High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Chapter 70: Chapter 70: The Idol’s Disillusionment

”But that’s exactly why you must take intelligence security seriously.”

”Every year during the Martial Arts Exam, the top academies, various powers, and your competitors will all spare no effort gathering intelligence on the top candidates.”

”Theoretically, the college entrance exam is anonymous. But at the level of the provincial top ten, the number of true masters is small and well-known, so intelligence gathering is crucial.”

Zhang Qiming said seriously.

Wang Wenhai added from the side, ”The principal is right. Your current public record is still a Level 11.6 from the joint exam.”

”All that’s left are your Battle Network records and internal school tests. While that data is relatively confidential, there’s no guarantee it won’t leak. From now on, you don’t need to participate in the sprint class’s tests, and don’t reveal anything to your classmates.”

Xu Wuyi immediately understood the key point.

He was now a dark horse who had come out of nowhere, while the other experts in the province had grown up in the spotlight, their information inevitably leaking out to some extent.

This created a situation where his enemies were in the open while he remained in the shadows, giving him a massive informational advantage.

”I understand, Principal, Teacher Wang,” Xu Wuyi answered solemnly. ”I’ll be careful. But what about my Rank Battles on the Battle Network?”

”That’s simple,” Teacher Wang said with a smile. ”You can keep playing, but just add a restriction when you matchmake: only match with opponents from outside the province.”

”Your reputation isn’t big enough to have reached other provinces. The chances of someone recognizing you, and that information making its way back here, are slim.”

Xu Wuyi nodded. He knew the Battle Network had a ”conditional matchmaking” function, but he had never used it before, so it didn’t occur to him right away.

By default, the Battle Network prioritizes matching players with geographically close opponents, but it could be set to do the opposite.

Seeing this, Zhang Qiming was satisfied. He took a thin document out of his drawer and handed it over.

”Take this file and have a look.”

”This is an estimated list of the top twenty high school students in Dongjiang Province by Life Energy Level, compiled by some organization. The data is from mid-March of this year.”

”Of course, this isn’t official data. Many of the real experts hide their strength, so just use it as a reference.”

Xu Wuyi quickly took the list and looked down. It contained names, their corresponding estimated Life Energy Levels, and a brief description of each person:

1. Chu Shanhe (Lijiang First High School) - Level 14.8

2. Yu Xuan (Lijiang First High School) - Level 14.6

...

6. Yu Peiling (Red River City United Middle School) - Level 13.9

...

On the list, Xu Wuyi only recognized two names in total: Chu Shanhe, who was at the top of the rankings, and Yu Peiling, ranked sixth.

14.8, 14.5, 14.3... Yu Peiling, 13.9!

He was surrounded by powerful rivals, but a strange expression crossed Xu Wuyi’s face.

’These geniuses in the provincial top ten certainly had high Life Energy Levels, but they weren’t as high as he had imagined.’

”Principal, Teacher Wang. I remember that at the end of last year, during the Provincial Youth Martial Arts Tournament, Chu Shanhe was already at Level 14. And Yu Peiling... didn’t they say she only went to the provincial capital for special training after she reached Level 13...”

”Four months have passed, and they’ve grown by less than one level... Is this list really reliable?”

The comparison Xu Wuyi was making was with himself and the people around him.

Putting aside an anomaly like himself, even his sprint class peers like Zeng Bonan and Hu Haobo had grown by more than one level in the less than three months since winter break.

’Could it be that these provincial geniuses were worse than the students of mere Honghe First Middle School’s sprint class?’

Zhang Qiming and Wang Wenhai glanced at each other, both seeing the helplessness in the other’s expression.

”You silly kid,” Wang Wenhai said, patting Xu Wuyi’s shoulder. ”Have you ever thought about why everyone in your sprint class has been improving by leaps and bounds this final semester?”

”Of course it’s because the school poured its resources into us,” Xu Wuyi blurted out.

’Without a sufficient supply of Life Potions, even with Minor Achievement in the Basic Body Refining Technique, he estimated he would be at Level 11 at most right now. And without the school’s funding, he never could have afforded the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace.’

Wang Wenhai nodded, then said, ”Then think about this: why did the school wait until this final semester to organize the sprint class and pour resources into you?”

Xu Wuyi scratched his head. He felt like he was starting to understand, yet at the same time, he didn’t fully get it.

”Is it because resources are limited, so you needed the time beforehand to screen for and select the best prospects?”

”That’s only one aspect.”

This time, it was Principal Zhang who spoke up. ”Screening is important, of course, but students like Zeng Bonan and the others had already distinguished themselves a year ago. There was no need for further screening.”

”The real reason is that resources aren’t a panacea. The golden growth period brought on by consuming large amounts of Life Potions only lasts for about half a year.”

”After that, the effects drop off significantly. Therefore, a six-month period is the most cost-effective plan. This is a result derived from long-term practice.”

Now, Xu Wuyi truly understood.

’Kids from poor families like him were the ones who had to worry about cost-effectiveness. The school’s money didn’t grow on trees, either; it had to be spent where it would have the most impact.’

’As for people like Chu Shanhe and Yu Peiling...’

”Is Chu Shanhe also from a wealthy family?” Xu Wuyi asked curiously. ”During the Youth Martial Arts Tournament, I read media reports that said he came from an ordinary background and made it all through his own hard work.”

Teacher Wang scoffed. ”You can listen to the media, but don’t take it seriously. When they say his background is ’ordinary,’ they’re comparing him to his rivals.”

”Chu Shanhe is from the Linjiang Chu Clan,” Principal Zhang interjected. ”It’s not a major clan, but it has produced a few Innate Martial Artists. They definitely don’t lack for money.”

”Chu Shanhe started practicing Martial Arts at fourteen, and he’s never stopped taking Life Potions. Unfortunately, his own aptitude can only be considered excellent, not top-tier.”

”Otherwise, with the connections his elders have with the Starry Sky Martial Arts Academy, he would have been signed and admitted directly long ago.”

”It’s not like now, where he’s on the special recruitment list but still has to take the college entrance exam.”

That was Principal Zhang’s assessment of Chu Shanhe. He was a savvy veteran of the education world, familiar with the entire situation in Dongjiang Province.

”There are no true geniuses in Dongjiang this year. On a national level, Chu Shanhe would have trouble even breaking into the top twenty. However...”

”Things are different now!” Principal Zhang said, gripping Xu Wuyi’s shoulders and staring at him. ”Xu Wuyi, you have to remember, compared to them, you are the real genius!”

”Reaching the Entry Level of the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace in four months means you have at least another year of rapid growth ahead of you. Your Energy Level will shoot straight for Level 20.”

”In the future, you’ll meet many geniuses, but they will be the ones calling *you* a genius!”

”If you had your breakthrough half a year earlier, I would definitely have recommended you for an interview with Star Martial to get early admission...”

Xu Wuyi was stunned by Principal Zhang’s string of words.

”Am... I a genius?”

Xu Wuyi fell silent for a moment. He knew better than anyone that he wasn’t a genius at all.

’The only reason he could learn the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace at a speed unimaginable to ordinary people was that he had already completely mastered the Basic Body Refining Technique.’

’The Enlightenment that others could only hope to encounter by chance, he experienced once every day, and it hadn’t stopped even now. That was the real reason for his progress.’

As for special recruitment... because of the previous joint exam, Xu Wuyi had some understanding of the ”Three Greats’” special recruitment policies.

The Three Greats’ special recruitment exams are held every year. If a student passes, they only need to score 90 or above on the college entrance exam—the basic score for an S-rank—to be admitted to a specific academy.

This was essentially the Three Greats showing their favor for a student, enrolling them in advance to prevent them from missing out due to an uncharacteristically poor performance on the college entrance exam.

This type of special recruitment still required taking the college entrance exam, and if one performed so poorly that they fell below 90 points, they would still lose their chance with the Three Greats.

Above this, there was a direct signing policy. It wasn’t a regular annual event but was specifically for top-tier genius students.

They would go to one of the ”Three Greats” for a private interview, and if they passed, they would be admitted directly via a contract, without even needing to take the college entrance exam.

The difference in status was obvious.

Chu Shanhe was clearly somewhere between these two tiers, which was why Principal Zhang had judged him as ”not top-tier.”

’And himself... if it weren’t a little too late now, he might have given it a try.’

A strange sense of disillusionment welled up in Xu Wuyi’s heart.

He had heard the name ”Chu Shanhe” long ago and had even once seen him as an idol, someone who inspired him not to give up and to keep practicing Martial Arts during his most aimless times.

But only now did he learn that Chu Shanhe had been ”doping” since he was fourteen. Behind those dazzlingly brilliant achievements was a series of massive investments unimaginable to ordinary people.

’Of course, being able to metabolize that kind of investment was a skill in itself.’

’There were plenty of rich kids, but there was only one number one in the province. And compared to the truly top families in the province, Chu Shanhe’s family background was clearly nothing special.’

’Perhaps in their eyes, there was no difference between Chu Shanhe and a commoner’s child—Life Potions? You call *that* doping?’

’That must be why the media portrayed his background as ”ordinary.”’

But to the current Xu Wuyi, neither Chu Shanhe nor Yu Peiling seemed so unattainable anymore.

Because just as Principal Zhang had said, he could feel that he hadn’t encountered any bottlenecks with the Hundred Refinements Melting Furnace on his way to Entry Level. His Life Energy Level was set to rise even further.

’By the time the college entrance exam arrived, it was entirely possible for him to catch up to these geniuses, or even surpass them!’