In the Starlight Federation, the people value martial prowess, and those with exceptional combat abilities as cultivators enjoy an unparalleled status. Every citizen of the Federation regards embarking on the path of cultivation as the greatest honor.
Even if they cannot become cultivators, people still enjoy building their strength, tempering their bodies, and sculpting their physiques, maintaining the habit of cultivation throughout their lives.
Therefore, fitness clubs, cultivation halls, and martial arts schools can be seen everywhere in the streets and alleys. Those who cultivate there are not necessarily fierce martial arts masters; most are law-abiding, rule-following students and office workers.
Li Yao saw the sign of the "Military Path Wolf Killing Cultivation Hall" and gained more confidence.
He knew that the owners of such places are mostly fanatical cultivation enthusiasts. They produce "counterfeit enhancement potions," mostly for themselves and the members of the cultivation hall to consume. Making money is not the primary goal, so they often spare no expense and ensure a certain quality.
Feeling the spider pattern on his face, Li Yao walked in confidently.
The cultivation hall was not large in appearance, but inside it was a different world. In the power training room of about three to four hundred square meters, more than a dozen strong men with bulging muscles and sweating profusely were making the barbells, steel cables, and iron plates clang loudly. In the corner, another man was fiercely hitting a sandbag.
Li Yao scanned around and found that these men were not lifting very heavy weights, and their faces were quite honest and kind, not fierce at all. They seemed to be ordinary office workers, which made him let out a sigh of relief and feel more at ease.
He walked to the corner, preparing to ask the strong man who was hitting the sandbag — this man seemed the most kind-faced.
This strong man, however, just took a bow step forward, thrust his back hand, and struck a heavy punch, exerting all his strength and sending the sandbag flying high, colliding with Li Yao's face with a "slap" sound.
The strong man exclaimed "Ah" and quickly asked, "Are you okay?"
Li Yao shook his head, his nose felt a bit sour, his nostrils twitched a couple of times, and he shook his head, saying, "I'm fine. Where can I find Director Zhao?"
...
Behind the strength training room, in a small tea room, two military green cushions sat a strong man each, with two teapots and dishes of smoked meat, roasted chicken, peanuts, and other cooked dishes between them.
The man on the left was about forty or fifty years old, with a pockmarked bald head tattooed with a wolf head with a military spear inserted, and his left arm was cut off from the shoulder, replaced by a spiritual mechanical prosthetic arm engraved with thousands of runes.
The man on the right seemed to be a young man under thirty, wearing a very low-key gray military overcoat that had been worn for many years and had faded.
If Li Yao saw this person, he would be very excited — this young man was none other than the idol in the hearts of all students in Chi Xiao No. 2 Middle School, the new favorite in the cultivation circle of Fugao City, the foundation-building cultivator, the demon knife Peng Hai!
At this moment, Peng Hai had no aura of a powerful cultivator. He raised the teapot and said to the bald tattooed man, "Old instructor, come on, for the fierce battles we had on the demon beast wasteland back then, let's have another drink!"
The teapot was clearly the coarsest Erguotou liquor, but Peng Hai, a great cultivator who was used to luxury and extravagance, seemed to have seen a nectar, drank it in one go, and smacked his lips loudly: "Good wine, this is what a man should drink!"
The bald tattooed man used the spiritual mechanical prosthetic arm, somewhat stiffly picked up the teapot, and said with emotion, "Ah Hai, I know you are a boy who values feelings and loyalty. Even after becoming a foundation-building cultivator, you don't forget us old comrades who fought side by side with you! But you have a heart, and it's enough to come and drink with me every three or five days. There's really no need to keep cultivating here — my place is amateur level, the level is very low, and you, a foundation-building cultivator, are just wasting time here!"
Peng Hai smiled: "Old instructor, the friendship between us is not as simple as the four words 'born and died together.' Back then, when we carried out the 'Black Blade Operation' together, if you hadn't blocked that blow for me, I would have died and couldn't be a foundation-building cultivator. And you, old instructor..."
His gaze swept over the left hand of the bald tattooed man, and Peng Hai's voice also carried a touch of heaviness, "But you lost your whole left arm, and 70% of your heart was blown away, falling from the thirteenth level of the Qi refining period to the level of an ordinary martial artist, and had to leave the 'Wolf Group'..."
The bald tattooed man waved his hand, not caring at all, and said, "The path of cultivation is full of dangers, and it's a life-and-death situation. Since I've embarked on this path, I've long put my head on my belt, ready to die at any time! Just losing a hand, what's the big deal? If you can't see through this, you might as well go back home and work as a white-collar worker to find a wife, isn't it safer? You don't have to always keep that matter in mind. We who come out to cultivate, whether we break our hands and feet or go back home to sell salted duck eggs, it's all up to God, it's all fate! I broke my hand, it was destined, what does it have to do with you? Besides, if I'm not allowed to cultivate, then I won't cultivate. I get a lot of 'disabled veterans' allowance' every month, drinking wine, roasting skewers, and never lacking in bed companions, I don't know how comfortable and happy I am! And the old comrades who are still in the army, yes, many have become foundation-building cultivators, and there have even been two Jiedan great cultivators, so what? Maybe tomorrow they will become a pile of feces in the belly of a demon beast, and there will be no residue left! Thinking about it this way, I still made a profit, hahaha!"
Peng Hai said with pleasure, "Being able to pick up and put down is the old instructor I remember, a tough man with a strong will! But there is one thing, old instructor, you are wrong. I come here every day, not to waste time, but to practice very important cultivation."
The bald tattooed man widened his eyes: "Cultivation? In this broken place, what kind of tricks can you practice?"
Peng Hai smiled faintly and explained, "My instant spiritual power burst has reached the 'high-level foundation-building period,' but it is very unstable. In several critical battles, it unexpectedly dropped back to the 'middle-level foundation-building period,' almost killing me — this is because my absolute power has increased too fast, and my control over the power is not yet proficient. To truly stand firm in the 'high-level foundation-building period' and even challenge the 'peak foundation-building period,' I must completely solve this problem!"
The bald tattooed man pondered for a moment and nodded, "You are one of the youngest foundation-building cultivators in the Federation, and your rapid advancement does indeed bring the problem of unstable foundation. How do you plan to solve it?"
Peng Hai smiled, "In order to control my own power, every time I come to the old instructor's 'Military Path Wolf Killing Cultivation Hall,' I will suppress my power to 3% and only exert 3% of my strength for super-overload training!"
The bald tattooed man suddenly realized, "So you only exerted 3% of your strength? No wonder I can't feel any aura of a cultivator from you."
Peng Hai nodded, "I have persisted for a month in the state of 3%. In this way, when I lift the limit and exert 100% of my strength, I feel that the instant burst power has been greatly improved, and the control of spiritual energy has also increased a lot! My goal is to eventually suppress my own power to 1% and still be able to carry out super-overload training and confrontation. If I can do it, I will definitely be able to rush to the peak of the foundation-building period!"
He paused for a moment, smiled regretfully, "The instability of spiritual power is my biggest weakness, and I don't want others to know, so I can only come to the old instructor for cultivation — in Fugao City, I only trust two people, the old instructor is one of them. It's a pity that the members here are too weak, none of them can withstand my attack with 3% strength for three minutes! Just doing strength training seems to be a bit short."
The bald tattooed man glared at him and said, "The members here are all serious office workers and working-class people, not professional martial artists, of course, they are not enough for you to fight against. Even if you only use 3% of your strength, it's just a one-sided slaughter! However, don't say that the old instructor doesn't take care of you. I know you are looking for a tough sparring partner, so I specially contacted a gold medal sparring partner who is a little famous in the circle, and he will be here soon."
Peng Hai was immediately interested: "Oh? Is he formidable?"
The bald tattooed man said, "I was introduced by a friend and haven't met him myself, but this person has been hanging around the underground ghost market for many years and has been a professional sparring partner in several martial arts schools. It is said that he has an extremely strong ability to withstand blows and is nicknamed 'Iron Turtle.' He should be able to withstand your 3% strength for three minutes, right?"
The left side of the tea room has a whole wall made of one-way transparent glass, from which you can see the situation in the strength training room.
As the two were talking, they happened to see Li Yao walk in and get hit hard in the face by a sandbag, but he looked as if nothing had happened.
"He's here, how about that, is he okay?" The bald tattooed man stood up.