In the airtight room, two figures were fiercely fighting.

One was entirely pitch-black, his skin possessing a metallic sheen.

The other had long hair cascading down his shoulders, his body robust and beautiful like a red clay sculpture, emanating an aura of intense masculinity and raw power.

"Thousand-Degree High-Temperature Battle Body!"

With a low roar, the limbs of the pitch-black figure suddenly began to turn red rapidly. Billowing heatwaves emanated from him, almost transforming the entire room into a giant furnace in the blink of an eye. In the center, the air around the man with glowing red limbs visibly distorted.

"Let's see how you'll handle this now! Haha..."

The pitch-black figure, enveloped by the heatwave, laughed wildly. He transformed into a whirlwind and charged towards the long-haired man, his limbs tearing through the air, leaving several long, dazzling fire trails.

The latter, expressionless, gave a slight shiver. His right hand, with fingers spread and tensed, shot out like a crane snatching through the clouds. Accompanied by a flash of bright yellow light, an incomparably sharp, penetrating force instantly pierced the heatwave.

"RIP! WHOOSH!"

The two figures brushed past each other in an instant. Both froze.

The pitch-black figure, still enveloped in the heatwave, stared wide-eyed. His dark, contorted face was filled with utter shock and disbelief. His entire neck was almost gone, revealing a massive wound of mangled machinery and flesh. The wound was jagged, as if a ferocious beast had ripped it open with its claws. He tried to cover the wound with his hands, but the still-scorching red limbs, upon contact with flesh, immediately emitted the smell of burnt protein.

A few moments later, the light in his eyes completely faded. His head lolled to one side, no longer supported, and his body crashed to the ground.

"BANG! CRASH—"

Lu Yuan casually punched a large hole in the cement wall before him. Cool air from the forty-fifth floor poured in through the opening, instantly sweeping away the room's oppressive heat.

He slowly reverted from his Second Transformation state, his gaze fixed on his right hand, a glimmer of surprise in his eyes.

Did I... break through?!

On the Fighter panel, a skill icon was currently blooming—

[Sure-kill Skill—Spirit Crane Skill: Mistakenly Picked Immortal Orchid]Lv. 2!

During the brief exchange just now, Lu Yuan had accidentally triggered a Flash of Insight. With this sudden burst of inspiration, Mistakenly Picked Immortal Orchid had unexpectedly advanced to Lv. 2. This truly took Lu Yuan by surprise.

Well, I've faced so many high-quality opponents and fought frequently recently. Plus, my intelligence has risen to 19, and my innate comprehension is already astonishing... It's quite normal to have an epiphany mid-battle and break through... Lu Yuan thought, grabbing a tattered piece of curtain from the floor and slowly wiping the blood and bits of flesh from his right hand.

This A-rank mission boss was a death row inmate, meant to be killed, so he hadn't held back.

After clearing a series of A-rank mission instances, Lu Yuan's understanding of modifications and the New Martial System had deepened considerably. Take, for instance, the "Thousand-Degree High-Temperature Battle Body" New Martial technique his opponent had just used. It could raise the surface temperature of specially modified limbs to over a thousand degrees Celsius in mere seconds, even producing flame effects. Although its application and combat techniques were so crude Lu Yuan wanted to scoff... he had to admit, it was still rather eye-catching.

If a martial arts expert skilled in unarmed combat possessed this kind of offensive effect, their combat power might increase severalfold... He suddenly understood what his teacher, Master Liudao Yuan, meant when he said: "Although my body is now crippled, my strength is actually much greater than before. Unfortunately, seeking revenge on my old enemies in this state, even if I won, would be meaningless."

For some old-school Ancient Martial Artists like Liu, any strength not cultivated bit by bit through their own efforts... would be considered a form of cheating, wouldn't it?

Lu Yuan, lost in thought, casually tore off his shredded clothes. He then walked to a corner and pulled a fresh set of clothes he had prepared earlier from a backpack. He didn't bother to trim his silk-like black hair, which had grown wildly during his Second Transformation. He simply tied it back with a dark blue hairband. His hair grew furiously every time he entered his Second Transformation. Having to cut it after every fight was a nuisance Lu Yuan found tiresome.

The clothes Lu Yuan put on had patterns of a sun and a moon on the chest and back. The amazing thing was that these two patterns moved, continuously repeating the cycle of sunrise and sunset, their alternation. Lu Yuan had bought these clothes in Smokeless City. When he first saw them, he was greatly amazed, thinking that if he wore these back in Burnt Rock, wouldn't he be the coolest kid on the street? So he carefully selected dozens of outfits, since his mission wristwatch allowed unlimited purchases in Smokeless City. Only after choosing them did he find out that once these clothes left the "New World," the patterns on them "died," becoming completely indistinguishable from ordinary clothes. Lu Yuan then understood the reason for the invisible barrier between the "New World" and the "Old City Circle."

What a shame...

The elevator descended. DING-DONG. It quickly reached the ground floor.

Lu Yuan, wearing glasses and carrying a backpack, stepped out of the elevator. Apart from the somewhat conspicuous mission wristwatch on his hand, he looked no different from the natives of Smokeless City.

My 19 points of intelligence have expanded my Spiritual Power detection range to about seventy meters. My comprehension has also improved. I wonder if I can eventually raise all three Sure-kill Skills of the Crane Sect to Lv. 3 purely through self-comprehension. Then I'll be able to directly add points to unlock True Intention. I wonder what kind of changes will occur when my intelligence Breaks the Limit at 20 points...

After his intelligence reached 19 points, Lu Yuan occasionally felt as if something was about to hatch inside his mind. He was very familiar with this sensation; it was a precursor to breaking through a bottleneck.

Once all eight A-rank missions are completed, I should be able to level up the Fighter class again...

Speaking of which, which mission am I on now?

Lu Yuan opened the mission map and saw only three red mission markers remaining. After a brief assessment, he quickly made a choice. An A-rank mission closest to his current location. The objective: Exterminate the Bloodthirsty Hyenas!

Looking at the information on this "Bloodthirsty Hyena," Lu Yuan was surprised to find it had taken the rather rare biochemical modification route. The Modified Human system was divided into mechanical modification and biochemical modification. The latter was as Lu Yuan had discussed with Zhou Ling aboard the Fly Shuttle: like injecting elephant genes into an ant. Through genetic modification, one could break the inherent limitations of the human body and acquire powerful, Extraordinary strength.

Compared to mechanical modification, biochemical modification preserved the original flesh-and-blood body. It was more flexible, cheaper to implement, and allowed one to enjoy all the life experiences of a normal person... The drawbacks were that the body was prone to various irreversible deformations, and the upper limit of strength wasn't particularly high. Therefore, not many Modified Humans chose the biochemical modification route. Lu Yuan had completed so many mission instances, yet this "Bloodthirsty Hyena" was the first of its kind he had encountered. From its name alone, one could roughly guess... what type of biochemical modification this creature had undergone.

When I fight it, I wonder if tossing a few meaty bones on the ground will have some miraculous effect?

Lost in such random thoughts, Lu Yuan followed the map to the target location. The location was a large building whose specific purpose wasn't apparent from the outside. Few pedestrians were near the entrance. Only two able-bodied young men stood by the main door chatting, looking like security guards. Lu Yuan noticed that both wore mission wristwatches, symbols of "new blood."

As Lu Yuan looked at them, the two young men were also looking at Lu Yuan. Seeing him walk straight into the building, they said nothing, merely glancing at him before looking away.

"These uploaded natives are truly something else. They have no fear of death, rushing headlong into mission points one after another..." One young man, staring at the rising and setting sun pattern on the back of Lu Yuan's clothes, couldn't help but complain.

The other, more observant, shook his head. "Not a native, he's new blood. Didn't you see the watch on his hand?"

The first young man paused, then quickly resumed his complaint, "If he's new blood, isn't that even more like a death wish? It's an A-rank mission! Even Mr. Teng has to bring a team to dare attempt it. That guy just barged in alone. Who does he think he is?"

"True, apart from that monster ranked first on the leaderboard, who else would dare to solo... Huh?!"

His words caught in his throat. Both young men suddenly froze. Then, they exchanged bewildered glances.

A thought sprang into both their minds almost simultaneously—

Oh gods, don't tell me the kid who just walked in is that monster ranked first on the leaderboard?!

"Wan Ming! Get over here and help me pin him down!"

On a certain floor of the building, the roar of gunfire and the clamor of various New Martial techniques and modification-based attacks were almost incessant. The entire floor seemed to be vibrating, and dust rained down continuously from the ceiling. Several figures were prone or lying on the ground, in corners, firing various weapons—some original, some scavenged on the spot—towards the battle in the center. Almost everyone was injured, with blood pooling beneath them.

In the center of the fray, a figure wreathed in blue electrical light stood, an invisible, raging electric field around him, its power astonishing. But his opponent was even more terrifying. Its speed was so great it was almost a phantom, and the terrifying electric field seemed to have no effect on it whatsoever. It darted around the battlefield like a crimson hurricane, periodically leaving deep, bone-exposing claw marks on Teng Xiangqing's body.

"Wan Ming!" Teng Xiangqing, staggering, couldn't help but shout again.

From somewhere behind him, a young man with spiky blond hair cried out with a mournful look, "Mr. Teng, I f*cking... can't get in!"

Wan Ming was suffering, but Wan Ming couldn't say a word! Teng Xiangqing's B+ rank Lightning Strength was at full power, practically berserk, forming a terrifying electric field in the center of the battle. He had tried to enter it several times, but the moment he touched the edge, he was zapped until his whole body went numb, forcing him to retreat helplessly. Moreover! What did Teng Xiangqing want him to do? He wanted him, a mere B-, to restrict the movements of an A-rank Bloodthirsty Hyena?!! Why not just tell him to go clear those three S-rank mission zones outside?! Seriously... he really overestimated him!

"Damn it!" Seeing his plea for help go unanswered, Teng Xiangqing's handsome face twisted in frustration.

He was barely holding on, his heart filled with profound unwillingness. He hadn't expected that a mere A-rank Bloodthirsty Hyena could be this terrifyingly strong. Even at full power, with his Lightning Strength—still unrefined and not yet fully mastered—going berserk, he still couldn't contend with his opponent. That Lu Yuan seemed to clear these missions so easily, didn't he? How did it become so difficult when it was his turn? He couldn't even win leading a team?

Just as Teng Xiangqing was lost in these thoughts, a faint whoosh of air brushed past his ear. In a daze, he saw a figure deftly walk past him, leaving behind a single sentence, "Next time... don't push yourself so hard."

Then, he saw a tall, upright figure appear before him. Its body rapidly swelled like an erupting volcano, invisible heatwaves radiating outwards. The tightly bound long hair automatically burst free from its hairband...

The next second, the Bloodthirsty Hyena, which had been tearing around the battlefield like a hurricane, suddenly had its head clamped down by a large, vein-covered hand.

Then... RUMBLE— It was slammed forward.

Wall after wall collapsed, revealing a series of large, humanoid holes...

...

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