Double

A minute later, Bai Chen completely abandoned his "offensive" against Fang Yu and threw in the towel. "What?" "Just like that, Fang Yu suppressed the captain?" "Fang Yu's Life Level must be at least Level 25, right?" Xia Yao and Xiong Meng were dumbfounded, and even Qin Yang's eyes flashed with astonishment. Facing Fang Yu's invitation to spar, Bai Chen naturally hadn't refused. The two had tested their skills bare-handed—or more accurately, Bai Chen had been on the attack while Fang Yu neutralized his moves. The members of the Scarlet Flame Squad had anticipated Fang Yu winning against Bai Chen, but none of them had imagined he would suppress Bai Chen with such effortless ease. "Fang Yu, you held back," Bai Chen said, stepping back three paces and pulling back his fists, unable to help himself. "Otherwise, you probably could have beaten me in three to five moves." Fang Yu couldn't help but smile. Neither of them had utilized Dark Force explosive power during the spar. His base punch force had already surged past 6,900 kilograms, whereas Captain Bai Chen's base punch force was estimated to be only around 4,600 kilograms. Coupled with his superior technique, how could the gap in their strength not be vast? Before becoming an Earth Martial Artist, when martial artists fought, a twofold difference in power often decided life and death in a single instant. "The captain has taken such good care of me, so I had to give you some face," Fang Yu said, intentionally putting on a helpless expression. "I couldn't actually knock you down in two or three moves, could I, Captain?" "Haha." "Fang Yu, you've changed." Xia Yao, Xiong Meng, and the others all laughed. "Damn it." Bai Chen knew Fang Yu was joking and deliberately widened his eyes. "You brat, are you deliberately teasing me?" Soon after, Bai Chen smiled and said, "Fang Yu, I reckon that even if your Life Level isn't quite at Level 26, it shouldn't be far off. Paired with your Entering the Minute saber technique, you should be capable of holding your own even against that Xia Tao." Fang Yu couldn't help nodding. According to the intelligence, Xia Tao's Life Level was around Level 29. His base punch force was over two thousand kilograms higher than his own, and with Dark Force unleashed, the difference in power would be even greater. However, reaching Entering the Minute with his saber technique could make up for a large portion of that gap. "Fang Yu already reached Entering the Minute with his saber at Level 21. Now that he's awakened a Star Aspect, his Life Level has surged another big step forward. After cultivating for a while longer, he'll definitely catch up with those Earth Academy students." Xiong Meng's eyes gleamed. "I'm guessing that when the practical combat period ends and we return to school, Fang Yu will definitely secure an Earth Contract." "Yeah." "Fang Yu awakened a Middle-Rank Star Aspect, but his number of star acupoints rivals an Upper-Rank Star Aspect... His prospects are limitless; he'll definitely enter the Earth Academy," Bai Chen agreed with a nod. Fang Yu listened quietly. When his Star Aspect awakened, the captain and the others had stood guard nearby, so they had undoubtedly witnessed some of the unusual phenomena... but Fang Yu wasn't worried about it. Instances of awakening a Middle-Rank Star Aspect with a count of star acupoints rivaling an Upper-Rank Star Aspect were extremely rare—probably only a handful appeared across all of Huguang Province in a year—yet throughout the history of the entire Blue Moon Alliance, quite a few had been documented. For example, the textbooks at the Martial Junior College included many such cases, referring to the phenomenon as "Star Aspect Higher-Tiering." Before one became an Earth Martial Artist, a Star Aspect was primarily used to illuminate star acupoints and absorb star force... Therefore, having an absorption efficiency on par with an Upper-Rank Star Aspect was already astonishing enough. "If Xia Tao finds out that Fang Yu awakened a Star Aspect, he'll definitely regret offending him," Xia Yao said fiercely. "Not necessarily." "If he were a normal person, he wouldn't have casually offended several elite students over a treasure worth a few hundred thousand Star Coins," Qin Yang said, shaking his head gently. Bai Chen and Fang Yu both nodded in agreement. If it were over several million or tens of millions of Star Coins, turning on one another and looting might be understandable... but given Xia Tao's status, strength, and background, offending people over a few hundred thousand Star Coins was utterly foolish from an onlooker's perspective. Yet the world was always full of fools! "People like Xia Tao have been arrogant and domineering since childhood. He simply believes no one at school dares to cross him. Until they actually kick an iron plate, it's very hard for them to restrain themselves... If he finds out Fang Yu awakened a Star Aspect, he might only regret not going in for the kill back then," Qin Yang said. Hearing this, Xia Yao seemed somewhat incredulous that such people could exist. "Let's not mention him anymore." "It takes all kinds to make a world," Fang Yu said softly. "The world is round; down the road, there will always be a chance to rid the people of a scourge." Fang Yu had never forgotten Xia Tao's intimidation. However, he knew in his heart that even with his massive progress in strength, beating Xia Tao right now would still be difficult... No matter how much he despised the other man's character, he had to assess their respective strengths objectively. This world was governed by material reality. Even if Xia Tao had relied on his family background to become an Earth Academy student, regardless of the reason, the outcome of joining the Earth Academy proved that his strength was formidable enough. "Fang Yu." "Once we get back to school, you'll probably have to leave our squad," Bai Chen sighed suddenly. "Leave?" Xia Yao and Xiong Meng were both taken aback. "He has to leave," Qin Yang said calmly beside them. "A squad of martial artists must have comparable strength. Differences in power across different roles are permissible, but at least no one should drag the team down. With Fang Yu's current strength, he could probably defeat the four of us combined... and his strength will only continue to improve rapidly." "By the next practical combat period, the gap between us and him will be even wider. Keeping him in our team wouldn't be fair to him," Qin Yang added. "Qin Yang..." Fang Yu started, unable to help himself. "Fang Yu." "Qin Yang is right," Bai Chen said with a smile. "Right now, our squad can still be of some use. But during the next practical combat period, if we search for fierce beasts suited to us, it won't offer you any honing effect." "And searching for fierce beasts suited to you would be far too dangerous for us," Bai Chen said frankly. Fang Yu sighed inwardly. He had to admit that Bai Chen had a point... His strength was bound to experience another massive surge in the coming days. Half a year? He might even have a shot at becoming an Advanced Martial Artist by then. "Let's not worry about the future for now," Xiong Meng chuckled good-naturedly. "At least for the moment, Brother Fang is still our teammate." "That's right." "Fang Yu, once you join the Earth Academy, you've got to cover for me! Heh-heh, an Earth Academy student is my brother," Xia Yao said excitedly. "When the time comes at school, if anyone bullies me, you've got to stick up for me." "Haha, sure. If there's real trouble, I'll definitely do everything I can to help," Fang Yu laughed. Although he hadn't spent a very long time with the members of the Scarlet Flame Squad, their temperaments aligned well and they had faced life and death together. They were good brothers; if they ran into trouble, how could he not help? Bai Chen, Qin Yang, and the others all broke into smiles. "Fang Yu." "Next, should we return directly to the base to rest up, or...?" Bai Chen looked toward Fang Yu, and the others followed suit. Strength determined status. Previously, hunting and resting plans had been advised by Xia Yao and decided by Bai Chen... but now, the actual strongest member of the squad had become Fang Yu. Naturally, they would defer to Fang Yu's ideas. "Let's continue hunting," Fang Yu said. "Even if we return to the base and report that I've awakened a Star Aspect, I'd still have to wait until the end of the practical combat period and return to school before there's any hope of signing an Earth Contract." "Besides, even after signing, wouldn't I still need to keep hunting in the Wilderness Zone?" Fang Yu shook his head. "We might as well stick to the original plan." "We'll hunt for two more days before returning to rest up," Fang Yu said with a smile. "It's just that we can change our hunting target. That pack of silver bears we discovered yesterday—we could consider taking them on." "The silver bear pack?" Everyone felt a surge of excitement. Yesterday, on another mountain ridge several kilometers away, they had spotted a pack of nearly twenty silver bears, which in all likelihood were guarding some Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. However, the pack's strength was too great. According to Xia Yao's estimate, there were three silver bears exceeding Level 25 alone, along with six adult silver bears around Level 22. That had far exceeded what the Scarlet Flame Squad could handle, so they had retreated immediately. But now! Fang Yu's strength had surged, giving them every hope of successfully hunting that silver bear pack. "Then let's do it," Bai Chen said solemnly. "Fang Yu, you just broke through and gained so much power. You can spend some time getting familiar with your body... Tomorrow morning, we strike." "All right." ... The group was in no rush to act; facing such a formidable beast pack, how could they afford to be reckless? Meanwhile, Fang Yu drew his war saber and began practicing on his own. *Hm?* The moment Fang Yu attempted his saber technique, he noticed a peculiar change in his body. There were no aftereffects whatsoever from his sudden leap in Life Level... Effortlessly, in under ten minutes, he achieved near-perfect mastery over every muscle, sinew, and bone in his body. Waves of force erupted. *It seems...* *With Dark Force unleashed, my peak power has reached twice my base power? The limit of Entering the Minute?* Fang Yu was inwardly astonished. *How is this possible?* *Could it be because of the explosive surge in my spiritual force?*