Chapter 54 Adjuster

Chapter 54: Chapter 54: Adjuster

"Fierce Upper refers to ’Upper-Rank Ferocity,’ which corresponds to Xiong Zhong and Fierce Lower. It’s the Pan-Tianyuan Cultural Circle’s power ranking system for Fierce-level Powerhouses."

Xiao Yu knew Feng Yin had amnesia, so she didn’t mind his questions about basic common sense and casually explained.

"You have to understand that there’s a massive gap in strength for a Fierce-level Martial Artist. It spans from the early stage when they first break past the limits of human physique, all the way to the node known as the ’Power of Five,’ where their physique approaches a new soft limit." She counted on her fingers and continued, "Those who have just broken past the limits of ordinary people can’t even be called Fierce Level.

"But a Martial Artist who possesses Two People’s Strength and has officially mastered a Fixed Form is considered Fierce Lower.

"Those with the strength of over three people and mastery of two Fixed Forms are Xiong Zhong.

"And those with the strength of four or more people who are proficient in at least three Fixed Forms—and who have passed the public combat assessment of their respective country’s Martial Artist Association—can finally be awarded the rating of Fierce Upper."

Feng Yin nodded slowly. "Fierce Upper requires the strength of four people and three Fixed Forms... I understand."

At the same time, he thought to himself that with his current physique, he probably had the strength of "three point five people." If he practiced the Rotating Dragon Breath for a while longer, his physical fitness would continue to improve, and he should be able to reach the level of four people. No, given the efficiency of his physical improvement, the time it took to increase his strength by "half a person" through the Breathing Technique was probably enough for him to clear a few more levels in the game. With both factors combined, his personal Speed in advancing to the strength of four people would be even faster than he imagined.

Then the only thing separating him from the Fierce Upper standard was just practicing one more Fixed Form, right?

Beside him, Xiao Yu steered the topic back. "Speaking of the Rising Star Tournament, First Junior Brother, you should really participate."

"Why would I participate in that?" Feng Yin shook his head slowly, showing little interest.

Xiao Yu glanced at Xie Jingyuan beside them, who seemed to have perked up. She chuckled and said, "First Junior Brother, I’m not just tossing out a bad idea. If you get a high rank or even win the championship in the Rising Star Tournament, it’ll do wonders for our master’s reputation."

Reputation? He looked at Xie Jingyuan.

The refined old man—who possessed the handsome appearance of a middle-aged man—coughed lightly and said with a hint of embarrassment, "Feng Yin, there’s no harm in participating..."

Feng Yin looked thoughtful. "If I win the Rising Star championship, it’ll be very useful to you, Master?"

Xie Jingyuan nodded slowly. "Since I left the Yin Yang Sword Sect to establish the Gangrou Sect, my personal Cultivation has improved significantly over the past twenty years. However... my ability to teach disciples seems somewhat lacking. So far, I don’t have any disciples who have achieved notable results."

Beside him, Xie Yanran lowered her head. "Master, it’s just that the few of us are disappointing. If Little Junior Brother hadn’t been..."

As soon as those words were spoken, a heavy silence fell over them. As expected of Xie Yanran, she was naturally gifted at freezing the atmosphere.

Xie Jingyuan sighed.

Xiao Yu scratched her head awkwardly. "Well, let the past be the past... Master has taken in a few more disciples in recent years, not to mention a genius girl like me. We’ll definitely prosper in the future." Saying that, she grinned and leaned in to shake Xie Jingyuan’s arm. "Master, I want to participate in this year’s Rising Star Tournament too."

Xie Jingyuan gently patted her small head. "You’re not ready yet. You can’t even use the Dragon Transformation smoothly. You’d be at a huge disadvantage competing against other Fierce Level opponents. Just participate next year."

He looked back at Feng Yin. "Feng Yin, you can think about it, but I won’t force you. If you don’t want to go, you don’t have to."

Xiao Yu chuckled. "Speaking of which, the Rising Star Tournament’s registration requirement is for unranked newcomers under twenty years old, and a person can only participate once in their lifetime. How old are you exactly, Feng Yin?"

Everyone looked at Feng Yin.

Feng Yin smiled helplessly. "I don’t even know how old I am..."

Before transmigrating, he was almost thirty. But after coming to this world, his body had grown much younger. He looked about twenty, and if he claimed to be eighteen or nineteen, people would readily believe him.

Xiao Yu scrutinized Feng Yin for a moment. "Hmm... I’m already eighteen. Given your appearance, it wouldn’t be appropriate to say you’re younger than me. Let’s just set your official age to nineteen."

Feng Yin glanced at Xie Jingyuan and smiled. "Just setting it to twenty is fine too."

Xie Jingyuan, wise and experienced with age, smiled upon hearing this. "Have you made up your mind?"

Feng Yin nodded gently. "If Senior Sister hadn’t taken me in, I’d probably be a rotting corpse in Sin City by now. And now, Master has come to rescue us. Since I have the ability now, why shouldn’t I win some honor for Master?"

"Well said!" Xie Yanran smiled widely. "Saving you wasn’t in vain. It seems this was destined!"

This time, the mood wasn’t killed. The group was escorted back to the cruise ship amidst their casual chatter.

Meanwhile, beneath the surface of the sea.

Hearing the alerts in their earpieces, two frogmen retreated and distanced themselves from several positions around the massive ship.

In a submersible in the distance, a burly blond man held a walkie-talkie and rapidly issued commands. "Ghost, I warned you not to keep staring at Xie Jingyuan. Just confirm that they’ve boarded the ship."

"Understood," Ghost replied.

"Hyena, the Zero Point Group’s security drones are about to begin their patrol. Take cover in advance."

"Copy that," Hyena responded. "The area around the cruise ship has been fully scouted, and their patrol patterns have been entirely recorded."

"Sharp Blade, what’s your status?"

"The leaders of the three gangs in Sin City have been eliminated," Sharp Blade reported. "The murder clues all point to each other. They’re bound to start a turf war in the next day or two."

"Good, very good." The burly blond man looked satisfied. He turned to his colleague behind him, who was continuously typing on a laptop. "Hacker, what about you?"

The frail-looking man looked up, adjusted his glasses, and said, "I’ve found a vulnerability in the Zero Point Group’s drone matrix. However, once it’s breached and utilized, we’ll only be able to gain temporary control for a maximum of five minutes."

"That’s enough." The burly blond man stood up. "With the mole we planted in the Zero Point Group, all the pieces are in place. Although Chen Yu, Xuan Guang’s little heiress, is just a side dessert, if we can use this operation to lure away an Ultimate Level expert like Xie Jingyuan, taking her life will be effortless..."

The Hacker in the back adjusted his glasses again. "Chen Yu should be Xie Jingyuan’s highest protection priority. What if we can’t lure him away?"

The burly blond man chuckled darkly. "Then we’ll just have to see if those special Adjusters raised in the Zero Point Consortium’s laboratories carry enough weight."

"Adjusters... I see. So the true purpose of our operation this time is to assist our spies in escaping with Zero Point’s Adjuster data, right?" the Hacker said slowly.

The burly blond man revealed a chilling smile. "You’re a smart man. Some things are better left unspoken. Don’t ask too many questions."

The Hacker nodded lightly. "Alright. Just give me the command when we’re ready to move. I’ll need twenty minutes in advance to prepare the hack."

The burly blond man flashed him an ’OK’ gesture. "Here’s to a successful partnership."