Park Jong-hwan struggled to rise, spitting a mouthful of blood. He gasped for air, staring at Qin Fen in terror. If not for the high-tech energy-absorbing armor gifted by his master, Bae Sung-jun, that barrage of attacks would have killed him.

One more palm strike, and his bones would have shattered. That final strike had utterly pulverized the protective soft armor!

Even without broken bones, the sheer force had caused internal trauma, leaving him unable to fight any longer. Though his bones hadn't shattered, there were hairline fractures.

Recalling the terrifying assault, Park Jong-hwan felt like he had experienced an eon. If that hand had lifted just a few inches higher, striking his unprotected throat, one blow would have been enough...

This injury would likely require a month or two to heal? Park Jong-hwan suddenly realized that even with the armor, the time needed to recover wouldn't be any shorter than those he had previously injured.

Qin Fen’s eyes flared, his concentrated spirit and energy—a divine light—swept over a few new recruits from Hanzhou, causing them to instinctively shudder.

“Next.”

That glare, coupled with the preceding storm of attacks, completely shattered their resolve. Qin Fen then asked in a calm voice, perfectly mimicking Park Jong-hwan’s earlier challenging demeanor.

If Park Jong-hwan hadn't stepped forward and another Hanzhou recruit had been defeated, even under the onslaught of the Berserk Tide, there would still have been others stepping up to issue challenges.

Now, their greatest reliance, the four-star martial artist they had waited so long for to emerge from seclusion, had been cleanly and decisively beaten into severe injury, with both arms broken.

Their spiritual pillar had collapsed, and their will to fight utterly crumbled.

Lin Jia stood nearby, stunned speechless by the shocking scene. So, this recruit named Qin Fen was this strong!

It wasn't just strength; more importantly, it was the aura—a fierce power wrapped within an apparent simplicity! An aura like a tiger or a dragon!

Phoenix, sitting in the tree, smiled: “This is Qin Zhan’s little brother. What good are the geniuses of Hanzhou?”

Squad Leader Hao stretched languidly: “The elder brother is the Proud Dragon; the younger brother is the Fierce Tiger. Truly, a dragon’s brother is no worm!”

Immediately following were sounds of shock and anger: “Brawling in the barracks? Injuring a comrade! Who did it, step forward!”

Several Hanzhou officers appeared before the crowd just in time. One rushed to Park Jong-hwan's side, bending down to examine his injuries.

“Who is it? Step forward! What? Do you intend to defy your superiors' reprimand?”

Their star recruit had been gravely wounded. The Hanzhou instructors were filled with astonishment and fury; they never imagined the Third Company harbored such a fierce newcomer. The faces of the Hanzhou recruits flushed with shame. Still, someone raised a hand and pointed at Qin Fen. Park Jong-hwan was severely hurt, and this person had to pay a price.

“It was me.”

“It was me!”

“I hit him!”

“It has nothing to do with Old Qin! I just didn't like the look of him and hit him!”

“I did it!”

The first voice was Qin Fen’s; the subsequent ones were from the incensed recruits of the Third Company. Every mobile recruit surged forward, enveloping Qin Fen, some even forcibly trying to pull him backward, seemingly intending to drag him away from the scene.

Planting his feet firmly, Qin Fen naturally couldn't be moved. He was confident he was in the right for this incident and had no need to back down.

“No matter who you are! All of you, come with me to the Military Disciplinary Office! Private fighting—none of you will escape!”

The Hanzhou instructors hadn't expected the recruits to be so united. They could only rely on military regulations to force them toward the Disciplinary Office. Their ace recruit had been beaten and couldn't let it go! Taking advantage of their senior officers’ absence, they needed to settle this quickly.

“Oh dear! Isn't this Cha Soon-jae? What? That recruit of yours lying on the ground injured two of my men. I need to settle that score with you as well.”

A leisurely voice, laced with a touch of indolence, accompanied Squad Leader Hao as he emerged from a corner, stretching.

The complexions of the Hanzhou instructors immediately darkened. The instructor called Cha Soon-jae’s face tightened briefly before returning to an angry expression: “Squad Leader Hao, the biggest fraud in the military? Fine! Let's go to the Disciplinary Office together. We'll see if you can bamboozle them into ignoring the evidence.”

While military regulations forbade private fighting, normally, as long as things weren't blown out of proportion, superiors would turn a blind eye. But once the matter reached the Military Disciplinary Office, regardless of how small it seemed, it had to be dealt with according to regulations.

Cha Soon-jae wasn't afraid of Squad Leader Hao. Flowing Star level strength was decent, but it wasn't the greatest threat. Deception was powerful during missions, but in this situation, applying pressure at the Disciplinary Office and revealing Park Jong-hwan’s status as a disciple of the Hanzhou War God would turn even an unjust case into a justifiable one.

This time, to prevent their performance from slipping further in the East Asian Military District's New Recruit Military Skills Competition, they had secretly pulled numerous strings and mobilized resources, bringing in disciples of martial arts masters from all regions through the most legitimate channels into military service. Park Jong-hwan was one such individual.

Based on this connection alone, Cha Soon-jae was confident that even if he couldn't get the offending recruit expelled, he could certainly have him reassigned!

Naturally, Cha Soon-jae’s deeper motive was considering the strength of the recruit who defeated Park Jong-hwan, as this individual might interfere with Park Jong-hwan's participation as their representative—a prime opportunity to showcase the prestige of Greater Hanzhou.

This absolutely could not be spoiled!

In the military factions, everyone had their own hidden agendas.

Whether they ultimately secured the highest honor was not their primary concern.

The most crucial thing was whether their faction could gain recognition in the competition, achieve a decent result, and boost their faction's authority!

Squad Leader Hao’s eyebrows also twitched. He had heard quite a bit lately about the military high command recruiting external help from various martial arts masters.

Someone brought in by the Military District would be at a significant advantage if the case went to the Disciplinary Office.

Cha Soon-jae wore a slightly smug smile: “Squad Leader Hao, if you wish to resort to force, a few of us are happy to accompany you!”

Squad Leader Hao’s greatest expertise was deception, not martial combat. This was the basis for Cha Soon-jae’s confidence in using force.

“Want a fight? Then come to me.”

From the tree trunk, Phoenix leaped down, a look of provocation on her face.

Cha Soon-jae’s expression stiffened. This woman's strength was far greater than Squad Leader Hao’s...

“Who is this? Who is this messing with our company? Want to die? Going to the Military Disciplinary Office for a lawsuit, is it? Since you guys don’t act like men and prefer tattling, fine! I’ll go with you!”

Company Commander Yan of the Third Company, rarely seen, marched out with a fierce scowl, bellowing with his rough voice. His eyes were full of challenging dissatisfaction.

“Company Commander Yan, you must know Park Jong-hwan’s background, right?” Cha Soon-jae found the situation increasingly thorny and decided to deploy his final and most effective tactic to resolve the matter quickly.

“I know! So what?” Company Commander Yan raised his head, pointing at the cluster of new recruits: “I am their company commander! If these brats did something wrong, I, their commander, will beat! punish! scold them! They are my cubs! If anyone dares touch them, I’ll fight them head-on! If I can’t even protect my own cubs, what kind of company commander am I? I might as well go home and farm!”

“Too loud, too loud! All of you shut up. Disperse! Scatter! I finally got some inspiration, and you all ruined it. If you tick me off, I’ll start shooting!”

Ten Thousand Years Second Place! He carried a gun that had been modified into an unknown model with unknown capabilities!

Though no one recognized the firearm, its extremely menacing appearance exuded a faint, volatile aura of slaughter, making anyone who saw it feel a pang of fear.

Cha Soon-jae looked innocently at Gun King Ten Thousand Years Second Place. He was still some distance from his research institute; even if people were shouting through loudspeakers, the noise might not carry that far.

No one was a fool, and Cha Soon-jae was no exception. Gun King’s relationship with Squad Leader Hao was openly ironclad; he had clearly been hiding nearby all along.

“Gun King, you better not wade into this mess,” Cha Soon-jae’s expression turned cold: “Go back to researching your guns. The currents behind this matter are deep.”

“Fine, no problem.”

Ten Thousand Years Second Place’s immediate withdrawal stunned Cha Soon-jae. This was completely abnormal.

“You guys better keep a close watch on your so-called genius. If one night he’s walking alone and gets shot dead in an ambush, just don’t blame me.”

Ten Thousand Years Second Place left without looking back, delivering one final remark.

Cha Soon-jae and the other Hanzhou legionnaires’ faces shifted from dark to pale.

This was an undisguised threat. Many in the recruit camp knew Gun King’s marksmanship. Although Park Jong-hwan was capable, he currently had no defense against Gun King’s assassination methods.

If Gun King truly acted, even if everyone knew it was him, as long as he didn't confess, finding tangible proof of his involvement would be nearly impossible for anyone.

“Wait...” Cha Soon-jae moved to block Gun King’s path, his expression very serious: “Are you really going to interfere?”

“I said I’m not getting involved.”

Cha Soon-jae’s eyes darted around. Squad Leader Hao, Phoenix, and Gun King had all appeared. Who knew if Butcher and the others were lurking nearby too?

Although these individuals were effectively exiled to the recruit camp, in a sense, they were self-exiled. The military upper echelons still possessed considerable influence; many officers were their trainees or former comrades-in-arms.

If this truly escalated, it would become troublesome for everyone in the end.

Cha Soon-jae took several deep, composed breaths, silently cursing: What rotten luck. This happened precisely in Squad Leader Hao’s company, and it involved hitting his soldier. If the fight hadn't happened, perhaps Hao would have stood aside.