High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Xu Wuyi turned off the light screen and walked to his bedroom.

He needed to pack his bags and say goodbye to his parents.

”Dad, Mom.”

In the living room, Mrs. Xu was knitting a sweater while Father Xu watched the news.

”I’ve received my assignment. I’m being stationed over by the Red River for a while,” Xu Wuyi said, trying to keep his tone light. ”It’s a routine defensive mission, still within the province, so it’s not far.”

Mrs. Xu set down her knitting needles. Worry filled her eyes, but she ultimately just nodded. ”Be safe, and make sure you eat properly.”

”Don’t worry,” Xu Wuyi smiled. ”I’ll be assisting a Grandmaster this time. It’s much safer than the front lines.”

Father Xu stood up and clapped his son on the shoulder. ”Go. Do what you have to do.”

After the brief farewell, Xu Wuyi returned to his room and began packing his gear.

The Liaoyuan Long Spear was essential. He couldn’t stop practicing his two new Martial Arts, and he also had to bring along his Earth-Core Flame Iron and potions.

He changed into a set of standard-issue, dark gray combat fatigues, put on a windbreaker, and finally set his personal AI, Anna, to standby.

Everything was ready.

At two o’clock in the afternoon, the military-arranged vehicle stopped precisely on time in front of Yunhai Prefecture.

Xu Wuyi shouldered his pack and pulled open the vehicle’s door.

The driver was a quiet, middle-aged soldier who merely nodded in greeting before starting the engine.

The vehicle drove out of Linjiang City and onto the high-speed transitway leading to the Red River.

The scenery outside the window gradually changed from city buildings to farmland and hills, finally giving way to a continuous mountain range. The silhouette of the Black Wind Mountain Range appeared on the horizon, like a crouching behemoth.

Three hours later, the vehicle left the main road and turned onto a concealed military branch road.

The road became rough, flanked by dense woods. A faint Energy Fluctuation began to fill the air—the characteristic residual radiation from a large-scale Rift.

After another twenty minutes, a checkpoint appeared ahead.

Four automated turrets were arranged in a diamond formation, their muzzles swiveling ominously. A dozen fully-armed soldiers guarded the roadblock, all of them at least Level 30, their gazes as sharp as a hawk’s.

Xu Wuyi presented his Recruitment Order. After passing through a triple-scan verification, the checkpoint slowly opened.

The vehicle drove deeper.

The further they advanced, the stronger the Energy Fluctuations grew.

Faint, lavender motes of light, visible to the naked eye, began to drift through the air—Energy escaping due to the spatial instability.

At last, in a clearing that had been artificially carved out of a mountain valley, Xu Wuyi saw his destination: the front-line outpost before the Profound Abyssal Rift.

It was less an outpost and more of a small military fortress.

A twenty-meter-high alloy wall formed a ring around the compound, studded with automated defensive weapons and Energy Shield Generators.

Inside the walls, several gray-white buildings were scattered in a well-planned layout, with a three-story command tower at the center.

And beyond the walls, some five hundred meters deeper into the valley—

A dark-red rift tore through heaven and earth.

Xu Wuyi pushed open the vehicle door and stepped out.

He tilted his head back, gazing at the Rift.

It was over thirty meters wide, and its height stretched all the way into the clouds, as far as the eye could see.

The Rift’s interior was a deep, dark red, like congealed blood. Its edges twisted and writhed constantly, emitting unsettling spatial fluctuations.

Occasionally, ripples would spread across the Rift’s surface, caused by the surging tides of Energy within.

And directly in front of the Rift, less than two hundred meters away, a figure in white sat cross-legged.

Grandmaster Ren Bai.

He wore a simple white robe, his long hair fastened with a wooden hairpin, his posture as straight and tall as a pine. Though he was just sitting there in silence, he felt like an invisible mountain peak, suppressing the entire space.

With him at the center, the ground in a three-hundred-meter radius was covered in complex silver runes.

These runes flowed slowly, emitting a gentle yet resilient power, like countless chains coiled around the Rift’s surface, restraining its expansion.

Xu Wuyi could sense the terrifying Energy contained within the Rift. If Grandmaster Ren Bai were to withdraw his suppression at this moment, the entire valley would likely be devoured in an instant.

”Martial Artist Xu, please come with me.”

A young Martial Artist in a dark-blue combat uniform quickly approached, apparently one of the outpost’s personnel. He led Xu Wuyi through the main gate in the wall and into the fortress.

Along the way, they saw many Martial Artists. Some were on patrol, some were maintaining equipment, and others were sitting in corners regulating their breathing, most of them bearing injuries.

The atmosphere was somber, but everything was in perfect order.

”Grandmaster Ren is already aware of your arrival,” the young Martial Artist said as they walked. ”Senior Brother Tang is waiting for you in the command tower.”

”Senior Brother Tang Xiuqi?”

”Correct. Senior Brother Tang is the deputy commander here and is normally in charge of specific combat deployments,” the young Martial Artist explained. ”Grandmaster Ren spends most of his time suppressing the Rift itself. He won’t take action unless a Beast King-level Star Beast appears.”

Xu Wuyi nodded.

The two of them entered the command tower and took the elevator to the third floor.

At the end of the hallway was a spacious operations room, filled with monitoring screens and communications equipment.

Several staff members were bustling about, while Tang Xiuqi, dressed in white, stood before a central holographic sand table, head down as he examined the data it displayed.

Hearing footsteps, he looked up.

”Junior Brother Xu.” Tang Xiuqi’s face still held a sickly pallor, but his eyes were clear. ”You’re here.”

”Senior Brother Tang,” Xu Wuyi greeted with a bow.

”No need for formalities.” Tang Xiuqi waved a hand, signaling for the staff to continue their work as he walked toward Xu Wuyi. ”Trip here go smoothly?”

”It did.”

”Good.” Tang Xiuqi walked to the window, his gaze drifting toward the distant Rift. ”I assume you have some understanding of the situation here.”

”The Profound Abyssal Rift is one of the largest permanent Rifts in Dongjiang Province. At its peak, its width reached forty-five meters. Its depth is unmeasurable, and it connects to a Beast King’s lair deep within the Star Realm.”

He paused, then continued, ”Three years ago, Master came to preside over this place himself. By combining a grand runic array with the Power of his Heart Image, he barely managed to halt its expansion. But to close it completely will require at least another five years.”

”In these three years, we’ve had a small-scale Star Beast emergence, on average, every seven days, and at least one assault by a Great Commander Level beast every half-month. As for a Beast King Level... one appears every three months, on average.”

Xu Wuyi listened in silence.

’A Beast King every three months... That means Grandmaster Ren Bai has to fight a terrifying entity of the same level every so often.’

Meanwhile, the routine, small-scale incursions were handled by Tang Xiuqi and the other garrisoned Martial Artists.

”Your arrival will significantly relieve our pressure,” Tang Xiuqi said, turning to face Xu Wuyi. ”Especially your Area Attack capabilities. You’re much more efficient than we are at dealing with swarms of Low-tier Star Beasts.”

Evidently, he had already learned of Xu Wuyi’s abilities from the military.

”What do you need me to do?” Xu Wuyi asked directly.

”For now, you’ll be assigned to the Second Defensive Echelon,” Tang Xiuqi said, bringing up a light screen that showed the outpost’s defensive deployment plan. ”You’ll be responsible for patrols and monitoring. Once Star Beasts emerge, we’ll decide which echelon to dispatch based on their numbers and Level.”