Wilderness Area

The videos grew fewer, and the Qingming Sword grew faster.

Guan Ning swung his sword time and again. His current sword techniques no longer resembled the original nine forms; only faint traces remained. He was now pursuing the realization within his heart—the realization of the "Swift Sword." As his sword moved with his intent, and as his inner comprehension deepened, each strike—be it a vertical chop, a direct thrust, an upward slash, or a horizontal cut—flashed like a streak of light.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! That's the feeling..."

After continuous swinging, Guan Ning's body was utterly exhausted, yet he remained immersed in the world of the sword, with nothing else in his mind but the blade.

The "Swift Sword" from the final three video segments flashed repeatedly through Guan Ning's mind. Through his relentless efforts, the three distinct Swift Sword movements merged into a single flash of light, swift as thunder and rapid as the wind.

"Puchi!"

Simultaneously, Guan Ning's figure blurred, crossing a meter of distance out of thin air. The Qingming Sword let out a crisp chime and shot forth, its speed having increased many times over. With a sharp whistle of air, the Qingming Sword transformed into a cyan streak of light, vanishing in an instant.

"Finally mastered it. It truly lives up to the name 'Swift Sword'; it feels as if it could pierce through the void itself!"

The air wave generated by the sharp blade caused his already loose training uniform to billow. Only when it settled back down did Guan Ning snap out of his trance.

"So tired!"

Only then did Guan Ning become aware of his condition: drenched in sweat, his limbs aching and weak, and a profound sense of fatigue washing over his spirit.

This was no surprise. When practicing Basic Sword Technique, every bone and cell in his body vibrated at different frequencies; this was the key to generating force.

Such vibrations placed a heavy load on his muscles and cells. Furthermore, Guan Ning had been practicing for nearly two hours, and the strain the Swift Sword placed on his body left him exhausted—so tired that even breathing felt like a struggle.

As for his mental fatigue, that went without saying. For those two hours, his mind had been operating at an overload. Had his soul not undergone a slight transformation, he would have long since suffered mental exhaustion and collapsed.

So sleepy...

Though Guan Ning desperately wanted to sleep, he forced himself to stay alert. He sat cross-legged on the floor to rest briefly before beginning to practice his Guiding Technique. As cosmic energy entered his body, his weary frame felt as if it were soaking in a hot spring, leaving him feeling comfortably limp.

The pale purple mist in his sea of consciousness, which had dimmed due to excessive mental expenditure, slowly regained its luster after absorbing the cosmic energy.

After the tempering of the sword techniques and the Guiding Technique, he moved on to the "Five Hearts Toward Heaven" cultivation method.

"Chi chi~~"

As soon as Guan Ning began, he felt every cell in his body acting as if it were starving, ravenously devouring the Genetic Origin Energy. His cultivation speed increased with every passing moment.

One minute, two minutes... As time ticked by, every cell in his body finally reached saturation, unable to consume any more.

"Just as the manual stated, efficiency increases, duration extends, and the cultivation speed accelerates significantly." Guan Ning felt the strength growing in his body; it was even a fraction more than the doubling mentioned in the manual. That's not right. Didn't it say it would double the cultivation speed? Why does it feel like more than that?

Could the manual be wrong?

Impossible! The manuals in this universe had been revised thousands of times; how could there be such an obvious oversight? Besides, his parents had never mentioned anything of the sort.

Guan Ning fell into deep thought. Suddenly, he recalled a concept from his past life—"extreme training."

In his past life, "extreme sports" were thrilling activities that accelerated heart rate, deepened breathing, and fully mobilized the body's potential for movement and regulation, thereby achieving a superior training effect. However, if nutrition could not keep up, it would cause self-injury.

It stood to reason that this concept applied to this world as well. In that case, the extra fraction of progress was perfectly logical.

"At least I don't have to worry about nutrition."

He took out the last of the monster meat from his home and prepared a sumptuous feast, devouring it while summarizing the day's gains.

There were three main factors behind his rapid mastery of the Swift Sword: his realm far exceeded the requirements of the first level, which provided the foundation;

He cross-referenced his practice with the explanations in Guan Hong's videos, which provided the direction;

And his diligent practice, the sweat he shed, and the enhanced comprehension from his soul's transformation provided the persistence.

Mastering the first level so quickly was unexpected, but within reason. However, the second level would not be so easy to grasp...

After finishing lunch, it was naturally time to begin a new round of cultivation.

Guan Ning did not rush into the second level. Instead, he continued practicing the first, aiming to integrate the Swift Sword into every single move and strike, striving to make it his default state rather than just a trump card.

Soon, a day passed.

After completing his morning routine on the second day, Guan Ning did not continue his training. Instead, he went out and bought a large pile of supplies: bandages, hemostatic and anti-inflammatory medication, and high-energy emergency rations.

He bought these items to head to the Wilderness Area. This was not a whim, but a long-planned decision; otherwise, he wouldn't have made such a large purchase. These were all tips he had found on the Martial Artist Forum.

Of course, Guan Ning had his reasons for going to the Wilderness Area. On one hand, it was to adapt in advance for the A-level test; on the other, he knew that training at home could never compare to the improvement gained from actual combat against monsters. This was not only the consensus of the world but also Guan Ning's own belief.

This was his first time going to the Wilderness Area, and he was going alone, so Guan Ning chose to head to the counties near the military district.

These counties were populated almost entirely by Beast Soldier Level monsters. There were few Beast General Level monsters, and most were only Elementary War General Level; even Intermediate Beast General Level monsters were rare. Because there were so few Beast General Level monsters, each one could command hundreds or even over a thousand Beast Soldier Level monsters.

Therefore, most capable martial artist squads couldn't be bothered to stay in such counties, as there was little profit to be made.

These cities were perfect for Guan Ning. Having successfully mastered the first level, his physical fitness was already at the "Elementary War General Level." Combined with his movement and sword techniques, he was confident he could safely escape even if he encountered a herd led by an Intermediate Beast General Level monster.

It was the perfect opportunity to familiarize himself with the Wilderness Area. The vast amount of information he had read on the Martial Artist Forum could now be converted into his own experience. Most importantly, this would not only hone his sword skills but also allow him to adapt to being surrounded by hundreds of monsters. After all, the Trial Tower was not about one-on-one combat. It was a move that served multiple purposes.

Of course, he owed this mindset to the pioneer, Luo Feng.

He did not tell anyone about this operation.

Holding his Qingming Sword, wearing his combat suit, and carrying his backpack, the fully armed Guan Ning headed straight for the train station to leave the base city for the Wilderness Area.

"Rumble~~" The train slowed to a halt at the military district station.

One by one, fully armed martial artists stepped off the train—over twenty of them in total. These individuals naturally split into four squads.

Only Guan Ning stood alone, appearing quite conspicuous in the crowd. He walked by himself along the martial artist path toward the supply base, which soon appeared in his line of sight.

Coming into view was a towering iron spire standing fifty or sixty meters tall. Across the entire Huaxia Nation, and indeed the whole world, every military region designated a special area to serve as a supply base for fighters, specifically for us to rest. These supply bases were almost always built with such a beacon.

It symbolized lighting the way home for the fighters!

"Guan Ning? Is this your first time in the Wilderness Area? Where are your teammates?"

At the base entrance, the guard glanced at the information displayed on the scanner and looked at Guan Ning, who stood at the gate, with surprise.

"I'm alone," Guan Ning said softly. He knew his behavior was a bit conspicuous, so he deliberately lowered his voice, hoping not to draw any attention.

"Alone? And it's your first time?"

His plan was sound, but the guard didn't cooperate; a loud shout immediately drew the attention of everyone nearby.

"What's going on?"

"Someone is daring to enter the Wilderness Area alone, and it's their first time?"

"I wonder if he's bold because of his skill, or just arrogantly ignorant?"

"Even 'Madman' Luo Feng went with the Fire Hammer Squad his first time!"

There were quite a few fighters at the entrance, and upon hearing this, they began to whisper among themselves. Of course, most held no malice toward Guan Ning; they were simply curious.

Seeing the commotion, Guan Ning's face darkened. He had tried every possible way to keep a low profile, yet he hadn't expected this man to blurt it out. The gaze he leveled at the guard grew increasingly unfriendly.

The guard realized his blunder. Looking at Guan Ning's expression, he knew that even if the boy was just a fledgling newcomer, it was better to make friends than enemies. He quickly tried to make amends: "I'm Cui You, affiliated with the HR Alliance. I didn't mean to do that just now. As compensation, I'll give you a very good price for any monsters you hunt. How about that?"

Cui You's words were a mix of soft and hard; on one hand, he revealed the backing of the HR Alliance, and on the other, he lowered his head to apologize. It was truly airtight—he was a businessman through and through.

There were quite a few people like Cui You within the supply base. Although they wore military uniforms, they were actually from the Limit Martial Hall, the Thunder Martial Hall, the government military, or the Underground Alliance. They served as support staff while simultaneously purchasing precious monster materials from the fighters.

After thinking it through, Guan Ning nodded.

"H502, this is the small townhouse assigned to you. 156...451, this is my communication number. If you have materials to sell, just give me a call."

Cui You handed over a key and recited a string of numbers.

Guan Ning nodded, took the key, and prepared to head inside.

"A word of advice: entering the Wilderness Area alone is very dangerous, let alone for your first time. Good luck, I hope to see you back here again."