This was undoubtedly a good escape route.

They now saw Zhao Rui’s cat-and-mouse game and were filled with regret. ’If only we’d known he was this strong, we wouldn’t have pursued him so far.’

Of course, Zhao Rui knew what they were thinking.

’What a shame,’ he thought.

’I’ll just have to be ruthless!’

"Great Asura Demon Technique copied. Awarding one Advancement Point."

"Five Poison Divine Palm copied. Awarding one Advancement Point."

As the two notifications sounded, Zhao Rui stopped holding back. He unleashed his full Force, exploited the flaws in their techniques, and struck them dead.

"Run!"

The two remaining Grandmasters had lost all courage to fight. They were even willing to take a direct hit from Zhao Rui just for a chance to flee.

Zhao Rui wasn’t about to let them get away. He targeted one and unleashed the Five Poison Divine Palm he had just learned. After a few exchanges, he landed a strike on the man’s back.

Then he spun around to pursue the other one, determined to squeeze out every last drop of value from him.

"Blazing Rock Palm copied. Awarding one Advancement Point!"

As the notification sounded, Zhao Rui struck the man’s heart meridian with the Profound Yin Sword Pointing, extinguishing his life force instantly.

In that brief moment, the Gui Xu expert at the Grandmaster Realm, who had been struck by the Five Poison Divine Palm, had already fled several kilometers.

Just as Zhao Rui was about to give chase, he heard something from behind.

BANG! BANG! A few gunshots rang out.

He turned to see that army reinforcements had arrived. Several snipers, wielding massive sniper rifles, had opened fire.

The bullets streaked through the air and struck the fleeing Gui Xu expert of the Grandmaster Realm with precision, causing him to stumble.

Before he could even dodge, another five or six rounds struck him.

It was hard to tell if it was Zhao Rui’s Five Poison Divine Palm taking effect or if the bullets were simply that powerful.

After withstanding a few hits, he was finally struck down by a bullet. He collapsed and began to twitch on the ground.

"Director Zhao!"

A force of a thousand soldiers arrived in a great procession, accompanied by two missile launch vehicles.

Qiu Tong leaped from an armored vehicle, ran up to Zhao Rui, and gave him a sharp salute.

The nearly one thousand soldiers behind him also saluted Zhao Rui in unison.

The salute was, of course, a sign of gratitude for him single-handedly covering their retreat.

For a Grandmaster Realm Martial Artist, who wasn’t even an official soldier, to do such a thing was far beyond the call of duty.

Zhao Rui felt a little embarrassed.

’My motives weren’t as pure as these soldiers think.’ But at that moment, all he could do was return a formal, standard military salute.

The wind howled, and dust filled the desolate air.

Looking back, the landscape was transformed, the sky lit by an endless barrage of artillery fire.

The world really has changed.

...

The front-line barracks had been obliterated by artillery fire.

Zhao Rui didn’t return to the division headquarters with the army. Instead, he received a notice to report directly to the main camp of the military area command.

The entire camp was a hive of activity, with military vehicles constantly coming and going.

"You’re really something else. Tough to kill, too!"

Inside a lounge in the office building, Liu Huaijin looked at Zhao Rui, who was still spotless, and spoke with a hint of admiration.

"Just luck."

Zhao Rui replied nonchalantly. ’This guy fled at the first sign of trouble. He’s really not a good teammate.’

Seeing Zhao Rui’s lukewarm expression, Liu Huaijin said, a bit sheepishly, "I’m not like you young guys. I have a family. I have more to consider."

"I understand."

Zhao Rui just smiled, saying nothing more.

’The battlefield is no joke,’ Zhao Rui thought. ’If I weren’t so confident in my superior strength and my means of escape, I’d probably have hidden far away just like him.’

But that didn’t stop Zhao Rui from disliking him.

It wasn’t just the two of them in the conference room; there were a dozen or so other Martial Arts Grandmasters as well.

They were all Martial Artists from the latest reinforcement batch sent to the border.

Some even bore fresh wounds.

Clearly, they had all been through a brutal fight.

"The Spiritual Qi is so dense here. I just want to find a place to enter seclusion and focus on my Cultivation."

One Grandmaster Martial Artist reached out, stroking the air as if caressing a beloved woman. His eyes gleamed as he spoke.

"Indeed. We were born into a golden age. Gentlemen, the era of us Martial Artists has truly begun."

Another’s eyes flashed, his heart clearly racing with excitement.

This Spiritual Qi Revival was completely different from the one a century ago.

The one a century ago was, at best, a partial revival.

But this was a complete revival. If they continued their Cultivation in this environment, everyone present could potentially advance by one or two more levels.

Even the once-unreachable Dharma Realm might now be within their grasp.

Hearing this exchange, the eyes of many of the Martial Artists flickered. Though they remained silent, it was clear their minds were reeling.

In the past, Martial Artists were highly respected, but true power was still held by the Court.

When faced with weapons of mass destruction, Martial Artists were ultimately outmatched.

But now...

’Who knows who will call the shots in the future!’

"Gentlemen, my apologies for the wait. I was just in a video conference—an emergency meeting with the high command."

Just then, an imposing man in a military uniform strode in, his every step powerful and confident.

"This is General Wang of our military area command," an accompanying officer immediately introduced him.

A hush fell over the room as everyone quickly rose to their feet.

This was a general with real authority, commanding tens of thousands of soldiers.

"Please, sit. Everyone, sit down." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Gentlemen, I’ve called you all here today because we’ve received new directives from high command..."

General Wang didn’t waste any time and directly relayed the contents of the directive from his superiors.

Zhao Rui listened in silence.

The orders were simple: consolidate forces and establish a joint defense mechanism for the military area.

The issuing of this order meant the war had entered a new phase.

The Court was no longer concerned with holding the border regions. The new plan was to use continuous, heavy firepower to suppress enemy advances.

The goal was to ensure the security of the interior and buy time for the advent of nationwide Cultivation.

As for Zhao Rui and the other Grandmaster Realm Martial Artists, they were to act as mobile reconnaissance units. Only they had the ability to detect and repel small-scale enemy incursions.

The meeting was brief, lasting only about half an hour.

The expressions on the faces of the Grandmaster Martial Artists varied.

Their thoughts were even harder to fathom.

Nationwide Cultivation!

The path forward was, perhaps, truly on a different path now.

After leaving the military command, Zhao Rui returned to his division headquarters.

This time, Zhao Rui’s actions in covering the retreat had allowed the entire remainder of his regiment to withdraw safely.

He was credited with a great service, and the division command publicized his deed throughout the army.

Zhao Rui’s name became well-known, at least within his division, and he earned the respect of the soldiers.

Unfortunately, with the division having lost nearly half its strength, the soldiers’ morale couldn’t be boosted by publicizing one or two heroic acts.

Zhao Rui, too, gained a profound understanding of the battlefield’s cruelty.

After he had been resting at the division headquarters for less than two days, the entire camp suddenly erupted in thunderous cheers.

The object of their cheers was a group of tattered, ragged soldiers returning to the barracks.

When Zhao Rui heard the commotion and went outside to look, he too was pleasantly surprised.

It was Qi Tianlu and the deputy commander! They had miraculously survived and returned to the division base with nearly a hundred soldiers.

At this, it wasn’t just Zhao Rui’s regiment—the entire division was ecstatic.

Many soldiers had been lost in the sudden assault.

No one had expected anyone to survive the double blow of the initial assault and the subsequent artillery barrage.

The somber atmosphere hanging over the army lifted, as if they’d been injected with a stimulant, and their passion was rekindled.

Zhao Rui witnessed it all with mixed feelings.

’After being suppressed for so long, they really needed an outlet like this.’

War is no game.

...

In the period that followed, a strange equilibrium settled over the entire border.

The enemy ceased their large-scale probing attacks, switching instead to small-squad raids.

Meanwhile, the Court proceeded with its plan, establishing a blockade along the border and resolutely denying the enemy any opportunity to penetrate the interior.

Under this new equilibrium, the Central Plains officially entered an era of martial arts for all.

With the Court’s vigorous promotion, everyone from government officials to private sector employees, from street vendors to farmers, received basic training in Martial Arts theory and Cultivation through their respective organizations.

In little more than a month, many people who had previously shown no aptitude for martial arts miraculously achieved Qi Sensing.

Many Martial Artists who had been stuck for years successfully broke through to the next Realm.

Even ordinary people just beginning to dabble in the Martial Dao found that chronic ailments and discomforts were gradually fading away.

Their physical condition improved dramatically.

This era was, after all, truly different.