The joy of his epiphany didn’t last long, quickly drowned out by a new round of battles.
Qin Feng didn’t pause for a moment, his consciousness sinking back into the Subspace Network—Qiming High School Private Domain.
[Begin Matchmaking]
Light and shadow swirled, and the battle began anew.
For the entire afternoon, he fought like a tireless machine, relentlessly engaging in high-intensity duels.
In over forty battles, he was only matched against a single fellow freshman who had also just advanced.
The rest of his opponents, without exception, were all seasoned sophomores with composed auras and vast experience.
The dynamics of his battles had undergone a subtle yet profound change.
After comprehending Thousand Soldiers Guarding, Qin Feng’s defensive system had taken shape.
This technique wasn’t an isolated offensive move. Rather, it was the ultimate form achieved by flawlessly integrating all the defensive skills from the *Thousand Army Spear*—deflecting, neutralizing, parrying, and dodging—with the Wandering Dragon Body Technique.
His spear danced in a blur, forming a defense so tight that not even a drop of water could pass through.
Facing the furious onslaught of the upperclassmen, Qin Feng was no longer as hard-pressed as before.
His long spear became an impenetrable barrier, neutralizing all attacks that relied on pure technique.
The upperclassmen soon discovered that it had become exceedingly difficult to defeat this freshman on the grounds of pure skill.
Thus, their combat style devolved into something brutally simple.
They abandoned complex techniques and switched to the most savage, direct method: relying on their life force indices, which far surpassed Qin Feng’s, to overwhelm him with sheer power.
BANG!
BANG!
BANG!
Each collision took a massive toll on Qin Feng’s body.
The final outcome was no different.
Another afternoon passed, and he had once again chalked up 40 crushing defeats and a single victory.
[*Thousand Army Spear* Proficiency +231]
As Qin Feng’s consciousness withdrew from the Subspace Network, he shook his sore, numb arms and sank into thought.
’The main gap now is my physical conditioning. In terms of the Slaughter Realm, I can already hold my own against them, unless I run into one of those monsters who has cultivated it to the Perfection stage. I can put honing my techniques aside for now.’
He knew full well that continuing to get passively beaten in the private domain was of little use, aside from tanking his score.
Epiphanies born from extreme pressure were a matter of luck, not something he could force.
He might as well fight a few official ranked matches in the Imperial Arena each day. That way, he could maintain steady progress in his Slaughter Realm through evenly matched battles, and then shift the vast majority of his energy to improving his physical conditioning.
There was another important reason for making this decision.
’My cultivation resources for this month are a third more than last month. If I don’t squeeze out more time to practice the Body Refining Technique and fully absorb them, it’ll be a waste.’
He had to wring every last drop of potential from his resources and make it his own strength.
With this in mind, Qin Feng adjusted his training plan once again.
He no longer devoted his afternoons entirely to battles in the private domain. Instead, he spent half that time practicing the *Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method*.
Sweat streamed from his forehead, dripping onto the floor of the Martial Arts Dojo, only to be instantly evaporated by the intense heat radiating from his body.
He was like a precisely programmed machine. Every day, aside from ten unwavering official ranked matches in the Imperial Arena and half an hour practicing the *Emperor Meditation* technique before bed, all his waking hours were filled by the one hundred and eight agonizing yet efficient postures of the *Intermediate Imperial Body Refining Method*.
Through this nearly masochistic, arduous training, his strength grew steadily.
Time flew by amidst this monotonous repetition.
In the blink of an eye, another ten days passed.
...
「Night. Dorm 402.」
Qin Feng, Shi Potian, and Qian Duoduo each sat on the edge of their beds and activated their wrist-mounted terminals. A notice from their homeroom teacher projected before them.
It contained the final instructions for the next day’s Qiming Inter-School League.
[Notice]:
All participating students are to assemble in the plaza in front of Beikai Tower at 8:00 a.m. tomorrow for a unified departure.
All personnel will travel to the venue via the school’s dedicated shuttle. Please remain quiet and disciplined during the trip.
Upon arrival at the venue, follow all instructions from the supervising instructors. Leaving the group without permission is strictly forbidden.
Below the notice was a detailed explanation of the league’s format.
[Format]:
Freshman Tournament (Day 1): A 1v1 single-elimination format. All participating freshmen will be randomly matched by the system. A single loss means immediate elimination. The tournament continues until a final champion is crowned.
Upperclassman Tournament (Days 2-7): (Click to view rules)
"Single-elimination... that’s brutal."
Qian Duoduo clicked his tongue. "If your luck’s bad, you could draw a powerhouse in the first round and be sent packing right away."
"The tournament is tomorrow. We should all get some rest and save our energy."
Shi Potian said.
After exchanging a few more words, the three of them returned to their rooms.
Lying in bed, Qin Feng thought for a moment before deciding to call his father.
Light and shadow flickered, and his father Qin Dahai’s face appeared in the projection.
The background was still their living room, and his uncle’s family was there as well.
This time, however, Qin Feng keenly sensed that while his father and uncle were still smiling, there was a hint of worry in their eyes that they were trying to hide.
It was an anxiety they were trying to conceal, an attempt to put on a brave face for his sake.
Qin Feng noticed, but he didn’t point it out on the spot.
"Dad, Uncle, I’m fighting in the Qiming Inter-School League tomorrow. The freshman tournament. The whole thing will be officially live-streamed."
"Really? That’s great!"
Qin Dahai immediately perked up. "Your uncle and I will take the day off tomorrow! We’ll be glued to the terminal watching you compete!"
His uncle, Wang Ming, nodded emphatically. "We have to watch! We’ll be cheering for our Feng!"
The atmosphere in the living room grew lively again, as his two younger brothers and little sister chattered excitedly, insisting they had to watch their big brother be a star on TV.
Qin Feng smiled, offered his siblings a few words of encouragement to study and train hard, and then ended the call.
The projection vanished, and the smile on his face faded with it.
He opened the private chat channel with his father and sent a message.
[Qin Feng]: Dad, is something wrong at home?
This time, his father took a few minutes to reply.
[Father]: It’s fine. What could be wrong? It’s just about the housing provided by the factory. We were supposed to get it this month, but someone cut in line at the last minute. The boss told us to just wait a bit longer, and they’ll get us the next available one.
[Qin Feng]: Really?
[Father]: Don’t worry! It’s really fine! Your uncle is making a hundred thousand Imperial Coins a month now, that’s a ton of money! Even if the company doesn’t give us a house, we could save up for a year and buy a new one ourselves! It doesn’t affect anything! You just focus on your tournament. That’s the most important thing right now!
[Qin Feng]: Okay.