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[Myriad Blood Pearl
Rank: Level 1, 37%
Blood Soul: 10 beads]
Early in the morning, Li Fei woke up from bed, and the first thing he did was to check the Myriad Blood Pearl inside his body and found that the rank data had become Level 1, 37%.
The Myriad Blood Pearl would automatically absorb energy from his body, so his appetite was much greater than before, and the increase was due to what the Myriad Blood Pearl absorbed.
However, Li Fei's stomach was only so large and his digestive capacity had its limits, so the Myriad Blood Pearl could only absorb energy slowly. Hence, rank data could only be improved gradually, at an average speed of 1% per day.
"I've heard that Martial Artists eat far more than ordinary people, so once I become a Martial Artist, the upgrade speed of the Myriad Blood Pearl should be able to accelerate."
Li Fei could only hold such expectations.
After getting up and dressing in a white shirt and black trousers as usual, he went out for a morning run with Li Tianyu.
As students of the Zhi Ge Department, this was one of their compulsory daily tasks.
More than half an hour later, the two returned and had breakfast with Li Lei and Zhang Yuqing.
After breakfast, Li Fei changed into a black school uniform and left the house with Li Lei.
"Get in the car."
Li Lei called out and opened the car, a Jin Feng brand sedan assigned to him by the Inspection Bureau.
Li Fei sat in the passenger seat and buckled his seat belt in a practiced manner.
Today, Li Lei was taking him to the Martial Arts Hall to sign up.
On the drive, Li Fei saw a tram stopped at a platform, with nearly a hundred people frantically squeezing in.
This tram, which appeared last year in Xing City as a 'new thing,' made it much more convenient for many office workers who couldn't afford bicycles, to commute by tram each day.
But because the tram system was quite new, there weren't many tracks and wires laid out yet, so the number was limited, and there were too many commuters, resulting in morning and evening rush hours in the city.
This familiar sight made Li Fei somewhat emotional. He was now a car owner and no longer had to suffer this plight.
Passing by an alley, Li Fei noticed a van from the Inspection Bureau parked outside and the alley crowded with people, which made him ask:
"Uncle Li, what's happening here?"
Li Lei glanced at the alley:
"The bureau received a report yesterday that someone had found a base of the Calming Sect. It seems that they have confirmed it and come to shut it down today."
Hearing this, Li Fei curiously asked:
"Uncle Li, can these people from the Calming Sect use magic?"
Li Lei disdainfully replied, "Core believers might know a few spells, but they are all tricks to play god and fool people's hearts, useless against those with a strong will."
"What does powerful magic look like? Can it summon wind and rain, move mountains and seas?"
Li Fei continued to ask.
His former self was a loner, not fond of interacting with Li Lei; much of the information Li Fei had to extract himself.
"Ha ha, summon wind and rain, move mountains and seas? Xiao Fei, where did you read that in a novel?"
Li Lei was amused by Li Fei's words, "If magic were that powerful, the Da Lan Dynasty wouldn't hold martial artists in such high esteem. The greatest use of magic, in fact, is in military formations, enabling the elite Imperial Camp Army to develop Military Evil. That is the real power that allows the Da Lan Dynasty to dominate the world."
"Military Formation? Military Evil?"
Li Fei had not expected the world's magic to be primarily used in the army; this was different from what he had imagined.
He continued to ask Li Lei about martial arts and magic, increasing his understanding of this world.
Twenty-odd minutes later, Li Lei drove to a stone archway.
The gate featured three arches, one large and two small. The largest was nearly twenty meters wide with three characters - Martial Arts Hall - inscribed in a flourish.
Li Lei drove directly through the gate.
The roads within the Martial Arts Hall were very spacious, with rows of ginkgo trees on both sides, and their golden leaves scattered on the ground.
The place looked similar to the technical school Li Fei attended, only larger. On the sports field, hundreds of robust men wearing black shirts were running and shouting loudly in unison:
"Strive to become stronger without cease!"
"Serve our country with martial arts!"
"Strive to become stronger without cease!"
"Serve our country with martial arts!"
"..."
Li Fei's previous experience in the system had made him cautious and thorough. Having decided to go to the Martial Arts Hall, he had done his homework in advance, meticulously researching information about the Martial Arts Hall. Thus, he was aware of the origin of this slogan:
The policy to build Martial Arts Halls across the land was proposed by the incumbent Grand Secretary Tong Bai, with the aim of encouraging everyone to practice martial arts for health, to strive without cease, and for those with talent to serve the country with martial arts to make the nation increasingly powerful.
This slogan "Strive to become stronger without cease, serve our country with martial arts" was set by Tong Bai, and Martial Arts Halls everywhere used it as a maxim, demanding that students shout it out during daily martial arts practice.
After the implementation of Ming Xin Reforms, the current Grand Secretary proposed that each year, some quotas be allocated from various Martial Arts Halls to enter the Zhi Ge Department of the twelve universities, with the local Martial Arts Halls covering all tuition fees. The aim was to give talented martial arts students from humble backgrounds the opportunity to enter universities and serve the country.
In this world, 'humble background' refers to families with low social status, like the Li Family, where the head of the family was a mid-level civil servant with a house, car, and savings - only such were considered to have humble origins.
This also made Li Fei secretly rejoice at his good fortune. If he had been born into a commoner's family, he wouldn't have had the qualifications to practice martial arts, let alone change his social status and fate, even with the help of something like the Myriad Blood Pearl.
Li Lei parked the car at the parking spot and then led Li Fei toward a large building.
"Once we go up, speak less. Do whatever you're told."
Li Lei seriously instructed Li Fei.
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Li Fei nodded, "Alright."
The two made their way to the fifth floor and arrived outside an office with a sign that read "Special Instructor."
Li Fei had done his homework and knew that the instructors at the Martial Arts Hall were divided into three categories: ordinary instructors, senior instructors, and special instructors.
Ordinary and senior instructors weren't notably special, but a special instructor directly determined the strength and reputation of a Martial Arts Hall.
Li Fei had not expected that Li Lei could actually bring him to meet a special instructor.
Li Lei gently knocked on the door.
Soon, the door opened, revealing a middle-aged man wearing a gray robe and black leather gloves, with a stern expression.
"Mr. Hao."
Li Lei greeted the man with a smile on his face, very courteously.
"Captain Li."
Mr. Hao, without much expression, simply gestured for the two to enter.
After entering, Li Fei glanced at the nameplate on the desk, which read "Hao Yi." This must be the man's name.
Once seated, Li Lei got straight to the point, pointing to Li Fei:
"Mr. Hao, this is my boy."
Although Li Fei was unwilling to call him godfather, Li Lei announced to everyone that Li Fei was his son, leading many to believe Li Fei was actually his son.
Hao Yi looked at Li Fei, his expression softening a bit, and nodded:
"He does have an upright appearance."
Here, it must be said something about Li Fei's appearance:
With his thick eyebrows and big eyes, he looked righteous and upright, giving the impression of a good man, an extremely honest person.
Li Lei's face brightened with happiness, "Does he catch Mr. Hao's eye?"
Hao Yi looked at him, "Captain Li, although I owe you a favor, not just anyone can become my student."
It was then that Li Fei realized that Li Lei had actually brought him here to seek apprenticeship.
"Mr. Hao..."
"What was your medical examination rank at your school?"
Hao Yi suddenly asked Li Fei.
Li Fei truthfully replied, "Grade B."
"Too low."
Hao Yi shook his head.
Upon hearing this, Li Lei sighed, understanding that the favor Hao Yi owed him was minor, and bringing Li Fei to seek apprenticeship was merely a shot in the dark; he had not really expected success.
"If that is the case, then we should..."
"Can you endure hardship?"
Hao Yi suddenly asked.
After shaking his head, he observed Li Fei's expression, seeing that he remained calm and not disheartened by rejection. Such temperament, coupled with his honest looks, made him willing to give a chance.
"I can endure hardship!"
Li Fei said with certainty.
In his previous life, during the two years he was targeted, he had worked like an ox and horse. Enduring hardship had become instinctive to him, or else he wouldn't have been worked to a sudden death.
After all, when an ox or horse is tired, it knows to rest, but when the ox or horse is tired, it just gets served a cup of coffee and keeps working.
Hao Yi nodded, "Go do the Horse Stance so I can take a look."
Li Fei, who was naturally cautious and had been warned by Li Lei earlier, stood up without a word and took a standard Horse Stance in an open area.
Seeing Li Fei so obedient, Hao Yi was pleased and picked up a small black porcelain bottle from the desk, pouring out a pill and handing it to Li Fei:
"After taking this pill, you will feel an unbearable itching all over your body. If you can maintain the Horse Stance for ten minutes under this condition, I will take you as my student."
"Mr. Hao, this..."
Li Lei stood up, intending to say something.
But Hao Yi was not looking at him, only staring into Li Fei's eyes:
"Are you willing to give it a try?"
Though any hesitation shown by Li Fei would cause him to retract the pill and ask him to leave,
Li Fei clearly understood this was a test for him.
So he took the pill and placed it directly into his mouth.
"Xiao Fei!"
Li Lei called out, but Li Fei had already chewed and swallowed the pill.
Ordinary people, faced with a potentially poisonous pill, would show fear and hesitation, even if they knew an antidote could be taken afterward, but Li Fei did not hesitate for a moment.
This decisive action increased Mr. Hao's satisfaction with Li Fei.
However, this was not sufficient for him to accept Li Fei as a student.
Although he was willing to offer this one opportunity, if Li Fei could not seize it, he would not take him on as a student.
...