Beyond the Zenith

Just before Han Qingyu went down to the arena floor, Wen Jifei asked him with undisguised glee, “You’re about to get beaten up in front of all these people. How are you feeling?”

“It’s not like it’ll be embarrassing if I lose to him.” Han Qingyu smiled.

Losing was a certainty. If he were already enough to beat a B-rank captain from the Gold Erasers, that would mean the Coalition was in real trouble.

Besides, this was a friendly match. The point was to learn. He had no intention of going all out to win.

“This is a rare opportunity. Let’s see how much of Captain Qin’s strength I can draw out. I might actually learn something,” Han Qingyu said, vaulting over the bleachers’ railing and dropping down to the arena floor.

Qin Guowen, already wearing his device, came over to greet him.

As they sat down next to each other, Qin Guowen muttered under his breath, “T-t-this is terrible. With this kind of crowd, everyone’s going to laugh at me if I even take one hit, won’t they? Then when I get back to the platoon, aiyo, they’ll never let me hear the end of it.”

Han Qingyu was getting an excellent impression of the Gold Erasers from this guy. He just didn’t know what to say.

“I heard you made a C-rank instructor cough up blood last time?” Qin Guowen asked.

“That wasn’t really me.” Han Qingyu had already decided to stop promoting Lao Jian’s blood-spraying tendencies in case he accidentally became known as the Second Blood Gourd Boy.

“Why not?”

“It’s complicated.”

“Oh, you can’t talk about it?” Qin Guowen asked. “Fair enough. All set?”

“I’m ready.” Han Qingyu gestured toward his gear and blade.

The two of them got up and prepared to take the stage, but someone else beat them to it.

Liang Ge stood on the platform, wearing a pleasant smile. “Since this seems to be a customary recruit assessment for the Color Erasers, how could we White Erasers possibly sit it out? I’ll go first. That’s not going to be a problem, right?”

Han Qingyu froze briefly below the platform. “Do we actually have that custom?”

“We did... years ago.” Qin Guowen’s mind raced. “This is bad. He’s here to settle the score. You’re probably in trouble.”

On the way over, Qin Guowen had heard the gossip about Han Qingyu’s rejection of the White Erasers. He was thrilled, not just because it all but confirmed he’d landed Han Qingyu for the Gold Erasers, but because the whole affair had firmly placed Gold above White.

Liang Ge’s seemingly impulsive move wasn’t just about making things hard for Han Qingyu. He was here to prove the White Erasers’ worth. If he didn’t do this, this batch of recruits would spread that story, and the White Erasers would lose face.

“He’s definitely going to beat you up. If he doesn’t hold back, you’re looking at serious injuries,” Qin Guowen added.

At this point, Han Qingyu understood. He was in for a rough time.

Meanwhile, up on the platform, Liang Ge continued, “Let me also clarify something about this morning’s rumors. Nobody has the right to reject the White Erasers. There are only people who want to join, but those we don’t want. If someone thinks they can step on the White Erasers’ name to boost their own using garbage gossip like this, then I feel... very obligated to teach them a lesson.”

Sure enough... This is going to hurt.

“Hold on, aren’t you only allowed to use ordinary iron blades in the arena?” Han Qingyu turned to Qin Guowen in confusion. He had participated in simulated combat before. They were allowed to use maneuvering devices, but not dead iron blades. “Even if he wants to beat me up, it can’t be that bad.”

“Blades don’t hurt people. Fists and feet do,” Qin Guowen explained simply.

These eight words exposed the loophole in the simulation’s rules. The arena used ordinary iron blades that couldn’t channel or withstand source energy. Fists and feet, though, delivered raw source energy attacks. If the gap in strength was wide enough, the damage could still be severe, lethal even.

“Can I just not participate in the assessment?”

“You can. Just go up and say you forfeit. In a situation like this, though, you might never hold your head up again.”

“Oh.” Han Qingyu seriously considered it and realized forfeiting would undermine many of his future plans. “Then how about you go first, Captain Qin?”

“Me?” Qin Guowen was taken aback. This was a recruit assessment, and he wasn’t a recruit. “Why would I go first?”

“To fight over the venue, and fight over who goes first. Gold or White. Make it a dispute,” Han Qingyu suggested earnestly.

“Oh? You’ve actually got some clever ideas.”

“Yeah. Go up and pick a fight with him. If you put him on the ground, I’ll be safe.”

“Brilliant plan.” Qin Guowen nodded approvingly, then paused. “There’s just one slight problem.”

“What problem?”

“I can’t beat him either.”

Han Qingyu stared blankly at him.

“Even if I go up and take a beating first, that’s just one extra humiliation. He’ll still come for you right after,” Qin Guowen said.

Han Qingyu hesitated. “You’re that weak?”

“It’s not that I’m weak. I’m only a B-ranker, and I’ve only been in the Gold Erasers for six years. Liang Ge has been in the White Erasers for eleven years, and his rank is B+. His combat power probably puts him close to the top ten on their side.”

Basically, Han Qingyu was done for. Completely and utterly done for. Still, he refused to accept it. “That can’t be right. If what you’re saying is true, how are you already a captain while he’s only a first lieutenant?”

“Because Liang Ge of the White Erasers is a well-known lunatic. He’s constantly getting into trouble for breaking rules,” Qin Guowen whispered with a smile.

***

Up on the platform, Liang Ge leaned close under the pretense of greeting him and murmured into Han Qingyu’s ear, “Relax. I won’t kill you. But you know what they say: fists are blind. Maybe you’ll get surface scratches, or maybe some ruptured organs. And if you end up bedridden for, say, half a year. That would teach you a lesson, wouldn’t it?”

The lunatic had compressed yesterday’s humiliation and this morning’s fury into a single, seething mass.

After making that threat, he stepped back, and the two of them stood with blades at the ready.

Everyone in the stands who understood the situation and was worried for Han Qingyu clenched their sweating fists.

Mira looked anxious.

Regiment Commander Li ground his teeth. “If he puts even one scratch on that kid, I’ll raise hell with the higher-ups. I won’t let this go, even if it costs me everything.”

Three seconds passed. Then, five... ten... fifteen seconds.

A baffling silence. It was a standoff.

“Why aren’t you activating your device?” Liang Ge asked.

“Nerves,” Han Qingyu honestly admitted.

Low laughter broke out.

Liang Ge considered his words. The kid was trying to avoid a proper fight. If Han Qingyu never activated his device, then a White Erasers veteran had absolutely no reason to activate his own and attack first. He couldn’t afford that kind of embarrassment.

Even if neither activated their devices, the simulation still offered the option of unarmed hand-to-hand combat. It was a way to train fundamentals and muscle reflexes, a test of physical conditioning. It was a common choice in practice, too, because it saved energy cores.

In that case, though, a knockdown could count as a loss, and the potential for injury was greatly reduced.

Determined not to let Han Qingyu off easy, Liang Ge stepped forward and reached for the metal bands on Han Qingyu’s chest. “Forget about dodging this. If you won’t activate, I’ll do it for you.”

The broad movements on his wide frame made it look like an opening attack.

Han Qingyu retaliated decisively, planting a kick squarely into Liang Ge’s chest.

Fuck, he has a death wish, Liang Ge cursed inwardly.

Stepping back, he swept his right hand out in a grab, certain he had read Han Qingyu’s intent. He was fully confident in unarmed combat and intended to pin the kid in such a way that he could beat him without letting him hit the ground, preventing things from ending early.

Even in hand-to-hand, you’re still—wait. How is he this fast?! Liang Ge reeled.

Meanwhile, in the eyes of the audience, the match had begun. They had chosen unarmed combat.

The crack of impact sounded throughout the arena.

Of course, clashes between masters are explosive, even in unarmed combat, the audience thought.

Only Liang Ge knew the truth. Even though he had managed to cushion the blow with his arm against his chest, the force behind Han Qingyu’s strike was staggeringly, impossibly powerful. Of course, he had no way of knowing about Han Qingyu’s ability to absorb raw metal cores.

Han Qingyu had since absorbed two metal cores and still had liquid source energy in his body. If he were to go all out in hand-to-hand combat, he could confidently claim to be unmatched in the entire army.

Something’s off. This kid seems to have trained in hand-to-hand combat. As a seasoned veteran, Liang Ge was wild but not stupid. He was already preparing to call a halt and propose they switch to a device-equipped duel.

He never got the chance.

The instant Han Qingyu’s left foot touched the ground, he launched himself into the air and whipped his right leg around.

Crack!

A blindingly fast high roundhouse kick connected solidly with the side of Liang Ge’s neck.

The sound of flesh hitting flesh echoed across the arena.

Gasps erupted from the crowd. Liang Ge, nearly six foot three and built like a wall, swayed. He threw his right foot out half a step, trying to steady himself, but couldn’t.

His entire body began to tilt, slowly, uncontrollably, as he took one staggering step to the side and collapsed headfirst to the ground with a thud.

A second and a half of lightning-fast exchanges, followed by stunned silence.

Hits?

Two.

The recruit?

Standing.

The White Eraser?

Down.