It was the beginning of the month. The morning light carried a slight chill.
As usual, Fang Han headed straight for the Class A-10 Martial Arts Room, located deep within the Inner Hall.
Passing the training grounds, he noticed they were completely different from their usual solemn, focused atmosphere.
There were no shouts or sounds of weapons cutting through the air. Instead, the grounds were filled with the buzz of discussion.
Dozens of Inner Hall Descendants, both new and old, had gathered in small groups. They were flipping through booklets, their faces alight with a rare excitement and eagerness.
Heated conversations rose and fell, and a restless fervor filled the air.
"Quick, look at the Celestial Pride List! Liu Qingfeng, the 'Jade-faced Sword' from Xuanyun Sect, was 89th last month. This month, he's shot up to 77th—a jump of twelve places!"
"That's nothing! Look at the Martial Artist Ranking. Zhao Gang, 'Iron Palm,' the Captain from Iron Eagle City, went straight from 73rd to 48th. He climbed twenty-five spots!"
"Tsk, tsk. With Captain Zhao's strength, he's probably due for a promotion, right?"
"The lists update once a month. I wonder what dark horses will emerge next month."
...
Fang Han found his steps halting involuntarily.
Celestial Pride List, Martial Artist Ranking—these terms drifting into his ears piqued his interest.
His gaze swept over the crowd, finally landing on the group of new Inner Hall Descendants.
Fang Lin, Fang Tao, Fang Chen, and the other four were huddled together in discussion. Fang Chen was the most animated, gesturing wildly as he spoke.
Compared to the older members, Fang Han was undoubtedly more familiar with these seven, so he walked over.
His approach was like a stone dropped into a noisy lake; the surrounding discussions instantly quieted down.
After all, he was no longer an ordinary Inner Hall Descendant but the one ranked tenth. His every move drew considerable attention.
"Fang Han, you're here."
The newer descendants immediately fell silent. Their gazes locked onto Fang Han, filled with clear reverence and a subtle, almost imperceptible desire to curry favor as they greeted him.
"You were just talking about the Celestial Pride List and the Martial Artist Ranking? What exactly are those lists?"
Fang Han gave a slight nod in response, then directly asked the question that had piqued his interest.
"The Celestial Pride List and the Martial Artist Ranking are two ranking lists for martial artists within Qingyang County."
"The Celestial Pride List ranks the one hundred strongest genius Martial Artists under the age of thirty in Qingyang County. The Martial Artist Ranking lists the one hundred strongest Martial Artists in all of Qingyang County, with no age limit."
"Both lists update at the beginning of each month. In fact, the updated lists arrived in Liangshui City today and are being sold around town. We only heard about it from the older members and specifically bought them to take a look."
The first one to answer Fang Han was, surprisingly, Fang Lin.
After seeing Fang Han rapidly climb to tenth place on the Martial Arts Stele, he already regretted their previous conflict.
When his family found out about the conflict, they repeatedly warned him to never make an enemy of Fang Han and to find a way to smooth things over.
But with his personality, he simply couldn't bring himself to make a humbling apology, so he hadn't found a chance to mend their relationship.
Hearing Fang Han's question, he knew this was his chance to improve their relations and quickly replied.
"Two lists that rank... all the Martial Artists in Qingyang County?"
Fang Han was inwardly astonished.
As far as he knew, Qingyang County administered several hundred cities, each with a population ranging from a hundred thousand to over a million. Its total area was no smaller than a province from his previous life.
In a world where information traveled far less conveniently than in his past life, how could they possibly create such a large-scale ranking across an entire "province"?
'What a vast intelligence network that would require!'
"What kind of power has the ability to create and publish a list that ranks an entire county?"
Fang Han couldn't help but press for more information.
He couldn't help but suspect that the power behind this list was either the Government Office or some Super Sect with an incredibly deep foundation.
Only a power like that could possibly compile such a ranking.
"These two lists aren't published by any power."
Fang Chen said, shaking his head.
"Not published by any power?" Fang Han was taken aback. "Then where did they come from?"
"At the founding of the Great Chu Dynasty, on a night of thunder and torrential rain, two massive, mountain-like steles appeared out of thin air outside Qingyang Commandery City. The steles are not made of metal or jade and are indestructible. These two lists are displayed upon them."
"Ever since then, at the beginning of each month, the rankings on the steles update automatically, with no trace of human intervention!"
Fang Lin picked up the explanation, his tone filled with a mix of mystery and reverence.
'Appeared out of thin air? Updates automatically?'
Fang Han's heart pounded, and his pupils constricted.
He had personally experienced the miraculous nature of the Martial Arts Stele and already considered it a creation beyond the comprehension of the current Martial Arts World.
He never imagined there could be an even more incredible stele, one that could cover an entire county and automatically rank all the Martial Artists within it.
'No matter how you look at it, this definitely doesn't seem like something that should exist in this Martial Arts World.'
"Something so strange... has no power ever investigated the origin of these two steles?"
he asked, looking at Fang Lin.
"Many great powers sent people to investigate, but they all came up empty-handed. No one can damage the steles in the slightest, nor can they be moved."
"There's speculation that... these two steles might be related to the Royal Family, or even controlled by them through some mysterious means. But the Royal Family has never admitted or denied it, maintaining a rather ambiguous stance."
Pleased to see Fang Han's interest in the information, Fang Lin continued.
"The Great Chu Royal Family?"
Fang Han's gaze sharpened.
The Great Chu Royal Family. A transcendent power that had ruled the Great Chu Dynasty for over three thousand years.
The dynasties of his previous life usually lasted only two or three hundred years, but the Great Chu Dynasty had endured for over three thousand, and its rule remained stable. This alone spoke to its mysterious nature.
Now, hearing that the Great Chu Royal Family was connected to the mysterious steles, the image of this behemoth that ruled over a vast territory became even more enigmatic in his mind.
At the same time, a powerful curiosity sparked within him.
'If the mysterious steles are truly connected to the Great Chu Royal Family, how did they do it? And for what purpose?'
Countless questions swirled in his mind, but Fang Han knew they were all far too remote for his current self.
He suppressed his curiosity and changed the subject.
"Who are the top ten on the Celestial Pride List? Could you let me see the booklet?"
Having heard about such a ranking, he was quite curious to see what level the most top-level young geniuses in Qingyang County had reached.
"Here!"
Fang Lin quickly handed his booklet to Fang Han.
"Thank you."
Fang Han nodded at Fang Lin, his attitude having softened considerably.
He could naturally sense Fang Lin's attempt to smooth things over. Since he had no intention of holding a grudge, he was happy to see it.
He opened the booklet and began to read.
The top of the list was Yue Lingtian, third son of the Qingyang County Garrison Commander, with a Middle Third Grade Cultivation at age twenty-eight. Second was Liu Bai, the head direct disciple of the Lingyun Sword Sect and a Sword Dao prodigy, also with a Middle Third Grade Cultivation... Third...
Fang Han scanned the names, origins, and approximate strengths of the top ten. Each was a renowned and favored child of heaven with a shocking background. Their Cultivation all started at the Inner Qi Realm at a minimum, far beyond what any young person from a place like Liangshui City could hope to compare with.
The five publicly acknowledged strongest prodigies of Liangshui City's younger generation couldn't even make it onto the bottom of this list.
However, far from feeling defeated, a heroic ambition and drive surged within Fang Han.
'The world is vast, and Liangshui City is small. One day, my name, Fang Han, will also be on that list!'