A Martial Artist's Battle!

Cold.

Bitter, bone-piercing cold.

The air seemed thick with the smell of blood.

Lin Yuan froze where he stood, as though the blood in all four limbs had been frozen solid.

He had lived for over twenty years.

The most dangerous thing he had ever experienced was nearly crashing into a utility pole while delivering food.

Yet Su Qingxue, standing across from him—

She was like a savage beast that had just crawled out of hell.

The Sha Qi forged through mountains of corpses and seas of blood crashed down on Lin Yuan without restraint.

Lin Yuan's fingers began to spasm uncontrollably.

Even though he was already a mid-stage Rank One martial artist protected by true qi—

His body still instinctively tried to flee.

And it was not just Lin Yuan.

The hundred-plus elite soldiers at the edge of the training ground also fell silent as one.

Ye Qingshan stared fixedly at the center of the field, fine beads of cold sweat seeping from his forehead.

Chu Tiankuo swallowed, his burly body tense as a rock.

Xiao Zhan, who carried a specially made long blade on his back, had even begun to tremble slightly in the hand gripping his weapon.

At the same time—

No. 3 Secret Command Room.

The enormous screen clearly displayed Lin Yuan's soaring heart rate and blood pressure.

"Chief, stop this now!"

"Lin Yuan's numbers are impressive, but he has never even killed a chicken!"

"Instructor Su's condition isn't right. She is completely fighting with killing intent!"

"If anything happens to Lin Yuan, what can we possibly offer Dragon Country as compensation?"

Old Li, head of the research department, was so anxious that he repeatedly slapped the table.

Pointing at Su Qingxue's icy gaze on the screen, he shouted at Nie Dingguo beside him.

The other officers in the command room nodded in agreement as well.

Everyone understood Lin Yuan's value.

He was an unprecedented prodigy who had become a mid-stage Rank One martial artist in less than a month.

If Su Qingxue crippled him with a single punch, the entire Northwest Military Region would be held accountable.

"No one moves."

Nie Dingguo spoke four words, his voice leaving no room for doubt.

"Chief!"

Old Li still wanted to argue.

"Old Li, what do you think the future will be like?"

"Su Qingxue said spiritual energy would revive in half a year."

"Will those mutated beasts spare Lin Yuan just because he is a new recruit?"

Nie Dingguo turned around, his weathered face filled with cold severity.

The entire command room instantly fell into dead silence.

Everyone understood that Nie Dingguo was right.

"Uncut jade cannot become a vessel."

"If he has the highest-level talent, he must endure the cruelest hardships."

"Even if every bone in his body is broken today, that is still better than dying in the jaws of a savage beast six months from now!"

Nie Dingguo turned back to the screen, both hands clenched tightly into fists.

At those words—

The senior officers all fell silent.

On the training ground—

The atmosphere had become suffocatingly oppressive.

"What?"

"Too scared to move?"

"Where is that eight-thousand-kilogram punching power of yours?"

"Where is that three-second-something hundred-meter speed?"

Su Qingxue looked coldly at Lin Yuan, her voice scraping across the field like a blade.

She walked toward Lin Yuan step by step.

Her military boots struck the alloy floor with suffocating taps.

On the other side—

Lin Yuan gritted his teeth and forced himself to meet Su Qingxue's eyes.

But he could not say a word.

That killing intent was too overwhelming, crushing him until it felt as though even the air in his lungs would be squeezed dry.

"Right now, you are not even as good as trash in my eyes."

"Even trash knows to cry out a few times when it gets beaten."

"What about you?"

"When the savage beasts break out, are you planning to just stand there and let them use you as a snack?"

A moment later—

Su Qingxue stopped, a mocking curve tugging at her lips.

But her words stabbed viciously into Lin Yuan's nerves.

Savage beasts.

His parents' weathered faces flashed through Lin Yuan's mind.

Then came the image of his younger sister, Lin Xiaoxiao, hunched over a desk doing her homework.

More than half a month ago, the state had already moved them into the safest family housing compound.

What for?

Was it not so that he could grow stronger at all costs and hold up the sky when disaster came?

If he could not even withstand the pressure from the woman before him—

How could he protect his family six months from now?

"I'm not trash."

A low growl rolled from Lin Yuan's throat.

He suddenly bit through the tip of his tongue, and the taste of blood spread through his mouth.

The pain scattered his instinctive fear.

Feeling finally returned to his icy limbs.

Lin Yuan raised his head, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at Su Qingxue.

"Come on!"

That explosive shout rang across the training ground.

The elite soldiers watching at the edge all perked up at once.

"Good kid, he has guts!"

Song Qingyin's beautiful eyes lit up, and she could not help quietly cheering.

Seeing the madness ignite in Lin Yuan's eyes—

A trace of approval flickered deep within Su Qingxue's pupils.

But her expression remained frost-cold.

"Your courage is commendable."

"But your strength is garbage."

Before her words had even faded—

Su Qingxue vanished from where she stood.

Too fast!

Lin Yuan had not even seen her move when his vision blurred.

A violent gust of wind had already reached his left ribs.

"Left!"

The thought had barely flashed through Lin Yuan's mind before his body could react.

Bang!

A dull, thunderous impact rang out.

Lin Yuan was sent flying seven or eight meters, as though a speeding heavy truck had struck him.

In the end—

Lin Yuan slammed heavily into the ground and slid a long distance before stopping.

"Cough..."

Lin Yuan curled up in agony, feeling as though his ribs were about to break.

It hurt too much.

"That's it?"

"What is the difference between your neural reaction speed and that of a blind man?"

Su Qingxue stood where Lin Yuan had been moments earlier, looking down at him from above.

Lin Yuan clenched his teeth hard.

Supporting himself with both hands, he trembled as he forced himself back to his feet.

At the same time—

He understood what Su Qingxue had meant earlier.

Numbers were really just numbers.

No matter how terrifying his strength and speed were—

If he could not hit anyone or defend against attacks, they were useless.

"Again!"

Lin Yuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth and assumed the opening stance of the Broken Rock Fist.

Su Qingxue snorted coldly and charged at him again.

This time, Lin Yuan saw it clearly.

He fixed his gaze on Su Qingxue's shoulders, trying to predict the path of her attack.

"Right fist!"

Lin Yuan roared.

The true qi within him instantly gathered in his right arm.

Carrying the terrifying force of over eight thousand kilograms, it smashed forward.

The air was torn apart by the punch, releasing a piercing howl.

The elite soldiers at the edge of the field all widened their eyes.

If that punch landed cleanly, it could punch through an armored vehicle!

However—

Su Qingxue's body twisted strangely in midair.

By the narrowest margin, she evaded Lin Yuan's thunderous blow and slipped into his inner range.

"You have left yourself wide open. You are asking to die."

Su Qingxue's voice sounded beside Lin Yuan's ear.

The next second—

Her elbow shot out like a venomous snake, driving viciously into Lin Yuan's chest.

Bang!

Lin Yuan was sent flying again like a kite with its string cut.

This time—

He staggered back more than ten steps before barely managing to steady himself.

His throat turned sweet, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"Far too crude."

"Strength is not meant to be wasted!"

Su Qingxue gave Lin Yuan no chance to catch his breath.

Her attacks came like a raging storm, every strike tricky and ruthless.

Knuckles, elbows, knees...

Every part of her body had become a deadly weapon.

Lin Yuan could only defend with everything he had.

But before Su Qingxue, his defense was riddled with openings.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The dull sounds of flesh striking flesh echoed continuously through the training ground.

Lin Yuan was like a human punching bag, beaten by Su Qingxue without any ability to fight back.

In just two short minutes,

he had taken no fewer than thirty heavy blows.

If not for the true qi condensed by the Heavenly Dipper Qi Refining Formula, protecting Lin Yuan's vital points,

his internal organs would have ruptured, killing him long ago.

Inside the surveillance room,

Old Li was sweating profusely, both hands gripping the console tightly.

"She's insane!"

"That woman is absolutely insane!"

"Chief, Lin Yuan's muscular resistance is almost at its limit!"

Nie Dingguo kept a stern face and said nothing.

But the hands clasped behind his back had unconsciously clenched hard enough for veins to bulge.

The elite soldiers around the edge of the training ground were completely silent.

Ye Qingshan felt a chill run down his back.

With every attack Su Qingxue made, he simulated in his mind whether he could take it.

The answer was despairing.

If it were him,

he would not last ten seconds before being beaten to death.

"Hiss..."

"This isn't fighting at all. This is completely a killing technique!"

Chu Tiankuo muttered under his breath, his eyes fixed on the center of the field.

Just as everyone thought Lin Yuan was about to collapse,

Lin Yuan's eyes grew brighter and brighter.

Pain.

Extreme pain.

Yet amid that extreme agony, he remained absolutely clear-headed.

With every blow he took, he was sensing Su Qingxue's techniques for exerting force.

The circulation paths of her true qi, the way her muscles coordinated, the subtle shifts in her footwork...

Her footwork had strange pauses.

It was as though she were deliberately guiding my gaze.

Another kick struck his thigh.

Long Yuan staggered backward.

But unlike before, he did not lose his footing in panic.

Instead, he forcibly steadied his center of gravity, his feet unconsciously stepping into a strange pattern.

Wandering Dragon Step.

Although he had only just crossed the threshold of this third-tier movement technique,

under the pressure of life and death, he had instinctively used it.

Then,

Su Qingxue's follow-up attack actually missed!

Her fingertips brushed past Lin Yuan's clothes, taking only a corner of his garment.

A deeply concealed flicker of astonishment flashed through Su Qingxue's eyes.

He dodged?

Under such relentless high-pressure attacks,

this kid could still spare attention to comprehend a movement technique?

Such comprehension was simply terrifying!

No wonder, even without any resources in his previous life, he had still relied on commonplace cultivation techniques to fight his way to the peak of the second tier!