Guidance

After stabbing the second commissioned warrior to death, Chen Bitong did not stop. Soon, he simulated a third one. The outcome was no different from the previous two: he simply raised his spear, stepped forward, and impaled it with a single thrust. It was as though the commissioned warrior had zero power to resist before him. Standing behind, Chen Chuan saw everything with crystal clarity. Chen Bitong had not used any extraordinary power. The crux lay in the instant he thrust the spear: he used his own spirit power to clash against his opponent's spirit. This caused a momentary lag in the opponent's transitioning consciousness, preventing the stronger will from smoothly taking dominance. Meanwhile, the original will was still governing the body, but because of the handover process and the physical metamorphosis itself, its movements suffered a fractional delay. And that tiny fraction of a delay was enough for Chen Bitong to effortlessly seize an opening to strike. Strictly speaking, it was not an exceedingly sophisticated technique, but rather experience distilled from prolonged combat and keen observation—a skill forged only when coupled with a solid foundation. Sometimes, even if you understood the theory, without seasoned skill and steady composure to match, you could never hope to pull it off. That spear thrust looked effortless on the surface, but behind it lay a foundation tempered through a thousand trials. Chen Bitong ceased his actions now. Thumping the butt of his spear onto the ground, he turned and said to him, "Captain Chen, you've already attained initial mastery over spirit cultivation. Achieving this won't be difficult for you. You can try it yourself." As he spoke, the corpses of the three commissioned warriors below vanished directly. Lighting a fire earlier had only been to demonstrate proper disposal; now that there was no need, they could naturally be erased right away. Chen Chuan indeed intended to give it a try. Lifting the Xuejun Saber, he looked at the newly materialized commissioned warrior. When Chen Bitong unleashed that mental clash earlier, Chen Chuan had observed it closely through his field. Because the demonstration was meant for his benefit, the entire process had been clearly laid bare. He already understood what to do. The key, however, was practical application. He strode forward. This time, the opponent gave him no chance to seize the initiative and began metamorphosing immediately. Chen Chuan instantly charged with blade swinging, driving his spirit power forward to strike, just as Chen Bitong had done. Yet it was his first time attempting it, after all, and his timing was off by a hair. But that tiny margin allowed the opponent to raise his blade to parry just a fraction faster. In the end, Chen Chuan still had to rely on holding the initiative, taking three strikes to slay him. Though this was still an improvement, it had not achieved the intended effect. Standing where he was, he reviewed his strike just now and realized that the mobilized spirit power had to strike at that exact juncture—neither too early nor too late. Too early gave the opponent time to adjust, while too late meant missing the window entirely. Chen Bitong said, "Captain Chen, as I said earlier, I'm giving you ten minutes. You still have over nine minutes left." Chen Chuan adjusted his breathing and nodded. Next, he engaged one commissioned warrior after another as they appeared, slaying every single one. Each fallen body vanished immediately as a new one was simulated. Because he was highly efficient, even when he could not achieve his intended goal in one stroke, he could dispatch them in virtually a single exchange. Thus, in about two minutes' time, he grasped the rhythm. His blade pierced through the warrior's face mask, and with a jolt of saber force, the head inside the helmet was pulverized instantly into mush. He then stood in place, holding the posture of his thrust, quietly absorbing the sensation. A moment later, after the experience had fully ingrained itself into his consciousness and body, he sheathed his saber. Chen Bitong stopped simulating further opponents. Stepping forward, he said, "Captain Chen, well done. "We can utilize field resources to train repeatedly, acquiring seasoned skills in a short span of time. This is something the remnants of the old era cannot match. While they possess similar methods, their versatility falls far short of ours. "However, do not underestimate them; they also possess advantages beyond our reach. "They hold many relics collected from the old era, and they collude with certain entities from the other side, granting them the backing of special powers. Facing them, we should be confident, but never blindly arrogant." Chen Chuan pondered for a moment and said, "However, Master Chen, these simulation resources we're using don't seem like something easily acquired either." Chen Bitong said, "That is why they are only provided to true elites. Because you are more efficient and improve faster; giving them to ordinary people would be a waste." He glanced ahead and said, "Let's continue." With that, he took the lead and walked outward. Chen Chuan glanced at him and followed. The two traversed the ruined outpost and arrived at the rear. Chen Bitong suddenly paused, turned his head, and said, "This time, you take point." Chen Chuan walked forward, but after only a few steps, as if disturbing something, cracked craters appeared all around him, and decay insects began clambering out one after another. One of them was less than half a meter away from him. Recalling Chen Bitong's earlier moves, he reached out and shoved against its limb joint. The decay insect tilted sideways, on the verge of overturning, but its legs flailed and it righted itself, steadying its body. Chen Chuan pondered briefly, then shoved again, throwing it off balance once more. After trying a dozen times in succession, he finally grasped the trick and successfully flipped the decay insect onto its back. Seeing this, he left it alone and continued forward. From then on, every time he passed a decay insect, he shoved it. The first few attempts were a bit clumsy, but as his successes piled up, his movements grew increasingly practiced, very much resembling Chen Bitong's performance earlier. Chen Bitong nodded slightly behind him. When walking over earlier, his use of this method to topple the insects had not been without purpose: it was to showcase the most energy-efficient way to deal with them. He would not teach the training class attendees how to fight, but he would demonstrate things for them. Whether they could learn, and how much they could learn, depended entirely on the students themselves. Moreover, beyond technique, such an action was far from pointless. Once overturned, decay insects could not move, meaning they could be hauled back after a battle. The tissue from these decay insects served as an excellent source of pharmaceuticals and biological materials. The garrison might care only about the outcome, but certain commercial institutions and research institutes within would likely prefer individuals who brought them profit. At this point, he spoke up, "That's enough, Captain Chen. You've mastered the technique, but be mindful." He gave a solemn warning. "Watch your activation index. Although your brain tissue won't actually be activated here, if it exceeds a certain threshold, your score for this training will be very low." Chen Chuan took a look. The value displayed on the index was sixteen. Because this place was also a simulated field, if he used his Second Self to shield the field, he might end up disconnecting from the scene before him. Thus, he had refrained from doing so, and his activation index had naturally climbed. He immediately circulated his breathing technique, trying to bring the number down. Chen Bitong said, "You should be undergoing spirit cultivation right now, so let me give you a method to better maintain your sense of self." Saying so, he tossed an object to him. Chen Chuan caught it and took a look. It resembled a weighing dial, with a needle swaying erratically inside, divided into red, green, and yellow zones. "Because fields and spirits are extremely active and constantly shifting, they are particularly vulnerable to taint by the power of activation. But as long as you keep your field and spirit within the green or yellow zones, you can easily avoid such occurrences." Chen Chuan gave it a try following his instructions, finding it somewhat difficult to maintain—especially maintaining it constantly and anywhere. Therefore, he clipped the device to a buckle at his waist, resolving to keep practicing with it along the way. Chen Bitong said, "Get familiar with this method as soon as you can. Under these simulated conditions, it is the safest environment to train." Chen Chuan nodded. Although he could shield himself with his Second Self, he didn't mind having another tool at his disposal. Furthermore, he felt this likely involved other techniques as well. Just then, Chen Bitong suddenly looked upward. "Many of our threats actually come from the sky." Chen Chuan looked up and saw massive insects beating membranous wings appearing above. They somewhat resembled dragonflies, with huge compound eyes, sturdy downy thoracic necks, and elongated abdomens. Quite numerous, their buzzing wings cast one shadow after another onto the ground. These insects seemed to be targeting the overturned decay insects on the ground. Flitting down one by one, they plunged syringe-like proboscises directly into the insects' abdomens, injecting some kind of digestive fluid, after which their tails probed into the bodies to lay eggs. Chen Bitong said, "Decay insects and certain other critters serve as breeding grounds for these king dragonflies to lay their eggs. These gigantic dragonflies pose just as great a threat to us. "Therefore, whenever we establish an outpost somewhere, besides clearing ground threats, the first thing we purge is these creatures. Sometimes we use special chemicals, and sometimes baited cages to trap them. "Right now they have food, so they won't pay much attention to us. But if you encounter them in the wild, you must be extremely cautious. Especially when facing swarms of these giant flying insects, a lone person can hardly contend with them; even a third limit fighter is in grave danger, able only to utilize speed and cover to break away as quickly as possible. "Otherwise, once physical stamina is exhausted, waiting for death is the only outcome. Outposts are therefore crucial to us; without a rear base to rely upon, it is very difficult to operate freely in undeveloped mountain regions." Looking at the dense swarm of giant insects all around, Chen Chuan thoroughly agreed with that view. Once creatures like these appeared in numbers, it was virtually impossible for an individual to resist them—unless one had the capacity to slaughter them all to the last. Chen Bitong glanced at his boundary credential and said, "We still have plenty of time. Captain Chen, given the strength and comprehension you've displayed, I will appropriately increase the intensity of your training. Next, I'll have you face something even harder to deal with. Prepare yourself." …… ……