It was a blood-connected feeling, when my hand touched the blade at the same time, the whole knife and my body became one, as if it were part of my body, an inseparable feeling so strong!

  My heart is irrepressibly wanting to take the knife over, I dont want him to be separated from me, because... he was originally a part of my body, why should I take it away, and I will hurt because of this.

  Finally... my desire has overcome my rationality, and with a weak body, I dared to pick up the heavy hundred-battle knife. But I myself didnt feel that way, in my heart I felt I could easily lift it, because... it was a part of my body!

  Under the stunned gaze of the patriarchal grandfather, I gently picked up the treasured sword in his hand, the hundred-battle sword weighing 83 kilograms, which was surprisingly light as if made of paper, and I held it effortlessly in my hand.

  The clan leaders eyes were filled with incredulous light, 83 kilograms, thats 166 pounds, even for a high-level warrior like him, it was very strenuous to lift, but... the frail child in front of him, who couldnt even sit up straight, lifted it with just one hand, and... did so with such ease, such nonchalance!

  Without noticing the patriarchs surprised gaze, I gently stroked the treasured sword in my hand, and the sword resonated with my breathing, emitting waves of dark red light.

  With a satisfied heart, I hugged the treasured sword into my arms, feeling its scorching temperature radiating beside me. The next moment... I fainted once again.

  A week later, I was finally able to get out of bed, only... the massive blood loss couldnt be recovered in a short period of time, but it didnt matter, because... my true energy wasnt affected at all, so... except for being physically weak, my attack power hadnt been affected in the slightest.

  Due to physical weakness, I can only temporarily avoid strenuous exercise, otherwise... its easy to faint again, so... I can only slowly practice the Seven Cuts of Absolute Severance, carefully pondering its subtleties.

  After nearly a year of practice, my Seven Cuts technique has become quite proficient. Now I must calm down and think carefully, suddenly producing many new insights. My understanding of this knife method is even more profound.

  Cultivation cannot always be practiced in actual combat. Sometimes, appropriate introspection is the only way to improve martial arts. Only by calming down and concentrating ones mind can many puzzles that cannot be solved normally be solved.

  What I find strange is that my black knife can only be picked up by me, others are not able to pick it up. Even if they manage to pick it up, they cant use it smoothly, its really too heavy. However... this weight is only for others, in my hand, I dont feel any weight at all, just like you dont feel the weight of your own hand or head.

  With a tight grip on the hilt of my treasured sword, I know... this is probably one of the benefits of being excessively stained with blood. The excessive blood flowing onto the newly born sword means that I have already given life to the sword, and... this life is shared with mine!

  Although I dont know what bad things will happen because of too much blood, but for now, just this one good thing has already made me overjoyed.

  Finally... when all the dwarves children started their warrior apprenticeship, my body had basically recovered, although still weak, but I could move around normally again. Only now my physical strength was very poor, just like a patient who had just recovered from a serious illness.

  As I stepped out of the door, the morning sunlight shone warmly on my face, not a bit harsh to the eyes, giving off a warm and cozy feeling.

  Today... is the day when all dwarf children take their warrior apprenticeship exams, and Im ready to take my junior warrior exam. If possible, Ill also pass the intermediate exam at the same time.

  I tightly grasped the precious dagger in my hand, and I was secretly excited, because... after today, I would finally be able to learn the method of capturing phantom beasts!

  With a faint smile, I walked slowly towards the small square, its been a long time since I parted ways with my companions, I wonder how theyre doing lately, have they reached the standard of a novice warrior.

  Very soon... I arrived at the small square, and saw that all the partners who were going to take the test had already arrived. When they saw me coming, everyone warmly gathered around and chatted with me enthusiastically.

  Since I was the first to reach the level of a trainee warrior, we basically didnt meet again. Even if we met during morning and evening training, due to training reasons, there was no opportunity to talk at all.

  Especially in the past six months, I havent even had a chance to meet them. The whole time was spent outside, and occasionally when I returned, I would directly look for the clan elder grandfather, without seeing them at all.

  Our feelings are very good, after all... everyones age is about the same, we have a common language, and also have common ideals and aspirations, it can be said that the more we chat, the more we hit it off.

  Just as we were chatting enthusiastically, a stern coughing sound came over. As soon as we heard this voice, we immediately stood up in our respective positions, because we knew that this cough was made by the patriarch grandfather.

  As expected... When we lined up, the patriarchal grandfather walked step by step towards us. Seeing that our lineup was neat and tidy, he nodded slightly and said: "Alright kids, since everyone is here, I think... lets get started with the test!"

  Looking around at everyone, the clan elder continued: "After a year of hard work from all of you, I believe... that every single one of you has made significant progress. Now... each and every one of you should show off your skills, dont be afraid if you cant pass, because I can prove that all of you have done your best. Even if you cant pass, its okay, as long as you continue to work hard and train yourselves, you will eventually succeed."

  The clan leader, Grandfather, was absolutely a pragmatic person who emphasized efficiency in everything. He simply said these two sentences and announced the start of the test, following the order of size, one by one to the small square for testing.

  Ive now grown to 168 cm, although Im still a childs build among humans, but compared to these dwarves who are no taller than 120 cm, I absolutely stand out, so... its only natural that Im also at the back of the line, which means Ill be the last one to take the test.

  But dont worry, I wont be impatient. After being apart for so long, I really want to know how the companions of dusk have progressed.

  After this period of recuperation and training, my Nine Yang Shocking Aura has become even more refined. As for the use of true energy, I am now even more skilled and proficient, so... as for my exam, I am not worried in the slightest. I can just sit back and enjoy the performances of my companions.

  Very soon... the first dwarf walked to the center of the venue, slightly bowed to the tribal grandfather and all the uncles and aunts in the village, took out his own wooden axe, and began to practice the 18 axes of the dwarves.

  As I watched his performance, I couldnt help but nod my head in approval. Although there was still room for improvement in terms of attention to detail and observation, from both a physical strength and technical standpoint, he had no issues whatsoever. As long as he continued to train diligently, coupled with constant self-reflection and guidance from his seniors, it was only a matter of time before he became an exceptional blacksmith and outstanding warrior.

  After practicing the axe technique, an uncle next to me brought over 18 wooden melons. Dont underestimate the wooden melon, as a fruit similar to coconut, its pulp is very sweet and fragrant, but outside the pulp, there is a thick, extremely hard shell. To split them open with one axe strike, not only requires certain strength, but also requires certain accuracy and speed, otherwise... if you strike off-center, the melon will fly away immediately.

  This test is very scientific. Although the testing methods on the mainland may be different from here, this method can absolutely measure whether a person has reached the standard of a probationary warrior.

  First of all, its a matter of accuracy. If you cant hit the middle position of the watermelon exactly, then it will definitely not be cut open, and the watermelon will slip away with the force.

  Secondly, speed is crucial. If the speed is too slow, then even with the power of a novice warrior, it would be impossible to chop open the hard rind of the calabaza. Only extremely fast speed can forcefully cut through the calabaza in an instant.

  Strength is key again. Having speed alone is not enough; if you dont have enough strength, its useless no matter how fast you are. It must be a perfect combination of speed and strength to cut through the hard calabaza.

  Finally, its the actual combat test. When chopping watermelons, each axe head must use a style of dwarf axe method. 18 axe heads must go through and display the entire sequence from start to finish, and the 18 axe heads must cut open 18 watermelons without any mistakes whatsoever. At the same time...the attacking posture cannot have even the slightest deformation.

  Think about it... even a hard-to-chop watermelon can be chopped with perfect Dwarf Axe technique, so whats there to worry about in actual combat? As long as I keep practicing, becoming an intermediate warrior is just a matter of time. Although that time may be a bit distant, Dwarves have long lifespans after all.

  Haha, keep wasting your vote!...