Degrade from Nobility to a Humble Slave

Zen didn't know what to say. The renting business was flourishing because of the initial exam. The youngsters in the Imperial Capital were making every effort to pass the exam. "But if we use an external object, won't that be considered cheating?" Zen wondered.

Cloud Sect intended to use the initial exam to weed out the weaker applicants. Wouldn't it be a bit unfair if weapons were not banned during the exam?

Nory smiled, "Bro, what you haven't considered is that Cloud Sect has many disciples, so many geniuses. The Sect won't pay too much attention to the initial exam. We aren't outer disciples. No energy will be wasted on the trifles in the initial exam. As long as we don't kill each other, they don't give a fig what weapon you use or whether you get into a brawl here."

With the help of Nory's explanation, Zen realized that while Cloud Sect did have very strict rules and regulations, they were for their formal disciples. This initial exam was a sieve with a large mesh to strain out those who didn't fit the bill.

As soon as Nory finished his explanation, he gasped. The bangle could only counteract half the pressure, but the remaining pressure still made running hard for Nory.

"Stop talking. Just focus on your pace," Zen reminded him.

Nory nodded. He clenched his teeth and kept moving forward. He grimaced as he challenged his limits.

Zen was running rather comfortably. Since a while had passed, he had gotten accustomed to the pressure. Now, he could even ignore the pressure completely.

As time wore on and people began feeling the effects of the pressure, exhaustion began settling it. They started falling behind. Instead of a long line of runners, the road now had groups of scattered participants on it. Zen looked around and found that he and Nory were the only two people on this section of the road.

A moment later, Zen noticed a hulking figure speeding forward. A big man, as strong as an ox was approaching quickly with fast, large steps.

Soon the big man caught up with Zen. Just as he was about to pass Nory, he changed direction and hurtled toward Nory. Before Zen could warn his friend, the big man's shoulder bumped hard against Nory. Nory had been concentrating on his pace as his strength was being strained to the limit. He had lowered his head and had been running forward desperately.

This bump came out of the blue. A scream escaped Nory's lips as he lost his balance. After staggering for a few steps, Nory fell.

"What are you doing?" Zen demanded angrily. Since Nory had no beef with this man, his behavior was way out of line. Before Zen could finish, the man sped up and turned in Zen's direction. Seeing the man closing in quickly, Zen's expression changed. Secretly, he commanded all his strength to flow all over his body.

A brittle smile spread over the man's face. According to what he could gauge, Zen was just at the organ refining level. Since he had already entered the marrow refining level, the man was confident that he had certain advantages in terms of his strength and body. A malicious grin appeared on his face when the man saw that Zen was standing still, waiting for the attack. Apparently, Zen had no idea who he was dealing with. The man was certain that the collision would break every damn bone in Zen's body.

When the man thought of the result of the clash, he felt his blood began to boil. He increased his force by fifty percent. But as soon as he cannoned into Zen, his expression changed. This collision should have sent Zen flying onto the ground like a sandbag. The force should have shattered all his bones and killed him.

Instead, the man felt as though he had run headfirst into a hill, while Zen remained unmoved from his spot. Had the force the man used been re-directed back to him?

The recoil sent the man stumbling back several steps. His expression couldn't have been more shocked as if he had seen a ghost. How could this brat get such a tough body? It was like his body was made of steel rather than of flesh and blood.

Zen ignored the man's astonished glare. As usual, the attack on his body unleashed warm currents. Zen could feel the warmth flooding his body. He glanced at Nory before turning to the man and coldly saying "We've got no beef with you. Why did you do that? You want a fight?"

The man fumbled for a purple pill in his pocket. As soon as his fingers closed around the object, he pulled it out and swallowed it. "True, I have no beef with you. But someone wants you to fail the exam," he said with a laugh.

"Who is that?" Zen asked stiffly.

The man didn't reply to Zen's question. He turned and ran off with a grin. "You'd better quit the exam as soon as possible. Or else, not only are you going to fail the exam, but you will get yourself killed." Zen stared at the man's retreating back with a grim expression.

Solving the riddle was a cinch for Zen. He knew who was behind all this.

Since he didn't know anyone in the Imperial Capital, the only person with motive to do this was Perrin. Perrin had resorted to low tricks to prevent Zen from joining Cloud Sect. Zen's face grew cold as he thought about this.00000