「The next afternoon!」

Wang Zhanshan announced a new policy whose pros and cons were difficult to judge at first glance:

All Martial Arts Students, after reaching Level 5, must have experience serving in the military’s lower ranks. Otherwise, they would lose their Martial Arts Student benefits.

Of course, any Martial Arts Student who joined the military would receive double the benefits and preferential treatment during their service.

When they heard this news, a chorus of groans swept through the Martial Arts Team.

No one wanted to go suffer in the army.

"The next batch will be in February, after the New Year. Don’t feel too pressured..."

Wang Zhanshan added a few more words.

This wasn’t just a matter for the Martial Arts Team; it concerned the entire Martial Arts Academy and, even more so, the thousands upon thousands of Martial Arts Students.

No one knew how this would evolve in the future.

But it was clear the Court had enacted this policy in response to the Outer Domain invasion.

"Alright, everyone continue with your training."

After speaking, Wang Zhanshan clapped his hands and left the Martial Arts Arena.

The students immediately broke into a flurry of discussion.

"You’re already in the Grandmaster Realm. Surely this restriction doesn’t apply to you, right?"

Qin Rui asked, her elegant brows furrowed slightly.

"It most likely does. Don’t overthink it. Improving our strength is what matters most. Come with me!"

With that, Zhao Rui led Qin Rui to an empty side hall in Mingcan Courtyard.

"Sit cross-legged and meditate. Calm your heart and quiet your qi!"

Once Qin Rui was ready, Zhao Rui used Secret Transmission to pass the mnemonic verses of the Qingcheng Guiyuan Technique to her.

"This is a Peak Martial Arts technique from the Qingcheng Sword Sect. You must cultivate it diligently and never slack off."

Zhao Rui hadn’t originally planned on this. After all, in a peaceful life, there was no need to force his friends to cultivate some Divine Skill.

At Qin Rui’s current level, with steady progress, she had a chance of reaching the ordinary Grandmaster Realm after the age of thirty.

That level of achievement, combined with the prestige of Dongqi University, would have been more than enough for her to live very well in society.

But not anymore.

Turmoil was coming. Everything had changed.

"This is..."

Qin Rui was stunned after hearing it.

"I’ll pass it to Li Xinran as well, but her talent isn’t on your level. I’m afraid she’ll find it difficult to achieve Great Success..."

"Is something about to happen? I can’t shake this feeling that the atmosphere is wrong."

"Don’t overthink it. Just focus on your cultivation. Strength is the most important thing, no matter the circumstances."

"Mm!"

’Qin Rui was no fool. Zhao Rui never taught me this before. Now, as soon as the policy from above changes, he starts teaching it. Something must have changed.’

"I’ll listen to you."

Qin Rui gave a charming smile. At this moment, she would do whatever Zhao Rui told her to.

Because the level he stood on, the world he was in contact with, was already different from hers.

And so, one taught and one learned. Before they knew it, the sky had grown dark.

Memorizing the verses wasn’t hard. The difficult part was understanding them, learning how to circulate Inner Strength, and guiding it through the Acupoints of the body.

Just as the two were completely focused on the Transmission, a piercing alarm suddenly blared, echoing throughout all of Mingcan Courtyard.

Zhao Rui’s heart skipped a beat. He and the startled Qin Rui quickly rushed toward the source of the sound.

The sound was coming from the direction of the training hall’s Meditation Chambers.

When they arrived at the training hall, they saw someone already inside, staring at one of the Meditation Chambers with a panicked expression, completely at a loss for what to do.

It was a first-year male student, who had likely stayed behind to practice his cultivation.

"What happened?"

"I don’t know! The alarm is coming from this room!"

The student said, pointing to the Quiet Chamber in front of him.

Zhao Rui’s ears twitched, and he heard faint but chaotic, rapid breathing from inside.

"A cultivation deviation?"

Zhao Rui’s expression changed. He strode to the Quiet Chamber, tried the handle, and found it locked.

He channeled a bit of Force, and a huge power erupted, instantly shattering the door’s bolt.

He rushed inside and was met with the sight of a young woman sitting cross-legged on the meditation platform, her skin crimson as if she were being burned.

Her eyes were shut tight, her breathing was rapid, and her heart was pounding—THUMP, THUMP, THUMP.

Seeing this, Zhao Rui leaped onto the meditation platform. His hands moved in a blur, tapping several points on her body as he pressed a single palm against her back, using his own True Qi to soothe the rampaging Inner Strength within her. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

’Such scorching Inner Strength!’

Zhao Rui’s eyes narrowed. He could feel a fiery, scorching Energy inside the young woman’s body. This Energy circulated with her Inner Strength, burning hot like a flame.

"Cap... tain..."

Feeling Zhao Rui’s aid, the young woman’s lips, which were cracked into bloody fissures, managed to form a few syllables.

"Guide your Qi Back to the Origin. Don’t panic. I’m here!"

Zhao Rui possessed the Cold Ice True Qi, so he was completely unfazed by this searing Inner Qi.

However, he couldn’t just use his Cold Ice True Qi to extinguish the searing Inner Qi directly. If he did, the young woman would surely explode and die.

So, he could only soothe it little by little.

Fortunately, his True Qi was as vast as an ocean. In just a short while, he had managed to calm all the searing True Qi both inside and on the surface of the young woman’s body.

"Impressive!"

Just then, an aged voice spoke up.

Zhao Rui looked toward the source of the voice and was taken aback. "Master Deng? It’s been a while."

"It hasn’t been that long. It’s just that your progress is too fast."

Master Deng gazed at Zhao Rui with a complicated expression in his eyes.

"Just a little progress."

Zhao Rui replied humbly, then stepped down from the meditation platform and walked over to Master Deng.

This Master Deng was that strange old man who never left the testing room.

It was only after Zhao Rui had advanced to the Grandmaster Realm that Wang Zhanshan had told him about Master Deng.

He was something of a guardian for the various halls of Mingcan Courtyard, specifically tasked with protecting it.

He didn’t concern himself with anything outside of Mingcan Courtyard.

Back in his day, the old man had been a renowned figure in the martial world. Unfortunately, he was betrayed and ambushed, nearly perishing completely.

It was Elder Ge who had intervened and saved him.

Disheartened, he had holed himself up in the testing room ever since, living like a simple gatekeeper.