Chapter 1: Li Yuan

In the ninth month of the year 2042 of the Seven Stars Calendar, in Jiangcheng, Jiangbei Province, Xia Kingdom.

This city, known as the "Furnace," has more winter and summer than any other time of the year, and early September is particularly hot.

First High School of Guanshan District.

In every classroom of the senior year building, there are similar banners hanging on the back blackboard: "No struggle, no gain in senior year," "Struggle through the four seasons, live a life without regrets," "If not fierce in senior year, how can one stand firm?" ...

In a classroom on the east side of the first floor, which is particularly large, nearly a thousand square meters, there are no desks or chairs. On one side, various cold weapons such as knives, spears, swords, and staffs are placed, while on the other side, there are many special instruments and a special track made of dark red metal.

This is the martial arts class.

At this moment, over a hundred students are practicing standing桩 (zhuang) exercises, performing different movements.

Some resemble apes, some like flying birds, some like fierce tigers... Their spirit and energy are all excellent.

"The root is in the feet, it starts from the legs, is controlled by the waist, and the power of all bones converges in the fingers..." A tall, muscular middle-aged man in a black martial arts uniform walks through the rows.

He has a stern face, is nearly two meters tall, and his voice is like a bell. His eyes, like those of a fierce tiger, stare at each student.

The most striking feature is his right arm, a silver metal arm that perfectly integrates with his severed limb, moving freely.

"Logically, this is something you should have mastered in your sophomore year, but here you are in your senior year, still standing loosely." The muscular man scolds, and as he walks, he casually slaps a student who is sweating profusely with his metal arm, knocking him down: "If your stance is stable, your center of gravity is hard to shift. The basic cultivation method is the foundation of martial arts!"

"Practice every day, and you will improve every day; miss a day, and you will lose a hundred days. I see that you all relaxed completely during the summer break and didn't practice at home."

"You're in your senior year, and you still want to relax? You are ordinary class students, and you haven't awakened your spiritual nature. How can you expect to get into a martial arts university without working hard?"

"Even if you don't plan to take the martial arts university entrance exam and choose the cultural route, the martial arts score still counts for 30%..." The muscular man continues to scold.

The students, however, dare not even breathe loudly, and they practice even more diligently.

"Report."

"Report." Suddenly, over a dozen voices sound at the classroom door, and a group of students in martial arts uniforms appear.

"Is the second group back from the spiritual nature test?" The muscular man glances at the door.

Then, his sharp gaze falls on one of the students.

This student is nearly 1.8 meters tall, with a short haircut. At first glance, he doesn't seem particularly outstanding, but upon closer inspection, one can see that he stands straight, his spine perfectly aligned, and his presence is unshakable.

Clearly, this student has integrated the basic cultivation method's principle of "the head must be held up, and the tailbone must be relaxed" into his daily life, whether walking, sitting, or standing.

He has truly achieved the state where his mind and body move in unison, and his spirit is transmitted through his intentions.

This level of martial arts realm surpasses all the students standing in the classroom.

"Li Yuan, how did you do?" The muscular man asks.

The nearly a hundred students practicing standing桩 (zhuang) exercises all secretly glance at the student named Li Yuan.

"Teacher Xu, I didn't awaken," Li Yuan replies calmly, without showing any disappointment.

The muscular man frowns.

Li Yuan was the student in his class with the highest hope of awakening his martial arts spiritual nature.

"Even Li Yuan didn't succeed?"

"His martial arts score was in the top thirty of the grade at the end of his sophomore year, and his physical condition was already at level 6. He must be even stronger now, yet he still hasn't awakened his martial arts spiritual nature?"

"Awakening the martial arts spiritual nature is really difficult!" The nearly a hundred students practicing standing桩 (zhuang) exercises are all secretly surprised.

Now, in the entire Xia Kingdom and even the entire Blue Star, there are two paths for selecting talent—cultural courses and martial arts cultivation.

All students, starting from junior high school, are taught the basic cultivation method by the state and begin to practice martial arts.

First High School of Guanshan District has over two thousand students in the senior year, divided into twenty classes.

But there is only one martial arts elite class, with about sixty students, all of whom have awakened their martial arts spiritual nature, and their martial arts scores are often in the top fifty of the grade.

Li Yuan, who managed to rank in the top thirty of the grade in the ordinary class, is quite surprising.

"Did anyone else awaken their spiritual nature?" The muscular man scans the other students.

Silence.

"Come in," the muscular man says, not surprised.

In fact, if one can awaken their martial arts spiritual nature, it usually happens in the first year of high school or even in junior high school.

Awakening in the senior year? The chances are very slim!

The muscular man had only hoped for Li Yuan, and he waves his hand, saying, "The third group, go to the martial arts building for the spiritual nature test."

Boom~

One row of students, who had been standing桩 (zhuang) for a long time, their legs aching and their feet sore, quickly stand up and rush out of the classroom.

Li Yuan and his group return to their positions and resume their standing桩 (zhuang) exercises.

"Brother Yuan, Teacher Xu seems a bit disappointed," a classmate with a mustache and a mature appearance mutters beside Li Yuan. "But you, Brother Yuan, didn't seem disappointed at all when the spiritual nature test results came out?"

"Stop talking."

"Continue practicing. Practicing the basic method for four hours a day is the minimum requirement," Li Yuan says calmly. He had long expected this result and naturally wasn't disappointed.

"Four hours?" The mature-looking boy mutters, "No wonder you're the second bookworm in our class."

Li Yuan smiles, not responding, and closes his eyes, standing in his position with slightly bent knees. His aura changes, resembling a solid rock, with an unshakable presence.

"The Rock Cultivation Method." Li Yuan visualizes the various movements of this cultivation method in his mind.

He has practiced these movements countless times and is thoroughly familiar with them.

In this era, martial arts are prevalent.

The Seven Stars Alliance has publicly released seven basic cultivation methods for all citizens of the seven planets, with no distinction in quality, only in suitability.

Whether rich or poor, anyone who practices martial arts starts with the basic cultivation method.

"The Rock Cultivation Method" is the cultivation method Li Yuan chose.

He has been practicing it for over five years.

Each basic cultivation method can greatly stimulate human potential, continuously improving physical condition and even awakening spiritual nature.

Not to mention that Li Yuan's physical condition is not yet at level 7.

Even martial artists with physical conditions exceeding level 9 continue to practice the basic cultivation method.

"Breath in."

"Breath out."

Each basic cultivation method has thirty-six movements and a corresponding breathing technique.

Li Yuan's breathing alternates between rapid and slow, coordinating with his limb movements, causing a faint sound to resonate within his body.

His tendons and bones resonate!

"Feels so good." Li Yuan immerses himself in the practice, feeling his tendons and muscles being continuously stimulated, becoming stronger.

This is the evolution of life.

In this era, ordinary teenagers have the potential to break the century-old sprint world record.

It's all thanks to the cultivation methods.

"Unfortunately, I didn't make it into the top twenty in the last final exam. Otherwise, besides the five thousand yuan scholarship, I would have received some blood and qi elixirs this semester," Li Yuan thinks. "More blood and qi elixirs would speed up my physical improvement and ease the financial burden on my uncle and aunt."

Li Yuan is an orphan, raised by his uncle and aunt.

His uncle is a state-owned enterprise employee, and his aunt is a junior high school teacher.

By all accounts, their family is not wealthy but is comfortably middle-class.

However, Li Yuan has been weak and sickly since childhood, and his uncle and aunt have spent a lot of money on his treatment.

Later, following the doctor's advice, his uncle and aunt began investing heavily in Li Yuan's martial arts practice from junior high school, even more than they spent on their own children.

Fortunately,

Li Yuan has good talent and practices diligently. He passed the entrance exam for the First High School of Guanshan District and has continuously improved his grades since entering high school. By the end of his sophomore year, he ranked in the top hundred of the grade, and in the final exam, he ranked in the top thirty.

This made his uncle and aunt very happy.

However, martial arts cultivation relies on both talent and money.

Especially after his physical condition reached level 6, the food from the star realm, blood and qi supplements, special diets, and equipment required for further improvement are all extremely expensive.

Compared to the other students in the top thirty of the grade, Li Yuan's external conditions are quite average, even poor.

However, Li Yuan understands that his uncle and aunt have done their best to support him.

There are also younger siblings at home, and he can't ask for more.

"But, six times."

"Since the beginning of junior high school, I have failed the spiritual nature test every year." Li Yuan thinks, "If I could awaken my spiritual nature, I would get a 10% bonus on my exam scores and could easily rank in the top ten of the grade."

"Awakening the martial arts spiritual nature also comes with a state subsidy."

Whether or not one can awaken the martial arts spiritual nature is the most important indicator of martial arts talent across the entire Blue Star and the seven planets, without exception.

Unfortunately, Li Yuan has never been able to awaken his martial arts spiritual nature.

"Over the years, the school has never had more than five students admitted to the top five universities." Li Yuan thinks, "With my current grades, getting into an ordinary martial arts university is not a problem."

"But to get into the top five universities, without awakening my spiritual nature, the chances are very slim."

Xia Kingdom has a population of nearly twenty billion, with twenty-four provinces, each with a martial arts university that only admits students from within the province. This is the goal for most students aspiring to martial arts.

The top five universities, established by Xia Kingdom, are the five top martial arts universities that admit students nationwide.

While students at ordinary martial arts universities receive considerable resources, they still rely heavily on their own efforts.

However, every student at the top five universities receives a significant amount of state resources.

"Receiving state resources will allow me to advance further in my martial arts path, and in the future, I can become a martial artist like Teacher Xu, or even stronger." Li Yuan thinks.

His goal for the college entrance exam is one of the top five universities.

However, the top five martial arts universities have extremely high score requirements.

"One step at a time, there are still nine months until the college entrance exam." Li Yuan practices quietly, his mind becoming increasingly focused.

...

Soon, a commotion is heard outside the classroom as over a dozen students from the third group return to the classroom door, their faces slightly excited.

"Teacher Xu, Wan Xiao has awakened his spiritual nature."

"Teacher Xu..." Before the muscular man can ask, many students can't help but shout.

The classroom erupts in noise.

"Wan Xiao, he awakened his martial arts spiritual nature?"

"He's going to the elite class?"

"Students in the elite class can start practicing advanced cultivation methods earlier." Most of the classmates can't help but show envious looks.

Awakening the martial arts spiritual nature is the only way to enter the elite class.

Otherwise, even if Li Yuan ranks in the top thirty of the grade, he still has to stay in the ordinary class.

"Wan Xiao?" Li Yuan opens his eyes and looks at the tall, muscular figure at the classroom door, his face slightly flushed.

He is nearly 1.9 meters tall, extremely robust, resembling a bear, with surprisingly thick arms but a slightly youthful face.

He is the only other student in the class, besides Li Yuan, who ranks in the top hundred of the grade in martial arts—Wan Xiao.

"Li Yuan." The excited Wan Xiao seems to notice Li Yuan's gaze and looks at him, smiling.

Li Yuan smiles back.

In terms of martial arts scores, Li Yuan is better than Wan Xiao.

In terms of family background, Wan Xiao is much better off.

As the top two students in the class, Li Yuan and Wan Xiao often compete for scholarships but have a good relationship.

Friendship among classmates is often very pure.

"Damn! Brother Yuan, you didn't awaken, but this bear, Wan Xiao, did. It's like he got lucky." The mature-looking boy beside Li Yuan can't help but mutter, "With the spiritual nature bonus, his martial arts score is almost catching up to yours."

Wan Xiao's nickname is "Bear."

Li Yuan whispers, "Old Zhou, are you envious?"

The boy is named Zhou Qi, known as "Old Zhou" due to his abundant hair and mature appearance.

He is Li Yuan's junior high school classmate, who also entered Guanshan No. 1 High School and was assigned to the same class.

After five or six years, they are like good brothers.

"I'm not envious at all," Zhou Qi whispers, "My cultural scores are good enough to get into a key university. I take martial arts classes mainly to stay fit. I can't always be a weakling, right? I can't even keep up with Lingling in the future... I'm just standing up for you."

Li Yuan smiles.

Zhou Qi's physical condition is average, not even reaching level 4, but his cultural scores are very good, ranking in the top fifty of the grade.

State resources are limited, and the number of students admitted to martial arts universities is small.

Most students ultimately enter different universities based on their cultural scores.

"Wan Xiao has good physical condition, so it's normal for him to awaken his martial arts spiritual nature," Li Yuan says, "Besides, the college entrance exam is a competition among all senior students in the province or even the country, not just against Wan Xiao."

Wan Xiao awakening his martial arts spiritual nature only makes Li Yuan happy for him.

There are already over sixty students in the senior year who have awakened their martial arts spiritual nature, and across the province and the country, there are many more.

Instead of worrying about others, it's better to improve oneself. This is a lesson Li Yuan learned from a young age.

...

Wan Xiao's success in awakening his spiritual nature greatly stimulates the other students, and those who haven't been tested yet feel a bit of anticipation.

The fourth group, the fifth group... failure, failure.

In the end, only Wan Xiao in Class 2 of the senior year awakened his martial arts spiritual nature.

When all the students return to the classroom,

The muscular Teacher Xu scans the room and says in a low voice, "Alright, today's basic cultivation is over. Stop."

Rustle~

Rustle~ Immediately, all the students stop, many of them with sore and weak legs.

But due to Teacher Xu's strictness, no one dares to lie down on the ground.

The basic cultivation method is very exhausting.

Even with the average physical condition of senior students at level 4, a two-hour practice session is quite challenging.

"Having a student awaken their martial arts spiritual nature is a good thing, and those who didn't succeed shouldn't be disappointed."

"The school will organize another spiritual nature test during the January and April exams."

"Before the college entrance exam, there will be a national unified spiritual nature test."

"As long as you awaken your spiritual nature before the college entrance exam, your martial arts score will receive a bonus," Teacher Xu says in a low voice, "But remember, the exam score is the foundation. A high base score makes the bonus useful."

"Even in the elite class, not everyone can get into a martial arts university."

"How do you get a high score? Work hard!"

"Like Li Yuan, without the spiritual nature bonus, his martial arts score can still exceed 800 points, surpassing most students in the elite class." Teacher Xu scolds, "And his level of diligence is well-known."

Most of the students look at Li Yuan, their eyes filled with admiration.

Li Yuan's diligence is well-known throughout the senior year.

"Brother Yuan, Teacher Xu is giving you more hate again," Zhou Qi whispers.

Li Yuan smiles helplessly.

Since his martial arts score entered the top hundred of the grade, he has become the "other people's child."

Teacher Xu, whose real name is Xu Bo, is the martial arts teacher for Li Yuan's class and one of