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Watching the man on the ground dissolve into light, Lu PingAn sighed, feeling somewhat dejected.

"Damn, I couldn't hold back again. Senior Brother Xue just said killing people in public would be troublesome. This doesn't count as public, right? I'm just a newcomer on the second floor. Nobody should have seen me, right?"

The sensation in his hands was still fresh. Lu PingAn repented for one second, then shrugged it off and headed for the lower level.

To him, killing this man was about the same as killing a monster—perhaps even easier.

"No, no. It feels way too good. It'd be really bad if I got addicted."

Meanwhile, the plaza outside had completely erupted.

"What was that? How did he do it?"

"Ground Shrinking, then using the opponent's charging momentum to twist his neck with a joint-lock technique. He's a skilled fighter. Heh, it was practically a college student challenging a soldier—he went down fast enough."

"That Ground Shrinking had no flourish at all. No windup, no follow-through, just the result. He must have practiced it at least thousands of times!"

"Exactly. That one Ground Shrinking step took at least years of training. It blended perfectly with his physical technique, appearing at precisely the opponent's most vulnerable blind spot. One lead, one pull, and he used the brute force of the opponent's charge to snap his own neck!"

The spectators outside were still eagerly voicing their opinions.

"...The scariest part is that he solved everything with just one Ground Shrinking, while his opponent never got to use any of his abilities."

That was how killing was. Trading blows for half an hour was meaningless; most real fights to the death were settled within a minute.

"Don't limit yourself to methods. Don't limit yourself to professions or abilities. Those things are your toys, your assets—not your burdens. Combine them however you want, use them however you want. Humans aren't as durable as the protagonists in legendary novels. For most people, one light strike at a weak point is enough. Whoever should die, dies."

The practical combat lesson Xue En had given Lu PingAn erupted in the most vicious possible fashion.

"I don't know how others would rate it, but to me, Ground Shrinking is a divine skill. If I weren't juggling so many side professions right now, I'd consider getting one too. I once heard an old senior from the Ancient Martial Arts Department say that Ground Shrinking is most threatening right before it activates."

"When a martial artist puts everything into a single step and strike, that strike can decide life and death. It's the strike an opponent must guard against at all costs. Don't guard against it? Then you deserve to die."

The moment he saw his opponent, Lu PingAn had already taken several steps ahead and prepared Ground Shrinking.

All that remained was to wait for this raging bull to get provoked and charge at him.

What had truly earned him the outsiders' assessment of "ten years of bitter practice" was actually the combined result of several abilities.

Profession Skill (Runner), Space Perception Lv1: You can sense spatial fluctuations in your surroundings.

Profession Skill (Gardener), Spiritual Perception Lv1: You can sense the spirits of nearby lifeforms.

These two passive abilities gave Lu PingAn his perception while using Ground Shrinking. The latter sensed far more than just plants—it allowed Lu PingAn to clearly pinpoint his opponent's location even while shrinking through space.

The rest was even simpler: the right person merely had to appear in the right place.

The Runner profession skill came with Frenzy. It activated in that instant, giving him enough bullet time to seize that seemingly fleeting opportunity. Even if Lu PingAn did it ten more times, with Frenzy active, he would not make a mistake.

Of course, he could have done without it, but there would have been some chance of overplaying things. To be safe, he had not held back his skill.

Lv5 general skill Combat Fighting (Secret Keeper Style), along with Lv4 All Weapon Proficiency—which also granted bonuses while unarmed—allowed Lu PingAn to unleash an instantaneous burst atop his Black Iron Low Rank superhuman physique.

One push, one pull, one twist. A seasoned fighter could easily use an opponent's momentum to snap a fragile neck.

Xue En's assessment had not been wrong. Lu PingAn was very strong. His foundation was already sufficient, even surpassing many ordinary second- and third-year students.

All that remained was to combine everything into his own fighting style. In that regard, the help of Xue En, this veteran, had been crucial.

"Tsk, I didn't even get the chance to bring out my real good stuff."

Lu PingAn felt somewhat regretful, but after briefly reviewing the fight, his opponent's swift defeat had also been due to underestimating him.

More importantly, it had been a matter of intelligence.

That incident had happened four or five days ago, and Deng Jun had only received the notice three or four days ago.

Information on Lu PingAn was restricted in the first place. Deng Jun probably had no chance to obtain detailed intelligence on him.

He might have watched Lu PingAn's first match outside, decided he was just an ordinary support gardener, and rushed in.

"...It's a bit of a shame, but it also gave me a reminder. Combat has never been about comparing stats or panels. One slash is enough to kill someone. Never underestimate an opponent, and never let false information fool you."

If this Tier 2 Combat Profession had been fully equipped and cautiously tested him with probing attacks, even if the final result might not have changed, he would not have lost so quickly.

He had lost so badly that Lu PingAn regretted not getting a chance to test his moves, losing like some huge joke.

What Lu PingAn did not know was that when a "corpse" transformed into a black shadow inside the secret realm, it meant the secret realm's rules had taken effect. That person had not died.

There was a reason the Knight Secret Realm was popular. The meaning of "admitting defeat" was quite broad. The moment thoughts such as "I absolutely can't win" or "I'm going to die" arose, it also meant defeat.

That meant the duel was already over. Under the rules' intervention, all further damage became ineffective, and the loser would be kicked out of the secret realm.

Reciting a god's name was a foolproof measure, as well as a psychological suggestion that made the "loser" firmly believe that he had already lost.

The secret realm would not heal the injured. With his neck twisted like that, it was still a fatal wound. He had only been seconds away from death anyway.

"...Save him."

Technology University's team-leading teacher had a grim expression. If Deng Jun lived, Deng Jun would be held accountable, arrested, and subjected to a series of retaliatory measures. Accountability after the fact.

If Deng Jun died, this team-leading teacher would likely have to shoulder the entire blame. In truth, Deng Jun had already dragged him into this, but at least there would be a living chief culprit to bear the primary responsibility.

At the secret realm's exit, several healers swarmed Deng Jun, then tied him up tightly. From then on, even if he wanted to die, he would find it difficult.

What awaited him for breaking the rules was likely criminal charges, along with the hostility of two universities and perhaps even the entire Secret Keeper society.

Yet what troubled Technology University's team-leading teacher most was not even that.

"This time, we've really been humiliated. The school's reputation has taken a hit, and I'll be held accountable."

Deng Jun had lost, and he had lost disgracefully. Worst of all, he was a second-year student at Technology University, an honors student who had already secured a postgraduate recommendation—though both his job class and that "honors" label were clearly rather watered down.

"Trash. You couldn't even win when causing trouble. You got instantly killed in a sneak attack, caught red-handed committing a crime—how humiliating!"

Starting tomorrow, the story of a Technology University sophomore being instantly killed by a Gu Da applicant would probably spread throughout the industry.

With the school's overall reputation damaged, the Technology University teachers and students affected by it would probably want to tear Deng Jun apart.

But in truth, similar things happened every day.

Those so-called Tier 2s and Tier 3s who had piled up resources in academies and risen safely, only to be instantly killed by lower-tier combat veterans the moment they stepped outside, were not even news anymore.

They needed time to gain experience and gradually hone themselves before they could catch up to the standard combat strength and fighting style of others at the same tier.

That was not actually difficult. They only needed more opportunities and time.

But some things were unreasonable and only cared about attention. Being humiliated so badly in front of everyone—the older second-year student getting instantly killed by a freshman who had not even enrolled yet, a Tier 2 being killed by a Tier 1 or perhaps even a Tier 0, after taking the initiative to break the law and deliver himself to the door—the teacher leading the team racked his brains over how to cover it up, but in the end could only sigh helplessly.

"Report it truthfully. There's no way to hide it."

There were not only applicants from the two universities here. Newcomers from other schools were buzzing with discussion, chatting excitedly.

Clearly, what had happened before them would become a popular topic for the next few days. This shameless sneak attack being instantly killed, the stronger bullying the weaker only to get beaten up by the weaker—it was simply too comical.

As for Lu PingAn himself, he had merely killed a monster with ease before heading to the next floor.

At that moment, the aftereffects of Frenzy, which consumed a massive amount of stamina, appeared. As he climbed the stairs, he was clearly running out of strength.

After hesitating for a moment, Lu PingAn, trying hard to suppress his increasingly rapid breathing, still came to a stop.

Although he should recover after resting for a while, he did not want to expose such an obvious weakness in public, so he chose to leave early.

However, after completing his first trial in the Knight Secret Realm, the options offered by the secret realm far exceeded his expectations, leaving him somewhat hesitant.

"Sure enough, Sir Knight deserves all the praise he gets. Fair and just, and far more generous than stingy Lady Lin!"

Looking at those rewards, Lu PingAn came up with a very interesting idea.

"Perhaps, with the help of this option, I can achieve results beyond my own strength."