Whoosh!
That short announcement was like thunder breaking the sky.
After a brief silence, the dining hall erupted into noise.
Li Qingshan's table was not very shocked since they had already learned the news from Teacher Wan beforehand.
Yu Lei, Hong Qian, and Zhao Hongzhou discussed the announcement quietly based on the simple information.
But Li Qingshan kept his head down and said nothing, his fingers moving quickly across the light screen.
After not hearing from Li Qingshan for a while, Zhao Hongzhou turned to him curiously.
"Shan-ge, what are you doing?"
"Nothing much, writing a resignation letter."
Li Qingshan smiled and showed his wrist screen, displaying a half-finished resignation.
"I just started martial class; I don't want to get distracted. I'm stopping my part-time job for now."
Since there was danger, he needed to avoid it ahead of time. Whether the criminal was the purple-haired woman or not, he was not planning to go back to the Star River Bar.
Very quickly, the resignation was finished and sent. Another letter appeared below it—a report to the authorities!
The page was densely packed with information he had quickly typed out.
Li Qingshan carefully reviewed it to make sure every detail about last night's encounter was clearly described, then immediately sent it to the Inspection Bureau.
The bureau always took things seriously. If the information was useful, there would definitely be a reward.
But he needed to hurry. After all, he was not the only one who would report the incident.
On last night's bus, other people might have seen those three.
By the time Li Qingshan finished, the table discussion had stopped. There was too little information to discuss anything useful.
Yu Lei looked at Li Qingshan and suddenly thought of a new topic.
"Li Qingshan, do you use much nutrition liquid?"
"Never used it before, but I'm planning to buy some after school today."
Li Qingshan nodded without hiding the truth.
"You should have bought it earlier," Zhao Hongzhou said while wiping his mouth. He knew Li's situation well.
"If Shan-ge had used nutrition liquid sooner, today's test score would definitely be higher."
"Even without nutrition liquid, he's still first in the whole class. That's crazy," Hong Qian said in amazement.
But Yu Lei did not look surprised. Her eyes lit up instead.
"I knew it!"
Li Qingshan's eyes moved as he looked toward Yu Lei.
When Teacher Wan was evaluating him earlier, Yu Lei's expression had been different from the other students'. She must know more about martial arts.
"The 'Stars Are Calling' technique has different stages—I'm sure you know that. But I bet you don't know that this technique has four stages total."
Yu Lei held up four fingers without keeping anyone in suspense.
"The four stages are: movement, power delivery, breathing, and muscle."
"In our class, most students are either still learning the first stage or have reached the second stage, where they master how to deliver power through all 108 movements."
"Hong Qian and I have better scores simply because we've used more nutrition liquid."
"Li Qingshan, you should be at the third stage—you've matched your breathing with your movements, right?"
"That's right, your judgment is very good," Li Qingshan confirmed.
The features of the first three stages matched perfectly with entry, proficient, and mastered on his panel.
But he was more curious about the fourth stage.
"Yu, can you explain what the fourth stage—'muscle' means?"
"Just call me Yu Lei," she said, waving her hand and thinking for a moment.
"The key to the fourth stage is controlling your muscle rhythm."
"This stage is mysterious. I heard from my unc—cough—Teacher Wan explain it once. The first three stages go from outside to inside, but the muscle rhythm goes from inside to outside."
Her words suddenly stopped. Yu Lei looked at the three confused faces and sighed.
"That's all I know."
It was too hard to understand. They could not follow.
Li Qingshan shook his head in disappointment. The only useful thing he got from that explanation was one fact: Teacher Wan was Yu Lei's uncle.
"Don't feel bad," Yu Lei tried to comfort him.
"You reached the third stage so quickly—that means you've 'awakened.' With your talent, you'll definitely reach the fourth stage eventually."
Talent? Li Qingshan smiled without responding. He had never really used talent for anything.
Whether it was power delivery or breathing control, he had learned it automatically when the panel upgraded. There was no actual "understanding" process.
But Yu Lei was right in her own way. Once he maxed out his proficiency at the mastered level, he would naturally "understand" muscle rhythm.
After chatting a bit more, the four stood up and left the cafeteria. They said goodbye outside the school gate, and Li Qingshan rushed to the nearest shopping mall.
"Ten bottles of basic nutrition liquid for you!" The sales girl smiled brightly and handed over a special thermal box with both hands.
Li Qingshan forced a smile, his mouth feeling stiff.
He grabbed the box with his right hand, gripped his sword sheath with his left, and ran his wrist across the payment device.
-30,000
His money was cut in half!
"Thank you for your purchase! Come again soon!" the girl called cheerfully.
But Li Qingshan could not go slow. His feet moved quickly as he hurried away from this painful place.
Back home, Li Qingshan leaned his cleaver against the wall and looked at his panel, but he did not rush to try the Martial Space.
Real life was the foundation. Technique level was just a tool.
To improve his body tempering, he had to keep practicing every day.
"And now that I have nutrition liquid, I should be able to train more times each day."
Li Qingshan placed his hands carefully on the thermal box and opened it.
Hiss! Cold mist swirled out, and ten thumb-thick test tubes filled with bright blue liquid appeared.
"At least the packaging is fancy," he muttered, feeling slightly better.
He took out one bottle, quickly closed the box, and opened the cap. He tilted his head back and drank it all.
The cool, sour-sweet liquid flowed down his throat and disappeared.
"3,000 credits for that?" Li Qingshan stared at the empty bottle, feeling lost.
His body did not show any special reaction. This 3,000-credit nutrition liquid seemed exactly the same as a 3-credit drink.
But the sales girl had explained this already.
Nutrition liquid is a supplement. Its actual effects depend on the person.
Normal people cannot absorb much nutrition liquid.
To improve absorption, you need to train with proper techniques.
The exact effect varies from person to person.
In other words, the higher your technique level, the better your absorption.
Li Qingshan cleared his mind, stood in the middle of the room, and started practicing the Stars Are Calling routine.
An hour later, after completing the last movement, Li Qingshan collapsed to the ground, covered in sweat.
"I'm not hungry?"
He touched his stomach, his eyes brightening.
After every previous practice session, he would be so hungry he could barely stand. He would need to eat right away.
But now he felt no hunger at all. Instead, his stomach seemed to glow with a warm feeling that spread throughout his tired body, making him feel refreshed.
"3,000 was worth it!" Li Qingshan grinned.
At this recovery speed, he would be able to train again soon.
Li Qingshan spent the whole afternoon practicing.
After dinner and completing another training session in the evening, his arms and legs were sore and he could not move. The nutrition liquid's effect had worn off completely.
[Realm: Body Tempering 9/100]→[Realm: Body Tempering 10/100]