“Instructor,”Bai Yang couldn’t help but ask,“I’ve heard that the Guidance Technique is quite miraculous. How exactly does it increase the speed of cultivating genetic primordial energy?”

 At this moment, a middle-aged man with slightly graying hair in the martial arts hall spoke up.“Bai Yang, let me put it this way. If you don’t practice the Guidance Technique and only use the‘Five Hearts Towards Heaven Cultivation Method,’you might be able to refine for about five minutes in a day, and your cells would be saturated. You wouldn’t be able to absorb any more energy!”

 “But if you practice the Guidance Technique, your cells’capacity increases significantly. You could cultivate for eight minutes, ten minutes, or even up to an hour!”The middle-aged man glanced at Luo Feng and the others.“Do you understand now?”

 Upon hearing this, Luo Feng finally understood.

 “The Guidance Technique is like increasing the food intake for every cell,”Luo Feng thought to himself. If the cells absorb cosmic energy and convert it into genetic primordial energy, it’s similar to how a person eats. If a person can only eat three bowls of rice, practicing the Guidance Technique allows them to eat five or even ten bowls in a day.

 Jiang Nian smiled and added,“If you don’t practice the Guidance Technique, the energy your cells can absorb is considered as one unit! But once you practice the Guidance Technique, the energy your cells can absorb could become two units, three units, or even more! This means that if you cultivate for one year, you might surpass someone who has cultivated for ten years! That’s the charm of the Guidance Technique.”

 The martial artists present started discussing, clearly eager to share their thoughts on the Guidance Technique.

 “When it comes to the Guidance Technique, the strongest in the world is Hong, the global master of the Extreme Martial Arts Academy, who has developed nine top-tier Guidance Techniques. If you join our Extreme Martial Arts Academy and have enough contribution, you’ll have the chance to learn these top-notch techniques.”The martial artists present teased Luo Feng and the others with smiles.

 All the major forces in the world hope to have more martial artists on their side.

 “Instructor,”Luo Feng suddenly spoke up.

 “Hmm?”Instructor Jiang Nian smiled as he turned to Luo Feng.“What is it?”

 “Instructor, that silver-haired martial artist in the black robe who went out with the chief instructor—how could he make us feel utterly powerless with just a glance? What kind of ability is that?”Luo Feng was curious because he had never heard of such an impressive ability among martial artists.

 Instructor Jiang Nian smiled slightly, and the group of martial artists nearby burst into laughter.

 “Kid, the one who walked out with the chief instructor is a mentalist! They are much rarer than martial artists.”The martial artists laughed and said,“Of course, mentalists are still a type of martial artist, but they are the most formidable existence among them.”

 “A mentalist?”Luo Feng was taken aback.

 In this day and age, with the internet being so developed, Luo Feng had seen introductions online that mentioned mentalists as a very special and fearsome presence among martial artists. However, the specifics of their fearsome nature weren’t detailed.

 “You’ll learn about mentalists once you become a martial artist,”Instructor Jiang Nian said with a smile.“Alright, today’s preliminary martial artist assessment is over. You three can head home now. The preliminary martial artist certificates will be stamped and entered into the citizen identity database, so it will take a few days for them to arrive. We’ll notify you when they do. You can go now.”

 “Yes, Instructor.”

 Luo Feng, Yang Wu, and Bai Yang immediately turned and left the martial arts hall, monitored by armed guards at the community entrance as they exited.

 xxxxx

 At the entrance of Mingyue Community, Luo Feng, Yang Wu, and Bai Yang all wore smiles.

 “I’m Bai Yang, from the Jiangnan Military Academy. My hometown is in Yangzhou City, and I came here for the assessment since it’s summer vacation,”Bai Yang said, extending his hand to shake hands with Luo Feng and Yang Wu.“It’s great to meet you both.”

 Jiangnan Military Academy?

 Luo Feng had originally intended to attend that academy.

 “I’m Luo Feng, and this is Yang Wu. We both train at the Extreme Martial Arts Academy in Yian District,”Luo Feng replied with a smile.

 “Brother Luo Feng will definitely have a bright future. Not many from our elite class at the military academy become martial artists,”Bai Yang was eager to make friends, especially with someone like Luo Feng, who had just entered the ranks of preliminary martial artists at such a young age. He thought that Luo Feng might become a significant figure in the future.

 Yang Wu laughed and said,“Let’s not talk too much. The three of us passed the assessment on the same day at the same place, which is fate. Today is a good day, so let’s find a restaurant to celebrate and chat.”

 “Sounds good,”Bai Yang replied with a smile.

 “Let’s go,”Luo Feng said, also laughing.

 Having just passed the preliminary martial artist assessment, the three were in high spirits as they chose a restaurant to have lunch together before going their separate ways.

 xxxxx

 After having a bit to drink, Luo Feng remembered to call home to share the good news while on the subway.

 However, it was too crowded in the subway. If he shouted“I passed the preliminary martial artist assessment,”it would surely attract attention.“Forget it, I’ll wait until I get out of the subway to call.”

 …

 He took the subway Line 1 to Zhong’an Road Station and directly exited. Changing to Line 11 at Zhong’an Road Station required a bit of a walk.

 “I need to tell Dad, Mom, and my younger brother.”Luo Feng was still very excited.

 A preliminary martial artist…

 His family had struggled for so many years, and he had worked hard for so long; he finally achieved something!

 Standing at the street corner of Zhong’an Road Station, Luo Feng took out his phone.

 “Beep…Beep…”

 After dialing the number, Luo Feng waited.

 “Hello.”His younger brother’s voice came through the phone. Luo Feng smiled and said,“It’s me.”

 “Of course! You don’t even need to check who your brother is. Of course I passed! Haha, yes, yes. Alright.”Holding the phone, Luo Feng cheerfully continued,“Oh, is Mom home too? Good, let her talk to me.”

 “Hello, Mom, it’s me, Xiao Feng.”Luo Feng was overjoyed.

 Hearing his mother’s excited and joyful voice on the phone, Luo Feng couldn’t help but feel a bit teary-eyed. He had worked so hard for this day:“Mom, you’ve asked three times already. I really passed the assessment! The preliminary martial artist certificate will be sent home in a few days.”

 “I’ve already eaten. I had lunch with the other two who also passed the assessment,”Luo Feng replied with a smile.“Oh, you want to call Dad? Don’t worry, Mom, I won’t forget. Yes, I know.”

 After hanging up, a smile appeared on Luo Feng’s face.

 Happy and satisfied!

 He had worked so hard for so long, training his skills and sword techniques since he was young, just for this day!

 “Ha, breathe.”

 Luo Feng took a deep breath to calm himself before dialing his father’s phone. In this family, his father, Luo Hongguo, was the pillar, the main support! Before he became an advanced student at the martial academy, almost all of the family expenses relied on his father’s hard work.

 Although his mother worked, she spent more time taking care of her two sons, especially since one of them was disabled.

 His father’s work in home renovations was very hard. He had suffered from back pain and hand injuries several times.

 “Dad, you won’t have to work so hard from now on,”Luo Feng silently vowed.

 “Beep—beep—”

 The ringing echoed in his ears as Luo Feng waited for his father to pick up.

“Hmm, why isn’t he picking up the phone? It’s already past noon, and it should be lunchtime. My dad is doing renovations, so he should be taking a break and able to answer.”Luo Feng puzzledly tapped the‘phone location tracking feature’on his screen. Soon, a map of Yangzhou appeared, showing a red dot indicating Luo Feng’s location. The green dot showed the location of his father's phone.

 Luo Feng quickly figured out where his dad was and smiled,“I’ll run over to Dad and personally tell him I’ve become a qualified martial artist.”

 ××××××

 “Hurry up! Move your things faster! You guys can take a break for lunch afterward. We need to eat too!”In a private courtyard of a row of villas in the community, Zhang Haobai, wearing a white t-shirt and white pants, frowned and urged. Three stern-looking bodyguards stood beside him.

 Wooden furniture is very expensive in this day and age, a luxury for the few!

 Nowadays, most people have furniture made from plastic, with glass being the more upscale option.

 “Be careful!”

 “Watch out, you guys.”Zhang Haobai frowned and reminded them,“This is solid wood furniture, made from high-quality materials. If you break it, your boss will definitely be angry with you.”

 The three employees moved cautiously, as this furniture was made from excellent materials and weighed over a thousand pounds, making it a strenuous task for them.

 “Old Luo, I’m starving,”one tall employee from the renovation company said, stretching.

 Carrying valuable furniture weighing over a thousand pounds is indeed hard labor.

 “Alright.”Luo Hongguo bent down to grab the furniture.“Let’s go, guys, put some muscle into it and get this set of furniture inside.”

 Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues lifted the furniture together, carefully navigating the stairs one step at a time until they quickly entered the house. A moment later, they came back out. As Luo Hongguo and his colleagues passed by Zhang Haobai, the smell of sweat surrounded them, causing Zhang Haobai to wrinkle his nose.

 His father is a wealthy man, born into an affluent family, so Zhang Haobai naturally looks down on those at the very bottom of society, the laborers. In his view, those who willingly do such hard labor lack the fighting spirit and deserve to live this miserable life.

 Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues moved forward cautiously, their clothes completely soaked in sweat, droplets running down their foreheads and slipping into their necks.

 “Go, one, two, three, lift!”

 After a moment, Luo Hongguo and his colleagues moved to carry the last set of furniture.

 “Thank you, young master,”the three bodyguards responded cheerfully.

 “Hmm?”Zhang Haobai’s eyes lit up.“Recently, my pocket money has been tight; I could use a little extra!”

 Suddenly—

 “Rest outside for a bit, lay it down gently, slowly.”Luo Hongguo and his colleagues carefully set the furniture down.

 Luo Hongguo took out his phone from his pocket and saw that it was a call from his son. He smiled and prepared to call back.

 “Ah, I told you to be careful! What are you doing?”An angry voice suddenly rang out.

 Luo Hongguo and his colleagues looked down—

 “Hmph! I’ll ask your company’s boss what’s going on.”Zhang Haobai angrily shouted,“Brother Wang, do you have their renovation company’s number? Call them. Tell their boss to come over! Talking to these people is useless.”

 Luo Hongguo and his colleagues were acquaintances.

 “Still making excuses? What’s the use of arguing?”Zhang Haobai sneered.

 If the company loses money, then the three employees responsible for the move would definitely have their wages deducted.

 “Move it in?”

 “Old Luo, Old Luo.”

 “It’s fine.”Luo Hongguo rubbed his shoulder.

 “Isn’t it unclear whether we broke this marble? Why are you pushing people?”The other two workers glared and shouted angrily. These laborers fear nothing; if they get angry, they might just end up in a fight. Even if they were arrested, they would have no money but their lives; usually, the police would let them go.

 Puff! Puff!

 “Hmph! Acting tough without knowing your place.”Zhang Haobai coldly laughed. His family has a good network in Yian District; what’s a few regular laborers to him?

 “Young man, how can you act like this?”Luo Hongguo angrily shouted.

 “Young master, it’s from the decoration company.”The bodyguard with the surname Wang handed over his phone.

 Before he could finish speaking—

 At this moment, Luo Hongguo and his two colleagues were forced by the three tall bodyguards to stand in the corner of the courtyard, covered in footprints.

 Suddenly, a blurry figure dashed into the courtyard. Zhang Haobai recognized him instantly and shouted angrily,“Luo Feng, how dare you come to my house and hit me!”

 One of the bodyguards, slightly shorter and stockier, stepped forward with a cold smile.

 “Bang!”

 “Luo Feng, you actually dared to come to my house to hit my people!”Zhang Haobai glared, shouting,“You’re asking for death!”