Logistics department.
Fang Ping had been sitting at the Exchange Office for a long time.
Old Man Li was dozing and ignoring him.
Fang Ping was staring at the exchange sheet. After a long while, he suddenly made up his mind and declared, “Teacher, I want to buy this!”
Old Man Li glanced at it for a moment before looking at him with slight suspicion. Slowly, he said, “Are you sure?”
“I’m sure!”
“What the heck are you buying this for?”
Old Man Li still found it a little strange. He glanced at him briefly and said, “This is a Rank-5 medicinal pill. If it weren’t for the fact that you come here often, it wouldn’t even be on the exchange sheet. This isn’t really meant for students either. It’s mainly supplied for the instructors.”
“This is what I want.”
With a resolute look on his face, Fang Ping said painedly, “I’ve heard the Bodybuilding Pill is specially prepared for martial artists of the three middle ranks. Transforming the body from the inside out, with astounding effects. Even your internal organs could be honed. Teacher, this effect isn’t a scam, right?”
“Of course not!”
Old Man Li looked at him with some consideration. After a while, he said, “For martial artists in the three middle ranks to train their internal organs, it can be said that at this stage, it would be transforming the human body into gold!
“Other than their heads, Peak Rank-6 martial artists basically have no other physical weaknesses.”
As a demonstration, Old Man Li casually lifted the alloy dagger on the table and slashed it at his arm a few times, releasing a sound of scraping metal.
“Do you see this, kid? To be honest, I could lie down here now and let you stab me any way you wanted as long as it wasn’t my head. If you could kill this old man, I’d be impressed.”
Fang Ping’s face darkened as he said dispiritedly, “Teacher, I’m not here to watch you show off. I just want to exchange a few medicinal pills and consult about their effects.”
“What are you talking about?”
Old Man Li said resentfully, “Aren’t I demonstrating the effects for you now?
“The Bodybuilding Pill has a certain effect on the transformation of the human body, but that’s not its main function. This old man is just telling you not to be too wasteful.
“If you take the Bodybuilding Pill at your current state, at best, it could slightly improve the strength of your flesh.
“The change to your innards, however, would be extremely dangerous. You might not be able to withstand such a high medicinal potency...”
“Teacher, then in your opinion, if I took a Bodybuilding Pill now, would the strength of my flesh be able to withstand the Middle-stage Rank-3 honing progress?”
Old Man Li did not say a word but proceeded to give Fang Ping’s body a few experimental slaps.
Grunting slightly, he said, “If you really want to try it, you can give it a go. Taking three Bodybuilding Pills should be enough.
“The first time is a little more dangerous though, as the potency is very high.
“Also, it’s 200 credits for one. Are you sure you want to spend 600 credits to buy this?
“Just to let your flesh bear the Middle-stage Rank-3 honing progress in advance?
“With your squandering, would you still be able to tell me about how poor your family is next time?”
Disgruntled, Fang Ping sighed. “Teacher, I’m improving too slowly. I have no idea at what point I’ll be able to cultivate till the three middle ranks, let alone the three upper ranks.
“I, too, want to take it slow and save up a little bit.
“But I can’t. Any slower, and I’ll be thrown around by others...”
“Is there still someone stronger than you in freshman year?”
“I didn’t say in freshman year, I said other people.”
Old Man Li laughed despite himself. With a low grunt, Old Man Li said, “Then at the very least, you still have to exchange three Viscera-shielding Pills. One pill is 90 credits, so three would be 270 credits.
“Every time, take the Viscera-shielding Pill first before taking the Bodybuilding Pill.
“This way, there wouldn’t be too large of an impact on your innards. It’s safer, and the effects would be better.
“The total is 870 credits. After three times, the strengthening of your flesh would be complete. It’d be more than enough to bear the strength of your Middle-stage Rank-3.”
“870 credits...”
Fang Ping mumbled. There was really no way to live these days.
He thought, ‘I just wanted to cultivate till Middle-stage Rank-3 in advance, but it’s so expensive. This is not even including the fact that honing would deplete it faster than a robbery!’
Old Man Li smiled. “That’s why I advised you not to be so anxious. Just take it slow. Actually, for you to have cultivated till Rank-3 now is already extremely difficult...”
“No, I can’t continue to be slow. I heard that Qin Fengqing is charging toward Rank-4, and Xie Lei is about to enter Peak Rank-3.
“Teacher, I have to cultivate to Peak Rank-3 as soon as possible, then only would I have time to deepen my cultivation of Combat Techniques.
“I really don’t have the heart to care about anything else... Teacher, if I exchanged for it, I’d have no credits. I’ll use money instead. Please give me some discounts, I really don’t have much money now.”
Old Man Li laughed mockingly. “Bodybuilding Pills aren’t Body-honing Pills. Body-honing Pills are unsellable items, while for martial artists in the three middle ranks, Bodybuilding Pills are bestsellers.
“Including the three Viscera-shielding Pills, I’ll make it 25 million for you. This old man’s giving you another steal.”
“Twenty-five?” Fang Ping struggled internally. Just as he was about to open his mouth, Old Man Li yawned and said, “Don’t say a word. You can take it or leave it.”
“I’ll take it!”
Fang Ping gritted his teeth and bought it!
If he entered Middle-stage Rank-3 in three days, he would make it in time for the assessment.
Up till today, he still had more than 45 million in cash, which was enough for now.
After he entered the Middle-stage, he would rest for a few days and then charge for upper-stage.
The instant he stepped into Upper-stage Rank-3, he would temporarily let go of his cultivation and focus on drilling his Combat Techniques to ensure that prior to entering the Catacombs, he would become a true combat powerhouse.
Old Man Li did not waste any time and gave Fang Ping three Rank-3 Viscera-shielding Pills.
As for the Bodybuilding Pills, he made Fang Ping go to the southern area to obtain it as he did not have it here.
Over ten minutes later, Fang Ping got his medicinal pills. At the same time, his card had lost 25 million, and he did not know whether or not he would be able to earn it back in the upcoming assessment.
Passing by the Credit Collection office, Fang Ping collected the 120 credits he had accumulated during this month.
However, his Wealth points had only increased by 400 thousand!
Stunned, Fang Ping paused for a moment before he remembered something. He had previously promised Fu Changding and the others that out of every month’s 300 credits, 100 credits would be theirs.
“Motherf*cker, is the system eavesdropping on my conversations?”
It was the first time Fang Ping had come across this kind of situation. There were plenty of occasions where Wealth points were not added in the past, but it was still the first time for him to experience credits that he had obtained not being counted in his own account.
No, this was the same as the credits on MCMAU’s exchange platform. It flowed through his hands, but it was not considered his credits.
“I’m speechless!”
Fang Ping was incredibly dismayed, but after thinking about it, there was nothing much he could complain about either. It was the same as the missions from last time. The missions were a unified settlement, not falling solely on Fang Ping’s head.
...
Returning to the dorms, Fang Ping went over to Fu Changding’s place and used a computer to transfer 100 credits over to the other party. As for how they would split it, Fang Ping did not care.
After that, Fang Ping hung a “Do Not Disturb” sign on his room door.
...
The sharp pain pierced his heart!
When he took the Rank-5 Bodybuilding Pill, Fang Ping nearly cursed out loud!
Old Man Li had said that the first consumption would be more dangerous, though the danger would greatly decrease after taking a Viscera-shielding Pill, so Fang Ping would probably be able to bear it.
Old Man Li had not told him it would hurt this much though!
It felt like someone was tearing through all his muscles inch by inch, and his internal organs were also spasming non-stop.
“It hurts so bad!”
Fang Ping was in so much pain that his consciousness had started to blur.
Large drops of sweat fell on the ground, mixed with blood.
“For what purpose do I keep wanting to be strong?”
“To endure agony?”
“To suffer through torture?”
“It can’t be for the laughable reason of saving the world...”
Amid the unbearable pain, Fang Ping could not help but ponder these questions.
“Since when did I become so noble as to want to calm the Catacombs and return a peaceful society to human beings... What a laughable thought!”
“Risking life and limb just to show some improvement in martial arts, is it even worth it?”
“Perhaps I would have a better life if I just became a normal person and disregarded all of this...”
All sorts of thoughts were flashing through his brain.
Among them, images suddenly popped into his mind. The image of the MCMAU instructors returning from battle, the scene of Bai Ruoxi smiling after she lost an arm...
His imagination then constructed the image of an invasion of the Catacombs and his parents and sister dead in front of his eyes while he did not even have the strength to struggle.
“I’m not that great. All that I’ve done is live for myself, and live for my family...”
“Enduring today’s agony is far better than crying helplessly in the future!”
“...”
Fang Ping did not know how much time had passed. By the time the piercing pain subsided, his entire person had collapsed on the ground, breathing heavily.
“The Catacombs, Nanjiang, family...”
Chanting softly, Fang Ping panted and smiled slightly. “That’s right, I just hope to have the strength to protect myself before there is a big invasion of the Catacombs. I shouldn’t think of myself as too benevolent or noble.”
“Hence, whatever I have to cultivate, I should, and whatever I need to fight for, I will.”
...
Three days later.
May 3rd.
“It’s done!”
Fang Ping’s face was slightly pale, yet his energy was full of excitement.
In April, with one month’s worth of fostering his skills, he managed to rapidly elevate them and smoothen out any rough edges. In May, in just three days, Fang Ping entered Middle-stage Rank-3.
Wealth: 17.5 million
Vitality: 500cal (820cal)
Mentality: 450Hz (499Hz)
Honing: 151 bones (90%), 55 bones (30%)
“Vitality over 800cal, and complete honing of my sternum and rib cage. All I have left to hone is 26 bones of my spine and 29 parts of my skull!”
Fang Ping moved his body a little, and his entire body’s bones made a sound of sharp cracking.
“I still have 12.5 million in Wealth points and 20 million in cash. If I save up a little, and with the school’s reward later on, it shouldn’t be too large of a problem to reach Upper-stage Rank-3 right?”
Fang Ping was not very certain. He now realized that expectations were expectations, and reality was reality.
Sometimes, his money and Wealth points were drained faster than he thought.
Picking up the fengzuidao at the side, he swung it around a few times. Fang Ping felt as if it was not very smooth, but this was one of the aftermaths of fast honing.
After resting for a moment, Fang Ping showered and changed before taking a look at the time and walking outside.
...
Classroom Block.
Tang Feng glanced at the newly arrived Fang Ping with a slight frown. What was up with this kid, he had improved extremely fast in the last few days.
Not saying anything about it, Tang Feng declared, “The route has been fixed. This year’s assessment venue is... Nanjiang!”
There was a flicker of movement in Fang Ping’s eyes. Nanjiang?
“This time’s assessment isn’t just purely an assessment, it’s also a large-scale mission!
“Not just us, but Capital City Martial Arts University and quite a few other martial arts universities are also participating!
“This time, it’s a joint mission.”
Following Tang Feng’s depiction, everyone slowly understood the contents of the assessment.
It seemed as if Nanjiang had been confirmed as the next location for the opening of an entrance to the Catacombs.
As of today, many evil sect martial artists had gathered at Nanjiang. Based on the higher-ups’ judgment, it could be that when the new entrance was established, the martial artists from the evil sects would try to open the entrance and let loose an invasion of the Catacombs’ creatures.
With the opening of a new entrance at the Catacombs, there would be a large number of powerhouses gathered there as well.
“As the site of the opening of a new entrance, Nanjiang does not have the advantages of the other entrances. Nanjiang lacks the much-needed experience in response, as well as a large number of battle-hardened martial artists. The other regions would assist in rescues, and the central government would also send troops in the future to defend the new entrance.
“However, for the first opening, there’s still no way to determine the specific location. How the army is going to be stationed, which land should the key martial artists defend are all a big question.
“The opening of the entrance will be very fast.
“Even if it were in Nanjiang, the sending of troops would require some time if the garrisons were too far away.
“The goal of the evil sect martial artists is very simple. Try to open the entrance while there’s this buffet period.”
Tang Feng said coldly, “By now, these people have become completely crazy. In these few years, with the strength of the government increasing, they’re chances have become smaller and smaller, so now it’s their last stand!
“This time, Nanjiang has already begun to have a large number of high-level evil sect martial artists gathering.
“The government won’t stand by and watch them create havoc. A bunch of jumping fools wanting to fish in troubled waters while things are still disorganized, they can dream on!
“The government won’t wait until the actual opening of the Catacombs’ entrance before carrying out the purge.
“Therefore, the purge movement begins now!
“This time, the mission for each martial arts university is to be in charge of purging a large-scale meeting point. Remember, regardless of whether they’re old or young, kill them all!
“How many martial artists you kill individually, and how many are killed as a group are the standards for the assessment.
“This time, it’s not solely looking at an individual’s might. The soldier line-up and the moment you choose to enter the battle are all very important.
“Whether or not you all want to join the battle at the first opportunity is also up to you guys to consider.
“This can be considered a team combat assessment mission, not purely looking at individual might. Remember that!
“Of course, if you think that you can finish off the stronghold yourself, then that’s up to you. However, with you guys being a bunch of Rank-2 and Rank-3 martial artists, if you want to finish them off on your own, the chances of you dying are greater!”
“...”
Tang Feng went on for quite a while. Fang Ping waited for him to finish before asking, “For these large-scale meeting points, wouldn’t it be more efficient to directly let the army bring their firearms into battle?”
Tang Feng shook his head. “Right now they’re training the soldiers, training Nanjiang’s soldiers. Do you understand my meaning?”
“You’re saying...”
“That’s right, for the troops at the Catacombs’ entrance, it’d be really hard to draw members from each land. At best, they’d dispatch a few middle- to higher-level leaders.
“The basic military strength would consist mostly of new soldiers.
“This time, they’re taking this opportunity to let the new soldiers get used to the cold weapons combat style, not to mention facing these evil sect martial artists is a good choice to let you guys get used to it.
“Compared to the creatures in the Catacombs, the evil sect martial artists are not systematic, and their combat strength is not strong, so they’re the most suitable test opponents.
“There will definitely be some deaths among the people, but for a few people to die now, many more would survive in the future.”
Fang Ping nodded slightly. “Would those in the evil sect not know about such a large-scale movement on our side?”
“They know.”
Tang Feng continued indifferently, “This time we’re going to give them a taste of their own medicine. We already found out earlier that the evil sect is gathering, so we let all the armies and martial artists in each land encircle them on purpose so that they’d unknowingly converge in one area.
“The goal is to have a one-time large-scale soldier training.
“Even though it’s to train the new soldiers, there are already 9 Grandmasters at Nanjiang now to seal the battlefield, along with a modern, high-tech combat army at the perimeter awaiting orders at any given time.
“The other party can choose to fight against the martial artists, or they can choose to run, and be blown apart by countless ammunitions!
“In your opinion, since they know the outcome, what would they choose?”
“Then now we’ll basically be facing a bunch of caged animals?”
“You can say that. That’s why you all have to be careful yourselves. Since it’s to train the soldiers... An appropriate death count is allowed, and it’s also necessary.
“As long as the casualties are not over thirty percent, then the battlefield will always be your battlefield!”
“Thirty percent!”
Fang Ping’s pupils contracted slightly. The death and injured count they set was too high.
Tang Feng said coldly, “Even in a battle against the evil sect with such low battle strength, we’ve already set the death count as thirty percent. That means at the Catacombs, you guys have a ninety-nice percent chance of death!”
No one said another word.
“All of you should get ready. Tonight, we’ll travel overnight and converge with the other teams.”
...
Fang Ping exhaled. He was going back to Nanjiang again.
However, this time was different from the last. Last time, it was to do a mission and to take the opportunity to go home and have a look.
This time, it was to participate in a large-scale battle of martial artists.
“An entrance to the Catacombs is actually going to appear in Nanjiang.”
Fang Ping sighed softly. It seemed like Nanjiang was going to be in a period of chaos for the next two years.
That night, Fang Ping made a trip to Villa No.8.
Lu Fengrou was not there. It was uncertain where she went.
Seeing the situation, Fang Ping did not stay. He heard that Lu Fengrou’s daughter had passed away around this time. Lu Fengrou’s mental state was not great these few days. Perhaps she had gone to the Catacombs to vent