Chapter 1145: Great Star Luo Finger Force

"Teacher..."

Hall Master Wei and Xiao Bo stood frozen, both stunned. They had only been gone to the Internal Cultivation Channel for a moment. How had so many combat masters in the Internal Cultivation Hall become this person's students?

This apprenticeship happened so quickly!

Hall Master Wei, in particular, was utterly bewildered and confused.

Although the Combat Master Hall's orders had to be obeyed without question, the relationship between hall masters, division masters, and ordinary combat masters was like brothers, without overly rigid hierarchies. Because of this, both Shi Hao and Xiao Bo spoke freely to him, never deliberately flattering him just because he was the Hall Master.

They were all brothers... then suddenly a "teacher" appeared...

He had just been thinking of recruiting the person into the Internal Cultivation Hall, but instead, the person had become everyone's teacher... What kind of situation was this?

Just as he wondered if this Teacher Sun had cast some spell on them, he heard the young man standing in front shake his head.

"Get up! The path of cultivation isn't about working in isolation; it's about mutual exchange. From now on, just exchange ideas; there's no need to call me 'teacher'!"

Zhang Xuan was helpless. He had merely given a casual explanation, not expecting these people to suddenly take him as their master.

"Teacher Sun's explanation was incisive, pinpointing the core of cultivation. We benefited immensely. Calling you 'teacher' is not an exaggeration; on the contrary, we've gained a great deal!" Shi Hao said.

He was a renowned and exceptionally proud genius from the Combat Master Hall. Normally, not even a Hall Master could earn his complete respect, but he sincerely admired the person before him, without the slightest disrespect. Not only had the person pointed out the problems and critical points in his cultivation, but more importantly, the explanation just now was like divine music. As long as they properly assimilated it, the reserves of True Qi in their bodies would undoubtedly advance further, reaching an unbelievable level.

To explain such a profound cultivation method without any reservation, without any concealment or withholding...

This generosity alone was worthy of being called "teacher," truly and sincerely, without any pretense.

"Yes, Teacher Sun, we sincerely wish to call you 'teacher.' Please don't decline!"

"With the methods Teacher explained, our strength will definitely improve significantly in a short time, and passing the assessment will be effortless!"

The others also hurried to say.

"This..." Hall Master Wei was stunned again.

He had just suspected that Teacher Sun might have used some unsavory means to recruit the Internal Cultivation Hall's combat masters, but seeing this scene, it now appeared that their combat masters were learning sincerely and had even gained benefits. He had only been in the channel for a short while... What exactly did he explain to make so many people so impressed?

"Alright!"

Seeing their unquestionable attitude, Zhang Xuan, though reluctant, nodded. Just as he said, his extensive explanations were merely for exchange, not to take disciples. He hadn't expected so many people to collectively call him "teacher," which left him at a loss.

Being too excellent could indeed be troublesome; everywhere he went, people wanted to become his disciples, which was also a kind of annoyance.

"Hall Master Wei, you're back... Let's go to the Martial Arts Hall!"

Unsure what to do, Zhang Xuan quickly called out when he saw Hall Master Wei approaching.

"Alright..."

Knowing that the other party was using him to fend off the enthusiasm of the many combat masters, Hall Master Wei could only nod. Without further words, he led the way toward the Martial Arts Hall.

The Martial Arts Hall was not far from the Internal Cultivation Hall. After walking for a while, they arrived.

"Hall Master Feng is a good friend of mine; we've known each other for over three hundred years. If it's just to look at some cultivation techniques, he'll definitely agree if I ask!" Hall Master Wei chuckled as they walked through the hall.

Hall Master Feng was once a very famous master teacher in the Qingyuan Empire's Master Teacher Pavilion. He was proficient in various martial arts and possessed astonishing combat power, which was why Hall Master Xing specifically hired him to guide the many combat masters in the Martial Arts Hall, making him the Hall Master. The two had become acquainted many years ago and were now very close friends.

"Reporting, Hall Master Wei, our Hall Master went out and hasn't returned yet..."

A combat master came forward to greet them.

"Not back?" Hall Master Wei frowned.

The combat master's face was full of apologies.

"When he returns, please tell him I came to look for him..." Since the other party wasn't there, there was nothing to be done, so Hall Master Wei could only shake his head.

"Yes!" The combat master nodded and smiled. "Actually, Hall Master Wei doesn't need to find Hall Master Feng. The Hall Master has indeed collected many martial arts techniques and cultivation methods, but they aren't kept on his person. Instead, they are in the Martial Arts Channel. As long as one successfully passes the challenge, they can enter and read for as long as they wish, and even copy them freely!"

"Challenge?" Hall Master Wei was surprised. He rarely visited the Martial Arts Hall and was unaware of many things.

"Yes, the Martial Arts Hall has hundreds of martial arts and cultivation techniques that you can choose to learn. As long as you can defeat the puppet left by the Hall Master using the same martial art, you succeed!" the combat master explained.

Hall Master Wei understood. It was essentially a form of assessment for the combat masters. It was somewhat similar to their Internal Cultivation Channel. Only by cultivating one martial art to a certain level could one learn new ultimate moves; otherwise, trying to learn too many things would be counterproductive—no matter how much they learned, it would be useless.

"Teacher Sun..." Understanding the situation, Hall Master Wei looked at Zhang Xuan, who was not far away.

"I can go over and try it..." Zhang Xuan smiled. Since he could see the books by passing the assessment, there was no need to owe a favor.

"Alright then, I'll take you there!"

The combat master smiled and led the way.

Before long, everyone arrived at a spacious hall. Like the previous Internal Cultivation Channel, it was crowded with combat masters, each with a solemn expression on their faces.

"This is the Martial Arts Channel. On the wall ahead are the names of the martial arts. As long as you cultivate any one of them to the Grand Completion stage, you can enter and challenge the puppet left by Hall Master Feng! Then you can enter the library to choose more secret manuals... Teacher Sun, please see if there's any martial art you're familiar with? If so, I can register you now!"

The combat master looked at him. Through their conversation, he had learned that it wasn't Hall Master Wei who wanted to read the books, but the person before him. For a Hall Master to personally accompany him, the combat master was full of curiosity about this person.

"I'll take a look!"

Zhang Xuan nodded and looked at the wall not far away. It was densely covered with the names of martial arts: "Thousand-Leaf Palm," "Mortal Strand Fist," "Star Finger"...

There was a wide variety, and he counted them—there were as many as two hundred types!

"This... so many?"

Zhang Xuan was shocked.

"Our Hall Master loves collecting these. This collection includes all Saint-grade martial arts in the Qingyuan Empire. Does Teacher Sun specialize in any of them?" the combat master asked with a smile.

"Well..."

Zhang Xuan felt a little awkward. "These martial arts, I'm hearing about them for the first time... I haven't practiced any of them yet..."

These martial arts were unique to the Combat Master Hall, and even to the Qingyuan Empire. He had only been here for less than a day, and honestly, these more than two hundred names were all new to him, let alone having practiced them.

The combat master was stunned. "Most of these are very common Saint-grade martial arts. Teacher Sun... despite being at the peak of Saint 1-dan, you haven't practiced a single one?"

Out of two hundred martial arts, one hundred and eighty were very common and not difficult to learn. Not having learned a single one... how low must his starting point be!

"I've only learned one Saint-grade martial art, but it's not among these two hundred..."

Zhang Xuan gave a bitter smile. The martial arts he knew were ones he had learned previously, none of which had reached the Saint-grade level yet. The only Saint-grade one, the Great Compassion Heavenly Demon Palm, he had only learned for a short time and later stopped practicing much because he felt it had too many flaws.

"Only learned one? And it's not even among these?"

The combat master looked at him with a sympathetic expression. He had thought Zhang Xuan was a young genius from a prominent family, but it turned out he was an inexperienced fellow. People in the Martial Arts Hall wouldn't even dare to claim they knew martial arts unless they had cultivated at least three to five sets...

"That's right!" Zhang Xuan thought for a moment, then said, "How about this, do you have any Saint-grade martial arts here? Let me have a look; I'll learn one and see if I can try to pass through the channel..."

Since he hadn't learned any of the listed martial arts, he could only pick one at random and learn it on the spot.

"Learn one? And then pass through the channel?"

The combat master was stunned and almost burst out laughing. To be honest, if it weren't for Hall Master Wei bringing him, he probably would have already started cursing. Saint-grade martial arts were common in the Martial Arts Hall, but in the Qingyuan Empire, they were considered ultimate techniques. Did this person really think they were like weeds by the roadside, something you could just pick up and learn instantly?

Which of those who came to challenge the channel hadn't spent at least several years researching a single martial art? Even true geniuses wouldn't dare to challenge without at least two years of study... But this guy, judging by his tone, wanted to learn it now and then immediately challenge...

His ignorance was truly frightening!

"Learning martial arts isn't that easy. Each one requires extensive practice and refinement over unknown years of arduous effort..." Suppressing his displeasure, he still patiently explained.

"I know... Do you have a secret technique? Just let me take a look at it. If I can master it, I naturally will; if not, then I'll just give up!" Zhang Xuan said. If the other party's martial art could combine with the ones he had collected to form a Heavenly Dao cultivation technique, then practicing it wouldn't hurt. If not, he wouldn't bother even if it were given to him for free, as it would be a waste of effort.

"This... fine!"

Glancing at Hall Master Wei, who was not far away, the combat master suppressed the urge to erupt, flipped his wrist, and produced a book.

"This is the Great Star Luo Finger Art, which I practice. It's one of these two hundred martial arts and is quite difficult. I spent a full seven years immersed in it to achieve minor accomplishment..."

The combat master introduced it. While saying "seven years," a hint of pride showed on his face.

"Achieved minor accomplishment in the Great Star Luo Finger Art in just seven years... Are you perhaps Jiao Tan, the super genius of the Martial Arts Hall that Hall Master Feng often mentions?" Hall Master Wei's eyebrows shot up as he remembered something.

When they had asked for Hall Master Feng earlier, only this combat master was present, so they had just casually inquired without knowing his name. Now, hearing the martial art's name and the cultivation time, he finally recalled. Among the two hundred martial arts, the Great Star Luo Finger Art was definitely considered the most difficult and most powerful. Even Hall Master Feng himself had taken a full twenty-three years to achieve minor accomplishment. For the person before him to achieve minor accomplishment in just seven years, his talent was truly terrifying.

"Indeed, that would be me!" Combat Master Jiao Tan nodded, a surge of arrogance welling up within him.