giant sword, his mouth slightly agape. "Master... don’t tell me this is the Sword Inquiry Stone."
"It is." He Qiaosheng nodded. "The Sword Inquiry Stone is a Sword Array, established by a powerhouse from the Celestial Sword Sect. Inside it..."
Before He Qiaosheng could finish, a young man suddenly emerged from beneath the sword-shaped rock. His appearance immediately drew the attention of the surrounding Martial Artists, who were gathered in small groups and conversing in hushed tones. All eyes fell upon him.
The young man seemed to have anticipated this reaction. He held a sword-shaped, yellow jade token in his right hand, the corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile.
"A Yellow Token. Judging by the color, it must be Upper Rank C. That’s not bad at all."
"Congratulations, Brother Zhou! With an Upper Rank C aptitude, you’ll have no problem finding a Sect in the North Sea Lineage willing to accept you."
The young man’s companions immediately rushed forward to offer their congratulations.
"All this fuss over a mere Rank C."
Jian Sheng muttered disdainfully. Lin Yan shook his head slightly. ’Jian Sheng’s talent in the Sword Dao is so high that he’s a bit out of touch. An entire county might not even produce a single genius capable of achieving Rank C.’
Lin Yan glanced around and could tell from the others’ expressions that most of them were envious of the young man for achieving a Rank C rating.
"Master, I’m going to give it a try!"
Eager to go, Jian Sheng saw that his master didn’t object and strode toward the Sword Inquiry Stone. Another young man, who had also been about to approach the stone, took one look at Jian Sheng, another at He Qiaosheng and Lin Yan, and stopped in his tracks.
No one who managed to cultivate to the Blood Exchange Realm was a fool. A True Gang Realm powerhouse like He Qiaosheng standing there felt utterly unfathomable, someone they couldn’t afford to provoke.
"Brother Zhou, tell us what it’s like inside the Sword Inquiry Stone."
"It’s just as we heard before we came. There are three Sword Steles inside. If you can leave a mark on the first Sword Stele, you get Rank C. A mark on the second gets you Rank B, and if you can mark the third, that’s Rank A. As for the Upper, Middle, and Lower ratings, those are determined by the depth of the mark you leave."

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