Jia Yi's Breakthrough and Farewell

That morning, Wu Ming unusually did not train. Instead, he stayed in the dormitory and did not leave.

It was not because he wanted to slack off, but because Jia Yi, who lived under the same roof as him, had finally sensed Cosmic Energy that morning and begun breaking through to the Genetic Warrior realm!

For something this significant, Wu Ming naturally had to stay nearby and stand guard.

Time passed bit by bit, and two hours soon went by. Just then, Wu Ming suddenly heard a burst of commotion from downstairs.

Using his Spiritual Force to sense it, he was surprised to discover that the hall master had actually returned!

Clearly, Jia Qingshan had also sensed the aura of Cosmic Energy inside the building and had even pinpointed the exact dormitory room. A sharp gleam flashed through his eyes as he strode toward the dormitory building.

Before long, the dormitory door was quietly pushed open, and Jia Qingshan appeared in the room. He first gave Wu Ming a slight nod, then looked toward Jia Yi with approval on his face.

"Judging from these energy fluctuations, Xiao Yi's talent is formidable—perhaps even greater than mine."

Jia Qingshan kept his eyes fixed on him, but this thought could not help crossing his mind.

During the half month or so he had spent in the military, he had witnessed far too many Quasi-Martial Artists breaking through. He therefore knew very clearly that the increase in strength from a Quasi-Martial Artist's first breakthrough varied from person to person, depending on how much Cosmic Energy they absorbed.

The amount of energy absorbed for the first time also reflected a Martial Artist's talent to a certain extent. The more talented the Martial Artist, the faster their subsequent cultivation would be.

Before this, both he and the country had believed that the improvements after a Quasi-Martial Artist's breakthrough were roughly the same, because the only two cases so far had both proven that point.

But as the number of Martial Artists increased, differences in talent began to reveal themselves.

In less than a month, Jia Qingshan had witnessed the birth of more than twenty Genetic Warriors. Yet the vast majority had gained only around 500 to 800 kilograms of strength, while the strongest had increased by merely 1,100 kilograms.

Only then did he understand that he and Wu Ming were special. Their talent had already pulled ahead of ordinary Martial Artists, and as time passed, the gap in strength between the two sides would only grow wider.

Because of this, the country had reassessed Jia Qingshan's value. After the military's Genetic Warriors had emerged, they had not simply let him leave, but retained him for a while longer.

It was not until the end of February, when most of the first batch of Martial Artists trained by the country had completed their breakthroughs, that Jia Qingshan declined the position of "chief instructor" in the military and returned to Xingyi Martial Arts Hall.

Unexpectedly, the moment he returned to the martial arts hall, he encountered a pleasant surprise. His nephew had actually broken through, and his talent was not weak either!

Neither Jia Qingshan nor Wu Ming spoke. They waited quietly at the side, and only after another half hour did the energy fluctuations around Jia Yi gradually settle.

The moment he opened his eyes and saw the situation in the room, he froze. "Uncle? When did you come back?"

"Just now." Jia Qingshan smiled. "I didn't expect to see such a surprise the moment I returned."

Jia Yi smiled bashfully. "I tried practicing this morning, and suddenly I entered the right state. Even I can't explain exactly how I sensed it."

"That's perfectly normal. Many Martial Artists are like that—they sense it while half-confused. I was the same."

Jia Qingshan impatiently asked, "Xiao Yi, try to feel it. About how much strength do you think you've gained?"

"Feel it? Uh..." Jia Yi blanked for a moment and tried closing his eyes to sense it, but soon opened them again and shook his head. "Sorry, Uncle. I only know that my physical fitness has improved a great deal, but I can't tell the exact figure."

Hearing this, Jia Qingshan quickly realized what was going on.

Although his nephew possessed extraordinary talent, he had trained for too short a time and had not even mastered Bright Strength. Of course he could not sense it. Jia Qingshan had been too impatient.

At that moment, Wu Ming took out the Dragon Sparrow Battle Blade and said calmly, "Stand firm and catch it. Grip the hilt tightly with one hand. I'll gradually increase the pressure with my Spiritual Force. When you can no longer hold the blade, that will roughly be your current strength limit."

Jia Yi took the battle blade as instructed. Wu Ming then began applying pressure, and Jia Yi immediately felt his arm sink. The blade seemed to become unbearably heavy in an instant, pressing his entire arm until it began to tremble.

Finally, when the weight exceeded his limit, he could no longer hold on. His right hand suddenly loosened, but the battle blade did not fall. Guided by Spiritual Force, it skimmed across the ground in an arc and steadily returned to Wu Ming's hand.

"About 3,000 kilograms."

Wu Ming stated the figure, a strange glint appearing in his eyes. As expected of Jia Yi. His talent really is outstanding.

Jia Qingshan was overjoyed. "3,000 kilograms? That means an increase of 2,100 kilograms, and there isn't even any age reduction! Xiao Yi's talent truly surpasses mine by far!"

He now understood that the amount of Cosmic Energy absorbed for the first time was related to how hungry the cells were. The older a Martial Artist became, the more some of their body's potential should decline, though not by much.

According to military research, for someone in their forties or fifties like him, subtracting around 200 kilograms from their initial increase would reveal their true talent.

In other words, Jia Qingshan's talent should have corresponded to the "1,700-kilogram" tier. Though it was not as astonishing as 1,900 kilograms, it still far surpassed the vast majority of current Genetic Warriors and was second only to Wu Ming.

Now, a second Martial Artist whose talent surpassed his had appeared—and that person was his own nephew!

Jia Yi was also delighted when he heard his assessment. He had loved martial arts since childhood, but his physical limitations had previously allowed him to do only less strenuous training.

Even so, he had memorized the later material of Xingyi Quan by heart, and his understanding of Stance Work even surpassed that of most martial arts hall students.

Now, not only could he train normally, he had even stepped onto the path of Genetic Warriors, which was more powerful than Internal Martial Arts. The joy in his heart was naturally beyond words.

After the uncle and nephew finished catching up, Wu Ming finally asked, "Hall Master, how are things on the military's side? Is it convenient to reveal anything?"

Jia Qingshan nodded. "This information naturally has to remain confidential, but the higher-ups have granted you the right to know... Hmm, Xiao Yi, go out first. I have something to discuss with young friend Wu."

"Yes, Uncle." Jia Yi obediently replied, then decisively left the room without even attempting to eavesdrop outside the door.

After confirming that no one was nearby, Jia Qingshan told Wu Ming everything he had seen in the military, including the number of people who had broken through and the discovery regarding Martial Artist talent.

Hearing the figures, Wu Ming raised an eyebrow slightly. "The highest talent was only 1,100 kilograms? What about Thunder God? He counts as part of the Internal Martial Arts circle too, doesn't he? Did he not participate in this training camp?"

"He didn't come, though his father, Lei Xiao, did. His talent was around 900 kilograms."

Jia Qingshan shook his head. "I heard from Lei Xiao that Thunder God has recently been protecting his mother in India. Things are rather chaotic over there now, and neither mother nor son has found an opportunity to return."

Wu Ming understood, recalling Thunder God's status as of mixed Chinese and Indian descent.

With the virus raging, international flights had long been completely shut down. If Thunder God and his mother wanted to return, they could only cross India by land, so it was not strange that they were stranded there and missed this training camp.

He casually asked about the list of Martial Artists participating in this training camp, and sure enough, he did not find Hong's name.

Wu Ming was not surprised either. Hong had originally been an assassin, operating in the shadows year-round. His identity had probably never even been exposed, so naturally the country had not summoned him.

Since there was no news of those two, there was no further intelligence from this training camp worth paying attention to.

Wu Ming shook his head and finally spoke the words he had been preparing for a long time.

"Hall Master, Qingzhu and the others and I have to leave the martial arts hall."