Departure

At six in the morning on August 1, the Mingyue Residential Area, quiet throughout the night, began to bustle with activity.

Three martial arts school buses were parked in the plaza before the Limitless Martial Arts School hall, waiting for the Quasi-Warriors taking part in today's practical combat assessment.

With ten minutes left before departure, the area around the buses was already packed with people.

Those dressed in the martial arts school's standard black training uniforms were the Quasi-Warriors participating in the assessment.

Even more were family members seeing them off, their blessings and reminders filling the crowd.

The martial arts school director stood before the buses with a roster in hand. After confirming that everyone was present, he shouted, "All right, everyone's here."

"All Quasi-Warriors taking the assessment, get on the buses. Family members seeing them off, disperse. You'll be back tomorrow once the assessment is over."

That was easy to say, but every year, Quasi-Warriors were injured, crippled, or even killed during the practical combat assessment.

Unable to put their minds at ease, the families continued to offer endless reminders, hoping only that their loved ones would return safely.

Xia Zhi and his grandfather stood off to the side as well.

Grandfather Xia Dahai looked at Xia Zhi's still somewhat youthful face. He was only eighteen.

His lips moved, but no sound came out. His mouth trembled, and his eyes instantly reddened.

His remaining hand gripped Xia Zhi's tightly, and in the end, he could only say, "Be careful. Come home safe!"

Xia Zhi nodded and boarded the bus beneath his grandfather's earnest gaze.

Even after the bus started moving and disappeared into the distance, he could still see his grandfather standing there.

Carrying the hopes of the Mingyue Residential Area families, the buses took Xia Zhi and the other Quasi-Warriors all the way to Yangzhou City Railway Station.

There, Xia Zhi and the others boarded a fully enclosed Armed Train.

As the train set off and gradually accelerated, it finally left the safe base city and headed into the world beyond.

Inside the train, the Quasi-Warriors sat in their seats. Some chatted in small groups, while others rested with their eyes closed.

"We now interrupt with a news report. Qin Yiyi, who once rose to fame across Huaxia with her song 'The Sky of Adolescence'..."

"After being admitted to Jiangnan Music Academy, she was recently signed by Huaxu Entertainment Company, the nation's strongest entertainment company."

"At the signing press conference held by Huaxu Entertainment Company for Yiyi, it was announced that they would create a customized..."

A news item on the screen playing at the front of the carriage suddenly caught Xia Zhi's attention.

The girl who appeared on the screen was someone who had always held a special place in the original owner's memories.

The original owner had already trained diligently, but in order to one day stand proudly at the girl's side, he had put in efforts beyond ordinary people's imagination.

Without any special resources to support him, he had reached the level of a Quasi-Warrior at just eighteen.

Xia Zhi's fixed gaze at the screen drew the interest of the person beside him. After taking a look, he teased, "Your dream girl?"

"No. She was a former classmate. I didn't expect to see her on the news—She's become a celebrity." Xia Zhi shook his head.

"Ha, my younger brother is seventeen this year. He really liked her a couple of years ago. If that brat had even half your strength, Xia Zhi, my dead parents could rest in peace."

The man speaking was called Yang Ming. Xia Zhi had met him at a martial artist gathering in the Mingyue Residential Area.

Yang Ming had become a Quasi-Warrior last year. After signing with the martial arts school, he had failed that year's practical combat assessment.

Fortunately, he had not been injured. After another year of preparation, he was extremely confident in himself this year and firmly believed he would pass the assessment.

Xia Zhi had learned a great deal about the practical combat assessment from him.

Whenever they happened to run into each other while taking walks around the residential area to clear their minds after training, they would chat for a while.

Over the past month, word had gradually spread among the martial artists that Xia Zhi had signed with the martial arts school—and that it was the legendary A-level contract.

Yang Ming knew that as long as Xia Zhi continued on this path, he was destined to become one of the strong. As a result, he had become exceptionally close to him.

After the news segment ended, a figure appeared on the screen. It was Zhuge Tao, the headquarters Supervisor who had taken a liking to Xia Zhi before.

"Hello, Quasi-Warriors. I am Zhuge Tao, Supervisor of the Limitless Martial Arts School in Jiangnan Base City."

"Our Limitless Martial Arts School was founded by the world's strongest man, Hong, and is currently the world's number one organization. After becoming a martial artist, if you join our Limitless Martial Arts School, you can..."

"Hello, everyone. I am Wang Zhihong, president of the Thunderbolt Martial Arts School in Jinan Base City. Our Thunderbolt Martial Arts School was founded by the world's second strongest man, Thunder God..."

"Hello, everyone. I am Zhou Feng, president of the HR Family Alliance in Jiangnan Base City. Our HR Family Alliance was founded jointly by the world's most powerful families and possesses the world's strongest financial consortium. Join us, and..."

One after another, senior figures from various organizations appeared on the screen, introducing the advantages of their respective factions to all the Quasi-Warriors taking this assessment.

For those Quasi-Warriors who had yet to sign a contract and join a faction, this was undoubtedly an excellent way to learn more. Even Yang Ming, who had already signed a contract, watched with great interest.

Xia Zhi stared at the screen, but his thoughts had long since drifted away.

How could the girl appearing in the news merely be a classmate? The memories left behind by the original owner still profoundly affected his thoughts.

She was a very beautiful and kind girl.

The original owner had grown up poor, enduring ridicule and mockery since childhood. He had been sensitive and insecure.

When he learned that martial artists were the most respected and envied people, he trained like a madman, determined to become a martial artist.

Being sensitive, he had not wanted to associate with others. Being insecure, even when he trained, he had trained alone.

The memories of his adolescence had been gray.

Then that girl, beloved by so many peers, had lit up his gray inner world for the first time.

Qin Yiyi. Everyone who knew her liked to call her Yiyi.

At thirteen, she had become famous across Huaxia with a song called "The Sky of Adolescence."

Unwilling to become a child star, she chose to continue studying at school and lay a foundation for her future.

At school, Yiyi was the dream goddess in every boy's heart. Countless people wanted to show off in front of her.

The girl and the original owner should have been two parallel lines that would never intersect.

Yet in a study mutual-aid group organized by the school, Yiyi and the original owner had been assigned to the same group.

Insecure as he was, he had originally only wanted to hide off to the side and silently watch.

Thus, the original owner often used indifference to disguise himself whenever faced with the girl's kindness.

It was also from that time on that Li Wei and those arrogant sons of privilege at school began to hate and target the original owner.

Originally, life would have gone on like that.

But one ordinary morning, the girl saw the original owner training alone in the park.

"You're amazing. I've never seen anyone our age with such strong martial arts skills."

"Do you want to become a martial artist someday?"

After watching the original owner finish his training, the girl had taken the initiative to ask him.

Startled by the girl's sudden appearance, the original owner had merely nodded coldly.

The smile that blossomed on the girl's face was deeply etched into the original owner's heart.

"You'll definitely become a powerful martial artist. I believe you can do it!"

It was as if the world had suddenly gained color in that moment. His fluttering heartbeat and the emotional defenses he had always concealed behind indifference were shattered.

From then on, the original owner trained even more desperately—not only for himself and his grandfather.

But also for that girl who had given color to his memories.

When I become a martial artist, I'll truly be able to stand before you. He had silently made that vow at the time.

Just then, a rough male voice rang through the carriage.

It interrupted Xia Zhi's train of thought.

The high-speed, fully enclosed Armed Train began to slow down as well.

"We've arrived at the destination. Prepare to disembark!"

"Welcome to Armed Base No. 1049 in Jiangnan Base City."

After work, I managed to put out another chapter. Since I have a job, two updates a day is almost my limit. I also have to consider the plot and whether everything before and after connects reasonably. All entertainment has stopped now. I've truly experienced how difficult it is to be an online novelist.

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