Ye Long walked forward with a surge of excitement and knocked on the gates of Minwu Hall.
"Clang, clang... hum!"
The reverberation rang so loudly in his ears that it felt like a great bronze bell, sending a chill through his heart.
He instinctively covered his ears, his small body trembling slightly, unsure whether it was from excessive excitement or the shock of the resounding noise.
For a moment.
The sounds of fighting inside the courtyard fell silent. To say he wasn't nervous would be a lie.
Ye Long could only stare at the iron gates with bloodshot eyes, watching them with intense anticipation.
Yet when the heavy doors swung open wide, a robust man in his thirties walked out.
His body was knotted with muscles, bare-chested, with a rugged face and thick eyebrows framing large, piercing eyes.
Following right behind him came a palpable, oppressive aura.
Ye Long felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his breathing instantly hitching.
Even so, he braved the pressure, choosing to stubbornly endure it, which made his eyes look all the more hopeful.
The burly man stared at the little boy for a long while and initially intended to chase him away, but after a second thought, he asked politely:
"What do you want?"
In the eyes of the burly man, a martial artist's temperament came first. Talent was certainly important, but without perseverance, all else was lost!
Ye Long: "Big uncle, I want to learn martial arts!"
As he spoke, his voice sounded resolute yet fragile.
If his past life was not counted, he was currently just a small child in his teens.
From those unfamiliar memories, he knew all too well that the original owner of this body had been abandoned. He could no longer remember that person's face, and even that figure was gradually blurring.
Only by mastering formidable skills could he ever track that person down.
As for this obsession, regardless of whether it was the original Ye Long or his current self, both harbored deep resentment because of it.
However, seeing the clear gaze of the child, the burly man let out an inexplicable sigh and said:
"Wait here a moment, I'll go in and ask."
As soon as his voice fell, the heavy gates slammed shut.
In an instant, even Ye Long's throat went dry, his inner thoughts utterly chaotic and his mind clearly unsettled.
A wave of nervousness washed over him, causing him to pace back and forth involuntarily. Looking at the closed doors, a myriad of emotions surged within him.
First, if he failed to pass, he wouldn't be able to enter Minwu Hall, and the consequences of that could be easily imagined.
Second, what if he did pass? His heart burned with an unbearable fever.
Just as Ye Long was at a loss, the gates suddenly flew wide open.
A loud shout rang out right after:
"Come in! Pass through the courtyard corridor and go straight to the main hall!"
Ye Long stared eagerly at the empty spaces on both sides of the wide-open gates, finding not a single soul in sight. He couldn't help but feel a secret shudder:
"How did these gates open by themselves?"
Yet, amid his swirling thoughts, his heart burned with fiery intensity, and he stepped directly across the threshold.
Walking through a corridor nearly sixty zhang long and winding around several corners, he discovered two neat rows of mighty men standing in the main hall.
At that moment.
A terrifying pressure descended upon him from above, formidable and awe-inspiring like a towering mountain or a vast ocean.
Yet the moment Ye Long recalled his plight, already in such a desperate situation with no way forward or backward, if he didn't fight with his life on the line now, where would he find a place for himself?
Once this fighting spirit was ignited, surging and churning through the crown of his head, a silent conviction became the driving force that propelled him relentlessly forward.
Little did he know.
The momentum surging from heaven and earth grew even more violent just a step away from him. What seemed like the only way out was actually fraught with danger.
How could someone like him, completely devoid of foundations, withstand such an overwhelming momentum?
And yet...
Even as Ye Long's legs shook and the muscles beneath his tattered clothes went into spasms, he forced himself to walk on amidst the cold wind.
With the pressure suddenly redoubling, nearly driving him to his knees, he had no choice but to keep stumbling forward.
Before even ten breaths had passed, his face was deathly pale and drenched in sweat.
Yet, remembering the suffocating life of his past life, all sorts of emotions tangled in his heart. He had failed to give his parents a peaceful life even unto death, and a thousandfold sense of shame burst forth together, instantly transforming into a silent strength that poured into every bone and limb of his body.
The pressure never relented, contorting his young face into a ferocious grimace, but there was no denying that the opportunity of rebirth in this lifetime coexisted with this trial.
His fate belonged only to himself, and he had to seize it.
Because of the threats from Dihu, he had been forced to become a beggar for the first time, which not only shattered his spine but rendered his self-respect entirely worthless.
This immense pressure felt precisely like silent mockery.
Ye Long's heart was filled with fury, burning like a fierce tiger breaking out of its cage.
He considered himself a man who would never be crushed by the cruel reality, yet he had recently been pointed at and mocked by others, and the pathetic part was that he had been completely powerless to talk back. That surge of indignation and outrage rushed straight into his heart.
It felt like giant waves crashing fiercely against his fragile soul.
At that moment, Ye Long took another step forward.
The pressure multiplied instantly, feeling as vast as a chasm between heaven and earth.
Aside from his pale complexion, which made him look severely ill and completely devoid of blood, his face was twisted out of human shape.
Looking at the main hall just a stone's throw away, the imposing aura of the two rows of burly men seemed like silent jeers.
How similar it was to when he was begging and everyone shouted for him to be beaten...
Even a tavern waiter could pick up a broom and shout threats of death at him. His dignity and pride were not only smashed to pieces but trampled into the dirt beyond recognition. This was beyond what any scholar or man could endure!
Forward, forward, keep going forward!
The pressure was infinite, endless, and beyond description!
A flood of emotions washed over Ye Long's heart, thoroughly transforming into a wordless blaze of anger.
Looking ahead, he hunched his back and charged forward step by step against the profound, ocean-like mountain of pressure.
Whenever he fell, he propped up his exhausted body and forced himself back up.
When the fighting spirit from the crown of his head flooded his entire body, this intangible strength became the "conviction" that inspired him never to fall here!
The moment he stood back up, sweat was already pouring off him like rain, and his tattered clothes felt exceptionally heavy, as if soaked in water.
"Thud!"
His small body suddenly felt heavier, making every step he took distinctly tangible.
As he planted his feet on the solid ground, a myriad of feelings filled his mind.
The will to survive, the longing for power, and unyielding conviction... squeezed out Ye Long's potential step by step.
"Ah!"
However, as the pressure erupted, his utterly exhausted body finally buckled under the unbearable burden.
Seeing that he was only a single step away from successfully reaching the main hall!
Ye Long couldn't help but feel a deep sense of resentment and fury. Could it really end here?
What about those grand dreams?
What about becoming a mighty expert?
Were they all nothing more than flowers in a mirror and the moon reflected in the water?
"No!!!"
Ye Long suddenly roared from the depths of his soul: "My fate is mine, not decided by the heavens! If I can't even withstand this, how can I ever hope to become a god or an ancestor?"
His otherworldly soul felt as though it were being constantly whipped, slicing into his flesh, dripping blood while intensifying the torment.
That inexpressible sensation and the emotion of fear surged forth. Should he give up, or should he keep going?
Once this question flashed through his mind, it became impossible to hold back.
"How could I possibly give up! Since walking is out of the question, I'll crawl even if I have to!"
He suddenly stretched out his pale, bloodless hands. The moment he clenched his fists, he reached them forward once more, dragging his battered body up to crawl.
Seeing a youth with such spirit, such stubborn attitude, and such fearless determination...
The expressions of the dozens of burly men in the two rows finally turned unsightly, and they began to wonder what kind of power was supporting Ye Long's such stubbornness.
Aside from looking grim, they felt a deep sense of shame. If even a mere boy could push himself to this extent, how could they possibly show their faces?
At that moment, Ye Long dragged himself forward and finally reached the end.
The mountain-like pressure dissipated into thin air. With a sense of relief, he closed his eyes, feeling as though he had overdrawn every ounce of strength in his body, leaving him utterly exhausted.
Clearly, he had no thoughts left—he just wanted to fall into a deep sleep right there!
Yet who would have thought.
Even in the moment of fainting, Ye Long seemed to still hear the whispered conversations of the crowd.
"This kid's got grit! I actually increased the pressure just now, and logically speaking, it should have been impossible for him to get through. But the result is simply incredible!"
"Ain't that the truth? I increased the pressure too. With such a stubborn temperament, it would be a real waste if he didn't learn martial arts!"
"You guys are way too ruthless! How could you go so heavy on a little kid like this? You can't have this boy—he's mine!"
"Qin Hu, what kind of nonsense are you barking? Don't think that just because you have a noble father you can do whatever you want. I'm taking this kid!"
......