I can receive unlimited protection; my parents handed me over to the state.

Lu Yuan and Zhao Qingxuan exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of helplessness in each other's eyes.

Judging from his voice, this new instructor is someone you can't mess with.

The two arrived at the private training ground outside the villa, where they saw a burly old man, as imposing as an iron tower, standing in the center of the training ground.

The old man looked to be in his sixties, with short, gray hair that stood on end like steel needles. He was shirtless, revealing his strong, bronze-colored muscles covered in hideous scars, each muscle appearing as if sculpted from granite, exuding explosive power.

He was only wearing camouflage trousers on his lower body and a pair of military boots covered in mud on his feet.

Most striking was the huge, long, rectangular object wrapped in heavy canvas that he carried on his back, which looked like a massive weapon case.

"You're Lu Yuan?"

When the old man saw Lu Yuan approaching, his tiger-like eyes swept over him like searchlights, his gaze so sharp it seemed to see right through him.

"Reporting, Instructor, I am Lu Yuan." Lu Yuan stood up straight and answered in the manner of a soldier.

"Hmm, looks so delicate and tender, like a woman." The old man curled his lip, looking disgusted. "Is Old Man Su senile? Sending such a bean sprout for me to train? I'm afraid I might accidentally train you to death."

Zhao Qingxuan coughed awkwardly to the side and stepped forward to introduce, "Mr. Lu, this is Instructor Tang Long. He is a special-class combat hero of the military. He once killed three lord-level star beasts in a beast tide with just a military knife. He is nicknamed 'King of Soldiers'."

Lu Yuan felt a chill run down his spine.

Slaying three Lord-level Star Beasts? That's equivalent to the combat power of a B-rank Star Envoy! And with just a military knife?

Instructor Tang Long's strength is absolutely unfathomable.

"Alright, stop fucking flattering me." Tang Long waved his hand impatiently, interrupting Zhao Qingxuan. "I'm here to teach, not to listen to compliments."

He walked up to Lu Yuan, and the shadow cast by his tall figure almost completely enveloped Lu Yuan.

"Listen up, kid. Old Su's task for me is to master the use of all conventional weapons in the shortest amount of time. Knives, spears, swords, halberds, axes, battle-axes, hooks, forks... you have to know all eighteen weapons!"

"I don't expect you to be an expert in everything, but you must be able to unleash 80% of the power of any weapon within three seconds."

"Can you do it?" Tang Long's voice was like a thunderclap, striking Lu Yuan's eardrums.

"I can do it," Lu Yuan replied without the slightest hesitation.

"Heh, quite the boast." Tang Long sneered, clearly not believing that this seemingly weak and unassuming young man could possess such abilities.

He suddenly untied the huge weapon case behind him and slammed it to the ground with a loud thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.

He pulled back the canvas, revealing what was inside.

It was an armory made of a special alloy, filled with all sorts of weapons.

Swords of varying lengths, spears and halberds of different shapes, heavy and terrifying axes and hammers... every weapon gleamed with a chilling light and exuded a strong stench of blood.

These are all real weapons that have drunk blood on the battlefield!

"Choose one," Tang Long said succinctly, pointing to the weapon case.

Lu Yuan's gaze swept over the weapon case, and finally, he reached out and pulled out the most ordinary and inconspicuous standard military longsword.

This knife is about 1.2 meters long, with a straight blade and no fancy decorations. It is the most common standard equipment in the army.

"Oh? You chose this?" A hint of surprise flashed in Tang Long's eyes. "Why not choose those that look more powerful?"

"Because the simplest is the most versatile." Lu Yuan gripped the hilt of the knife, feeling the cold touch of the blade. "Fancy things will only become a burden in a real life-or-death battle."

"Well said!" For the first time, a hint of approval appeared in Tang Long's eyes. "You have some insight. Alright, let's start with the knife today."

He also drew a similar longsword from his weapon case.

"Young man, watch closely. The sword is the courage of all weapons. Its essence lies not in chopping or hacking, but in the word 'momentum'."

As Tang Long spoke, he slowly raised the long sword in his hand.

His movements were very slow, as slow as an old man doing his morning exercise in a park.

But Lu Yuan's pupils contracted as he looked at it.

He saw that as Tang Long moved, the surrounding air seemed to thicken. An invisible, domineering aura emanated from Tang Long and condensed on the blade in his hand.

At that moment, Tang Long seemed to become one with the knife in his hand.

He is the knife, and the knife is him.

"The so-called 'momentum' is using your spirit and will to control the power of the knife. Let the knife become an extension of your body and a manifestation of your will."

"Watch closely, this move is called 'Mountain Splitting'."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Tang Long brought his long sword down with a sudden slash!

There were no dazzling lights or shadows, no terrifying spectacle.

Only a single, pure black blade of light, seemingly capable of splitting heaven and earth in two, flashed by and disappeared.

"boom--!"

A terrifying knife mark, ten meters long and half a meter deep, suddenly appeared on the alloy target wall in the distance of the training field!

The cut was as smooth as a mirror, and even appeared to melt due to the instantaneous high temperature.

Lu Yuan gasped in shock.

This power is even more terrifying than the attack he unleashed by charging up "Wind and Thunder"!

Moreover, Tang Long's strike did not utilize any of his innate abilities; it was entirely based on pure physical strength and the application of "momentum"!

"Did you understand?" Tang Long sheathed his sword and asked calmly.

Lu Yuan was silent for a moment, then shook his head: "I don't fully understand."

"That's good, you don't understand." Tang Long snorted. "The essence of this strike took me three years crawling through piles of corpses to comprehend. If you understood it at a glance, then what have I been doing all these years?"

"Now, you try." Tang Long pointed to another intact target wall. "You don't need to unleash any blade energy. As long as you can leave a mark on it that's more than a finger's width deep, you'll consider yourself a beginner today."

Lu Yuan nodded and walked to the target wall.

He closed his eyes, frantically replaying every detail of Tang Long's strike in his mind.

The way muscles exert force, the transfer of the center of gravity, the resonance between the mind and the blade...

Everything was broken down, calculated, and then reassembled in his mind into an optimal data model.

This is his advantage as a "theory master".

He may not have Tang Long's battle-hardened intuition, but he possesses computer-like analytical and learning abilities.

Three minutes later, Lu Yuan opened his eyes.

He took a deep breath and, imitating Tang Long, slowly raised the long sword in his hand.

He tried hard to imitate that "momentum" of man and knife becoming one, but no matter how he tried, he felt that there was an invisible membrane between himself and the knife in his hand.

"No! Your movements are too stiff!" Tang-Long shouted from the side. "The power from your waist isn't transferring to your arms! Your shoulders are too tight! Relax!"

"Mind! Focus your mind on the blade! Imagine it as your third hand!"

Amid Tang Long's constant roars, Lu Yuan adjusted his posture and the way he exerted force time and time again.

Sweat trickled down his forehead, dripping onto the scorching ground and evaporating instantly.

Finally, after countless attempts, Lu Yuan felt as if the knife in his hand had become a little lighter.

That invisible barrier seemed to have been punctured by a small hole.

It's now!

Lu Yuan suddenly opened his eyes, let out a low shout, and swung his long sword with an indomitable spirit at the target wall in front of him!

"clang--!"

A loud bang.

Sparks flew everywhere.

Lu Yuan felt a tremendous force of recoil coming from the hilt of the sword, which made his hands go numb and the sword almost slip from his grasp.

He looked closely and saw that on the hard alloy target wall, there was only a shallow, almost negligible white mark.

"Hahaha! That's hilarious!" Tang Long laughed mercilessly from the side. "Kid, are you trying to give the target wall some gua sha? With that little strength, you think you can go to the battlefield? A single pee from a star beast could kill you!"

Lu Yuan ignored his mockery, but frowned and looked at the white mark on the target wall.

wrong.

Something's definitely wrong.

His strength and the way he exerted it were already incredibly close to the data model in his mind, so why was the effect so different?

"Can't figure it out?" Tang Long stopped laughing, walked over, and tapped Lu Yuan's head with the hilt of his knife. "Because you're wrong from the very beginning."

"Wrong?" Lu Yuan looked at him, puzzled.

"You're merely imitating my 'form,' but haven't grasped my 'meaning,'" Tang Long said in a deep voice. "I ask you, in your heart, what is a knife?"

"A knife... is a weapon," Lu Yuan replied.

"Wrong!" Tang Long's eyes widened. "A knife is a weapon! It's used to kill! Its existence is solely for taking lives!"

"Without killing intent in your heart, your knife is nothing but a piece of scrap metal! That strike you just made looked impressive, but it was weak and lacked any killing intent. How could it possibly hurt anyone?"

murderous look?

Lu Yuan was stunned.

He was a student who grew up in peacetime, a theorist, and a blacksmith.

He had killed star beasts, but that was with Flame Princess as a backup; it was more like a game.

He never really thought about "killing" a life.

"It seems that just practicing moves isn't enough." Tang Long shook his head as he looked at Lu Yuan's bewildered face, a ruthless glint in his eyes.

"Zhao Qingxuan!" he called out to Zhao Qingxuan, who was not far away.

"Yes, Instructor Tang."

"Go, switch the training ground mode to 'Purgatory.' And bring in a hundred level 20 'Rampaging Blood Wolves'!"

"What?!" Zhao Qingxuan's expression changed drastically. "Instructor Tang, this is too dangerous! Mr. Lu is only level 5 now. A hundred level 20 berserk blood wolves—even a B-rank star envoy would be killed on the spot!"

"Enough talk! Execute the order!" Tang Long roared. "I want him to see blood! He'll never learn what 'killing' means until he's driven to the brink!"

"Today, he either learns to fight his way out here, or he dies here and is resurrected tomorrow!"