Revenge Mission

Zhang Feiyu paid up without hesitation.

Then he went off to sulk by himself.

That saved Su Bei quite a bit of trouble.

If they had refused to pay, Su Bei would not have had any particularly good options. Zhang Feiyu alone would have been manageable, but the old man by his side was clearly no ordinary person.

Even a Martial Artist like Zhao Pei had treated him with great caution.

Not to mention a Quasi-Martial Artist like Su Bei.

Martial Artists held an extraordinary status in this world. Though it sounded like merely a title, it was actually an impassable gulf of class.

With that status, the state provided greatly improved benefits in healthcare, education, and other areas, along with special privileges in daily life. They were a well-known privileged class.

If necessary, even their family members could receive proper arrangements.

It could almost be said that as long as one became a Martial Artist, everything was taken care of except being assigned a wife.

Of course, powerful Martial Artists generally did not lack women anyway.

No matter how astonishing the talent Su Bei had displayed, as long as he had not become a true Martial Artist, he would always be at a disadvantage.

The gap between the two was enormous.

When Su Bei returned to the Intermediate Area, two burly men approached him through the crowd.

They were the two sparring partners from earlier. Unlike Su Bei, the two of them were full-time sparring partners at the martial arts hall.

Their injuries had already been treated. Other than looking somewhat weak, they seemed fine.

In fact, they looked rather energized. Fighting strong opponents was also a way for them to improve their strength.

"Brother Su Bei, thank you for earlier."

The speaker had thick arms and reached out to shake Su Bei's hand. If not for Su Bei, things would not have gone so easily for them afterward.

After all, several sparring partners before them had suffered serious injuries. If that delayed their Martial Artist Assessment a month later, that would have been a real problem.

Moreover, Su Bei had taken the bulk of the pressure. The two of them had merely supported him from the side and had not faced much directly.

Su Bei waved it off indifferently. "I did not do much. Without you two, I would not have had it so easy either."

After they went down, they had been sent out of the training arena. They did not actually know how Su Bei had performed afterward and simply assumed the sparring session had ended.

"My name is Fang Dacheng, and this is my brother Wang Hai." Fang Dacheng said bluntly, "If you ever need anything, just come to the martial arts hall and find us!"

"Our strength may be a little lacking, but after all these years in Sky Lake, we still know a thing or two."

"Oh, right." Fang Dacheng continued, "I can see that you are quite capable. You will definitely be taking part in this Martial Artist Assessment too, right?"

Though it was phrased as a question, his tone held certainty.

Su Bei nodded noncommittally. "I have already signed up. I am just going to try my luck."

Fang Dacheng's eyes lit up. "If someone like you is merely trying your luck, then there is no point in us participating at all."

"I wonder how much you know about the Martial Artist Assessment. To be honest, Wang Hai and I have already participated five times. Our strength may not have improved much over the years, but we have plenty of experience."

"Although the tests differ every year, they are mostly similar. We gathered some materials before, so if you do not mind..."

"Of course I do not mind." Su Bei had initially only intended to try his luck and had made no preparations at all. Now that someone had handed him a pillow just as he was getting sleepy, there was naturally no reason to refuse.

The three exchanged contact information. After Fang Dacheng sent Su Bei the materials, they bid each other farewell.

Before leaving, Fang Dacheng said half-jokingly, "Su Bei, if this year's assessment has a team component, do not forget us brothers."

"Of course not," Su Bei said without hesitation.

If there really was a team component, having this connection was better than joining complete strangers. Their strength was not bad either, so there was no reason to turn them down.

Only then did the two leave, fully satisfied.

The strength Su Bei had displayed was enough to make them deliberately seek his friendship.

"No matter where you go, strength really is the passport."

Su Bei experienced once again the difference strength could bring. If he still only possessed around 800 kilograms of force, no one would likely have paid him any attention.

As he was thinking.

The words on the panel changed once more.

Side Mission

Your body has recovered its health. After swallowing the Marrow Cleansing Pill, your natural aptitude has become extraordinary, and your cultivation has even reached the Martial Apprentice realm. Now that you have mastered the complete level of the fist technique martial arts realm, a true man must avenge his grudges. Being beaten into severe injury cannot simply be let go.

Mission: Revenge

Kill Blood Moving Realm outer disciple Zhang Shixiong and uproot the family behind him.

Difficulty: ★★★

Reward: Cultivation Infusion ×1

Su Bei: "Another impossible mission."

Over the past few days, the panel had issued several impossible missions like this. Their rewards were all excellent, but not one of them was something he could complete.

Though the rewards were tempting, it was obvious.

The game progression was stuck.

A mission like this was clearly impossible to complete.

It was not as though he could travel into the game world and get himself killed...

He directly chose to abandon the mission. Fortunately, this thing had no penalty for failure.

After he chose to abandon it, the words on the panel slowly disappeared. That made Su Bei, with his mild obsessive-compulsive tendencies, feel a little better. Otherwise, having it constantly displayed while being unable to complete it would have made him extremely uncomfortable.

After waiting a moment, no new mission appeared on the panel.

"I hope tomorrow's Daily Mission is something I can do too."

By now, Su Bei had already treated the panel as an aid that could rapidly improve his strength, and he could not help thinking about it.

"I just hope getting the game progression stuck will not make the whole thing impossible to advance."

Though he thought so, Su Bei had thrown himself into martial arts over the years, and his will was as solid as a rock. Even if he lost this cheat in the future, the Marrow Cleansing Pill alone had already left him fully satisfied.

He had talent now. All that remained was hard work, and he was confident he could make his life better.

Lost in thought, Su Bei returned to his residential complex.

It was an old complex. The neighborhood environment and property management were both mediocre. The buildings stood very close together, their exterior walls faded, and some areas looked worn from years of rain.

The garbage bins were right downstairs and were not cleaned very diligently. In summer, they gave off waves of foul odor. Some residents had raised the issue, but it had never been resolved.

Su Bei's family lived on the first floor, and their kitchen faced the garbage bins outside. The stench affected their home the most, and they usually did not even open the windows.

When he got home.

The apartment was not large. A family of four lived somewhat cramped in a two-bedroom apartment of just over seventy square meters.

The furnishings and decor were all in a style from twenty years ago. Many things had become old and worn, but they could not bear to throw them away.

The moment he entered, Su Bei saw his younger brother, Su He, putting on an act as he came out of the bedroom. Rubbing his wrist, he said, "Brother, why are you back so early today?"

Su Bei frowned, his gaze sharp. "Were you playing games again?"

His younger brother was five years younger than him and would enter the ninth grade after graduation this year. His martial arts talent was average, but he was clever, a little mischievous, and mildly addicted to the internet.

As the eldest brother, Su Bei had always been strict with him. To put it bluntly, Su He had practically been beaten up by Su Bei since childhood.

"No!"

Su He looked deeply wronged. "I have been doing my homework the whole time. I have not even finished everything you assigned me today."

"If you do not believe me, ask Mom. She checked when she came home to cook lunch today."

Su He knew that no matter what, he could not admit it at this moment.

He remembered the last time he had skipped class to go online. His brother had dragged him out of the internet cafe. On the way home, Su Bei had said nothing and had even spoken quite "kindly" with several of his friends.

But the beating after they got home remained unforgettable to Su He to this day. Those friends had never invited him to skip class again.

After all, the intimidation of a Quasi-Martial Artist was quite considerable.

Their parents only lectured him. If someone was really going to lay hands on him, it would be his brother.

"Fine."

Su Bei glanced at him. "Bring me your homework later so I can check it. You are about to enter the ninth grade, so settle down."

"Once I start school, if you dare mess around, just wait and see how I deal with you when I come back."

"Also, you must make time every day to practice the Gene Method. It will be good for you."

Their parents had not received much education, so Su Bei had almost always overseen Su He's studies. Fortunately, Su He's grades were decent.

"Got it..." Su He nodded helplessly.

It was impossible to say he was not annoyed by his brother's daily restrictions.

But the tiny spark of rebellion that had emerged during his rebellious phase had been shattered by a single punch from his brother. He still remembered the first time he had cursed at their mother after becoming rebellious—his brother's rage-fueled beating that day had nearly been impossible for even their parents to stop.

"I will transfer you some money later."

Su Bei said, "Since you are on break, you can relax a little. Go hang out with your classmates, and do not always make them treat you. But stay away from places you should not go."

"Got it, Brother."

Su He actually admired his older brother quite a lot.

Because every single thing his brother told him to do, Su Bei himself did exceptionally well.