They did not recover until they reached the training ground.
Zhao Fei and Wang Zelu were both still stunned.
Fist Technique Perfection?
They had heard Su Bei say that he had also cultivated Cannon Fist to perfection just yesterday.
If they remembered correctly, that was supposed to be a high-grade martial skill, wasn't it?
Once one's cultivation reached a certain level, one would naturally understand what it meant for a martial art to reach perfection.
It was not merely a matter of strength, but even more so of future prospects. The prerequisite for opening the door to mastery was perfect martial arts attainment.
Although the captain was only a fifth-rank martial artist, who would truly dare to treat her as an ordinary fifth-rank martial artist? Throughout the entire Jinnan Military Department, the captain received exceptional treatment!
No wonder the captain had that attitude. A Quasi-Martial Artist... with perfect martial arts attainment—those two things together were an absolute trump card!
This was utterly ridiculous.
On the training ground, the four had received notice in advance and stood in a row, waiting for instructions.
Three men and one woman, none of them particularly old. Their blood and qi surged like waves, their bodies taut and honed to their physical limits. Though their cultivation had left them looking somewhat battered, the vigor radiating from their eyes and bodies stood in stark contrast.
Their gazes wandered over Su Bei, some domineering, some probing. In any case, they were all intensely curious about this new teammate.
"Su Bei, fall in."
Su Bei stepped directly into place at the far left of the line.
Lu Yingyue continued, "You should all know the news already. The Shattered Battlefield has changed. Training must end early, and the mission will begin sooner."
"I'll also announce the latest appointment. Su Bei will serve as captain of this Shattered Battlefield squad. Get acquainted with one another later."
Lu Yingyue deliberately paused after she finished speaking. Sure enough, the expressions of the other four changed.
Liang Dao, standing beside Su Bei, was the first to lose his patience. "Why?!"
"We've trained together for a whole week. Even if we were choosing a captain, it should be chosen from among the four of us. Why should some newcomer ride over our heads?!"
Lei Bin, who had always been at odds with Liang Dao, also took the same side. "Yeah! You have to give us an explanation, don't you?"
Lü Yan, the only woman in the group, also spoke up. Her face carried a touch of heroic spirit, and her brows were tightly furrowed. "Don't tell me it's because all of us wanted the position, so none of us get it?"
The only one who remained silent was also from the military department, but his expression was not looking very pleasant either.
The group voiced criticism one after another, visibly agitated.
Their gazes toward Su Bei contained only three words: Why him?!
You're just someone who rose through the martial assessment. How dare you compete with us?
Every one of them was a favored prodigy. How could they possibly accept Su Bei?
Wang Zelu looked at Su Bei's calm expression and sighed softly.
He did not believe their elders were unaware of Su Bei's strength, yet they had all tacitly chosen not to tell their juniors. That alone explained everything.
Let them compete.
The higher-ups could hardly tell their own children, "This opportunity is important, but Su Bei is too outstanding, so don't compete." There was no such logic. None of them would say it; instead, they would tacitly allow this to happen, regardless of the outcome.
Talent needed tempering.
Even in his previous life, wealthy families educating their children would not tell them, "This opportunity is important, but the person on the other side is too exceptional, so we won't fight for it."
They might even protect Su Bei behind the scenes. Wang Zelu had once wondered why their captain, though formidable, could refuse everyone's requests for the final slot. Whoever received it would receive it, after all. Now he understood: iron had to be hard enough to withstand the hammer.
The stronger Su Bei was, the less likely their juniors were to face danger.
In truth, life's choices were often mutual.
Lu Yingyue suppressed the crowd's voices and asked with interest, "Su Bei, tell them why."
"Yes!"
"Answer Captain Lu!"
Su Bei stepped forward, his voice ringing out loud and forceful. "Because my strength surpasses theirs! Because my speed surpasses theirs! Because my power surpasses theirs!"
"Because I surpass them!"
"Because only I can lead them to victory and bring them back safely!"
Arrogant!
Confident!
High-spirited!
That was Su Bei's answer.
From the moment of the martial assessment, Su Bei had known that if he wanted to grow stronger, obtain more resources, and give his family a better life, then he had to shine—he had to shine brilliantly!
No matter who it was, no one could stop him from shining brightly!
The four wore ashen expressions. Their gazes at Su Bei were filled almost entirely with utter incomprehension, and vicious words were nearly spilling from their mouths.
How dared he?
"Good!"
Lu Yingyue burst into laughter. Those of us who wield spears should be like this. "Then make them shut up!"
"Yes!"
Su Bei answered, then suddenly threw a punch. The strength of his physical body nearly tore apart his fitted combat uniform!
Boom!
Like exploding gunpowder, like a massive cannon firing beside their ears, his blood and qi surged as the explosive force of his punch swept out like a typhoon!
"Arrogant!"
Liang Dao's reaction was incredibly fast. He raised a curved blade across his chest, directly blocking Su Bei's fist!
But in the next instant, terror appeared on his face. What he was blocking did not feel like a fist at all, but a speeding train!
Bang!
Like thunder exploding, white shockwaves erupted from where fist met blade. Liang Dao flew backward like a cannonball, his curved blade flying from his grip as blood sprayed from his mouth in midair. He then slammed viciously into the wall!
Without even looking, Su Bei stomped down, cracking the ground beneath his feet with tremendous force. He instantly appeared before Lei Bin, his fist blasting out like a bomb detonating, erupting with fiery violence.
Lei Bin felt as though that fist was as massive as a mountain. Su Bei descended like a demon god, filling his entire field of vision!
He only had time to cross his arms before him. The next moment, the tremendous force seemed ready to penetrate every bone in his body. His face twisted, turning pale as gold paper, and he was sent flying high into the air. Both arms went numb from the impact, and when he landed, he spat out blood as well.
"Take my blade!"
Su Bei turned, and though Lü Yan was a woman, she wielded an exaggeratedly massive saber. She swung it down at Su Bei with full force. Power rippled across it like waves, stacking layer upon layer until it contained eight thousand pounds of force—already nearly the limit a Quasi-Martial Artist could reach!
Worthy of being a genius capable of fighting a Level One Exotic Beast at the Quasi-Martial Artist stage.
Clang!
No one saw how Su Bei moved, but his spear was already in his hand. He unleashed the force of Wind-Splitting, smashing the spear downward and slamming the heavy saber into the ground. He abruptly twisted the spear, its friction shrieking like an angle grinder as sparks flew across the saber. Then he unleashed Cloud-Sweeping, sweeping it across her waist without the slightest tenderness.
Under that overwhelming force, Lü Yan spat out blood, her face pale as gold paper. She rolled away like a tumbling gourd for nearly ten meters.
Su Bei moved like a gale, instantly circling around to Xu Zhijie, the last one remaining. He was an archer. Without distance, he could not even draw his bow. Letting Su Bei get close was no different from a sheep entering a tiger's den. With only one punch, he was sent flying and rolling, left without the strength to fight again.
At this point, all four had shut up.
Crushed!
Pure, brutal domination!
Just as Su Bei had said, whether it was strength, speed, blood and qi, or martial arts attainment, he surpassed them all. Absolute superiority in every aspect brought only domination!
Especially after Cannon Fist reached perfection, enhanced by the technique, Su Bei's full-force punch could now unleash more than ten thousand pounds of force. The improvement was astonishing.
With the Emperor Sun Aura's enveloping evolution, his current strength had improved by far more than a single level compared to the martial assessment!
Su Bei withdrew his fist and slung the spear across his back again. "Reporting to Captain Lu, time was limited, so I used extraordinary measures."
"However, the mission has been completed."
He looked at the people lying or sitting around him. They had indeed all shut up now.
Geniuses?
No problem. I'll handle it.
Before you continue