Jiangnan Pavilion

The spring rain fell ceaselessly, a persistent drizzle.

“Pat, pat!” Raindrops splattered against the umbrella, sending water flying.

Luo Feng held his umbrella, walking beside Yang Hui. After crossing a wooden arch bridge, they arrived at a cluster of buildings. Yang Hui pointed into the distance. “Luo Feng, that garden over there is Jiangnan Pavilion. There are already two students residing in Jiangnan Pavilion; you will be the third.”

“Jiangnan Pavilion?” Luo Feng’s heart stirred, and he couldn't help but ask, “Teacher, why does it share the same name as Jiangnan Base City?”

Since he was now an official member of the training camp, and Yang Hui was one of its teachers, Luo Feng naturally addressed Yang Hui as ‘Teacher’.

“Haha, it was named after the Base City. The two students living in Jiangnan Pavilion are both from Jiangnan Base City, but they arrived earlier than you.” Yang Hui’s expression turned mysterious, and he suddenly lowered his voice. “Let me warn you, among the two students currently living in Jiangnan Pavilion, there’s one named Shi Jiang! He’s incredibly powerful; even I’m not confident I could beat him. It would be to your advantage to get on his good side.”

“Teacher, even you aren’t confident you could beat him?” Luo Feng was astonished.

Yang Hui was an Intermediate Warlord!

“Indeed.”

Yang Hui nodded. “This Shi Jiang is one of the top five students in the training camp. Many students in this Elite Training Camp already possess ‘Warlord strength’ but choose not to claim the Warlord title! This allows them to remain in the training camp. In fact, almost every student ranked in the top thirty of the entire training camp possesses Warlord strength.”

Luo Feng blinked. Almost every student in the top thirty has Warlord strength? That’s an exaggeration.

They were all wolves in sheep’s clothing, capable of graduating but stubbornly staying in the training camp for the full five years.

“The top five are all monsters!” Yang Hui said in a low voice. “These are elites from all over the globe, and the competition among the top five is especially fierce. To consistently maintain a top-five ranking, this Shi Jiang… once he graduates, no matter where he goes, he’s guaranteed to receive the highest-tier treatment!”

“If he were in my Extreme Martial Arts Dojo, for example, he could easily take the position of Jiangnan Base City’s President,” Yang Hui stated.

Luo Feng was speechless.

The President of the Extreme Martial Arts Dojo in Jiangnan Base City? That was the head of one of the four major powerhouses in Jiangnan Base City.

“If he endures a few more years and breaks through again, becoming an ‘Inspector’ for my Extreme Martial Arts Dojo isn’t impossible.” Yang Hui sighed with emotion. Perhaps he was currently on par with ‘Shi Jiang’ in strength, but he was already over fifty, while Shi Jiang was only in his twenties! Shi Jiang’s future was truly limitless.

…

Amidst his shock, Luo Feng arrived at Jiangnan Pavilion.

Jiangnan Pavilion’s courtyard spanned dozens of meters, featuring white walls and black tiles. Dragon carvings even adorned the wall tops.

Pushing open the courtyard gate.

Jiangnan Pavilion contained three separate structures. As Luo Feng and Yang Hui entered the courtyard, the pavilions were quiet. Yang Hui called out directly, “Shi Jiang, Zhao Ruo!” Immediately, a short-haired girl in a loose bathrobe appeared on the second-floor balcony of the left pavilion. From the pavilion directly ahead, a figure leaped down—a young man holding an umbrella and wearing a black training suit.

Luo Feng carefully observed the young man Yang Hui had praised so highly.

The young man was slightly shorter than Luo Feng, perhaps just over 1.7 meters tall. Though lean, he exuded a powerful aura, as if his entire body was forged from steel. His eyes held a restrained intensity, with occasional flashes of sharp light that were startling.

“That’s Shi Jiang,” Luo Feng silently noted.

“A new student?” An excited voice called out from above. Zhao Ruo, umbrella in hand, excitedly looked at Luo Feng.

Luo Feng also observed this senior student. Senior Sister ‘Zhao Ruo’ had short hair and a petite figure. Her only drawbacks were her darker skin and smaller eyes, which meant Zhao Ruo couldn’t be considered a beauty.

“His name is Luo Feng. From today, he’ll be living with you two in Jiangnan Pavilion,” Yang Hui said with a smile. “Shi Jiang, Zhao Ruo, you are his seniors. Luo Feng is new here, so please look after him.”

“Don’t worry, leave it to me.” Zhao Ruo patted her chest. “With me as his Senior Sister, he won’t suffer any disadvantages.”

“Good, then I’ll be going.”

Yang Hui smiled, patted Luo Feng’s shoulder, and then departed.

…

Jiangnan Pavilion had three structures. Shi Jiang resided in the central one, Zhao Ruo in the left (west) one. Luo Feng naturally took the eastern pavilion.

“Luo Feng, sit, sit.” Zhao Ruo was very enthusiastic. At this moment, she, Luo Feng, and Shi Jiang were all in Zhao Ruo’s living room.

“I arrived in ’55, and Senior Brother Shi Jiang arrived in ’53. We’re both much earlier than you,” Zhao Ruo said with a laugh. Shi Jiang beside her also offered a slight smile. “’53, ’55, ’57—we’re all exactly two years apart, and all from Jiangnan Base City. This is a rare stroke of fate!”

As Shi Jiang spoke, Luo Feng felt his voice was deep and steady, imbued with a calm confidence.

“I’m from Suzhou in Jiangnan Base City. Senior Brother Shi Jiang is from the main urban area. Luo Feng, what about you?” Zhao Ruo asked.

“Yangzhou City,” Luo Feng replied.

Shi Jiang smiled in surprise. “My maternal grandfather lives in Yangzhou City!”

These three all hailed from Jiangnan Base City, but Shi Jiang and Zhao Ruo had different paths: one entered the Elite Training Camp through the ‘Basic Training Camp’ competition, while the other was an elite from the government military sent here. Only Luo Feng was directly selected from among ordinary Warriors.

“Luo Feng, when you go back to your room later, open the laptop the training camp provided you,” Shi Jiang reminded him. “There’s an ‘Student Handbook’ e-book on it. Make sure to read it thoroughly.”

“Yes, that thing is very important,” Zhao Ruo quickly added.

“Especially the points!” Zhao Ruo emphasized. “In the training camp, point ranking is the most crucial! You must have seen the ‘Black Dragon Ranking’ at the entrance, right?”

“I did,” Luo Feng nodded.

The top three seemed to only have one Huaxia Nation name.

“That Black Dragon Ranking is the point ranking. The higher your points, the higher your rank! From the 1st to the 28th of each month is when you earn points. On the 29th, the results are tallied, and the final ranking for the month is determined! By the next month, everyone’s points are cleared, reset to zero. Then you strive again to earn points and compete for rank,” Zhao Ruo explained.

Luo Feng suddenly understood.

So, the point ranking was a monthly cycle!

“Senior Sister, Senior Brother, how are these points earned?” Luo Feng pressed.

“Points are ‘Battle Achievement Points’ multiplied by ‘Combat Power Amplitude’,” Zhao Ruo explained. “For example, you’ll start competing for rank in April. Let’s say from April 1st to 28th, your total Battle Achievement Points are 2000, and your Combat Power Amplitude is 1.8. Then, your total points would be 2000 multiplied by 1.8, which is 3600 points! Rankings are determined by these points.”

Luo Feng grew even more confused.

What were Battle Achievement Points and Combat Power Amplitude?

“Battle Achievement Points are earned by hunting monsters! For the specifics, just read the ‘Student Handbook’ e-book, and you’ll understand,” Zhao Ruo explained. “As for ‘Combat Power Amplitude,’ it’s determined in the virtual space. For detailed information, you’ll find it in the Student Handbook.”

Luo Feng blinked helplessly.

He had to read the Student Handbook for everything…

“Luo Feng!” Shi Jiang finally spoke.

“Senior Brother,” Luo Feng looked at Shi Jiang.

“Remember, if you want to improve quickly in the training camp, you must strive for a higher rank every month. The higher, the better,” Shi Jiang said solemnly. “This ranking also determines access to various valuable resources. Some resources are coveted even by Warlords. That’s why many students who have already reached Warlord strength still remain here.”

Zhao Ruo pouted beside him. “Like our Senior Brother Shi Jiang.”

Shi Jiang was momentarily speechless.

Zhao Ruo covered her mouth, stifling a laugh, and Luo Feng also chuckled.

…

In Luo Feng’s study at Jiangnan Pavilion.

The laptop had just booted up, and Luo Feng sat in his chair, meticulously reading the ‘Student Handbook’.

“Trial Room? Challenge Room? Gravity Room? These three training rooms are all created from ancient civilization relics.” As he read, Luo Feng learned more and more about the Elite Training Camp. The camp indeed had many advanced facilities, but the most valuable were undoubtedly the ancient civilization relic devices.

And the most important thing in the training camp was—the point ranking!

High rankings were tied to many benefits.

For instance, the ancient civilization relic ‘Gravity Room.’ Although there were imitation Gravity Rooms on Earth, their effect on Warriors was far inferior to the ancient device. However… there was only one such ‘training room’ in the entire camp. Who got to use it? That depended on the ranking.

The higher the rank, the longer the allocated time! And that was just one benefit!

“If one achieves first place in the monthly ranking a cumulative nine times, they will receive a portion of Dragon Blood worth 80 billion, free selection of any three complete sets of secret techniques, and the option to choose ‘Hong’ or ‘Lei Shen’ as their teacher, becoming a direct disciple.”

“If one achieves first place in the monthly ranking a cumulative six times, they will receive a drop of Jade Marrow worth 30 billion, free selection of any one complete set of secret techniques, and a chance for personal guidance from ‘Hong’ or ‘Lei Shen’.”

…

Reading the descriptions in the e-book, Luo Feng was dumbfounded.

Dragon Blood? Becoming a direct disciple of Hong or Lei Shen? And he could even choose his master?!

Any three complete sets of secret techniques?

One must know that a single ultimate secret technique could fetch an astronomical price.

“Unbelievable, truly unbelievable. But these rewards are all for first place, and require a cumulative nine first-place finishes,” Luo Feng continued reading.

“Achieve a punching force level of 6, and receive a portion of Dragon Blood worth 80 billion, a full set of SS-grade combat armor and weapons…”

“Achieve a punching force level of 5, and receive…”

Luo Feng stared at the long list of rewards, somewhat dazed.

“Achieve Trial Tower Level 5, and receive the position of ‘Inspector’ for the Extreme Martial Arts Dojo, a portion of Dragon Blood worth 80 billion, a full set of SS-grade combat armor and weapons, any three complete sets of secret techniques, and a complete set of the ancient civilization relic ‘Black God’…”

…

The rewards for the Trial Tower levels were clearly the highest.

Inspector!

Logically, that was a position only attainable by beings who surpassed Warlords. And a complete set of the ancient civilization relic ‘Black God’? What was that?

“As long as I reach Trial Tower Level 5, I’ll have everything I could ever want, right?” Luo Feng’s heart pounded. However, recalling his experience with the B-grade test in the Trial Tower, he felt immense pressure.

He had only been on the first level, encountering 100 beginner-level beast generals! And that probably wasn’t even the hardest part of the first level.

There were still the second, third, fourth levels…

Even the experienced Warlord ‘Yang Hui’ had only reached the third level!

The world’s strongest expert, ‘Hong,’ had only reached the sixth level!

The difficulty of reaching the fifth level was unimaginable. No wonder the benefits offered were so terrifying.