The next morning, as dawn barely broke around five o'clock, Luo Feng hurried to the Limit Martial Arts Hall.

He still used his 'Advanced Martial Arts Student' ID, as his Provisional Warrior certification had not yet arrived, to gain entry to the hall.

"Senior Brother."

"Morning, Senior Brother."

Inside the Limit Martial Arts Hall, the grassy pathways were already dotted with students engaging in morning drills. Luo Feng smiled and nodded, then headed straight for the third floor of the Advanced Student teaching building. Since he hadn't received his Provisional Warrior certificate yet, he could only access the advanced student training hall; he wasn't qualified for the instructor area on the fourth floor.

"Hah! Hng!" The sound of sharp exhalations echoed from within the training hall.

Luo Feng looked inside and saw a youth in a white robe continuously wielding an iron spear, dancing the long weapon through the air.

"Tie-ge," Luo Feng called out with a smile. "Practicing your spear this early? That’s unusual."

"Fengzi," the white-robed youth stopped, looking at Luo Feng with pleasant surprise. "Why are you here? Haha, right, I must congratulate you first. Congratulations on passing the Provisional Warrior assessment, Fengzi."

"How did you know?" Luo Feng was startled.

Very few people should have known about his passing the Provisional Warrior assessment.

"The instructors mentioned it last night during class. They said that among our advanced students, you and Brother Yang have both passed the Provisional Warrior assessment." The white-robed youth rubbed his head helplessly. "Seeing both of you pass made me realize I couldn't slack off either, so I came out early today to practice my spear."

Luo Feng nodded.

So, it was the instructors who spread the news. Although the Limit Martial Arts Hall boasted over thirty thousand students, there were only six instructors in total! And only a single Chief Instructor! During lectures, the instructors mostly taught in those massive lecture halls, addressing thousands of students simultaneously.

Of course, teaching the advanced students didn't require such grand scale; there were only so many advanced students in the entire martial arts hall.

"Fengzi, since you passed the assessment, what brings you here so early in the morning?" the white-robed youth chuckled.

"The Warrior Practical Combat Assessment is on August 1st. I need to prepare." Luo Feng smiled and walked toward the armory adjacent to the training hall. The door to the armory was ajar.

Entering the armory, he saw a vast array of weapons displayed on the racks. Swords, spears, clubs, batons, axes, hammers, sabers, lances—the variety was immense. Furthermore, every major weapon category was subdivided further. For instance, sabers were separated into single-handed and two-handed types. And the single-handed sabers themselves came in many variations.

"The Blood Shadow Series." Luo Feng opened one of the weapon cabinets. It was filled with numerous battle sabers of the same style. Of course, these were all 'simulations'; their model, center of gravity, and weight were identical to the real weapons. However, their material composition differed vastly. A real saber capable of slaying a monster might cost hundreds of thousands, but these simulation blades were only a few hundred Yuan—far cheaper.

Swish!

Luo Feng drew one out. It was a Blood Shadow Series 2 battle saber, with a blade length of 78 centimeters, a total length of 101 centimeters, and a blade width of 5.2 centimeters. The spine was relatively thick, and the tip was exquisitely sharp, favoring thrusting attacks.

"Hmm?" Luo Feng swung it a couple of times casually, then frowned. "I've used this Blood Shadow Saber for a long time. But... it feels light."

The saber he was accustomed to swinging now felt almost weightless.

"My strength has increased; the saber I use also needs to increase in weight before it feels comfortable in my hand." Luo Feng retrieved another Blood Shadow Series 2 saber and swung it twice, producing a sharp whistle as it cut the air. "No, this is still too light."

"This one isn't enough either."

"Too light, far too light."

Luo Feng took out the heaviest simulation model of the Blood Shadow Series 2 saber and couldn't help but shake his head and chuckle. "It seems my ability has truly improved too much. I can't find a suitable saber for me in the Advanced Student armory." Luo Feng could only choose to leave the third floor and proceed upstairs to the fourth.

"The fourth floor is where the instructors and the Chief Instructor often train," Luo Feng knew there were training halls and armories up there too. "Provisional Warriors are technically qualified to enter the fourth floor, but my certificate hasn't been issued yet, so I don't know if they'll let me through."

Next to the staircase leading to the fourth floor was a small room where an elderly man was on duty.

"Hey? What are you doing? Students are not allowed up here." The old man on duty stood up, then suddenly his expression shifted to surprise, followed by a laugh. "It's Luo Feng! Curator Jiang told us you passed the Provisional Warrior assessment. Haha, come on in."

"Thank you, Uncle Li," Luo Feng breathed a sigh of relief.

If Uncle Li had been strict and insisted that Luo Feng produce his Provisional Warrior ID, Luo Feng would have been unable to enter, as legally, he wasn't yet a Provisional Warrior.

The training hall on the fourth floor was noticeably better appointed, and the equipment and facilities were far more high-end.

At this moment, Luo Feng was the only person in the fourth-floor training hall.

"Wasteful, wasteful, truly too wasteful," Luo Feng couldn't help but shake his head, sighing. "This martial arts hall has only six instructors in total. Outside of teaching, the six instructors spend most of their time training at the Limit Club headquarters. Such a fine place sits empty, rarely visited."

Luo Feng shook his head and entered the adjacent armory.

The weapons in this armory, though also simulations, looked much superior externally compared to those on the third floor.

"Blood Shadow Series 2... Hmm, the sabers here are indeed much heavier." Luo Feng pulled one out and swung it twice, then switched to another. After five attempts, he finally settled on one that felt suitable. Looking closely at the marking on the blade, he saw the weapon's weight listed: 101g.

"What? 101g?" Luo Feng himself jumped in surprise. "A saber this heavy feels comfortable and familiar in my hands?"

It was known that the Blood Shadow Saber was the type designed for fast slashes and cuts, meaning it was relatively light. For this type of blade to feel right at 101g, just how high had his strength reached?

"My physical conditioning has clearly improved astonishingly. I should test my punching power and speed later." Luo Feng felt a surge of excitement. "For now, I'll practice the fundamentals." After selecting the saber, he casually picked up a hexagonal shield.

...

In the training hall, Luo Feng braced the shield on his left forearm while gripping the Blood Shadow Saber in his right hand.

"Hng!"

"Hah!"

Luo Feng stood rooted to the spot, executing the basic saber techniques flawlessly—horizontal slash, upward sweep, chopping arc, continuous cut... Every move was executed with textbook precision. With every swing, his body's center of gravity remained unaffected. He continued practicing like this, constantly refining his movements.

"My current strength is too great. My control over the force of the chops isn't fine enough," Luo Feng understood his own issue.

"Good physical conditioning is good, but you must be able to utilize it," Luo Feng was acutely aware.

Having superior physical attributes than an opponent didn't automatically mean one was stronger in combat.

Some people could only unleash 30% of their potential physical strength. Others could manage 50%, 60%, 70%, or even 100%. There were even Saber Grandmaster level figures who could slay opponents ten times stronger than them using mere fraction of their strength. This highlighted the importance of technique and experience.

However—

If the physical disparity was too vast, technique alone could not bridge the gap. Generally speaking, regardless of circumstance, one must diligently hone their technique to fully unleash their inherent physical power.

××××××

"Chief Instructor," Uncle Li on the fourth floor called out respectfully.

"Who is in there?" Chief Instructor Jiang Nian inquired. He clearly heard the series of sharp whistles emanating from the adjacent training hall—sounds produced when a blade or sword reached astonishing speeds, slicing through the air. Listening to the sound alone indicated the user was certainly at the Warrior level.

"It's Luo Feng," Uncle Li replied with a smile.

"Luo Feng?" Chief Instructor Jiang Nian smiled slightly and headed toward the training hall.

Standing at the entrance, Chief Instructor Jiang Nian watched Luo Feng inside, moving through the basic saber forms one move at a time, as if following a textbook. Sometimes he swept the blade while stationary, other times he executed the moves while sprinting, dodging, or retreating. His execution of the Blood Shadow Saber techniques was exceptionally fluid.

"Hmm, his foundation is truly solid," Chief Instructor Jiang Nian couldn't help but nod, silently praising him. "With a good foundation, his future saber training will be better. No obvious weaknesses, that’s very good."

He grew increasingly satisfied as he watched.

"Ah, Chief Instructor," Luo Feng stopped abruptly when he turned and saw the Chief Instructor.

Chief Instructor Jiang Nian walked in with a smile. "Luo Feng, your saber work is excellent. You must have started practicing when you were quite young, right?"

"Yes, when I was younger and before I joined the martial arts hall, I just swung blades around by myself for fun at home," Luo Feng replied with a smile. Chief Instructor Jiang Nian nodded approvingly, but the smile on his face suddenly froze, and he stared blankly at the Blood Shadow Saber in Luo Feng's hand, his eyes wide open.

"Chief Instructor? Chief Instructor?" Luo Feng was startled by the instructor's expression.

"You, you..." Chief Instructor Jiang Nian stared at Luo Feng in shock. "You were just swinging a Blood Shadow Saber weighing 101 kilograms?"

"Yes, yes, that's right," Luo Feng was becoming quite frightened.

Chief Instructor Jiang Nian vehemently shook his head. "Impossible, impossible... How could that be..." But immediately after, Chief Instructor Jiang Nian's eyes lit up, and he stared at Luo Feng as if looking at a peerless treasure. "Luo Feng, go to the punching power testing machine over there, quickly! Throw a punch for me to see! Let me see exactly how much punching power you've reached now!"