Senior, What a Coincidence!

The sharp blade tore through the air like a howling gale, relentless and unending.

In the blink of an eye, blade shadows filled the sky.

"Been seen through?"

The thought flashed through his mind, and An Baoliang's smile froze on his face.

Before he could think about why, the blade shadows were already upon him.

Agonizing pain struck, shattering his reason.

His consciousness was instantly yanked away, returning to his physical body.

Sanmen Province, Baihe City.

Inside a Single Training Room, the lid of a Virtual Combat Pod opened, and a tall, fat figure suddenly sat upright.

"Phew!"

An Baoliang's face was pale. He took a heavy breath, then anxiously felt around all over his body.

"Where did Li Qingshan learn that saber technique? He dismembers people the moment he attacks—too ruthless!"

"But... how exactly did he see through me?"

An Baoliang recalled the earlier battle, his brow deeply furrowed.

One win or loss truly wasn't important, but no one wanted their ranking to drop.

After all, combat rankings were one of the crucial bargaining chips for signing with companies after graduation.

Especially for someone like him, a bottom-feeder with no hope of reaching New Continent.

His weapon of choice was the dagger. Combined with his Movement Technique, he excelled most at close-range entanglement.

All that nonsense he had spouted earlier was meant to fool Li Qingshan, a newcomer who did not understand the rules, so he could close the distance and launch a surprise attack.

He had managed to close the distance, but he had never expected the other side to strike first!!!

Had I known, I would've been better off attacking right away!

Whenever he thought of Li Qingshan smiling as he drew his blade without mercy, An Baoliang's expression looked as though he had eaten shit.

This time, he had tried to steal a chicken only to lose the rice used to lure it.

Dying at the hands of a newcomer meant the other party would take his ranking, while he would become a bottom-feeder in the truest sense.

Within the Combat Space, a projected Light Screen unfolded, and a mechanical voice rang out.

"Opponent defeated. Current ranking: 68706. Continue matching?"

Li Qingshan stood with his saber in hand. He glanced at the dagger mixed among the mangled remains and casually tapped the confirm button.

"Please prepare for battle. Opponent selected: Ji Ting. Ranking: 68548."

"Countdown: 3... 2... 1!"

The light and shadows shifted. Blood and chunks of flesh vanished, and the platform was restored to a pristine state.

Across from him, a girl carrying a Long Spear upside down was striding toward him, with no intention of wasting words.

Li Qingshan's expression sharpened as he drew his blade and met her charge.

An hour later,

Li Qingshan appeared before the sheer cliff wall of the Combat Space.

"You have been killed by your opponent. Current ranking: 60325. Continue matching?"

The mechanical voice sounded by his ear. Li Qingshan shook his head and tapped the exit button.

Over that hour, he had gone through dozens of battles. Aside from the final few, he had won almost every match.

The opponents in those final few battles were actually at the same level as An Baoliang, all at Body Tempering fifth level.

However, they had mastered Mastery-level Movement Techniques and Martial Techniques. Li Qingshan's merely Great Accomplishment-level Mizong Step and Wind Shadow Blade were no longer enough to bridge the absolute gap in physical attributes.

"Body Forging is the foundation. There's no need to keep butting my head against this."

Li Qingshan stepped out of the Virtual Combat Pod and began his Body Forging training once more...

There was no such thing as class ending in a Single Training Room. Training time was entirely under one's own control.

After completing a round of Body Forging, Li Qingshan no longer entered the Virtual Combat Pod during his breaks.

Instead, he leaned against the wall, closed his eyes, entered the Martial Arts Space, and continued training.

He trained like this until evening. After completing five rounds of Body Forging training and using up his Intermediate Nutrient Solution, he finally left the school.

Early the next morning,

Li Qingshan brought his remaining unused Primary Nutrient Solution to school. After "forcing" it on Zhao Hongzhou at half price, he returned to the Single Training Room and continued training.

Time flowed on like water, years flashed past like a shuttle.

Every day, Li Qingshan traveled between school and home, following the same route over and over.

The balance on his card was enough to support consuming one bottle of Intermediate Nutrient Solution each day. Li Qingshan was not distracted in the slightest, pouring all his time into training.

He completed five rounds of Body Forging training in reality every day, and his Body Forging progress climbed slowly but steadily.

Other than Body Forging, nearly all his remaining time went into the Martial Arts Space.

Under a Time Flow Rate of one to ten, his Available Time in the Martial Arts Space dwindled rapidly.

At the same time, the proficiency of his cultivation method and Martial Techniques rose at breakneck speed.

Day after day...

Three months later, First High School.

Early morning. The cold wind was bleak, and a few withered leaves drifted down from the bare branches.

The final exams had ended, and only a handful of people could be seen on campus.

Li Qingshan carried the Thunder Pattern Blade, his steps hurried.

He had just reached the stairs outside the Martial Arts Hall when a rough shout rang out behind him.

"Brother Shan, wait!"

Li Qingshan stopped and turned around. Looking at the burly figure charging toward him, he asked in confusion,

"How long has it been since we last met? How did you get even bigger?"

The newcomer was Zhao Hongzhou. Compared to Li Qingshan's memory of him, Zhao Hongzhou was at least a full size larger now.

"How long? It's almost been two months!" Zhao Hongzhou counted on his fingers and said seriously,

"To be exact, fifty-nine days. The last time we met was when Teacher Wan kept me after school for special training. I left late, and that was the only reason I happened to run into you."

"Has it been that long?" Li Qingshan was briefly dazed.

Because of the Intermediate Nutrient Solution, he had even skipped lunch. Coupled with leaving early and returning late, it was difficult for him to run into other students.

And because of the Martial Arts Space, after burying himself in arduous training, his sense of time had become rather blurred.

"Brother Shan?" Zhao Hongzhou carefully looked Li Qingshan over and asked suspiciously,

"With the Rookie Competition just around the corner, we're leaving for Wuyi tomorrow. Don't tell me you didn't know?"

"Huh?" Li Qingshan's eyes were blank. "No one told me."

"Uh... maybe Teacher Wan was planning to notify you today?"

Zhao Hongzhou had been drilled quite harshly lately, so naturally he did not dare gossip behind Teacher Wan's back.

"Probably." Li Qingshan rubbed his temples, not thinking much of it.

As a main competitor, there was no way he would be excluded.

The urgent matter was to pull himself out of his intense training as soon as possible and adjust his condition.

After pausing for a few seconds, Li Qingshan suddenly caught something off about Zhao Hongzhou. He turned his head and said,

"Wait. You deliberately waited here for me, and you brought up the Rookie Competition. Don't tell me..."

"Hehe, that's right, I'm going too." Zhao Hongzhou thrust out his chest proudly and said,

"Teacher Wan said that besides you, three more First Year students could go this time. I haven't reached Body Tempering Second Level yet, but my test results ranked third too."

Li Qingshan smiled as well and lightly patted Zhao Hongzhou on the shoulder.

"Just as expected of someone gifted by heaven. Not bad, not bad!"

"Of course!" Zhao Hongzhou held his head high and accepted his friend's praise without the slightest shame.

"Enough. What's there to be proud of? Teacher Wan only wants you to go broaden your horizons."

A slender woman with a single ponytail walked up the stairs carrying a Chopping Knife. Curling her lips, she added,

"Among the three of you, Yu Lei is the only one who can actually compete."

"Senior Zhong Xian!" Zhao Hongzhou's expression tightened, and his puffed-out chest immediately shrank back.

Zhong Xian had secured a Single Training Room as soon as she entered Second Year. She was the undisputed number one in her year.

Zhong Xian had originally been quite satisfied with Zhao Hongzhou's performance, but when she sensed the uninhibited gaze from beside her, she immediately frowned.

"Li Qingshan, Teacher Wan has high hopes for you. You've entered the Combat Space, right? What's your ranking?"

Li Qingshan withdrew his gaze and replied blandly, "That's none of Senior's concern."

"Bottom-feeding, huh?" Zhong Xian crossed her arms, speaking as though she understood everything.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about. After all, the opponents who can enter the Virtual Space are nothing Yang Peng and the others can compare to."

"But in this Rookie Competition, don't disappoint Teacher Wan."

Her ponytail swayed as Zhong Xian turned and walked up the stairs.

Once her figure disappeared around the stairway corner, Zhao Hongzhou let out a breath and said gloomily,

"Senior Zhong Xian really loves being everyone's teacher!"

Li Qingshan patted him on the shoulder, said nothing more, and headed upstairs.

He had seen Zhong Xian twice before, but because he had been engrossed in arduous training, they had never interacted much.

The moment he entered the Training Room, his Communicator vibrated faintly.

Wan Keshan had sent him a message notifying him of the specific arrangements for tomorrow's gathering.

After reading the message, Li Qingshan swept his gaze over the Training Room.

Since I need to adjust my condition, I might as well relax in the Combat Space. I can also see exactly what level I'm at now.

The thought flashed through his mind. Li Qingshan opened the Virtual Combat Pod and lay down inside.

The light and shadows shifted, and the sheer cliff wall engraved with the Ranking Board appeared before him once again.

Returning to the Combat Space after three months, Li Qingshan felt somewhat unfamiliar with it.

Mechanical prompts sounded one after another by his ear. Because he had not logged in for so long, his ranking had continuously fallen from 60325 to 61124.

Li Qingshan did not care about his ranking. His gaze rose to the first line.

Old Continent First, Mou Yu.

"Still Mou Yu?" Li Qingshan raised his brows. He remembered that three months ago, Old Continent First had borne this same name.

"Mou Yu's strength can be said to stand alone above all others."

Li Qingshan casually commented, withdrew his gaze, and tapped the matching button.

"Please prepare for battle. Opponent selected: Zhong Xian. Ranking: 60815."

"Countdown: 3... 2... 1!"

The light and shadows shifted, and the sheer cliff wall vanished.

The slender figure with a single ponytail whom he had just seen appeared one hundred meters away.

Li Qingshan held his Long Saber and grinned.

"Senior, what a coincidence!"