"Stone Man—Shi Dang."
"A newly risen top expert in the Fifth Level Division, hailing from the Morning Star. He possesses the rare Stone Race bloodline, granting him innate Divine Power and unparalleled physical defense. His Will is firm, his Killing Techniques are remarkably refined, and he has already cultivated several to the Realm of Control."
"Current estimated strength: He has completed all cultivation for the Fifth-level Meridian Realm and is on the verge of advancing to become a Sixth-Level Soaring Martial Artist. He is a strong contender for this tournament’s Fifth Level Division championship!"
Reading Shi Dang’s profile, Qin Feng couldn’t help but do a quick mental calculation.
Shi Dang had enrolled three years after him.
In other words, during the thirty-odd years he was in seclusion, Shi Dang had actually come from behind, completing the two major Martial Dao realms of Awakening and Meridian Union. He was now on the threshold of breaking through to the Sixth Level of Soaring Realm.
The average advancement time published by the Empire was thirty years for the Awakening Realm and thirty years for the Meridian Union Realm, totaling sixty years.
But Shi Dang had only used thirty-seven years, a little more than half the average time.
’What a genius. And clearly hardworking, too.’
Qin Feng marveled inwardly.
Of course, comparing their progress, he himself had taken forty years to complete the Awakening Realm. In terms of speed, he still held an overwhelming advantage.
But that didn’t take away from Shi Dang’s own talent and diligence.
The "guy from home" he had once defeated in a single move had now become a powerful expert in his own right, which gave Qin Feng a sense of satisfaction.
’I just wonder if I can still take out this "guy from home" in one move now.’
Qin Feng figured he could. ’With an Upper-grade Awakening Technique, even after opening all the Acupoint Shells and completing Meridian Union, they’d only reach a life force index of 1080.’
’The gap in our Hard Power is just too big.’
He then looked at the trending news stories that Hammer had compiled for him and found that the vast majority were about the Canaan Newcomer Cup.
Besides that, there were also some discussions about the more prestigious "Starry Sky Cup."
However, the Starry Sky Cup was a stage for true powerhouses at Level Seven and above, who could already skillfully use Mental Power in combat.
The posts discussed all sorts of incredible realms of Mental Power killing techniques and confrontations of Will. Qin Feng couldn’t understand any of it yet, so he didn’t pay it much mind.
After closing the Subspace forum, Qin Feng stretched, and his bones emitted a series of crisp cracking sounds.
’There’s still half a year. I can’t waste it.’
His gaze fell upon his Killing Technique panel, on the Second-level Killing Technique that he had shelved for so long.
Cold Gleam!
He had been too busy saving up Contribution Points for his seclusion and simply hadn’t had time to practice it. It was a Second-level Spear Technique his mentor, Yu Han, had personally recommended, saying it was a perfect fit for his Martial Dao philosophy.
Qin Feng keenly felt that there was never enough time.
Now, he could use the final six months before the competition began to master it completely.
’Oh, right.’
A sudden thought surfaced in his mind.
’I should give my father a call and check in.’
He opened his contact list and saw his father, Qin Dahai’s, profile picture.
The most recent message was from a few months ago. The content was simple, just letting him know they were safe and that everything at home was fine.
Looking at those few lines of text, a warm feeling spread through Qin Feng’s heart.
He thought for a moment, but ultimately decided not to call right away.
’I’ll call him right before the competition starts.’
He made his decision.
He had just come out of seclusion, and his spirit was high; it was the perfect time to hone his Killing Techniques.
If he called now and got to chatting about family matters, he would inevitably get distracted.
"Hammer, enter the Imperial Arena."
He gave the command.
"Remind me the day before the competition starts."
"As you command, Master."
As the four words "As you command, Master" registered in his mind, the sight of his dorm room rippled like a disturbed water surface, then dissolved into a torrent of iridescent data streams that completely engulfed him.
The next moment, he found himself on a vast, cold, metallic platform.
This was the Imperial Arena.
Here, there was only the purest contest of Martial Dao skill and Combat Will.
Qin Feng deftly opened the arena’s settings interface.
[ID: Qin]
[Match Mode: Ranked]
[Life Force Index Locked: 500.0]
[Weapon Selection: Standard Alloy Long Spear]
[Armor Selection: Light Combat Suit]
He set his life force index to 500—a value that was neither high nor low, but best reflected the comprehensive strength of a Fourth-Level Awakening Realm Martial Artist.
This value was high enough for him to use the vast majority of his Killing Techniques, yet not so high that sheer power would mask any flaws in his form.
His goal wasn’t to crush his opponents, but to hone his skills.
To hone the Second-level Spear Technique he had high hopes for but never had the time to practice—Cold Gleam.
[Settings saved. Matching you with an opponent...]
[Match successful! Opponent from: Terran Core Battle Zone - Pegasus Star System]
[Generating random scene... Scene: Roman Colosseum]
Following the cold, electronic voice, the metal platform before Qin Feng’s eyes rapidly transformed.
The cold metal turned into ancient yellow sand and stone bricks, while towering, circular stands rose on all sides, and he could almost hear the deafening cheers of tens of thousands of spectators.
A hundred meters across from him, a burly figure, also clad in light armor and wielding a massive War Axe, materialized.
Combat was imminent.
And so began a six-month-long, frenzied training regimen, pitting himself against the entire Empire.
The first month was Qin Feng’s most difficult, and also the month where he suffered his most crushing defeats.
The core principle of the spear technique Cold Gleam lay in building and stacking "momentum."