Early in the morning, Luo Zhe crawled out of bed, brushed his teeth, washed up, and had breakfast before setting off for the Limit Dojo.
Although he had a Martial Arts Training Hall at home, it was a full 150 square meters—large, but rather empty.
That was because training equipment was expensive... especially testing instruments like the Punch Strength Tester. For Luo Zhe, they were still luxuries.
At least until the Extreme Martial Arts Hall's startup funds came through, he was still genuinely broke.
It was just past eight in the morning. Most people were still eating breakfast at home, so along the way he only ran into a few older folks returning from their morning exercise.
He didn't see many people until he entered the main hall. They were all sitting in the small bar beside the dojo's lobby.
He took a quick look around but didn't spot any familiar faces, so he had no reason to go over. Still, a lean young man in a blue tracksuit caught his eye. That youthful sharpness was rare among warriors his age.
He shook his head without thinking. He was only twenty-one himself. Why was he acting like some old fogey? At this rate, how was he ever going to find a girlfriend?
He reached the elevators and pressed the button. It didn't take long for one to come down.
When the doors opened, he found two "familiar faces" inside: twin brothers he'd met at a warriors' gathering some time ago. The older brother was Yang Shu, and the younger was Yang Lin. Both were rookie warriors who had passed the Martial Artist Combat Assessment on February 1 this year, which made them barely qualified to count as his seniors.
But Luo Zhe had the strange feeling that whenever they looked at him, their eyes were practically spitting fire!?
"Well, if it isn't rookie Luo Zhe. What brings you to the dojo so early today? We hardly ever see you around," the older brother, Yang Shu, teased as he stepped out of the elevator first.
"Exactly. You've been in Bright Moon Residential Area for over half a month, and this is your first time here, right? What a rare guest."
Yang Lin followed close behind, but his tone was far less tactful than his older brother's. He might as well have written "annoyed" across his face.
The warriors of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall might all seem friendly on the surface, but everyone had their own private grievances. That was especially true for warriors of the same age, like Luo Zhe and the Yang brothers. A little friction was bound to arise.
They had all become warriors at the same age of twenty-one, but the Yang brothers hadn't been as lucky as Luo Zhe. A supervisor hadn't recruited them into the dojo ahead of time.
Lucky!
Yes, the Yang brothers, who prided themselves on having entered the warriors' circle half a year earlier, didn't believe their talent was any worse than Luo Zhe's just because he was a rookie who'd been recruited early.
After all, the brothers were both talented enough to boost their punch strength by 600 kilograms the first time they cultivated Genetic Origin Energy. And since they were twins, they had an innate advantage when fighting enemies. With their current strength at Intermediate Warrior Level, they could even team up to kill a high-level Beast Soldier Level monster on their own!
If Luo Zhe hadn't been lucky enough to meet an important figure like the headquarters supervisor, how could he have been recruited early?
Luo Zhe didn't know why the brothers had it in for him, but it was obvious they weren't friendly. After all, a person's appearance reflected their character. The brothers looked like a pair of ugly clowns, the kind of brainless supporting characters you'd find in some third-rate novel. It was no surprise they'd go looking for trouble.
Still, he'd always believed in treating others kindly, and he was new here. He didn't want to antagonize them.
He should at least wait until they were out of the elevator before doing anything. If he lost his temper and made them choke from rage, wouldn't he have to call them an ambulance?
What a pain.
He stepped aside and said with a casual laugh, "You're here pretty early too."
"The Martial Artist Combat Assessment is next month, so I figured I should spend a day or two cramming. Not everyone can make up for a lack of talent through hard work, after all. What can I say? I'm a genius!"
Damn it!
Just because the tiger didn't roar, did they think he was on his deathbed?
At that, the Yang brothers' faces instantly turned beet red.
What did he mean, making up for a lack of talent through hard work? Wasn't he mocking them for showing up at the dojo early every day, as if all that extra training was just compensating for what they lacked?
"Sorry, you two. Could you move aside? I'm going upstairs to 'warm up' a little." Luo Zhe smiled as he stepped into the elevator.
Sorry, but he hadn't lost an argument since he was seven. He had no idea what was wrong with these two brothers that they'd dare challenge him to his face.
They were ugly enough already, and yet they still had to go out of their way to cause trouble. It was a classic case of ugly people making a scene!
Yang Lin was still unconvinced and wanted to say something, but Yang Shu stopped him.
Yang Shu had at least some brains. He knew that if they kept arguing, nothing good would come of it. Several big shots in Bright Moon Residential Area had been going out of their way to befriend Luo Zhe lately. If they jumped in now, those people would use them as an example and curry favor with him.
Yang Shu suddenly remembered something. Before the elevator doors closed, he shouted, "Luo Zhe, there's a Quasi-Warrior Assessment at ten this morning, on the sixth floor. Go take a look if you have time. Maybe you'll get to see what a real genius looks like!"
Luo Zhe smiled without replying and pressed the button for the third floor.
Only the third floor of the dojo had small Martial Arts Training Halls. They were fully equipped with testing instruments and offered excellent privacy.
Even though the unpleasant encounter had soured his morning, Luo Zhe didn't take it to heart.
Still, Yang Shu's words had piqued his interest. He hadn't realized it was already time for another Quasi-Warrior Assessment. A full month had passed since he'd become a Quasi-Martial Artist.
He might as well go have a look after his own tests. He had nothing else to do, and he could see which rookies passed. Maybe they'd even take the Quasi-Warrior Assessment together sometime.
The elevator doors closed. The display showed it rising smoothly toward the third floor.
Yang Lin looked at his older brother in confusion and asked, "Bro, why'd you stop me just now? That guy didn't respect us at all! What did he mean by hard work making up for a lack of talent? He was obviously mocking us!"
Yang Shu looked at his fool of a younger brother like he was an idiot, then spread his hands helplessly. "He doesn't respect us. So what? What are you going to do about it? Beat him up?"
Yang Lin nodded earnestly. "Even if his punch strength is higher than ours, we haven't been slacking off in the Wilderness Zone these past six months. If we team up and beat him up, he won't have much to say about it."
"You really are an idiot!" Yang Shu smacked Yang Lin on the back of the head. "No wonder Mom keeps saying that when she was pregnant, she must've given all her brains to me!"
"He's the hottest prospect in the residential area right now. If you lay a hand on him, Wu Tong could bring a whole crowd to our house tonight to arrest you!"
"Just wait. Once he becomes a full-fledged warrior, he'll have to enter the Wilderness Zone. Wu Tong won't be able to protect him out there." Yang Shu clenched his fist, clearly stung by Luo Zhe's words.
Hearing his brother's words, Yang Lin slapped his palm in agreement. "Right! If we run into him in the Wilderness Zone, we'll give him a good beating! Let's see how cocky he is then!"
Only after reaching the third floor did Luo Zhe realize—
At this hour, all three small Martial Arts Training Halls were wide open, yet completely empty. Only the corridor lights outside continued to shine steadily, illuminating the entire hallway.
He casually chose the nearest training hall on his right and walked in. He turned on all the lights, shut and locked the door, and drew the curtains. Then he switched on the Punch Strength Tester and the Speed Tester, warmed up where he stood, and loosened his joints.
This was the first time Luo Zhe had tested his punch strength since returning from the main city district.
For the past half month, apart from the social activities he couldn't avoid, Luo Zhe had spent almost all his time training. He'd practically become a shut-in, hoping to raise his physical abilities to War General Level before the Martial Artist Combat Assessment and not let Instructor Tong Yang and Supervisor Zhuge down.
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