Martial Saint!

Stone Lake Garden Building 3, Apartment 2802.

Li Xianghua was alone at home, scrolling through her phone.

"Yesterday, on Xishan Road, a murder occurred, suspected to be the work of Void Things. Su City police have dispatched a special task force to investigate and apprehend the killer. In this regard, the general public is reminded 'not to go out at night unless necessary, and not to take unusual routes,' to ensure personal safety."

"Void Things have appeared again..."

Her heart was filled with concern, and she hurriedly made a call,

"Chenzhou, when are you coming back? Have you seen the news?"

"Mom, I'm already at the door."

Lu Chenzhou pushed open the door, looking at his worried mother with an apologetic tone,

"Sorry, Mom, I definitely will come home earlier next time."

Li Xianghua said,

"I told your father to stop working overtime too. From now on, our family shouldn't go out after dark, until that Void Thing is caught. Nothing is more important than safety."

Lu Chenzhou assured,

"Yeah, I just went to the Martial Arts Academy to get familiar with it and tested my Qi-Blood Value."

"How did it go? Did you make a rank?"

"First Rank, Qi-Blood Value of 1.33."

Li Xianghua revealed a gratified smile.

"I knew you could do it; training at the Martial Arts Academy really is different. The money was well spent; I'm going to tell your father right away."

After taking a bath, Lu Chenzhou returned to his room to watch the news.

"It really is a Virtual Disaster."

On his subway ride home, he had seen the police personnel. Now they must be scouring the city to track down that creature and resolve the issue quickly, as people were anxious, and that was not good.

The concept of Virtual Disasters goes back a long time.

In ancient times, the world had legends of demons and ghosts, true and false, terrifying to hear. After the establishment of Da Xia, Martial Artists and scientists studied for a long time, and then they discovered an unknown world, which they called:

The Void Realm.

The Void Realm might not be a specific planet, but rather something akin to a subspace or inner world parallel to the real world. For the most part, the Void Realm and the real world are unrelated, but occasionally they intersect, creating junctions.

Beings from the Void Realm that come through these junctions are known as "Void Things." They possess supernatural powers, and only Martial Artists and special technologies are capable of killing them.

Ordinary people who encounter Void Things have a very low chance of survival, though a higher-level master fares better. First, their robust Qi-Blood means trivial Void Things will not provoke them, and second, they can run fast...

Void Things are unpredictable, and modern science has only revealed a fraction of their mysteries. Fortunately, their occurrence rate is not high. Officially, more troublesome than the Void Things are some of the Black Knights and Cult who commit crimes using their martial skills, as humans can be more frightening than demons and ghosts.

"That's why we need to practice Martial Arts!"

Lu Chenzhou didn't like the feeling of completely entrusting his and his family's safety to others, even though the Da Xia government already made the utmost effort to maintain public order.

As far as he knew, some countries with backward technology and no strong Martial Artists were ravaged by Virtual Disasters. Their governments had given up completely, and those places were in deep trouble. Some nations even concealed the truth about Virtual Disasters from their citizens, blocked the news, and falsely maintained peace.

Later, Lu Guoping came home.

Li Xianghua's voice carried from outside,

"Chenzhou has ranked up, I knew the child could do it."

"That's great, the money was well worth it."

Lu Guoping entered Lu Chenzhou's bedroom,

"Are you asleep?"

"Not yet, Dad, what's up?"

"I bought you something."

He opened the door and placed a box on Lu Chenzhou's bed.

"Martial Arts Supplements produced by Factory Six. I bought it from the specialty store; use it with confidence. A colleague's son at Martial Arts High School uses these supplements supplied by the school."

Looking at Lu Guoping standing at the doorway, somewhat weary and smelling of motor oil,

"Thanks, Dad."

"Dad doesn't have much to offer, and I never provided you with good resources. My son has managed to rank up through his own efforts; he is indeed talented. Your mom and I have realized, living in the Inner City isn't necessarily safe. When the fixed deposit matures, Dad will go to the bank to withdraw some money, and we'll continue the lessons at the Flying Swallow Martial Arts Hall for you—maybe even get an annual package."

"Dad, there's no rush. I've just begun First Rank, and a normal diet is enough for now. Using the supplement might be wasteful at this stage."

"Got it, sleep early."

"Dad, remember to go to the hospital for a checkup in a few days and test your Qi-Blood Value too. At your age, if it's below 0.8, you need to be careful."

"Okay, I'll get tested."

Seeing his son achieve a rank brought a lot of vitality to Lu Guoping.

Li Xianghua said if he didn't take care of his health and quit smoking, he might pass away too soon and never see his son become a Martial Artist, let alone enjoy the latter half of his life.

...

"Qi Boosting One Supplement."

Lu Chenzhou opened the medicine box, which contained only four thumb-thick blue vials. He checked the official website; one vial cost three thousand, a box twelve thousand.

He looked at the instruction manual.

"The product is made from Jade Ginseng, Red Qi, Shan Gui, Bai Qi, Qiwei Zi... a total of 52 kinds of precious Chinese herbs, the formula researched by the team of 'Heavenly Doctor Saint Hand · Li Que' from Galaxy University and certified by the Martial Arts Pharmacist Association."

"Galaxy University?"

Like Dragon City Martial Arts University, it was part of the 24-school alliance.

Top Martial University, even those with intermediate root bone can't secure a spot.

Heavenly Doctor Saint Hand·Li Que, was even more remarkable.

It was said that he came from a Martial Arts Family and possessed superb medical skills.

This man, who had lived for more than three hundred years, had broken through how many Shackles no one knows, but on average, a martial artist who had broken through just the First Shackles would live for sixty years.

Martial Arts Supplements had extremely strict standards, and those from big factories definitely had no issues.

The instructions suggested taking one dose at a time, best if used by those in the Third Rank or higher Realm. If someone was of a lower Realm, they could divide it into two doses, just be sure to seal it tightly. After taking the supplement, it's beneficial to practice some fist techniques to help circulate the medicine to the limbs and expedite absorption.

"Taking it tomorrow at dawn will have the best effect."

Lu Chenzhou didn't want to waste even a bit.

...

The next day, in the early morning.

He drank the medicine and then went to the rooftop.

Breathing in the morning sun's vitality, he felt free and easy in spirit.

"The top Martial Arts Universities are often built near famous mountains and rivers, to let students be close to nature, breathe the fresh Qi of mountains, and absorb the essence of the sun and moon."

He didn't have that luxury.

Without being in Martial Arts University, living in a ravine was inconvenient and even less safe.

"Let's start with some Basic Boxing techniques."

Facing the light of dawn, Lu Chenzhou's punches were fast as the wind, his footsteps invisible. An intangible warm current flowed within his blood as he exercised, making him feel as if he had endless strength and an unusually active mind; overall, he felt in excellent condition.

He finished a set in one go but wasn't satisfied.

If it were a usual day, he would definitely feel a bit tired.

But now, he seemed to feel nothing.

"This is the effect of the supplement. It's nourishing my body and providing nutrients while I use up energy. In terms of quality and efficiency, it's much better than eating food."

Lu Chenzhou used to have some opinions about taking drugs.

Now, it felt really good.

He couldn't help but admire the power of technology.

Without the rapid development of technology, martial arts would not be thriving as they are.

And so, he continued to practice his boxing techniques for an hour straight without rest, the warm current seemed to run out, and a dual sense of fatigue, both physical and mental, emerged.

He knew it was time to rest.

Moderation was key.

He opened the Martial Arts Tree.

[Basic Boxing: Great Success (5%) → Great Success (6%)]

[Black Tiger Fist: Beginner (6%) → Beginner (8%)]

"This efficiency is incredibly high."

Martial Arts Tree, Martial Arts Hall, Martial Arts Supplements, plus Lu Chenzhou's own efforts, his cultivation speed had undergone a radical change compared to the past.

"It's just too expensive; my family can't support it for long. I need to hurry and raise my rank, earn my own living, and create a positive cycle."

Lu Chenzhou already had a plan in mind.

...

Time flies.

A month and a half passed.

During this time, Lu Chenzhou attended his regular classes and continued to practice his boxing on the playground early in the morning. The new boxing instructor was a middle-aged man who didn't teach as well as Shi Ruyu.

But he was competent enough. With few people learning boxing, Lu Chenzhou took this opportunity to practice with the teacher, rapidly improving his Basic Boxing proficiency.

He had finished the supplements.

Lu Guoping wasn't working overtime much anymore. He went to get a medical check-up, and thankfully, there wasn't any serious issue. His Qi Blood Value was 0.79, and he was only forty years old this year.

With some regulation, he could get back over 0.8.

He also quit smoking.

Lu Chenzhou hadn't booked any more classes at the Martial Arts Hall for the moment.

Thirty lessons could be finished quite quickly.

After all, there was a validity of one year.

Shi Ruyu suggested that he should reach Perfection in Basic Boxing before going back. By that time, learning Ji Xuantong's real skills would be more effective, faster, and would not waste class time.

Without money, he had to count every penny.

That day.

After finishing his boxing practice, Lu Chenzhou lay in bed.

He felt his Qi-Blood had improved slightly again.

He looked at the Martial Arts Tree in his mind.

[Basic Boxing: Great Success (50%)]

He had walked half the road to Perfection, but what he cared about more was the small white flower bud that had grown beside the green leaf of [Basic Boxing].

"The Martial Arts Tree is blooming?"