A few hundred li outside Jiangnan Base City, a small outpost buzzed with activity. This was a supply station for martial artists operating deep in the Wilderness Zone.
"Wei Wen, Luo Feng, it's summer now. The heat's brutal. Save your energy during the day," said Lu Gang, offering some survival tips to the two teenagers.
"Our real hunting happens at night and in the early morning. That's when it's cooler—and when monsters are easier to track."
"We'll head out tonight at 7 PM. Rest up until then."
With the kind of speed martial artists wielded, covering dozens of kilometers only took minutes. Even the minimum threshold for a beginner-level Warlord-class fighter was 90 meters per second—five to six kilometers per minute.
And someone like Lu Gang? A full-fledged God of War. Even average ones could break the sound barrier. His ability to burst into motion was beyond comparison.
A man like that, dying in the field? Far too unjust.
"Thanks for the reminder, Captain," both Wei Wen and Luo Feng nodded respectfully.
But they were different from ordinary martial artists. As Spirit Force Users—commonly known as Psychokinetic Masters—their mental energy gave them a clear edge. Their minds were sharper, their stamina deeper. They could go without sleep and still operate at peak efficiency.
Ever since Luo Feng watched Wei Wen train in the Ninefold Thunder Blade Technique, he'd been pushing himself even harder. He didn't rest during the day. Instead, he honed his blade techniques and footwork. When his body started to fatigue, he shifted into Five Hearts Facing the Origin, a mental cultivation technique focused on absorbing cosmic energy. But mostly, he trained his spiritual power—because that was a Psycher Master's true core strength.
As for Wei Wen? He was locked in his room all day. From the sounds of it, training just as obsessively.
Lu Gang noticed—and he was stunned.
It's one thing to have talent, he thought. But if you're both gifted and work harder than everyone else… then you're just terrifying.
He was starting to understand how these two 18-year-olds had climbed so high, so fast.
7:30 PM, Wilderness Zone
A deep, guttural roar echoed from the surrounding brush. Lu Gang tensed for a second, then relaxed. He knew that sound well.
Most of the mutated beasts in the outer wilds were derived from pigs, cats, and dogs—animals with rapid reproductive cycles that had adapted well to the post-catastrophe environment.
"That's a herd of horned wild boars," he told them. "About 30 of them. Their alpha is a high-tier Beast Soldier."
"Real combat is the best way to expose your weaknesses—and toughen your will as fighters."
"I'll take the lead boar. You two geniuses… I've heard you've both reached Micro-level Movement Mastery. Want a real challenge?"
Luo Feng and Wei Wen exchanged a glance. "Bring it on," they said.
They were Spirit Force Users, after all. If they let loose, these thirty boars wouldn't even touch them. They could probably handle a Beast General if it came to it.
"Good," Lu Gang said.
He didn't waste another word. In a flash, his Blood Shadow Blade was out. His figure blurred into motion—an afterimage slicing through the evening light—as he launched himself through the window and into the charging monsters.
One casual strike. The lead boar collapsed. Gone.
Then his silhouette vanished again.
That single, explosive move startled the entire herd. Panic surged through the ranks of the horned wild boars. Disoriented, they turned their aggression toward the only two targets in sight—Luo Feng and Wei Wen.
The beasts came at them from all angles.
Beasts hunted in packs. It wasn't intelligence, it was instinct. And that made them dangerous.
"These things are barely mid-tier Beast Soldiers—equivalent to intermediate fighters at most. No real threat to you," Lu Gang's voice echoed.
And he was right. Horned wild boars were huge, but their movements were clumsy. Their attack patterns were crude and easy to read.
So unless you were hopelessly outnumbered, they were mostly just training dummies.
Luo Feng's and Wei Wen's footwork was something else entirely. Their movements had a precise tempo, a flow. Every sidestep and weave was perfectly timed to avoid the goring tusks and trampling hooves.
Wei Wen's combat strength had already reached entry-level Warlord status. Combined with internal force amplification methods, he could match or even surpass a mid-tier Warlord.
A flash of cold steel. A boar fell.
Luo Feng wasn't far behind. Each swing of his blade dropped another mutated beast.
Lu Gang watched with mixed feelings.
How old was I when I reached Micro-level movement? he wondered, wiping a bead of sweat from his brow.
"Their technique is solid… but they lack battlefield rhythm," he muttered.
"They're using too much force for every kill. That kind of overkill works in drills, not in survival."
"In the wild, you need to preserve strength. You never know what's coming next."
"You don't need to slice them in half," he grumbled. "One good strike should be enough."
But he also knew: that kind of experience only came with time. And with how fast they learned? It wouldn't take long.
What he didn't realize was that Mental Force was their secret weapon. To them, stamina didn't matter nearly as much. Speed of elimination was the priority.
After they cleared the herd, Lu Gang reappeared.
"Decent work," he said. "But your efficiency is lacking. Watch how I do it next time."
They moved on.
Soon they encountered another group—Spotted Tiger Cats. They were agile, compact, and built like small calves. A step above the boars in both speed and danger.
Lu Gang didn't hesitate.
As one pounced, he stepped in—not backward.
His shield moved like a dancer's hand, gently redirecting the beast's momentum. The tiger cat stumbled, exposing its flank.
Lu Gang's blade flashed—clean, precise—slitting its throat.
"Every beast has weaknesses," he said calmly. "Head, neck, eyes, ears, spine, abdomen, anus. Remember those."
"First strike—sever the head. Second—crack the spine. Third—stab through the ear into the brain."
With almost no force, he'd disabled and finished the tiger cat. No wasted movement. No wasted energy.
Compared to their earlier combat—which was mostly stylish dodges and high-effort kills—Lu Gang's method looked lazy.
But it wasn't.
It was lethal.
Wei Wen and Luo Feng had used far more energy to take down simpler monsters. Wei Wen may have been stronger than the boars, but his kill shots weren't always clean.
Lu Gang understood their potential and planned to bring them up right. He would guide them like a seasoned mentor.
Under his patient instruction, Luo Feng and Wei Wen began to understand the true meaning of practical combat: getting the most from every movement. Making each attack count. Not just surviving, but doing so smartly.
Luo Feng, with his natural insight, adapted quickly. His strikes grew faster, cleaner. His flow in battle turned razor-sharp.
Wei Wen, linked with Luo Feng through their mental feedback loop, improved even faster.
But what surprised Wei Wen most wasn't his combat technique.
It was his Psycher Master advancement.
"Luo Feng is currently deepening his Mental Force control. Your synchronization is enhancing. Congratulations—your Mental Force amplitude has reached 2x base power."
His progress wasn't just physical.
It was evolution.