Twelve o'clock at night.
Ordinary people were already in bed, fast asleep.
Warriors were still awake, training their bodies, pushing their Qi and Blood higher, trying to get stronger.
Mecha pilots were still running combat simulations, over and over, preparing to survive real battle against giant beasts.
And Lin Chen?
Lin Chen was sitting on his sofa with a huge basin in his hands, shoveling monster stew into his mouth.
He looked satisfied. In fact, he looked proud.
He had to admit it — his cooking was actually pretty good.
This giant pot of stewed monster meat wasn't just rich and savory. Even after eating this much, he wasn't even tired of the taste.
Before long, he had eaten all the meat from the dozen or so monsters. He even drank the soup.
Then he leaned back on the sofa, rubbing his swollen stomach and picking at his teeth, and opened his status panel.
[Host: Lin Chen][Qi and Blood: 1820][Realm: Second-Class Warrior (Breakthrough to Third-Class possible at 2000 Qi and Blood)][Attribute Points: 500][Strength: 152 (Qualitative change at 500. Can be increased.)][First Qualitative Change: Thousand-Jin Force (Maximum burst output: 30,000 jin)][Constitution: 86 (Qualitative change at 100. Can be increased.)][Spirit: 86 (Qualitative change at 100. Can be increased.)][Agility: 88 (Qualitative change at 100. Can be increased.)][Stomach Capacity: 160 / 160 (Can be increased.)][Digestion Speed: 10 (Digests 10 points of Stomach Capacity per hour. Can be increased.)]
Lin Chen did the math in his head.
From this one feast alone, he'd gained a total of 1,200 Qi and Blood and 500 Attribute Points.
That was ridiculously good.
He was now only 180 points away from the 2,000 mark — the requirement to break through to Third-Class Warrior.
Once he reached that, his power would skyrocket again.
"System," Lin Chen said calmly, "add 348 points to Strength and bring it to 500."
"Then raise Constitution, Spirit, and Agility to 100."
"As for the last 12 points, put them all into Stomach Capacity."
[Point allocation complete.]
[Host: Lin Chen][Qi and Blood: 1820][Realm: Second-Class Warrior (Breakthrough to Third-Class possible at 2000 Qi and Blood)][Attribute Points: 0][Strength: 500 (Qualitative change at 2000. Can be increased.)][Second Qualitative Change: Ten-Thousand-Jin Force (Maximum burst output: 300,000 jin)][Constitution: 100 (Qualitative change at 500. Can be increased.)][First Qualitative Change: Iron Bone, Copper Skin (Bones and skin hardened like metal; extremely durable.)][Spirit: 100 (Qualitative change at 500. Can be increased.)][First Qualitative Change: Clear Sight, Clear Hearing (Hearing and vision significantly enhanced.)][Agility: 100 (Qualitative change at 500. Can be increased.)][First Qualitative Change: Windstep (Running speed reaches 20 meters per second.)][Stomach Capacity: 160 / 172 (Can be increased.)][Digestion Speed: 10 (Digests 10 points of Stomach Capacity per hour. Can be increased.)]
As soon as the points settled, Lin Chen felt his entire body shift.
This wasn't a small upgrade.
This was transformation.
His Strength had undergone a second qualitative change — jumping to Ten-Thousand-Jin Force.
At the same time, his Constitution, Spirit, and Agility had each undergone their first qualitative change.
His skin and bones felt reinforced, dense, heavy — like metal.
His senses felt sharpened. He could hear subtle vibrations in the walls. He could see details in low light that he shouldn't have been able to see.
His movements felt light, fast, explosive. If he wanted to sprint, he knew his body could move like wind.
Right now, he felt like he could kill a second-level monster — or even a third-level monster — with a single clean strike.
His Qi and Blood was just shy of the threshold for Third-Class.
Tomorrow, he decided, he would get officially certified as a Second-Class Warrior.
Because once you're certified by the Warrior Association, you receive training resources.
That included basic martial techniques, access to weapons, and a cash stipend.
And after the shopping spree earlier, Lin Chen had burned through all 200,000 yuan he'd just made.
He was back to broke.
So there was no reason not to take advantage of the Association's support.
On top of that, once you're on record with the Association, certain things get easier — legally, politically, even in terms of protection.
…
The next morning, Lin Chen left home early and headed to the Warrior Association.
With guidance from the staff, he was brought to the certification area.
Certification was simple.
You just had to strike a strength tester. The machine would calculate your force output, then infer your effective Qi and Blood and overall rank.
Right now, Lin Chen was standing in front of the tester used for Second-Class Warrior certification.
He steadied his stance, gathered strength, and punched.
Bang!
The staff didn't even have time to react.
The machine flew backward like a cannonball and slammed into the wall.
Every staff member in the room stared in shock.
One of them literally froze with his mouth hanging open in an "O."
They'd seen plenty of Second-Class Warrior candidates before.
But not once had anyone ever launched the testing machine across the room with a single punch.
This was a first in the Association's history.
The staff rushed to the tester and checked the readout.
"Data exceeded the upper limit!!"
They were stunned.
Normally, Second-Class Warriors who came for certification had average strike force somewhere above 50,000 jin.
Even a peak Second-Class Warrior might only reach 70,000 or 80,000 jin.
Which is exactly why the Association's Second-Class tester only measures up to 100,000 jin.
But Lin Chen's punch had exceeded the device's limit entirely.
At first, the staff thought the tester was broken.
So they brought out a fresh Second-Class tester.
Lin Chen stayed calm and punched again.
Same result.
Data exceeded limit.
This time, the staff members' faces went pale.
The certification officer in charge today was Xiao Ya — a mature woman in gold-rimmed glasses, wearing a fitted skirt, sheer black stockings, and red-soled black heels.
When she heard the report, she immediately ordered a Third-Class tester to be brought in.
"Lin Chen," she said, "this is a Third-Class strength tester. Please hit it with full force."
In her mind, she was thinking: Just how far does his power go?
Lin Chen nodded and punched the Third-Class tester without holding back.
Bang!
The instant his fist landed, the air rippled.
A nearby girl yelped and grabbed at her skirt as the shockwave nearly flipped it up. Her face turned bright red.
Then came the impossible part.
The Third-Class tester — reinforced and bolted for stability — was knocked clean off its base and sent crashing into the wall.
The readout flashed: Data Exceeds Maximum Threshold.
"This… this is insane!"
"The Third-Class tester caps at 200,000 jin. He broke that too?!"
"What kind of monster is this kid?!"
The staff stood there, stunned, just staring at Lin Chen.
Even Xiao Ya was speechless.
Two hundred thousand jin of force… and that still wasn't his limit?
"Bring the Fourth-Class tester," she ordered sharply.
A moment later, they wheeled in the Fourth-Class device.
Lin Chen struck again.
Bang!
This time, the machine didn't go flying.
The Fourth-Class tester was built to handle up to 350,000 jin. Lin Chen's punch came in just under that.
Everyone in the room exhaled in relief.
Xiao Ya — abandoning any attempt to look composed — rushed over to the display to read the number.
Her eyes widened.
"Oh my god. Three hundred thousand jin of force."
She had never — not once — seen a Second-Class Warrior with numbers like that.
Three hundred thousand jin was already encroaching on elite Fourth-Class territory.
Lin Chen, as a mere Second-Class Warrior, had just put out top-tier, near-Fourth-Class striking power.
He wasn't just strong.
He was abnormal.
"Lin Chen," she said, voice controlled but tinged with excitement. "Three hundred thousand jin of force. Qi and Blood: 1820. You meet the requirements for Second-Class Warrior certification."
In her mind, she quietly added: If your Qi and Blood were just a little higher, I'd be certifying you as Fourth-Class right now.
"Congratulations," she said aloud. "You are now an officially recognized Second-Class Warrior."
She extended her hand to him.
"Normally, the Association gives newly certified Second-Class Warriors a Second-Class weapon, a Second-Class martial arts manual, and 100,000 yuan."
"However," she continued, glancing at the stunned staff, "because your strength is… exceptional… I am authorizing an exception."
"I'll upgrade both your weapon and your martial arts manual to Fourth-Class."
"And on top of the standard payout, I'll personally approve an additional 100,000 yuan."
Every staff member in the room froze.
They knew what that meant.
Fourth-Class gear and techniques were worth millions.
Second-Class gear was only worth a little over 100,000.
Lin Chen had just skipped several ladders at once — by force alone.
All eyes locked on him with respect and a hint of fear.
Soon after, Xiao Ya entered Lin Chen's numbers into the Association's system and flagged him as a special-priority individual.
Then she personally handed him the rewards.
"Thanks," Lin Chen said simply.
He slipped the bank card — loaded with 200,000 yuan — into his pocket.
Then, under Xiao Ya's supervision, he went to the Association's armory to choose his equipment.
For his weapon, he selected a pair of Fourth-Class superalloy gauntlets.
They weren't just gloves. Each one covered his entire forearm.
They were fitted with a built-in sixteen-cylinder engine — tech designed to massively boost the wielder's striking force in real combat.
For his martial art, Lin Chen chose a manual titled "Nuclear Bomb Fist."
The name sounded ridiculous.
But the style was exactly what Lin Chen wanted: one punch, total destruction.
[Compatible martial art detected. Automatically acquired.]
[Martial Art: Fourth-Class — Nuclear Bomb Fist (Beginner. 100 Attribute Points required for Proficiency.)]
When he saw the system prompt, Lin Chen's eyes lit up.
So his body could evolve — and so could his martial arts.
That meant he didn't necessarily need long, tedious training cycles.
He could feed points into techniques the same way he fed points into his stats.
If only he still had Attribute Points left.
"A national martial arts tournament will be held in a month," Xiao Ya said then. "It's hosted by Warrior Association Headquarters and will take place inside the Qixing Mountains. Fighters from all over the country will compete. You can register if you want."
The Warrior Association held this tournament every three years — part recruitment, part talent discovery, part revival of martial arts culture.
"Is there a reward?" Lin Chen asked.
"Of course," Xiao Ya smiled. "First place receives top-tier resource allocation and a personal meeting with the Head of Headquarters."
Top-tier resources.
Lin Chen's eyes sharpened instantly.
He'd heard rumors: in terms of value, "top-tier resources" meant hundreds of millions of yuan, at minimum.
At his current growth rate, first place in a month wasn't impossible.
"Alright," Lin Chen said. "Sign me up."
"Yes," Xiao Ya said immediately. "I'll put your name down. I'll contact you in a month."
She couldn't hide the excitement in her voice.
A warrior like this wasn't just good for their local branch.
A warrior like this could shake the entire Association.
Lin Chen nodded.
He was still 180 Qi and Blood short of Third-Class.
There was only one logical next step.
Go back to the Qixing Mountains.
Keep hunting. Keep eating. Keep getting stronger.
He tightened his new gauntlets, adjusted his space ring, and headed straight for the mountains.