The courtyard was a clamor of activity. This was the busiest time of day at the martial arts hall, with students everywhere exchanging pointers.

On the walkway, Lei Ming was in a good mood. He chuckled and said, "Starting today, you’re an Official Disciple. You don’t need to go to A Class anymore. The Inner Courtyard has training rooms, and I’ll take you to claim one in a bit. From now on, you can come and go straight to your training room for Cultivation... After all, the Secret Technique can’t be leaked to outsiders, so we Official Disciples generally cultivate separately from the other students."

Wan Ze nodded.

Lei Ming thought of something and added, "By the way, you haven’t been at the martial arts hall for three months yet, right?"

"Are you going to refund my tuition?" That was the first thing that came to Wan Ze’s mind.

"Haha, looks like you did your research." Lei Ming nodded with a smile. "That’s right. Since you became an Official Disciple within three months, the hall will refund your registration fee as per the rules. Also, starting this month, the martial arts hall will organize some monthly activities, and participation is voluntary."

"Activities?" Wan Ze asked curiously. "What kind of activities?"

"Usually bodyguard work and things like that. Our Dragon Eagle Martial Arts Hall cooperates with various corporations and organizations in Holy City. They have the funds, and we have the muscle..." Lei Ming lowered his voice. "You’ve only just reached the Beginner Level in the Secret Martial Arts, so there’s no rush to make money. Besides, the money Professor Song gave you should be enough to tide you over for a while. When a good mission comes up later, I’ll pass it your way. You can count on that."

"Thanks, Senior Brother," Wan Ze said quickly.

’He was short on cash right now.’

’Fortunately, he had just earned two thousand from Professor Song.’

"Haha, alright then. I’ll take you to the training room. From now on, your time is your own to schedule. Nothing much usually happens at the hall, but if something does, someone will contact you..."

Lei Ming said as they walked.

Soon, the two of them passed through the central hall and headed straight for the rearmost row of courtyard houses. The earth-yellow buildings resembled a field of wheat, and the booming sound of air-shattering impacts could be faintly heard.

Lei Ming lowered his voice. "This is the training area for Official Disciples. Don’t make a ruckus when you come here. Some of the senior brothers and sisters have rather... fiery tempers. Just keep a low profile when you arrive. This way... These two rows of buildings are currently empty. You practice the Secret Martial Arts inside the rooms. They’re soundproof, so no one outside can hear a thing... If you want to temper your body, you come to this courtyard. It has all kinds of equipment for muscle training, much more professional than what’s in the outer courtyard."

He pushed open a door.

Wan Ze looked inside. The courtyard was huge. Along the left wall hung more than a dozen aged wooden posts, and two figures were striking them at blinding speed, completely oblivious to the movement at the entrance.

Wan Ze took a quick look and stepped back out, making no noise. Only a man with a crew cut, who was in the middle of drinking water, seemed to notice and glanced his way. But he paid it no mind, putting down his water bottle and immediately going back to lifting weights.

"What do you think?" Lei Ming asked as he closed the door.

"It’s great." Wan Ze was already itching to get started.

Lei Ming smiled. "This here is the training room. Here’s the key, hold onto it. From now on, you can come straight in to begin your Cultivation... I’ve taken a job with the hall as an instructor for A Class, so if you need anything, just come find me."

"Understood."

...

Inside the training room, Wan Ze was bare-chested. The muscles of his back were sharply defined, and sweat streamed down his spine.

After parting ways with Lei Ming, he hadn’t wasted a moment, immediately resuming his Cultivation of the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts.

’He had to admit, the power of the Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts was on a completely different level from any of the other Martial Dao Skills he was practicing.’

’Even its objective was more difficult than those for his other skills.’

At the bottom of his field of vision.

A red data box materialized—

[Illustrated Guide: Dragon Eagle Secret Martial Arts] (Beginner Level Mastered)

[Skill Basic Requirement: Accumulate twelve hours in the Martial Arts Posture]

...

The Martial Arts Posture was different from the ordinary Squatting Horse Stance. It constantly stimulated the circulation of one’s qi and blood, a process that was also incredibly draining.

Thus, after holding the posture for an hour and twenty minutes, Wan Ze was drenched in sweat and ravenously hungry. Fortunately, he had come prepared. After resting for a few seconds, he got up, walked over to a nearby table, and took out some homemade beef jerky from his bag, chewing on it unhurriedly.

When his Cultivation session was over, he made a special trip to D Class to thank Master Qin for his recommendation, only to find that the master was unexpectedly away.

"Ah Ze!" Zhou Xianchuan, who was practicing his punches, saw him and waved excitedly. "Are you here to see me?"

"I came looking for you and Master Qin, but he doesn’t seem to be around," Wan Ze replied.

"Master Qin left yesterday. I think he went out of town for some banquet... He’ll probably be gone for a few days." As the two chatted, a gentle breeze swept across the white-stoned courtyard. In the shade of a tree, several students were gathered around a sandbag, testing their Punching Power.

"More new recruits?" Wan Ze asked, surprised by the unfamiliar faces.

"More than ten new people joined, but they’re not all here yet. There’s this one girl who’s seriously cute, hehe... Oh, but she’s not here. I hope she didn’t bail," Zhou Xianchuan said, looking around with a hint of disappointment.

Wan Ze suddenly asked, "Aren’t you about to move up a class soon?"

Zhou Xianchuan immediately broke into another grin. "You heard? Hehe, Master Qin said my Iron Mountain Fist is almost perfected. He told me to consolidate my foundation for another ten days or so, and then I can move up to C Class for Cultivation. If I pass the test, I might even be able to go straight to B Class! Just you wait, by the end of the year, I’ll be in A Class looking for you."

"You won’t get the chance. I’m already in the Inner Courtyard." Wan Ze saw no reason to be secretive about it.

But Zhou Xianchuan just scoffed. "Yeah, right. And I’m Great Emperor Ying!"

"..." Wan Ze was left speechless.

’Forget it.’

He chatted for a few more minutes, and the qi and blood in his body settled as he walked around. The feeling of hunger didn’t return until dusk, when he was sparring with Sun Fan.

’What the hell!’

Suppressing his frustration, Wan Ze held his breath and focused, his movements swift as he attacked.

His Power had increased dramatically, so sparring with Sun Fan required him to consciously control his strength. For him, this itself was another form of Cultivation.

The two of them sparred until dark. Sun Fan, panting for breath, suddenly said, "I held you up for a long time today. Dinner’s on me tonight."

"No need." Wiping away his sweat, Wan Ze smiled and turned to leave.

Sun Fan pouted.

「Under the cover of night.」

As Wan Ze walked out of the main gate of the Dragon Eagle Martial Arts Hall, he happened to see Sun Fan’s car.

The driver, Old Li, was sitting in the driver’s seat, lost in thought. He was visibly startled when Wan Ze appeared and, after a moment’s hesitation, gave him a nod. Wan Ze nodded in return and turned, walking off down the street.

Old Li watched the figure recede under the streetlights, finding him hard to read. When he looked again, Wan Ze had already vanished around the corner. In his place, a massive man, nearly two meters tall and with his face covered, quickly darted past.

...

"How did you know I’d be here?"

In a dark alley, Wan Ze’s scalp went numb the instant he saw the towering man. He hastily pulled him into a corner and scanned their surroundings cautiously.

"I found out that guy was from the Dragon Eagle Martial Arts Hall, so I waited here for you all day. I even waved when you went inside this afternoon, but you didn’t see me, so I just hid nearby until now." The massive man sounded somewhat aggrieved.

Wan Ze stared at him, his expression unreadable, as if trying to gauge whether this was all an act. But regardless, he asked coldly, "Why go through all this trouble to find me? Don’t you know the people from the Secret Palace are hunting for you?"