Gradually, the two hundred Mountain Hammer Squats came to an end. After a few minutes of rest, they began the third exercise.
Time passed. Every minute, every second, was an ordeal for the four of them.
Zhou Cheng collapsed completely, his face pale and his chest heaving violently like a fish out of water. He no longer had the strength to get back up.
Another young man named Zhang Ping was gasping for breath, on the verge of fainting, and couldn't continue.
By the time they reached the fourth exercise.
A light breeze blew past. The wavering Xu Linfeng could no longer hold on either. His body swayed, and he fell from the ironwood pole.
The thud wasn't loud, but it was like a stone dropped into a calm lake.
The fiery sun beat down on every inch of the concrete training ground. Dozens of meters away, the group of regular students had fallen completely silent at some point.
Some stood frozen, holding dumbbells. Others leaned against the heavy tires, turning their heads to watch, unconsciously forgetting what they were doing.
The mocking expressions vanished from their faces. They stared intently at the lone, slender figure still standing in the center of the open space, ignoring the blinding sunlight.
The long metal pole, resting on bricks, was only half a palm's width. Standing on it while holding a five-kilogram brick was an extreme test of balance and willpower.
His black short-sleeved shirt was completely soaked through, clinging to his gaunt frame.
Though his legs trembled back and forth and his balance was unstable, he was still holding on.
Twenty seconds, one minute, two minutes...
He was about to complete the Iron Pole Stance, the fourth basic exercise of the Fighting Skill.
"Y-You've got to be kidding me, right? It's his first day of training, and he's already made it this far?"
"They're just basic exercises, but they're still incredibly difficult. How is his stamina so good? Is he made of iron or something?"
"He's really going all out. You can't deny that tenacity and grit..."
After the silence, a series of surprised whispers broke out. Lu Chao had, at some point, become the center of everyone's attention.
The many official disciples inside the training hall had also taken a break at some point. They had stopped their training, and a few stood at the entrance on the first floor, watching him with nodding heads in a sign of approval.
Finally.
CLATTER!!
A brick fell to the ground with a sharp sound.
Lu Chao's body swayed, his arms aching unbearably. At the very moment he completed the fourth exercise, his strength gave out completely, and he broke his stance.
HUFF! HUFF! HUFF!!
He gasped heavily, his chest working like a bellows.
His legs trembled where he stood, and his arms, sore and swollen, hung limply at his sides, impossible to lift.
Lu Chao nearly fell. He had never felt so exhausted.
'This must be my current limit,' he thought.
As the thought surfaced, soreness and pain spread throughout his body.
Lu Chao knew that [Beginner's Fortitude] wasn't omnipotent. The limits of his recovery were still based on his fundamental stamina.
"Junior Brother Lu."
Unaware of his thoughts, Zheng Wu walked up to him.
"It was only basic training."
"But to last this long... Your willpower is admirable."
he said earnestly, his gaze filled with unconcealed admiration and approval.
Perhaps he couldn't compare to those genius disciples with excellent fundamentals, or the wealthy scions from good families who had undergone professional training from a young age and possessed superb physiques.
But in terms of sheer grit and tenacity alone, his performance was already outstanding.
"Th-Thank you, Senior Brother Zheng."
Lu Chao gasped for breath, barely managing to stay on his feet as he thanked him for the praise.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the varied expressions on the faces of Zhou Cheng and the other two. Most looked resentful, but Xu Linfeng, the cold-faced young man, looked at him with a hint of admiration.
"This is Muscle Recovery Oil. It's used to treat bruises and injuries. It can clear up blood stasis and repair damage to the meridians."
"You four junior brothers can apply it as needed, but I don't recommend using it more than twice a day."
Without another word, Zheng Wu handed over four palm-sized glass bottles of red oil, distributing them to the four trainees.
It was a medicinal liquor secretly concocted by the boxing hall to aid in physical recovery.
If they decided to give up on their apprenticeship later, the cost of this would not be refunded.
"That's all for this morning's training. Rest for now. A nutritional meal will be brought to you shortly."
"You can arrange your own schedules this afternoon. I suggest you familiarize yourselves with the previous exercises to solidify your Fighting Skill and strive to master it as soon as possible..."
After these brief instructions, Zheng Wu turned and left.
Lu Chao and the other three finally had some time to rest. In silence, they each took their medicinal liquor and began applying it to their bodies.
Shoulders, back, arms, thighs... A cold sensation spread over his skin, but after he had rubbed it in evenly, Lu Chao soon felt faint traces of a searing heat.
It was as if some medicine had transformed into a warm current, seeping through his pores and into his flesh.
'It seems to be having some effect.'
Nodding to himself, Lu Chao felt this trip was well worth it.
The Jinshi Boxing Hall truly lived up to its reputation as a place for developing Life Energy through Martial Arts. From the Fighting Skill training to the secret medicinal preparations, everything was quite professional.
After a period of rest, with the sun high overhead at noon, Lu Chao's stomach rumbled as he began to feel intensely hungry.
The morning's physical exertion demanded nutritional replenishment.
Glancing over, he could see that most of the regular students had brought their own lunches. They walked over to the shade of a tree on the training ground and took out silver-colored metal lunchboxes from their backpacks.
The mixed smell of rice and synthetic meat wafted over from a distance. A few others had brought synthetic bread and milk.
The former was already cold and greasy, so they had to go to the security booth and wait in line to use the microwave.
The latter was less trouble, but it was barely filling and offered only ordinary nutrition.
RUMBLE...
His stomach growled again, and Lu Chao swallowed hard.
Zhou Cheng and the other two had similar expressions.
Finally, amid their expectant gazes, Zheng Wu, who had left earlier, reappeared. He walked over with a steady gait, carrying four metal lunchboxes.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, junior brothers."
he said with a smile, distributing them one by one.
Lu Chao and the other three were so hungry their stomachs felt stuck to their spines. Hearing him, they quickly offered their thanks and stepped forward to receive the food.
"It smells amazing."
His nostrils flared slightly as he opened the lunchbox lid.
Warm white steam carrying the aroma of meat rushed into his face. Inside were several thick slices of meat and green vegetables, covering plump, glistening grains of rice underneath.
"This is the meat of a Black-Horned Ox. Although it's farm-raised, its nutritional value is no worse than that of a wild one."
"There's also a Qi and Blood Tonic here. Remember to drink it soon after your meal."
Zheng Wu also handed him a bowl of medicinal soup, from which the thick scent of herbs wafted out.
Far from being put off, Lu Chao's eyes brightened with a hint of surprise.
He had heard of the Black-Horned Ox. It was once a ferocious, irradiated Mutant Beast from the wilderness, known for living in herds and having a violent temperament.
With the discovery of a method to tame them, many meat processing plants in Ring City now raised them. Their meat was exceptionally delicious, with a higher nutritional value than ordinary beef, and cost two to three times as much.
He had also heard about this Qi and Blood Tonic.
It was one of the few potions whose formula had been made public for free by the Biotechnology Company, a mega-corporation of the Alliance Country.
It was said that long-term consumption could strengthen one's qi and blood, and when combined with exercise, it could accelerate the development of Life Energy.
Saliva pooling in his mouth, Lu Chao wasted no more time and immediately picked up his chopsticks, devouring the food.
At that moment, he no longer felt the Jinshi Boxing Hall's tuition was expensive, nor did he have any intention of giving up.
Because both this nutritious training meal and the precious Fighting Skill were completely worth the price.
He even had a strange feeling.
Maybe Master Luo didn't open a boxing hall in a barren place like the Iron Ring District just for the so-called training fees.
GULP... GULP!
The thought flashed through his mind as Lu Chao chewed his food and swallowed it.
A new warmth flooded his limbs. A few minutes later, he put down the empty lunchbox and patted his stomach.
[Potential Progress: 1%]
A panel notification appeared, and Lu Chao glanced at it.
Although the difficulty of accumulating Potential Progress had doubled, he saw a new hope in this nutritional meal.
Immediately, he drank the Qi and Blood Tonic as well.
After resting for a while in the shade, which helped alleviate the soreness in his muscles and some of his physical fatigue, Lu Chao glanced at the wide concrete training ground. His gaze swept over Zhou Cheng and the other two, who were still resting, as well as the other regular students.
Without any hesitation, he quickly walked back to the training area.
'Get stronger!'
With only that one thought in his mind, Lu Chao once again assumed his stance.
[Devourer] had given him hope, and the Jinshi Boxing Hall had given him a chance.
And now was the time to seize it with everything he had.
And so, again and again, he trained, letting fresh sweat drip down and soak the concrete ground.
「Until the sun set and twilight fell.」