Chapter 916 – Song Yang

As they conversed, the second fighter was already fighting the Purple Lightning Giant.

This fight was not as efficient as the first round. Fighter Number Two was using a longsword. He was a Sword Warrior and had comprehended the first stage of the Sword Path. The sword moved as quickly as lightning, and he surpassed the giant in terms of speed. From the beginning, they could all hear the clanging of the sword and steel colliding.

Unfortunately, Fighter Number Two’s attacks could not break through the giant’s defenses.

The runes on the giant’s body flickered. It sucked in copious amounts of Royal Qi, then released the Qi in the form of an attack. Then it smashed its fists together and unleashed a powerful electric current aimed at Fighter Number Two.

“Domain!” Fighter Number Two clenched his teeth and used his domain to suppress the Purple Lightning Giant!

This was his trump card.

Boom, boom!

Unfortunately, the Seventh Heavenly Martial Stage cultivator’s domain was not strong enough to defeat the Purple Lightning Giant. Royal Qi accumulated quickly in its body, then it slammed its palm into the ground, causing the fighter to get blasted into the air!

“No!” Fighter Number Two shouted in despair.

But the Purple Lightning Giant was a mech giant with no feelings. It threw a punch, and Fighter Number Two turned into a pulp and fell onto the ground.

Slam!

When they heard the fighter crash onto the ground, everyone’s hearts sank to rock bottom.

The Underworld Army’s try-outs were brutal.

“Next.” Thousand-Sergeant Qi Bing’s cold gaze swept across the crowd. She did not show any pity for Fighter Number Two’s death.

Fighter Number Three quickly leaped into the pit.

After the previous fighter’s experience, he decided to pick a beast as his opponent. After fifteen minutes of battle, he killed it.

However, despite killing the beast, his performance was not impressive. Therefore, none of the four examiners let him pass.

The cultivator left the pit dejectedly.

More duels ensued. Most cultivators spent less than fifteen minutes on average to defeat their opponents. Every two hours, only about ten or sometimes twenty people went in. Most of the time, they only received approval from one or two judges. Very few people had three judges allowing them to pass, and so far, no one received a pass from all four. This showed that all the examiners differed in opinions, and it was very difficult to seek approval from all four of them.

Long Chen was numbered in the three hundreds, so it would only be his turn after a day. Based on this speed, the trials would likely last for ten days. Long Chen realized that the event took a very long time despite being held every month.

As a result of this process, only the best elites were picked to enter the army.

Everyone present was an expert, so ten days was a short time for them.

On the second morning, it was almost time for Long Chen’s turn. He had witnessed many fights in the past day and learned a lot from them. He used what he learned to fill his weaknesses, and he even tried activating the True Martial Soul while watching them. To his pleasant surprise, even watching other people fight was a great help to his comprehension of the techniques. His Martial Soul strengthened slowly, and he had a feeling that he would progress to the next cultivation level, the Fifth Heavenly Martial Stage, very soon. He was approaching his goal.

Although Long Chen and Song Yuchun were one after another in the queue, due to the ten-plus registration booths, there were ten-plus numbers between them. It was Song Yuchun’s turn to enter the pit.

A hint of a smile finally crept onto Song Yang’s face when he saw his grandson.

This was a rare sight for the icy man. He had approved fewer than three people during this whole event, and participants feared his strict requirements.

Song Yuchun cleared his throat. Under the gazes of the crowd, he smoothed his hair smugly and said to the four examiners, “Good day to you, examiners. I am Fighter Number 371. My name is Song Yuchun.”

It was not appropriate for him to speak of his relationship with Song Yang in public. If he did, it would be difficult for the examiners to give him an easy pass.

So far, only seven people received three passes and above.

“My opponent of choice is the mech!” Song Yuchun said confidently after looking around.

Under the Underworld Soldiers’ command, a stallion-type mech emerged. This mech looked like a horse and a goat at the same time. It had rings of wool growing around its body, a glazed look in its eyes, and a long neck. However, it radiated an intimidating aura. Although it looked dumb, it had decent combat ability, despite looking several times worse than the Purple Lightning Giant. Yellow runes flickered on its body.

“Oh, it’s a llama.”

The crowd laughed.

It was a mech llama that looked like it was made for a prank. Despite its resemblance to a certain type of beast, it could not be underestimated because this llama was able to inflict great damage.

Song Yuchun was about to fight the mech llama.

As he listened to the laughter above, Song Yuchun sulked. It had been an unlucky day for him. However, he did not know that his grandfather had arranged this llama for him. It was ugly, but it was the weakest among all the beasts and mechs.

“Silence,” Thousand-Sergeant Song Yang said coldly.

His voice contained a power that could make souls tremble. Everyone felt a headache and was forced to stop laughing.

In the pit below, Song Yuchun’s embarrassment turned into rage when he started to fight the llama intensely. The mech looked fragile, but it was actually as tough as the giant from before. Every time it charged at its opponent, it brought with it an explosive power. That was why it was one of the mechs chosen for the Underworld Soldiers’ trials.

Song Yuchun was still someone with an older relative at the Divine Martial Realm, so the techniques he cultivated were extraordinary. He unleashed a Divine-tier combat technique and shattered the mech. However, he emerged from the duel clumsily too. After tumbling on the ground several times, he finally stopped.

There were many participants with Divine-tier combat techniques like him, approximately twenty out of the past three hundred people. However, very few of them could use them as perfectly as Jiang Jinglong did. Song Yuchun was just barely able to use the technique. It would require a long time of study in order to master it.

Long Chen spotted many issues from his fight, for example, the lack of combat experience and dramatic, unnecessary movements.

In summary, if someone else had performed like this, they would only receive two passes at most.

“Dear Seniors, please provide your feedback!”

After straightening his clothing, Song Yuchun swished his hair dramatically, then looked at the four examiners. He focused his eyes on his grandfather with a begging look. He knew that he was slightly lacking compared to the other people who had passed. However, he had a grandfather among the examiners, so how could that be an issue?

Above, Song Yang gave a resigned smile.

In a place where people could not see, Song Yang gently touched Jiang Shi next to him. Jiang Shi understood and touched the next examiner, who then signalled to Qi Bing. Silently, all of them now knew that this was Song Yang’s grandson.

They were all Thousand-Sergeants, so they still had to do favors like this.

Qi Bing said directly, “Precise and fierce attacks. Your usage of the Divine-tier technique was not bad either. I’ll let you pass. All the best to you!”

“Thank you, Senior Qi Bing!” This was as Song Yuchun expected.

One pass was nothing. However, the second examiner also let him pass. All eyes were now on the third examiner, Jiang Shi, who was now under a lot of pressure. However, only three passes were necessary. In order to ease the crowd’s anger, he waved and said, “To me, he’s still lacking in skill. It’s a no for me.”

The final decision-maker was Song Yang.

Song Yang had a reputation for being strict. He had only passed around ten cultivators so far, and most of them had already become reserve soldiers for the army.

All eyes were on Song Yang.

“This is a talent with potential. Pass.” He said something that the crowd was not satisfied with.

“What? Did he pass with just that level of skill? Do they think we’re blind?”

“I don’t accept this.”

The crowd chattered noisily, especially those who performed well but were still eliminated.

“Everyone, keep your mouths shut. Anyone who questions our decisions will be killed!” huffed Qi Bing coldly, her gaze sweeping across the crowd.

Everyone swallowed their dissatisfaction.

Long Chen had already expected this result. To a Thousand-Sergeant, arranging for a relative to enter the Underworld Army was not considered a major scandal, so the higher-ups would not care. Song Yuchun was not too weak either.

Song Yuchun walked out of the pit arrogantly and took a seat not far behind Song Yang. He called a soldier over and said, “Later, there will be a teenager with a gray line between his brows. Tell my grandfather that there’s some conflict between this person and myself. Don’t let him pass.”

The soldier hesitated, but he nodded and relayed the message to Song Yang.

“That little brat.” Song Yang smiled resignedly.

He had not seen his grandson for many years. As a grandfather, he could not bear to refuse his grandson’s request.