Zeng Chang's original requirement for Li Yuan had been to make it into the top thirty.
As long as Li Yuan achieved that result, there would at least be an explanation to offer.
But now, Lingshan City's originally designated contestant had become a contestant from Chishan City.
The blame for failing to reach the top thirty still could not be shaken off.
For Li Yuan and Zeng Chang, the pressure had multiplied several times over.
To give the city's decision-makers a satisfactory explanation, Li Yuan would have to defeat Jin Fan.
If he could do that, no one would dare say there was a problem with giving the spot to Li Yuan.
The accusations other departments had leveled at the Municipal Education Bureau would also fall apart.
But could Li Yuan defeat Jin Fan in the Youth Martial Tournament?
No wonder Zeng Chang's voice had been full of despondency.
This gamble had been declared lost before the Youth Martial Tournament had even begun.
Everyone knew that Deputy Director Zeng had taken on a difficult challenge this time and had easily ended up carrying the blame.
But what did knowing that change? Once the blame was on his back, it was on his back.
In this contest for the director's position, he had been eliminated early.
The two fell silent over the phone for quite a while.
After a long silence, Deputy Director Zeng forced himself to laugh openly.
"You don't need to feel any guilt toward me.
Since I decided to take a gamble, I had already considered the possibility of losing.
As for you, don't waste this training opportunity. Improve as much as you can.
After this Youth Martial Tournament, most of those training opportunities will probably have nothing to do with you..."
Li Yuan thanked him, and the two ended the call.
Li Yuan could understand Director Zeng's despondency and disappointment.
The Municipal Education Bureau had invited Jin Fan to take part in several research sessions, and he had also participated in the Municipal Bureau's project discussions.
The Municipal Education Bureau understood Jin Fan's strength.
It was precisely because of that understanding that Deputy Director Zeng believed Li Yuan could never surpass him.
As the leader of this Youth Martial Tournament team, he would definitely bear most of the blame.
The other half, barring surprises, would be thrown onto Li Yuan.
But unlike Deputy Director Zeng, who was disappointed and dejected, Li Yuan was not intimidated.
Others had no confidence in him, but Li Yuan had confidence in himself.
His own martial strength was far more outstanding than others could see.
Li Yuan had thoroughly read two practical combat manuals, and with the [Enlightenment to Perfection] Talent, his understanding was more thorough and profound than anyone else's.
It was true that he currently lacked firsthand experience.
But his mind had already stored strategies for dealing with all kinds of situations.
The two "Enlightenment" Talents helped Li Yuan learn quickly and deeply.
By Li Yuan's own estimation, he was even capable of leading a team on a border mission.
He had corresponding strategies and methods in mind for every kind of emergency.
So what if Jin Fan was participating?
Competing against him did not necessarily mean losing to him.
In fact, during that Saturday's sparring match, Li Yuan had assumed Jin Fan was the one competing.
He had not expected his junior fellow disciple, Gu Yu, to show up instead.
Even that day, Li Yuan had been confident he could face Jin Fan.
So what if he was a Grandmaster's disciple? They were not immortals or gods.
His mastery, proficiency, and depth of understanding in all kinds of martial techniques far surpassed those of ordinary people.
Gu Yu's loss had not been a problem with the Cloud Extreme Fist alone.
He had thought it was merely because he could not see through the Cloud Extreme Fist's patterns.
In truth, the Cloud Extreme Fist Li Yuan used was different from everyone else's.
With the [Martial Recruitment Accelerator] technique, his use of the Cloud Extreme Fist was like that of a martial artist who had studied it intensively for more than a decade.
This Youth Martial Tournament was not even a direct martial contest.
His chances of defeating Jin Fan were even greater!
Besides, he only needed a little over eighty more experience points to obtain his fourth Talent Point.
He would definitely get it before the Youth Martial Tournament.
With another Talent Point helping him, his odds in the Youth Martial Tournament would be even higher.
Since Deputy Director Zeng had invested in him, Li Yuan would return the favor with an opportunity!
Having sorted this out, Li Yuan took out his access card and swiped it to enter the passage.
He officially began his training in Qijia Town.
"Wuling Education welcomes you to Qijia Town. Wishing you peace and safety."
As he passed through after swiping his card, a female voice made the announcement.
For the next while, he would explore this area under the identity of Wuling Education.
The first thing one had to experience in this kind of training was danger and brutality.
Martial artists who had always trained in school were most prone to underestimating danger.
There were two typical ways that underestimating danger manifested itself.
One was arrogance, recklessly venturing into danger.
The other was inexplicable compassion, even feeling reluctant to harm Fierce Beasts.
The Fierce Beasts wandering around Qijia Town were almost all D-level Beasts.
A Fourth Grade martial artist could handle one alone with some care.
The Fierce Beasts around Qijia Town were of ordinary strength, so why did people still die here every year?
The core reason was underestimating danger.
As a thirty-year-old Zhongdeng, Li Yuan had not acted impulsively in a long time.
Even fighting for a place in this Youth Martial Tournament had been carefully considered.
After weighing the pros and cons, he had decided the benefits were worth offending the school leadership to fight for.
During his training in Qijia Town, he absolutely would not fall into danger because he underestimated it.
He continued onward and entered what had once been Qijia Town's urban district.
The weather was excellent that day, with bright sunlight and exceptionally high visibility.
Entering this area where Fierce Beasts roamed felt like crossing into another world.
As Li Yuan walked along the streets, he could see all kinds of man-made urban structures.
But the walls of these old neighborhoods were already covered in moss, and trees had grown from their rooftops.
It looked more like a city seized by animals and plants after humanity had vanished.
Desolate and forlorn.
Any martial artist who had seen a normal city would feel an involuntary lump in their throat at this sight.
This was what the world would look like after humanity's extinction.
Seeing such a scene truly stirred fear in many people's hearts.
In fact, this was also part of the Qijia Town training.
Once martial artists went to the battlefield, they could lose their lives at any time.
If they were not strong enough, then so be it. If they died, they had to accept it.
But if they died because of panic, fear, and other psychological factors, they would die with regrets.
Training here was meant to help them first overcome that mental hurdle!
When they truly went onto the battlefield and faced terrifying Fierce Beasts,
their companions might very well die right before their eyes.
A qualified martial artist had to calm down and continue responding steadily.
Neither fear nor ruthless fury was the best response.
Some believed that if a teammate died, they should risk everything to make the Fierce Beast pay.
But what then, even if they killed the Fierce Beast?
Training a martial artist was not easy. How was it worth having one perish together with a Fierce Beast?
Li Yuan continued forward, saw a middle school, and walked inside.
The school was extremely empty, and the athletic field had been overtaken by weeds.
Not only the field—even the stairs in the teaching building and the classrooms had plants growing through every crack they could find.
Qijia Town had been destroyed forty years ago.
This school could only have been older, and every building displayed an ancient style.
The glass everywhere was still blue and green.
Back then, colored glass like that had been very popular.
He made his way up to the roof of the teaching building and looked out over the surroundings from on high.
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