High-Martial World: System Arrives 30 Years Late-Chapter 82: Sword Momentum Clash, Rule Breaker

Chapter 82: Chapter 82: Sword Momentum Clash, Rule Breaker
"Su Mu, first of all, congratulations on passing the first stage of the assessment. Your performance was excellent... but we’re curious about how you did it. Let’s be straightforward—how did you do it?"
Shi Hao, Xu Zhi, and Huangfu Xue looked at him intently.
"Do I have to answer?"
"Of course not. We just saw the whole process of you passing, and we have some doubts about you damaging the three assessment puppets. We hope you can clarify this for us," Xu Zhi said.
Su Mu caught the underlying meaning; Xu Zhi was issuing a subtle warning about the damaged assessment puppets.
Seeing the hesitation between the two, Huangfu Xue directly took out a jade box with a flash of spiritual light. "Inside are ten pounds of Spirit Marrow. You’re in the stage of refining the Five Viscera. Spirit Marrow is highly absorbable and far superior to ordinary elixirs. It’s usually a cultivation resource for Sixth Level Martial Artists, or even for Grandmasters. It can definitely expedite your refining process."
"Usually, five to six pounds are enough to complete the refining of the Five Viscera. Rest assured, we won’t disclose this conversation to others. We’ll keep it confidential. How about it?"
Spirit Marrow!
Su Mu’s eyes shone. This was the first time he had heard of such a thing. Five to six pounds were enough to complete the refining of the Five Viscera, which was very appealing to him.
With this, he could greatly shorten the time for the three refinements in the Third-Turned Refining Technique!
"Okay."
Su Mu accepted the Spirit Marrow without checking it. After all, it was the first time he had seen this thing, and he trusted that these three wouldn’t deceive him with counterfeit goods.
Su Mu took a deep breath and released his Blade Momentum.
Upon sensing this sharp momentum, the three were visibly changed. With their insight, they could naturally recognize this as Blade Momentum.
"Blade Momentum?" Huangfu Xue’s beautiful eyes lit up.
Xu Zhi was shocked. The person in front of him was only a Fourth Level Martial Artist at thirty-three, which was a significant disadvantage. But comprehending Blade Momentum at the Fourth Level was different; it indicated Su Mu had a monstrous talent in the Sword Dao!
Similarly wielding a blade, Shi Hao had the most intense reaction, standing up abruptly.
"This sharpness... there’s no doubt about it, this is definitely Blade Momentum!"
The next moment, a sharp momentum was also released from Shi Hao.
Feeling Shi Hao’s sharpness, Su Mu’s eyes shone even brighter. The two sharp momentums immediately clashed fiercely.
Shi Hao’s expression changed dramatically. Excited, he had unwittingly deployed his Blade Momentum. He forgot that such sharp momentums, like Blade Momentum and Sword Momentum, are both domineering and exclusive, and when two Blade Momentums appear together, supremacy must be asserted.
It’s like a Divine Soldier needing blood upon being unsheathed.
Martial Momentum is the manifestation of a martial artist’s will. Once defeated in a clash of Martial Momentum, one would suffer a certain degree of backlash.
Worried about injuring Su Mu, Shi Hao immediately tried to withdraw his Blade Momentum.
But unexpectedly, when the two Blade Momentums touched, they both let out a muffled grunt. What shocked Shi Hao was that he was the first to grunt, while Su Mu came afterward.
In other words, Shi Hao fell to a disadvantage in the Blade Momentum clash earlier. Although he hadn’t intended to compete, he was a Sixth Level Martial Artist after all!
"Shi Hao, could it be that you suffered a setback?" Xu Zhi asked in surprise.
"Yes, Xu Zhi, you’re right. Shi Hao was indeed at a disadvantage just now," Huangfu Xue answered, her eyes glinting with silver radiance.
"That’s incredible, Su Mu, your talent in the Sword Dao surpasses mine!" Shi Hao admitted candidly after coming to his senses. "Sorry, I got too excited just now. Are you hurt?"
Su Mu shook his head.
"That’s good." Shi Hao breathed a sigh of relief.
After a brief silence, Shi Hao made a request, "Su Mu, after witnessing your Blade Momentum, most of my doubts have been resolved. Can I have a look at your saber?"
"Sure."
In their brief conversation, Su Mu found Shi Hao and Huangfu Xue to be straightforward people, not petty.
Su Mu took out the Red Sun Saber and handed it over. Shi Hao was a bit disappointed at the sight of the sheath, but still rubbed his hands together and accepted it with both hands to show respect.
Clang!
At the moment Shi Hao drew the saber, the blade’s sharpness burst forth.
"What a good saber!"
Shi Hao’s eyes glittered, and he blurted out.
"Su Mu, may I try activating it?"
With the saber in Shi Hao’s hands, he could directly activate it with his power. His question was out of respect for Su Mu, subtly acknowledging him as an equal martial artist.
"Go ahead."
With permission, Shi Hao took a deep breath. His eyes lit up as he gently stroked the blade and infused it with Qi and Blood. As the inscription started to light up and integrate, Shi Hao was even more astonished.
Xu Zhi and Huangfu Xue, although they didn’t use blades, were adept enough in evaluating them and the inscription. This saber was definitely of high quality.
"Is this... a Sixth Level saber?"
"What exquisite inscriptions, composite layered inscriptions, and fusion inscription skills. Could this saber be from a Grandmaster-level Rune Master?" Huangfu Xue asked in amazement.
"It’s a good saber, truly a good saber. But Xu Zhi, you’re mistaken. I was also mistaken. This saber isn’t Sixth Level, but Fifth Level. However, this saber isn’t inferior to any Sixth Level blade I’ve seen!"
"And if I’m not mistaken, there’s a special Blade Momentum contained within this blade?" Shi Hao hesitated before asking.
A blade containing Blade Momentum?
Hearing this, even Huangfu Xue, who had been the most composed, was shocked. Her eyes shimmered with silver, and disbelief filled her face.
"This blade indeed contains a unique Blade Momentum, truly incredible!"
"Su Mu, may I ask which grandmaster crafted this saber?"
It was the question both Shi Hao and Xu Zhi wanted to ask. If they could also have a weapon that holds their own Martial Momentum, their strength could undoubtedly reach a new level!
"My teacher forged it."
"And your respected master is?"
"Wang Shuheng."
"You are actually Wang Shuheng’s disciple."
Wang Shuheng!
Upon hearing this name, the three showed respect on their faces, obviously aware of Wang Shuheng’s prestige.
"No wonder, it was forged by Elder Wang!"
"I just haven’t heard any news of Elder Wang being promoted to a Grandmaster-level Rune Master recently. Could it be that I’m just uninformed?" Huangfu Xue questioned.
"My teacher probably hasn’t been promoted to Grandmaster-level Rune Master yet."
"I was presumptuous. I’ve always respected Elder Wang. If there’s a chance, I would like to visit him at Shenjiang Martial Arts University once the training is over."
"Su Mu, could I trouble you to introduce me then?"
"I can only mention it to my teacher, but whether it happens depends on his willingness."
"Thank you, of course."
At this moment, Su Mu knew the three had misunderstood. The reason the Red Sun Saber could cultivate blade qi was mainly due to the Sword Nurturing Technique, but since it involved his martial arts practice, he didn’t explain further.
At that moment, Huangfu Xue, Shi Hao, and Xu Zhi exchanged a glance, their doubts thoroughly dispelled.
Previously, they intended to ask Su Mu how he discovered the location of the inscription core in the puppet. They suspected that there might have been a premature leak of the assessment contents, which was a serious matter!
Because they noticed that Su Mu didn’t strike indiscriminately but specifically aimed for the back of the neck, indicating that his actions were deliberate.
Now that Su Mu had introduced himself, their suspicions vanished.
Wang Shuheng was a legend in the Inscription Realm. Even before being promoted to Grandmaster-level Rune Master, he had personally forged a Grandmaster-level weapon, and it was even the most difficult type to forge, a spiritual weapon.
A disciple of Wang Shuheng, mastering sword momentum and wielding a blade capable of accommodating sword momentum equivalent to a Sixth Level Weapon, explaining how Su Mu destroyed three Secret Iron Puppets with three strikes was incredible but reasonable.
"Su Mu, does your blade have a name?"
"Red Sun Saber."
"Good name!" Shi Hao gently caressed the blade one last time before reluctantly returning the Red Sun Saber to Su Mu. As he sheathed it, he couldn’t help but glance at the scabbard a few more times.
He seemed puzzled and regretful, wondering why such a fine blade was paired with such a scabbard.
Noticing this, Su Mu, seeing that Shi Hao was a true lover of blades, explained simply, "The scabbard was made from my previous blade, melted down and reforged."
"Brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that? Truly worthy of being Elder Wang’s disciple!"
Hearing this, Shi Hao sincerely praised.
...
Meanwhile, the 198th candidate, who needed to retake the test, felt angry and dissatisfied.
Until he began the retake.
At forty-five seconds, the assessment was declared a failure.
As the candidate limped towards the passageway, he repeatedly pondered over the matter of the three puppets behind door number five until he suddenly paused in his tracks.
He thought of an astonishing possibility...
Upon reflection, he suddenly noticed a detail that all three puppets had a common trait — their heads drooped.
"Could this be... is it possible?"
With intense doubt and self-questioning, he exited the assessment passageway, only to witness a shocking scene.
Numerous soldiers were dragging the damaged puppets out from passageway number five. This time, he saw clearly that all three puppets had consistent damage to their rear necks as if they had been cut open by a sharp object.
The cuts were fresh and didn’t look like they had been damaged long ago, as there was no rust on the surface.
Moreover, natural damage wouldn’t occur so suddenly, especially since many candidates, including several talented martial artists, had taken the test before Su Mu.
"So... it was all the doing of one person, Su Mu."
"He, by himself, consecutively destroyed three puppets in under a minute!"
Realizing this, the 198th candidate’s eyes widened, and he stood there in a daze, speechless for a long time. When he finally recovered, he suddenly realized how ridiculous and pathetic he was.
He was merely a frog in a well, while Su Mu’s strength was so formidable, likely comparable to Tantai Yan!
It was just that Su Mu kept a low profile, perhaps finding such attention troublesome.
...
After Su Mu’s departure, Shi Hao and the others found themselves hesitant and a bit troubled.
"How should we evaluate the test results this time?"
"Tantai Yan’s time was fifty-eight seconds, and Su Mu’s was also fifty-eight seconds. Both of them took the same time."
The trio had never considered this issue, as such coincidences were rare. In prior years, there had never been two such formidable candidates appearing at the same time.
This time, however, it happened, and their times were identical.
One controlled the puppets with spiritual power, strolling through them with ease.
The other violently destroyed all the puppets to pass.
And with the destruction of the three Secret Iron Puppets, the loss was considerable. Yet, there were no existing rules in the training that addressed the damage of Secret Iron Puppets during assessments.
Because it was a situation no one had ever considered before...