Chapter 45: Devil's Training (Part Two)

Li Xingyue nimbly hopped out of bed, intending to get dressed, but his whole body was so sore that he tumbled straight to the floor.

Suppressing a grimace, he hauled himself back up and hurriedly put on his clothes. He had no choice; he certainly didn't want to taste the belt again.

Thus, another session of today's devilish training commenced.

The entire morning was packed with physical conditioning. After inhaling his lunch with wolfish hunger and resting for barely an hour, the afternoon training began.

Before long, around eight o'clock in the evening, the day's training finally came to an end.

Li Xingyue lay flat on the floor, panting heavily. Today had been another inhuman ordeal, leaving him completely drained of strength.

The meal delivery guy pushed the door open shortly after, though he wasn't nearly as surprised by Li Xingyue's state as he had been yesterday. He simply set the food down beside him and left.

About half an hour later, Li Xingyue pushed himself up into a sitting position and began to devour the food voraciously. Once he was full and quenched his thirst, he walked over to the bed, picked up his communicator, and saw that Yellow Teeth and the others had sent another message.

The message said the group planned to look around District B for a bit before heading off for some training.

After replying to each of them individually, Li Xingyue took a quick shower, collapsed onto the bed, and fell fast asleep.

He had no choice; the daily training was simply too high in intensity. Fortunately, he had now evolved to the second tier, and his physical constitution was somewhat better than an ordinary person's, otherwise, he would have been worked half to death.

Soon enough, the next morning arrived.

This routine continued for half a month. Every day, Wang Li put Li Xingyue through grueling physical conditioning, constantly pushing him past his body's limits.

By this point, he could easily rattle off two hundred consecutive push-ups without his face turning red or his breath hitching.

Wang Li nodded. "Your physical conditioning has finally caught up. Starting tomorrow, double the volume. That's it for today, be up an hour early tomorrow."

With that, Wang Li turned and left the training room.

Li Xingyue was drenched in sweat, but today he wasn't reduced to lying flat on the floor like he had been on previous days. Stretching his aching muscles, he took a shower and waited for his meal to arrive.

The young delivery guy soon pushed the door open and found Li Xingyue sitting on the equipment, watching him.

"Well, well, not bad, brother! Finally off the floor, are we?"

Li Xingyue gave a helpless smile. "Can't be helped. My body was too weak; I'm only just recovering these past couple of days. Thanks for before—I didn't even have the energy to talk to you the last couple of days."

After exchanging a few words, the delivery guy departed, and Li Xingyue once again tore into his food like a starving wolf.

Stepping over to the bed, he picked up his communicator and discovered that there were still no messages from anyone today.

Ever since about ten days ago, the group had stopped contacting him. Li Xingyue guessed they were probably caught up in their own training regimens just like him, which was why they hadn't found the time.

"Heh, who would've thought? Those guys actually turned out to be quite motivated. Good for them. Training hard will help with their later breakthroughs and give them an extra layer of safety!"

Li Xingyue walked into the bathroom and glanced at his reflection in the mirror. He noticed his physique looked considerably sturdier than it had half a month ago; though his muscles weren't freakishly bulky, they were exceptionally well-proportioned and defined.

Not only that, but his complexion was healthier, and his entire bearing had undergone a dramatic transformation.

"Tsk tsk, living up to the nickname 'Little Eddie Peng'—now I'm truly the real deal!"

Striking a few poses in front of the mirror, Li Xingyue returned to the bed to rest.

Before he knew it, the clock hit three-fifty. This was the exact time he had set his alarm for. The moment it rang, he sprang up from the bed, briskly dressed, and washed up.

Wang Li pushed the door open and saw that he was already prepped and ready for training.

"Not bad, you're starting to look the part. Starting today, we're doubling the volume of the physical conditioning."

Li Xingyue reached out a hand to interrupt Wang Li. "Instructor, I want to ask—how much longer do I need to train before I can break through to the third tier?"

Wang Li’s normally calm face turned somewhat cold. "So, your goal is just the third tier? If that's the case, you can graduate right now."

Seeing Wang Li turn around as if to leave again, Li Xingyue hurriedly grabbed his arm. "No, no, no! Of course I want to break through to even higher tiers."

"Who wouldn't want to reach the eighth, ninth, or even tenth tier? It's just that my potential isn't all that great; if I can hit the fifth or sixth tier, I'll consider myself blessed!"

"Besides, my brothers are still waiting for me outside, so... so I just wanted to ask how much longer it's going to take..."

Wang Li halted his movements, turned back, and stared intently at Li Xingyue for several long minutes. Neither of them spoke during this time, leaving Li Xingyue somewhat unnerved under his gaze.

"After watching you through these past half-month, I can sense that you're different from the rest of us. In fact, I believe your potential is immense!"

"Even the tenth tier, which no one has reached yet, might not be entirely out of the question for you—though I couldn't say why I have this feeling."

"Alright, enough talk. All in all, if you trust me, then just focus on your training for now. At least for the short term, you can forget about leaving. Of course, when the time comes for you to graduate, you certainly won't regret it!"

Very well, since the instructor had put it that way, Li Xingyue had nothing more to say.

A day flashed by in the blink of an eye—to those enjoying themselves, it felt like nothing, but to Li Xingyue, every second dragged like a year, and there were countless times he wished he could just drop dead.

He lay prone on the ground, completely motionless and drenched in sweat, reverting right back to the state he had been in a few days prior.

When the delivery guy entered and saw him, he burst out laughing. "What is this? Why are you back in this state again? I haven't seen anyone else from the other training rooms end up like this. Looks like you really are a bit frail. Eat up and build your strength, hahaha."

Li Xingyue wanted to snap back a retort, but right then, he lacked even the strength to open his mouth.

After recovering for another half-hour, he finally began to eat.

Once he finished his shower and walked over to the bed, he thought about what Wang Li had said earlier and decided he needed to contact Yellow Teeth and the others. After all, this training schedule was far exceeding their initial expectations.

Yet, try as he might, he couldn't reach any of them. The messages he had sent over the past few days had gone completely unanswered.

"What the hell is going on? Did something happen to them, or are they just too absorbed in their training?"

Li Xingyue knew his friends; none of them were the type to go looking for trouble. Still, a creeping sense of worry gnawed at him, so he grabbed his clothes and resolved to go check on them.

To his surprise, he was blocked right at the exit.

"Why won't you let me out?"

The guard's expression was icy. "No one is allowed to leave until their training is complete. Please turn back!"

"Then how come those guys can go out?"

Li Xingyue pointed toward several people nearby who were also training in the facility, walking in and out freely without obstruction.

"We have received orders that you are not to step a single foot outside until you graduate. Please cooperate with our duties!"

Li Xingyue initially thought about forcing his way through, but the moment he took a step forward, two assault rifles were aimed straight at him.

"Fine, fine, fine! You win!"

With no other options, Li Xingyue had to trudge back to his training room. It seemed he would just have to wait until tomorrow when Wang Li arrived to find out what was going on.

Tossing and turning with wild thoughts, Li Xingyue soon drifted into a deep sleep on the bed.

Before long, the sounds of heavy, thunderous snoring echoed through the training room...