I Can See Your Combat Power
Chapter 1885 - 316: Difficulties and Opportunities

Chapter 1885: Chapter 316: Difficulties and Opportunities

The gap between people is larger than that between antelopes and lions, and the biggest reason lies in their attitude and actions towards challenges.

All excellence is forged from hardships, but few in the world are willing to face and coexist with difficulties.

Yun Zu once joked that ordinary people view opportunities as challenges, while heroes regard challenges as opportunities; so-called heroes must overcome countless hardships.

Yet as the human race grows stronger and martial arts ascend, practitioners nowadays are increasingly unwilling to confront challenges.

However, humans are filled with curiosity; after hearing many stories of heroes, they unconsciously imagine themselves possessing the same wisdom and abilities, lacking only an opportunity.

Is it just lacking an opportunity?

It’s hard to define what kind of foolish thinking this is, as if the only place they can showcase their abilities is a place where others can neither read nor learn, where ignorance blinds wisdom.

Without much thought, one can see how laughable this "talent" is. It stems from the fact that most people have ordinary mental qualities, and even when opportunities are right in front of them, they can only perceive the superficial dangers.

The grievances of fearing pain and exhaustion, or the retreat in the face of failure, are enough to make them easily let go of opportunities at hand.

Just like in the current Lingjiang Central Region, countless people know the sword-bearing youth wishes to complete a difficult task in Yuanzhou, yet almost everyone hopes Yang Fan fails, with few wanting to replace him.

Because they think the task is dangerous, they’ve already denied their own potential to complete it.

But Yun Xiu understands that this really isn’t a difficult task; rather, Tang Luo is using the entire Unparalleled Academy and his own reputation to build prestige for the chief disciple.

Opportunities are reserved for those who are prepared.

Yet the ones who say this don’t tell you that preparation is not actually related to the person involved.

Just like Yang Fan inviting the sword sects of Ying City to establish institutes in Longzhou; whether they come was destined long before Yang Fan became the chief disciple of the Unparalleled Inner Court.

What Yun Xiu doesn’t understand is why Tang Luo has such great confidence in this youth he’s only just met. Is it just because he was an orphan raised by Mi Bai?

With such doubt, Yun Xiu asks her husband: "What is extraordinary about this boy, aren’t you afraid he will lose himself after gaining immense fame?"

"The Heart-testing Cloud Ladder is a trial, and so is the journey to Yuanzhou."

Feeding skinned grapes into Yun Xiu’s mouth, Tang Luo explains: "Some people have superior qualities when they have nothing, but once they achieve success, they might lack the matching capacity. An upright hero in town might turn into a sinister, narrow-minded person or an unambitious wealthy man; therefore, when assessing a person’s nature, one must observe not only his impoverished state but also how he performs when he has everything."

"So you withdrew the Sword of Trivial Matters from Yang Fan and sent him to Yuanzhou to gain worldwide fame?"

Yun Xiu’s eyes lit up.

"Correct, fame and power are the best tests of one’s nature. The Sword of Trivial Matters is a sword of law, comprising eight elemental Spiritual Lights of gold, wood, water, fire, earth, wind, snow, thunder, and fog plus a decree that can redirect a hundred miles of Spiritual Energy; to a martial artist transcending the Mortal Realm, this sword surpasses most Divine Artifacts in the world, and an ordinary person would become utterly addicted after using it once."

Tang Luo continued: "If Yang Fan only loves the strength that martial practice brings, then the Sword of Trivial Matters is the pinnacle of his martial pursuit. While after the journey to Yuanzhou, his name will be sung across the world, at that time, one can truly see his nature."

"You went through so much effort, but surely it’s not just to understand Yang Fan’s nature, right?"

Swallowing the sweet and sour grapes, Yun Xiu spits the seeds onto a handkerchief, a hint of cunning flashed in her eyes: "Having Wind Media spread the news that Yang Fan is heading to Yuanzhou, letting it be known throughout Xiehe, is it to let the Xu Clan see this outstanding disciple from the Unparalleled Inner Court?"

"It’s still too early to say outstanding."

Wrapping the handkerchief filled with grape seeds and setting it aside, Tang Luo continues: "Since he wants to learn the Xu Clan’s techniques, he naturally has to go through their assessments. Exposing Yang Fan’s journey to all major sacred grounds in Xiehe is both a test and protection; more importantly, it’s to let the Xu Clan properly evaluate whether this youth is qualified for their heritage."

"You’ve put in so much effort, but if Yang Fan doesn’t perform well..."

Looking at her husband, who seemed to envision everything clearly, Yun Xiu couldn’t help but worry. If Yang Fan doesn’t live up to expectations, how disappointed will her husband be?

"If he doesn’t perform well, then so be it."

Compared to Yun Xiu’s concerns, Tang Luo seemed much more carefree: "If he cannot bear such pressure and responsibility, then simply return and practice martial arts dedicatedly. Given his passion for martial arts, even if he cannot achieve transcendence, a master’s position is still within reach. Such accomplishment won’t be considered poor anywhere."

...

Mid-August, Dragon Continent Calendar 1796

A vast number of practitioners flocked to the Lingjiang Central Region for the entrance exams at Unparalleled Academy, bringing Xiling City, that had vanished before the world for more than a decade, back to life.

People were surprised to find that there truly was a luxurious avenue paved with gold bricks here, and this economically opulent avenue was lined with various academy admission offices.

Clothing, food, living, transportation, cars, ships, dental, business;

Gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, wood, tiles, stone;

Even those teaching agriculture have specialized academies.

But such academies cannot attract the practitioners who come after the famous name.

These people traveled a thousand miles; did they come just to learn better plowing and fertilizing? It’s almost laughable.

Therefore, even placing admission offices on Xiling’s most luxurious Golden Avenue, those seeking to study were still few.

Instead, the entrances to Unparalleled Academy’s three departments and the recruitment points set by three sects at their sub-institute locations early on had long lines of people queueing up.

Even though they were scattered in the southern suburbs of the city, some places had mud that had yet to be cleaned up, it hadn’t dissuaded these practitioners who had traveled from afar.

This situation has led to voices of doubt within Unparalleled City’s municipal hall.

"It’s already mid-August, the Craftsmanship Academy has received less than two thousand students despite having more than a dozen in total, whereas just yesterday, the applications for the Outer Court’s three departments were fully met, and countless practitioners are still heading to the Lingjiang Central Region. If you ask me, just merge the Craftsmanship Academy, and allocate more academies to enroll disciples, to save those young folks hoping to join our Unparalleled Academy a wasted trip."

Du Wei’s opinion represents many within the municipal hall. Compared to the Craftsmanship Academy, which requires resource allocation, the appeal of the Unparalleled Outer Court is evidently stronger.

If they could expand both sides of the Central Avenue in the inner city into teaching buildings for the Outer Court, it’s certain that the admission scale for Unparalleled Academy’s three departments could be expanded several times over.