The apex floor of the Martial Venerable Tower. The youthful and handsome Martial Venerable stood silently before the enormous floor-to-ceiling window, quietly observing the distant scene below.

A soft sigh sounded behind the Martial Venerable. Six warriors, all clad in identical standardized uniforms but varying greatly in appearance, slowly materialized behind him. Their twelve eyes, like the Martial Venerable’s, gazed far toward the departing figures of Xue Tian and his group.

“Alas… what a pity…” Demon Star sighed again, opening the floodgates of conversation. “If we had held onto that brat Xue Tian for a little longer, just a bit more time before releasing him, he would have terrified everyone outside.” The other Saint Martial Stars nodded silently, their eyes still fixed on Xue Tian, filled with reluctance. Such a young martial artist was truly a once-in-a-millennium anomaly.

Even the most formidable martial artists, upon reaching the state of Unity of Heaven and Man (Tianren Heyi), achieved it through a sudden broadening of the mind or an innate epiphany regarding that mysterious realm, which could never be truly grasped or calculated.

But Xue Tian! The Martial Venerable recalled that Xue Tian had entered the Unity of Heaven and Man state while simply sleeping and resting. This truly set an unprecedented, unmatched super-record.

The Martial Venerable had seen countless talented martial artists, but never such a freak as Xue Tian. Entering Unity of Heaven and Man while asleep—if this story were told to the other Divine Beast Martial Artists, their eyeballs would surely pop out in shock.

Watching Xue Tian’s receding back, the Martial Venerable gently shook his head. This young man possessed martial talent that even he envied. He and the Six Saint Martial Stars had tested him so fiercely that every day he was exhausted to the point of losing the ability to speak, yet the next day he would be bursting with energy. Furthermore, any technique used by his opponents during yesterday’s battles, provided the Star Level strength allowed it, Xue Tian would invariably unleash it himself.

As time passed, whether it was the Martial Venerable or the Six Saint Martial Stars, they were forced to deploy more and more ultimate skills to contend with Xue Tian. Yet Xue Tian remained like a massive sponge, absorbing every bit of material you possessed, no matter how much you offered.

In the most recent battles, Demon Star had the distinct feeling that he wasn't fighting Xue Tian alone, but rather fighting the other Saint Martial Star warriors, along with Lord Martial Venerable.

When others learned martial techniques, they would usually alter them slightly; even if the result was similar, there would always be subtle differences. But this Xue Tian learned like he was swallowing the text whole—the martial techniques he used in combat were one hundred percent original, exactly as they were performed. If one were to fight him with eyes closed, the style-shifting techniques suggested they were truly from the same person.

The Six Saint Martial Stars exchanged knowing smiles, seeing in each other’s eyes the same thoughts they themselves were pondering.

The Martial Venerable’s brow curved with a hint of a smile. His words, as always, were placid as an abyss: “Everyone walks their own path. I am very much looking forward to the paths these little fellows will take.” The path they took coming back was different from the path they took arriving. With Xue Tian acting as their super compass, the group moved in an almost perfectly straight line.

Passing through several departments, Qin Fen suddenly spotted a familiar residential area—the 'Ren' (Human) character residential area of the Saint Martial Hall!

The Saint Martial Hall was a special compound overflowing with strict rules. The 'Tian' (Heaven) character residential area here was reserved for martial artists of the Inner Saint Martial Hall, whose living conditions and environment were far superior to the 'Ren' and 'Di' (Earth) character areas.

In the 'Tian' area, not only were there top-tier supporting living facilities, but the residences were also closer to the homes of even more powerful martial artists.

The 'Ren' area served as the outermost layer of all the residential zones. Qin Fen looked at these houses, and his thoughts immediately drifted back to the glorious days he spent here when he first entered the Saint Martial Hall.

The others, upon seeing these buildings, also recalled those happy times, and smiles involuntarily appeared on their faces.

Walking past the rows of buildings, the path ahead was suddenly blocked by a crowd of people gathered in a large circle, with continuous clamor rising from all sides.

The circle formed by the crowd was not tightly packed; they stood somewhat sparsely, most wearing the uniforms of the 'Ren' area martial artists, occasionally interspersed with a few wearing the attire of the 'Ren' area elders.

“Glorious tradition?” Xue Tian raised an eyebrow, then curled his lip. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen a scene like this.”

Their steps did not falter as they approached the outer edge of the crowd. Qin Fen’s own brow twitched when he saw the young man at the center of the ring.

In the fighting circle, Qin Fen recognized everyone. The tall, robust young man with dark skin and close-cropped golden hair, possessing Nine-Star strength—wasn't that Zeus Mark, his opponent from the New Recruit Tournament that day?

As for Mark’s opponent… it was Ma Juntie, whom he had run into by chance at the docks.

Ma Juntie! Qin Fen saw that the one receiving the “glorious tradition” was the very Ma Juntie he had met on the way here. Ma Juntie, with Six-Star strength, facing Mark’s Nine-Star strength—this truly offered no chance of victory.

If Mark weren't deliberately holding back his full power, Ma Juntie would have already been defeated. Mark was only using peak Seven-Star strength, unleashing a set of supreme Thunder Fist techniques with every punch and kick. Each strike barely grazed Ma Juntie. If Ma Juntie hadn't been moving and dodging with relative interest, the fight would have ended with a full-force strike landing on him.

Qin Fen’s raised eyebrow quickly furrowed. Even with just a glance, it was clear that Ma Juntie’s comprehension was far from ordinary.

The Four Stances of Active Movement (Dong Gong Si Zhuang) was seen by many martial artists as merely a set of dynamic exercises for cultivating internal energy. But as a Martial Arts Master, Qin Fen knew the Four Stances were not just for internal cultivation; they were also a set of combat forms. The creator of this technique was quite interesting; he intended to merge internal and external aspects. Unfortunately, his martial foundation wasn't sufficient, resulting in the creation of the Ten Stances of Active Movement (Dong Gong Shi Zhuang).

Qin Fen had built upon the Ten Stances, modifying them into the Eighteen Stances of Innate Motion and Stillness (Dong Jing Xian Tian Shiba Zhuang). He didn't overturn the predecessor’s intent but rather supplemented it significantly, achieving the unity of motion and stillness! Combat was not only about movement; it also involved stillness.

The original creation of the Eighteen Stances of Innate Motion and Stillness was intended to harmonize internal cultivation with a state of constant motion and stillness during battle.

While on the boat, Qin Fen hadn't explained the external combat applications of the Eighteen Stances, only briefing Ma Juntie on the internal cultivation aspects to observe during practice.

Qin Fen never expected that this young martial artist, whom he casually met on a boat and who admired him, would possess such high comprehension! During the fight, Ma Juntie was actually employing the Eighteen Stances of Innate Motion and Stillness. Although there were numerous rough patches since he had just started cultivating them, the only reason he wasn't overwhelmed by the opponent’s peak Seven-Star strength was that Ma Juntie had successfully utilized the characters of 'Heaven' (Tian) and 'Earth' (Di) from the Eighteen Stances.

The two stances Qin Fen had added to the Ten Stances of Active Movement were the Heaven and Earth Stances, which were the most difficult to cultivate and use. For Ma Juntie to be able to barely employ them while just beginning was remarkable, forming an irregular and full-of-gaps self-contained pocket of space that kept his opponent from immediately winning.

“This martial technique?”

Xue Tian clicked his tongue in admiration, and the faces of Caesar and the others also registered surprise. They hadn't expected such a profound secret art to be carried by a mere Six-Star martial artist.

Qin Fen’s squad was composed almost entirely of Martial Arts Masters, each possessing unique insight. They immediately saw the difference in Ma Juntie and were puzzled why this young man, possessing such a technique, was only at the Six-Star level today.

At this point, whispers began circulating in the crowd. “That kid is pretty good, but Zeus is a Nine-Star martial artist. His martial insight far exceeds his opponent’s. Even if he used only Six-Star strength, he should have won. To be at peak Seven-Star and still unable to secure victory—that’s too weak!”

“What’s Nine-Star matter? He only reached Nine-Star the day before yesterday. He’ll probably be stuck at this level for the next five years. Outside, he might be a genius, but here, he’s just an ordinary martial artist. Perhaps soon, this Six-Star kid will surpass Mark in strength.”

The rising tide of murmurs soon reached the ears of Mark, who was fighting in the circle. Ever since learning that Yang Lie and the others had made rapid advances in strength, even becoming disciples of their respective Department Heads, Mark had felt unbalanced and anxious. Today, he had intended to teach these new recruits a lesson. Unexpectedly, when he started with Six-Star strength, he suffered an unseen disadvantage, forcing him to raise his power to Seven-Star to suppress the opponent. Yet, even then, he couldn’t immediately subdue him.

The whispers were like knives, carving at Zeus’s heart. His normally steady combat spirit began to show impatience.

Win! I must win! Electricity sparked in Zeus’s blue eyes. Two masses of deep blue light suddenly flared from the twin harnesses on his back. His Nine-Star Thunder Power was fully unleashed. His fists, the size of small cauldrons, cracked with thunderous force.

Nine-Star! His immense power erupted suddenly. The flagstones within a two-meter radius of Zeus’s feet shattered. He moved like a streak of lightning, leaving behind a sharp, burnt ozone smell in the air. Even a Seven-Star martial artist could barely catch a glimpse of Zeus’s blue electric silhouette. He resembled an enraged Thunder Zeus wielding lightning, his colossal electric fist crushing the empty air as it drove toward Ma Juntie’s abdomen.

Boom!

The sound of the heavy punch striking resonated like shattered bronze. Zeus’s feet sank two inches into the ground, his powerful body pressing down like a mountain.

The onlookers gasped in surprise. At some unknown moment, a person had stepped between Zeus and Ma Juntie. This person was not conventionally handsome; his face was like a still, cold pool. He raised one hand lightly, his palm pressing directly against the electric fist of Zeus Mark—a fist strong enough to cook a rhinoceros into charred beef.

“You… Du Peng…”

Mark’s eyes, flickering with electric blue light, widened to their limit as he stared at the opponent who had calmly caught his blow. It was Du Peng, who, during the New Recruit Tournament, had been beaten so severely by Mark that he was hospitalized for a very long time before being discharged.

Du Peng’s hand was much smaller than Mark’s fist. The now 2.2 or 2.3-meter Mark had fists the size of a regular person’s head, while Du Peng’s hands, which were larger than average, looked terribly fragile against Mark’s blow.

Many people worried how long such a hand could withstand this massive fist.

Du Peng paid no attention to Mark’s fist, which could advance no further, fixing his gaze directly into Mark’s eyes: “Mark, he is just a child who recently joined the Saint Martial Hall. Even for a glorious tradition, you are going too far with your violence. Do you intend to cripple him?”

“Du Peng… you…” Mark continuously channeled force, trying to break past Du Peng’s grip, but tragically discovered his fist felt like it was striking the side of a great mountain—he couldn’t move this immovable object at all.

“Mark, jealousy cannot generate strength for you,” Du Peng said, his smile carrying a hint of self-mockery. “Though the words sound cloying, it is the truth. Only when I fully understood my elder brother’s love for me did I begin to grasp how strength should be used. And when I understood how to use strength, only then did strength draw close to me.” Mark’s eye sockets twitched incessantly. Looking at Du Peng’s self-deprecating yet instructive gaze, the pain in his heart far exceeded the twitching of his eyes by a hundredfold.

Looking at Du Peng, then glancing up at Yang Lie and the others concealed in the crowd, Mark felt his heart turn to ash in an instant! Du Peng, whom he had once defeated, could now casually block his attack with a single hand, radiating an invincible Fourteen-Star Martial Dao power.

Yang Lie and the others, hidden in the crowd, though Mark couldn't sense their Star Level strength, he could feel that the martial aura surrounding them had already refined into another dimension.

Mark’s heart filled with a powerless sense of defeat. These people were once his peers in strength, yet now he could only watch their retreating figures—in fact, he no longer even possessed the strength to see their backs.

Clearly! He was progressing rapidly, but… Mark had to admit that the speed at which Yang Lie and the others improved was practically light speed.

Mark glanced again at Ma Juntie standing behind Du Peng. This young man’s fighting style was strange. Even though Mark, at Seven-Star strength, was suppressing him, he always felt that the small domain of battle was controlled by the opponent. Perhaps it was this very feeling that made him want to strike and destroy him.

“Ma Juntie,” Qin Fen stepped out from the crowd. “You have surprised me. Are you interested in becoming my disciple?”

“Your disciple? Oh? You? The legend of the Saint Martial Hall?” Ma Juntie stared at Qin Fen in repeated astonishment. “The martial techniques you taught me are truly powerful. But…” Ma Juntie scratched his head. “I already have an idol in my heart…”

The crowd erupted in commotion. Some people suspected their ears had malfunctioned or that they were dreaming.

Accepting a disciple! Qin Fen, the current legend of the Saint Martial Hall, the record-breaker! A true Martial Arts Master was actually taking a disciple! Almost everyone simultaneously cast looks of envy and jealousy toward Ma Juntie. A Martial Arts Master taking a disciple!

Ma Juntie hadn't spent a single penny, yet not only was he being accepted as a disciple by a Martial Arts Master, but this person was Qin Fen! The legendary martial artist since the founding of the Saint Martial Hall was opening his mouth to take a Six-Star martial artist who had just entered the hall as a disciple!

Some people started wondering if the ancestral grave of Ma Juntie’s family was currently emitting a furious blaze—this situation went beyond mere smoke.

The onlookers felt an urge to rush forward and strangle Ma Juntie! The super-legend of the Saint Martial Hall actively offered discipleship, and this kid dared to refuse out of ignorance? Who did he think he was?

Qin Fen smiled. This stubbornness held a hint of his own spirit from back then. When facing Mark’s ferocious attack just now, he hadn’t chosen surrender but rather chosen to fight.

Qin Fen could sense that if Ma Juntie had truly taken that punch, under lucky circumstances, he would have required three months in the hospital—which wouldn't necessarily be a bad thing for him. If unlucky…

“Let me tell you a secret,” Qin Fen whispered into Ma Juntie’s ear. “You can ask the current head of the Dragon Hall if thirty-six hours ago, that was Lieutenant Colonel Qin Fen.”

“You…” Ma Juntie stared, his eyes wide with shock at Qin Fen.

Qin Fen nodded gently but said nothing. This was the first time since his debut that he genuinely desired to take on a disciple from the bottom of his heart.

“This is my contact information.” Qin Fen expertly operated the interface on Ma Juntie’s badge. “After confirming my identity, if you are interested, you may contact me.” Qin Fen turned and patted Zeus’s shoulder, saying quietly, “Brother Mark, you can spar with my disciple as much as you like, but don’t cripple him. It’s rare for me to find someone with experiences similar to mine. Not many people put effort into cultivating the Arhat Fist nowadays.”

Mark’s face cycled from red to pale. Although Qin Fen’s words were polite, Mark dared not put on airs. Qin Fen, who was already superior to him in martial arts, now exuded the subtle demeanor and aura of a grandmaster with every move. That mere aura alone was more than the average warrior could withstand.

Taking a disciple! When Qin Fen had taken Ji Zhenxuan Yi as a disciple back then, Mark had privately mocked Qin Fen for overestimating himself. Now that Qin Fen was taking another disciple, Mark had to admit that he truly possessed sufficient qualifications and ability to do so.

Ma Juntie froze for several seconds, noticing that Qin Fen and Xue Tian’s group had already moved away from the crowd, walking swiftly as if they had urgent business. Ma Juntie took a deep breath and shouted loudly: “Master! I know you wouldn’t lie to me! Remember to come back and see me when you have time!” The surrounding warriors felt a slight instability beneath their feet. This shout was too presumptuous; usually, it was the disciple who visited the master, yet this disciple was bold enough to demand the master visit him.

“Good!” Qin Fen’s response left the onlookers utterly speechless. If the disciple was clueless, the Master—the legend of the Saint Martial Hall—didn't even care about whose turn it was to visit whom.

Mark turned to look at Ma Juntie, who wasn't far away, and a sudden feeling of emptiness washed over him, accompanied by a bad premonition. His mind raced, trying to guess—could this kid really surpass him and become a martial artist dominant over him in such a short time?

The thought flashed through Mark’s mind, and he vigorously shook his head, trying to cast off the seemingly absurd notion.

The onlookers began speculating as well—how long would it take for this newcomer, Ma Juntie, to surpass Mark’s strength?

On the rooftop of a building outside the crowd, the Martial Maniac, who had been diligently in seclusion, quietly watched Ma Juntie in the crowd and nodded slightly.