High Martial Arts: Slay enemies to become stronger, forge invincibility from billions of corpses.

Looking out the car window, Song Chen saw a giant city wall stretching across his vision.

This is not a brick and stone city wall from an ancient costume drama, but a super defensive fortification built with alloy and concrete.

The wall is eighty meters high and its surface is covered with dense psionic patterns, which are defensive formations engraved by array masters.

Driven by spiritual energy, it is powerful enough to withstand the fierce attacks of high-level alien beasts.

Every few dozen meters along the top of the wall was a gun emplacement, its dark muzzle pointing directly out of the city.

In the center of the city wall, a giant alloy gate is slowly opening.

The gate is five meters thick, and dried bloodstains remain on its edges, dating back to an unknown number of years ago.

The armored vehicle drove through the gate, and after a brief period of dimming, the light returned to its original brightness.

They completely crossed the city walls and left the base city.

Song Chen looked back and saw the giant gate slowly closing, completely separating the city from the wilderness.

The driver, a middle-aged man with a cigarette dangling from his lips, said without turning his head, "Don't look. Everyone's like this the first time they leave the city. You'll see how nice the city is after a few days."

No one answered in the carriage.

The armored vehicle continued forward, and the scenery outside the window changed rapidly.

The first thing that catches the eye is a wide open space, with the ground paved with alloy plates, and a watchtower every few hundred meters.

The open space was filled with military vehicles and armored vehicles, as well as temporary tents and fortifications.

Soldiers moved back and forth, some carrying supplies, some inspecting equipment, and some conducting drills.

The driver explained, "This is a defensive zone, guarded 24 hours a day. It's the safest area outside the city, and it's very difficult for alien beasts to break through."

The armored vehicle passed through the defense zone and continued forward.

Ten kilometers later, the scenery changed again.

The alloy ground was transformed into a compacted dirt road, with sparse barbed wire fencing along the sides and a small watchtower at regular intervals.

On the watchtower, someone is looking into the distance through binoculars.

"This is a restricted area."

The driver continued, "There are no permanent troops stationed here, only patrol teams that patrol during the day; no one dares to linger at night."

"Lone beasts occasionally appear here, posing little threat, but even a first-tier beast is deadly enough for you."

No one responded, and the atmosphere in the carriage grew increasingly oppressive.

After another hour of driving, the view outside the window turned into a complete wasteland.

The weeds grew wildly, reaching half a person's height.

In the distance are rolling hills and sparse woods, with occasional collapsed buildings covered in vines and moss, sealed away for many years.

The driver's voice lowered: "This is a patrol zone, the border between humans and alien beasts. Both sides frequently appear here, so there is no absolute safety."

"Your practical training will be in this area, and it won't go too deep, but don't be careless."

He pointed into the distance: "See that gray outline?"

The students looked in that direction.

On the horizon, the ruins of a dilapidated city faintly emerge.

The high-rise building collapsed and broke apart, leaving only a broken skeleton that cast distorted shadows in the sunlight.

"That's Changqing City. Twenty years ago, it was a large city with a population of 500,000. Now it's a paradise for alien beasts."

The carriage was deathly silent.

Everyone stared at the ruins, deeply shocked.

Song Chen also stared at the ruins; this was the first time he had witnessed such an apocalyptic scene.

The dilapidated high-rise buildings, like broken skeletons, point straight to the sky.

The once bustling streets are now overgrown with weeds and vines, and the wreckage of twisted vehicles is scattered all over the ground.

Occasionally, flocks of birds would take flight from the ruins, circle for a moment, and then return to their original spot.

"How many strange beasts are inside?"

Someone asked, trembling.

The driver was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "Nobody knows the exact number."

"But the military estimates that there are at least 200,000 Tier 1 alien beasts and several thousand Tier 2 beasts in Changqing City and its surrounding areas. The number of higher-tier beasts is unknown."

A collective gasp filled the carriage.

Song Chen noticed that Zhao Wei's expression had also changed; his usual arrogance had vanished, replaced by a tense look.

The driver glanced at everyone and softened his tone: "Don't worry, the training will only be held on the outskirts of Changqing City. Each team will be led by a second-level martial artist. If there is any danger, retreat immediately."

"As long as you don't act recklessly, you're unlikely to be in any danger to your life."

He stubbed out his cigarette and said, "Alright, we've arrived at our destination."

The armored vehicle was parked in an open area.

Several identical armored vehicles and a few temporary tents were already parked here.

Several martial artists stood outside the tent, looking down at documents.

The bus doors opened, and the students disembarked one by one.

The air outside the city was cooler than inside, carrying the fresh scent of grass and trees, along with a faint, almost imperceptible, fishy smell.

"gather!"

A loud voice echoed across the open space.

A burly, middle-aged martial artist stood in the center, with a square face, thick eyebrows, a scar on his left eye, and a dignified expression.

He was dressed in a black combat uniform with a third-tier warrior badge pinned to his chest.

The martial artist scanned the sixty students and said, "My name is Chen Tieshan, and I am the chief instructor for this practical training."

"I know some of you are ambitious and have connections, and some of you are from wealthy families, but none of that matters to me."

"I only have one rule here: come back alive."

"You will be divided into ten teams, each with six members, led by a second-tier martial artist."

"The training will last for ten days. The task is to hunt first-level alien beasts on the outskirts of Changqing City. You must return to the camp every night and are strictly prohibited from acting without authorization."

"You are the best in school, but things are different outside the city. If you lose in school, you can start over. But if you lose outside the city, you die."

"Now, begin dividing into teams."

He took out the list and read out the names one by one.

"First Squad: Zhang Lei, Wang Hao, Liu Yang, Chen Xue, Zhou Ming, Li Xuefeng."

"Team Leader: Zhou Hai"

Second Squad: ..."

As the names were read out one by one, Song Chen waited quietly.

"Fifth Squad: Song Chen, Zhao Wei, Sun Qiang, Li Wei, Wang Jun, Liu Tingting."

"Team Leader: Zhang Zhenyun"

Song Chen raised an eyebrow slightly.

He and Zhao Wei were actually assigned to the same squad.

He turned to look at Zhao Wei, who was also looking at him with a cryptic smile on his face.

Zhao Wei walked over and said in a low voice, "Song Chen, Song Chen, we really are destined to meet. Don't worry, I'll take good 'care' of you outside the city."

Song Chen didn't bother with him, thinking that this person was still clueless about his own life even after arriving outside the city.

He looked at the martial artist leading the fifth squad.

He was a man in his thirties, tall and thin, with a stern face, leaning against an armored vehicle smoking.

Song Chen noticed that he had two knives at his waist, the handles of which were worn and shiny, clearly indicating that he was a veteran of many battles.

Zhang Zhenyun noticed his gaze, looked up to meet it, exhaled a puff of smoke, and then expressionlessly looked away.

"Fifth squad, assemble here."

Song Chen stepped forward, and the other team members gradually gathered around.

Zhao Wei stood close to Song Chen, Sun Qiang and Liu Tingting looked nervous, Li Wei looked calm, and Wang Jun stared blankly at the distant ruins.

Zhang Zhenyun glanced at the six people and said in a flat tone, "Six people, with the lowest Qi and Blood stat being 0.6 and the highest being 1.3. A typical suicide setup."

The team members' expressions changed simultaneously.

Zhang Zhenyun stubbed out his cigarette and said coldly, "Since you're here, don't even think about dying. My squad, if they're going to die, they'll die behind me."

"Now, come with me."

He turned and walked toward the small armored vehicle.

Song Chen followed closely behind.

After walking a few steps, he took a deep look at the ruins of Changqing City in the distance.

As the sun set, it painted the ruins a dark red.

Song Chen withdrew his gaze, touched the battle sword on his back, and bent down to get into the car.