Two at the Micro Level

The vast crowd of 1,680 Quasi-Martial Artists walked for a full half hour under the soldiers' guidance before reaching the outskirts of a town. It was already evening, and the sun had set.

"Roar~~"

"Grr~~"

All sorts of unnerving cries came from the town. Wire fencing surrounded its outskirts, and large numbers of soldiers patrolled the perimeter with guns in hand.

"Hurry up! There aren't enough monsters inside. Bring in another 1,200 Iron-Haired Wild Boars, 300 Shadow Cats, and 500 Tiger Mastiffs." Shortly after the order rang out from inside the town, a convoy of heavy trucks appeared, furious roars rising from every vehicle.

Each truck carried rows of cages, with a monster imprisoned in every one. Those furious roars made some of the Quasi-Martial Artists who had never killed a monster tremble inside.

Luo Yuan actually felt a little excited at the sight. With enough strength, even these terrifying monsters were nothing more than playthings in human hands, livestock waiting for slaughter.

"Everyone."

A booming voice reached every Quasi-Martial Artist's ears. They all looked up to see an officer standing on the roof of a dilapidated three-story building inside the town. He addressed them all. "The rules for this combat assessment are the same as before! It will begin at precisely six thirty tonight and end at six thirty tomorrow morning!"

"The more monsters you kill, the more points you earn. Cut off the left ear of every monster you kill as proof."

"Remember, Quasi-Martial Artists are forbidden from killing one another. Everything you do will be monitored. Anyone who breaks this rule will be shot on the spot!"

"Of the 1,680 Quasi-Martial Artists here, the top sixty percent by points will qualify as Warriors! The bottom forty percent will fail and have to wait for the next Martial Artist Combat Assessment." The officer's voice grew colder. "In other words, 1,008 of you will pass, and 672 will be eliminated!"

"One reminder: killing three monsters will generally be enough to pass. If you only kill two, it will come down to luck." The officer's voice rang in everyone's ears. "When scores are tied, rankings will be determined by the time spent killing monsters and the injuries sustained. So once you've killed enough monsters, leave the town as soon as possible."

"Remember, if you're badly injured, you can press the distress button on your communication watch. Someone will come to rescue you immediately... but that will also mark the end of your Martial Artist Combat Assessment."

"All Quasi-Martial Artists, move out! Enter Monster Town." The officer waved his hand.

The 1,680 Quasi-Martial Artists surged into Monster Town like a raging tide.

"Close the gate!" the officer ordered.

"Rumble~~" The only gate slammed shut.

The Martial Artist Combat Assessment had officially begun!

After entering Monster Town, Luo Yuan did not rush to hunt monsters. Instead, he collected attributes as usual. Although these Attribute Bubbles were all low-level, he did not turn his nose up at them. There were plenty of them, after all, and enough quantity could bring about a qualitative change. Even when monsters attacked him, he either sidestepped them or casually hacked them to death, as easily as chopping vegetables.

He knew that everything he did was being monitored. To avoid arousing suspicion among the higher-ups, he only displayed the speed of an Advanced Warrior, which was more than sufficient anyway. After all, advancing from Advanced Warrior to Intermediate Warlord in just over two months without using any precious resources would be difficult to explain.

Meanwhile, in a room inside one of the buildings, an officer sat drinking with a burly man. A large screen on the wall beside them showed the slaughter unfolding in the town. The images kept switching until Luo Yuan suddenly appeared on-screen.

"What's this kid doing? Instead of hunting monsters, he's running around having the time of his life. That speed-good heavens, that's Advanced Warrior speed! And his evasive movement technique is at the Micro Level! What kind of freakish genius is he?" The burly man suddenly sprang to his feet with a startled cry.

"Zoom in on him!" the burly man called urgently.

As the camera zoomed in, Luo Yuan's handsome face appeared on the screen. He looked so casual and unruffled that he might as well have been sightseeing.

"Huh? Isn't he the genius that fellow Zhuge recruited? I think he's only eighteen, too," the burly man said, recalling him.

"How do you know he's eighteen?" The officer jumped in surprise. "You know him?"

"His name's Luo Yuan. Damn it, the Limitless Martial Hall recruited him early," the burly man said bitterly. "The Limitless Martial Hall really lucked out. Luo Yuan is only eighteen, and not only has his physical fitness reached the Advanced Warrior Level, but his movement technique is even more astonishing! The Micro Level! If his movement technique is already at the Micro Level at his age, just imagine what he'll become!"

"Hey, take a look at this one, too. This young fellow is impressive as well!" the officer suddenly said.

"It switched away?" The officer immediately picked up the landline beside him and ordered, "Lock onto the Quasi-Martial Artist that camera twenty-one was just filming. Keep him in view."

"Yes, sir," came a firm, ringing reply over the phone.

The burly man, Wang Heng, looked at his good friend in puzzlement. "Iron Monkey, what exactly did you just see?"

"Wang, just wait and you'll find out." The officer gave a mysterious smile.

Soon, the footage they had just seen appeared on the screen again. Five dark figures were relentlessly attacking a Quasi-Martial Artist. They were five H-Rank Shadow Cats, and the young-looking Quasi-Martial Artist under attack held a Hexagonal Shield and a Blood Shadow Battle Blade. It was Luo Feng!

"Huh?" The burly man's eyes lit up.

"That speed-another one at the Micro Level! Damn, two at the Micro Level! Where did the Limitless Martial Hall find these geniuses? We're finished. It looks like the Limitless Martial Hall is going to keep overshadowing our Thunder Dojo here in Jiangnan Base City!" The burly man slumped into his chair, his eyes losing focus.

"What? This young fellow belongs to the Limitless Martial Hall, too?" The officer could hardly believe it.

"No!"

The burly man slammed his hand onto the table. "We can't let the Limitless Martial Hall snatch up all these geniuses! Luckily, I came to have a drink with you, Iron Monkey, and happened to see this footage."

"What are you planning to do?" the officer asked with a smile.

"What else? Poach them!" The burly man glared. "Steal their recruits! The Limitless Martial Hall probably hasn't realized how astonishing these two youngsters' movement techniques are yet. I'll get them over to our side first! It's only a matter of money, isn't it? Hmph! What luck, what luck. To think such incredible geniuses turned up in this year's batch. Compared with them, that Wan Dong is miles behind!"

The officer laughed.

"Iron Monkey, make me a copy of both their recordings later," the burly man said.

"Sure, no problem." The officer smiled and nodded.

P.S. To all you True Gods out there, please send tips, monthly votes, and bookmarks. Luo Yuan bows before you.