A lucky cat fell from the sky.

Chapter 43 The Power of Martial Artists

Scarface was also a man who was good at reading people's expressions. Seeing that Wu Cheng didn't seem very interested, he quickly said, "Brother Wu Cheng, you don't know, this time I invited my master to help you change your strength, and you don't need to pay for it."

"I will cover all the expenses."

Wu Cheng's heart skipped a beat. The cost of hiring someone to replace the force was not cheap. It seemed that Scarface was going to have to spend a lot of money.

Since Scarface is bleeding so much, it means that the opponent who asked me to help him this time is very powerful.

He wasn't very familiar with Scarface, and they hadn't reached the point of having a life-or-death bond. Besides, if he were to actually fight, the cost would be unpredictable, making it an unprofitable deal.

Scarface was about to say something when the gaunt old man snorted, "Kid, do you think I can be asked by just anyone? Exchanging strength for someone is extremely costly for me, and I haven't even said I'm unwilling. Why are you making excuses?"

Wu Cheng wasn't afraid of the skinny old man. He had now mastered the Spiritual Rhinoceros Finger technique, and with Jin Wanliang's dynamic vision, he could hold his own against a martial arts apprentice. Moreover, he could buy time, making him almost invincible.

However, he didn't want to offend the old man right now, so he shrugged and explained, "It's not that I don't want to change my power, it's just that I haven't reached the level to change my power yet. Can I even change it?"

The gaunt old man was taken aback, looked Wu Cheng up and down, then turned to Scarface: "Are you kidding me? You invited me here to help someone who's just started practicing martial arts change their strength?"

Scarface looked bewildered: "That's impossible. Last time, Brother Wu Cheng was able to fight Tong Dali to a standstill, and even beat Tong Dali. Logically speaking, his strength should have reached the half-step martial apprentice realm."

The gaunt old man glared at Scarface: "Whose judgment do you think is better? You made me come all this way for nothing."

Scarface didn't dare to argue with the skinny old man, so he turned to Wu Cheng and said, "Brother, you're so skilled, how come you're just a beginner? Let's not hide our strength from each other."

Wu Cheng smiled wryly. He hadn't really been hiding his strength; he was just different from others.

However, he didn't want to remain in that awkward situation, so he asked Scarface, "You asked me to help you fight, but who exactly are you going to fight?"

Scarface glanced at the gaunt old man, who was stern-faced, and said somewhat dejectedly, "Actually, it's not about hitting anyone. I just heard that men who reach the Martial Apprentice realm before the age of twenty-four can develop their own power."

"Last time I saw how strong you were, even stronger than Tong Dali who was about to reach the Martial Apprentice realm, I thought you were about to reach the Martial Apprentice realm. To enter the Martial Apprentice realm, you need someone to help you exchange your strength."

"I just want to help my brother reach the Martial Apprentice realm. Then, the two of us brothers can conquer the world together and bring all the university clubs in the Longqiu area under our control."

He sighed as he said this, "But now it all seems to be empty."

Wu Cheng became interested after hearing Scarface's words. He knew that the Lu family had already extended their reach into university campuses. If the Lu family were to develop, it would be difficult for him to step on Young Master Lu.

He was just thinking about how to deal with the Lu family when someone conveniently delivered a pillow to his head when he was about to fall asleep.

“Scarface, you should have said so earlier,” Wu Cheng said. “Although I haven’t reached the Martial Apprentice level yet, I should still be able to contribute something if I want to take over a few school clubs.”

Before he could finish speaking, the gaunt old man shouted at him, "Extremely arrogant! You really don't know your place!"

He started looking down on Wu Cheng as soon as he arrived, which made Wu Cheng quite unhappy.

I was initially reluctant to argue with him out of respect for Scarface, but the old man seemed to be taking advantage of my kindness.

Wu Cheng glanced at the gaunt old man: "Master He, what do you mean by that? What do you mean by 'not knowing the immensity of heaven and earth'?"

“I’m talking about you,” the gaunt old man said. “Do you know what kind of punishment you’ll receive if you try to subdue a gang before you turn twenty-four and reach the Martial Apprentice realm?”

"Punishment? Who will punish me?" Wu Cheng was unaware of these circumstances.

“Of course, whoever makes the decision should be punished,” the gaunt old man said. “Otherwise, do you think we martial arts apprentices wouldn’t want to subdue a few forces?”

"Then who made these rules?" Wu Cheng had never practiced martial arts, so of course he didn't know.

"The Military Department." The gaunt old man uttered two words, his eyes filled with awe.

"The Military Department?" Wu Cheng's heart skipped a beat when he heard the words "Military Department".

"The Martial Arts Department devised this plan in order to develop martial arts practitioners outside of the Martial Arts University. It stipulates that as long as a martial arts practitioner reaches the level of Martial Apprentice before the age of twenty-four, he or she can have his own power recognized by the Martial Arts Department."

"Moreover, the leaders of these forces who have received promises from the Martial Arts Department can gain admission to Tianwu University, which is directly under the Martial Arts Department, if they achieve a top-ten ranking in the Martial Arts Tournament organized by the Martial Arts Department."

"Tianwu University never recruits students publicly; it has always recruited martial arts talents in this way. These martial arts talents will become the leaders of various prefectures and counties in the Jiuyuan Kingdom, and their own forces will also become the management of various prefectures and counties." The gaunt old man said this with great regret.

Originally, when Scarface said he discovered that Wu Cheng's martial arts strength was comparable to that of a half-step martial apprentice and asked him to help him exchange power, he was extremely excited and immediately rushed to Longqiu.

Upon arriving in Longqiu, he discovered that Wu Cheng was merely a novice martial artist. This feeling was akin to suddenly going from spring to winter, or being doused with ice water in the scorching summer.

"Since they are martial arts seeds, isn't it better to be stronger even if the realm is lower?" Wu Cheng thought to himself.

“That’s right. If you can publicly defeat a Martial Apprentice before reaching the Martial Apprentice realm, it’s equivalent to having the strength of a Martial Apprentice, and you’ll be qualified.” The gaunt old man glanced at Wu Cheng with disdain. “Don’t even think about it. With your strength, it’s simply impossible for you to defeat a Martial Apprentice.”

Wu Cheng, however, was filled with excitement. He had always been an outsider to the martial arts world, so he was unaware of this news.

Now that he heard that as long as one has the strength of a martial apprentice and develops enough power, one is qualified to participate in the entrance selection of Tianwu University, how could Wu Cheng not be excited?

He wanted to jump three feet high: "How can I publicly defeat Wu Tu?"

The gaunt old man glanced at Wu Cheng a few times: "Toad Swallowing the Sky, you have quite the nerve. Didn't Scarface tell you that a martial arts apprentice is no match for a direct confrontation?"

"I did say that, but I still don't believe it. You have to try things to know."

The gaunt old man was amused by Wu Cheng's words: "Fine, today I'll teach you how to be a man. How about this, if you can last three moves against me, I'll be convinced and I can teach you the technique of exchanging force in advance."

Wu Cheng shook his head: "What use is it for me to submit to you? Besides, I don't want to learn the power-changing technique. But during the competition, could you film a verification video? That way, it would count as publicly defeating a martial arts apprentice, right?"