After eating for a while, Gu Mengzhong came downstairs.
"Brother Lin, you're up early." Gu Mengzhong yawned as he sat down beside Lin Jin. The innkeeper was very considerate as he placed breakfast on the table.
Lin Jin smiled, thinking that he hadn't slept the entire night so of course he was early.
The breakfast was good. There was marinated duck and porridge. There were also three appetizers that tasted good.
Gu Mengzhong noticed the booklet in Lin Jin's hand.
"Brother Lin, what are you reading?" Gu Mengzhong was curious. Of course, it was mainly because he saw the word 'martial' on the booklet.
Gu Mengzhong had been learning martial arts since he was young, especially his swordsmanship. He had never fallen behind. Now that he had the ink monster, he could finally travel the world with his sword. Otherwise, he wouldn't be able to display such exquisite swordsmanship with just his pet beast. Traveling outside would only make him look like a piece of cake to others.
Faced with Gu Mengzhong's question, Lin Jin didn't hide anything. "It's a book on martial arts cultivation. It's well-written. If Master Gu would like to read it, I can lend it to you."
Having said that, he handed the Martial Scripture over.
To Lin Jin, this' Martial Scripture 'didn't mean much.
After all, martial arts wasn't something that could be mastered in a short period of time. It would take years, decades, or even decades of cultivation, polishing, and accumulation.
Based on Lin Jin's current situation, it was impossible for him to focus on martial arts cultivation. Hence, it was fine for him to take a look and broaden his horizons. But if he were to talk about cultivation, he could forget about it.
Gu Mengzhong was different.
Lin Jin knew that Gu Mengzhong had been cultivating martial arts for more than ten years. Everyone assumed that Gu Mengzhong was a scholar or a calligraphy expert.
In fact, his swordsmanship was impressive. He had at least ten years of cultivation behind him.
According to Gu Mengzhong, swordsmanship and calligraphy were linked since ancient times. They were inseparable. Hence, the more skilled he was in calligraphy, the more impressive his swordsmanship would be.
Comparatively speaking, the 'Martial Scripture' was much more valuable to Gu Mengzhong. Lin Jin knew that it summarized the five main categories of fist techniques, palm techniques, swordsmanship, mystical techniques, and internal energy. All of them were solid knowledge. To a martial arts cultivator, the value of this Martial Scripture was immeasurable.
Gu Mengzhong loved three things in his life: painting, swordsmanship, and his female teacher.
Gu Mengzhong naturally had the experience. Hence, after curiously receiving the Martial Scripture, he was immediately engrossed in it.
So much so that he even forgot to eat.
"Good stuff, good stuff. The profoundness of this sword technique is too profound." Gu Mengzhong muttered to himself. He was completely immersed in the book. With one hand holding the book and the other holding a chopstick, he subconsciously gestured at something.
It seemed to be a sword technique.
Lin Jin was done eating. Noticing that Gu Mengzhong was engrossed in his meal, Lin Jin didn't disturb him.
Lin Jin also instructed the innkeeper not to disturb Gu Mengzhong because Lin Jin knew that Gu Mengzhong had entered a mystical state. If he was disturbed, his enlightenment might be interrupted.
Perhaps it would be difficult to have such a feeling next time.
After giving his instructions, Lin Jin left with Senior Mo.
Before the appointed time, Lin Jin arrived at Heavenly Jade City's headquarters. This time, he didn't have Senior Mo wait outside. Instead, he brought the dragon inside.
Of course, Lin Jin had his own reasons for bringing Senior Mo along.
Once they arrived, Lin Jin met Jiang Tianhe.
"Appraiser Lin, please follow me." Jiang Tianhe was dressed formally today. After all, he was about to take the Rank 4 beast appraiser assessment.
Even in Heavenly Jade City, this wasn't something that happened often.
Moreover, he was the one in charge of this so he had to treat it seriously.
Jiang Tianhe led Lin Jin inside. After passing through several courtyards, they arrived outside a large hall.
"Appraiser Lin, from now on, the Rank 4 beast appraiser's assessment will begin. I'm not too sure about the specifics, so it's up to you now," Jiang Tianhe reminded Lin Fan softly before saluting him and leaving quickly.
Since Jiang Tianhe was only a Rank 3 beast appraiser, he didn't have access to the contents of a Rank 4 beast appraiser's assessment. However, Lin Jin was surprised that Jiang Tianhe managed to arrange for Lin Jin's assessment in just one day. This meant that Jiang Tianhe was taking this matter seriously and was doing his best to handle it.
Lin Jin saluted him as well. No matter the outcome, he owed Appraiser Jiang Tian a favor.
He would have to return the favor in the future.
Jiang Tianhe's reminder made Lin Jin understand that the Rank 4 beast appraiser's assessment was about to begin.
However, he had no idea what the assessment was about or what the criteria were.
Behind him, Senior Mo looked around curiously. It felt inexplicably reserved and even a little timid in front of this great hall.
Just then, a voice came from the hall. "Appraiser Lin, please enter!"
Someone was calling for Lin Jin.
Lin Jin looked into the hall. It was pitch-black inside so he couldn't see clearly. He had to go in first.
"Old Mo, follow me!"
Lin Jin instructed before heading toward the hall's entrance. There was a relief sculpture on the ground in front of him that looked like a gigantic Myriad Beast Atlas.
There were Myriad Beast Atlases everywhere. Although they were called Myriad Beast Atlases, they were in fact just a picture of a hundred beasts at most.
However, the Myriad Beast Atlases differed from place to place.
In some places, there were birds with ethereal spirits; in some places, there were herbivores such as deer, sheep, and cows; and in some places, there were real beasts such as tigers, leopards, wolves, lions, snakes, and pythons. Of course, there were also strange creatures such as insects, scorpions, and venomous creatures.
What Lin Jin saw now was a Myriad Beast Atlas relief sculpture. Be it a lion, a wolf, a tiger, or a leopard, they were all so lifelike that they looked like they were alive.
Just a single glance was enough to stun anyone who saw it. It was as if they were fearful of these beasts.
It was as if there were tens of thousands of beasts guarding the entrance.
Lin Jin obviously had a way to ignore this pressure, and so did Senior Mo. As a dragon, it was naturally of a higher level than other beasts. Hence, some relief sculptures weren't enough to scare it.
However, the moment Lin Jin stepped onto the sculpture, the intimidating aura of a ferocious beast instantly increased by several notches. Even Senior Mo shuddered in fear.
It wasn't afraid earlier, but now, it couldn't take it anymore.
Of course, it could still hold on.
As for Lin Jin, he could only feel the oppressive aura of these beasts. However, this terrifying pressure wasn't enough to affect him in any way.
Simultaneously, inside the hall, two beast appraisers were sipping tea and chatting.
These two beast appraisers were clearly of high status. Upon closer inspection, one could see that they were both wearing four-ring beast patterned sleeves. This meant that they were both Rank 4 beast appraisers.
"Brother Yan, do you think the people participating in this assessment will be able to pass the first stage?" a Rank 4 beast appraiser asked after taking a sip of tea.
The Rank 4 beast appraiser smiled. "Every year, there are always people who try to participate in the Rank 4 assessment through various means. However, not many of them manage to pass the first stage. However, I heard that the people participating this time are rather skilled, so I think they should be able to pass the first stage. However, it's hard to say how long they'll need. Maybe two hours, maybe four hours."
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