"Changes? Has the Code of the Holy Religion changed?"

"No, it's not the Holy Religion. It's the result of discussions between His Majesty and me. In the past, fighters in the empire could only take the exam at the age of eighteen, but many other countries have a standard of fifteen. As a result, many outstanding young fighters in the empire have to enter the School of fighter Gods three years later than others. This is not good and hinders the growth of the number of fighter gods in the empire."

"So, after discussions with Father Ferdinand, His Majesty decided to lower the age requirement for this year's exam to fifteen!"

After Wideno, finished speaking, he gasped for breath. Du Chen was a little puzzled. This guy was a descendant of a titled martial god, so he should be a powerful fighter god himself. Why was his physique so weak?

Compared to him, Angus, also a descendant of a titled martial god, was strong and majestic, with a commanding presence, clearly a peerless general on the battlefield.

Angus said, "Your Grace, if I remember correctly, your son, Kaman, is already fifteen, right?"

"Yes, he will also participate in this year's exam!" Wideno chuckled, "I mean, Francis is also fifteen..."

So it turned out that he was being asked to take the exam for that "cradle of martial gods," the "glorious diamond pathway." Du Chen was self-aware. He had only cultivated the "Lotus Treasure Mirror" to the second level, and his internal energy was only equivalent to a first-level martial energy. Moreover, he didn't know any martial techniques. With this level, taking the exam would be a disgrace!

"Uncle Wideno, as you know, I can't cultivate Dou qi!" Du Chen smiled.

"Oh, I forgot about that! But the Code of the Holy Religion does not stipulate that one must have Dou qi to participate in the exam. On the contrary, it requires the descendants of Legendary fighter gods to participate at least once!" Wideno smiled apologetically. "So, Duke Angus, are you planning to let Francis abstention?"

"No!" Angus suddenly raised his hand. abstention? That would be equivalent to admitting defeat! How could the descendant of the Siglu Holy Radiance Fighter God admit defeat?

The Saint-Kain family only had heroes who died in battle, not cowards who lived in shame!

"Wideno , Minister of Ceremonies, Francis, the third son of the Saint-Kain family, will participate in the selection exam of the School of Figher Gods on time!"

Wideno 's eyes lit up. He couldn't believe that Angus had actually agreed. He cautiously asked, "Your Grace, once I report Francis's name, no matter what happens, he must participate in the exam!"

Angus pondered for a moment and said firmly, "Report his name!"

"Oh, Duke Angus, your courage is admirable. Then... I will prepare!" He smiled warmly at Du Chen. "Nephew Francis, you should prepare for the exam!"

Wideno left happily.

Du Chen watched his back and felt that this fat guy was strange. What was he happy about when he was going to take the exam? He was smiling like a blooming flower!

"Francis!" Angus called Du Chen and gave him a strange order, "Ask Steve to teach you some knowledge for the exam. When the time comes..."

He suddenly closed his mouth.

The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Du Chen waited curiously for the continuation, until Angus turned and left, facing him with his back. He coldly said, "The Saint-Kain family only has heroes who died in battle, not cowards who surrender!"

Heroes who died in battle... Could there be people dying in this exam?

...

"Oh my god, has Father gone senile? He actually asked you to participate in the School of Fighter Gods' exam!?"

Inside the Saint-Kain Manor, in his own attic, Steve couldn't help but curse his father when he heard that Du Chen was going to take the exam. "Dear brother, how could you agree to this? Isn't this going to be a death sentence!?"

Du Chen asked curiously, "Would people really die in a normal exam?"

"of course!" Steve anxiously paced around. "I understand now, Wideno is seeking revenge for Kaman!"

"Big brother, calm down. What exactly is going on?"

Steve placed his hands on Du Chen's shoulders and explained, "As the name suggests, the School of Fighter Gods selects exceptional fighters and trains them to become true martial gods! So you can imagine what the exam would consist of, right?"

"Fighting?"

"Exactly, and it doesn't matter if you have martial energy or not. As long as you step into the exam arena, it's a fight to the death! The exam at the School of Fighter Gods is divided into two parts. The first is the written test, which you don't need to worry about. Just memorize more of the holy scriptures to pass. But after the written test, there's the martial test. Every year, the Holy Religion approves a certain number of deaths during the martial test, allowing a portion of the candidates to die in the exam!"

Du Chen was shocked. "That's too much. It's just an exam!"

"It may be just an exam, but it's also an exam to select martial gods!" Steve sighed and said solemnly, "The Four Commandments of the Fighter Gods: never retreat in battle, never avoid enemies, forget about life when pushed to the limit, and know that death is inevitable but never surrender!"

After Steve finished speaking, he sighed. Du Chen understood his meaning. The Four Commandments only had one message: martial gods were true warriors. If you fear death, then don't become a martial god, don't participate in the exam!

"Big brother, can I not participate in the exam?"

"No, the Holy Religion's code states that once you sign up, you must participate. Otherwise, it's a violation of the code, and you should know the consequences! You can surrender during the fight, but you must participate... Oh!"

Suddenly, Steve's eyes lit up. "My brother, I have a solution! Remember, during the fight, fighters usually wear holy artifacts. As soon as you see your opponent take out a holy artifact, immediately surrender!"

"But big brother, Father said that the family only has heroes who died in battle..."

"Why do you care about Father? Dear brother, as important as the family's honor is, it's not worth more than your life, right?" Steve chuckled.

Du Chen was touched by this. In the world of martial gods, the majority of people prioritize honor above all else. Just like Angus today, as the deputy chief, he couldn't possibly be unaware of Wideno's conspiracy, but he still agreed to it for the sake of the family's reputation. As for Steve, he prioritized his own safety more. Perhaps, it was lucky for him to have such a big brother in this lifetime!

Steve continued, "Besides, you have the three blessings from Father Ferdinand. That gives you thirty points. Even if you surrender in the martial arts competition, with the addition of the points from the written test and the blessings, your performance won't be too embarrassing!"

Du Chen smiled and agreed, but he was not convinced. Should a thief just surrender? He now had the strength of a peak Level 1 Warrior and had the ability to defend himself during the exam.

In that case, what's the harm in participating in this exam? Worst case scenario, he could expose his Lotus Inner Force and blame everything on the mysterious guardian fighter god! If that happened, the Holy Religion wouldn't say anything, and Angus wouldn't dare to say much either!

Thinking of this, Du Chen said, "Big brother, don't worry, I know what to do!"

Steve thought Du Chen had decided to surrender and relaxed, angrily saying, "That old bastard Wideno is despicable. He must have used his position as the Minister of Rituals to group you and Kaman together during the exam, giving Kaman a chance to get rid of you! Damn it!"

Du Chen secretly pondered, and it seemed that this was indeed the case. Kaman took the opportunity for revenge...

Oh my god, does this mean that Wideno and Kaman have threatened his life? In that case, will the mysterious guardian martial god intervene again?

Du Chen felt a chill in his heart. At this moment, Steve pushed him and said, "What are you thinking about? Why do you look so pale? Are you unwilling to give up on Avril?"

"Forget it, big brother, I'm not interested in that girl!" Du Chen forced a smile, but he was still thinking about whether the mysterious martial god would intervene again.

Steve grabbed Du Chen's hand and walked outside. "Stop thinking about Avril for now. The exam will take a long time. You should first take care of the affairs in the southern city!"