The bell rang.
Lin Ye reluctantly stuffed the last meat bun into his mouth and rushed toward the virtual combat classroom.
He still needed to get the key to open the door.
Tasked with eating twenty thousand calories a day, Lin Ye had, of course, planned to eat as much as he could during breakfast.
Otherwise, the expense would fall on his family back home.
Unfortunately, even though he ate as fast as he could, he only managed to consume close to ten thousand calories.
But his stomach truly seemed to have become an Abyssal Maw. Despite all that food, he felt no sense of satisfaction whatsoever.
Fortunately, the pangs of hunger were suppressed for the time being.
Lin Ye took out his magnetic card and swiped it on the virtual combat classroom's access panel.
The door slid open.
A huge, pure-white classroom with a sci-fi aesthetic came into view.
Neatly arranged inside the classroom were hundreds of virtual devices resembling single-person cryo-pods.
A hundred years ago, with the descent of the Celestial Abyss, human martial arts entered an explosive phase of development. At the same time, technology did not stagnate.
Among the advancements, the application of virtual reality technology had already permeated every aspect of life.
Spearheaded by the Earth Human Federation and jointly launched by the martial artist alliances of various nations and top powers like the four great Martial Halls, the virtual combat platform—"Martial Pinnacle"—was born!
It could simulate real senses and physical data with 100% accuracy, allowing Martial Artists worldwide to engage in combat sparring and skill refinement anytime, anywhere, without risk of injury or death.
One could even enter a simulated Celestial Abyss battlefield to fight against digitized versions of the otherworldy races.
Once everyone had assembled, Chen Meng gave the order, and all the students of Class 3-7 lay down in the Virtual Pods.
Lin Ye's vision went black.
The next moment, he felt himself reappear in the classroom, only this time, the countless Virtual Pods had vanished.
Chen Meng stood before the students and said, "Look alive!"
With his hands clasped behind his back, his sharp gaze swept over every student.
"Today, we won't be practicing anything else. We're going to discuss one thing—weapon specialization."
He paused, his tone turning exceptionally serious.
"I know that for the past two and a half years, the school has required you to focus on fist techniques and Body Techniques, with weapon training as a supplement. You had to learn a bit of everything so you could find the weapon that suits you best."
"But now, with only half a year left until the college entrance exams and less than two weeks until the next placement test, you no longer have time to be indecisive."
"From today onward, each of you must choose one weapon to be your primary focus for the next six months. Both your regular training and any resource allocation will revolve around your choice."
As soon as he said this, the students' expressions varied.
The top students in the class, especially those with official Martial Artists in their families, had naturally been told about this in advance.
Some had even been specializing in a particular weapon style since childhood.
"Now, state your choice!"
"Wang Zetao!"
"Saber!"
"Li Jun!"
"Sir... I haven't decided..."
"Ah! Sword! Sir, I choose the sword!"
Li Jun had been called on suddenly.
Just like Lin Ye, he was one of the slackers just getting by in this class. He was naturally extremely nervous, and it wasn't until he saw Chen Meng's murderous glare that he hastily picked a weapon.
One by one, the students announced their choices, most picking mainstream weapons like sabers and swords.
When it was almost Lin Ye's turn, Li Jun, who was next to him, nudged him. "Ah Ye, have you decided? I'm already regretting my choice..."
"Swordsmanship is the damn hardest to practice..."
"Sigh!"
Lin Ye was indeed a bit hesitant. He had dabbled in everything over the past two and a half years, but he wasn't proficient in any of them.
Just then, the system in his mind spoke up again.
[Ding! A crucial choice has been detected for the host. Calculating optimal evolution path...]
[Calculation complete!]
[Based on the host's Goblin racial traits, the most suitable weapons are: long-handled blunt instruments (staff/club/mace)!]
[System Recommendation: For a Goblin, the most reliable companion is always the big club you picked up from who-knows-where! It's simple, brutal, and effective! There's no problem that can't be solved with a bonk on the back of the head. If there is, just bonk it again!]
Lin Ye felt a throb in his temples.
'I should have seen this coming.'
'This system is really obsessed with the whole Goblin thing.'
"Lin Ye!"
Chen Meng's gaze fell upon him.
"Sir, I choose the staff!"
His voice wasn't loud, but everyone present, including Chen Meng, was momentarily stunned.
Because he was the first person in the entire class to choose the staff.
The staff is the Ancestor of Hundred Weapons, the foundation of all foundations.
But precisely because it was so fundamental, few people chose it as their primary weapon.
In the eyes of most, Staff Skill involved wide, sweeping movements that looked powerful but lacked the fluid techniques of a sword or saber, and it wasn't as sharp or deadly as a long spear.
On the battlefield, against the otherworldly races clad in Scale Armor with their insane Defense Power, a blow from a staff might do nothing more than tickle them.
Only students from poor families who couldn't afford finely crafted weapons from a Weapon Workshop would settle for the staff as a second-best option.
Chen Meng gave Lin Ye a deep look but didn't say much, simply nodding. "Alright!"
Once the selections were complete, the chosen weapons instantly materialized before everyone.
That was the great thing about the Virtual Space—many tedious processes were simply skipped.
Lin Ye gripped the weapon that had appeared out of thin air. It was slightly heavy in his hand, the wood tough and resilient, with a unique, smooth texture.
The moment his palm closed around the staff, an unprecedented sense of familiarity and closeness welled up within him, as if this ordinary wooden stick had always been a part of his body.
[Your normal attacks have been automatically modified according to your weapon form!]
[New Form Acquired: Normal Attack - Sweep!]
[New Form Acquired: Normal Attack - Thrust!]
[New Form Acquired: Normal Attack - Smash!]
[A new quest has been issued!]
[Ancestor of Hundred Weapons: Perform 2,000 standard Staff Skill movements.]
[Quest Reward: Unlock exclusive passive skill "Staff Momentum", Skill Point +1.]
Lin Ye ignored the strange looks from those around him, walked straight to an empty, less crowded area, and assumed his stance.
Lin Ye closed his eyes.
He recalled the Staff Skill knowledge he had learned before.
The weapon forms issued by the Federation were the most fundamental of basics.
There were thirty-six forms in the Staff Skill set. Lin Ye opened his eyes and immediately executed the first one.
He sank into a simple horse stance, gripped the staff with both hands, and generated power from his waist and hips, channeling it through his arms to execute a standard horizontal sweep!
WHOOSH—!
The tip of the staff whistled through the air, carving a perfect arc.
Next was the thrust.
His body and the staff moved as one. With his waist and stance unified, the long staff in his hands shot out like a viper striking from its den, precisely striking a point in the air before him and stirring a ripple in the airflow.
Smash, pound, tap, flick...
Once, twice, ten times, a hundred times...
Lin Ye became completely immersed in his own world.
Even in the Virtual Space, there was stamina consumption.
The essence of this stamina consumption was the Spiritual Power of the physical body lying in the Virtual Pod.
When one's Spiritual Power was insufficient, the feedback to the virtual avatar manifested as exhaustion and fatigue.
But Lin Ye was not troubled by this limitation.
The infinite stamina from his "Healing out of combat" mechanism allowed him to tirelessly repeat these tedious basic movements.
And the [Normal Attack] trait granted by the system made his every swing infinitely close to textbook perfection.