"The selection process back then was very different from now."
"At that ti, we martial artists were the pillars of the team, each of us having undergone at least ten years of rigorous training before qualifying for the Special Search Team."
"Going back thirty years, when I first joined the training camp, Chief Li was still around, and he personally acted as our instructor."
"Every day, we had to get up before dawn to squat and stand in stances for two hours, then at night, apply ointnt for injuries and practice striking techniques with each other. The pain made us howl like ghosts, but the next day, everyone was lively and vigorous again."
"It’s precisely because of this day-in and day-out hard training that we developed strong bodies and unyielding wills, which later brought fa to the Special Search Team."
"Back then, no short-sighted noble family dared to provoke us, and those foreign so-called organizations would detour when they heard the na of the Special Search Team."
As he said this, he withdrew his gaze, and the heroism on his face gradually faded, replaced by a trace of desolate self-deprecation.
"Ah, tis have changed, technology has advanced, and there are all sorts of ways to enhance strength now."
"Before a mission, they inject three vials of neural enhancers, and afterward, they soak in nutrient solution repair pods. They call this ’efficiency,’ and no longer need us hot-blooded brawny types."
"Teacher..."
Wei Zheng wanted to say sothing, but found that any words of comfort seed so pale and powerless.
"The great trend of the world is beyond human control."
Shi Chengyi waved his hand, seemingly at peace:
"Which country isn’t experinting with human modification now? I don’t really have much against it, I just feel they’re going too extre."
"Martial arts are ultimately treasures handed down by our ancestors and should not be abandoned lightly. They should be deeply studied and expanded."
"But even if I think this way, no one supports it, and no one is willing to believe it."
"Unless... another peerless figure like Chief Li erges, otherwise facing the tide of history, it’s ultimately like an ant trying to stop a chariot. We have to accept our fate."
He rambled on, then smiled again:
"When you get old, you get chatty, don’t take it to heart."
Wei Zheng looked at his forr ntor, feeling uneasy.
He knew that Shi Chengyi’s resignation ant the complete loss of support for the martial artist faction within the Special Search Team at headquarters.
From then on, leaderless, the remaining mbers’ days would only get harder.
"Xiao Wei, you don’t need to worry too much."
Shi Chengyi instead comforted him:
"In the future, align yourself more with that Vice Minister Gu. He’s new and needs people, and it seems he’s not in league with those nad Ling, maybe... he will treat you old folks well."
Seeing his teacher like this, Wei Zheng finally couldn’t hold back and revealed the true purpose of his visit this ti:
"Teacher, I’ve co this ti to actually report sothing to you."
"Oh, what is it? Let’s hear it."
Shi Chengyi picked up his teacup, gently blew on the froth, his expression indifferent, as if he had little interest in anything.
Seeing this, Wei Zheng took a deep breath and raised his voice a bit:
"Yesterday, at Uncle Ma’s house, I t a true martial arts prodigy!"
He then detailed his encounter with Fang Cheng the day before, Fang Cheng’s aura as blazing as the sun, his terrifying appetite, and his progression in cultivation that ’touched the threshold of condensing the True Self.’
Shi Chengyi’s previously gentle gaze slowly beca sharp as Wei Zheng spoke.
When he heard "Heavenly Person Communication causing celestial phenona," his hand holding the teacup trembled slightly, barely perceptible.
"He secluded himself in the Ma Family Water Prison and after five days successfully established intent, began shaping realm, and even caused celestial phenona?"
Shi Chengyi’s voice contained a trace of gravity.
"Absolutely true!"
Wei Zheng affird:
"With such talent, I feel... perhaps he can already be compared to Chief Li in his youth!"
Shi Chengyi fell silent.
He put down the teacup, slowly stood up, and paced back and forth in the study.
Then he walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, turned his back to Wei Zheng, and looked at the lush, centuries-old ginkgo tree in the courtyard outside.
Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on him.
His whole being seed isolated from the study, plunged into deep, bottomless thought.
The words of Wei Zheng stirred more than a storm in his heart!
A genius who can be compared to the young Li Guizhen?
The first thing he calculated in his mind was the authenticity of this matter.
Wei Zheng, whom he had personally ntored, had a steady personality and would never make groundless statents.
Then, this young person nad Fang Cheng, his talent at least matched seven or eight-tenths of Wei Zheng’s description.
Five days, establishing intent, shaping realm, Heavenly Person Communication...
This isn’t talent, it’s a miracle!
What does this an?
A gleam flashed in Shi Chengyi’s eyes.
It ans that the traditional martial arts lineage might still have a chance to turn the tables!
The faction led by the surna Ling’s side thrives because of those "super soldiers" mass-produced by the research departnt.
They are strong, but have limits, and their foundation is unstable, easily leading to issues with their spirit.
But the lineage of martial artists has never lacked heritage; what it lacks is an apex combat force that can keep everyone in check and make them shut up.
This Fang Cheng might just be the lever that can shift the entire ga!
He doesn’t need to change the current mainstream thod of the Special Search Team’s experintal body modifications, as that’s unrealistic.
But as long as he exists, as long as he can display strength through pure martial arts that surpasses all technological creations.
Then, he becos a living banner!
He can unite those martial artist factions that have gradually weakened and beco disillusioned!
Shi Chengyi’s heart, long as calm as an ancient well, began to beat violently and uncontrollably.
This is not just for himself, for those who followed him but were suppressed for years, but more importantly, to continue the legacy left by Chief Li in this team.
He slowly closed his eyes, then suddenly opened them, his gaze bursting with astonishing brilliance.
"Bring him to see !"
Shi Chengyi abruptly turned, his gaze as sharp as electricity, looking at the student sitting on the sofa, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
Wei Zheng showed a trace of a bitter smile on his face:
"Teacher, I’m afraid he can’t co."
"Why?"
"He... doesn’t seem to be interested in our Special Search Team."
Shi Chengyi frowned:
"Didn’t he apply for this spring selection together with that kid from the Ma Family?"
"No."
Wei Zheng shook his head: "I asked, Ma Donghe said it was because he couldn’t pass the background check."
"Background check?"
Shi Chengyi snorted coldly:
"What a big deal! Such a genius cannot be buried among the civilians. He should serve the country!"
"What is that human resources departnt doing? It’s simply outrageous! I’ll go talk so sense into them right now!"
Saying so, he got up and walked toward the desk, ready to make a phone call to hold them accountable, completely lacking his usual calmness.
"Teacher, you misunderstood."
Wei Zheng quickly intervened: "It’s not that the background check was stuck, it’s that he... never even applied."
Shi Chengyi paused mid-step, stunned.
Wei Zheng explained:
"After I left the Ma Family yesterday, I pulled so strings to get into the archives at the East Capital Police Headquarters to retrieve Fang Cheng’s details."
"He is an only child, his mother is still alive, and his father... seventeen years ago, died in a fire due to his involvent in a serial murder case, the police concluded it was a suicide out of guilt."
"If it were just a simple serial murder case, there wouldn’t be much of a problem, a little maneuvering could solve it too."
"The key is, this case is connected to another bigger event from seventeen years ago."
"What event?"
Wei Zheng spoke each word distinctly: "The Guangwu Gate shooting incident."
Shi Chengyi’s pupils shrank fiercely, and he drew in a cold breath.
There was no way he wouldn’t know about this matter.
It was a major event recorded in the history of the Great Xia Republic, directly leading to social change!
In the seventy-eighth year of the republic, the military governnt’s high-handed rule sparked intense dissatisfaction among the people.
In June of that year, a massive protest broke out in the East Capital, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets to march.
When the procession passed by Guangwu Gate Square, a group of masked gunn suddenly opened fire from surrounding buildings, shooting indiscriminately into the crowd.
Several dozen innocent passersby and journalists fell in pools of blood on the spot, and even a famous civil rights activist at that ti was severely wounded, barely escaping death.
The military governnt referred to it as the work of a rebel organization, trying to create chaos and fra others.
But the public did not buy this claim at all, and public opinion exploded, causing the protests to expand on an unprecedented scale.
This incident beca the last straw that broke the cal’s back, ultimately forcing the military governnt to step down and transfer power to a newly elected civilian governnt.
When the new governnt took office, the first thing they did was swear to thoroughly investigate the matter, organize activities to commorate the victims, and actively hunt down the fugitive culprits...
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