In this era, materials science has advanced significantly. Even hollow metal rods have impressive strength and toughness.
Most importantly, this fish spirit creature had a physical constitution of only level 10.2, just entering the ranks of martial artists. Its bones and muscles were tough, but it wasn’t at the level where it could ignore ordinary weapons.
“Ha!”
“Bang~” “Bang~” Li Yuan struck down with his rod, moving like lightning, using just one hand to deliver the blows.
With two powerful hits, he accurately caved in the creature's head, blood splattering everywhere. The fish spirit lay completely still on the ground, its long body still twitching slightly.
Li Yuan didn’t stop. He knew how crucial it was to finish the job.
For the third strike, he gripped the rod with both hands, the best position for delivering force.
There are many similarities in the techniques used for rods and spears.
“Ha!” Li Yuan unleashed his full strength, calm and collected, and executed the ‘Rock Foundation Cultivation Method’, bringing the rod down like a spear.
“Thud~ Bang!!!”
With a terrifying force of over a thousand kilograms, he struck down precisely where he had hit before, shattering the creature’s head like a watermelon.
Blood sprayed everywhere, and scales scattered, with some blood even splattering onto Li Yuan.
The fish spirit’s body was now completely still.
“Ha!”
“Ha!” Li Yuan tightened his grip on the long rod, still wary, staring at the fish spirit. “This should be the end, right?”
This was Li Yuan’s first life-and-death battle.
But after thousands of life-and-death struggles in the virtual network and multiple practical training sessions with Fang Longhu, he had already built a strong mental resilience.
His skills in spear techniques and movement had become second nature, deeply ingrained in him.
“Can I, Li Yuan, take down a creature from the Star Realm in a one-on-one fight?” Li Yuan took a deep breath, gripping the metal rod even tighter.
He felt a strange emotion within, as if he had just experienced a significant life event, his spirit renewed.
Sometimes, transformations in life come unexpectedly, catching everyone off guard.
The best thing to do is to be prepared ahead of time.
Clearly, after years of martial arts training, Li Yuan had prepared himself for life-and-death battles, and he had delivered a satisfactory performance.
There was no cowardice! No fear!
Only courage, decisiveness, and caution.
He took five steps back.
Li Yuan still faced the direction of the fish spirit’s body, while keeping an eye out for any sudden appearances of other creatures from the Star Realm.
“Kid, are you a martial artist?” The noodle shop owner in the distance, holding a kitchen knife, looked at Li Yuan in shock.
He never expected that the boy he often saw in the morning could be this formidable.
In just two encounters, this powerful creature from the Star Realm had been knocked down, seemingly lifeless.
Instinctively, the shop owner thought the boy must be a martial artist.
In his understanding, only martial artists could defeat creatures from the Star Realm in close combat.
“No,” Li Yuan replied.
“Then what are you?” The shop owner swallowed hard, about to say something.
Suddenly,
“Rustle~” Two small figures dashed out from the alley. Li Yuan’s pupils contracted for a moment, then he relaxed slightly.
They were two small combat robots, less than half a meter tall, resembling large spiders, equipped with gun barrels.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
The two combat robots scanned the surroundings, then pointed their guns downwards, moving towards the fish spirit’s body, shooting out red beams as if conducting a scan.
Li Yuan stepped back further, completely relaxing.
He realized that the gunshot wounds on the fish spirit were likely caused by the combat robots during their pursuit.
In Jiang City, there were thousands of such combat robots, big and small.
Except for some extremely powerful creatures from the Star Realm, most could be eliminated with the help of combat robots and drones.
“Should I leave now?” Li Yuan thought to himself.
The next moment,
“Boom!” “Boom!” A loud rumble came from the sky, and Li Yuan quickly looked up to see two flying vehicles resembling assault boats.
In the current city, the tallest buildings were no more than 12 stories, so flying vehicles at a height of several dozen meters were very safe.
“Single-person flying vehicles?” Li Yuan held his breath.
Before the vehicles landed,
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures in black combat suits jumped directly down from the flying vehicles.
Like two shadows, they moved with terrifying speed, yet landed gracefully without damaging the ground.
They approached effortlessly.
“Jumping down from at least thirty meters?” Li Yuan watched the two figures in awe.
With his current strength, he could only jump down from five meters at most, and would need to roll to reduce the impact to avoid injury.
The two martial artists had only their eyes visible, the rest of their bodies completely covered by black suits.
However, the invisible aura they radiated made Li Yuan’s heart race, and he instinctively activated his Divine Palace Panel for detection.
[Target detected, life level exceeds sensing limit (current sensing limit is level 17.8)]
Both individuals exceeded Li Yuan’s sensing limit, making him feel increasingly fatigued.
“We were chasing that second-tier leader and missed this little guy, and he actually died?” One figure’s suit retracted to reveal a large bald head.
He was a big man, his face looking like it was chiseled from stone.
The other figure, relatively slender, had her suit retract to reveal a woman with brown curly hair, looking about thirty, with an exotic charm.
“Foreign martial artist?” Li Yuan thought to himself.
“Kid, I’m a genuine citizen of Xia Country,” the brown-haired woman said in fluent Mandarin with a smile. “My family has been registered here since my great-grandfather’s time.”
Li Yuan was taken aback; high-level martial artists had excellent hearing.
“Kid, the combat robots told me you killed this creature from the Star Realm? Are you a student at the Martial Arts University?” The bald man approached Li Yuan, asking while activating his smart wristband. “Let me check the surrounding surveillance.”
“I killed it,” Li Yuan replied directly. “I’m a senior at Guanshan First High School.”
The bald man didn’t respond, focusing on the screen to check the surveillance footage.
The brown-haired woman also leaned in to look.
In less than ten seconds,
“Hmm?”
“What? This rod technique? No, it looks like spear techniques!”
“It is spear techniques.” Both powerful martial artists showed surprise, unable to help but look at Li Yuan.
They initially thought the fish spirit was on the verge of death and that Li Yuan had taken advantage of the situation.
But after watching the footage, they realized that while the fish spirit was indeed injured, it still retained most of its strength.
And Li Yuan had, in just one encounter, pierced the creature’s eyes with the metal rod.
Then he brutally smashed its head.
This level of power and ferocity surprised the bald man and the brown-haired woman.
A senior student? When did high school students become this strong?
“What’s your name?” The bald man asked Li Yuan.
“Li Yuan,” he replied.
“Li Yuan? Would you like to sign with our Starry Sky Martial Hall?” The bald man smiled, trying to appear friendly. “I’m Lu Huai, the hall master of the Guanshan Branch of the Starry Sky Martial Hall.”
Li Yuan was taken aback.
This bald man was a hall master, which meant he held a position similar to Wan, the main hall master.
He must be a source martial artist.
“Hello, Hall Master Lu.” Li Yuan shook his head and said, “I’ve already signed with the Starfire Martial Hall.”
After a moment’s thought, he added, “It’s a B-level contract.”
“Starfire Martial Hall? A B-level contract?” The bald man was surprised. “I haven’t heard of that.”
“A B-level contract? Li Yuan, from First High School?” The brown-haired woman’s eyes lit up, and she winked at the bald man. “Old Lu, I remember now.”
“Last month, Xing Zixuan mentioned to me that Wan, the main hall master, signed a B-level contract with a high school student.”
“I heard it was taken from your Starry Sky Martial Hall, it must be him.”
“I was going to ask Wan about it at the year-end meeting.” The brown-haired woman smiled at Li Yuan, her gaze warm and affectionate. “Today, I don’t need to ask. With your bravery in saving others and facing danger without fear, along with your nearly four-stage spear techniques, a B-level contract is more than enough.”
Li Yuan felt increasingly confused.
But he vaguely sensed that the brown-haired woman seemed to be quite familiar with Wan, the main hall master.
“Taken from our Starry Sky Martial Hall? I didn’t know that.” The bald man, Lu Huai, frowned slightly.
He instinctively glanced at Li Yuan.
“Don’t look at Li Yuan, don’t scare our little guy from the martial hall,” the brown-haired woman glared at the bald man. “If you want to know, go ask your people at the martial hall.”
“Alright, I won’t ask him.” The bald man shook his head helplessly.
“Li Yuan.”
“Come, let’s take a picture and get your signature.” The brown-haired woman smiled at Li Yuan, opening her smart wristband. “Don’t worry, I’ll report your killing of the creature from the Star Realm soon, and then notify your school to try to get you an honorary title and a reward.”
“Thank you, senior.” Li Yuan still felt a bit dazed, letting her direct him.
They quickly took a photo with the creature’s body.
Then he signed on the brown-haired woman’s wristband screen.
“Don’t call me senior, my last name is Zuo.” The brown-haired woman looked at Li Yuan. “I’m the deputy hall master of the Guanshan Branch of the Starfire Martial Hall, responsible for combat readiness and hunting down creatures from the Star Realm.”
“Deputy Hall Master Zuo?” Li Yuan was slightly surprised.
He had heard other martial artists from the Starfire Martial Hall mention her but hadn’t paid much attention before.
“Do you know me?” The brown-haired woman smiled at Li Yuan. “This should be your first time killing a creature from the Star Realm, do you want to take a day off to rest?”
Many people feel nervous or even develop psychological barriers after their first kill, especially against humanoid species.
“No need for a leave.”
“Deputy Hall Master Zuo, I still need to go to school,” Li Yuan said seriously. “I have classes today.”
“School?” Deputy Hall Master Zuo was taken aback, then smiled. “I’ll give you a ride.”
(End of Chapter)