The Divine Martial Stars

That night, Li Mu received a load of top-secret electronic documents. Most of them were about what the military had learned about the Qinling Heaven. Also, there was information about the various experts who had lurked in Qinling since the first day and had already entered the Qinling Heaven before the others.

Among those experts, some were foreigners.

Although the military attached great importance to the opening of Qinling Heaven, there was one thing that they failed to foresee. To their surprise, an inexplicable earthquake made the Qinling Heaven open before the date the military predicted through various methods. Their plans seemed to be flawed. Moreover, as Qinling area was very large, even though the military wanted to lock it up, they could not possibly keep everyone away from it.

Besides, the martial arts experts of all parties had very powerful means. Ordinary soldiers couldn't resist them at all.

This was also why the country paid so much attention to the martial arts forces now. The government hoped to build a Wulin army with cohesive force and fighting capacity. Furthermore, to put it in the currently popular phrase, it was to establish a more rational and scientific martial arts ecology.

The military hoped that Li Mu would take charge of the exploration of the Qinling Heaven and look after the Chinese cultivators who entered it in order to avoid casualties as much as possible and prevent the divine treasures in the Heaven from being stolen by foreigners.

Li Mu agreed to this request without hesitation.

Everything was going on in an orderly manner.

According to the news coming from the front, the advance troops had been sent over in an emergency to take control of the situation.

On that night, the military had already informed all the major sects attending the Martial Arts Society Assembly and began making the list of candidates who would enter the Qinling Heaven.

As those entering the Heaven had a high chance of change and recuperation, from the military's perspective, the most important conditions for the selection were not talent or aptitude but good quality and loyalty to the nation and the people.

Huge waves were stirred up in the entire Martial Arts Gym.

It was the opening of the Heaven! Who wouldn't want to get a chance to enter it?

All kinds of arguments and struggles were getting going vehemently.

As one of the biggest sects in the martial arts world and also one of the sects that cooperated most smoothly with the military, the Divine God Sect naturally got large quota. Lu Haoran, Head of the Sect, six second-generation disciples, and some third-generation disciples, including Lu Xun and Lu Yan'er, were qualified to enter. It could be said that the Divine God Sect had obtained a lot of benefits.

In comparison, the True Spirit Sect, one of the Seven Sacred Sects as well, had only received a quota for three. Just like the Star Observing Sect, it was the sect that attained the least spots.

"Why? Why do they only give us three spots? It's not fair!"

Ling Hewu, Head of the True Spirit Sect, flew into a rage.

Dongfang Yun, the Seven Star Sword God, Head of Star Observing Sect, also made such a roar.

Following them, the sects who had fewer quotas, and even those who received zero quotas, started to stir restlessly, not obeying the military's arrangements.

"We want to see the Chief of the Army!"

"Get us a person who is as good as his words."

"On what grounds do you forbid us to go there?"

"Humph, this is a plot, a plot of the military! They've lured us here just to prevent us from entering the Qinling Heaven. How shameless you are!"

Some people began fanning the flames.

Inside the Martial Arts Gym, the situation was gradually going out of control.

At this moment, the military cars arranged by the army had already entered the Martial Arts Gym.

The picked candidates of the major sects began to get on the vehicles pursuant to the military's arrangements. They would go to the nearest high-speed railway station in convoy, then, take a high-speed rail arranged specifically for the occasion to rush to Baoji before heading for Qinling.

That was the route they would take.

Fully armed elite soldiers directly surrounded the entire Martial Arts Gym. They divided the gym into different regions. When it came to the selection of candidates, the military showed extreme firmness and would never make any concession.

The reason was very simple.

About 90% of the names on the list had been picked by Li Mu in person.

In the past half a month, all the people in the gym had been under Li Mu's observation. He knew very clearly about which of them were reliable and which were despicable. The remaining 10% of the quota was deliberately given to the military to let them have some leeway.

Lu Xun, Lu Yan'er, and the other young disciples followed the team of the Divine God Sect to the military vehicles that were waiting for them. On their way, they saw a great number of "fellows" gathering on both sides of the road.

They saw their angry, anxious, and distorted faces. Among those people, many were Head of the Sect and well-known seniors. Surprisingly, they did not get the opportunity to enter the Heaven. The contrast suddenly made them feel that they were quite lucky to have gained the recognition of the military.

"Eh?" Lu Yan'er suddenly reached out and poked Lu Xun who was next to her and yelled, "Eldest Senior Fellow Apprentice, look, your new friend is here too."

Following Lu Yan'er's gaze, Lu Xun noticed that the dull-witted soldier that he had fought with two times was already sitting in a military vehicle in the front. It was obvious that he had also obtained a place to go to the Qinling Heaven.

This took Lu Xun by surprise.

"Could this soldier be neither in rear services or security services of the Martial Arts Gym, but also someone in the martial arts circle?"

"No, that's not right."

At this moment, Xiao Dong, who was sitting in the military vehicle, certainly spotted Lu Xun and the others as well. He subconsciously waved his hand at them and said hello.

The corners of Lu Xun's mouth twitched. He pretended he did not see Xiao Dong at all.

Lu Yan'er, however, waved back in response with a broad smile on her face.

Lu Xun did not know that the Divine God Sect's team was soon be assigned by the military to the car which Xiao Dong was riding. With that, Lu Xun could no longer pretend that he didn't see Xiao Dong anymore. So, he greeted Xiao Dong with an unnatural expression— the bruises Xiao Dong left on his face that night had yet faded.

Lu Yan'er, instead, took the seat beside Xiao Dong by herself. Seeing a short-haired young man in a white Li Ning sportswear sitting next to him, she asked curiously, "Is he your friend?"

Xiao Dong quickly shook his head and corrected, "He's my master."

"Master?" Lu Yan'er said, taken aback, "Such a young man? Which sect are you from?"

Before Xiao Dong could speak, the young man with short hair in white sportswear looked over his shoulder and answered, "Divine Broadsword Sect."

The disciples of the Divine God Sect were all at a loss when they heard that.

"There seems to be no sect called the Divine Broadsword Sect attending in this Martial Arts Society Assembly, does there?"

Lu Haoran, who was sitting by the side, was also staggered.

He could tell that this young soldier named Xiao Dong must be the boy who had fought with his grandson, Lu Xun, twice and won once. But what he was more interested in was the "master" Xiao Dong just introduced. Since the "master" could enable Xiao Dong to beat up with just a few hours' teaching, Lu Haoran assumed that he was a martial arts expert who treated life as a game. But to his shock, the "master" turned out to be so young, just like a college student.

"Little brother, we haven't met before." Lu Haoran took the initiative to greet him, "I'm Lu Haoran from the Divine God Sect."

"Yeah, we haven't met before." The young man in white sportswear merely nodded in response. He then lowered his head to look at an electronic file he was holding.

Lu Xun and a few other young members were a little cross to see this.

"Did he already finish the greeting?"

"He just met the top-ranked expert of the Seven Sacred Sects, who could even be said to be one of the most powerful experts in the martial arts world nowadays. How could he be so calm and indifferent? Is he trying to put on an act?"

The younger generation of the Divine God Sect felt rather upset.

Lu Haoran, by contrast, did not take it seriously.

He couldn't see how strong this young man was. Nor could he sense any fluctuation of internal power from him. Still, Lu Haoran faintly felt that there was an indescribable and bizarre aura about the young man.

"Little brother, are you also a member of the martial arts society?" Lu Haoran asked again.

The young man closed the electronic document, turned around, and said with a smile, "No, I'm the military consultant, so it's normal that Senior hasn't seen me in the Martial Arts Gym before. I've heard a lot about Senior. You're the number one expert in the Seven Sacred Sects. Now that I've met you in person, I see you do live up to your reputation."

These words filled those of the Divine God Sect with joy.

Lu Haoran solemnly shook his head and said, "There is no first place in literature and no second place in martial arts. I'm already out of date. My little friend, you, instead, have a limitless future waiting for you."

The young man in white sportswear smiled. Just as he made to say something, the noise outside became louder and louder. The martial arts practitioners who didn't get the chance to explore the Qinling Heaven began to attack the defense line formed by the soldiers, trying to forcibly climb up the military vehicles that were about to set off.

The situation was getting worse.

"We need an explanation!"

Ling Hewu, Head of the True Spirit Sect, shouted out loud.

Her sect had only obtained three spots. They felt that they had been insulted. As such, they did not send any of their members to get on the vehicle. Instead, they tried to goad those who also harbored similar dissatisfaction into coercing the military to earn more benefits.

It appeared that the situation would go out of control any second.

Lu Haoran frowned. He stood up, climbed out of the car, strode to the roadside, and said loudly, "Everybody, be quiet for a moment. Please listen to me." As he spoke, he employed his internal power so that his voice boomed and directly drowned the racket.

As the head of the Divine God Sect and the number one expert of the Seven Sacred Sects, Lu Haoran still enjoyed considerable prestige and high status in the martial arts world. The moment he spoke, the order was restored to some extent, and many people turned to look at this highly respected elder.

"Everyone, the number of people who can get in when each time the Heaven opens is limited. The military has made the greatest compromise and weighed the whole thing. Fellows in the martial arts world, we are all citizens of China, so how can the military deliberately sabotage us? This time it's the Qinling Heaven that opens. Next time when other Heavens open, it will be your turn to enter. Please stay patient."

Lu Haoran explained to the crowd earnestly.

However, such an answer obviously could not satisfy those who already let their jealousy get the better of themselves.

"Old man, get the hell out of here!"

"Send someone from the military to talk to us!"

"Has the Divine God Sect already become a lackey of the government?"

"You want to play innocent when you already took such a bribe? How many places did your Divine God Sect get? If you're really doing this for the sake of all of us, just give up a few of your places…"

Angry shouts that intended to stir up the trouble came from all over the place.

The disciples of the True Spirit Sect and the Star Observing Sect were the ones who shouted loudest. They were deliberately agitating the others, protesting with all their might. The heads of the two major sects were just watching Lu Haoran with a sneer on the roadside.

In the military vehicle, the disciples of the Divine God Sect were trembling with rage when they heard the protests.

At this moment, Lu Haoran took a deep breath and announced, "Well then, our Divine God Sect now gives up five places…" He turned to look at the military vehicle, then named five people. "Lu Xun, Yan'er… the five of you, come out. You can enter other Heavens if there is any more chance."

Lu Xun and the other four youngsters' countenance suddenly changed.

However, this was the head's decision. Although they felt regretful and disappointed, they did not dare to show their discontent and all got off the military vehicle at Lu Haoran's command.

"Only five?" Ling Hewu, Head of the True Spirit Sect, laughed coldly and then said, "Your Divine God Sect has obtained at least 20 places. How could you expect to convince us by giving up just five of them? Old Lu, if you truly have our best interest at heart, why don't you give up all the place allocated to your Divine God Sect? You will have your chance next time anyway."

By this moment, it could be considered that their friendship had come to an open break.

In the face of real interests, it seemed that there was no need to keep the pretenses of cordiality going.

Hearing this, Lu Xun and the other youths were infuriated.

However, before they could open their mouths to speak, a voice rang from the military car behind them. "The Divine God Sect won't give up a single place allocated to them. The original three places distributed to the True Spirit Sect are all canceled from this moment on."

The voice was very calm as if it was talking about something rather ordinary. Yet, it contained a kind of power that no one could construe, as though it had crossed all the noise and distinctively reached everyone's ears.

Lu Xun and the others subconsciously turned their heads back, only to see Xiao Dong's master, the short-haired young man in white sportswear, get out of the car and walk towards the crowd.

The person who spoke just now was precisely him.

"Little bastard, who do you think you are? Do you think you can take away True Spirit Sect's quota with your little power?" Ling Hewu cursed in a fit of anger and amusement.

She had had a feeling that ever since the incident in Baoji City, all the people in her sect had been targeted. Now even a young man with no fluctuation of internal power dared to speak to her like this. This almost drove her mad.

The young man in white remarked, "I'm nobody, but you should thank your parents properly."

"What do you mean?" Ling Hewu demanded, fuming.

"If it wasn't for the fact that they let you born as a Chinese, you would have died 10,000 times by now," the young man said in a placid tone. "Not only will the True Spirit Sect no longer have the opportunity to enter the True Spirit Sect, but the True Spirit Sect will not be able to enter any of the Heavens that may open in our country in the future."

"Little bastard, do you know who you are talking to?" Ling Hewu was so angry that she was trembling from head to toe.

As the head of one of the Seven Sacred Sects, when had she ever been scolded by such a young man in front of so many martial arts fellows? Her killing intent was already rising.

"I know who I'm talking to, but obviously, you don't," the young man in white said calmly. His tone sounded like he was announcing a verdict. "My previous words apply not only the True Spirit Sect but also all the other sects that are making trouble. You don't have the chance to enter the Qinling Heaven today, nor will you ever get a chance to enter any other Heavens in the future. But don't try to place the law-does-not-punish-numerous-offenders card. This is not a kids' game. Do you really expect that you'll get fed if you make a scene? It's so naive of you."

He looked at the thousands of martial arts cultivators on the side of the road, ready to break through the soldiers' defense and occupy the military vehicles at any time, and said with stress at every syllabus, "Before you want to vie for the good fortune in the Heaven, ask yourselves if you are worthy of such a chance… Only real martial art cultivators who understand the meaning of justice are qualified to enter the blessed land… Anyone who hasn't been picked will die if he crosses this line!"

The young man in white casually flung a finger in the air.

A streak of white Broadsword Qi flashed out, leaving a fist-thick and 100-meter-long mark on the flagged floor under his feet.