[Combat Practice x1]
[Combat Practice x1]
[Qi Martial Integration Practice x1]
[Combat Practice x1]
[...]
「Three days passed in a flash.」
Sweat soaked Jiang Qiu's black shirt. His chest heaved slightly as he paused to rest, expelling a large breath of turbid air. Beads of sweat traced a path down his cheeks and jaw, dripping from the tip of his chin.
The black martial arts shirt was plastered to his muscles. The damp fabric was stretched taut across his back, and the defined grooves of his abs were faintly visible with every slight tremor of his abdomen.
His upper arm, emerging from the sleeve, flexed, its powerful curve tapering perfectly into his forearm. The butt of the spear shaft slammed onto the tile floor with a CRACK.
[Ancient Martial Spear (Proficient)]
[Features: Dragon-like Spear Stance, Spear Rod Armor Shattering]
[330/1000]
[Copper Skin]
[Features: Body Refining and Skin Beating, Skin as Tough as Copper]
[20/500]
Through the sparring over the past few days, both his strength and Spear Technique had improved rapidly. He was gradually getting the hang of his Circulation Qi Technique, and his skin had begun a transformation, shedding the limits of a Mortal Body.
His skin grew progressively harder, and his strength increased in tandem.
With a thought, Jiang Qiu sent Strength flowing across his skin, making it as tough as cast bronze—like wearing a suit of iron armor.
The upright spear shaft hummed and vibrated. It felt as if the tile beneath it would CRACK and shatter if the veins on his arms bulged just a little more.
'If I can just get my hands on the Wusu Fragrance, my body's transformation will definitely speed up, and my strength will grow even greater!'
At this thought, a sharp glint flashed in Jiang Qiu's eyes. The butt of his spear lifted silently from the tile—which would cost two thousand to replace if damaged—and hovered, perfectly still.
As he waited, his gaze swept unconsciously across the room. Wang Guanjia stood leaning on his spear, his chest rising and falling like powerful waves. His tiger-like eyes were focused, his expression as stoic and hard as stone.
Warm breaths escaped from between Liu Zili's lips, but her eyes were as calm as a placid lake. She ignored the beads of sweat that rolled down her pale arm and into a five-inch gash, the salt stinging the raw wound.
Although the self-healing ability granted by the Circulation Qi Technique was impressive, and a wound like this wasn't a major issue—the scab would likely fall off in ten days or so—it was still a horrifying sight. It looked as if a strip of flesh had been carved away, revealing the raw, red tissue beneath.
Further away, Hu Ye'ye sat on a long bench, her right arm wrapped in white gauze. Murky drops of blood and sweat trickled down and dripped from her chin, originating from a bloody scratch—neither deep nor shallow—across her right cheek.
A few of the top students who knew her snickered from the side. "Hu Ye'ye, you guys sure know how to roughhouse in your little room, don't you? Let's see, the day before yesterday your waist was wrapped, yesterday your foot was bandaged, and today even your face is scratched up. Haha..."
"Making such a scene. You wouldn't be trying to put on a show for the teacher to get your hands on some Wusu Fragrance, would you?"
"Take our advice. Among your group, only Wang Guanjia has a shot. Even Jiang Qiu probably won't get any after that stunt he pulled in front of Director Zhao. What gives you the right to compete with us? Your looks?"
"Haha, with your face all cut up, what's so pretty now? Your face was already caked in makeup like a plastered wall. Now Brother Xie won't even give you a second glance."
The taunts buzzed around like mosquitoes. Jiang Qiu glanced over for just a moment but couldn't see Hu Ye'ye's face, hidden as it was behind her bangs and loose strands of hair.
Xie Kuang, however, stood at the head of a dozen or so students, chin held high. Holding his longspear, he looked like a crane among chickens, utterly aloof.
"BEEP—"
"Verification successful."
With the sound of a single footstep, the room went dead silent. Everyone's gaze snapped toward the entrance, except for Hu Ye'ye, who kept her head down, fiddling with her bandages.
In his left hand, Wu Shan clutched a piece of paper. In his right, he carried a safe whose sharp edges glinted with a metallic sheen.
His single right eye swept over the crowd as he came to a stop in the center of Training Area 8.
Everyone gravitated toward him, standing as straight and tall as a forest of spears. Their burning gazes were locked on the heavy safe.
"Today is the 11th. As is customary, we'll be distributing the Wusu Fragrance to the top students with the most potential."
His words set the tone, and everyone held their breath. Jiang Qiu, too, fixed his gaze on the paper Wu Shan was slowly unfolding.
'There are only three months left until the college entrance exams. As a top student who only transferred in during my senior year, it's hard to be seen as having the potential to get into Northwest Martial University, no matter how you look at it.'
'On top of that, I'm the "culprit" forcing Wu Shan to resign after the exams. The power to distribute the Wusu Fragrance is firmly in his grasp, meaning my potential is whatever he says it is.'
'If I want to get two portions of Wusu Fragrance, I'll have to take a risk and challenge the strongest person in this training area—Xie Kuang!'
'If Wu Shan refuses to allow it, I'll have to take my case to Director Zhao at the Martial Inspection Department and demand justice!'
'Of course, that would mean completely antagonizing Wu Shan. Until he leaves the school, he could make my life a living hell!'
As this thought crossed his mind, Jiang Qiu took a deep breath, a glint of light reflecting in his jet-black pupils. Just then, Wu Shan glanced over. The look landed like a sledgehammer blow to the chest, and Jiang Qiu's heart began to pound furiously.
"I will read the names first, then distribute the Wusu Fragrance," Wu Shan's cold, heavy voice announced, each word dropping like a stone in the silent training area. "Wang Guanjia, one portion."
As his voice faded, the crowd glanced at Wang Guanjia. Many of them clenched their fists, the tension tightening in their chests.
"Zhang Shan, one portion.
Li Si, one portion.
Pi Wu, one portion."
Three names were called in quick succession, and those three students let out a breath of relief. But the air only grew more tense. The eyes of the other top students, all hoping to earn a portion of the Wusu Fragrance, burned like hot coals, their sweat seeming to evaporate from the intensity.
Students who had received Wusu Fragrance before were desperate for their monthly portion to continue forging stronger physiques.
Those who had never received it had been coveting it for months, putting in double the effort for just one chance to get it before the exams. They all hoped to achieve a complete, bone-deep transformation.
Excluding the strongest, Xie Kuang, who was guaranteed to receive two portions, and the newcomer Wang Guanjia, who had snatched one, there was still one portion left for everyone else to fight over.
The difference in strength between them wasn't that large, so there was still a chance.
Even if the names had been printed on that paper a day ago, they still clenched their fists, their focus pulled as taut as a fully drawn bow.
Under everyone's intense gaze, Wu Shan slowly spoke. "Xie Kuang, one portion."
"Huh?"
A wave of startled grunts swept through Training Area 8. The heavy, brewing atmosphere shattered as if by a sudden joke. Xie Kuang's arrogant, upswept eyebrows plunged downward, and the corners of his mouth sank.
The normally silent Wang Guanjia raised his tiger-like eyes in astonishment, staring at the expressionless Wu Shan.
Liu Zili, her expression cold and her fists clenched, felt her pupils tremble. Her heart began to rise into her throat.
Behind the crowd, Hu Ye'ye, who was sitting alone on the bench, suddenly looked up. Her tear-filled eyes looked past the rows of spearheads and heads, landing on Wu Shan's naturally intimidating face as a sob escaped her.
Jiang Qiu felt a jolt in his chest. A flicker of uncertainty lit his pupils as superheated blood from his pounding heart surged through his body, making his cheeks tingle.
His fingers, gripping the spear shaft, creaked audibly. He was a single thought away from issuing a challenge!
"Teacher, did you read that wrong?"
Wu Shan shot a glance at the student who had spoken and snorted. "You think I'm blind just because I only have one eye?"
"No... not at all."
The student who had spoken out lowered his head, and everyone else's heart leaped into their throat.
The corners of Xie Kuang's narrow eyes widened, making him look like a vicious wolf seeking revenge. The knuckles of his left fist trembled and clicked, and the tip of his spear pressed down on the tile floor.
"The last two portions of Wusu Fragrance for Training Area 8," Wu Shan said, retracting his sharp, hawk-like gaze. His voice was like a stone sinking into the sea. "Belong to..."