My Martial Arts Level Never Drops

Chapter 327: Chapter 165: In the Spotlight

The Prefect’s opening speech instantly ignited the crowd’s fervor. After the giant drums thundered thirty-six times, the Martial Arts Examination officially began!

This first round was the preliminaries.

Dozens of Black Armored Soldiers marched out from the Inner City, finally stopping at a row of large stones in the open field. Then, they began to call out names.

"A One, come forth!"

"A Two, come forth!"

"A Three..."

They all held registers. After glancing down, each Soldier called out a name, their gazes fixed on the section for the A Courtyard.

Qin Fang stood in the front row, listening as the names were called. He let out a soft breath, a glint in his eyes.

...That’s right. Qin Fang would be among the first group to take the stage.

Qian Ruhai’s words echoed in his mind.

"The significance of the A Courtyard isn’t just about the impressive status it grants you at the Post House. More importantly... at the start of the Martial Arts Examination, the very first group to compete will be from the A Courtyard!"

"Brother Qin, do you understand the implications?"

Qin Fang only needed a moment’s thought to understand.

Going first undoubtedly meant they would be the most watched group!

The reason was simple... the start of the Martial Arts Examination was when the great figures observing would be paying their fullest attention!

By competing at this time, an exceptional performance could easily capture the attention of those great figures!

...For anyone aiming for one of the twelve seats, this was undoubtedly a massive advantage!

For instance, Qin Fang could clearly feel gazes full of interest directed at the field—from high atop the Haiman of the Inner City, and from the area beneath the gate of the Inner Sect.

Likewise, the commoners spectating nearby were all craning their necks in anticipation.

Qin Fang could hear the hearts of those next to him involuntarily pound faster... They were excited, but at the same time, they couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

...This wasn’t their first Martial Arts Examination.

But it was their last chance to win one of the twelve seats.

As their names were called one by one, they took deep breaths and stepped out from the crowd. In an instant, all eyes were on them.

"A Fifteen, come forth!"

When "A Fifteen" was called, Lin Chen took a deep breath. A trace of nervousness inevitably appeared on his cold, hard face, but he still held his head high and strode forward.

"A Sixteen, come forth!"

A flash of excitement washed over Han Wang’s prematurely mature face. He, too, took a deep breath and strode out with his head held high.

"A Seventeen..."

...

"A Nineteen, come forth!"

Qin Fang finally heard one of the Soldiers call his number. He let out a soft breath... Even he felt his heart inexplicably begin to race under the circumstances.

But with just a deep breath and a moment of Contemplation, he instantly regained his composure.

He strode forward calmly. Instantly, he felt countless gazes—curious, probing, scrutinizing—land on him from all directions...

At this moment, he was truly the center of everyone’s attention.

Qin Fang didn’t particularly enjoy the feeling, but he knew it was beyond his control.

He even found himself thinking...

’At an event as big as the Martial Arts Examination, if Master and the others are faring better than I imagined, and are just stuck in the Outer City, unable to enter the Inner City for some reason... then maybe, just maybe, they can see me right now.’

With this thought in his mind, he calmly strode toward the Black Armored Soldier who had called his number.

Atop the Haiman, numerous gazes fell upon the contestants stepping forward one by one below.

"This A One must be the Duan Family’s boy, right? Hmm, he looks quite good. His Qi Blood is abundant and his temperament is steady. It looks like the Duan Family will be taking one of the twelve seats this time."

Atop the Haiman, a group of powerful experts stood looking down, observing the scene below.

They recognized many of the contestants from the A Courtyard.

They also knew that the opening of the Martial Arts Examination was always a key part of the event.

Unless an unexpected dark horse emerged, the twelve seats would almost certainly be claimed from among these first twenty contestants.

...Then again, a dark horse is a dark horse for a reason—they rarely appear. Thus, in most cases, the twelve seats were always claimed by one of these twenty.

"Indeed, that is the Duan Family’s boy..."

"That A Two, isn’t that the Xu Family’s girl? Hah, I remember the last time I saw her, she was just a toddler..."

"Senior Brother, you were in seclusion for over a decade... How could she still be a toddler?"

"Ah... hahaha, you have a point..."

"The Tang Family’s boy looks promising as well, with such a calm and steady demeanor... He must be a descendant of Junior Brother Tang, right? I see a bit of Junior Brother Tang in him."

They commented with smiles, their demeanor completely at ease.

Some of these figures were in official robes, while others wore plain clothes... Their apparent ages varied greatly; some were elderly, while others looked middle-aged, or even youthful...

These were the great figures from the Heavenly Gang Wuji Sect, here to observe the examination.

One by one, a succession of familiar faces stepped forward.

Just then, a surprised and questioning voice suddenly cut in. "Hm?"

This sudden cry of surprise drew everyone’s attention, and they subconsciously turned to the person who had spoken.

"Junior Brother Lu, what is it?"

someone asked curiously.

They saw Junior Brother Lu, the one who had cried out, staring intently at the field below. A moment later, he let out a soft breath and said in a low voice, "Everyone, take a look at A Nineteen."

"A Nineteen?"

Though puzzled, the others all subconsciously looked over.

As one man turned his head, he muttered, "A Nineteen? I seem to recall a junior from the Shen Family holding that spot for quite some time. He..."

As he spoke, his gaze fell upon the "A Nineteen" who was now stepping forward. The next moment, he froze.

Because... it was an unfamiliar face.

It was a stranger, a young man in a white robe with a composed demeanor. Although they were over a thousand meters away, what was such a trivial distance to them? They could see the young man’s features as clear as day.

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