Chapter 9

Starting from this Monday, a tall man with regular features but a gloomy expression replaced Zhang Jing at the podium. Several heavy rectangular metal cabinets were carried in by a group of men, and when the lids were lifted, they revealed over a hundred various firearms inside!

The man coldly said, "You can call me Shadow," and that was his entire opening speech.

Immediately after, Shadow walked to the gun cabinet, reached out, and took out two almost identical pistols, raising them to show the children.

Upon closer inspection, the two pistols had their differences. One was polished smooth like a mirror from the barrel to the grip, while the other was adorned with various patterns.

"This is the famous Eagle series, the standard issue for the Imperial Frontier Army, known for its immense power," the man said, and then he fired the mirror-polished pistol directly at the classroom wall.

The deafening boom made everyone's ears ring, and a bowl-sized deep hole appeared in the hard wall, revealing the damaged base material and frame.

Qian Ye was immediately taken aback! If the wall could be damaged like this, a hit on a person would likely create a large hole. If it hit the limbs, they would be blown off in one shot.

"Is it powerful? Of course not!" Shadow's chilling voice echoed.

The other pistol, if it emitted light, had its patterns suddenly illuminated. There was only the sound of the hammer striking and a heavy object breaking through the air, and a blue light spewed from the muzzle, hitting the wall with a thunderous boom!

A powerful gust of air mixed with countless fragments of stone flew, making the children unable to lift their heads.

When Qian Ye lowered his arms that had been shielding his face, he was astonished to see that the thick wall made of blue stone and metal supports had been blasted into a large hole, through which the outside scenery could be seen!

This blue light was so powerful!

The man raised the still glowing pistol and said, "This is a gun powered by primal energy, whose power far surpasses ordinary firearms. Even a low-level primal energy gun has the power to rival a machine gun. It is precisely because of the primal energy guns that we were able to push back those damned dark creatures in the Dawn War, laying the foundation for today's empire!"

Next, Shadow detailed the principles of primal energy guns.

Although primal energy guns look similar to traditional firearms, their principles are entirely different. In the position where gunpowder and bullets are loaded, there is an energy compression device. The user needs to inject their own primal energy to form a primal energy bullet, which is then fired at the right moment.

With the different carrying capacities of the energy devices and the materials of the guns, the power of primal energy guns varies greatly. Some primal energy guns even have powerful special abilities. Only such guns can be considered famous.

Among the famous guns, there are even more famous ones.

There are ten famous guns in the world, each with unparalleled power. According to legend, obtaining any one of the ten famous guns would grant the ability to change the course of the continent!

For thousands of years, countless open and secret struggles have revolved around these ten legendary guns, and countless geniuses have fallen for them. Even so, people still rush forward one after another, vying for them.

Now, three of the ten famous guns are in the hands of the human race, five are in the hands of the dark races, and the whereabouts of the other two are unknown.

From the distribution of these ten famous guns, one can see the power balance among the Dawn, Eternal Night, and Neutral factions in the world of the strong.

This might be the most focused class the children have had in the training camp. Even the children from noble families who already had a foundation were captivated.

Shadow reached out and opened a teaching board, displaying a three-dimensional image. It was an ancient and ornate pistol.

The gun had the appearance of an old flintlock pistol, with a hammer standing behind the barrel, silver-white, and shaped like a ruyi. The barrel and grip were gilded, engraved with intricate patterns. On the gun body, there was a prominent blood-red flower, with petals extending in all directions in a thread-like manner.

Shadow unconsciously straightened his body, his face solemn and even showing a clear enthusiasm, and he said, word by word, "This is one of the ten famous guns in the hands of the human race, and the first truly famous gun owned by the empire: Manjusha, also known as the Flower of the Other Shore."

Qian Ye repeated the name Manjusha several times, feeling that the word had an indescribable mystery and beauty, and he deeply engraved it in his heart.

A child boldly asked, "Does it have special abilities too?"

"Good question!" Shadow was now thoroughly ignited, his face filled with enthusiasm as he said, "Manjusha, in the legends of the human race before written records, grows by the banks of the River Styx in the depths of the void. Whenever a life falls in the world, a small flower blooms by the river. It! Can ignite the primal power of the world, illuminating the star path to the River Styx, which is the legendary ultimate skill 'Lethe'!"

From this week on, Qian Ye's schedule included three new courses related to primal energy guns: energy fluid mechanics, gun disassembly and maintenance, and shooting.

Qian Ye's performance in these three courses consistently ranked him in the top five, significantly boosting his ranking, and he entered the top fifty. When the results were announced at the end of the week, he was ranked forty-ninth.

Although there was only a two-rank difference between forty-ninth and fifty-first, it was a world apart. Qian Ye understood that after the fiftieth rank was the elimination zone. Those who were eliminated in the training camp had only one fate: death.

Monday came quickly, and when Qian Ye entered the training room, he was quite excited. Sure enough, the black slave had placed two 'Zhu Yan Xue' in the incense burner!

The nearly tenfold enhanced perception allowed Qian Ye to experience the symphony-like resonance of primal energy. As the Bing Fa Decree operated, the primal energy in Qian Ye's body gradually surged, wave after wave, each higher than the last! In the past, without Zhu Yan Xue, the primal energy would run out and retreat.

Without the help of this special incense, Qian Ye's process of sensing and absorbing primal energy was very slow, and he could only accumulate and guide it bit by bit, building up momentum to create the next wave.

However, with two 'Zhu Yan Xue,' Qian Ye's speed of absorbing primal energy greatly increased. The primal energy flowed into his body continuously, pushing the primal energy wave higher and higher.

Finally, the primal energy wave reached its peak, and Qian Ye heard a roaring sound in his ears as the primal energy receded like a tide.

The first primal energy wave was finally completed!

Before this wave had completely receded, it collided with the newly generated primal energy, and a new wave of primal energy surged. The second wave was even higher than the first, with even greater momentum. Just as it was about to reach its peak, it fell back due to insufficient primal energy.

Ding! The long bell sound woke Qian Ye, signaling the end of this training session.

The most difficult part of the Bing Fa Decree is forming the first primal energy wave. The subsequent second and third waves are much faster. When the primal energy waves surge, they also generate a strong suction, drawing more primal energy into the body.

Without the help of the two 'Zhu Yan Xue,' Qian Ye would have needed at least two more weeks to form the first wave. Then, trying to complete the full nine waves within the three-month deadline set by Zhang Jing would have been very dangerous.

In the following weeks, Qian Ye's training went smoothly. By the time there was only one month left before Zhang Jing's three-month deadline, Qian Ye had already been able to generate the fifth wave. The progress of the Bing Fa Decree was accelerating, and Qian Ye estimated that in another half a month, he could form the first complete nine waves.

Although most of the time in the training camp everyone was focused on their own training, there were still constant rumors circulating. Just as Qian Ye was entering the third month of practicing the Bing Fa Decree, a child beside him had already completed the nine waves! And it was said that among this batch of children in the Huangquan Training Camp, the most talented one was already trying to ignite the first spiritual node!

This boy, named Xu Lang, was said to come from a powerful family in the empire and had first-class talent!

When Qian Ye heard these messages, he couldn't help but feel a bit bitter. The scar on his chest had been there since he could remember. And the life in the training camp constantly reminded him of the existence of the scar. If not for this scar, he would also have first-class talent.

Every time the Bing Fa Decree was activated, the primal energy surged, but it would become particularly sluggish when it entered the scar area. Therefore, Qian Ye had to accumulate more primal energy to guide a complete primal energy wave.

Qian Ye didn't know who had left him this scar. He was less than three years old when he was injured!

This was fate, and Qian Ye had to accept it.

The training continued, and in the third month, new knowledge courses were added, this time on mechanical principles.

This was a comprehensive discipline that included not only mathematics and physics but also many other areas of knowledge. Only by understanding these could one comprehend the operation of the massive machines that people relied on to change the world.

The first generation of machines was steam engines fueled by black stone. After successfully being miniaturized, the first-generation steam engines remained active on various continents. They had many advantages, such as stability and strong power, but their greatest advantage was their low cost.

They were cheap to manufacture and maintain, and black stone was abundant, as was iron. Even after thousands of years, steam engines were still the most suitable choice in most cases.

The addition of new knowledge courses quickly boosted Qian Ye's ranking, even pushing him into the top twenty, and he had a chance to break into the top ten.

The three-month exam time arrived, and Qian Ye had completed the primal energy tide two weeks earlier, so passing was a certainty. Three of his batchmates failed to meet the requirements and were severely whipped by Zhang Jing, then dragged away.

It had been three months since anyone had died, so long that these children almost forgot that this was the Huangquan Training Camp, known for its extreme selection and elimination in the entire empire's military reserve!

At the beginning of the fourth month, a new course was added: combat.

From this moment on, the easy training days were over. Combat classes mostly started with instructor guidance and then were completed through peer practice.

For the entire first week, most people returned with bruised noses and swollen faces, and Qian Ye was particularly injured.

During peer practice, everyone attacked with full force, with no mercy. Among the top-ranked students, Qian Ye was the weakest, so he naturally received special attention.

If they could beat Qian Ye so badly that he couldn't get out of bed, they would have one less competitor for the 'Zhu Yan Xue.'

This was the Huangquan Training Camp, not a gentle noble school.

When the rankings were announced at the end of the week, Qian Ye's position plummeted, dropping to forty-eighth, barely maintaining his place in the top fifty.

After the children saw the rankings, it was time to sleep.

As soon as Qian Ye entered the dormitory, the door suddenly closed behind him, and several shadows pounced, pinning him down. An arm was placed across Qian Ye's throat, locking it tightly, making it impossible for him to breathe or call out.

This was the combat technique they had just learned, and it was immediately used on Qian Ye.