Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
When the dense crowd saw the archery academy open, many people couldn’t help but surge forward. However, the people in front stopped in their tracks before the sill at the main entrance.
Facing the archery academy and the people at the entrance that were standing solemnly before them, the people at the front quickly quieted down. The people at the back were quite rowdy at first, but the noise gradually died down too when the people at the front went silent.
Since this was well within Yan Liqiang’s expectations, he had the blacksmith workshop construct a few big horns made out of iron sheets. By the time they were completed, everyone thought the idea was novel. Without the existence of megaphones, these items were indeed extremely useful and one of the best tools Yan Liqiang could think of. Of course, an expert’s yell could be heard within a radius of ten li and would thus render the big horns useless, but even so they would still come in handy for now.
Yan Liqiang stood at the archery academy’s entrance along with Shi Changfeng, Shi Dafeng, and Shen Teng behind him. The veterans that were introduced to the Yan Clan by Lei Sitong lined up solemnly and respectfully on both sides of the entrance with their heads held up high. The unusual aura they exuded caused them to look formidable and reliable. With the two rows of veterans standing there, the grandeur of the archery academy was instantly brought out.
Yan Liqiang was holding one of the big horns as he swept his gaze across the young faces.
The age range of the people who came to sign up at the archery academy was around twelve to twenty years old. Some were dressed in gorgeous silk robes while some were only wearing simple linen clothing. The people gathered here were not only different in age, but they also had very different family backgrounds. The only similarity they had was perhaps the expression on their faces. Every single one of them looked in this direction with excitement. The golden rays of the morning sun shone upon their youthful faces brimming with energy.
After taking a deep breath, Yan Liqiang raised the big horn in his hand. He mustered up his inner strength and the air in his lungs, then shouted at everyone outside the archery academy. “I AM YAN LIQIANG!”
The simple four words were clearly conveyed to the crowd outside of the archery academy’s entrance, immediately stirring up another commotion out there. Yan Liqiang’s cultivation realm was amplified by the big horn as his words reverberated in all directions with a volume that was not inferior to a modern loudspeaker.
The youths looked at the big horn Yan Liqiang was holding curiously as they wondered about the mysterious object that was capable of generating such a loud sound. The eyes of those who had only heard of Yan Liqiang’s name and the stories about him, immediately lit up, as their impression of Yan Liqiang immediately grew like a mountain.
“First of all, thank you everyone. I am aware that all of you have ambitious hearts and have come here because you have faith in me. First, allow me to express my gratitude!” Yan Liqiang bowed to everyone, then straightened up.
“Today, the archery academy will be recruiting students for the very first time. We plan to only recruit two thousand students this year. Like any dojos or martial arts academies, this place does not welcome all comers. Everyone will be tested before they will be allowed to join the archery academy and we have certain requirements toward student’s aptitudes in various aspects. Therefore, all of you will need to be mentally prepared. Only those who stand out are eligible to join the archery academy! Regardless of your background, anyone who wishes to join should remember the first rule of the archery academy as soon as you step over the sill in front of me!”
Yan Liqiang scanned around, then lifted a finger and pointed to the big crimson red words painted on the screen wall behind him. “All of you must keep these six words in mind —’Obey Orders In All Your Actions’. As soon as you enter this place, you are only allowed to act on orders — that includes eating, drinking, urinating, defecating, walking, running, sitting, and sleeping. Anyone who dares to break or challenge this rule shall be expelled immediately. My archery academy will not allow the existence of any rulebreakers! Understood?!”
“Understood!”
“LOUDER! ALL TOGETHER! UNDERSTOOD?!” Yan Liqiang roared.
“UNDERSTOOD!” More than ten thousand people roared in unison.
“Well then, those who wish to join the archery academy follow me inside. You will be able to join after taking the test!” Yan Liqiang turned around, then whispered something to Shi Changfeng and the rest before they headed directly to the training field inside the archery academy.
The people outside the archery academy exchanged looks with each other. One of them took the lead to go through the main entrance before everyone else followed suit. The crowd of more than ten thousand people outside the archery academy was not inferior to the crowd at a train station during peak travel season. The crowd surged toward the archery academy and followed Yan Liqiang into the training field to the left of the main entrance.
The training field occupied about four or five hundred mu of land and had a high platform. The ground was hard and leveled. Huge green rectangular bricks about a square foot each were set a meter apart from each other on the ground. From the high platform in the training field, these green bricks were neatly laid in a straight line. This place could accommodate twenty thousand people, not to mention only ten thousand.
Yan Liqiang looked at the influx of people into the training field from the high platform, then lifted the big horn in his hand once again. “The recruitment exam for joining the archery academy may take a long while. No one is allowed to leave the venue when the exam is taking place. You will immediately fail and be disqualified upon leaving the venue. To be fair, you will now be given fifteen minutes to prepare yourselves. You may relieve yourselves in the public washrooms on both sides of the training field. The exam will officially commence in seven minutes!”
Those who just entered the training field immediately made a beeline for the public toilet on either side of the training field as soon as they heard Yan Liqiang’s announcement. The youths very quickly discovered the first unusual place in this archery academy and were all amazed. The washrooms in this place were spacious, clean and tidy. The ground and walls were covered by magnificent marble stone. Such luxury was rare even among the inns in Pingxi Prefecture, let alone the washrooms.
Yan Liqiang had people build the public washrooms in the archery academy according to the standards from his previous life. Naturally, there was nothing much left to say about their cleanliness.
In less than seven minutes, people returned to the training field in succession.
“Everyone, please look at the ground you are standing on. Do you see the green bricks? Find one for yourself to stand on!”
Fifteen minutes was up. Many were already standing in position but some were still not. Yan Liqiang made a signal with his eyes — Shi Dafeng and Shen Teng rushed into the field with two groups of veterans. They pulled out the people who didn’t manage to find a spot to stand on and immediately disqualified them before sending them out of the archery academy.
“Why are you chasing me away?! We haven’t even started yet?!” A young man that was being chased away shouted loudly.
“All of you were told that you will only be given fifteen minutes. The time is up, so those who aren’t standing where they should be cannot participate in the exam because you have just been disqualified. You do not meet the requirements of joining the archery academy. Follow me outside…”
In just the blink of an eye, dozens were disqualified and requested to leave the venue. The training field instantly went silent as the atmosphere turned solemn. Everyone standing there felt a chill down their spines. It was at this point in time that everyone realized that the rules in this archery academy were no joke…