Who Isn't a Martial Artist?

From the moment Lu Chong broke through to become a Martial Artist, he was no longer an ordinary student. He had become a key candidate for development, entered into a classified file.

If Lu Chong were actually assassinated, it wouldn't just be a loss for Guanyun City. The province would also hold people accountable.

Of course, to Principal Fang, Principal Wei, and Colonel Huang, Lu Chong was important in his own right. The three had long regarded him as a close student, even the hope for Guanyun City's rise.

That was why Principal Fang was unusually furious now, though he had made sure not to show it too clearly in front of Lu Chong.

Fortunately, Lu Chong's strength had increased greatly of late. He had discovered the assassin early and had even been able to deal with him on his own.

Facing the assassin head-on and killing him in return was also an excellent opportunity for Lu Chong to hone his skills. In that regard, Principal Fang was quite satisfied.

"Let's take another look inside the cave," Principal Fang said, coming back to himself and reminding Lu Chong.

Lu Chong had the same idea. He entered the cave alone and carefully retrieved a black leather bag the two men had left inside.

Faint squeaks came from the bag. Lu Chong looked at Principal Fang. "This should be the Mother Rat they mentioned—the Level 2 Gold-Devouring Rat."

Principal Fang gestured for Lu Chong to open the bag. A dark shape immediately darted out, lunging straight at Lu Chong's face.

Before Lu Chong could act, Principal Fang had already raised a hand in midair and clenched it. A surge of fiery-red Gang Qi burst forth, enveloping the Gold-Devouring Rat.

The Level 2 Gold-Devouring Rat darted back and forth, but it was burned until it squealed in pain. It couldn't escape the range of Principal Fang's Gang Qi.

"To condense Gang Qi outside the body and keep it from dispersing—is that what a Martial Ancestor can do?" Lu Chong watched with shining eyes. His current abilities were worlds apart from that.

He got a clear look at the Gold-Devouring Rat. Sure enough, it looked very much like the one he had killed the day before.

It was about the size of a palm, with glossy black fur and a tuft of golden hair on its forehead. Its exposed teeth were incredibly sharp.

This was a Gold-Devouring Rat. It might look small, but its lethality was nothing to scoff at.

This Exotic Beast was very fast, and its main means of attacking its enemies was its mouthful of sharp teeth. A Level 2 Gold-Devouring Rat could even bite through a two-centimeter-thick sheet of high-strength steel.

Gold-Devouring Rats fed on all kinds of hard metals, which made their bodies incredibly tough. They could practically shrug off blades and spears.

Of course, Gold-Devouring Rats also ate humans, which could speed up their evolution.

If Lu Chong hadn't broken through to become a Martial Artist, he might not have been able to defeat a Level 2 Gold-Devouring Rat like this one, which had set its sights on him.

Principal Fang calmly put the Gold-Devouring Rat back in the black leather bag. "Those two assassins really went to a lot of trouble."

"To avoid exposing themselves, they even managed to find a Mother-Child Rat pair."

"First, they released the Child Rat for you to kill. That way, the Mother Rat would remember your scent and start targeting you."

"Then, when you entered the Wilderness tomorrow, the lurking Mother Rat would strike a fatal blow—without even giving the instructors time to react."

"What a plan. They wouldn't have needed to show their faces at any point." Principal Fang gave a cold snort.

Lu Chong now understood how the other side had planned to assassinate him, and he couldn't help shivering at the thought.

Who wanted him dead?

The question came naturally to Lu Chong. He didn't think he had made any mortal enemies.

Could he have accidentally infringed on someone's interests?

The first person who came to mind was Zhao Longfei, whom he had knocked out of the Hunting Ground last time.

"Could it be him?" Lu Chong wasn't sure.

There was no way to guess something like that.

Still, Lu Chong became a little more wary of Zhao Longfei.

"Don't dwell on it." Principal Fang seemed to see what Lu Chong was thinking. He waved a large hand. "I'll investigate this for you."

"But remember, if no one envies you, you're probably not worth much. This sort of thing is nothing new."

"So you should always be on your guard. Understand?"

Lu Chong hurriedly replied, "Thank you, Teacher Fang. I'll remember."

"Good." Principal Fang spoke with force. "But don't let this make you timid. If anyone dares to target you openly, come straight to me."

"I doubt Old Wei would stand for it, either."

Lu Chong felt touched, but he didn't say much. He simply kept those words in his heart.

"Let's head back," Principal Fang said. "The special training will be over in a few days."

"I'll do my best to find you some Level 2 Exotic Beasts deeper in the Wilderness so you can get more practice."

"I'll also quietly set aside the military merits for killing Level 2 Exotic Beasts, including this Gold-Devouring Rat, for you."

Lu Chong thanked him repeatedly. Level 2 Exotic Beasts were dangerous, but they were valuable from head to toe.

Even the most common Level 2 Stage 1 Exotic Beast could be exchanged for five hundred military merits, or about fifty thousand Huaxia Coins.

Back at the Fortress, Lu Chong went straight to rest, while Principal Fang took the assassin away and began investigating through the night.

Early the next morning, Principal Fang found Lu Chong and said with some frustration, "I couldn't find anything."

"All I could learn was that they were foreign bounty hunters on record. They'd committed robbery and murder in the Wilderness before."

"But the person who contacted them this time never showed his face. He used a foreign virtual platform to give them the job and transfer the money, so there's no way to trace it back to the source."

Lu Chong had expected as much. If the two assassins had been so careful, how could the person behind them have exposed himself so easily?

Lu Chong turned around and tried to comfort Principal Fang. "It's okay, Teacher Fang. I'll just be more careful from now on."

"Now that I'm a proper Martial Artist, I have some ability to protect myself," Lu Chong said confidently.

Principal Fang nodded. "If you have anyone in mind, tell me or Principal Wei."

"Fortunately, it wasn't a foreign spy who set their sights on you. They would've been even more ruthless."

"Don't go into the Wilderness alone for a while. You'll be quite safe inside our base." Principal Fang reminded him.

Lu Chong nodded solemnly, but a thorn remained in his heart. He knew he'd have to find a chance to pull it out.

On May 1, the students went hunting in the Wilderness as usual.

That afternoon, word came that another student in their group had broken through to become a Martial Artist. It was Xiang Yueya.

The students erupted into a commotion. After all, it was extremely rare for anyone in a small city like Guanyun to become a Martial Artist before the College Entrance Exam.

Lu Chong, however, barely cared.

Who isn't a Martial Artist? I'm already a Second Stage Martial Artist.

Over the next few days, perhaps because the special training was working, or because the students had been building up their strength, one student after another broke through.

Lou Qingqing also reached Seventh Stage Martial Disciple on May 3, her strength increasing greatly.

On May 5, the day before the special training ended, another student became a Martial Artist. It was Xue Cheng from Third High School.

That afternoon, the young man who had just broken through to become a Martial Artist went straight to Lu Chong and declared that he wanted to challenge him.