The Assessment Begins

"That sword strike was truly swift and fierce."

"Not bad, not bad at all."

"The most impressive part was his keen combat reflexes; a natural-born warrior."

"And don't forget, he showed perfect control at the critical moment. His mastery of swordsmanship is no small feat."

The officers noticed the situation and felt a lingering sense of dread. Had a life actually been lost, not only would Guan Ning have been punished, but they would have faced repercussions as well. Seeing that no accident had occurred, they collectively breathed a sigh of relief and began to critique Guan Ning's strike, their words filled with admiration.

"Guan Ning, you..." Meng Jiang, the martial artist leading the team, had been looking for Guan Ning and happened to witness the scene. He was equally shaken; had an accident truly occurred, everyone in the Military Base, regardless of rank, would have been held accountable.

"It is fortunate that there were no casualties, otherwise..." Meng Jiang knew Guan Ning hadn't done it on purpose. Looking at the ashamed young man, he didn't know what to say for a moment. He could only turn to Li Ze and bark sternly, "Do not be so reckless in the future. If he hadn't regained his senses in time, you would have been dead already."

He then looked at the crowd who had been frightened by Guan Ning and shouted, "Remember this: do not disturb others while they are training. Otherwise, the consequences will be unpredictable."

"Yes."

The people being lectured nodded like chicks pecking at grain. They had been truly terrified by what they just saw, and that moment had clearly taught them a lesson.

This is a world filled with blood and slaughter.

After finishing his lecture, Meng Jiang looked at Guan Ning and smiled, "Guan Ning, come with me."

"Uncle Meng, is there something you need?" Guan Ning had his suspicions; it was likely just to show him off to the Thunder Martial Hall. He didn't have the time for that; he would rather spend his spare energy getting used to his new equipment.

"Supervisor Yu wants to see you," Meng Jiang said in a low voice.

"Just as I thought." Guan Ning shook his head and said, "Uncle Meng, there isn't much time left before the assessment. I still need to adapt to my gear, otherwise, it will affect my performance."

"You..." Hearing this, Meng Jiang didn't know what to say. Although he agreed with Guan Ning's choice, he still shook his head. Knowing Guan Ning wouldn't come with him, he said helplessly, "Fine, I will explain the reason to Supervisor Yu. I believe he will understand."

"This is really..."

He walked away with a wry smile.

Hearing that Guan Ning had refused to meet Supervisor Yu, the surrounding people could only marvel. After hearing Guan Ning's subsequent words, they finally understood his actions.

"So that was his reason..."

"He is worthy of being a genius who joined the Limit Martial Hall in advance."

"I need to hurry up and adapt, to get into the right state."

"I'm going too."

The crowd stopped talking and each found a spot to start adapting to their new equipment. Li Ze, Wang Cang, and the others also found a place to warm up.

Fortunately, the plaza was large enough to accommodate so many people.

However, they all kept a wide distance from Guan Ning, leaving a large empty space around him. Seeing this, Guan Ning realized he had scared them, so he rubbed his nose in silence, cast the thought aside, and continued practicing his sword.

Meng Jiang arrived at a quiet two-story building. In the living room on the second floor, several people were gathered together.

"Supervisor," Meng Jiang called out.

"Meng Jiang, where is Guan Ning? Why didn't he come?" A lean man asked with a puzzled expression upon seeing only Meng Jiang. This lean man was Yu Sen, one of the three supervisors of the Jiangnan District.

"Supervisor, Guan Ning said he needed to familiarize himself with his equipment to face the assessment in the best possible condition, so he didn't come."

To ensure the supervisor understood Guan Ning, Meng Jiang had helped him as much as he could.

Although Meng Jiang's voice was not loud, everyone in the living room heard him clearly. Meng Jiang had expected Supervisor Yu to lose his temper upon hearing that Guan Ning wasn't coming, and for the representative of the Thunder Martial Hall to mock him—after all, Meng Jiang's face represented the face of the Limit Martial Hall, and they loved seeing the Limit Martial Hall lose face.

To his surprise, the burly man from the Thunder Martial Hall looked astonished, then cast an envious glance at Yu Sen. Although Yu Sen felt smug inside, he restrained himself, though his radiant smile betrayed him.

Seeing this, Meng Jiang knew that Yu Sen was not only not blaming Guan Ning but was actually very impressed by him, so he also revealed a smile.

"This Guan Ning is so arrogant, daring to refuse Supervisor Yu of the Limit Dojo. How foolish."

Just then, a barely audible voice drifted through the living room.

Although the young man had tried his best to lower his voice, in such close proximity, everyone heard him clearly.

"Foolish?" The burly man's deep voice rang out. He looked at the young man with a crew cut sitting nearby and said coldly, "If you don't understand the situation now, I think you are the one who is truly foolish."

The crew-cut youth felt his face burn from the burly man's words. Not knowing what to do, he could only lower his head.

"Alright, Old Feng, that's enough venting." Yu Sen stepped in to block the burly man, then looked at the other youths and said, "Listen well, Guan Ning is better than all of you in this one aspect alone."

The burly man's expression darkened further upon hearing Yu Sen's words. He had truly lost face this time. Seeing the young men looking unconvinced, he hatched a plan and smiled sinisterly, "You look unconvinced? Even if you are, you'll have to swallow it. If you can surpass him, the two of us might think a little higher of you."

Yu Sen naturally heard the provocation in the burly man's words. He wanted to say something, but seeing the young men burning with indignation, he knew the burly man had achieved his goal. He could only glare at him, "Old Feng, you really are..."

Before Yu Sen could finish, the burly man glanced downstairs and said with a smile, "The assessment is about to begin. I'm leaving."

With that, he walked out. Yu Sen was left speechless and had no choice but to follow, with the young men trailing behind.

Guan Ning and the 1,813 other quasi-warriors were led by soldiers for a full half-hour before arriving at the outskirts of a small town. It was already evening, and the sun left only a few remnants of twilight.

Outside the town, the sound of heart-stopping beast roars could be heard constantly, and soldiers armed with firearms patrolled the perimeter.

"Everyone!"

"Starting from 6:30 tonight until 6:30 tomorrow morning, these twelve hours will be your assessment period! The more monsters you kill, the more points you earn. For every monster killed, cut off its left ear as proof. Remember, killing between quasi-warriors is strictly prohibited. All your activities are under surveillance; do not harbor any delusions of luck. Violators will be executed by firing squad immediately!"

An officer announced in a loud voice.

"The top 60% by points will earn their Warrior qualification; the rest will be eliminated! Remember, if you are severely injured, you can press the distress button on your Communication Watch, and someone will come to rescue you. However, that will also mark the end of your Warrior Combat Assessment. Now, listen to my command: all Quasi-Warriors, move out and enter the Monster Town!"

"A word of advice: generally, hunting three monsters is enough to pass the assessment. If you only hunt two, it will depend on your luck." The officer's voice rang in everyone's ears. "When scores are tied, rankings will be determined by the time spent killing the monsters and the severity of any injuries. Therefore, once you have killed a certain number of monsters, leave the town as soon as possible."

With a wave of the officer's hand, all the Quasi-Warriors surged into the town in a massive, imposing wave, their momentum temporarily suppressing even the roars of the monsters.

"Close the gates!"

The officer gave the order, and the Warrior Combat Assessment officially began!

Inside the enclosed town, 1,813 Quasi-Warriors quickly dispersed, blending into the Monster Town.

"Brother Wang, Brother Li, see you tomorrow." Guan Ning glanced at Wang Cang and Li Ze.

"Mm, see you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow."

The two men looked at Guan Ning with a hint of distance; what had happened earlier was truly unsettling. After observing their surroundings, they quickly departed.

Guan Ning also swiftly moved to a high vantage point to carefully survey the area.

Night fell, and the searchlights from outside the town swept across the area, bringing a rare brightness to this abandoned town.

"Although there are many monsters here, they mainly fall into three categories: the speed-oriented 'Shadow Cat', the 'Iron-Haired Boar' that excels in strength and defense, and the 'Tiger Mastiff', a canine with astonishing speed and power."

Before the Great Nirvana, humans raised many cats and dogs, and farmed large numbers of pigs as a source of meat. Consequently, among the monsters, felines, canines, and swines are particularly numerous. From Beast Soldiers equivalent to warriors to Lords equivalent to War Gods, they are everywhere, which is why the monsters in the combat assessment are basically these three types.

"My current physical fitness is at the High-Level Warrior Rank, while the monsters in the town are only H-Level. We aren't even on the same level; this is purely bullying."

"Monsters outside are scattered; there's no environment as good as this. This place can be called an excellent environment for honing oneself."

"Usually at home, I practice in the air. Although I have the Wooden Stake Formation for assistance, the difference compared to real combat is still quite significant."

"Therefore, there is no need to rush this time. I should use this environment to perfect my movement techniques and swordsmanship."

Having made up his mind, Guan Ning controlled his strength to a punch force of 1,000 kilograms and a speed of 30 meters per second, grinding his movement and swordsmanship bit by bit.

Just as Guan Ning was searching for prey, two feline monsters with grayish-black fur and a body length of about half a meter spotted him and rushed toward him. Because their muscles were streamlined, their bodies were very well-proportioned and agile, and they made little noise as they moved.

"Oh? Two Shadow Cats, just right for practice." Although Guan Ning had limited his own strength, he still spotted the two Shadow Cats, which were like assassins, and decided to lock onto them as his targets.

He leaped from the rooftop, cushioned his fall twice on the balconies below, and landed on the ground. With a roll to dissipate the impact, he immediately sprinted toward the two Shadow Cats.

"Bang."

Although Guan Ning dissipated much of the force when he landed, it still made a loud noise, startling the two Shadow Cats. Their fur stood on end, and their half-drooping tails stiffened and pointed toward the sky. Upon seeing Guan Ning charging at them, they let out hissing roars and pounced forward as well.