Atlas of Heaven and Man

Inside a training hall in Hongsheng District, Su Wei was bare-chested, repeatedly striking a padded target.

Each strike engaged every muscle in his body, sending sweat flying. The power behind each blow was evident, yet none of his strikes caused any damage to the surface of the target, a testament to his incredibly precise control.

Since arriving in Central City, he had been on standby, yet he received a monthly stipend.

The money wasn't a lot, but it was enough for him to live on in Central City. Moreover, he received it without having to work, something he never dared to imagine before.

Aside from the necessities for living and training, he sent all the remaining money to the families of his injured and fallen comrades.

In his eyes, Central City was practically a paradise for cultivation. Not only could he find various combat forums, but he also didn't have to constantly worry about activity indexes or be on guard against hostile enemies.

Of course, it wasn't that Central City was so safe, but rather that as a Third Threshold combatant, ordinary people posed no threat to him.

Besides, the dangers of Central City were far less than those of the Confluence Zone. In the Confluence Zone, everyone had to hide within the city settlements at night, and no one dared to venture outside the walls. He, on the other hand, could go out whenever he pleased.

As he was focused on his training, his Realm Device suddenly rang. He immediately stopped, glanced at it, and answered, "Captain?"

Chen Chuan's voice came from within: "Team member Su, I need to meet with you."

Su Wei's expression immediately turned serious, and he asked, "Where should I go?"

He then saw a location on his Realm Device.

"Meet me here."

Su Wei looked at it. The location was also in Hongsheng District, and the time was before eleven o'clock, a little more than an hour from now. It wasn't far from here.

Just as he was looking around, a voice sounded from his Realm Device: "Team member Su, come here."

Su Wei followed the direction indicated by the Realm Device and saw a high-rise building that had been abandoned halfway through construction. It looked quite old. He walked across the gravel-filled road, entered the building, glanced upwards, and then went up to the rooftop along the bare staircase.

Chen Chuan was waiting there. He said, "Team member Su, Central City is under close surveillance recently. Every move is being watched. Besides the authorities, major corporations are also paying attention to combatants. It's more convenient to talk here."

Su Wei wasn't a native of Central City, so he wasn't very sensitive to the situation there. However, just listening to these words, he understood that something was up.

He recalled that recently, city patrols had been frequently coming to inspect his apartment, something that hadn't happened when he first arrived in Central City.

He said solemnly, "Captain, please tell me what's going on."

Chen Chuan didn't immediately get to the point but looked at him and said, "Speaking of which, since I recruited you into the team, Team member Su, I haven't had a chance to test your skill level. I'd like to see it today."

"Alright!"

Su Wei responded. His expression was very serious. Although Chen Chuan was younger than him, he had been able to determine the number and combat style of the enemies he faced that day just by using the Realm Device. His strength was undoubtedly very high.

Moreover, since arriving, Chen Chuan had exuded a pressure that he couldn't ignore, causing him to tense up involuntarily, clearly telling him that Chen Chuan's level was above his own.

The rooftop was quite spacious, and there was no one in the building, so he could fight freely.

He stepped back a bit and looked at Chen Chuan. Seeing that he didn't intend to attack first, he pushed off the ground, charging forward. The floor vibrated violently, and a large circle of cracks immediately appeared.

Once he was close, he threw a punch.

Chen Chuan stood there without moving, simply raising his arm to block the punch head-on.

At this moment, Su Wei was completely suspended in mid-air. As soon as the two made contact, the contained force within his body suddenly erupted.

This was a two-stage force technique.

This type of attack was widely circulated outside, but few could use it well. He was one of the best.

Of course, the purpose wasn't to knock Chen Chuan down in one blow, but because the floor couldn't withstand the strength of both of them. With this strike, the area where Chen Chuan was standing would inevitably shatter. If he lost his balance, even if he couldn't defeat Chen Chuan, he could certainly find a better opportunity.

However, to his surprise, Chen Chuan solidly withstood the force he delivered, yet his feet didn't even wobble. Not only that, but not even a slight tremor was transmitted from the floor below.

He immediately realized that Chen Chuan's altered organization had steadily dissipated the force and guided it in other directions. This was a very clever technique.

Seeing that the first strike didn't succeed, he kicked out in mid-air before landing. The connection to the previous punch was excellent, demonstrating the powerful coordination of his body.

Chen Chuan reached out and slapped, once again blocking his kick.

Su Wei finally landed at this time and charged forward again without hesitation, launching a fierce offensive.

Chen Chuan didn't actively attack and stood still, using only one hand to offset his attacks.

Su Wei became more and more astonished as he fought, and at the same time, he was very impressed. Being able to do this proved that Chen Chuan's speed and strength far exceeded his own, allowing him to handle his attacks with such ease.

After trying to unleash dozens more moves, he knew that continuing like this was meaningless, so he retreated and said, "Captain, this is my level with bare hands. I'm going to use weapons now."

Chen Chuan nodded and said, "You can use them, Team member Su. Feel free."

Su Wei pulled out a dagger from behind his waist. Actually, his preferred weapon was dual short spears, but he didn't have a weapon permit and couldn't carry such conspicuous weapons on the street, so he didn't bring them with him today. But having a dagger was the same.

He made some adjustments and then suddenly stepped forward, stabbing with the dagger.

Chen Chuan didn't let the dagger stab him. This time, he used both hands to intercept and parry the dagger, no longer just defending passively. While accurately blocking the dagger, he would also emit a force that rebounded into Su Wei's body.

Su Wei's offensive was greatly limited by such force feedback. The moves couldn't be connected at all, resulting in extremely limited threats.

Realizing that he couldn't fight head-on, he immediately changed his style, and the offensive routine became more inclined to cunning, using some hidden killing moves, but none of them worked.

Although Chen Chuan didn't deliberately use his mental power, the field naturally radiated outwards, clearly feeling some fluctuations in the field. Therefore, no matter how Su Wei used feints, they were clearly displayed in front of him, and none of them succeeded.

Su Wei didn't give up in the face of such a predicament. He suddenly leaped backwards, and then heavily stomped his foot, immediately causing a crack to extend from under his feet towards where Chen Chuan was standing, and the floor also collapsed downwards.

After seeing this, Chen Chuan retreated backwards, but while he had just jumped up and was still in mid-air, Su Wei suddenly threw the dagger in his hand, and with the help of the force of stepping on the ground, he jumped up, flipped over in mid-air, and threw another dagger that he had never used before. The latter dagger actually arrived in front of Chen Chuan one step ahead of the first.

Chen Chuan saw that this dagger was extremely fast and had enough penetrating power. Although he could withstand it, this was a sparring match, and there was no need to do so, so he turned his body and dodged sideways.

However, just as he made this move, the dagger that fell behind suddenly accelerated forward!

Oh?

Chen Chuan immediately saw that this was the application of two-stage force attached to it, forming a set of combined techniques of feints and realities from front to back. Not only that, but a figure flashed behind, and Su Wei was now almost rushing up with the dagger, kicking towards him.

Chen Chuan hadn't landed yet at this time. He looked calmly at the dagger slowly approaching, and it seemed that in the next moment, this weapon would pierce his brow.

Su Wei couldn't help but be shocked. The kicked-out foot didn't kick towards Chen Chuan again, but instead suddenly raised high, kicking the dagger away with a 'pa' sound. However, under the hasty use of force, his body lost its balance, and there was no landing point under his feet, causing him to fall downwards.

At this time, a hand stretched out from above, grabbing his wrist with a 'pa' sound, suspending his entire body in mid-air. A series of loud sounds came from the floor below, but several floors were successively crashed through, and there was a large hole underneath.

He looked up and saw Chen Chuan standing on the rooftop railing, his gaze falling down. Then, with a gentle pull, he pulled his entire body up.

Su Wei used the momentum to jump up and landed next to Chen Chuan. He thought for a while and sighed, "It seems that my last move was superfluous. Captain probably didn't need my help."

Chen Chuan smiled and said, "Team member Su, it was just a subconscious reaction."

He had a rough understanding of Su Wei's strength. Compared to Qin Qingque and Yuan Qiuyuan, his basic skills weren't as solid, which might have originated from the special environment of the Confluence Zone. However, he was very, very experienced in combat. In a real fight to the death, the two of them might not be able to suppress him.

After all, he was someone who grew up in the Confluence Zone. Those who weren't good enough had already been eliminated.

It's worth mentioning that, not to mention the subconscious move at the end, Su Wei didn't try to go behind him to attack him, probably because he knew it was useless, or perhaps it was due to his personality.

But this persistence should only be towards teammates. He believed that he wouldn't be so pedantic when facing enemies.

Now he understood this teammate even better. This was a person who had his own persistence but wasn't inflexible.

He looked out beyond the rooftop, gazing at the distant urban area, and said, "Team member Su, there will be some situations in Central City next. We may be involved in missions at any time. I'll need your assistance and cooperation then."

Su Wei felt very uneasy about not doing anything for such a long time. Now that he heard the order, he finally felt at ease. He raised his hand, gave a slightly stiff salute, and said solemnly, "Yes, Captain!"

......

......