The Practical Evaluation
From a distance, Gi Beonjin and his lackeys watched Yeop Pung and swallowed their sneers.
"Senior Brother Gi, look at that arrogant face on Yeop Pung!"
Jang Un was still sour, but he no longer had the nerve to mouth off in front of Yeop Pung himself.
"That's right, Senior Brother Gi. There are still two tests left, and he's already putting on first-place airs!"
Jo Bihong chimed in from the side, stoking Gi Beonjin's pride.
"Hmph! What's there to be afraid of?"
Gi Beonjin's confidence hadn't dimmed in the slightest.
"So he can throw a punch. Big deal. That bastard Yeop Pung may have slaved away for eight years gathering Profound Qi, but it won't do him a scrap of good…"
Watching Yeop Pung's back recede into the distance, Gi Beonjin let out a contemptuous laugh.
"Paltry Profound Qi like that is nothing in the face of a true Profound Art! Just wait until we meet in the final test. I'll have you on your knees at my feet!"
"Long live Senior Brother Gi!"
Jang Un and Jo Bihong exhaled in relief and fell in behind Gi Beonjin, heading for the third examination ground.
The subject of the third inner disciple examination was Comprehension — a test, in the most literal sense, of a disciple's insight into the martial arts. Examiners would first demonstrate a martial technique before the assembled disciples, accompanying it with a brief explanation of the cultivation method. Afterward, they would judge how faithfully each disciple could reproduce the technique's power within the allotted time.
It was in this examination that Yeop Pung finally put the full weight of his former reputation on display. The lesser Profound Art known as Raging Thunder Palm comprised thirty-six forms and one hundred and eight variations. The cultivation method alone ran to dozens of densely written pages.
An ordinary person would have needed a considerable stretch of time merely to skim it once. Yeop Pung, however, perfectly reproduced the first twelve forms in the span of a single burning incense stick. Everyone who saw it was stunned.
Disciple Yeop Pung — result:
Beyond First Grade. Again!
The outer disciples who had followed Yeop Pung could not contain their astonishment.
Yeop Pung had become famous. The astonishing skill he had shown across two consecutive tests had already surpassed Gi Beonjin. He had become the most watched figure among this year's new disciples.
Moreover, his appearance had always left a striking impression. So when he walked across the plaza of Maun Peak now, the atmosphere around him had completely changed.
"Senior Brother Yeop! Senior Brother Yeop!"
Countless girls sparkled their eyes, waving their hands and bouncing on their feet — the sight was extremely… intense. No. It was adorable. Utterly adorable.
Those who had looked down on Yeop Pung were all left speechless.
Yeop Pung was simply too strong. Even if shattering the Profound Qi Stone had been a fluke, there weren't many who could withstand that fist. Gi Beonjin had finally met a genuine rival.
At this point, everyone's attention focused on the final gate of today's inner disciple examination: the Practical Evaluation.
At last the Practical Evaluation began. According to the regulations of Cheonun Sect, it was the stage that conducted a final, comprehensive assessment of each disciple's overall ability.
Disciples who had passed the three preceding tests were guided by inner disciples into groups of four. On the martial stage, they would fight for the duration of a single burning incense stick and measure their skill against one another.
Elder Han Un would serve as the final examiner for this trial. He would compile every disciple's scores, then draw up the final grade sheet based on their performance in the Practical Evaluation and announce the results of the inner disciple examination.
Just now Han Un was craning his neck, standing there in a state of barely contained impatience, staring at the people in the distance.
Why hasn't that boy Yeop Pung shown up yet…
Han Un's heart was racing. In all the decades he had spent at Cheonun Sect, there had never been anyone that person had personally instructed him to watch. He was dying to know what kind of extraordinary ability Yeop Pung possessed, to shatter the Profound Qi Stone with a single blow.
Just then an unfamiliar inner disciple approached and respectfully offered him a roster with both hands.
"Elder Han, this is the match bracket for the one hundred disciples participating in this Practical Evaluation. Please review it."
"Very well."
Han Un took the list and scanned it lightly. His gaze locked onto a single name.
"That boy Yeop Pung… ended up in a group with those three? This is far too forced…"
Han Un was sharp enough to sense something was off. Ordinarily he would have asked a few questions, but the words that person had spoken to him privately came back, and he approved the roster without a word.
If they made him fight those three, they would get a proper look at Yeop Pung's true ability!
"Fine. Proceed according to this list. Tell the disciples to take the stage!"
"Yes, Elder Han!"
The inner disciple bowed respectfully and withdrew. But a peculiar smirk played across his face.
Yeop Pung… you really do have a talent for making people uncomfortable wherever you go. You caused such a stir, so our old friends will be watching with both eyes wide open to see just how brilliantly you perform in this Practical Evaluation. Hmph!
The area before the martial stages was already a sea of people. Ten temporary stages had been set up, allowing forty disciples to compete at once.
Hundreds of disciples had already finished their matches since early morning. Among them, some had produced combat scenes so spectacular they were hard to look away from.
When Yeop Pung's group appeared, every gaze locked onto today's protagonist.
Did he end up in a group with Gi Beonjin?
What kind of result will this Yeop Pung walk away with from this inner disciple examination? And what kind of treatment will he receive in Cheonun Sect?
The spectators' chests swelled with anticipation.
At the moment everyone had been waiting for, an inner disciple mounted the high platform and began announcing the names of those who would compete in the next round.
"I will now announce the match bracket for the Practical Evaluation. Stage One: Po Myeong, Song Cheongcheon…"
People pricked up their ears, waiting for the most anticipated names to be called.
"Stage Eight…"
The inner disciple paused here, sending a peculiar look toward Yeop Pung in the crowd. Then he bellowed.
In that instant the martial grounds erupted.
"What?"
"Yeop Pung got grouped with those three?"
"Isn't this way too conveniently arranged? There's definitely someone pulling strings behind the scenes!"
People murmured among themselves, unable to believe such a coincidence could exist in this world. But a few of the sharper ones shook their heads and let out cold, knowing laughs.
"Hmph. You lot clearly don't know. That Gi Beonjin is a boy the Head of Nowoon Peak has personally taken an interest in. You think he would have dared run wild among the outer disciples otherwise?"
"Nowoon Peak?"
Disciples who knew even a little about Cheonun Sect clicked their tongues at that name. Only then did the situation snap into focus.
If Gi Beonjin truly had a connection to that Peak Head, then a bracket this blatantly designed for "revenge" was entirely understandable. After all, the Head of Nowoon Peak was someone even the Sect Master dared not treat lightly.
While the crowd whispered among themselves, Gi Beonjin and his two lackeys wore equally bewildered expressions.
"Senior Brother Gi… isn't this bracket a little too shameless?"
Jang Un and Jo Bihong both turned to look at him as they spoke.
"Don't tell me… the Peak Head personally intervened?"
Gi Beonjin blinked a few times and muttered inwardly.
No way… What kind of person is the Peak Head? He may dote on me, but would he really bother himself with something as trivial as an inner disciple examination? Then again, that hardly matters!
Gi Beonjin snorted. He had wanted to be grouped with Yeop Pung from the start. And this time all three of them would be fighting Yeop Pung at once — whatever last scrap of hope the boy had left was gone.
"Perfect! The three of us will smash that mongrel to pieces!"
"Hmph!"
His two faithful hounds ground their teeth as well.
"Don't you worry, Senior Brother Gi! Today we'll break that mongrel's arms and legs and settle this grudge for you!"
While everyone was still arguing over the bracket, a booming voice rolled down from the platform.
"Contestants, take the stage!"
At that cry, the forty disciples whose names had been called walked up onto their assigned martial stages.
In an instant, more people crowded around Stage Eight — where Yeop Pung and Gi Beonjin stood — than anywhere else. At least half the spectators had surged over to watch their match, until there was scarcely room to set a foot around the platform.
Yeop Pung walked slowly up onto the stage. Not a ripple of emotion crossed his face.
Of course he knew this bracket was unfair. But the people who thought they were dropping him into a trap had no idea — this lineup aligned perfectly with what he wanted.
Gi Beonjin was an opponent he had to crush. But in Yeop Pung's heart, that aristocratic brat had never even registered as worth his attention.
He intended to reveal his true ability to the world through this inner disciple examination and catch the eye of Cheonun Sect's upper ranks. That would be the most important foothold for the cultivation that lay ahead. And so this seemingly "unfair" match was, for Yeop Pung, a heaven-sent opportunity.
If Yeop Pung defeated Gi Beonjin's group by himself, who in this examination would dare compare themselves to his dazzling performance?
At that thought, a cold flame kindled in Yeop Pung's chest. He lifted his chin and fixed the three opposite him with a gaze sharp as a blade.
At Yeop Pung's commanding presence, the faces of Gi Beonjin and the other two darkened as one. But their eyes looked ready to spit fire at any moment.
Jang Un and Jo Bihong nodded at Gi Beonjin's signal. Without hesitation they broke formation and circled behind Yeop Pung. Together with Gi Beonjin, they boxed him in on three sides, a triangle of encirclement.
"Th-they're going after Yeop Pung and nobody else!"
Murmurs burst from the stands.
"Isn't that going too far? Yeop Pung just got here! Gi Beonjin broke through to the 2-Vein Profound Realm a few days ago, and Jo Bihong and Jang Un are both at the 1-Vein Profound Realm! They're trying to kill him!"
"I wouldn't be so sure. Did you see the power of Yeop Pung's Profound Qi earlier? Anyone who takes that fist isn't walking away in one piece!"
"He still has to land it first…. Besides, Yeop Pung's only got raw strength. Gi Beonjin's already learned a Profound Art. The way I see it, Yeop Pung doesn't stand a chance. He's going to get completely crushed."
Everyone had something to say. But those who viewed Yeop Pung favorably didn't even make up thirty percent.
Elder Han Un, seated on the high platform, had his brow deeply furrowed. He watched Yeop Pung's unflinching figure with a heavy expression.
Yeop Pung…. If you truly defeat those three, that would be a talent surpassing even Yi Hwawu in his day. Let this old man see with his own two eyes just what kind of hidden power you've got buried in you!
He drew a deep breath and nodded toward the far distance. The inner disciple opposite him immediately declared in a booming voice.
The Practical Evaluation will now begin!
No disciple may use a weapon. Fatal injury to an opponent is forbidden.
Begin!