Many of them, Qin Fen was confident he could dispatch within a hundred moves; only a handful of the absolute top contenders were those he couldn't be sure about, including the young master Feng Zhiyu mentioned in the message.

Was it due to a lack of real combat experience? After sparring in person today, did he gain a clearer understanding of his own strength? Qin Fen gently shook his head, dismissing the guess. If he couldn't gauge his own level when facing a mere Two-Star Warrior, he’d truly be an imbecile.

Could it be that liquid titanium metal? Qin Fen felt a knot of unease. He shut down the computer before him and decided to head to the hospital for a brief check-up. If there was truly an issue, it was best to resolve it quickly; after all, one only has one life.

The exorbitant cost of hospital check-ups stung his heart. Qin Fen withdrew a sum of money from his account, which had suddenly surged by tens of thousands of New Taiwan Dollars, and hurried into the hospital.

Blood draw, fluoroscopy, X-rays!

After a series of procedures and associated charges, Qin Fen once again felt the pain in his wallet as the cash vanished. No matter the examination, his body appeared perfectly normal. The metal content in his blood was fine. The X-ray plates showed only the usual organs—heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, bones, and intestines—with no sign of that slimy, somewhat repulsive sphere of liquid metal.

Back in his room, Qin Fen lay on the bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep. Finally giving up, he sat cross-legged on the bed, intending to continue cultivating the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill. Lately, he had clearly felt the signs of breaking through the second level and entering the third stage of the Dragon-Elephant Prajna Skill, yet the breakthrough remained elusive.

Focus the mind! Quiet the breath! Mobilize the internal energy within the body...

No use! Qin Fen forcefully shook his head. His body remained in an inexplicable state of excitement, and his mind was caught in a wave of indescribable euphoria, making it impossible to cultivate internal energy with the necessary tranquility.

Focus the mind, quiet the breath! Mobilize the internal energy...

Still no! Qin Fen tried several times to enter a meditative state, but each attempt was shattered by the inexplicable surge of excitement.

Sleep. He couldn't sleep! Meditation. He couldn't enter it! Should he practice martial arts until dawn? Qin Fen leaned against the wall, gazing at the moon outside the window. He quickly dismissed the idea of getting up to punch. If he trained excessively now, he would likely deplete his energy for the construction site tomorrow. Appropriate exercise was fine, but overexertion... the cost was too high. For the impoverished Qin Fen, that was an unforgivable luxury.

With nothing left to do, Qin Fen stared blankly out the window. A massive interstellar vessel was breaching the atmosphere, heading for other planets. Humanity now completely dominated the five major planets of the Solar System, becoming the undisputed sovereign of the system. In this age of popular interstellar tourism, he hadn't even visited another planet, let alone left the island of Taiwan.

"Brother, are you still on Mars?" Qin Fen murmured softly, "Five years. Why haven't I heard anything from you?"

Opening the pocket watch on his chest, he looked at the yellowed, old photograph inside. Qin Fen’s eyebrows slowly drew together toward the center of his forehead. Since his elder brother’s sudden disappearance, he had transformed from a child unaware of life's hardships into someone mature in a matter of years.

Looking at the photograph, recalling the past, the restless excitement in Qin Fen's heart gradually subsided. He sat there, dwelling on every tiny detail from before, until the timer on his bedside table emitted a soft beep-beep, making him realize he had been sitting for nearly the entire night.

"Time to deliver the milk!" Qin Fen paid no heed to anything else, jumping out of bed and rushing out of the room.

Morning milk delivery was one of Qin Fen’s sources of income. Unlike other milkmen, he didn't use a bicycle or motorcycle for transport; instead, he carried the milk crates on his shoulders and ran from house to house.

It earned money and exercised his physical stamina! On his quest to find his brother, Qin Fen always felt that martial skills might be needed, so while earning money, he frequently and intentionally sought out methods that could simultaneously train his body.

After delivering milk to a hundred homes, he ate a quick breakfast by the roadside. Yet, Qin Fen felt not the slightest hint of fatigue in his spirit or body.

Since the hospital couldn't find anything wrong, worrying was useless! Qin Fen managed to talk himself into a better frame of mind and headed straight for school: one of East Asia’s Big Three High Schools—Bao Dao Jian Zhong!

Standing at the school gate, a slight breeze brushed past, and Qin Fen’s heightened spirit jolted again. Although the surroundings looked identical to yesterday, he had the distinct feeling that the entire world was sharper than it had been the day before.

It was profound! Qin Fen couldn't articulate exactly what it was. A martial artist ought to possess the ability to observe all directions and listen to all sounds, maintaining a clear awareness of the environment at all times—some people called this capability Perception.

Qin Fen had always been confident in his perception, believing few peers could surpass him at the same level. But today, Qin Fen experienced an ineffable sensation, as if his entire body had sprouted eyes. The clarity and range of his perception had visibly increased since yesterday.

A hand slapped quickly toward his back. Qin Fen paused slightly, a look of surprise crossing his face. In the past, he could only sense who was greeting him from behind; today, it was as if his back truly had eyes, allowing him to perceive, through the subtle flow of air, even the minute changes in the facial muscles of the person greeting him!

"Hey!" A reasonably strong hand landed on Qin Fen's shoulder, and a handsome, sunny face appeared before him. "What's with you? Usually, you show at least a faint reaction, but today you didn't react at all! Did you hear about that thing?"

"What thing?" Qin Fen adopted a look of mild curiosity to humor his companion, who seemed to be holding back some cryptic information.

Lin Liqiang: The number one heartthrob at Jian Zhong. Handsome, and even when dozing off during exams, his grades were always among the school's top tier. No one knew the true depth of his martial arts prowess; he merely claimed an undefeated record of a hundred victories on the Sky Martial Arts Network. Yet, this wasn't what drew the most attention. His research into bio-beasts was what astonished people the most. Still pre-university, he had already been accepted as a special recruitment student by the Federal University of Science and Technology's biochemistry department, hailed as a once-in-a-century genius in bio-beast research. His catchphrase: "The magnificent..."

Despite the external praise, Lin Liqiang was utterly unimpressed. He frequently complained to Qin Fen that everyone else in the world was blind; only Qin Fen and Inzatorota had eyes keen enough to recognize his greatest strength.

Of course, this "strength" always left Qin Fen feeling a mix of exasperation and amusement. It was hard to imagine that Lin Liqiang took greater pride in his prowess at wooing girls than in the talent and skill that even the Federation's top bio-beast experts admired.