Training Assessment

The five o'clock frost had yet to condense into dew on the Alloy Floor when a shrill electronic whine roused the entire Floating Land.

The gray Square Formation gathered once more in Steel Plaza.

"Yesterday's twenty kilometers were just an appetizer."

Instructor One-Eye stood atop the platform, his long black coat snapping in the morning wind.

There was no emotion in his lone eye, only scrutiny sharp as a blade. "Today, thirty kilometers. Latecomers will be punished; stragglers will be expelled."

No more words were needed.

Under the cold gaze of the Supervision Team, the vast column set off once more on its near-torturous run.

The pounding of thirty thousand pairs of military boots merged into a dull thunder that rolled across the Emptiness of the Floating Land.

Thirty kilometers.

At one and a half times standard gravity, that distance pushed the limits of the Mortal Body.

Jiang Yue ran with the crowd, his body rising and falling with the formation's rhythm.

Today's run was a full ten kilometers longer than yesterday's.

For most of the recruits, those extra ten kilometers would be the final straw.

Some had not even recovered from their muscle soreness, which would only make today harder.

"In... out..."

Jiang Yue stared straight ahead, paying no attention to the pale, sweat-drenched recruits beside him.

At the edge of his vision, the [Breathing] Trait glimmered faintly gray.

[Current Trait: Smooth Breath (White)]

[Description: Your breathing rhythm is steady, greatly calming surges of Blood Energy as your lungs expand and contract.]

[Accumulation progress: Continuously increasing...]

As the run wore on, Jiang Yue felt a faint burning in his lungs.

But whenever the heat rose, the steady rhythm granted by [Smooth Breath] pressed it down like a cooling spring.

His steps were much lighter than they had been yesterday.

That was the result of the [Calm Spirit] Trait repairing his damaged muscles and tendons as he slept deeply the night before.

Even with only four hours of sleep, he had recovered far more than an ordinary person would from ten hours of light slumber.

To his left, Li Tai gritted his teeth, every muscle trembling.

"Jiang... Jiang Yue, you really are a monster."

Li Tai forced the words through clenched teeth, a trace of alarm in his voice.

He had expected Jiang Yue to be limp as mud this morning. He had even been ready to watch a Medical Puppet drag him away.

Yet Jiang Yue was running steadily, breathing more evenly than Li Tai, who came from a well-off family.

Jiang Yue did not answer.

On a run like this, speaking would mean leaking Qi Mechanism.

Ten kilometers, twenty kilometers...

As they passed yesterday's finish line, recruits began collapsing in droves.

Thud.

The sound of bodies hitting the ground rose from every direction.

One common-born boy, his eyes bloodshot, took another long stride. A tearing muscle sent pain through him so fierce that his mind went blank, and he pitched face-first onto the deck.

Seconds later, a Medical Puppet seized him and hauled him away like garbage.

Jiang Yue's knees began to grind with a dull ache. Each time his foot came down, it felt as though he were stepping onto red-hot iron.

[Current Trait: Smooth Breath]

[Status: Operating under heavy load.]

Jiang Yue clung desperately to that one steady breath.

He could feel the dormant Blood Energy within him slowly awakening under the relentless strain, like winter ice beginning to thaw.

Thirty minutes later.

As he took his final step across the finish line, Jiang Yue staggered.

He braced his hands on his knees. Sweat poured down, soaking his gray uniform.

It wasn't quite as close to my limit today... The Body Forging must have made me stronger.

After the morning session came the familiar gray Cafeteria.

Once again, they received two tubes of cold Nutrient Paste.

Jiang Yue squeezed them into his mouth without expression. His stomach was empty, and a fierce hunger felt ready to devour his insides.

[Current Trait: Food Digestion (White)]

[Effect: Accelerates conversion; replenishes vital energy.]

As the Nutrient Paste reached his stomach, Jiang Yue felt it begin churning faster.

Energy was extracted from the crude paste and condensed into warm currents that swiftly repaired the damage to his meridians from the run.

For Jiang Yue, eating was no longer merely about survival. It was fuel for the furnace that was his body.

The meal ended.

They had fifteen minutes to recover.

Then came the tedious, grueling practice of the Federal Basic Body Tempering Technique.

On the platform, Instructor One-Eye stood with his hands behind his back. He did not come down to instruct them, merely watched coldly as tens of thousands of recruits in the Square Formation practiced the eighteen contorted forms.

Jiang Yue had practiced for half the night in his cramped Capsule Pod. His movements were no longer as stiff as yesterday's; they were precise and by the book.

But to the instructor, he was still mediocre.

Among the thirty thousand recruits, some had astonishing aptitude.

Some could already make their Skin Membranes resonate with each breath; others moved as smoothly as flowing water, their Blood Energy showing signs of surging through their skin.

Jiang Yue, though, was simply steady.

As steady as a stubborn roadside stone.

The instructor's gaze passed over Jiang Yue and settled on a well-born young man.

The young man's movements were vigorous, his sweeping arms faintly stirring the air like wind and thunder. He had clearly grasped thirty percent of the essence of the Bell Striking form's True Intent.

The instructor nodded slightly and added him to the list of promising recruits. Jiang Yue, meanwhile, went into the "strong-willed but limited talent" category and received no further attention.

Jiang Yue did not care.

At the edge of his vision, the panel faithfully recorded every correction to his form.

[Action: Body Forging]

[Status: Proficiency accumulating...]

[Note: Movement accuracy has reached ninety percent.]

After they practiced a while longer, Instructor One-Eye stepped onto the platform again.

He struck the desk sharply with his Alloy pointer. The crisp sound snapped everyone to attention.

"Quiet."

The entire plaza fell silent.

"The adjustment period is over. Starting tomorrow, you will officially enter the Training Evaluation Period."

Instructor One-Eye swept his lone eye across the crowd, his voice hard and brooking no argument:

"The Federal Great Expedition has no room for freeloaders. Every resource the Empire spends must go to the warriors who deserve it most."

"There is only one rule: every ten days, all of you will undergo an assessment."

"The assessment will measure physical strength, including but not limited to sensing Blood Energy, explosive raw strength, and speed while carrying a load."

The instructor raised one finger. "Anyone who fails to meet the standard will be stripped of military status and sent to Forge Star. Don't think I'm joking. At least ten percent of you will be eliminated in the first round."

Ten percent.

A faint stir passed through the crowd.

That meant three thousand of the thirty thousand recruits would become Mine Slaves in ten days.

"Of course."

The instructor changed tack, a hint of temptation entering his voice. "Those who remain won't all have to live on scraps."

"After the assessment, you'll receive [Points] based on your overall scores."

"Points are your lifeline in this camp. With them, you can go to District B and trade for Fierce Beast Meat, medicine, and Gene Enhancement Serum that can truly set your Blood Energy surging."

"Want to grow stronger? Want to fight your way out of this Star Domain? Then compete for it!"

"Fight for rank, fight for Points, fight for that sliver of a chance to survive!"

"Dismissed!"