Although a smithing workshop was not small, it was definitely not a place to compete with martial art skills.

When Ou Yangming brought Sui Hezhi and the others to his courtyard, they envied him as it was spacious.

Nonetheless, they knew that only Military Fire Blacksmiths were given such treatment, which was similar to how captains were treated. A low-rank officer and normal soldiers like them could not compare.

Ou Yangming gave a fist salute after they entered the courtyard. "Brother Yan, please."

Yan Haobo and his nephew were shocked. The moment Ou Yangming stood at the center of his courtyard, a forceful aura was sensed. He stood as straight as a javelin that was stuck to the ground, and did not bend at all.

It was not a mere form because it was the most standard stance for a fist art in the military.

Sui Hezhi widened his eyes as he was in disbelief.

He was the one who taught Ou Yangming the fist art and the blade technique, and it had only been roughly a month since. A normal person would be considered amazing to be able to match the techniques in some sense, but Ou Yangming who was solemn and upright at the moment did not seem like he had only practiced the fist art for only a month.

"Master Ou, be careful," Yan Chengcai mentioned, then shifted his body to charge at Ou Yangming like a hunting leopard, and aimed a punch at his chest.

Instead of dodging him, Ou Yangming yelled and punched as well.

Their movements were somewhat equal since they performed the standard military drill.

The fist art was simple and straightforward, but was the most effective killing technique during the war.

"Boom—"

When the fists clashed, Yan Chengcai was forced to stop, and his fist hurt so much it was as if he had punched an iron plate.

On the other hand, Ou Yangming scoffed and staggered backward. His right hand swelled, and half of his body went numb.

One could easily tell the strong from the weak, and it was obvious that Ou Yangming was not a match for Yan Chengcai.

Despite that, Sui Hechi could not help but shout, "This, it's impossible…"

Yan Chengcai and Ou Yangming turned a death ear to him as they focused on each other.

The former had practiced fist arts and blade techniques for over ten years, thus he already had the disposition. Nevertheless, Ou Yangming had also been training in the dense forest once every few days for a month, so he was different from before.

When the two young men looked at each other again, Yan Chengcai shouted and dashed again. This time, he did not underestimate his opponent at all, and was determined to suppress Ou Yangming by using stronger power.

On the opposite, Ou Yangming lowered himself to not go head-on against him, but instead got away from Yan Chengcai's punch like a fish.

He was extremely familiar with the usage of the purple energy in his mind and the purple light was automatically activated the instant he was in danger, smithing weapons, or cultivating martial arts.

At the moment, his consciousness was already split into two. A part was controlling his body to resist Yan Chengcai, while the other was detached in an odd way that allowed him to watch the battle clearly from above.

Knowing that he was not as strong at his opponent, Ou Yangming stopped looking for trouble. He moved by performing the step technique taught by Sui Hezhi, and was able to dodge Yan Chengcai's punches by swaying his body. Additionally, he waited for the right moment to sneak a few attacks, which truly made Yan Chengcai feel troubled.

As Ou Yangming's purple energy increased, he had a better grasp of his surroundings.

The instant there was a movement from Yan Chengcai's wrist, Ou Yangming identified his punching direction. In the beginning, he had been dodging in advance which meant that he dodged when Yan Chengcai had just started his hits. As such, Yan Chengcai was able to change his punching path halfway through to continue attacking.

After a few times, Ou Yangming learned his lesson. His consciousness watched Yan Chengcai's every move from above, and when there were no new changes to Yan Chengcai's punching sequences, he shifted his body to avoid being attacked.

While it seemed like a dangerous method, it was the best way for Ou Yangming to deal with his enemy as he had the advantage of watching as an outsider.

Eventually, he even became obsessed with the thrill of dodging at a crucial moment, and the battle against Yan Chengcai was no longer a difficult task to him as it became an enjoyable martial arts cultivation.

Only outstanding soldiers in the military could join the Guards led by Chen Yifan.

Though it was not compulsory for the soldiers from the Guards to be near the Yin Boundary like Sui Hezhi, they had to at least be in Force Grade Class Five, only a step away from having hidden energy.

Yan Chengcai was confident about joining the Guards because he was already at that level.

Needless to say, the punches from a martial artist in Force Grade Class Five could definitely suppress Ou Yangming who was only in Class Three. However, Yan Chengcai realized from the exchange of blows after this that he could not get the upper hand at all.

Ou Yangming might not be as powerful as him, but his body technique definitely surpassed his.

Although he could tell that the body technique learned by Ou Yangming was the same as what he learned in the military, the effects were Heaven and Earth apart when they performed it.

Ou Yangming could somehow find the loopholes in Yan Chengcai's punches, and was able to dodge the attacks by using the body technique. He was rather impatient in the beginning, but after finding a balance point, he became more composed.

He seemed like a toddler who experienced adolescence and youth so quickly that he became matured in a flash.

In other words, he transformed from being a rookie into an experienced martial artist in the blink of an eye, which was simply unbelievable.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh…"

Fist winds filled the air as Yan Chengcai launched multiple hits, and each punch was so vigorous that he looked like he was dominating in the battle. In spite of that, Yan Chengcai knew very well that he should have hit his opponent if there were no mishaps.

Ou Yangming remained expressionless as he drifted leisurely amidst Yan Chengcai's fist winds, which made him look like he was taking a walk in the park.

Yan Haobo glanced at Sui Hezhi then asked, "My boy, how long did you say that Master Ou has been practicing martial arts for?"

The muscles on Sui Hezhi's face twitched when he answered, "About three months."

"About… Three months?"

Yan Haobo repeated after him. His heart beat fast, and his face reddened.

The distress that they were feeling at that moment was indescribable.

'Three months, the fella had only trained for three months, yet he's able to resist Yan Chengcai who practiced martial arts for more than ten years,' Sui Hezhi said to himself.

"You, didn't you say that he only has the cultivation base of Force Grade Class One?"

"Mm, it's true that he was only in Force Grade Class One, but now… I suppose he broke through?"

Yan Haobo remained silent, but was screaming in his head, 'Broke through… Your *ss! Have you met anyone who repeatedly broke through and arrived at Force Grade Class Three in three months? Is Ou Yangming a reincarnated martial god?'

In actual fact, Yan Haobo and Sui Hezhi could tell from Ou Yangming's punch at Yan Chengcai earlier that his martial arts cultivation base was definitely not in Force Grade Class One.

On top of that, they were also in awe of his performance after that. If they had not witnessed it, they would not believe that Ou Yangming was a newbie who only cultivated for three months.

Ou Yangming's boundary advancements were at least explainable since he could have consumed precious medicine or was simply gifted, but the fact that he grew so fast in terms of combat experience made him a freak.

A thought crossed Yan Haobo and Sui Hezhi's mind when they looked at each other.

'It's a genius' world, we… We won't get it!'

"Boom…"

Ou Yangming and Yan Chengcai's fists clashed for the second time since the beginning of their battle. However, the outcome was different from the first time as they both shook and separated from each other.

Based on that, they were on par with each other.

Yan Haobo and Sui Hezhi were becoming more astounded. They could tell that Ou Yangming was able to resist Yan Chengcai not because his power grew, but because he punched from a tricky angle that it was tough for Yan Chengcai to exert force. With that, the result was equal.

Sui Hezhi shook his head as he mentioned, "Make them stop."

After seeing the second clash of their punches, Sui Hezhi and Yan Haobo knew that Yan Chengcai would not gain an advantage if they continued fighting. In the end, Ou Yangming might actually turn the table.

Moreover, they brought Yan Chengcai to collect his equipment, not to make him lose confidence.

If Yan Chengcai really lost, the impact on him would likely affect his performance during the selections, and the equipment gained would not make up for his loss.

Yan Haobo sighed and nodded. He shouted, "Stop!"

Upon hearing him, Yan Chengcai immediately stopped and retreated, but he was completely embarrassed. He wanted to stop long ago.

Ou Yangming was startled. He felt like he had not gotten enough of the battle.

Nevertheless, he quickly curbed his thought and withdrew his fist. After getting rid of the dirt on his clothes, he smiled proudly. "Squad Leader Yan, did I pass?"

"Master Ou, you're joking. Based on your… Performance, you're good enough to be a scout." Yan Haobo1 smiled bitterly, then said seriously, "I underestimated you earlier, please forgive me."

"Squad Leader Yan, you don't have to be so polite." Ou Yangming giggled.

He was actually elated because he benefited a lot from the battle against Yan Chengcai. At the very least, he took a big leap in grasping the body technique.

It was not merely an improvement in agility, but he gained the skill to use space reasonably.

Ou Yangming had a vague feeling that the skill would play a decisive role in his future.

Author made a typo here. We've corrected it for the context