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

After listening to everyone's words, Song Chen raised his head and looked into the officer's eyes: "I'm not leaving."

The officer frowned: "Young man..."

He remained steadfast: "All martial artists within a 500-kilometer radius have been recruited, and I am also a martial artist, so I am also within the recruitment scope. There is no reason for me to leave."

"You're a student..."

"Do you know how I got here from Nanjiang? I walked here. I walked in the wilderness for a month, all by myself."

The square fell silent.

The officer's gaze fell on Song Chen's face.

The young face was covered in mud and blood, but those eyes...

Those eyes, with their golden luster, held no youthful impulsiveness or passion, only something unfamiliar to the officer.

That wasn't courage, it wasn't showing off, it wasn't reckless ignorance.

That was peace.

A cold, calm desensitized to life and death after repeated brushes with the edge of death.

The officer had seen that look before.

You can occasionally see this in martial artists who have lived in the wilderness for more than ten years.

But those people were at least thirty, forty, or even fifty years old, while this young man—his file says he's eighteen.

The officer sighed, handed the terminal back to his adjutant, picked up an armband from the table, and handed it to Song Chen: "Tianhe South Fortress, temporary formation, Third Defense Squad."

"Go to logistics to pick up a combat uniform and supplies, then report to the captain in the East District."

Song Chen took the armband, glanced down at it, and saw the fortress logo and the words "Third Squad" printed on the gray background.

"Thanks."

He turned and walked towards the logistics department.

Behind him, the officer watched his retreating figure, shook his head, and whispered to his adjutant, "Are all young people these days this crazy?"

Before the adjutant could answer, the bald, burly man next to him chimed in, "It's not that young people these days are crazy, it's that this young man is crazy."

"The top scorer in the college entrance exam... came all the way from Anning City... Just who is this kid?"

No one could answer him.

The noise in the square gradually returned to normal, but those who had just seen Song Chen remembered this wild-looking young man.

Song Chen received his new combat uniform and supplies and changed into them in a corner of the logistics department.

The black combat uniform is standard issue, with the emblem of the Tianhai City Defense Command printed on the chest and a gray arm patch reading "Third Squad" on the left arm.

As he walked out of the logistics department, he ran into two people.

One was a young woman, in her early twenties, with a high ponytail and wearing a clearly modified combat suit.

Her features are beautiful, but her eyes are slightly upturned, giving her an unapproachable air.

The other one was fat, and his blood and qi fluctuations were weaker.

The fat man's eyes swept over Song Chen, from his hair to his shoes, from the Thunderclap Blade to the armband on his chest, before he gave an exaggerated smile.

He patted his chest: "Hey, new here? From the third squad?"

"I'm also from the third squad! My name is Pang Fei, and this is Fang Xiao. Don't let her cold face fool you, she's a really nice person."

Fang Xiao ignored the fat man's introduction. Her gaze lingered on Song Chen for a second, then she nodded slightly as a greeting.

"Song Chen," he introduced himself.

"Song Chen..." The fat man repeated the name twice, then suddenly leaned closer and lowered his voice.

"Brother, where did you come from? What happened to you? I heard people in the square say that a savage came in from the depths of the wilderness. Could it be you?"

Song Chen glanced at him but did not answer.

The fat man didn't mind, chuckled, and patted him on the shoulder familiarly: "Come on, come on, I'll take you to the barracks. The captain should be there too, good opportunity to get to know him. By the way, brother, what's your rank? How much health do you have?"

"88".

The fat man's smile froze.

Fang Xiao paused for a moment, turned around, and looked at Song Chen seriously for the first time.

Her own health is 55, making her a main damage dealer in the third squad.

Song Chen followed Fatty and Fang Xiao across the square and headed towards the barracks in the eastern district.

Along the way, people kept casting glances at us.

A young man exuding murderous aura, dressed in brand-new combat gear and carrying a battle sword of unknown grade, walked through the fortress's passageway.

The scene itself was eye-catching enough, but when someone recognized that it was the "wild man" who had just stormed in from the wilderness, the whispers could no longer be contained.

"Is that him? The top scholar from Nanjiang Province?"

"Have you heard? Someone came all the way from Nanjiang Province."

"Eighteen years old, peak second tier... What kind of monster is this?"

"He's the top scorer, what do you think?"

"I've seen top scorers in the imperial examinations, but this kind... I've never seen anything like it."

……

Fatty Pang Fei walked beside Song Chen, listening to the surrounding chatter, his smile growing brighter and brighter, as if the praise was directed at him.

He leaned closer to Song Chen and lowered his voice, saying, "Brother, you're famous now. The whole fortress is talking about you."

Song Chen walked on expressionlessly, without responding.

Fang Xiao walked ahead without looking back, but she slowed her pace so that Song Chen could catch up.

She made this small gesture so naturally, as if it were unintentional, but Song Chen noticed it.

They arrived at the barracks in the eastern district.

Fang Xiao stopped in front of a door, knocked twice, and then pushed the door open and went inside.

"Captain, the new guy."

Inside the room, a man was sitting on the edge of the bed, polishing a psionic pistol.

He was about thirty-five years old, thin, and with little flesh on his face.

The team leader looked up: "Song Chen?"

"Yes."

He stood up, walked up to Song Chen, and extended his hand: "Chen Fang, captain of the third squad."

Chen loosened his grip, took a step back, and looked him up and down. "I've heard about you. Not bad, much better than I was back then."

"But this is a battlefield, not a wilderness. In the wilderness, you're only responsible for yourself. On the battlefield, you're responsible for your teammates. Understand?"

"clear."

Chen Fang nodded, took a folding bed from the iron cabinet by the bed, and handed it to Song Chen: "Your seat is in the cubicle on the left. The beast tide probably won't break out for a while, so rest today."

Song Chen took the folding bed and walked towards the cubicle on the left.

The fat man followed behind him, enthusiastically helping him set up the bed.

Song Chen set up the folding bed, placed his backpack at the head of the bed, and leaned the Thunder Knife against the side of the bed.

He sat on the bed, finally relaxing the muscles that had been tense for half a month.

The fat man sat on the opposite bed, rambling on about the fortress: "...The third squad has seven people in total, including you. You've met the captain, you've met Fang Xiao, and you've met me too."

"There are three more patrolling outside, they won't be back until tonight. One is called Old Zhou, he's good with guns, a really accurate sniper; another is called Iron Head, he's trained in physical combat, he can easily take on a second-tier alien beast; and the last one is called Little Deer, a medic, she's quite cute..."

Song Chen listened, nodding occasionally.

The fat man talked for a while, then suddenly stopped and looked at Song Chen: "Brother, are you very tired?"

Song Chen glanced at him and nodded.

The fat man scratched his head and chuckled, "Okay, I won't bother you anymore. You can get some rest. See you tomorrow."

He stood up, tiptoed out of the cubicle, and closed the door behind him.