"Two weapons in Chief Zhang's collection were seized a century ago from an alien martial artist whose Life Development Power exceeded one hundred."
"Many people have tried to obtain those two weapons over the past century, but Chief Zhang turned them all down."
It was said that even City Guardian Xiao Cheng had once visited Zhang Qifeng, hoping to find a suitable weapon for his nephew. In the end, he had returned empty-handed.
For the old soldier who had crawled out of piles of corpses a century ago, those two weapons were no less than medals awarded by the Federal Government. In fact, they meant even more to him.
Now.
One of the weapons Zhang Qifeng had treasured for a century had actually ended up in Qin Annian's hands.
The onlookers exchanged glances, deep thought flickering in their eyes.
"Looks like Chief Zhang thinks highly of this young man!"
But.
After watching Qin Annian fight his way out of the Iron Rod Gang, they understood why Zhang Qifeng thought so.
"His killing technique is brutally simple."
"He didn't waste a single ounce of strength. No wonder he managed to take down Xu Laosan and Ge Qingwang, along with hundreds of the gang's core members."
"He has the bearing of a grandmaster!"
As soon as those words were spoken, the whole crowd fell silent.
A grandmaster who wasn't even nineteen yet?
Even the Martial Gods who had overwhelmed the galaxy and ascended to the Godseat Realm couldn't have become grandmasters at that age, could they?
A grandmaster was not only a master of their field, but also someone who forged a new path!
Only a handful of grandmasters had made their names in Federation history. Even the least accomplished among them had reached the Near-God Realm. They had all entered this field only after their martial skills had been tempered by time and countless trials.
"That's going way too far!"
Zhang Xiaoqian clenched her fists, her gaze fixed on Han Xi.
She felt like nothing had gone her way this year. Her luck had been abysmal!
It was bad enough that she couldn't compete with Han Xi. Now even that damned Qin Annian was going to oppose her?
"Officer Qin, are you all right?"
Chen Qintao had people tend to Lin Zi'ang and the little girl's wounds, while his gaze kept sweeping over Qin Annian.
His black combat uniform was soaked in blood, and the stench of it was enough to shock even him.
He knew full well that Qin Annian had done it to make sure every bit of his strength went into the fight. He hadn't wasted any effort dodging the blood splattering around him.
"Should I have the Medical Team come over?"
From the outside, Chen Qintao couldn't tell whether Qin Annian was injured.
"Just give me some energy bars."
Qin Annian's breathing was steady. He was only a little drained. In particular, after the adrenaline wore off, the lactic acid buildup from overexertion and the torn muscle fibers left his whole body aching.
He took the solid energy bars Chen Qintao handed him and silently bit into one, chewing.
He didn't ask Chen Qintao and the others what mission they were carrying out here. He simply looked at his Status Panel.
[Host: Qin Annian.]
[Number of people providing assistance: 3.]
[Available Cultivation Techniques: None.]
"Only three?"
"Why so few?"
Qin Annian stopped chewing and frowned slightly.
"Among those modified martial artists just now, quite a few had a Life Development Power above fifteen."
[The strongest opponent defeated by the host most recently is used as the standard.]
[Those with a Life Development Power lower than theirs are no longer counted as people providing assistance.]
The Status Panel gave a rare answer to Qin Annian's question.
"I see."
"Sickle had a Life Development Power of thirty-two."
"Of the modified martial artists I killed in this alley afterward, only two met that requirement?"
Qin Annian regretted it a little. Sickle shouldn't have shown up so soon.
"But the two modified martial artists in the alley whose Life Development Power exceeded Sickle's were nowhere near as strong as him."
"With a Life Development Power of thirty-two, his modified organs could push his combat power past two hundred when they were running beyond their limits—nearly a 6.25-fold increase."
An ordinary martial artist's combat power was generally three to five times their Life Development Power. Sickle was the toughest enemy Qin Annian had faced so far.
If he'd relied on the awareness of a Fist Technique Grandmaster alone, he might not have been able to kill him so easily.
Chen Qintao left Qin Annian a spare combat uniform, then led his team onward toward the Cultivation Holders Association's underground base.
Qin Annian had just taken off his blood-soaked uniform when the Supply Ship's voice came through his combat earpiece:
"Officer Qin, Sky Net is back online."
Then.
Qin Annian turned and walked into the stairwell nearby. When he came back out, he had changed into a fresh combat uniform. He said to Lin Zi'ang, whose body was wrapped in bandages:
"Come on."
"I'll get you out of here."
The Assault Team's treatment was battlefield medicine: as long as they could keep you alive, that was good enough.
If this kid still wanted to keep cultivating in the future, he couldn't be left with any hidden injuries now.
Temporary Command Center.
A Medical Team member who had just been summoned reluctantly tore her gaze away and told someone to prepare to receive the wounded, then contacted experts at Children's Hospital.
"Qin Annian won't be nineteen until his birthday this year, right?"
"He really is a remarkable young man!"
"Star-Shatterer is in his hands. Looks like Chief Zhang considers him one of his own."
"In another three to five years, his Life Development Power should exceed five hundred."
By then.
Qin Annian would only be around twenty-two. He might not measure up to prodigies like Han Xi, whose origins were shrouded in mystery, but he was certainly one of the most talented young people native to Taiyu City!
"Qin Annian probably doesn't have a girlfriend yet, right? My eldest niece is graduating from Martial Arts University this year. I'll have to set them up. You all better not try to beat me to it."
The speaker was a sturdy-looking man who appeared to be in his thirties.
He was the captain of the Operations Division's Assault Team, with a Life Development Power of 321.
"You know what Qin's life was like before. He hardly had time to think about getting a girlfriend."
To put it bluntly, Qin Annian was an orphan who could barely count on being alive tomorrow. What girl would want to date him?
But who could have guessed that the roc would one day rise with the wind? Somehow, Qin Annian had unlocked some hidden potential and suddenly become a hotly sought-after genius!
"Tsk!"
Just then.
Zhang Xiaoqian muttered under her breath, her tone edged with sarcasm:
"What kind of genius is he?"
"Isn't Department Chief Han's husband the real genius? After all, even Department Chief Han was willing to marry him."
The experts who had been chatting a moment earlier were all a little embarrassed by that remark.
Given Han Xi's standards, could the man she'd chosen really be anything less? How could the two of them even be compared?
"You're right. My husband really is a genius."
To everyone's surprise, Han Xi, who had always disdained getting into arguments with Zhang Xiaoqian, lifted her chin and looked at her.
"His talent far surpasses yours."
Hiss!
In an instant.
The air in the Temporary Command Center seemed to freeze. Everyone stood as motionless as stone statues.
Just as Zhang Xiaoqian's eyes began to widen, her breathing quickened, and her aura surged—
Section Chief Zhang appeared.
"How's the situation?"
"Have they reached the underground base?"
The dead silence broke. The leader of the Intelligence and Technical Support Team hurried to his feet and reported:
"Reporting in, Chief!"
"The Assault Team led by Chen Qintao has entered the underground passage!"
Before you continue