「A few days later, at the Jinshi Boxing Hall.」

The December wind was bone-chilling, but the ordinary students on the concrete training ground were steaming with exertion, persisting in their training with shouts and grunts.

Squats, frog leaps, running laps...

Amidst the usual commotion, a figure in a white and gray training uniform stood in a corner, looking somewhat conspicuous.

For once, Lu Chao wasn’t training inside the main building.

Instead, he had found an undisturbed corner of the concrete training ground and was practicing a hidden weapon technique on a thick poplar tree that would take three people to encircle.

SWOOSH!

A cold glint flashed as a steel nail, half a finger long, shot out like lightning.

THUNK.

The steel nail pierced the rough bark, barely sinking a fraction of an inch into the wood.

"It’s not working."

Shaking his head, Lu Chao felt there was something wrong with his power generation technique; he hadn’t fully grasped it.

According to the manual for the [Needle Throwing Skill], this Fighting Skill had three realms.

Wind Piercing, Rain Transformation, and Shadowless.

The first realm, Wind Piercing, was the foundation, prioritizing precise force and accuracy.

Using techniques like pinching, flicking, and throwing, one focused power into a single point, allowing the flying needles or steel nails to break through air resistance.

Upon reaching Minor Achievement, one could simultaneously throw three steel nails that would bury themselves an inch deep in wood from ten paces away.

The next realm, Rain Transformation, allowed the steel nails to spin in mid-air, enabling them to change direction and bypass obstacles, making them far more versatile than bullets.

It even allowed one to attack more than ten enemies simultaneously in a single instant.

But now, after several days of practice and contemplation, he still felt like something was missing, preventing him from reaching the Wind Piercing realm.

Lost in thought, Lu Chao walked back to the tree and pulled out a dozen or so steel nails from its trunk, bending down to pick up others from the ground.

He had custom-ordered them from a hardware store in the last two days. They were several times harder than standard ones, and he had even requested extra threading to increase their destructive power.

Immediately after, the sound of nails slicing through the air rang out again and again.

Although some of the ordinary students on the concrete training ground were curious, no one dared to approach and ask what he was doing.

Meanwhile, inside the main training building.

"What’s Senior Brother Lu doing?"

"He’s been at it for days. He always goes over there after he’s done practicing his Fighting Skill."

"It looks like he’s practicing something. Could it be some other Martial Arts technique?"

Many of the junior brothers in the rest area discussed it curiously, unable to figure it out.

However, in the circle of people by the sparring ring, Fang Jingyi and the others saw what was going on.

"It should be a hidden weapon technique..." Fang Jingyi guessed, her shapely eyebrows raised. "He probably exchanged for it at the Patrol Department, right?"

"Maybe. No wonder he offended Brother Ruan Hui. He really is an idiot. Why learn hidden weapons when you can just use a gun?"

"Haha... I almost forgot. For Brother Ruan Hui to actually hold a grudge against him, our Senior Brother Lu is really something... one of a kind."

As they joked, Guo Yun and the others had strange expressions, shaking their heads with a smile.

Amidst the whispers, Shen Tianchen, the center of their circle, remained impassive, as if he didn’t care about the matter at all.

The concrete training ground outside the window was still a noisy scene. Lu Chao, standing in his corner, blocked out all the sounds and once again focused on the steel nail in his hand, making another attempt.

SWOOSH!!

The steel nail tore through the air, trailing a sliver of cold, silver light.

With a THUNK, the rough poplar bark was torn and pierced. A little sap trickled from the crack.

Witnessing this, he seemed to have found a certain feeling.

Lu Chao threw two more steel nails, one high and one low.

SHING! SHING!!

The sound changed, and the speed of the nails seemed to have increased dramatically.

Amidst a pair of thunks, the half-finger-long steel nails vanished from sight, almost completely embedding themselves in the tree’s trunk.

’I did it!’

His eyes lit up, a pleasant surprise washing over him.

He had thought it would take a few more days to succeed, but he hadn’t expected to officially step into the Wind Piercing realm just now.

’So Wind Piercing is all about learning to condense power, focus it on a single point, use that point to break the surface, and reduce air resistance.’

’But...’

Lu Chao looked at his somewhat thick hands, where numerous calluses had appeared on the web between his thumb and forefinger and on his palms.

’My rapid progress is also thanks to the Golden Stone Fighting Skill.’

All Martial Arts share a common source. Some of the power generation techniques in the Golden Stone Fighting Skill were remarkably similar to those of the Needle Throwing Skill.

This had saved him a fair bit of time.

As the thought passed, Lu Chao shook out his arm, which felt a little sore and stiff.

After a few simple stretches to relieve the tension, he walked to the tree and forcefully pulled out the steel nails.

The whitish-green sap was slightly sticky. He then went to a faucet on the training ground, washed the nails, and wiped them dry.

Once everything was packed up, Lu Chao planned to return to the main training building and continue focusing on his Golden Stone Fighting Skill practice.

VMMMM!

Suddenly, the hum of an engine could be heard.

All eyes turned to see a sedan pull up and stop outside the boxing hall’s iron gate.

Luo Qianshan and the others who had attended the birthday banquet had finally returned.

The sound of footsteps echoed.

As footsteps rang out, many figures on the concrete training ground and in the main building stopped their training to look over.

"Master Luo is back?"

"I heard today was the birthday of Master Lei Wanjun of the Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall. He held a huge banquet at the Fuman Building. Heroes from all sides gathered; it was a very lavish affair."

"I heard even some big shots from the inner city circle went. It was even on the news."

Amidst the discussions, Lu Chao stood in his corner of the concrete training ground and also looked over.

Today, Luo Qianshan was wearing a long, brown, traditional-style robe with several cloud patterns embroidered on the cuffs. His beard had also clearly been groomed.

With his hands behind his back, he walked slowly, his expression unreadable and unusually calm. He headed straight into the main training building and toward the backyard.

[Carbon-Based Human]

[Life Energy: ?]

The panel appeared, and Lu Chao took a furtive glance.

Even now, he couldn’t see through Master Luo’s strength. He suspected the man was at least at the Elite Level Peak.

While he was thinking, Lin Qingxue and Zheng Wu, who were a few steps behind, walked in.

The former had a grave expression. After entering the main training building, she pulled Shen Tianchen aside into the backyard, as if to discuss something.

The latter’s eyes were filled with worry, and his steps were somewhat heavy, as if he were concerned about something.

’Did something happen?’

Lu Chao frowned. Anyone could see that the Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall was not on good terms with them. This birthday banquet might have been a trap.

That was precisely why Shen Tianchen hadn’t been brought along.

First Senior Brother Luo Yan had also, for once, stayed at the boxing hall all day to protect everyone, just in case.

"Junior Brother Lu."

While Lu Chao was thinking, Zheng Wu, who was walking by, noticed his gaze and nodded at him.

Lu Chao suppressed his speculations and simply walked forward to meet him, falling into step beside him as they entered the main training building.

"Senior Brother Zheng, did something unexpected happen?" he asked, taking the opportunity.

"No."

Unexpectedly, Zheng Wu’s expression softened as he gently shook his head.

"At Master Lei’s birthday banquet, the guests included two deputy directors from the City Defense Department and the Political Affairs Department, as well as security managers from several corporate giants and some high-level board members."

"The atmosphere was quite harmonious. No incidents occurred."

"Oh?"

Lu Chao raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.

’Nothing happened?’

He subconsciously glanced in the direction Master Luo had gone. ’Could it be that the Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall held back because they feared Master Luo’s strength?’

"Senior Brother, but just now you looked..."

"That was about something else."

Zheng Wu shook his head, his expression turning grave and worried. "Because of the recent warlord conflicts, many of the Mutant Beasts in the nearby wilderness have been stirred up by the fighting and have migrated closer to the city’s outskirts."

"Some companies’ transportation routes have been disrupted as a result, and the pressure on the Political Affairs Department and City Defense Department has increased significantly, so..."

His expression was serious as he seemed to recall the events. "At the banquet, Master Lei proposed that he hoped to unite our martial arts halls and the major corporations to form hunting parties and periodically send people out of the city to hunt down the Mutant Beasts."

"On the one hand, it would allow the martial arts hall disciples and corporate security to be tempered by real combat, building their courage. On the other hand, it would help clear the wilderness, secure the routes, and ease the pressure on the Political Affairs Department and the City Defense Department."

’Oh?’

His expression hardened. Lu Chao immediately understood the source of his worry.

’It sounds like a good thing, the best of both worlds.’

’But Mutant Beasts in the wilderness aren’t that easy to hunt.’

Most are ferocious and violent, with thick hides and tough flesh, and they tend to live in groups. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

In a one-on-one fight, even someone at the Fighting Level would find it difficult to kill one. The risk is not low.

Normally, the City Defense Department would periodically dispatch military forces to sweep the nearby wilderness, using firearms for precision strikes.

Besides that...

Lu Chao glanced at the other senior and junior brothers in the distance.

’The Thunder Extreme Martial Arts Hall has a grudge against us. There are too many unstable factors outside the city. It’s chaotic, and no one can guarantee our safety.’

"Then what was Master Luo’s response?"

Lu Chao asked, but he saw Zheng Wu sigh helplessly.

"It seemed like it was Master Lei’s idea, but without the tacit approval of the two deputy directors, how could he have dared to suggest it?"

"Sigh..."

’So that’s how it is.’

Lu Chao understood and didn’t ask any more questions.

Ultimately, the outcome of this matter would have to be decided by Master Luo himself.

...

「That evening.」

Lu Chao changed into a clean, gray fleece hoodie and left the boxing hall.

The day’s training was over. Even with the buff from [Beginner’s Fortitude], he still felt exhausted.

His muscles ached, and his bones felt numb.

He had once again pushed his stamina to its absolute limit.

’It’s a shame. Without potions, my Life Energy increases too slowly.’

’But, if I calculate the time, my salary and stipend should be coming soon.’

As his thoughts drifted, Lu Chao squeezed onto the tram and, luckily, found an empty window seat.

Then, during the ride home, he swiped his watch screen open and flicked his finger across it.

A file on the screen opened up, displaying numerous illustrated articles about plants.

Things like the location of herbal essences, the maturation period of precious fruits, special harvesting methods that didn’t damage nutrients, the effects of mixing different plant essences...

The title [Basic Herbology] was particularly striking. This was one of the three basic theories one had to master to become an Alchemist, which was necessary to learn methods for refining herbal essences and nutritional components.

Perhaps because he had become a martial artist, his memory had improved.

As a result, he had finished memorizing [Basic Biological Theory] yesterday and had begun studying the second subject.

While silently reading and memorizing, he took out a high-protein energy bar, tore open the wrapper, and began to chew.

Lu Chao savored this rare moment of peace that was all his.

The whispers in the train car had nothing to do with him as the streetscape flew backward outside the window.

Finally, the tram arrived at the platform in District Two.

Hearing the automated announcement, Lu Chao snapped back to reality, pocketed the empty wrapper, and stepped off the tram.

A cold gust of wind, kicked up by the passing cars, blew in through the sliding tram doors, rustling his hair and clothes.

Even at eight at night, there was still plenty of traffic outside the station.

The neon signs of supermarkets and restaurants were still lit, and the warm glow of the streetlights illuminated the road.

Feeling a sense of tranquility, Lu Chao threw away his trash, brushed past pedestrians, and headed toward his apartment building in his black and white sneakers.

From time to time, he could hear the heartwarming chatter of a family of three or the playful bickering of a young couple.

"Hm?"

Soon, his steps came to a halt.

Lu Chao raised an eyebrow, looking toward a crossroads not far ahead.

It was right next to a green belt where a few ginkgo trees were shedding their leaves. Several green trash cans were placed at the fork in the road.

A figure in ragged black clothes was rummaging through the trash there, using a pair of tongs to pick out several plastic water bottles. They then stomped the bottles flat and put them into a large woven plastic sack at their feet.

Their long black hair was messy, as if it hadn’t been washed in some time. Their frame was thin and hunched, looking as if a strong gust of wind could blow them over.

It was the classic appearance of a homeless person, which normally wouldn’t have caught Lu Chao’s attention.

But, watching the person’s movements as they collected the plastic bottles, staring at the side profile that was much thinner now, with a few freckles, and was both familiar and strange...

Lu Chao stood in place, silent for several moments.

"Li Heng..."