Teaming up

Ten days later.

On the training grounds, Ji Zhixing held the Army-Breaking Staff, practicing the Eight Army-Breaking Staff Moves over and over.

Shatter Space, Earth-Shaking, Thunderclap... charging ever forward, Invincible Presence.

One move followed another, one repetition after another.

"I've practiced the Eight Army-Breaking Staff Moves more times than I can count." Ji Zhixing stopped, leaning on his long staff as he panted lightly.

"I know every move by heart. I could perform them with my eyes closed. When I hold the Army-Breaking Staff, I can feel that army-breaking will guiding me, making my staff technique far more powerful than the Basic Staff Technique."

"But..."

He frowned, confusion welling up within him.

"As soon as I put down the Army-Breaking Staff and switch to an ordinary staff, I can't infuse any will into the Staff Technique at all."

"Even with exactly the same moves, even with exactly the same application of force, without that army-breaking will, the power drops drastically. It's no different from the Basic Staff Technique."

"What exactly am I missing?"

Ji Zhixing pondered.

"Is my will not firm enough? Or have I misunderstood the army-breaking will?"

He shook his head. For now, he had no answer.

"Don't overthink it."

A burly, dark-faced man walked over. It was Teacher Sun, who also used a long staff as his weapon.

Teacher Sun's name was Sun Dajun, and he had fused with a first-order giant boar gene.

But after years of cultivation, he had mastered basic staff technique, basic fist technique, and basic footwork, as well as a first-order two-star staff art and a first-order two-star fist technique.

With his extensive combat experience on top of that, he was more than qualified to teach at Third Middle School.

"When I first practiced the Stonewall Staff Technique, it took me seven or eight years of training, day after day, night after night, before I succeeded. How long have you been practicing?"

"No matter how talented you are, it won't help. Until you've put in a year, there's no point even thinking about it."

Sun Dajun shook his head.

He thought highly of Ji Zhixing. The boy worked hard, was polite, and genuinely had a talent for staff techniques.

But a first-order two-star staff art wasn't something a little talent would let someone master easily.

Sun Dajun continued, "Some people say practicing universal skills mainly comes down to comprehension."

"But how many of us have that kind of insight?"

"Back then, someone told me that to master the Stonewall Staff Technique, I needed to grasp the essence of being as steadfast as bedrock. They said it was best to practice at the foot of a great mountain, or somewhere with plenty of rocks."

"I trained that way for several months and got nothing out of it. In the end, I still had to practice for several more years before I ground my way to mastery."

Ji Zhixing listened.

Sun Dajun's persistence moved him.

But he neither agreed nor disagreed with his words.

What the books said differed from what Sun Dajun had told him.

Sun Dajun was only a first-order gene cultivator.

He trusted the books more.

Staff techniques require insight. The Eight Army-Breaking Staff Moves are meant for fighting on the battlefield. If I want to grasp the army-breaking will, perhaps real combat will help me understand it faster.

I'll keep practicing for now. If that doesn't work, I'll try it when we go outside the city to hunt gene beasts!

Ji Zhixing thought to himself.

Meanwhile, the other students on the training grounds were also struggling with their own training.

Ten days had passed, yet among the many students in their class practicing universal skills, not one had truly mastered a basic skill.

That included the boy who had fused with a Blade-Armed Mantis gene and possessed first-order two-star saber talent.

"How on earth did Ji Zhixing manage it?"

The boy who had fused with the Blade-Armed Mantis gene was named Zhou Yuan. At first, he had secretly pushed himself, wanting to compete with Ji Zhixing.

But ten days had passed, and he still hadn't fully mastered the Basic Saber Technique. He couldn't channel most of his body's strength into it.

But I have first-order two-star saber talent... Zhou Yuan felt stifled with frustration.

Because he had Saber Technique Talent, He Yanbing had specially borrowed a long saber carrying the Basic Saber Technique from the school for him. He had been using it to aid his training these past few days.

Yet even with that, he still hadn't mastered the Basic Saber Technique.

A few more days passed.

Only one day remained before they would leave the city to hunt gene beasts.

The atmosphere on the training grounds gradually grew tense.

"Zhixing, want to team up when we go outside the city to hunt gene beasts tomorrow?" Liu Qifan walked over and asked.

"Of course."

Ji Zhixing nodded.

He Yanbing had just told them that they would be forming teams of five for tomorrow's hunt outside the city for Gene Beasts.

Every team would be led by a student the school had hired from Rain City Gene University.

"The two of us aren't enough. We need to find a few more."

Liu Qifan looked around. "Why don't you ask Huang Yu and Yu Zhirou, Zhixing?"

"Better not. They'll probably team up with the students from the other classes who fused with second-order genes."

Ji Zhixing shook his head. He had gotten along well with Huang Yu and Yu Zhirou before.

But since fusing with their genes, he had barely spoken to either of them.

They still smiled and greeted one another whenever they met, but that was all.

"Let's ask Zhang Haocheng and Luo Yongguang instead."

Ji Zhixing glanced over his classmates.

In the end, Zhang Haocheng had chosen to fuse with a Wild Donkey King gene. After the fusion, he had gained two gene abilities: wild donkey king strength and endurance.

His deskmate, Luo Yongguang, had fused with a Wild Bull King gene. These past few days, Luo Yongguang had been practicing with a great shield, making him a decent frontliner.

They knew one another fairly well, and their abilities were all decent. They would fit together well as a team.

"Could I join you?"

Just then, a voice came from behind them. Ji Zhixing turned and saw that it was a girl from their class.

Her name was Xie Jia, and she usually spoke little. Ji Zhixing remembered that she had fused with a Paralyzing Vine gene.

By consuming gene source force, she could conjure Vine Entanglement to ensnare enemies, with an added paralyzing effect.

"Of course. We're short on someone who can control enemies."

Ji Zhixing's eyes lit up.

He then took Liu Qifan and Xie Jia to find Zhang Haocheng and Luo Yongguang.

As expected, after a brief discussion, they agreed to form a team.

"You really called it."

Suddenly, Liu Qifan pointed into the distance.

They followed his gaze and saw Huang Yu gathered with several others, chatting and laughing.

They recognized all of them. They were the students from Classes Three and Class Four who had fused with second-order genes.

Elsewhere, Yu Zhirou had also gathered with several students from Classes One and Two.

Those students had likewise fused with second-order genes, including Qi Xingzhou, who had fused with a Blue Frost Ice Vine gene.

As Ji Zhixing looked over, he saw one of them finish training, take out a bottle of potion, and down it in one gulp.

"An Origin Force Gene Potion..."

A trace of envy appeared in Ji Zhixing's eyes.

Gene cultivators could improve their cultivation by practicing universal cultivation methods.

But universal cultivation methods were too difficult to master.

Most gene cultivators improved their cultivation by refining Origin Force Gene Potions instead.

One bottle of Origin Force Gene Potion like that was worth a thousand gene coins.

It was a benefit the school provided to those talented students. Each of them received three bottles a day.

He, Liu Qifan, and the others had all fused with first-order genes, so naturally, they received no such benefit.

I wonder if my Gene Furnace will be able to refine a piece of gene equipment or a gene potion to sell when we go outside the city to hunt gene beasts tomorrow.

Ji Zhixing thought with anticipation.