Chapter 3 A Test of Endurance

After passing the Wild Wolf Valley and the Skyline Canyon, a lush and green stretch of peaks appeared in front of us. There were more than a dozen large and small peaks.

Surrounded by mountains, the headquarters of the Iron Sword League was located on the highest and most dangerous Cangjian Peak of Xiaogushan Mountain in the middle.

Wu Yan held a palm-sized wooden sign with four characters engraved on it in his hand, and he felt inexplicably excited. The rumors were true. As long as the boys were between eight and fourteen years old, regardless of their background, they could participate in the entry selection of the Iron Sword League. It seemed that he had come to the right place this time.

He also had two things in his hand. A dry coarse grain cake and a small gourd of clear water. These were the items distributed by the deacon disciples in charge of the selection of the Iron Sword League.

The first level of the selection test was the endurance test.

From where they were standing now, the boys who were tested had to walk over two hills hundreds of feet high, cross two valleys, and reach the Buried Sword Valley under the Cangjian Peak of Xiaogushan Mountain within half a day, and they would have passed the first level.

In the Buried Sword Valley, what awaited them was the second level of assessment. As for the content of the assessment, it was up to the next level disciple to take care of it.

Along the way, every hundred feet, there were disciples from the Iron Sword League supervising. If anyone was found cheating or giving up, they would be responsible for handling it.

Wu Yan put the coarse grain cake into his arms, looked firmly at the highest mountain in the distance, and then strode forward.

After drinking a bellyful of well water, he didn't feel hungry yet. For some reason, he even felt a cool breath in his stomach, slowly penetrating his whole body, making his spirit and physical strength unprecedentedly good.

Since he wasn't hungry, he had to save the dry food first. Such a long distance had to be walked on foot, which consumed a lot of physical strength. Dry food and clean water should be saved for the most critical moment.

Many young men from wealthy families carried more or less exquisite food. He couldn't compare with those young men, but he cherished the opportunity now, so he had to figure out how to proceed at every step.

Many teenagers couldn't wait to run along the rugged mountain road towards Xiaogushan. There were also some farm boys who had experience in mountain climbing, walking forward slowly with a wooden stick.

Wu Yan carried a torn bag, leaned on a dog-beating stick, walked barefoot, and tried to pick up the grass on the roadside. The mountain road was full of gravel, which was very painful to step on. If you were not careful, there was a risk of being scratched. Wu Yan didn't want to be in such danger.

When Wu Yan passed the first valley and climbed the first hill, he was already panting and sweating. The well water in his stomach had been emptied with the rapid consumption of physical strength. He was now tired and hungry, dizzy and very uncomfortable.

Along the way, many rich boys had fallen on the roadside, gasping for breath, and took out the food they brought with them and started eating.

Wu Yan knew that he could never stop on this road. Apart from the piece of coarse grain cake issued by the Iron Sword League, a gourd of water, and the little well water stored in the incense burner, he had no other source of physical strength.

The long and hard life of wandering made him understand that once he stopped, he might never be able to stand up again.

He walked down the mountain step by step with difficulty and carefully, and finally appeared in the second valley. Wu Yan tried his best to make his walking rhythm neither fast nor slow.

His stomach kept rumbling, and his feet felt like stepping on cotton, light and fluttering. Stars in the eyes of hunger, the feeling of chest sticking to back, people who have not experienced it will never understand the pain.

Wu Yan took out the coarse grain cake while walking, thought about it, and looked up at the mountain in front. He broke the coarse grain cake into two halves, then put one half back into his arms and held the other half in his hand. He chewed it carefully and swallowed it slowly, while holding the torn bag under his armpits and leaning on the dog-beating stick, and walked forward.

After eating half a piece of coarse grain cake, Wu Yan felt a little bit of physical strength restored, and his stomach was no longer so uncomfortable. He then took out a small gourd filled with clear water, drank a few sips of water, put away the gourd, and continued to move forward.

The sun had climbed to the middle of the sky, scorching, and it was very uncomfortable to burn people.

The number of teenagers who were still insisting on walking forward on the road gradually became scarce. Wu Yan noticed that most of the teenagers who were still insisting on moving forward were young people from farming families, and only a very small number of young people from rich families were still insisting.

Young beggars like him who fled and had a fluke in their hearts have disappeared.

Not all teenagers have such an unswerving heart as his.

Finally climbed to the top of the second hill, seeing that victory was not far away, Wu Yan was a little excited and a little excited. However, he felt that the road below would be more difficult.

His physical strength had been severely consumed. With the discharge of a large amount of sweat, his body lost too much water, and his whole body was hot and uncomfortable. The blood seemed to be boiling.

It is easy to go up the mountain, but difficult to go down the mountain.

At this time, all the young men who were still holding on stood on the second hilltop. It was not that they did not want to hurry down. After all, the foot of the mountain was the end of the first level - the Buried Sword Valley.

It was just that the road down the mountain was too steep and dangerous.

The road down the mountain was built on a bare cliff that was almost vertical. Not to mention going down, just standing here and looking down would make one feel dizzy.

The two disciples of the Iron Sword League who were in charge of supervision on the top of the mountain looked at the pale-faced young men in front of them with disdain and ridicule in their eyes.

Back then, they also entered the Iron Sword League through this kind of assessment. At that time, they were not much better than the group of teenagers in front of them.

Now seeing this group of teenagers, the two of them sighed, and an inexplicable sense of superiority and disdain arose spontaneously.

Wu Yan saw that there were more than a hundred teenagers who arrived here, and he felt a lot of pressure in his heart. Now it's time to rest and replenish the exhausted physical strength.

He was not like other teenagers, staring blankly at the bottom of the mountain with a pale face. He found a rock as if nothing had happened, sat down, took out half a piece of coarse grain cake and half a gourd of water to eat and drink.

The two disciples of the Iron Sword League who were in charge of supervision glanced at Wu Yan in surprise, looked at each other, curled their lips, and then nodded.

"This little beggar has good physical strength. He is a promising young man. Old Yang, pay attention. Elder Feng is offering a reward again this year. He is looking for young men who are quick-witted, hard-working and have good endurance. I think this boy is good. What do you think?" A shrill voice muttered.

"Well, I think he is good. This boy is a beggar. He has no problem enduring hardships. He can walk all the way here and still have half a piece of coarse grain cake and half a gourd of water. This shows that he is quick-witted, knows how to calculate and has good endurance. He meets Elder Feng's requirements. He is the one. Keep an eye on him later. Don't let him fall to death when he goes down the mountain. Hehe, maybe this time we will be lucky and get Elder Feng's reward." Another deep voice continued.

The two disciples of the Iron Sword League put their heads together and whispered.

Wu Yan didn't know that he was being thought of by someone. He finished the whole grain cake, drank the last drop of water, and threw the small gourd aside. He felt that his stomach was no longer so burning, and his physical strength was gradually recovering.

A tall figure suddenly appeared in front of him, blocking the scorching sun in front of him. Wu Yan looked up curiously, squinting his eyes to see a big boy with a simple and honest look and naked upper body blocking his way.

The big boy smiled at him with his white teeth bared, and said in a simple tone: "Brother, it's not easy to go down the mountain alone, how about we go together?"