In the world of martial arts, one works tirelessly to attain enlightenment.

Chapter 17, The Cat-People's Decision, Preparations to Go

apartment.

Lin Ran used spiritual energy to refine the wind spirit seed, and it took her thirty minutes to absorb the crystal.

Looking inward at his dantian, he saw an irregularly shaped mass of wind spiritual energy appear beside the earth-attribute crystal, expanding and contracting like a heart.

【Attribute Control - Wind LV1: 1/500】

Lin Ran closed her eyes, and an indescribable feeling gradually spread.

He could "see" himself, but it could only cover ten centimeters of his body surface, and in less than half a minute, it was forced to shut down because the wind attribute spiritual energy was exhausted.

[Attribute Control - Wind, Experience +36]

"Um?"

Lin Ran was deep in thought.

So... he's using the wrong method to access the Earth attribute?

"Lin Ran, dinner's ready!"

……

Cat People's Embassy.

Yunzhu returned alone and found Qingmeng.

"What was the result?" Qingmeng opened her eyes, her pale golden pupils calm as still water.

"He seems fine on the surface, but I can't be sure if his reaction is genuine," Yunzhu shook her head.

Qingmeng stood up, walked to Yunzhu, gently lifted her chin, and looked into her eyes.

"The new generation of awakened humans has begun to grow. The clan leader's time is running out. We must get closer to the human race as soon as possible. Human nature is complex, and my cat-human race cannot compare."

There's a saying among humans that goes, "A loyal minister does not serve two masters."

"Therefore, some cat people need to completely detach themselves from their race and integrate into the human race in order to find what they lack."

"The price is the risk of being abandoned at any time, and the constant infamy of one's own people. If you're lucky, you become a battlefield wanderer; if you're unlucky, you suffer all kinds of torment or even die."

"Even if you find the missing item, you will never be able to return to the Cat People."

"But if you're lucky, you can reach heights that cat people never had the chance to achieve, and experience happiness you've never known before."

"Have you really thought this through before coming to see me?"

Qingmeng gazes directly at the clouds and bamboo.

Yunzhu looked at her, thinking of Lin Ran, and then of some fragments of human history.

"I have read some records from the Human Wars, and there is a sentence that I think is what we are looking for, but I cannot fully understand it. That sentence is: For the sake of humanity."

Whether you've thought it through or not is not important.

"For the cat people," Yunzhu said softly.

Qingmeng released Yunzhu, nodded gently, and said

"That's right, for the cat people."

……

It's 11 p.m., in the apartment, in the grove.

Lin Ran looked inward at his dantian and saw that the size of the first earth-attribute crystal had reached its limit. The next step was to condense the second crystal.

There are two methods to condense new crystals: one is to start from scratch, and the other is to split them.

The former is stable but takes longer, while the latter is fast but more dangerous.

Lin Ran glanced at the skill list.

[Attribute Control - Earth LV3: 1140/1500]

Although he was only at level three, he was confident that he could perfectly control the split!

Within the hazy dantian, golden spiritual energy representing the earth element dispelled some of the grayness, revealing a standard cubic crystal in the center.

Suddenly the crystal moved, and a gap appeared out of thin air in the middle of one of its edges, which then slowly expanded, as if a plane had passed through it.

Golden spiritual energy overflowed from the gap and swirled around, without instinctively repairing the crystal.

Lin Ran's consciousness hovered above the crystal, manipulating it to split without any sense of stagnation.

Soon, the crystal splitting was complete.

The split crystal melted, becoming two identical standard cubes. The surrounding spiritual energy surged up and was absorbed by the crystal.

Lin Ran suddenly understood.

Earth attribute, lower-level awakened one, second level!

[Attribute Control - Earth, Experience +365]

[Attribute Control - Earth LV3→LV4: 5/2000]

[Exceptional Theory, Experience +1024]

Lin Ran: "..."

Indeed, practice is the best teacher of theory.

……

After that, Lin Ran's daily routine became very regular. She would get up at 7:30 every morning to go to school, and after school, she would practice from 1:00 pm to 2:00 am.

Yunzhu seemed to have changed; her behavior was becoming more and more natural, and at least he couldn't tell whether she was pretending or not.

Three days later,

[Fitness LV8→LV9: 858/4500]

[Health Preservation LV8→LV9: 1125/4500]

[Transcendent Theory LV6→LV7: 2452/3500]

[Ascension Ritual LV4: 1345 / 2000]

[Attribute Control - Earth LV4: 785/2000]

[Attribute Control - Wind LV1→LV2: 380/1000]

Early in the morning, Lin Ran was about to go to school as usual when she suddenly received a message from Chang Fei.

Chang Fei: The mock exams for senior high school students are about to begin. Get ready, I'm coming to pick you up.

Lin Ran: Good teacher.

Less than ten minutes later, Lin Ran waited for Chang Fei's hovercar on the rooftop.

After getting on the bus, Chang Fei tossed a ring to Lin Ran.

"Now go to No. 3 Middle School to pick up a few more cat people who are in the same team as you. The others will be taken by public flying bus."

"These are the resources allocated to the cat people from above. You can decide how to distribute them."

"All cat people? No one else?" Lin Ran raised an eyebrow, finding this arrangement rather interesting.

"Yes, Yunzhu, Lingxi, and Lingmeng are in the same class, and Mengyu is from another class. You're quite lucky, kid."

Chang Fei displayed everyone's profile pictures and identities, his smile carrying a deeper meaning.

Lin Ran: "..."

Chang Fei sent another document.

"Let's familiarize ourselves with this place first. This small world we're going to is connected to the Battlefield of the Heavens, and the exit of the Battlefield of the Heavens has not yet been fully controlled by the human race."

"Because the human race and the cat-human race have established diplomatic relations, and in order to demonstrate the strength of the new generation, many alien races will appear. The trial will not be peaceful. The human race's strongmen may not be able to take care of every position. If an accident really occurs, we will still have to rely on ourselves."

"Take a look at the information first, and ask me if you have any questions."

The hovercar quickly arrived at No. 3 Middle School and picked up Yunzhu, Lingxi, Lingmeng, and Mengyu.

Mengyu is a cat-eared girl with a loli-like appearance. Her tail and ears are white, and her eyes are blue, looking like pure sapphires. She is very beautiful and quiet.

Lingxi and Lingmeng are twins in the same class, but they hardly ever interact.

Their ears and tails were black, and their eyes were a clear, bright green, like the finest emeralds.

The group gathered around the round table, reviewing the information Chang Fei had provided.

The hovercar flew for several hours.

"Ahead is a wormhole opened up within the human race's mother world. After passing through the wormhole to reach the vicinity of the small world, and then passing through another wormhole, we will enter this trial ground."

"You are now a team. Lin Ran, you are the team leader. You will decide on the next arrangements."

The floating car doors open.

As soon as Lin Ran got out of the car, she saw rows of soldiers holding extraordinary firearms.

"Commander Chang." An officer came over to greet him.

"Commander Wang, I'm taking the new students to the trial grounds," Chang Fei greeted them with a smile.

"Come with me. According to regulations, cultivation mentors can only be escorted this far."

"I know, I trust him completely," Chang Fei said, patting his chest.

After passing through several strict blockades and a defensive line composed of a large number of heavy firearms, the group entered a giant cube built entirely of metal.

Inside the cube, the outer perimeter is filled with a large number of soldiers and heavy firearms. In the very center is a downward metal passage, at the end of which is a black vortex with twinkling starlight.

Chang Fei stopped and spoke to Lin Ran and the others.

"Go on, I'll take you this far."

(End of this chapter)