Martial Arts Club Meeting

After returning, Su Yi took a proper hot bath and changed into a fresh set of clothes.

He began planning his next steps.

First, he still needed to cultivate combat methods. Once he became proficient in a High Grade Combat Method, his combat strength would increase considerably.

Of course, that did not mean Mid Grade Combat Methods were useless. Having practiced them for so long, they were definitely still stronger than a High Grade Combat Method he had only just begun cultivating.

Before the High Grade Combat Method reached Minor Achievement, he would still have to rely primarily on Mid Grade Combat Methods in battle.

He also needed to set aside some time to visit the High Grade Combat Method area.

Fu Yinghao had not yet returned from the Abyss, so there was no way to know when he would enter it again.

It was not that Su Yi insisted on teaming up with him. Rather, he had already asked Wu Kuishan about him, and Fu Yinghao's character was relatively trustworthy.

He had begun entering the Abyss after reaching Third Grade in his sophomore year. Now, at Fourth Grade Peak, he had entered the Abyss dozens of times, large and small.

He had even ventured several times into areas more than a hundred kilometers deep. He should be very familiar with many of the Abyss's villages.

For his next descent into the Abyss, Su Yi planned to target some villages. The strongest people in most medium-sized villages were only Fifth Grade, which posed little danger to him while offering high returns.

Fu Yinghao had entered the Abyss so many times, and the fact that he wanted to team up with him might well have been for this very reason.

Although the two of them would have many things they needed to keep hidden and could not use, there were plenty of benefits as well. First, they would have company; second, their strength would increase somewhat. Fu Yinghao had even once killed a Fifth-Rank Mid warrior.

Teaming up with him would not mean being dragged down. Moreover, if they encountered danger they could not resist, splitting up and running would greatly increase their chances of survival.

For the time being, he did not intend to go to the Meat Grinder. Heaven's Gate City seemed to have already issued a bounty on him, and going there would make it far too easy to draw the attention of Fifth- and Sixth-Grade Abyss powerhouses.

Ordinary Fifth- and Sixth-Grade fighters would be manageable—at least he could run. But if he encountered an Essence Blood Unity fighter or a Seventh-Grade Abyss warrior, things would become dicey.

There was not a single location in the Abyss from the original novel that he remembered and could visit.

Not to mention Cunning King Forest. There was absolutely no need to bother with that place. He could not, like Fang Ping, use the system to endlessly condense Blood Qi for Cunning. If he went, he would be swallowed in one gulp—there was no other possibility.

Wolf Head Mountain had a Seventh Grade, and he had no way of knowing when that Seventh Grade would be there. Otherwise, he would very much like to raid a High Grade's home.

There were Abyss books there, as well as medicinal gardens. What Su Yi cared about most were the Abyss books. He wanted to know whether the combat methods cultivated by Abyss Warriors who followed the energy path could repair the Book of Knowledge.

That was an important reason he wanted to choose villages.

Su Yi shook his head and crossed out Wolf Head Mountain. A Seventh Grade was not someone he could provoke. Besides, that Seventh Grade had an Eighth-Grade Golden Body younger brother. If he went to Wolf Head Mountain and found both of them there, Su Yi could start considering how tall the grass on his grave would grow.

Hedgehog Dog Ridge was no good either. Though it had Energy Ore, it also had a Seventh-Grade and an Eighth-Grade Demon Beast. That was more than a decade later; there might be more than two of them now, though that was unlikely.

There was no record at all of High Grades appearing at Hedgehog Dog Ridge, which meant they rarely made moves.

But those two High Grade Demon Beasts alone were already beyond what Su Yi could handle.

The second floor of the Battle Art Room had quite a bit of information on Energy Ore, but he was not the Martial Arts Club President and did not have permission to view it. Even if he did, any Energy Ore deposit would certainly have High Grades guarding it.

Even a Sixth-Grade Peak would be certain to die there. Grandmasters could not go either; if one fell, it would truly be a major disaster.

As for those villages whose information was available, they had likely been picked clean long ago. There was no need to hope for any resources; whether the villages still existed was itself a question.

"It's really hard. Without strength, you can't get any resources."

Over the years, quite a few Energy Ore locations had been recorded, but without strength, he could obtain none of them.

Even with strength, it was difficult. Grandmasters were humanity's backbone; every Grandmaster who fell was an enormous loss.

Publicly, Grandmasters needed to arrange their itineraries before entering the Abyss. Except under special circumstances, they could not casually go to certain places, lest they trigger unrest.

Privately, so long as nothing went wrong, no one cared. Grandmasters could not be restrained at will.

"I should cultivate combat methods first. There's no rush about entering the Abyss. I'll wait until Fu Yinghao returns."

Martial Arts Club Building.

Conference Hall.

The Martial Arts Club was holding a meeting, and the atmosphere was solemn.

The meeting was chaired by the Martial Arts Club President, Xie Jie.

Xie Jie was somewhat lean, carrying an air of scholarly refinement.

There were not many people in the conference room, only a handful in total.

"Everyone is here. This meeting is to discuss Su Yi—whether we should invite him to take up a position."

Sitting in the main seat, Xie Jie spoke calmly.

"Su Yi? What happened with him?"

Xue Hang was somewhat puzzled. Recently, he had been focused on tempering his spine, and he truly had not heard what Su Yi had done this time.

"It is indeed time to discuss it properly."

The one who spoke was the Minister of the Discipline Inspection Department. He then explained to Xue Hang, "The latest news from the Abyss: Su Yi wreaked havoc in the Meat Grinder, killing one Fifth-Rank Peak Abyss warrior and twelve others of various ranks.

Twenty-two Fourth Grade martial artists, and more than a hundred from the Lower Three Grades."

The Discipline Inspection Department Minister's words caused several Ministers to erupt in uproar. Not everyone constantly kept track of news from the Abyss, and two of the Ministers had only just returned from completing missions.

Xue Hang sucked in a cold breath, his eyes widening. Shaking his head, he said, "Impossible. Absolutely impossible. Mao Siyuan, you're pulling my leg, aren't you?"

Mao Siyuan rolled his eyes at him and said nothing.

What was he thinking? Did Su Yi need to lie?

So many people in the Abyss had seen it, and besides, a Sixth Grade powerhouse had previously said he saw Su Yi kill a Fifth-Rank Initial Stage opponent.

Xue Hang felt like he could barely breathe. Good heavens, was his junior brother's path really this wild?

They had both been at Third Grade Mid Stage before. Then he heard Su Yi had reached Third-Rank High Stage and gone down into the Abyss. And now they were saying he could kill a Fifth-Rank Peak powerhouse?

Thinking of this, Xue Hang eagerly asked, "What realm is he at now?"

"Third-Rank High Stage, or maybe Peak."

Mao Siyuan said uncertainly.

He only knew that Su Yi had been at Third-Rank High Stage when he went in. When he came out, he had not reached Fourth Grade, so he should be Third-Rank Peak at most, right?

Hearing this, Xue Hang did not know what to say. If Su Yi had reached Fourth Grade, it meant the gap between their realms had already become enormous. If he had not, then it was even more terrifying—Third-Rank Peak or High Stage, yet capable of killing a Fifth-Rank Peak.

"No." Xie Jie shook his head, rejecting Mao Siyuan's claim. When everyone looked at him, he said, "The latest news from the Qi-Blood Chamber is that Su Yi built five Heaven-Earth Bridges in one go. He's already Fourth Grade Mid."

"Who?"

The Minister of the Foreign Affairs Department squeaked.

Xie Jie glanced at the Minister of the Foreign Affairs Department and said with utter certainty, "Su Yi!"

When he had first received the news, he too had been incomparably shocked. At Third Grade, Su Yi had dared fight a Fifth-Rank Peak. Now that he was Fourth Grade...

Though it could not really be calculated that way, it was impossible not to make the connection.

The shocked crowd kept talking over one another. He could understand it, but they were simply being too noisy.

"Quiet!"

Xie Jie shouted sternly, then said, "What we're discussing now is whether we should invite him to take up a position."

"President, of course we should invite him! He's Fourth Grade Mid! How many Fourth Grades does the Martial Arts Club even have?"

"Exactly. Besides, he's already a member of the Martial Arts Club."

"But isn't this too fast? He's only in Freshman Year."

"What do you mean, too fast or not? The school respects the strong. Cultivating quickly is his own ability."

"..."

Watching the several people argue all at once, Xie Jie's brows drew together. Somewhat impatiently, he said, "Xue Hang, you speak first."

He was a little irritated today. Su Yi was putting too much pressure on him. He himself was only a Fourth Grade Mid warrior now. Though they were in the same grade, once he learned of Su Yi's record, he knew he could not do the same.

Xue Hang frowned slightly, not expecting to be asked first. Everyone knew he and Su Yi were from the same school of training. Having him open things up, it seemed Xie Jie wanted Su Yi to take up a position.

"I agree. There's no need to say more about Su Yi's strength. His contributions are known throughout the country. I can't think of any reason to refuse."

Since Xie Jie wanted to show Su Yi goodwill, then he would go along with it. There was no downside. After saying that, he nodded at the president.

Xie Jie returned the gesture with a look. No matter what, the more friends, the more paths. It was not that he needed Su Yi's help or anything—so long as they did not become enemies. Of course, becoming friends would be even better.

What was bad about having a friend as talented and powerful as Su Yi? Only a fool would refuse.

"Xue Hang, everyone knows Su Yi is your fellow junior brother. Aren't you praising him a little too much?"

The one who stood up to speak was a Vice President. He was not deliberately targeting anyone; he simply felt this was inappropriate.

Xie Jie narrowed his eyes. Well then, half a fool had emerged. As for why only half, it was because Xie Jie knew the man was just straightforward by nature.

Xue Hang knew it too, so they would not become enemies, but it would be hard for them to become friends either.

Didn't he see that no one else had spoken? What an idiot.

Xue Hang felt rather speechless and cursed inwardly before explaining, "I'm simply discussing the matter as it is. Whether Su Yi is my fellow junior brother or not, I would still answer fairly. Look, no one else has objected either."

Naturally, the others were not fools. Arguing was one thing before anyone had officially spoken, but now that Xue Hang had formally given his answer, objecting would mean making an enemy.

Making an enemy of Xue Hang was fine.

Making an enemy of Su Yi? No way!

At Third-Rank High Stage, he had already been a fierce maniac who dared seek out Fifth-Rank Abyss Warriors. Now he was even Fourth Grade Mid. Making an enemy of him—were they really not afraid of getting sapped on the road?

As long as it did not kill you, then the beating was free.

Not to mention anything else, just by virtue of the New Tempering Method he created, he could walk into any Martial University, state his name, and be politely invited in by the school leadership.

Don't think everyone was as foolish as Yu Peng.

Yu Peng's strength was not bad—Fourth Grade Initial. He also had a strong sense of justice and honor. He was just too blunt and quick-tongued, often speaking without putting his words through his brain.

Yu Peng heard Xue Hang's words and looked around. Sure enough, no one objected.

He smiled somewhat sheepishly and sat back down.

Xue Hang did not make things difficult for him. It was not as if they had only met yesterday—how could he not know Yu Peng's personality?

Yu Peng himself knew that was how he was, but he simply could not change it.