With a flicker of thought, he drew a wisp of dark golden Heart Fire from his Dantian, guiding it up his meridians to merge with the Qi and Blood he forced from his body.

"Burn!"

The dark golden Undying Flame suddenly flared to life on the tip of his spear, burning silently.

Xu Wuyi flicked his wrist, and the spear thrust out. The flame-wreathed tip cut through the air, creating a faint, searing crackle.

He could feel that the bond between the flame and the spear shaft was still imperfect. A subtle stagnation in the flow of Energy affected the speed and explosive power of his thrusts.

He slowed his movements, carefully feeling out the synergy between his Qi and Blood, Heart Fire, Spirit, and the spear.

Thrust after thrust, adjustment after adjustment, he searched for that feeling of perfect control, as if the spear were an extension of his own arm, moving in complete harmony.

Time flew by as he focused on his training.

Only when he finally felt the Undying Flame naturally adhere to and retract with his Spear Momentum, no longer requiring a conscious effort to maintain it, did he slowly withdraw his spear.

Nearly half of his Qi and Blood was consumed, and his Spirit felt a trace of fatigue, but his gaze only grew sharper.

’I’m still not proficient enough. A battle can change in an instant. It must become second nature, unleashed with a mere thought.’ He was strict with himself.

He walked to a corner, picking up the high-energy Nutrient Liquid and water he had prepared to replenish his reserves.

Feeling the Energy spreading through his body, nourishing his tired muscles and meridians, he was once again reminded of the importance of resources.

Without these supplies, such high-intensity training would be completely unsustainable.

After resting for a moment, he didn’t continue his spear practice. Instead, he sat cross-legged and took out a recently delivered, milky-white potion that exuded a faint, cooling aura—a Concentration Potion.

He drank it, and a cool stream of air rushed straight to his mind. The slight fatigue from his long period of intense focus was instantly swept away.

His consciousness felt as if it had been cleansed, becoming exceptionally clear and sharp.

He immediately began circulating the Heart Fire Refining Spirit Visualization Method.

Inside his Dantian, nourished by this cool stream, the dark golden ball of Heart Fire seemed to pulse with a more nimble and powerful rhythm.

The visualized image of a "brilliant sun purging injustice" grew even clearer, and his comprehension of the True Intention of "Incineration" seemed to deepen by a fraction.

’The effect is remarkable.’

Xu Wuyi was certain of it. The Concentration Potion was much more expensive than a Life Potion and could only be bought with points, but it was worth every point.

When his hour of Visualization ended, he felt a faint increase in his Spiritual Strength. Although he was still a ways off from breaking through to Level 30, he knew that every little bit counted.

...

「May 25th, 9:00 AM sharp.」

On the Star Martial Battle Network, the special dedicated channel for the Federal Youth Martial Arts Tournament officially opened.

The consciousnesses of countless young Martial Artists, who had long been waiting, surged into this virtual ocean like a hundred rivers returning to the sea.

The channel was abuzz with voices. In the center of a massive Circular Plaza, a dazzling leaderboard hovered. It was still empty, waiting for the names of the strong to set it ablaze.

The Youth Martial Arts Tournament only allowed participants under the age of 25, making it a true competition for the young.

The main contenders were the current students of the Martial Arts Universities, especially those from the "Three Greats."

It was worth mentioning that in the early years of the Youth Tournament, the spots in the finals were almost completely monopolized by the Three Greats. Later, an unspoken agreement formed within the Three Greats themselves. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

They would only let their first and second-year students participate in the Youth Tournament for point rewards, so the upperclassmen gradually stopped competing.

As a result, the Three Greats still took up half the spots in the finals, but at least there was some semblance of competition.

Otherwise, over time, other schools might have stopped participating altogether, and the tournament itself would have lost its appeal as a spectator event.

As for the competition itself, it was divided into preliminaries and finals.

The rules for the preliminaries were simple and direct: free-for-all random matchmaking.

Winners gained Youth Tournament Ranking Points, while losers had them deducted. This process would repeat.

The preliminaries would end at 3:00 PM sharp, lasting a total of six hours. However, most contestants couldn’t possibly fight for that long.

Fighting for even half that time was considered impressive; continuing further would only lead to a decline in performance due to exhaustion.

Two or three hours was enough time for a typical contestant to fight dozens of matches, which was sufficient to create a clear distinction in the rankings.

The intentionally extended time was to accommodate contestants who fought longer battles or had weaker Spiritual Strength, ensuring fairness as much as possible.

In the end, only the top 500 contestants in the point rankings would advance to the finals.

Starting with the finals, the system would directly pair up contestants. The winner advanced, the loser was eliminated—it was utterly ruthless.

Aside from the top thirty-two seeded contestants, whether anyone else could advance depended not only on skill but also on a considerable amount of luck.

...

Surrounding the Circular Plaza were countless independent rest areas and viewing boxes.

Inside one of the rest areas labeled "Dongjiang-Red River," familiar figures began to materialize one after another.

"Over here!"

Zeng Bonan waved. His aura was steady, and his Life Energy Level was approaching Level 20, not far from the Martial Artist Realm.

Yu Peiling stood beside him, still the center of everyone’s attention. She smiled at the arriving crowd. "Looks like everyone’s here."

Many students from both United Middle School and Honghe First Middle School were participating. Hu Haobo, Liu Jing, Shi Yi, and the others appeared one by one.

"Haobo, I heard you’re unbeatable among the first-years at Beiming Martial Arts Academy?" Shi Yi asked, leaning in.

Hu Haobo crossed his arms and gave a faint "hmph." "It’s alright. There are still a few decent opponents. We all just broke through to Martial Artist; we can’t compare to the Three Greats."

"Zeng Bonan, Star Martial University is full of experts. How’s it feel?" he said, turning his head.

Zeng Bonan smiled. "The pressure is immense, but so is the progress. Yu Peiling is the truly incredible one—she’s already almost Level 25."

Yu Peiling shook her head slightly. "I’m still a long way off. This Youth Tournament is full of hidden masters. I’ll consider it a success if I can make it into the top one thousand."

Hearing this, the atmosphere grew a little heavy.

They exchanged updates, mostly about their training lives at their respective universities and the progress of their Life Energy Levels, which generally hovered between Level 15 and Level 16.

This was a decent pace among ordinary students, but in the Youth Tournament, which brought together geniuses from the entire Federation, it seemed somewhat lacking.

"By the way..." Liu Jing suddenly spoke up, her gaze sweeping over the group. "Has anyone heard from Xu Wuyi recently? It feels like he hasn’t said much in the group chat for a while."

At the mention of his name, the rest area fell silent for a moment.

Shi Yi scratched his head. "Nope. The last time we talked was around the New Year. He said he was in seclusion. I messaged him later to ask if he was coming to the Youth Tournament, but he never replied."

Hu Haobo frowned. "Knowing his personality, there’s no way he’d miss a competition like this."

Zeng Bonan looked at everyone’s confused expressions, exchanged a glance with Yu Peiling, and said, "I left him a message. As soon as he logs into the Battle Network, he’ll get an invitation to join us here."

He paused, then, under the group’s curious gazes, slowly dropped a bombshell. "Also... Xu Wuyi has already broken through to the Martial Master Realm."