Mental Power!

"Too powerful. I'm even stronger now than Xiong Batian was back then."

With a crack, Xia Ping casually picked up a hard stone from the ground and squeezed. It shattered on the spot. After a few more squeezes, it crumbled into grit that trickled through his fingers.

He could also feel that his constitution had become stronger than ever. After being tempered by the Pure Yang Indestructible Art and bolstered by the Golden Potion, a faint golden glow seemed to shimmer across his skin, making him look almost like Vajra.

In fact, the Martial Apprentice Realm was a stage for tempering the body. The stronger one made their body in this realm, the greater the benefits in the future—and the greater their potential.

"I've finally reached the Martial Apprentice Fifth Heaven. Even at school, this would count as an excellent result." Xia Ping clenched his fist, and it crackled as though he were crushing the air.

Xiong Batian had only been at the Martial Apprentice Fifth Heaven, yet that had been enough for him to dominate the school. Someone like Zhou Tai'an, at the Martial Apprentice Sixth Heaven, was a true genius—good enough to rank in the school's top ten.

With Xia Ping's strength, he could beat someone at the Martial Apprentice Fourth Heaven with a single punch and defeat someone at the Martial Apprentice Fifth Heaven with ease. Even someone at the Martial Apprentice Sixth Heaven might not be his match.

There didn't seem to be many people at the Martial Apprentice Sixth Heaven among the black-market men surrounding the area. Perhaps he finally had a chance to shake them off, reach the station, and return to Tianshui City.

"But I can't let my guard down yet. Those black-market men still have Laser Firearms. If I run into a group of them firing at me, I'll be in serious danger." Xia Ping's eyes flickered. He remained calm and composed; even after growing stronger, he wasn't about to get arrogant.

"Right, I seem to have gotten a manual too, called the Heaven and Earth Audio-Visual Method. If I can master it, maybe I can increase my strength even further."

At that thought, he immediately opened the manual and read it carefully, pondering its contents.

"Use a unique breathing method to enter a meditative state, then break through the Baihui acupoint to produce mysterious mental power. Interesting. I wonder if I can do it?"

Xia Ping closed his eyes. His breathing settled as he followed the method in the manual: three long breaths, then one short. His chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, and the air around him seemed to waver strangely.

In just one minute, he found that the whole world had changed. He felt as if he had entered a meditative state, his mind unified and merged with heaven and earth.

As he entered that state, the soul power in his mind was roused and formed a huge vortex. It rumbled and shook, stirring the air until it hummed.

When this power reached its peak, a bang sounded. Deep inside the Baihui acupoint at the top of his head, the mysterious soul power seemed to break through with ease, opening a tiny fissure.

Strands of gray mist flowed from the fissure and drifted through the depths of his mind. At once, Xia Ping felt a mysterious power welling up from within his body.

"T-this is the legendary mental power?!" Xia Ping kept his eyes closed. As this power slowly spread outward, the whole world seemed to grow brighter.

Within a radius of twenty meters, he could sense everything clearly: the ground, dust, soil, rubble, scraps of paper—even ants crawling along the ground, mosquitoes flying through the air, and the path of a water droplet falling in the distance. It was as if he had a god's-eye view.

"U-unbelievable. This is mental power? I did it—I actually mastered it?!" Xia Ping was overcome with joy. He had only meant to give it a try. He hadn't expected to succeed right away.

He could feel just how powerful mental strength was. Even with his eyes closed, he could see his surroundings clearly. Within its range, he was practically a god, all-knowing and all-powerful.

Of course, that was only an illusion, but it did nothing to diminish the power of mental strength.

"This feeling?" Xia Ping's heart stirred. It seemed to come from his body's instinct.

With a soft snap, he gently extended his right hand, lifting it with seemingly effortless strength. He lightly caught a fly buzzing around between two fingers, holding it still.

Then he gently let go. The fly seemed startled and quickly flew away.

"Legend says that Martial Artists are incredibly powerful. They can dodge Laser Firearms, and even missiles can't lock onto them. They've surpassed the limits of the human nervous system's reaction speed." Xia Ping's eyes flashed. "I used to wonder how they could do that. With mental power, anything is possible."

No wonder Black Bear Company was going to such lengths to get this secret art back. It was far more valuable than any ordinary manual.

"But not everyone can master this secret art."

By now, Xia Ping understood why he had been able to master it so easily. There was no other reason: his soul power was at least ten times stronger than an ordinary person's.

For someone with a powerful soul, this secret art was an unrivaled treasure. They could master it with little effort. But ordinary people could only stare helplessly at the manual, even if they got their hands on it.

Even if they managed to enter a meditative state, their ordinary soul power wouldn't be enough to break through the Baihui acupoint. There would be nothing they could do. Only someone with a soul as powerful as Xia Ping's could break through it with ease, like a force sweeping away rotten wood.

"Hmm, does it sound like someone's coming?"

By then, the sky outside had begun to brighten. Without realizing it, he had spent the whole night cultivating. Xia Ping's heart stirred. With his senses sharpened, he immediately noticed people approaching the warehouse.

But he wasn't worried. The Golden Potion had replenished his energy and left him feeling refreshed. Now he had also advanced to the Martial Apprentice Fifth Heaven and gained mental power.

Whoever was coming, he had nothing to fear.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!!!

In the blink of an eye, seven or eight burly men dressed in black appeared outside the warehouse. Among them was a young man dressed in white, with a youthful face. He was the group's leader.

The young man in white looked arrogant as he stared at a short, dark-clad man. "Are you sure someone went into this warehouse? If you dare lie to me, you know what will happen."

"Young Master Zheng, I'm sure," the short man in black hurriedly replied. "I watched the place all night yesterday and heard strange noises coming from inside now and then. There's definitely someone in there."

"Nobody usually comes here, but someone showed up last night. So I suspected the person hiding inside might be the one Black Bear Company is hunting, and came to report it. If I've told a single lie, may heaven strike me with thunder."

He swore to heaven.

"Good. If we really find that criminal, you'll have done a great service. You'll be handsomely rewarded." The young man in white knew how to manage his subordinates, offering both a slap and a treat.

"Thank you, Young Master Zheng..."

The short man in black was overjoyed. Before he could finish speaking, a stone shot out of the warehouse window with a whoosh. It flew at tremendous speed, tearing through the air like a sniper's bullet.

With a bang, it pierced straight through the short man's head.