In chaotic times, one can become a martial immortal.

As night falls, the lights are on.

After changing into a clean blue robe, Lu Yuan walked directly out of the room.

Not long after, he met Jiang Ying, who had just come out.

Upon seeing Lu Yuan, the petite Jiang Ying skipped and hopped quickly over.

The two walked side by side, their height difference extremely noticeable.

After walking for a while, they encountered Ji Baiying, who was beaming with joy.

I just attended Jin Wuming's banquet this afternoon, and now I'm here to attend Murong Jue's banquet.

Despite attending two banquets in a row, he didn't seem annoyed at all; on the contrary, he appeared quite pleased with himself.

Ji Baiying was dressed in a white brocade robe, wearing a white jade crown, and had a small sachet hanging from her waist.

"Are you going to the banquet too?"

Ji Baiying looked at Lu Yuan and Jiang Ying, her brows furrowing slightly.

Why would two people destined to have no future go to a banquet full of geniuses?

Lu Yuan looked up at Ji Baiying, a strange look appearing in his eyes.

Compared to before, this top scorer in the imperial examination in Qinghe County seems to have become a bit more arrogant.

"If you can go, why can't we?"

Jiang Ying then spoke directly.

"Go then, but remember to be careful with your words and actions later, and don't cause any trouble. If you offend anyone you shouldn't, I won't care!"

Ji Baiying gave a light snort and said directly.

"It's none of your business!"

Jiang Ying pouted.

Lu Yuan didn't say anything more and continued walking forward.

A moment later, they arrived at the venue for the banquet.

It looks like a miniature palace, with pavilions, towers, bridges, and flowing water.

There is also a clear lake with rippling blue waves, reflecting the lights.

It is not only quite serene and unique, but also quite stylish.

"Brother Lu Yuan!"

Upon seeing Lu Yuan appear, Zheng Xu and Zhang Hu both greeted him with smiles on their faces.

"Brother Lu Yuan, who are they...?"

Next, the two introduced Lu Yuan to several newly acquainted geniuses, most of whom had first-rate physical attributes.

It's easy to imagine that, apart from him and Jiang Ying, who have no future, the people who could attend this banquet were probably all first-rate geniuses, and there should even be quite a few super-first-rate geniuses.

"Brother Lu Yuan, you should be at the ninth rank by now, right?"

Someone asked curiously.

"Um!"

Lu Yuan nodded. He was already at the eighth rank of Bronze Muscle, so revealing his ninth rank wouldn't matter.

"Truly amazing! Brother Lu Yuan looks no more than seventeen years old, yet he's already at the ninth rank. I'm afraid he has a real chance of reaching the gold rank, let alone the bronze rank!"

"A 9th-rank cultivator at seventeen is extremely rare, even within the Martial Academy. He's sure to go far beyond the first rank!"

Several geniuses praised Lu Yuan to the skies, saying he would reach the sixth rank in three years, the first rank in five years, and become a martial arts grandmaster in ten years. They practically said he would become a saint or a god. It was quite a spectacle, and it attracted more and more people.

"He has average physical constitution. He must have taken a secret medicine and overdrawn his potential, or he must have had a fortuitous encounter to achieve his current success. His future is already set."

At this moment, Ji Baiying suddenly came over and spoke to everyone.

Upon hearing this, the crowd immediately lost interest and quickly dispersed.

Lu Yuan, whose "background" was known, didn't care at all; on the contrary, he was happy to have some peace and quiet.

Another small, neglected creature, also considered to have no future, was busy battling with various delicacies on the sidelines.

"A lot of powerful people have come to the banquet. You all better stay put and don't cause me any trouble!"

After saying something to the two of them, Ji Baiying walked towards the geniuses with a big smile on her face.

Lu Yuan simply shook his head at this.

When Ji Baiying first arrived at the Martial Arts Academy, she advised them to avoid trouble and not to easily take sides with any faction. But in the blink of an eye, she herself became like a social butterfly, making friends with geniuses everywhere.

Especially in front of Murong Jue, he couldn't even straighten his back.

In Lu Yuan's view, Murong Jue, Jin Wuming, and Bai Xiaotang were indeed powerful and influential figures for these freshmen, and they might enjoy a period of glory after attaching themselves to them.

However, tall trees attract the wind and are easily caught in the storm, bringing trouble upon themselves.

Besides Ji Baiying, many other geniuses gathered around Murong Jue, taking turns to pay their respects and introduce themselves as if on a pilgrimage.

Lu Yuan, however, did not pay much attention and began to enjoy the food in front of him.

At least for now, he has absolutely no intention of currying favor with powerful figures.

Moreover, if he were to fully reveal himself, he would certainly be quite robust.

The banquet was very lively, and the guests were all first-class or even top-class.

They clinked glasses, their faces glowing with health, chatting and laughing.

The two people were the only ones who kept their heads down and ate heartily the whole time, as if they were really there to enjoy the feast.

Such delicacies are probably not much different from so-called imperial cuisine, so they should not be wasted.

"Brother Tang Yu has arrived!"

Suddenly, a commotion broke out in the crowd.

A tall, slender, and handsome young man strode over.

"Brother Tang Yu!"

Even Murong Jue quickly stood up and greeted him with a smile.

Ji Baiying, who was standing nearby, followed closely behind and tried her best to get closer to Tang Yu.

"You must be Xiao Ji. I've heard of you before!"

After exchanging a few pleasantries with Murong Jue, Tang Yu smiled and nodded at Ji Baiying, appearing quite amiable.

Ji Baiying was flattered and repeatedly offered him a toast.

As time went by, the gathering became increasingly joyful.

Almost everyone surrounded Murong Jue and Tang Yu, showering them with compliments.

From the conversations of those around him, Lu Yuan also learned that Tang Yu was not only nearly thirty years old, but had also been in the Martial Academy for more than five years. He should have gone to the Ziyang Sect or the capital after the martial arts examination three years ago, but he chose to stay instead.

It wasn't because he lacked the ability to pass the martial arts examination three years ago; in fact, his score in the first round of assessments was enough to rank him in the top ten.

He ultimately failed to make the list because he voluntarily gave up.

As for why he did this, the reason is simple: he knew he could not win the top spot on the list, so he decisively withdrew from the exam and waited for the following year.

"That's a ruthless person!"

Lu Yuan glanced at Tang Yu with a strange look in his eyes.

This is like the college entrance examination in the previous life. A top student who could have easily gotten into the top ten in the province gave up and repeated a year to take the exam again because he was not confident that he could get the top score in the province.

Even if Tang Yu cultivates for three more years, he may not necessarily be able to win the top spot in this martial arts examination.

As the saying goes, new talents emerge in every generation.

Three years is enough time for a new generation of geniuses to grow up.

As the banquet drew to a close, the main event began.

Murong Jue toasted everyone in turn, inviting them to join the Bright Moon Society he had founded.

Not only did they offer generous terms, but they also promised that members of the Bright Moon Society could visit Bright Moon Manor every month and contemplate the Boundless Jade Wall for at least three days.

With such a promise, almost everyone was unable to refuse and chose to join, even Tang Yu was no exception.

Of course, Ji Baiying was even more impatient and was the first to volunteer to join the Bright Moon Society.

When it was Lu Yuan's turn, he declined, citing insufficient strength and the need for further development.

Murong Jue seemed to already know his "background" and did not press him too hard.

Jiang Ying, who was standing to the side, bluntly stated, "I have a defective constitution and no future."

"You shouldn't have refused!"

As the banquet was ending, Ji Baiying stopped the two of them and said bluntly that they came from humble backgrounds and would find it difficult to move forward even if they entered the inner courtyard without a powerful backer.

They even felt that the people were ungrateful and couldn't handle the immense wealth that came their way.

Regarding this somewhat contradictory top ranking, the two simply smiled at each other and said nothing more.

……

"It's done!"

Not long after returning to his room, Lu Yuan discovered that one of the small golden figures on the ancient scroll in his mind had stopped moving.

This means that the progress of breaking the limit has ended.

All he needs to do next is to increase his proficiency and master the skill.

However, before that, the limit-breaking of the Finger Flicking Skill can begin.

……