Chapter 143: The Jiuzhou Body-Refining Ranking (Subscriptions Requested)

Both of these auras were extremely powerful, far surpassing Yang Ze by a countless margin. Either one of them could easily crush him to pieces.

Noticing the emergence of the two auras, a vigilant Yang Ze instinctively prepared to defend against the pressure. However, a second later, he dismissed the thought. With an expert like Xiao Boyong standing right before him, it was hardly his turn to step up.

Standing ahead of Yang Ze, Xiao Boyong had sensed the two auras even earlier, a look of displeasure crossing his brow.

"These people are getting entirely too full of themselves. Daring to spar in the Hall of Combat without even activating the protective array." Following this, Xiao Boyong gave a command, and a Fourth-Rank martial artist immediately hurried over from the side.

"Go check out the situation at the martial arena. Once those two finish fighting, bring them to my quarters. This is simply ridiculous. Failing to activate the defenses—do they treat the Hall of Combat like their own backyard?"

Xiao Boyong’s tone was stern. The Fourth-Rank martial artist did not dare to talk back in his presence, nodding repeatedly before turning to leave.

Meanwhile, Yang Ze was still watching the distant clash of auras. Seeing this, Xiao Boyong seemed to remember something and called out to stop the departing Fourth-Rank martial artist.

"Take him with you. Make sure to ensure his safety," Xiao Boyong instructed, pointing at Yang Ze.

The Fourth-Rank martial artist was momentarily stunned, seemingly not expecting Xiao Boyong to make such a request, but he did not ask any rash questions and reached out to guide Yang Ze along.

Equally bewildered, Yang Ze turned to look at Xiao Boyong. He had merely been curious about who would be fighting in a place like the Hall of Combat; he was certainly not someone who enjoyed meddling in other people's excitement.

"Go with him. It will give you a chance to witness the demeanor of the Hall of Combat disciples and help you mentally prepare. Come find me once everything is settled."

Without further ado, Yang Ze followed the Fourth-Rank martial artist and walked out.

As the two walked along the paths of the Hall of Combat, Yang Ze cast a glance at the middle-aged man beside him, not daring to be careless in the slightest for fear of offending him. After all, this was a martial artist of the Fourth-Rank Unity Realm.

While such figures acted deferentially before experts like Xiao Boyong, out in the outside world, they were formidable powerhouses in their own right. Yang Ze was certainly not on Xiao Boyong's level, and if he were to anger this man, he would be in for a world of hurt.

Keeping his gaze fixed on the man, Yang Ze let his hand slip to produce a piece of silver, which he discreetly and smoothly slid into the Fourth-Rank martial artist's pocket.

Although the movement was subtle, given the heightened sensory perception of a Fourth-Rank martial artist, the man noticed it instantly. He slipped his hand into his pocket to feel the object, casting a somewhat unkind look at Yang Ze.

However, Yang Ze was not intimidated by the unfriendly gaze. Instead, he smiled and said, "Senior Brother, this is just a small token of my appreciation. I certainly cannot have you guiding me around for nothing."

The item Yang Ze had slipped him was silver. After all, given his current status as a newly admitted outer courtyard disciple, he could not afford to flash rare treasures, lest he arouse suspicion.

Yet silver was something he still had plenty of. In the outer courtyard, silver was not exactly scarce, though it was far from abundant enough to make anyone wealthy. The amount of silver Yang Ze had revealed was more than enough for this Fourth-Rank martial artist to enjoy himself for a while.

True to expectations, upon hearing Yang Ze's words, the icy expression on Chen Ye's face melted into a smile. He laughed heartily and said, "Hahaha, I couldn't tell you were so considerate. However, I am not your Senior Brother. My name is Chen Ye, and I am a deacon here in the Hall of Combat."

"Disciple Yang Ze greets Deacon Chen." Yang Ze bowed respectfully and tactfully. In the Hall of Combat, a deacon held a lower status than elders and instructors, ranking just slightly above ordinary disciples. Usually, such a position occupied an awkward middle ground, and someone in this position was bound to appreciate a gesture like this.

Just as Yang Ze had anticipated, Chen Ye beamed with joy, repeatedly saying, "No need for such formalities. Since the road is long and you have the time, we might as well have a proper chat."

Chen Ye was also tactful enough to realize that Yang Ze must have a request in mind by slipping him silver. Once he opened the conversation, Yang Ze seized the opportunity to ask the questions lingering in his mind, one by one.

The Q&A lasted for half a day, and Yang Ze finally understood why someone was fighting within the Hall of Combat.

It turned out that across the Nine Provinces, the Tianwu Dynasty had established a ranking list known as the Nine Provinces Body-Refining Rankings.

What was body-refining? Body-refining referred to the first three ranks of the nine-rank martial dao. From the First Rank to the Third Rank, practitioners focused entirely on tempering their physical bodies and awakening their physical strength, thereby growing steadily stronger.

The Nine Provinces Body-Refining Rankings were specifically established for martial artists in the first three ranks. Only the top one thousand strongest individuals within the first three ranks across the entire Nine Provinces were qualified to have their names inscribed on the Body-Refining Rankings.

Those one thousand individuals whose names were recorded were precisely the strongest thousand people below the Fourth Rank in all the Nine Provinces.

In order to secure a place on that list, Third-Rank martial artists throughout the Nine Provinces frequently engaged in fierce duels, all for the sake of defeating their opponents and earning the qualification to be listed.

And a ranking list capable of tracking all body-refining martial artists across the Nine Provinces was something only one power in the realm could achieve—the Tianwu Dynasty.

As a dynasty capable of suppressing the nine great regional powers, backed by the strongest martial artist in the Nine Provinces, setting up this ranking list gave it absolute authority and fairness.

Yang Ze felt a deep sense of shock at the Tianwu Dynasty's initiative. By establishing this list, the Tianwu Dynasty effectively reinforced its prestige without a sound.

After all, the Nine Provinces were so vast that even the Four Academies and Five Sects could not accomplish such a feat, yet the Tianwu Dynasty had done so, striking awe into everyone else.

Over the hundreds of years since the emergence of the Nine Provinces Body-Refining Rankings, countless young talents had been cultivating diligently just to make it onto the list. The exact same phenomenon was happening within the Misty Martial Academy.

The Misty Martial Academy did not interfere in this matter because the existence of such a list only served to ignite the disciples' drive to cultivate, which was entirely beneficial to them.

Far from opposing it, the Misty Martial Academy had also established its own Misty Body-Refining Rankings, featuring a total of one hundred slots. Only the top one hundred strongest martial artists below the Fourth Rank within the Misty Martial Academy were permitted to have their names inscribed.

For the vast majority of disciples within the academy, the appeal of the Misty Body-Refining Rankings was even greater than that of the Nine Provinces Body-Refining Rankings. After all, most people lacked the qualifications to make it onto the Nine Provinces list, but those who fell short still had a chance to strive for the Misty Body-Refining Rankings.

Securing a place on such a list brought not only renown but also substantial tangible benefits.

The battle currently unfolding in the Hall of Combat was precisely between two Third-Rank disciples vying for a spot on the Misty Body-Refining Rankings.

By the time Yang Ze had sorted through all these details, they had finally arrived at the martial arena within the Hall of Combat. The moment they stepped inside, a fierce shockwave hit them head-on.