Success

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

The sound of something cutting through the air rang out repeatedly.

In the underground training room, Feng Qingmo's footwork shifted constantly as he swung the sword in his hand.

After reading the Student Handbook, he had opened and looked through the other files as well. Some contained the Training Camp map, while others listed things he needed to know about the camp, such as how instructors would be assigned according to each student's circumstances.

After finishing, he went down to the basement to start training.

Over the past few days, he had mastered the 36 sword forms that came with the first level of the Wind-Washing Sword. Thanks to his Spiritual Force, his movements were extremely precise.

After practicing for so long, he had begun to sense the intent behind the sword forms, though only faintly. He was clearly still a long way from mastering them.

After cultivating his Genetic Energy with the Guidance Technique, he left the training room ravenous.

Following the map, he went to the Training Camp cafeteria. It wasn't time for camp to begin yet, and the previous students were all away on their training expeditions. The entire dining hall was deserted.

He used his Student ID to get a meal from the automated food dispenser. After eating his fill, he returned to his quarters and continued training.

Night fell. Feng Qingmo sat on the second-floor terrace railing and looked up, but all he could see was darkness.

A gust of wind swept by, carrying with it a flurry of dead leaves. The wind, which had been blowing straight ahead, suddenly changed direction and sent the leaves toward Feng Qingmo.

His Spiritual Force, which he habitually kept at the bare minimum, could easily have stopped the leaves. But when the gust came, Feng Qingmo seemed to sense something. He simply withdrew his Spiritual Force and let the wind and leaves blow against him.

When a dead leaf slapped against his face, his expression turned hazy. A flash of insight flickered through his mind, then vanished before he could grasp it.

"Wind?" he murmured. He had been swinging his sword all afternoon, and his arms were aching. Now he opened his hand and felt the gust pass between his fingers. He clenched it into a fist, and the wind flowed around it and continued on...

"Force?"

The flash of insight came again. This time, he finally caught hold of it!

"So that's how it is..."

He swung himself down from the railing and dashed straight to the underground training room.

Taking out the Slender Willow Sword, he held it in his hand and stood perfectly still.

"Whoosh!"

At a certain moment, he raised the sword and thrust it forward. The air gave off a sharp whoosh. This thrust was nearly half again as fast as the ones he had practiced that afternoon!

"That's the feeling!" A smile appeared on Feng Qingmo's face as he began to move. The 36 sword forms flowed one into the next as he practiced them again and again, his sword growing faster and faster. In the blink of an eye, his figure was obscured by a blur of sword light. Only the flashing blade remained visible.

After training for who knew how long, he finally stopped.

"I've finally mastered the basics." He sheathed his sword, clenched his fist, and felt the surging strength within him. "My force should be around 1.5 times my normal strength. I'll need a few more days of practice to reach the first level's 1.8 times..."

But now that he had grasped the basics, he would eventually reach 1.8 times his normal strength with practice and time. It was the difference between zero and one: going from zero to one was the hardest part, but once you had one, getting from one to two was just a matter of time.

"If I keep practicing these 36 sword forms, my swordsmanship will soon reach the proficient level, and my footwork will reach the subtle level..."

As he performed the 36 forms just now, his swordsmanship had already seemed to edge into the proficient level. He couldn't be sure about his footwork without anything to compare it to, but he could clearly feel that it was far better than before.

Standing on the training room's alloy floor, Feng Qingmo clenched his fist and punched!

A surge of hidden force flowed through his extended arm. The punch was not only faster but also stronger, and a soft "thump" sounded in the air.

Although the hidden force had yet to reach the first level's perfect 1.8 times, it was only a matter of time.

"This hidden force can be used in my fists, but also in my legs to make me faster. I can even use it anywhere on my body, eventually boosting my defense too!"

Recalling the theory from the original story, Feng Qingmo stood where he was and began kicking and stamping repeatedly.

He kicked through the air over and over. The sensation of hidden force accompanying his punches still lingered, and after practicing for a while, he finally managed to channel first-level hidden force into his legs. This greatly increased their strength and made them faster as well.

But using this hidden force elsewhere was much harder. Areas he rarely trained, like his head and back, would take countless repetitions.

"That's enough for today. I'll cultivate my Genetic Energy, then get some rest." Feng Qingmo finally stopped after training late into the night.

As Feng Qingmo cultivated his Genetic Energy with the Guidance Technique, he could clearly feel his cells absorbing more cosmic energy than they had before. They also took longer to become saturated.

"Sure enough, once I've mastered the first level of force, cultivating with the Guidance Technique becomes faster..."

Over the next few days, Feng Qingmo trained with extraordinary diligence. He quickly reached 1.8 times his normal strength, and he could channel this hidden force into his legs, making him much faster than usual.

When he had practiced the 36 sword forms that came with the Wind-Washing Sword until they flowed together seamlessly, as if they were one with him, his swordsmanship naturally reached the proficient level. Influenced by his swordsmanship, his footwork reached the subtle level as well.

On the terrace on the second floor of his quarters, Feng Qingmo sat leisurely in a chair. The early spring sunshine warmed him, making him drowsy.

But Feng Qingmo, having just finished training, wasn't sleepy at all. He sat with his brows slightly furrowed, deep in thought.

"I've mastered the first level of the Wind-Washing Sword, but I'm out of money..."

Including the 300 million his parents had given him, he'd had a total of 350 million Huaxia Currency. After buying the first level's manual, 200 million had been deducted. He had also bought a Combat Suit and weapons, and in the end, he'd gritted his teeth and bought a Series 9 throwing knife. That left him with only tens of millions.

Even at half price, the second-level manual for the Wind-Washing Sword cost 750 million Huaxia Currency. What he had left wouldn't even cover a small fraction of it.

"No, I need to find a way to make money..." He got up, went to the media room, turned on the computer, and opened the Training Camp management system.

He clicked on the application menu. Several options appeared: Gravity Room, Trial Room, Combat Room, and training expeditions...

He clicked on training expeditions, and a prompt immediately appeared on the screen: Student Feng Qingmo, you are currently unable to apply for a training expedition!

"Hah, they didn't even review it. They just rejected me..." Feng Qingmo grumbled to himself. But when he thought about it, it made sense. He hadn't even been assigned an instructor yet, and strictly speaking, he wasn't even officially a student. It was only natural that he wasn't allowed to head out alone.

"Wait, the Gravity Room should be empty right now. Maybe I can..." Thinking this, he clicked on the Gravity Room application.

"Under review..." A prompt appeared on the screen, and Feng Qingmo's heart lifted. Since they hadn't rejected him outright, there was a chance he'd be approved.

After about a minute, the prompt disappeared, and a video call request opened automatically.

After hesitating for a moment, Feng Qingmo clicked "Accept."