C237 Flying(2)

Woo Zhengyang's path as a Body Tempering cultivator made his assessment quite unique. Typically, when cultivators transition from the Reality Condensing Stage, they only need to test the concentration of their inner energy and whether they've connected to their spiritual core. However, for Body Tempering cultivators, the standard is straightforward: strength. Passing the assessment requires breaking the thousand-pound mark.

A thousand pounds is known as tiger strength, while ten thousand pounds is referred to as elephant strength. Achieving tiger strength equates to the Martial Master level, similar to the Reality Condensing Stage, while elephant strength marks the Master level, akin to the Shape Gathering Stage. It's said that beyond elephant strength lies dragon strength, where one dragon's strength is equivalent to a thousand elephants, or ten million pounds. Reaching dragon strength signifies achieving the Emperor level.

For Woo Zhengyang, these feats are distant goals. Even though his physical prowess surpasses his peers, he only slightly exceeds tiger strength, with a significant gap remaining to reach double tiger strength. He is eager to know his current strength.

The Inner Hall of the Profound Heaven Sect's assessment area lacks the grandeur of the Outer Hall but exudes a unique, ancient charm. This hall has been part of the sect since its inception and has seen many powerful figures emerge. Unlike the bustling Outer Hall, the Inner Hall is notably quiet, with no inner disciples present. It's no wonder the few stewards felt free to leave their posts to watch Woo Zhengyang on his Martial Master Path.

Since the assessment hall has been around since the founding of the sect, it's only natural that it contains tools for evaluating Body Tempering cultivators. At this moment, Woo Zhengyang was led by several stewards to the tool required for the assessment.

It was a dark stone wall, seemingly ordinary, with a scale marked from 2,200 pounds to 22,000 pounds. What left Woo Zhengyang speechless was the crooked image next to the scale. After examining it for a while, he realized the two images were supposed to be a tiger and a giant elephant, both demonic beasts.

However, the tiger and elephant were so poorly drawn that they looked more like cats. Yes, cats, because they appeared quite similar, except the elephant had an extra trunk. Without careful observation, one could hardly tell them apart.

"This... this drawing is just too off," Woo Zhengyang remarked sincerely.

"Ahem... it's said that this was drawn by our sect's founder, Xuan Tianshang, so speak with respect!" one steward reprimanded Woo Zhengyang, though he couldn't help but chuckle a bit himself.

Xuan Tianshang, the founder of the Profound Heaven Sect? Hearing this name, everyone would think of the revered statue within the sect. It was hard to believe that someone as esteemed and skilled in all arts would create such a casual drawing. Even if he wasn't an artist, his stature suggested he wouldn't have done something so offhandedly here.

Woo Zhengyang couldn't help but recall the burly man he encountered on the ninth level of the Path of Inquiry, a man who didn't fit the image of a wise sage at all. Now, Woo Zhengyang was certain that this guy was indeed the genuine Xuan Tianshang, and these two paintings were undoubtedly his work. Only he could create such casual art.

"Alright, let's start the test!" a steward reminded.

"Okay!" Woo Zhengyang responded, stepping forward to stand before the stone wall.

Beneath the wall's scale was a pit filled with fist marks, remnants from predecessors, untouched for countless years.

Taking a deep breath, Woo Zhengyang suddenly punched!

"Boom..."

The stone wall resonated like a drum, shaking with a loud noise.

Then, a light emerged from beneath the scale, slowly climbing upward.

One thousand pounds... two thousand pounds... three thousand pounds...

The light stopped at three thousand pounds, signifying Woo Zhengyang had passed.

"Great! You've passed the assessment!" announced a steward.

"I thought you'd make a big splash, but you just barely met the standard!" Zhang Tia remarked sarcastically.

Everyone knew Zhang Tia had connections with the inner sect elder, Yue Jiuxiao, and although they realized he was deliberately targeting Woo Zhengyang, they were helpless.

Just then, the light that had stopped suddenly climbed another notch!

"Two thousand four hundred pounds!"

Everyone was puzzled. Hadn't it just stopped?

Then, someone noticed something unusual and pointed at the tiger that looked like a cat, saying, "It's because of this cat... no, this tiger!"

It turned out that although the tiger's image was casually drawn, it had a unique connection with the scale, lighting up as the force increased. This delayed the white light from rising quickly.

Starting from the tiger's tail, the light continued to climb slowly...

Everyone was intently watching the stone wall. As for Zhang Tia, who had just mocked Woo Zhengyang, he was now countered by a tiger that looked like a cat. His face darkened, and he fell silent.

Two thousand six hundred pounds... two thousand eight hundred pounds...

Finally, at three thousand pounds, the white light on the stone wall dimmed and stopped advancing!