At the gate leading from the outer encampment to the Inner City.
Before the sun was even up, a long line had already formed with people signing up for the Guard selection.
Many had come with their entire families, and the crowd of people coming and going nearly blocked the road completely.
After entrusting their home to Li Daniu, Tang Wen and his sister walked straight to the entrance and headed toward the Inner City.
"Hey, hey! How come they get to go in without waiting in line?"
Someone pointed at Tang Wen, who was walking through the gate, and complained to the Guard maintaining order.
"What are you shouting about? Didn't you see his Copper Token? That person has status in the Inner City. Do you?"
"I... I don't. Hehe, I don't."
The crowd couldn't help but gaze at the pair's retreating backs with envy. 'That young man and young lady don't look very old at all!'
Elder Li, accompanied by his beautiful young wife, was waiting by the roadside near the city gate. Upon seeing Tang Wen, his first reaction was to marvel at the change in his physique.
After a few pleasantries, he led Tang Wen straight toward a large plaza.
On the way, Elder Li suddenly wore an embarrassed expression. "Um, Xiaotang, about joining the Hunting Team... I'm afraid you'll have to rely on yourself for that. The assessment suddenly got stricter this year. To get into the Hunting Team, you need the strength of at least a Second-level Martial Disciple."
"What's a Martial Disciple?"
Before Tang Wen could speak, Tangtang asked, blinking her big eyes.
Elder Li began to explain, "'Martial Disciple, Martial Artist, and Martial Artist'—this is a strength standard set by the Guard Battalion and the Martial Arts Halls."
Martial Disciples are divided into three classes. Third-class is the weakest, and First-class is the strongest.
Above Martial Disciple is a full-fledged Martial Artist.
The strength of a Third-class Martial Disciple is equivalent to a well-trained, ordinary adult man.
An average Guard, after a year of training and passing their recruit period, has about this much strength.
A Second-class Martial Disciple is required to be able to lift a 300-jin stone lock.
They must be able to run the distance of an arrow's flight, without any load, within the time it takes to count to 15—that is, 15 seconds.
The distance of an arrow's flight is a little over 200 meters.
Tang Wen was secretly astonished. 'That's a quarter faster than a 200-meter Olympic champion.'
In terms of practical combat, a Second-class Martial Disciple must be able to wield a Single Blade, dagger, or similar weapon to fight off a pack of wolves or other medium-sized wild beasts, and it has to be one against many.
First-class Martial Disciple is much harder. They must be able to lift a 600-jin stone lock.
Over a distance of one li—about 500 meters—their speed must be no less than that of a running donkey or horse.
The key is still practical combat. Without wearing Armor, they must be able to defeat a squad of 12 to 15 well-trained soldiers without getting injured.
Elder Li continued, "Xiaotang, you're a Hunter and you have special skills, so you should have the strength of a Third-class Martial Disciple. But Second-class... that's hard to say. Fortunately, you're still young. Give it a try first. If you can't get into the Hunting Team, you can join a Martial Arts Hall, train for a year, and you'll definitely make it next year."
Tang Wen smiled and thanked him, thinking to himself that Elder Physician Li was quite a reliable person.
'I only gave him one roe deer and two rabbits, just a few dozen jin of meat. That's nothing to him, yet he's been so considerate.'
"The apprentices at the Martial Arts Hall are all young brats from the Inner City. Many have practiced Martial Arts since childhood. They're all proud and arrogant, and every one of them wants to try out for the Hunting Guard selection. Just line up at the very back of their group later."
"Alright!"
The order didn't matter. Tang Wen wondered, 'Besides hunting outside the city, what's so special about being a Hunting Guard?'
Elder Li paused, then slapped his forehead. "My fault! I forgot you're from the Outer City and don't know the ins and outs. The prey and Mutated Beasts that Hunting Guards take down are divided into three parts. One part goes to the camp, one part goes to the Guard Battalion, and the remaining third can be kept by the Hunting Team."
"Oh, so it's an extra source of income," Tang Wen nodded.
"Not just that. Inside the Guard Battalion, there are many Cultivation Techniques that are not taught to outsiders. Guards can exchange contribution points for them. Understand?"
A look of realization dawned on Tang Wen's face. "So hunting counts as a contribution. Thank you for clearing that up, Elder Li."
He was tempted.
Cultivation Techniques were indeed good things you couldn't get on the outside.
His thinking changed. He had originally felt that becoming a City Guard or a Patrolling Guard would be fine.
'The Hunting Team... I have to join the Hunting Team.'
The Martial Arts Academy Disciples stood in the very center of the plaza.
Each one was either burly or well-proportioned, all of them brimming with Essence, Qi, and Spirit.
There were also a few female Martial Disciples whose tall, impressive figures couldn't be hidden even by their bulky, black cotton clothes.
Tang Wen blended into the last row, a noticeable distance separating him from the Martial Disciples in front.
The people in front turned to look at him, their gazes ranging from calm to mocking, but mostly, they just ignored him.
The young Martial Disciples chatted among themselves:
"Brother Lin, have you heard anything definite? How many people is the Hunting Team taking this time?"
The young man called Brother Lin was incredibly burly, with the build of a bear and the back of a tiger, standing well over 1.9 meters tall.
He was the tallest person Tang Wen had seen in the camp.
"I think it's 40."
"What?"
A wave of gasps went through the group.
"How can it be so few?"
"I can't even make the top 40 in our own Martial Arts Hall!"
"Does this mean I have to wait another year?"
Listening to their discussion, Tang Wen was suddenly reminded of the day his high school entrance exam scores were released, how his classmates had chatted just like this.
'But if it's only forty people...'
Tang Wen did a quick count. There were definitely more than four hundred Martial Disciples in front of him.
Proportionally, that was a 10% acceptance rate. It really did feel a bit like the entrance exams.
CLANK CLANK CLANK
The sound of Iron Armor clashing rang out.
Several fully armed figures walked onto the high platform in the plaza.
'It's him?'
Tang Wen was a little surprised. The man who had been in charge of guarding the Silver Wolf was also on the platform.
'Looks like his status is even higher than I imagined.'
The man's senses were sharp. He detected Tang Wen's gaze and his eyes shot toward him like bolts of lightning. Tang Wen quickly lowered his head.
"Today is a big day for our Flame Camp. It is the Guard selection..."
On the stage, the Black Armor General began to speak.
Despite using no apparent enhancement, his voice carried clearly and precisely to the ears of the several thousand people present.
His tone was sonorous, and his speech was brief.
After about three minutes, the Black Armor General made a direct announcement: "I declare the selection has begun! Those trying out for the Hunting Guards, take 30 steps forward! Form 10 columns! All other candidates, disperse to the left and right sides."
Tang Wen's spirits lifted. 'Just as expected of a military man—all about being crisp and efficient.'
He quickly followed the group forward, falling into formation right behind the person in front of him.
"First row, take five steps forward, spread out, warm up, and prepare to lift the stone locks."
About 40 people stepped forward in unison.
"When I count to one, every one of you must lift the stone lock in front of you. If you can't lift it, get lost immediately! No excuses, or you'll face the whip! Understand?"
"Understood!"
Everyone roared in agreement, and the atmosphere instantly intensified.
"Ready... Four, three, two, one, lift!"
The people in the first row gritted their teeth, summoned all their strength, grabbed the wooden poles, and clean and jerked the stone locks.
"Hold it... Three, two, one... Again! Ready!"
Murmurs of surprise, anxiety, and dejection rose from the ranks.
"This stone lock weighs a full 300 jin! Why do they want us to lift it in such a hurry?"
"Second-class Martial Disciple... The standard for the Hunting Battalion selection is Second-class Martial Disciple. I only just became a Third-class Martial Disciple not long ago!"
"It's hopeless. It's hopeless this year. My dad's gonna kill me when I get home."
They had to clean and jerk the 300-jin stone lock three consecutive times, holding it overhead for three seconds each time.
If it weren't for the Martial Arts legacy in this world, you could spend three or five years in a gym and still never reach this level.
On either side of the plaza, the people from the camp's Outer City who had come for the selection were already dumbfounded.
'Is such a huge stone hollow?'
'If it's solid, how could anyone possibly lift it?!'
"Silence! Anyone causing a disturbance will lose their qualification for the selection."
A voice like a great bell reverberated high above the plaza.
The candidates immediately stopped talking and stood up straight.
The speaker was an acquaintance of Tang Wen's—the Commander who had guarded the Silver Wolf.