High Martial Arts Era 1

## Chapter 1: Li Yuan

September, 2042, Seven Star Calendar. Jiang City, Jiangbei Province, Xia Nation.

The city, known as the “Fire Furnace” (a nickname for cities with very hot summers), was in the midst of its scorching heat in early September.

Guan Shan District’s First High School.

Each classroom in the Senior Three building had similar banners hanging on the back blackboards: “No struggle, no success in Senior Three,” “Fight for a year, no regrets for a lifetime,” “Not fierce in Senior Three, how can you stand firm”…

One classroom on the east side of the first floor was exceptionally large, close to 1,000 square meters. Unlike regular classrooms, it had no desks or chairs. One side was filled with various cold weapons: swords, spears, lances, staffs, and more. The other side held a multitude of special instruments and a unique track paved with dark red metal.

This was the Martial Arts class.

At this moment, over a hundred students stood in various poses, practicing different movements. Some were like monkeys, some like birds, some like tigers… Their spirits were exceptionally high.

“The root is in the feet, it starts from the legs, it dominates the waist, it combines the power of the whole body and forms in the fingers…” A burly middle-aged man in a black martial arts uniform walked through the ranks.

He had a cold expression, was nearly two meters tall, had a voice like thunder, and his eyes were like those of a tiger, staring intently at each student.

The most eye-catching was his right arm, a silver metal arm seamlessly connected to his severed limb, moving with ease.

“Normally, you should have mastered the basic training principles in Senior Two, but what happened? In Senior Three, you still stand in a loose and sloppy way.” The burly man roared, his metal arm slapping a sweating student to the ground as he walked: “Stable posture, unshakable center, basic training methods are the foundation of Martial Arts!”

“One day of practicing punches is one day of progress, one day without practice is a hundred days of emptiness. You guys are all completely relaxed and haven’t practiced at home for half a month after the summer vacation.”

“You’re already in Senior Three, and you still want to relax? You’re all from ordinary classes, and you haven’t awakened your Spiritual Spirit. How can you get into Martial Arts University if you don’t work hard?”

“Even if you’re not going to Martial Arts University and are pursuing the cultural path, Martial Arts scores still account for 30%…” The burly man continued to scold.

The students dared not breathe, their training becoming even more focused.

“Report.”

“Report.” Ten or more voices suddenly rang out at the classroom door, and a group of students in martial arts uniforms appeared at the entrance.

“Is Group Two back from the Spiritual Spirit test?” The burly man glanced at the door.

Then, his sharp gaze fell upon one student.

This student was almost 1.8 meters tall, had a crew cut, and at first glance, didn’t stand out. But upon closer observation, one could notice his head held high, his spine straight, and even his casual standing conveyed an unshakable feeling.

Clearly, this student had integrated the “head should be虛領頂勁 (Xu Ling Ding Jing, a posture of uprightness), the bottom should be 尾间沉垂 (Wei Jian Chen Chui, a posture of relaxed weight)” principle from basic training methods into his daily life, from walking to sitting.

He truly achieved “heart moves with form, intention transmits with spirit”.

This level of martial arts was beyond any student who stood in the classroom.

“Li Yuan, how are you?” The burly man looked at him.

Nearly a hundred students in the classroom couldn’t help but secretly glance at the student named Li Yuan.

“Teacher Xu, I didn’t awaken.” Li Yuan calmly shook his head, showing no disappointment.

The burly man frowned upon hearing this.

Li Yuan was the student with the highest hopes of awakening his Martial Spirit in his class.

“Li Yuan didn’t make it?”

“At the end of Senior Two, his Martial Arts score even reached the top thirty in the grade. His physical fitness back then already reached Level 6, surely it’s even stronger now. Yet, he still hasn’t awakened his Martial Spirit?”

“Awakening Martial Spirit is so difficult!” Nearly a hundred students in the classroom were secretly surprised.

Currently, in all of Xia Nation and even on the entire Blue Star, there were two ways to select talent: cultural courses and Martial Arts cultivation.

And all students, from junior high school onwards, were taught basic training methods and practiced Martial Arts by the state.

In Guan Shan District’s First High School, there were over 2,000 students in Senior Three, divided into twenty classes.

But there was only one Martial Arts Elite Class, the rest were ordinary classes.

The Martial Arts Elite Class had over sixty students, each one had awakened their Martial Spirit. The top fifty in the grade’s Martial Arts scores were usually held by them.

Li Yuan, being able to reach the top thirty in the grade’s Martial Arts score in an ordinary class, was quite astonishing.

“What about the others? Did anyone awaken their Martial Spirit?” The burly man’s gaze swept across the rest.

Silence.

“All of you come in.” The burly man wasn’t surprised.

In reality, if someone could awaken their Martial Spirit, they usually did it in Senior One or even junior high school.

Want to awaken in Senior Three? Hope was slim!

The burly man only had hope for Li Yuan. He waved: “Group Three, go to the Martial Arts Building for the Spiritual Spirit test.”

Boom~

One row of students standing in postures, their legs already numb and their feet sore, stood up immediately and rushed out of the classroom.

Li Yuan’s group, however, returned to their positions and resumed their posture practice.

“Brother Yuan, Teacher Xu seems a bit disappointed.” A classmate with an eight-character beard and a mature appearance, standing next to Li Yuan, mumbled: “But you, Brother Yuan, didn’t show any disappointment after the Spiritual Spirit test results came out.”

“Don’t talk.”

“Keep practicing. Four hours of practicing the basic method every day is the basic skill.” Li Yuan said calmly, he had guessed the result long ago, so naturally he wouldn’t be disappointed.

“Four hours?” The mature-looking classmate muttered: “As expected of the second卷王 (Juàn Wang, a term for someone who does a lot of practice or revision) in our class.”

Li Yuan smiled in response, ignoring him. He closed his eyes lightly, stood in his position, his legs slightly bent, his aura changed, he became like a rock, the unshakeable aura on his body became stronger.

“磐石修行法 (Panshi Cultivation Method, Rock-Solid Cultivation Method).” Li Yuan’s mind appeared the various movements of this cultivation method.

He had practiced these movements countless times, they were as familiar to him as his own body.

In this era, Martial Arts flourished.

The Seven Star Alliance openly published seven basic training methods for all citizens of the seven planets, there was no distinction between high and low, only suitability.

Whether it was the rich and powerful, or the common people, as long as they practiced Martial Arts, they all started with basic training methods.

“Panshi Cultivation Method” was the training method chosen by Li Yuan.

He had been practicing it for over five years now.

Each basic training method could greatly stimulate the body’s potential, allowing one’s physical fitness to continuously improve, even leading to the awakening of the Spiritual Spirit.

Let alone Li Yuan’s physical fitness that hadn’t reached Level 7.

Even entry-level warriors with physical fitness exceeding Level 9 would continue to practice basic training methods.

“Hu!”

“Hu!”

Each basic training method had thirty-six sets of training movements, along with its accompanying exclusive breathing method.

Li Yuan’s breathing was sometimes rapid, sometimes long, coordinating with the movements of his limbs, making subtle sounds resonate within his body.

Bones and muscles resonating!

“It feels so good.” Li Yuan was immersed in this practice.

He could feel his bones and muscles being constantly stimulated, becoming stronger.

This was the evolution of life.

Human beings in this era, even ordinary teenagers could break the world record for sprinting a century ago.

This was thanks to the training methods.

“Unfortunately, I didn’t manage to reach the top twenty in the last final exam, otherwise, besides the 5,000 Blue Star Coin scholarship, I could have gotten some more Qi and Blood Medicine this semester.” Li Yuan’s thoughts drifted: “With more Qi and Blood Medicine, my physical fitness would progress faster, and I could also alleviate the financial pressure on my uncle and aunt.”

Li Yuan was an orphan, raised by his uncle and aunt.

His uncle was a state-owned enterprise employee, and his aunt was a junior high school teacher.

Logically speaking, their family, if not affluent, was at least comfortably well-off.

But Li Yuan was sickly since childhood, and to treat him, his uncle and aunt spent a lot of money.

Later, following the doctor’s advice, from junior high school onwards, his uncle and aunt invested a significant amount of money in Li Yuan’s Martial Arts training, even exceeding what they spent on their own children.

Thankfully.

Li Yuan was talented and worked hard in his training, passing the junior high school entrance exam and entering Guan Shan District’s First High School. His grades continued to improve after entering high school, reaching the top hundred in Senior Two, and during the Senior Two final exams, he even broke into the top thirty.

This made his uncle and aunt quite happy.

However, Martial Arts cultivation relied heavily on talent, and even more so on money.

Especially after his physical fitness reached Level 6, the food from the Star Realm needed for physical fitness improvement, the Qi and Blood supplements, medicinal meals, special equipment, and so on, were all money pits.

Compared to other students in the top thirty, Li Yuan’s external conditions were ordinary, even somewhat lacking.

However, Li Yuan understood in his heart that his uncle and aunt had already given him their all.

There were also younger siblings at home, he couldn’t expect more.

“But, six times.”

“Starting from junior high school, every year there is a Spiritual Spirit test, and every time I failed.” Li Yuan pondered: “If the Spiritual Spirit hidden within my body awakens, my exam score will get a 10% bonus, and I can completely jump into the top ten in the grade.”

“Awakening Martial Spirit also brings a state subsidy.”

Whether or not one awakened Martial Spirit.

Across Blue Star and even the seven planets, it was the most important indicator, without question, to determine someone’s Martial Arts talent.

Yet, Li Yuan had consistently failed to awaken his Martial Spirit.

“Over the years, the school has never had more than five students who were admitted to the five major prestigious schools.” Li Yuan silently thought: “With my current score, getting into a regular Martial Arts University is no problem.”

“But to get into the five major prestigious schools, without awakening my Spiritual Spirit, the hope is very slim.”

Xia Nation had a population of nearly two billion, with twenty-four provinces, each province had a Martial Arts University that only admitted students from within the province. This was the goal of most aspiring Martial Arts students.

The five major prestigious schools were established by Xia Nation and admitted students from all over the country.

In regular Martial Arts Universities, while students received a lot of training resources, they relied more on themselves.

But students of the five major prestigious schools, every single one of them, received a massive amount of resources from the state.

“Getting state-funded training, my path in Martial Arts can go further, and I can become an entry-level warrior like Teacher Xu, even stronger than him.” Li Yuan silently recited in his heart.

His goal for the college entrance examination was the five major prestigious schools.

However, the five major prestigious schools had extremely high score requirements.

“One step at a time, there are still nine months until the college entrance examination.” Li Yuan calmly practiced, his mind becoming less cluttered.

…

Soon, a commotion came from outside the classroom. The ten or so students in Group Three returned to the classroom door, their faces slightly excited.

“Teacher Xu, Wan Xiao awakened his Spiritual Spirit.”

“Teacher Xu…” Before the burly man could ask, many students couldn’t help but shout.

The classroom instantly erupted.

“Wan Xiao, he awakened his Martial Spirit?”

“He’s going to the Elite Class?”

“Students in the Elite Class, I heard they can train in advanced cultivation methods early.” Most of the students couldn’t help but show envious gazes.

Awakening Martial Spirit was the only way to enter the Elite Class.

Otherwise, even if Li Yuan reached the top thirty in the grade, he would still be stuck in an ordinary class.

“Wan Xiao?” Li Yuan opened his eyes and couldn’t help but look at the burly figure at the classroom door, whose face had a hint of a blush.

He was nearly 1.9 meters tall, extremely muscular, like a bear, with incredibly thick arms, only his face was slightly childish.

He was the only student in the class, besides Li Yuan, who reached the top hundred in the grade’s Martial Arts score – Wan Xiao.

“Li Yuan.” Wan Xiao, who was still excited, seemed to notice Li Yuan’s gaze and couldn’t help but look at Li Yuan, showing a smile.

Li Yuan smiled back.

In terms of Martial Arts score, Li Yuan was better than Wan Xiao.

In terms of family background, Wan Xiao was much better.

As the two best students in the class, Li Yuan and Wan Xiao, although they seemed to always compete for scholarships, their relationship was good.

Friendship between classmates is often very pure.

“Damn it! Brother Yuan, you didn’t awaken, but this Wan Dog Bear did, what a lucky break.” The mature-faced male student next to Li Yuan couldn’t help but grumble: “Now, his Martial Arts score has a Spiritual Spirit bonus, he’s almost catching up to Brother Yuan.”

Wan Xiao’s nickname was Dog Bear.

Li Yuan chuckled softly: “Old Zhou, you’re envious?”

The male student’s name was Zhou Qi. Due to his thick hair and mature appearance, he was nicknamed “Old Zhou”.

He was Li Yuan’s junior high school classmate, they entered Guan Shan No. 1 High School together and were assigned to the same class.

They were like good brothers for five or six years.

“Envious my ass.” Zhou Qi muttered: “I have enough cultural scores to get into a key university, taking Martial Arts classes is mainly for exercising my body, I can’t be a weakling forever, I’ll be overtaken by even Lin Lin in the future… I’m just speaking up for you.”

Li Yuan laughed.

Zhou Qi’s physical fitness was average, he hadn’t even reached Level 4, but his cultural score was very good, ranking in the top fifty in the grade.

National resources were limited, Martial Arts Universities could only admit a limited number of students.

Most students ultimately entered different universities based on their cultural scores.

“Wan Xiao’s physical fitness is good, it’s normal for him to awaken his Martial Spirit.” Li Yuan smiled: “Besides, the college entrance exam is a competition among Senior Three students across the province and even the entire country, not just against Wan Xiao.”

Li Yuan was only happy for Wan Xiao’s awakening of Martial Spirit.

There were over sixty students in their Senior Three grade who had awakened Martial Spirit, and looking at the entire province, the entire country… there were too many.

Instead of worrying about others, it was better to improve oneself. This was a truth Li Yuan had understood since childhood.

…

Wan Xiao’s successful awakening inspired the rest of the students, those who hadn’t been tested felt a bit of anticipation.

Group Four, Group Five… Failure, Failure.

In the end, out of all the students in Senior Three (Class Two), only Wan Xiao awakened his Martial Spirit.

After all the students returned to the classroom.

Teacher Xu, with his burly physique, glanced around and said in a low voice: “Alright, that’s it for today’s basic training, stop.”

Whoosh~

Whoosh~ Immediately, all the students stopped, many of them already had sore and weak legs.

It was just that, under Teacher Xu’s sternness, no one dared to lie down.

Basic training methods were physically demanding.

Even though Senior Three students generally had physical fitness reaching Level 4, but after two hours of training, most of them felt strained.

“It’s a good thing that some of you can awaken Martial Spirit, but don’t be disappointed if you haven’t.”

“There will be two more Spiritual Spirit tests organized by the school, one in the January interim exam and one in the April unified exam.”

“Before the college entrance exam, there will also be a national unified Spiritual Spirit test.”

“As long as you awaken your Spiritual Spirit before the college entrance exam, your Martial Arts score will be awarded a bonus.” Teacher Xu said in a low voice: “But remember, exam scores are the foundation, a high base score is essential for the bonus to matter.”

“Even the Elite Class, not everyone can get into Martial Arts University.”

“How to get good scores? Work hard!”

“Like Li Yuan, without a Spiritual Spirit bonus, his Martial Arts score still exceeded 800, surpassing most of the Elite Class students.” Teacher Xu scolded: “And his dedication to training, I don’t need to say more.”

Most of the students couldn’t help but look at Li Yuan, most of their eyes were filled with admiration.

Li Yuan’s dedication to training was known throughout Senior Three.

“Brother Yuan, Teacher Xu is pulling hatred for you again.” Zhou Qi whispered beside him.

Li Yuan smiled helplessly.

Ever since his Martial Arts score broke into the top hundred, he had become accustomed to being the “other people’s kid”.

Teacher Xu, whose real name was Xu Bo, was the Martial Arts homeroom teacher of Li Yuan’s class, one of the only two special-level Martial Arts teachers in Guan Shan District’s First High School.

As far as Li Yuan knew, Teacher Xu’s physical fitness had already exceeded Level 15, an impressive figure even among entry-level warriors. He was originally a warrior in the army, but he retired after being injured and came to teach at Guan Shan High School.

Physical fitness exceeding Level 9 was considered entry-level warriors, they held a very high social status.

Ordinary adults, their physical fitness was generally around Level 5-6.

“You are now in the stage of rapid physical fitness improvement, Senior Three is the year that determines your fate.” Teacher Xu continued to lecture: “Don’t be slack.”

“Now, take a half-hour break, then I’ll conduct skill assessment one by one.” After finishing his lecture, Teacher Xu turned and left.

“Ah?”

“Skill assessment?”

“We’re going to be bloodily beaten by Teacher Xu again, I bet you won’t last three moves.”

“Can you even last three moves against Teacher Xu?” Many students whispered among themselves, filled with excitement.

Li Yuan’s eyes also flashed with a strange light.

Blue Star and the seven planets had always faced threats of war, strong warriors played a crucial role.

Therefore, practicing Martial Arts was a consensus for everyone.

In human society, the top Martial Arts masters held a very high status.

Li Yuan and his classmates deeply admired Martial Arts masters.

Xu Bo was one of the top Martial Arts masters that Li Yuan and his classmates could actually interact with in real life.

“Brother Yuan, skill assessment is your forte.” Zhou Qi said excitedly.

“Think about yourself first, I observed your posture just now, you haven’t made any progress compared to last semester.” Li Yuan smiled: “Don’t get knocked down by Teacher Xu with one stick later, then you’ll lose face in front of Peng Lin Lin.”

Peng Lin Lin was Zhou Qi’s unrequited love.

Zhou Qi’s face stiffened, he said with a sheepish smile: “I don’t plan to go to Martial Arts University, Lin Lin won’t care.”

…

Inside the classroom, each student took their weapon from the weapon cabinet behind the classroom weapon rack.

Then, they all put on their protective gear.

In this era, every high school student was uniformly equipped by the state with one or two blunt cold weapons, mainly swords, spears, and shields. A few chose axes, halberds, and swords.

As for hammers, axes, hooks, forks, whips, and maces? Almost no students chose them.

In the practice of cold weapons, swords and spears were the mainstream.

The Martial Arts college entrance exam score was 1,000 points, divided into three parts: physical fitness, Martial Arts skills, and cultural scores, with a ratio of 50%, 40%, and 10% respectively.

If one awakened Spiritual Spirit, there would be an additional bonus.

Therefore, skill assessment was very important, it was the top priority for students’ daily training.

If one only had good physical fitness, they wouldn’t be able to get into Martial Arts University.

Hu!

Li Yuan also took his weapon from his dedicated weapon cabinet, a black spear nearly three meters long and weighing about 5 kilograms.

Although it was called a spear, the spearhead was just for decoration, it was more like a staff, after all, it was issued by the state, only for training, not for actual combat.

Hu!

Li Yuan gripped the shaft, seemingly casually flicking it.

Swish! The spear tip pierced the air, creating a tearing sensation, causing the faces of the surrounding classmates to slightly change.

With Li Yuan’s strength, a flick of the spear, even if it was blunt, had incredible power.

“This kind of spear, only Li Yuan in our class can handle it.”

“Li Yuan holding a spear, it gives me a feeling of facing Teacher Xu.” Many students whispered among themselves, their eyes filled with envy and admiration.

There were many students in the class who learned to use spears, but most of them were reluctant to practice such a long spear.

A foot longer, a foot stronger.

But the longer the spear, the harder it was to control.

Weapons were something to cultivate with for a lifetime, the right one for oneself was the best.

“Skill first! Brother Yuan’s Martial Arts skill assessment in the Senior Two final exam was 356 points, the only one in the entire grade to exceed 350.” Zhou Qi chuckled: “Even Teacher Xu said that Brother Yuan’s gunmanship is solid.”

Many students nodded.

Without a Spiritual Spirit bonus and not the best physical fitness, why did Li Yuan’s Martial Arts score reach the top thirty in the grade?

It was because his spear skills were far superior to his peers.

In the single-subject course of Martial Arts skills, Li Yuan was the undisputed first in the grade.

Soon.

Xu Bo, with his broad shoulders and stout build, casually held a long staff, returned to the classroom.

His gaze lingered on Li Yuan for a while.

“Assessment, I’ll follow the college entrance exam standards.”

“Take it seriously, treat each assessment like the college entrance exam, when you actually take the college entrance exam, it’s just another test.” Xu Bo’s voice was low, he held the staff very seriously.

“According to student number, in reverse order one by one.”

“Number 112, Zhou Qi.”

(To be continued)

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