Your skills are excellent, and now I have them too.

Chapter 53 Schools of Thought

Xin Li did not experience the last great expedition because it was decades ago, but he had a wealth of combat experience.

The Qingming Guard may be mobilized in cases of barbarian invasions of the desolate regions, suppression of rebellions, terrorist attacks by rebel groups, or even in certain major incidents.

Having served in the military for so many years, he has seen many big scenes.

But at this moment, he was still a little stunned. The years of battles had tempered him so much that he didn't open his mouth wide when he was shocked, but his eyes were still a little dazed.

"Could he really be a martial arts genius?"

"So you went to the hospital to carry cement three days ago because you were confident? But if you were confident, there was no need to carry cement."

His mind was in turmoil, but his face had already returned to its usual coldness, and he said arrogantly.

"Hmph, not bad."

After creating a genius in artificial engineering and a genius in artificial cultivation, Lu Zhao has now created a genius in martial arts.

He grinned and raised an eyebrow at the stunned Wang Zhao, then, under countless scrutinizing gazes, returned to his spot in the elite class via the side staircase.

"Huh, isn't the curious one paying attention to me?"

He glanced at Shen Xianke at the fork in the road and saw her comforting another girl in the pre-selected group of eight.

It turns out he was busy.

He walked toward the small group, and the crowd in the metal corridor automatically parted to make way for him.

Faced with the fact that he single-handedly suppressed eight pre-selected people, even Murong Can and Yang Guangming couldn't help but back down.

At the end of the road where we parted, only stones remained.

He stood still, chest out and head held high, as always, neither retreating nor avoiding, except that there was a rare hint of confusion in his eyes.

Despite this, he took a step forward and loudly questioned:

"Am I an idiot?"

crowd:???

Lu Zhao understood what he meant.

The two have been practicing martial arts together recently, so there's no reason for such a big difference in their skills.

He shook his head: "No, I'm a genius."

Shi Jian grinned: "That's good."

crowd:???

What are you two talking about?

You say whichever line you dream about, right?

Does becoming stronger mean becoming a god?

Of course, there is no conflict between geniuses and extraordinary people.

Xu Shu, standing in the corner, nudged Gongsun Ke with her elbow: "You have a good eye for talent. He really is amazing."

Gongsun Ke remained silent, staring intently at Lu Zhao, pondering why he was so much worse off.

Analyze, catch up, and then surpass.

This has always been his habit.

"I will catch up with him."

This isn't just stubbornness born of jealousy; it's a goal he set for himself.

At the same time, the pre-selected eight and their clan elders quietly left the scene. However, unlike what was expected, there was no scene today where the eight people got into the top eight as planned, and then they praised each other and left happily.

The two who were pushed out looked ashen-faced, and the remaining six were also shocked.

"Sister Shen."

The chubby boy leaned closer and whispered, "You know that person from earlier, right?"

"Hmm...no, that doesn't count."

Shen Xianke didn't even know Lu Zhao's name.

"Who is he?" the chubby boy pressed.

"I don't know," Shen Xianke answered truthfully. "I've only seen her at school."

The chubby boy sensed something was off about her: "Wait a minute, your eyes were glued on the moment he appeared."

The image of Zhou Changsheng flashed through Shen Xianke's mind, but she remained silent.

Little Fatty circled around to the other side: "Sister Shen, you don't have a crush on him, do you? That guy is pretty handsome."

Shen Xianke couldn't be bothered to respond to such remarks.

Fortunately, at this moment, the elders of the clan joined them from the other side.

The man called Fatty Fang immediately pinched the little fat boy's ear: "I'll teach you to take everything lightly. Now you know there are always people better than you, right? I've been telling you to practice the basics since you were little, but you never did. Now you can't even beat an ordinary person who's just started learning martial arts."

"Ouch, ouch, Dad, be gentle... I got a spot too."

The chubby boy covered his ears and stepped back, still looking unconvinced. "He's just better at martial arts than me. On the battlefield, it's all about overall strength."

Fatty Fang kicked him in the butt: "Then you'd better be on your toes and practice martial arts for the next two weeks. Be careful that when the armed forces come to pick people, you don't get overtaken again."

Everyone else's attention was drawn to this statement.

"Old Fang, that can't be right. Fang Ziran is already at the Steel Bone Realm, no matter what."

Fatty Fang remained silent, feeling awkward.

You don't need to say it!

Why don't I find an opportunity to provoke him instead of sabotaging him?

.....

No one else was qualified to go to the high pavilion today; only Lu Zhao and Gongsun Ke were taken back by the school officials.

The two sat on a cushion beneath the plaque of the Imperial Academy.

Old Ji was all smiles, seemingly no different from usual, but his overall energy and spirit were excellent.

"Bai Lu, send the Cleansing Pills to them, and send the rest over there. Hmm... just ask Fang Qingyuan; he'll handle the distribution himself."

Fang Qingyuan is the uncle of the chubby Fang Ziran, also known as the chubby Fang from the previous exam hall.

The pageboy came over again and used one of those plastic boards to squeeze the pills out for the two of them. Then he went to deliver the pills to the other six winners.

"Those people...don't they lack a few Cleansing Pills, do they?" Lu Zhao asked with some curiosity.

Ji Ye didn't mince words: "Yes, these are military supplies. In principle, you can't buy them even if you have the money, but they have their own connections, so they probably don't lack them. Besides, none of them are at the Strength Warrior realm, so the Refinement Pill is useless to them."

"Can't we get it back? They might not need it, but I do."

"..."

Ji Ye rolled her eyes at him impatiently, "You're a martial arts genius, can't you act like a master?"

Do you have the right to say that to me...? You're always squatting on that chair smoking that crappy e-cigarette.

The old man with double standards.

Lu Zhao understood the same feelings Xin Li had back then.

Old Ji waved his hand, signaling him to be quiet, and then said, "You two have practiced your martial arts very well, keep it up."

Gongsun Ke couldn't help but steal a glance at Lu Zhao and asked, "You seem to place particular importance on martial arts."

Ji Ye did not deny it: "Martial arts skills are the most stable source of income. Nowadays, many people pursue special skills and try to master them using all sorts of extreme methods. This is a gambler's mentality. Even among the fifteen great generals, many of them only use special skills as a supplement and rely on martial arts skills to unleash their full strength."

The "special skill assistance" he mentioned wasn't about assisting with special skills, but rather something similar to Dog Breathing.

However, Lu Zhao had some doubts: "Mr. Ji, is this viewpoint you're expressing mainstream?"

Ji Ye frankly replied, "Yes and no. Currently, there are two main schools of thought in the Imperial Academy regarding the research on martial arts paths. One is the one like mine, which supports focusing on martial arts training and taking a calm approach to comprehending special skills; this is known as the Sword Sect."

The other side emphasizes using extreme external conditions to stimulate the mind, focusing all efforts on mastering special techniques while neglecting martial arts skills; this is known as the Qi Sect.

Well, so there are people in your world who write *The Smiling, Proud Wanderer*, huh?

Lu Zhao didn't say anything sarcastic, because he saw a radiance on the face of this academic official when he talked about academic issues, a radiance he had never seen before, which was his dedication and pursuit of his lifelong research.

Then I saw Old Ji suddenly raise his hands.

"Sword Sect is awesome!"

"....."

Holy crap.

Lu Zhao barely managed to suppress the urge to complain.

"Let's not talk about such distant matters. Xin Li has already submitted the formalities, and from now on, both of you will be promoted to the rank of Duke. Do you know what this means?" Old Ji said.

Lu Zhao remained silent, while Gongsun Ke said, "We're not new recruits anymore."

"That's right. From now on, you two can enter the veterans' activity area, and the standards will no longer be the same as for the new recruits. As for the training plan... I will consider it personally. In short, today's victory is not the end, but the beginning."

At this point, Ji Ye became somewhat excited, "I want you to defeat those people from today in actual combat when the units are assigned in half a month."

"Real combat?" Lu Zhao leaned back tactically.

Ji Ye: "What, are you scared?"

"No, that's a different price. Give me a few more pills."