Retest

The off-road vehicle came to a steady stop outside a three-story detached villa.

The villa occupied a large plot of land, and it was clear that someone took great care of the plants in the courtyard. Among the lush greenery, it was almost impossible to find a single yellowing leaf.

Beside the steps at the villa's entrance, a young woman in a business suit stood respectfully, waiting for them to arrive.

"Mr. Bai, Mr. Tong, Mr. Luo, the supervisor has been waiting upstairs for quite some time."

Uncle Bai nodded, then turned to the two young men and reminded them, "When we're in front of the supervisor, be careful how you carry yourselves. If anything goes wrong, none of us will be able to answer for it."

Luo Zhe nodded obediently. Tong Yang beside him said nothing, neither agreeing nor disagreeing.

Uncle Bai led the two of them into the villa.

As they climbed the stairs, Luo Zhe grew more and more nervous.

It was just like the first time he'd taken part in a math competition. Even though he knew how to solve every problem on the test, his heart had still pounded faster and his blood had surged. The hand holding his pen had trembled uncontrollably.

The second floor was completely empty and no smaller than the Martial Arts Training Hall at their Extreme Martial Arts Hall in Jiangdu District.

"Supervisor."

"Supervisor."

As soon as Uncle Bai and Tong Yang entered the second floor, they immediately greeted the person ahead of them respectfully.

Still a little slow to react, Luo Zhe instinctively looked forward. Five people stood in the middle of the room. Four of them were dressed in white suits, and the two men and two women stood respectfully behind a middle-aged man wearing a black Tang suit.

The middle-aged man in the Tang suit was none other than the supervisor he'd spoken to over video call earlier that day—Zhuge Tao.

Tong Yang immediately gave Luo Zhe a pointed look, and Luo Zhe finally snapped out of it. In a fluster, he hurriedly said, "Greetings, Supervisor."

"Mm."

Zhuge Tao nodded slightly, a warm smile on his face. He walked over, patted Luo Zhe on the shoulder, and said, "Don't be nervous. Just show us what you can do."

Then Zhuge Tao turned to Uncle Bai. "Old Bai, let's get started. Check Luo Zhe's abilities."

"Yes." Uncle Bai answered respectfully at once.

Uncle Bai soon began setting things up around the room with the four young men and women in white suits.

Beep!

The Punch Strength Tester, Speed Tester, and all the other equipment were switched on.

"Whirr—"

The cameras and other equipment in the Martial Arts Training Hall all started up. The four young people in white suits went to work, some carrying handheld computers while others personally checked the instruments. It looked as though they intended to record the entire test.

The equipment was soon adjusted. One of the young women in a white suit said, "Uncle Bai, everything's working properly. We can begin the test."

"Good." Uncle Bai looked at Luo Zhe. "Come on, Luo Zhe. Let's start with the punch strength test."

Luo Zhe turned to Tong Yang. His friend was looking at him encouragingly, eyes bright, and Luo Zhe immediately felt more at ease.

He took a deep breath and walked toward the Punch Strength Tester. At that moment, everyone's eyes were on him: Tong Yang, Uncle Bai, the four young people in white suits, and even Supervisor Zhuge Tao, who had said nothing since giving his instructions and had been standing off to the side like an invisible presence.

Luo Zhe planted his feet in front of the Punch Strength Tester and held his breath slightly. His previously relaxed body erupted into motion, springing forward like a pouncing leopard!

Thud!

A heavy punch, accompanied by a burst of air, slammed into the machine's target.

Luo Zhe immediately looked at the display: "5988 KG."

Seeing the result, both Tong Yang and Zhuge Tao—who had been pretending to look calm—slowly unclenched their tightly balled fists. Their palms, pale from squeezing so hard, gradually regained their color.

"Beautifully done!" Tong Yang gave Luo Zhe an enthusiastic thumbs-up.

With that punch strength to start things off, Zhuge Tao smiled and nodded. "Let's move on to the next test."

The speed test and Neural Response Tester results came in soon afterward.

Speed test result: "73.3 m/s"

Neural Response Tester: full marks at Intermediate Warrior Level! Excellent at Advanced Warrior Level!

"Phew!"

Luo Zhe stepped out of the red circle on the Neural Response Tester. Only after seeing that his results were as good as usual did he let out a breath. "That went well. I didn't choke when it mattered."

He'd still felt some pressure. With six or seven pairs of eyes fixed on him, it was hard not to feel nervous. He'd really been worried he wouldn't perform at his normal level.

"Excellent performance." Zhuge Tao walked over with a satisfied smile, Tong Yang following behind him.

His gaze settled on Luo Zhe, taking on a serious note. "Luo Zhe, would you be willing to join my Extreme Martial Arts Hall right now?"

"I'm willing to join." They'd already discussed it, so Luo Zhe didn't hesitate at all.

"Excellent."

Zhuge Tao clapped his hands with a smile. "As usual, you can choose to live in a villa in Yangzhou City or at the headquarters in the main urban district. The villas in our Extreme Martial Arts Hall's residential compound are all occupied by martial artists from the hall."

"In addition, there's twenty million in startup funds, as well as three manuals—one for movement techniques, one for the Guidance Technique, and one for attack techniques—worth no more than fifty million in total. Have I got that right?"

Luo Zhe hesitated when he didn't hear anything about the Special Training Contract he'd been hoping for. In the end, though, he nodded. "Yes."

Knowing what Luo Zhe was hesitating about, Zhuge Tao smiled slightly and turned to a woman in a white suit standing nearby. "Go draw up a contract, following the usual terms."

He glanced back at Luo Zhe and paused before continuing, "Modify one of the clauses. Any manuals Luo Zhe chooses from Home of Extremes—movement techniques, the Guidance Technique, or attack techniques—will be free as long as they cost no more than a hundred million. I'll pay for them myself."

"Yes, Supervisor." The woman in the white suit glanced at Luo Zhe in surprise but didn't dare ask any questions. She immediately went to print the contract.

Luo Zhe was taken aback. The benefits Zhuge Tao had mentioned earlier had capped the price of the three manuals at fifty million. Now that limit had suddenly been raised to a hundred million, with the supervisor paying out of his own pocket.

"Supervisor, this..."

Zhuge Tao smiled faintly and gestured for Uncle Bai and the others to turn off the equipment around them. Then he said to Luo Zhe, "Luo Zhe, don't worry about such a small amount of money.

"I think very highly of you and your future. Once you become a martial artist, then reach War General Level or even War God Level, you'll realize that fifty million is nothing."

Luo Zhe couldn't help feeling astonished.

The limit had risen from fifty million to a hundred million. That meant Zhuge Tao was spending fifty million of his own money—and he still called it a small amount? Even an ordinary War General Level martial artist probably wouldn't be this extravagant!

Zhuge Tao walked over to Luo Zhe and checked where the others were standing. Then he motioned for Luo Zhe to lean closer.

"The Special Training Contract can't be written into the agreement. That wouldn't be allowed." Seeing that Luo Zhe was getting anxious, Zhuge Tao pressed his lips together, smiled, and patted him on the shoulder. "Don't worry."

"Although we can't put it in the contract, I submitted the application earlier. I'm sure we'll have an answer by the time you finish the Martial Artist Combat Assessment."

Luo Zhe nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Supervisor."

Zhuge Tao ran a hand over the hair on his head and straightened his Tang suit. Then he said solemnly, "You can't slack off over the next few weeks. When the Martial Artist Combat Assessment comes around, you'd better bring back a good result.

"I'm not saying you have to come in first, but if you get injured dealing with the lowest-level H-Class Monsters, not only will you embarrass me at headquarters, you won't be able to go to the Basic Training Camp either. Understand?"

Luo Zhe nodded solemnly.

He understood that both his instructor, Tong Yang, and the supervisor standing before him, Zhuge Tao, had been working hard on his behalf.

Even if they were only doing it because they believed he had talent for cultivation, people of their high standing didn't actually need to ingratiate themselves with anyone.

They were willing to take a chance and apply for a Special Training Contract on behalf of his uncertain future. Even if they had their own reasons, Luo Zhe still owed them for it.

Luo Zhe made up his mind. In the less than two months before the Martial Artist Combat Assessment began, he would work even harder and raise his strength another level in the Dimensional Space!

Of course.

The Martial Artist Combat Assessment was indeed dangerous for ordinary martial artists. The death rate was generally three to five percent, and the disability rate five to eight percent. In other words, a single assessment would usually leave more than a hundred Quasi-Martial Artists crippled.

But for someone like Luo Zhe, who was already impressive even among those at Advanced Warrior Level, facing Monsters whose strength peaked at H-Class wasn't all that difficult. It might not be as easy as mowing down grass, but it was hardly more difficult than eating or drinking.

As long as he didn't get surrounded by a pack of monsters and had enough time, Luo Zhe could even take care of every monster in the assessment.