My Cultivation Starting from Archery

Since this was an unorthodox martial examination, it was naturally not possible to let Sun Xiangzong make all the decisions alone. Many people were needed to witness the process to ensure fairness while making the generals participating in the Selected Point aware that they were soldiers of the court, not soldiers of the Sun Family.

This rule had been established only about ten years ago.

Before that, Sun Xiangzong did indeed have the final say.

"Sun Dushi,"

Mr. Liu put down the tea cup in his hand, started with a smile, "There are quite a few talented young people this time, several of whom need only a little nurturing to surely become great generals in the future."

"Indeed,"

Sun Xiangzong, dressed in coarse linen, half-closed his eyes, leaning back in the Taishi Chair, "It is also the last time this old man will take disciples, I hope it brings some surprises."

"Mr. Liu,"

Mr. Hou's voice was shrill, and his hand holding the tea pot posed with his finger curled, "Who are you eyeing this time?"

"Naturally, the Young Master!"

Mr. Liu confidently said, "The Crown Prince has a Dragon Heart Tiger Bone, wields an Azure Dragon Crescent blade bestowed by His Majesty himself, and has achieved Refining Organ Perfection. He's just one step away from Hua Jin—this competition's Champion Leader is none but him! If Sun Dushi could take the Young Master as his closed-door disciple, who knows, he might even become the Dragon Master in the future!"

"Mr. Liu is perhaps too hasty."

Mr. Hou expressed a differing opinion, slowly mentioning a few names, "I think Elder Yan's grandson Yan Changqing is a good choice; just yesterday, he too broke through to Refining Organ Perfection."

"As for root bone, he's certainly destined to become a Martial Saint with his Qilin Body, and in the Capital City, many call him the Qilin Child."

"Moreover, there's Lu Shuhua, Young Sect Master of the Sky-reaching Sword Sect from Liangzhou who naturally possesses a sword heart and is destined to become a Sword Saint one day."

"There are also Wen Qiushi from Moon Splitting Mountain Villa, Wen Shaoyang, Young Sect Master of Luoyun Sect from Capital City, Fei Yuliang from You State, Jie Sishu from Yan State, all are highly competitive contenders."

"With so many outstanding talents, Mr. Liu, have you not seen them?"

"Hehe~"

Mr. Liu laughed, "Though there are many talents, only two or three are destined to achieve the Martial Saint Realm. Mr. Hou, do not forget, the final test of 'root bone' is also part of the overall assessment and carries considerable weight."

'An A-Class in the root bone test is equivalent to two A-Classes in the other assessments.'

'After all, the Champion Leader of the Selected Point will receive the best nurturing treatment from the court, involving the consumption of countless precious medicinal ingredients; naturally, we must select a general with the highest potential.'

Some physiques show amazing cultivation speed in the early stages, but once they reach the Meridian Passage or Profound Image Realm, their progress drastically slows or even becomes stagnant, making further breakthroughs impossible."

For instance, Fei Yuliang from You State with his Heavenly Gang Body will advance into the Profound Image Realm more rapidly than his peers, but he has no hope of reaching the Martial Saint Realm in his lifetime, let alone surpass it."

Such individuals are fine to nurture as generals."

But if they truly win the competition, they are not worth the full effort in nurturing."

Hence, the importance of the root bone test is very high.

Of course, the Body of Martial Saint is not found every year."

In past years, having a Heavenly Gang Body was definitely considered as top-tier root bone."

But who would have thought that this year, being the last Selected Point and Sun Xiangzong's final closed-door disciple, it would attract truly genuine talents from all over the world, raising the level of Selected Point more than twice over?

I fear that even the real martial examination would not come close to the difficulty of this Selected Point."

"Even so~"

Mr. Hou insisted, "Yan Changqing, Lu Shuhua, and Jie Sishu could also become Martial Saints."

"That's it?"

With an aged yet robust voice, Sun Xiangzong asked, "Is that all you think highly of?"

"Who else do you think could be added, Supervisor Sun?"

Stroking his beard, Governor Liu said, "Those who have achieved Refining Organ Perfection are just these few; others are good, but far from winning the championship."

"..."

Tap-tapping on the armrest of his chair, Sun Xiangzong spoke indifferently, "In my opinion, these rules need to be changed. Having a Body of Martial Saint isn't very useful. I have three disciples who were so-called 'Innate Martial Saints,' and only one became a Martial Saint; the other two might be stuck in the Profound Image Realm for many years. Apart from root bone, insight is also necessary."

"What Supervisor Sun said makes sense."

"The Supervisor is, as always, very critical."

"But these rules are perhaps not so easily changed."

"..."

Standing behind, Fang Qingyun, who had just ascended the city walls, asked, "Bu Qi, if I remember correctly, Chen is of the Nine Dragon Body, right?"

"Right, my sister saw with her own eyes when he trained the Nine Dragon Living Veins. Could there be any mistake?"

With a troubled slap to his forehead, Sun Buqi sighed, "Shanshi is going to suffer a great loss. With enough resources, the minimum level for a Nine Dragon Body is the Profound Image Realm, which is that of a General, but its limit is also Profound Image..."

"In previous years, obtaining a Class A rating with Nine Dragon Body wouldn't have been a problem, but this year there are so many with the Innate Martial Saint Body, swarming all at once to participate in Selected Point, making a Nine Dragon Body seem less valuable. Probably, like Wen Qiushi and the others, he'll end up with a Class B, which is such a drag. Fourth Senior Brother, could you think of some way to help?"

"That is a tricky issue."

Fang Qingyun instructed his subordinates, "Go get all the books about 'Martial Body' from my room."

"Eh?"

Sun Buqi seemed surprised by his senior brother's response, "Fourth Senior Brother, it seems you really want Shanshi to win too."

"It's not just me who wants him to win."

Fang Qingyun looked towards the shabbily dressed old man at the front and said, "It's him, the old man."

"My father?"

Sun Buqi was even more thrilled.

He hadn't expected his father to fancy Shanshi to such an extent.

"Ah~"

Fang Qingyun sighed deeply, "It's a pity that rules are rules. With Governor Liu and Mr. Hou here, along with officials from the three states watching, it's difficult even for my master to favor anyone."

"I'll check first. As long as there has been one Nine Dragon Body that broke through to Martial Saint over the past millennia, it can barely be considered a Class A root bone," he said. Your next chapter awaits on empire

Only he knew.

Whether Chen could win the championship in this Selected Point wasn't simply about being the last closed-door disciple, but about a situation that could influence not just the Eight Camps but potentially the entire trajectory of the world's major strategies.

This game involved eight deaths, one disablement, and one survivor.

Whether it was death, survival, or disablement depended entirely on how far this disciple from Po Yang County could go.